If we sign Rice and Sancho you can say it's 4 birds with 2 stones. Rice can cover for both CB and DM. Sancho will be our RW and can play AM. So he can cover for Bruno when Bruno is out and Greenwood has proven to be a solid RW so he takes Sancho's spot when Sancho is covering for Bruno. This is why I'd prefer we were linked with Sancho and Rice(as long as his passing is improving) or another DM instead of Sancho and Grealish
I agree with what you are saying, this league is pretty difficult to get used to especially if you don't have the physical attributes to help you. Getting him from West Ham won't be easy but would be doable especially if we tap him up and are prepared to pay a fee upwards of £50m.
️The best CDMs in the PL currently came to the PL from the following:
Agreed, I definitely have seen a marked improvement, but the football post lockdown isn't a fair representation of the same sort of standard prior.
I agree. Hard to judge players in many positions from abroad and especially CDM.
Can he set up counter attacks the way Matic and Carrick can/could? Can he consistently find good forward passes in to our 2 more attacking mids when they are in to space? Maybe i under rate him but i don't see him having this in his locker.
I think there's no better time to get a young DM than now. Matic is performing but he's not getting any younger. It would be a smooth transition for the DM we bring in, learning from Matic before taking over. The DM is such a tricky role and takes time to adapt. Get a young DM to adapt and learn from an ageing Matic now while he's still putting up solid performances.
Eric Dier had an extremely good season as a DM in a system that worked with Poch when they pushed for the league. I think the comparison is quite a good one and not in a bad way. Dier was originally a CB and got pushed into there and performed well, but injuries, and he sort of hit his ceiling in that position. It's questionable whether Rice will just continually improve in a linear fashion that position, because it's a role they've only started playing in the last few years. I'm pretty sure most of their schooling has been done as CB - might be wrong, but that certainly what he was when he broke through.
Yes this is the concern. But then these players are SO rare at the moment.
Yep. It took us years to find Carrick after Keane. Garner seems to have this but i don't know about his defensive play.
Partey does this. He's easily the most proven DM/CM we could get
He's getting increasingly adept at finding a forward pass, although I wouldn't say it's his speciality - as it was with those 2. He's comfortable on the ball, rarely wastes it over short distances and plays a good long pass out wide. Breaking the lines with longer passes is something he needs to add to his game, for sure. But, he's 21, so has time on his side. Also, he's standing out in a poor West Ham side, I'm sure he'd improve among a better quality of player.
Yeah, you're right but I think the Dier comparisons are less about the 1 good season he had with Spurs and more about his failure to progress.
Yea 100% the same for me. McTominay, if anything, brings more than Rice. I watched Rice last night and thought he wasn't very adventurous, just played a nice safe game, he would have fit in well under LvG. What I took away is he is a decent player, but he's no Man Utd player, and never will be.
Then he’s the one to go for. It’s a position that is vital really, especially if we manage to retain Pogba.
That's probably true.
Garner is too young and unproven to be considered as our DM so there's a lot of question marks around him but he can easily play CM if he comes good. Mctominay for me is a box to box. His best ability is his energy and intensity and knows how to drive the ball forward.
Well we spent, what £40m ish on Lindelof, so I wouldn't expect to get him for less than £50m. There are so many ifs and buts though, ie our budget and transfer priorities, West Ham's relegation battle, where he sees himself playing long-term. As I said, I'd like him here but a lot could happen between now and the end of the window. I definitely think his next move will be to a top club, though. Whether that's this summer or later, we'll see.
I love McTom but his passing and creativity is not good enough for an 8 if we want to go for the title. The defensive game he could learn though.
He's an 8 but an average one. Pogba and Fred are ahead of him in the pecking order. The 6 role/Matic role is what I think the club is trying to make him play. I don't know if that would work though
If Matic continues his good form, I could see us going into next season without a new DM. We'd have a full season to assess the situation and our options before making a decision. Rice is improving, some of the young DMs in Europe would have an extra season under their belt, and Phillips will most likely perform in the top flight next season too. I think we are in a good position right now.
Exactly what I think we are doing. I think we were done with looking for DMs this season after Matic extended. The plan is to probably to see how Mctominay does in that role this season and the next and judge whether he can take over from Matic before making the decision to get a DM
Sancho and Ndidi.
I don't see the point in a CB now that no one is available that you can call a big upgrade on Lindelof
I'd say the same with Matic. There's no clear choice to replace him if he got injured or we want to rest him. I'd back Maguire to be available every game over Matic too.
Imagine what happens when Matic injures
