Barker et al

[Fidel Castro]

Had high hopes for the lad, saw him a few times myself but it was the hype created from well respected and knowledgeable people that really got me excited.

He's on loan in the Dutch first division, been chatting to people over there and apparently he's been shite. Faupala as well, Smith Brown has been alright apparently. Pretty shocked that some of our talent can't hack it at such a level though. Odd.

[City64]

Had high hopes for the lad, saw him a few times myself but it was the hype created from well respected and knowledgeable people that really got me excited.

He's on loan in the Dutch first division, been chatting to people over there and apparently he's been shite. Faupala as well, Smith Brown has been alright apparently. Pretty shocked that some of our talent can't hack it at such a level though. Odd.

Dutch league is really poor aswell . its a real shame they aren't flourishing . Maybe the youngsters would feel more at home playing lower level league football in England ? familiar surroundings and no language barrier etc etc ???

[johnny crossan]

the et al is a long long list
Players on loan

1. Aaron Mooy to Huddersfield
2. Anthony Caceres to Melbourne City
3. Ashley Smith-Brown to NAC Breda
4. Bersant Celina to FC Twente
5. Bismark Adjei-Boateng to Stromgodset
6. Brandon Barker to NAC
7. Bruno Zuculini to Rayo Vallecano
8. Callum Bullock to Crewe
9. Chidiebere Nwakali to IK Start
10. Collins Tanor to FC Nordsjælland
11. David Faupala to NAC Breda
12. Divine Naah to FC Nordsjælland
13. Eliaquim Mangala to Valencia
14. Enes Unal to FC Twente
15. Ernest Agyiri to Valaregna
16. George Glendon to Fleetwood Town
17. Gerónimo Rulli to Real Sociedad
18. Godsway Donyoh to Falkenbergs
19. Jack Byrne to Blackburn
20. Jason Denayer to Sunderland
21. Joe Hart to Torino
22. Kean Bryan to Bury
23. Luke Brattan to Melbourne City
24. Manu Garcia to Deportivo Alavés
25. Marlos Moreno to Deportivo La Coruna
26. Oleks Zinchenko to PSV
27. Olivier Ntcham to Genoa
28. Pablo Marí to Girona
29. Paddy Roberts to Celtic
30. Rubén Sobrino to Alavés
31. Samir Nasri to Sevilla
32. Shay Facey to Heerenveen
33. Synan Bytqi to Go Ahead Eagles
34. Thomas Agyepong to NAC Breda
35. Wilfried Bony to Stoke
36. Yaw Yeboah to FC Twente
37. Zackarias Faour to FC Midtjylland

[nottsblue]

Hell of a list. 17 though is not a loan. He was signed in the summer then immeadiately sold onto to Sociedad. Assume for profit, but we LDL have a buyback clause for the next few years as well.

Be interesting to know how many are doing well at their respective clubs. Most will be sold I suspect which is no bad thing as it keeps the coffers ticking over. In regard to the OP, I also had high hopes for Barker. He seemed to have what it takes but hasn't stepped up. Whether that is because of the club he is at or the level and style of football they play or whether he would have made it in our first team we won't know for sure. Got to say it's unlikely he will make it with us now. It's just a matter of how much we get for him

[Mikhail Chigorin]

Hell of a list. 17 though is not a loan. He was signed in the summer then immeadiately sold onto to Sociedad. Assume for profit, but we LDL have a buyback clause for the next few years as well.

Be interesting to know how many are doing well at their respective clubs. Most will be sold I suspect which is no bad thing as it keeps the coffers ticking over. In regard to the OP, I also had high hopes for Barker. He seemed to have what it takes but hasn't stepped up. Whether that is because of the club he is at or the level and style of football they play or whether he would have made it in our first team we won't know for sure. Got to say it's unlikely he will make it with us now. It's just a matter of how much we get for him

Be interesting to see what happens to Roberts when his loan spell at Celtic finishes.

I wonder if they'll try to buy him ??

[mr_nool]

The three lads at Twente, Unal, Celina, and Yeboha, are all doing well. All three are regular starters and Unal are even joint top scorer of the Dutch first division at the moment (9 goals so far).

The Ukraineian lad at PSV had to wait a long time for his first start, but have now played a couple of games on the trot and is doing well. Was motm in his last game.

[iwasthere2012]

Anyone know how Jack Byrne is doing.
Wasn't great, last I heard.

[nottsblue]

Hell of a list. 17 though is not a loan. He was signed in the summer then immeadiately sold onto to Sociedad. Assume for profit, but we LDL have a buyback clause for the next few years as well.

Be interesting to know how many are doing well at their respective clubs. Most will be sold I suspect which is no bad thing as it keeps the coffers ticking over. In regard to the OP, I also had high hopes for Barker. He seemed to have what it takes but hasn't stepped up. Whether that is because of the club he is at or the level and style of football they play or whether he would have made it in our first team we won't know for sure. Got to say it's unlikely he will make it with us now. It's just a matter of how much we get for him

Be interesting to see what happens to Roberts when his loan spell at Celtic finishes.

I wonder if they'll try to buy him ??

We paid £5/6m for him if I recall so I'd imagine we would want to at least recoup that, if not more as he has proven himself at that level. Scottish football isn't exactly awash with money so it may depend on whether Celtic cash in on Dembele as to whether they could afford him. Maybe he will attract the attention of lower end PL clubs, who have got money to burn or a newly promoted side. With Sane and Jesus having signed this summer for big money you would assume they are ahead of him in the pecking order

[nottsblue]

The three lads at Twente, Unal, Celina, and Yeboha, are all doing well. All three are regular starters and Unal are even joint top scorer of the Dutch first division at the moment (9 goals so far).

The Ukraineian lad at PSV had to wait a long time for his first start, but have now played a couple of games on the trot and is doing well. Was motm in his last game.

That's good to hear. As a forward, if you are top or near the top of the goalscoring charts you are doing well. Guidetti though also scored plenty in the Eredivisie, but maybe injury played a significant role in his inability to kick on as it were

[mr_nool]

The three lads at Twente, Unal, Celina, and Yeboha, are all doing well. All three are regular starters and Unal are even joint top scorer of the Dutch first division at the moment (9 goals so far).

The Ukraineian lad at PSV had to wait a long time for his first start, but have now played a couple of games on the trot and is doing well. Was motm in his last game.

That's good to hear. As a forward, if you are top or near the top of the goalscoring charts you are doing well. Guidetti though also scored plenty in the Eredivisie, but maybe injury played a significant role in his inability to kick on as it were

Guidetti has a fantastic attitude and truly wears his heart on his sleeve. That's why he was so loved by the fans at Feyenoord despite being there for only a short while, and also why the Celta fans sees him as a cult hero despite not being a regular starter. I think we caught a glimpse of that as well at City and got our hopes up, but truth is that he's simply half a yard too slow for top football.

By the way, the majority of his goals for Feyenoord came from the penalty spot, which made it look like he was a much more prolific goalscorer than he actually was.

[dazby]

Caceres has had a lot of sub appearances. He's a decent player but nowhere near Prem league level.

Luke Brattan has been top banana. After getting no action last year he's back to his best and knocking on the door for national team selection. His ability to pick a pass and run a game has been a feature of his play. He's also chipped in with a couple of goals too. You'd want to see him at Bournemouth or somewhere similar before taking him on though. Speed of play may be an issue - in that it would take time to adapt to the pace.

[Socrates]

The three lads at Twente, Unal, Celina, and Yeboha, are all doing well. All three are regular starters and Unal are even joint top scorer of the Dutch first division at the moment (9 goals so far).

The Ukraineian lad at PSV had to wait a long time for his first start, but have now played a couple of games on the trot and is doing well. Was motm in his last game.

That's good to hear. As a forward, if you are top or near the top of the goalscoring charts you are doing well. Guidetti though also scored plenty in the Eredivisie, but maybe injury played a significant role in his inability to kick on as it were

Guidetti has a fantastic attitude and truly wears his heart on his sleeve. That's why he was so loved by the fans at Feyenoord despite being there for only a short while, and also why the Celta fans sees him as a cult hero despite not being a regular starter. I think we caught a glimpse of that as well at City and got our hopes up, but truth is that he's simply half a yard too slow for top football.

By the way, the majority of his goals for Feyenoord came from the penalty spot, which made it look like he was a much more prolific goalscorer than he actually was.

Majority being penalties isn't correct. Was 7 of the 20 goals that were penalties in 23 games. With 8 assists too was still a great record but the point about the standard of the league is the main one. Doesn't mean he couldn't step up obviously but isn't proof that he could have either, injuries and sickness or not.

[john@staustell]

Had high hopes for the lad, saw him a few times myself but it was the hype created from well respected and knowledgeable people that really got me excited.

He's on loan in the Dutch first division, been chatting to people over there and apparently he's been shite. Faupala as well, Smith Brown has been alright apparently. Pretty shocked that some of our talent can't hack it at such a level though. Odd.

Last time I saw him play with us in a pre-season or a League Cup game or something, he was the only one of half a dozen who looked lost. Before that I thought he was a bit hot and cold.

Just shows that 'well respected and knowledgeable people' can talk shite about any youth player as well as the rest of us.

There's nothing odd really though - as I've said a million times to get into a top 4 Premier team now you have to be one of the best players in the world, not a 'good lad with potential'. Much of the whole business is about producing loan fees and transfer fees in bulk.

However the utter quality that now seems to run through our younger age groups gives even me (!) hope that we have some of the world's future best players!! Then they will play for City!

[LookMumImOnMCF.net]

Seeing how players are doing out on loan seems more of a passing interest then anything really connected with City. How many of the current squad that actually play have ever been out on loan? Seems like the normal path is loan > sell. I suppose if aim of the majority of loan deals is profit then that's another debate.

There's also something uneasy about the amount of players on loan that top clubs seem to have. That list is quite ridiculous when you think of just how many minutes all combined are likely to play for the club in the future.

[mr_nool]

Seeing how players are doing out on loan seems more of a passing interest then anything really connected with City. How many of the current squad that actually play have ever been out on loan? Seems like the normal path is loan > sell. I suppose if aim of the majority of loan deals is profit then that's another debate.

There's also something uneasy about the amount of players on loan that top clubs seem to have. That list is quite ridiculous when you think of just how many minutes all combined are likely to play for the club in the future.

Totally agree with the second paragraph. It's a very cynical way of running a football club.

In answer to your first paragraph: Joe Hart.

[LookMumImOnMCF.net]

Joe's an obvious exception but demonstrates my first point entirely, while Guardiola is here his future looks bleak. He's been loaned out but it was really only because the club couldn't sell.

[PeterParker]

Really beyond anything is why we did that piece of business with Rulli. A type of transaction that I really can't understand.

[Wonderwall]

Really beyond anything is why we did that piece of business with Rulli. A type of transaction that I really can't understand.

Top talent and this deal means he is ours if we want him and nobody else can have him unless we say it's OK.

[Slim]

It's a smart move based two years in the future, and they said this was just a rich man's plaything.