Transfer window winners and losers

[dazby]

I'm on hols so I'll be a bit more expansive when I get home but winners are: us, West Brom, QPR. Arse have maintained despite the outs. I'm suprised Chelsea didn't buy from Porto. Losers: everton, Blackburn.

[Dubciteh]

From 365

Winners

Daniel Levy
That rarest of people in football: a man of his word. No wonder he isn't considered a football man.

Yet the ultimate success - or otherwise - of his refusal to cave in to Luka Modric's machinations to depart, and a bid from Chelsea that overvalued the player by as much as £10m, is now dependent on the player he snubbed and the manager whose advice he has reputedly ignored. Between them, last year's lovely player must be persuaded to refocus after his ugly request to sit out the start of the season.

If Modric's head clears, then Levy's gamble will, in the most part, be vindicated, but the way will still be clear to ask whether the Tottenham chairman placed too much worth on the value of his own word when he turned down a small fortune. Everyone and everything has a price, and in the case of Modric and Levy, Chelsea were apparently willing to pay a price - £40m, by the last count - that even Tottenham die-hards would have surely considered too good to refuse.

True, selling Modric on deadline day would have served no purpose other than to line the club's coffers given the absence of time remaining for Redknapp to pursue the "three or four" signings he believed that, in addition to the already-all-but secured Emmanuel Adebayor and Scott Parker, would have made Tottenham top-four competitive again. Yet had Levy opened discussions with Chelsea even as late as two weeks ago then a fee of at least £35m would almost certainly have been forthcoming, leaving Redknapp with plenty of time and leverage with which to reshape a team that has already been exposed as being the Manchester Massives distant inferiors.

The argument has two distinct sides to be thrown around and it's by no means obvious which side Spurs' coin will come down on.

The impression, for what it's worth, is that Redknapp has accepted Levy's determination to keep Modric with good grace. But a penny for his thoughts on Peter Crouch, please. The striker's departure, just three days after what appeared to be his pointed selection from the start against City, may cause a significant breach amongst the Tottenham hierarchy.

It's one thing to hang on to a player against a manager's wishes; it's quite another to sell one of his strikers against his last team sheet.


Tottenham
Not that Spurs did badly on deadline day by any means, however. The bottom line to stress is not merely did they hang on to the player widely considered to be their best whilst bringing in the reigning Player of the Year but they also managed to ship out plenty of the deadwood clogging the wage-bill and bloating a squad that required severe culling.

A single injury will make Crouch missed, but Wilson Palacios will be forgotten just as soon as Sandro recovers his fitness, Kyle Walker is a far superior full-back to Alan Hutton and David Bentley has stalled into a clapped-out old banger at the age of 27. As for the departure of Jermaine Jenas, well that's a conclusive dose of reality to dissolve a myth that has peddled a falsehood for too many years.

All of which leaves local bragging rights in the balance with Arsenal and Tottenham equally entitled to argue their weight of expectation. In the battle for fourth, fifth or sixth, it could be ascloseasthat between the North London Diminisheds.


Stoke
The big movers of English football in the last year (if that is, we accept that Man City's jump into the elite was effective as of their takeover by one of the world's very richest fortuners over two years ago).

Stoke are going places, and not just some far-flung outposts of Europe in the Europa League. Such is the speed of their advance, it's by no means certain that both Crouch and Palacios will even be regulars in the coming campaign, and almost as uncertain that the team they have left will finish above their new employers.

Stoke will probably recoil from being talked up as much as they whined when talked down, but eighth place should be the limits of their ambition in the eight months to come.


Bolton Wanderers
A Pyrrhic victory? Bolton's refusal to lower their valuation of Cahill to a level that either Tottenham or Arsenal felt was reasonable even in a time of their desperation was probably a matter of two or three million pounds. A sizeable sum, to be sure, but with a solitary full year left on his contract Cahill's value will plummet over the next couple of windows.

Indeed, as soon as January, it might fall to around £10m - which is presumably less than what one of Spurs and Arsenal would have been willing to pay this week. If, in the final reckoning, Bolton have effectively 'paid' two or three million pounds for another four months of football from Cahill, the final judgement will surely declare their resilience to be a false economy.


Gary Cahill
Cahill, on the other hand, may in time come to review his deadline-day disappointment - and, with his willingness to move on and up an open secret, it was surely a disappointment - as a blessing in disguise if, in a year's time, a Champions League side hire him as Jamie Carragher's successor.


Liverpool and Craig Bellamy
Too good to go waste, good enough to cover for Luis Suarez - a task that Andy Carroll is currently incapable of performing without requiring a direct change to Liverpool's developing fluid and flexible style of play. At no cost, Bellamy brings plenty of quality and plenty of equally-valuable quantity of cover because of his ability to play in a host of positions across the frontline.

Better still, in completing Liverpool's summer check-list - reserve goalkeeper, tick, new centre-half, tick, new left-back, tick, new midfielders, tick, third striker capable of playing in the first team, tick - re-signing Bellamy seals the deal on a summer which began with Liverpool in the sixth form and ends with them graduated into the elite again.


Raul Meireles
Meireles' switch to Chelsea is a loss at face value but another look spots the explanation that his face no longer fitted in at Liverpool. He was an answer to questions that were no longer being asked at Anfield.

Further, Liverpool's acquiescence to his departure suggests they are confident that rumours of Steven Gerrard's long-term demise have been greatly exaggerated.


Fábio Aurélio
Flattered by his retention. With Meireles lately following the exit path worn thin by Paul Konchesky joining a league of his true standing, a water-carrier reaching Evian, and Joe Cole's surprise loan to Lille, only Aurélio remains of the players brought in during the Hodgson era. That particular time in Liverpool's legend is being swiftly consigned to history.


Four-Year Deals
As popular as Twitter on deadline day, it seems. Well, almost.


Wigan and Bolton
Counting their blessing and points after playing QPR before they had their Premier League team assembled.


QPR
As should the bookies who took money this summer on Rangers being relegated. Now that they have belatedly left their Championship team behind, Rangers are more likely to stay up than not.


Owen Hargreaves
The early signs are encouraging. Never mind the rumours that the Manchester City medics were staggered at the level of Hargreaves' fitness, just consider the confidence Hargreaves displayed by waiting for a better offer until the very last minute instead of accepting a guaranteed future with West Brom. Evidently, he believes that not only can he return, but he can return big.


Manchester City
A no-brainer transfer that is almost a no-loser. Whatever they are paying Hargreaves in his wage and extra-pay-whenever-you-play deal is penny-farthing change in Sheikh Mansour's estimated £1.5bn investment, and the upside potential is worth its weight in gold.

Hargreaves only recently departed his twenties, has past performance of world-class status - how else can performing as the best of English at a World Cup be termed? - and three months in which to hone his fitness for the task of covering for Yaya Toure when he departs on African Nations Cup duty.

Prudence isn't City's forte, but they have covered their final uncovered base on the cheap.


Mikel Arteta
A pay cut worth the personal money lost into the bargain. Everton are by no means small, but a move to Arsenal offers Arteta, never capped for his national team, the biggest and grandest stage of his career. And at the age of 29, it was now or never. "The prospect of Champions League football was something I wasn't able to offer him," admitted David Moyes flatly.

The doubt against Arteta is not so much his quality, though that too might be considered diminished after a knee injury which saw his form stagnate last term, but his quantity. Arsenal's original unwillingness to offer Arteta a four-year deal - oddly, the club have confirmed that is the length of his contract in a departure from their standard policy of confirming nothing other than arrival and shirt number - is proof negative that his best days are already behind him. This is a two-year deal paid over four.

Still, needs must - for both club and player.


Losers

David Moyes
The straw that breaks?


Everton
Nothing in football is truly sad or heroic. If it were, however, Everton's demise from glorious instituion to penny-counting paupers would be a true tragedy.


Newcastle United
This wasn't the transfer window promised in the cold days that followed Andy Carroll's departure.


Andy Carroll
It says all that needs saying after deadline day revealed Liverpool's final priority that their squad now contains cover for Suarez, but has none left - with David Ngog departing to Bolton - for Carroll.


Roman Pavlyuchenko and Peter Crouch
The one who stayed was the one who wanted to go, and the striker who left was the striker who wanted to stay.


Scott Dann
After all the talk of Arsenal and Chelsea, the sanity of Blackburn.


Arsenal
Too little, too late? No strategy, no foward plan? Yes to all, but at least Deadline Day's flurry showed Arsenal still possess enough ambition not to die on their arse. Moreover, if you can forgive a second bad pun, at least they stuck to their guns when they finally entered the market to do the business that ought to have been done months ago.

For all the talk of panic pervading at the Emirates - a suggestion endorsed by Everton's understandable bemusement bordering on anger that the Gunners returned with a bid for a player they hadn't mentioned during talks about Phil Jagielka - the established fact that they refused to match Mikel Arteta's £75,000-a-week Everton contract was admirably nerveless. The Gunners, by common report, were resolute and prepared to keep walking away until Arteta blinked first.

Yet Arsenal's refusal to pay a wage that even Everton accept is the going rate also serves to inspire two other less than admirable points. Firstly, it acts as a damning reminder that both Abou Diaby and Manuel Almunia - the goalkeeping equivalent of Winston Bogarde? - are still at the Emirates collecting a reputed £60k a week, and it's the generosity of that flawed collective wage-plan which explains why Arsenal have struggled so blindly to offload their deadwood this summer. Secondly, their relative and considerable wage austerity at the top of their ceiling remains the foremost reason why Arsenal cannot attract A-list talent and were reduced to haggling with paupers and collecting Chelsea cast-offs as the clock clicked towards 11pm.

Arsenal have the arrangement of their wage-plan substantially wrong. They pay too much for mediocrity, and aren't willing to pay enough on established class. Until they alter their stance, they'll never make it big again.


Chelsea
No Modric, no big deal. Or should that be no big deal with a question mark?

Meireles is solid enforcement of an area undermanned ever since Michael Essien's latest knee knack, and although he will not provide the fresh, quick legs required to rejuvenate a decaying squad, those legs may already be ready for the Stamford Bridge catwalk. Expect Meireles to be one of three full debutants next weekend, tasked with doing the hard yards behind the fancy feet of Daniel Sturridge and Juan Mata.


Shaun Wright-Phillips
The default acquisition at all clubs recently injected with a dose of financial relief - Chelsea, Man City and now QPR.

harsh on swp...

[Dameerto]

I'd count Liverpool as winners, they shifted some dross and their only real loss was Meireles, and then only a loss to the fans in my opinion. I don't think Kenny saw him in his longterm plans (hence the influx of midfielders earlier in the window)

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

NQDP's Transfer window recap part 1

Arsenal:

Arsenal lost their both playmakers and two world class players in Nasri and Fabregas. They made replacement signing deadline day and got slightly less talented but experienced playmaker in Arteta who will suit them fine. Benayon was supposedly brought in as replacement for Nasri but isn't same quality player. They have clearly weakened in central midfield. Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback who will compliment more mobile Vermaelen fantastically well. It's been decade since Arsenal has had genuinely good central defense. Andre Santos was brought in as replacement for Clichy. The pace of the game might come as surprise for attackhappy Brazil international. Gervinho is another attacking winger who came from France. He seemed to struggle in his debut and might take him while to impress in England. Hugely promising (and half Finnish!) Carl Jenkinson came from Charlton as one for the future but might have to play earlier than expected.

Overall lots of comings and goings in Emirates. They were weakened in some areas but also managed to improve in lot of areas.

Grade: 7.5

Aston Villa:

Villa played lot through wings under O'Neill but board took chance to sell his favourite wingers Young and Downing after Houllier era who didn't know how to use them properly. Downing is overrated player whose strengths lie in dead ball situations. However Young had been heart and soul of their attacking play for years and his lost will mean lot less goals. N'Zogbia was brought in as replacement. While good player, he isn't as good as Young and doesn't really help in set pieces which was strength for Villa in the past but now they have no one top quality to take them. Outgoing Friedel was replaced with Shay Given so they replaced top Premierleague keeper with another. Underrated Carlos Cuellar left for Rangers and it will be loss for them. Former Rangers player Hutton came in as replacement and supposedly to provide cover on the right. Jermaine Jenas will hope to revive his career on season long loan but needs to step up his game if he wants to have any sort of influence.

No doubting it, Villa have seriously weakened this transfer window.

Grade 5

Blackburn:

Blackburn were fairly active on transfer markets but most of the players they brought in are complete wild cards on this level. They brought in Yakubu to help with goals but he has been struggling for fitness for years and seems like his best days are behind him. Andersson and Goodwillie were brought from Scotland to provide depth in defence and attack. Petric and Ribeiro are pretty much unknowns. Vukcevic is skillfull midfielder but failed to set weakish Portuguese league alight in regular basis. Dann is traditional centerback but didn't really look worth 6m price tag for Birmingham. Phil Jones left for rags but was more of a one for the future anyway and they got good money for him.

Lot's of players coming in doesn't necesserily mean that team has improved.

Grade 5

Bolton:

As always, Bolton were picking up players, who were flying under radar for one reason or another, for cheap/free. Mears and Eagles are both players who aren't quite good enough for Premier League but are both little too good for Championship. They'll provide depth. Pratley is essentially Championship player who took opportunistic chance to join solid Premier League club on eve of Swansea's promotion. Nigel Reo-Cocker is solid Premierleague player and will be regular starter. Kakuta and N'Gog came to revive their careers and will get some chances with Bolton. Especially for N'Gog this will be about right level. Boyata came on loan from us and will provide fine back up and solid, if inexperienced, starter should Cahill leave on january. Tuncay is hot and cold player and not really regular goalscorer but will again provide depth and will be used in similar role as Elmander who left in summer. Al-Habsi is promising keeper but didn't get enough chances behind Jussi so he left to be starter in Wigan. Matt Taylor never quite reached the level of performance he had in Portsmouth.

Yet again Bolton do decent job patching up their team. Consider they made profit in transfer markets they did solid job.

Grade 7

Chelsea:

New era means new players. Villas-Boas has clearly been brought in to revamp their ageing squad while keeping them competitive. Romelu Lukaku is probably the most promising striker in Europe and might feature sooner than expected. Defensive midfielder Oriel Romeu came from Barcelona reserves and is very highly rated. Juan Mata is world class midfielder who is expected to perform immediately and take his place in ageing Chelsea midfield immediately. Meireles had amazing season for struggling Liverpool side last season and Chelsea got him for relative cheap. Davila is complete unknown. Solid but unspectacular Beanyon was loaned to Arsenal.

Some very impressive youngsters and top quality midfield additions. Chelsea will be competitive now and in the future.

Grade 9

[Alioune DVToure]

Wolves have made some cracking signings in my opinion. I fancy them to finish about 10th. Like Stoke, they keep improving year-on-year.

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

NQDP's transfer window recap part 2

Everton

When will Moyes have enough? That's the big question in Goodison as he is just about only prized asset they have left. Beckford, Yakubu and Vaughan are all gone. Crocked and old Louis Saha is only striker left with any sort of Premier League goalscoring pedigree. That doesn't project well for this coming season. Not only that but their Primus Motor Mikel Arteta is gone as well. Real Madrid flop Royston Drenthe was brought in to cover for all of them but again, it doesn't look good. Couple of more completely obscure loan signings were brought in but one has to wonder.

It goes from bad to worse for Everton. Years of none investment to squad and most of their best players sold. Everton are a complete mess.

Grade 4


Fulham

Who are these people? That must be the question lot of people in Craven Cottage must be thinking. Martin Jol has great scouting network behind him though and some of the players are guaranteed to contribute heavily. Jon Arne Riise is fantastic and experienced player and will help left side both defending and going forward. Kasami is highly rated and was quite impressive in Italy. Marcel Gecov looked impressive in U20 WC. Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence. Ruiz was deadly in Netherlands and scored tons of goals and looks like made for Premierleague. I predict him to be a hit. Orlando Sá is unknown. Fulham also managed to ship off lot of players who simply weren't good enough for this level like Paintsil and Kamara and weren't contributing in level Jol will expect from his team like Greening.

While maybe not household names, Jol has managed to bring in players who will improve Fulham and make them contenders for top 8.

Grade 8.5

Liverpool

Think locally. That must be the motto of Dalglish. Liverpool have spent lot of money but have they seriously strenhtened? At least they are younger. Henderson is experienced player for his age but his natural talent to be worth that transfer fee is debatable. Charlie Adams had a great season but will he be able to step up his game to next level at his age? Downing will improve Liverpool in dead ball situations but how will he cope with pace Liverpool play? He seemed occasionally out of his depth even in O'Neills Villa side. Jose Enrique is good leftback but not really world class. Bellamy will feature from bench and perform with his never-say-die attitude but he has lost that crucial yard of pace. Doni was brought in as back up keeper while Coates and O'Hanlon are highly rated youngsters but still projects. Meireles loss will hit Liverpool's midfield heavily. Liverpool flops Cole, N'Gog and Poulsen were sent away and I'm sure most Liverpool supporters will be happy about those.

There's lot of question marks over incoming transfers- Dalglish seems pretty sure about his ability to get the absolute best out of these players as that will be needed. Otherwise this transfer window will have set them back for years.

Grade 6

Manchester City

You got to swpeculate to accumulate. Well we have certainly speculated and early signs are that we have accumulated as well. Sergio Aguero is absolute world class and is at the age where he will give Ballon D'or a good go in coming seasons. Samir Nasri is super skillfull midfield maestro who is able to perform in numerous different roles in midfield (and to some extent attack). Nsri had slowish start to his premierleague career but has blossomed in past year and a half and is serious improvement on City midfield. Mancini brought in Clichy as replacement for Kolarov who he clearly was disappointed with. Clichy is solid Premier league top 4 leftback but not really best of the best like most of the other players in City starting line up. Clichy is better defender than Kolarov though and it seems that's what Mancini was looking. Signing of Owen Heargreaves on free makes little sense as City are packed with top class defensive/box-to-box midfielders. It's highly unlikely Heargreaves has legs left to play box-to-box-role in front of starting defensive midfielder anyway. Suarez and Savic are highly rated youngster. Pantilimon is unknown quantity but should be second choice keeper. City also managed to get rid of lot of deadwood that had been bulking our squad. Jo and Bellamy left for good while Santa Cruz and Adebayor left on loan. Jerome Boateng never adjusted to England and left for Bayern. Given and firm fan favourite Wright-Phillips left for regular football. Last two might be missed in certain situations.

Money DOES buy you quality. City's "marquee signins" of the summer were top quality. In fringes however there were some puzzling moves.

Grade 9

Manchester united

Youth is wasted on the young. It remains to be seen whether baconface's youngsters can grab their chances with united. Phil Jones, like Smalling year before, is promising and relatively experienced youngster but his career could go many ways still. 19m seems bit steep. Ashley Young on the other hand is like made for them and with more space in better team is likely to flourish. De Gea was brought in to fill some massive shoes as Van der Sars replacements. Young goalkeepers are hard to predict. Taggart finally got enough of O'Shea and Brown who simply weren't good enough for one of the big clubs.

Will they, won't they? That's the question that will be over the heads of these youngsters whiskey nose has brought in in past few years.

Grade 7

[bigblue]

Arse lost 2 world class 24 year olds and replaced them with a few good quality players, but nothing close to world class. A massive readjustment of their expectations from title contenders to trying to squeak into the Champs League.

Think Chelsea did quite well with Mata and Lukaku.

I hope Blackburn and their back-stabbing manager don't win a single game all season

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Parts 3 and 4 tomorrow.

[Kyle]

Looking it all over, I was really impressed with Stoke's business. Woodgate, Upson, Crouch, Palacios, and Jerome are all fantastic players for the system they run, they will def. be a team to watch out for.

[Dameerto]

Looking it all over, I was really impressed with Stoke's business. Woodgate, Upson, Crouch, Palacios, and Jerome are all fantastic players for the system they run, they will def. be a team to watch out for.

They've gone for depth too, which will serve them well in Europe and the domestic cups. I can see them having a tilt at the Carling cup this year personally.

[1950]

Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback

Haha, world class my arse. He's decent & could be a calming influence, but was rubbish last season & pace could be an issue. If he can form a good partnership with Vermaelen, he's an improvement on Koscielny & Djourou, but nowhere near world class.

Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence.

Hahahaha. Experienced at being shite maybe. The man's a calamity. Ask our italian friends around here.


A bit hard on Liverpool tbh. They overpaid, yes. They lost Meireles who imo is better than anyone bar Gerrard & Lucas (different type of player) in their midfield, including Adam. But, they strengthened in quality & quantity. Enrique is a very good left back. They filled a problem position there. Downing is a decent player with good delivery, not worth what they paid, but still.

I think they did a better job than Arsenal, who panic signed like 5 players on the last day & look a weaker team than last season, whereas Liverpool look better.

[david yearsley]

Looking it all over, I was really impressed with Stoke's business. Woodgate, Upson, Crouch, Palacios, and Jerome are all fantastic players for the system they run, they will def. be a team to watch out for.

If you like watching paint dry or porridge setting ;)

Woodgate, Upson, Etherington - way past it and injury prone - they´ll be relying on Pennant creatively - oh and Delap with those pinpoint through balls from the touchline

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback

Haha, world class my arse. He's decent & could be a calming influence, but was rubbish last season & pace could be an issue. If he can form a good partnership with Vermaelen, he's an improvement on Koscielny & Djourou, but nowhere near world class.

Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence.

Hahahaha. Experienced at being shite maybe. The man's a calamity. Ask our italian friends around here.


A bit hard on Liverpool tbh. They overpaid, yes. They lost Meireles who imo is better than anyone bar Gerrard & Lucas (different type of player) in their midfield, including Adam. But, they strengthened in quality & quantity. Enrique is a very good left back. They filled a problem position there. Downing is a decent player with good delivery, not worth what they paid, but still.

I think they did a better job than Arsenal, who panic signed like 5 players on the last day & look a weaker team than last season, whereas Liverpool look better.

You go all "Haha" and then call Lucas better than Meireles. Kind of waters down anything you say.

Arsenal lost better players but also bought better. Mertesacker is fantastic defender when paired with mobile player.

[Mikhail Chigorin]

Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback

Haha, world class my arse. He's decent & could be a calming influence, but was rubbish last season & pace could be an issue. If he can form a good partnership with Vermaelen, he's an improvement on Koscielny & Djourou, but nowhere near world class.

Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence.

Hahahaha. Experienced at being shite maybe. The man's a calamity. Ask our italian friends around here.


A bit hard on Liverpool tbh. They overpaid, yes. They lost Meireles who imo is better than anyone bar Gerrard & Lucas (different type of player) in their midfield, including Adam. But, they strengthened in quality & quantity. Enrique is a very good left back. They filled a problem position there. Downing is a decent player with good delivery, not worth what they paid, but still.

I think they did a better job than Arsenal, who panic signed like 5 players on the last day & look a weaker team than last season, whereas Liverpool look better.

You go all "Haha" and then call Lucas better than Meireles. Kind of waters down anything you say.

Arsenal lost better players but also bought better. Mertesacker is fantastic defender when paired with mobile player.

If Mertesacker is the "fantastic defender" you claim him to be, I'm surprised Bobby Manc didn't sign him up instead of Savic.

[Niall Quinns Discopants]

Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback

Haha, world class my arse. He's decent & could be a calming influence, but was rubbish last season & pace could be an issue. If he can form a good partnership with Vermaelen, he's an improvement on Koscielny & Djourou, but nowhere near world class.

Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence.

Hahahaha. Experienced at being shite maybe. The man's a calamity. Ask our italian friends around here.


A bit hard on Liverpool tbh. They overpaid, yes. They lost Meireles who imo is better than anyone bar Gerrard & Lucas (different type of player) in their midfield, including Adam. But, they strengthened in quality & quantity. Enrique is a very good left back. They filled a problem position there. Downing is a decent player with good delivery, not worth what they paid, but still.

I think they did a better job than Arsenal, who panic signed like 5 players on the last day & look a weaker team than last season, whereas Liverpool look better.

You go all "Haha" and then call Lucas better than Meireles. Kind of waters down anything you say.

Arsenal lost better players but also bought better. Mertesacker is fantastic defender when paired with mobile player.

If Mertesacker is the "fantastic defender" you claim him to be, I'm surprised Bobby Manc didn't sign him up instead of Savic.

Eh?
Does it mean that we didn't sign someone then he is rubbish? Don't quite get the analogy. Also I'm not mancini. Savic is five years younger and cost three million less. And he wasn't bought as starter. But do I think he ostensibly better thisan lescott? It's close.

[Alioune DVToure]

Wenger also went out and bought Mertesacker who is genuinely world class centerback

Haha, world class my arse. He's decent & could be a calming influence, but was rubbish last season & pace could be an issue. If he can form a good partnership with Vermaelen, he's an improvement on Koscielny & Djourou, but nowhere near world class.

Grygera is solid and very experienced defender who rarely makes mistakes. Will be serious improvement on their defence.

Hahahaha. Experienced at being shite maybe. The man's a calamity. Ask our italian friends around here.


A bit hard on Liverpool tbh. They overpaid, yes. They lost Meireles who imo is better than anyone bar Gerrard & Lucas (different type of player) in their midfield, including Adam. But, they strengthened in quality & quantity. Enrique is a very good left back. They filled a problem position there. Downing is a decent player with good delivery, not worth what they paid, but still.

I think they did a better job than Arsenal, who panic signed like 5 players on the last day & look a weaker team than last season, whereas Liverpool look better.

You go all "Haha" and then call Lucas better than Meireles. Kind of waters down anything you say.

Arsenal lost better players but also bought better. Mertesacker is fantastic defender when paired with mobile player.

Lucas is a cracking player in my opinion. One of the most under-appreciated players in the league.

[dazby]

It may take Mertesacher a while to adjust but I think hecis a top player and exactly what the Arse need.

[1950]

You go all "Haha" and then call Lucas better than Meireles. Kind of waters down anything you say.

Arsenal lost better players but also bought better. Mertesacker is fantastic defender when paired with mobile player.

Lucas turned into one of, if not the best player for Liverpool last season. I know you don't like holding midfielders with little creativity, but he's a certain starter & a very important player for them. Meireles is more of a box-to-box/allround type who scores & creates goals as well. I rate them both highly & the point was that Henderson, Spearing, Shelvey & Adam are all inferior midfielders.

Mertesacker is good & I agree with the pairing bit, but calling him world class is a bit of a stretch.