I get the feeling we may see Evra used on the left wing with Coentrao behind him.
Fabio Coentrao
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In the latest episode of the United Hour Podcast, Nik (@Rood) and Imran (@Annihilate Now!) are here to discuss Amad saving our blushes in a win against Southampton as well as our now annual loss at home to Brighton. They discuss Amorim's post-match comments, revisit how mid-table we may or may not be, and discuss some transfer news.
How about Alex Sandro then?
Personally i think signing Coentrao as a left-back, and then to turn him back into a left-winger after the season when we hopefully sign Alex Sandro would sort out a lot of a troubling side.
Would be so much easier (for Moyes) to let go of Ashley Young...
Baines is comfortably better than Coentrao. If Baines was two or three years younger, he'd be the better option.
He's not comfortably better at all.
And it's not even a fair comparison, 3 years ago Baines wasn't as good as he is now, just like when Evra was 26 he wasn't as good as when he was 28, or most top full backs.
Realistically we need two left backs, so I think Baines in the summer is nailed on. He'll only have a year left on his contract so presumably would be available for around £10m. The other left back would ideally be around 20 with lots of potential, who could replace Baines in a few years time. That's why I think we're not signing Coentrao, we're only looking for a short term solution to Evra having to play every game, and a loan move solves it.
Comfortably better is a massive exaggeration. Baines is good. Coentrao is good. Neither have proven themselves outstanding yet.
He is. I'm not saying Coentrao is bad, but Baines is the better player.
I agree, he wasn't as good two or three years ago, but that isn't what I was saying. I was saying if the current Baines was three years younger, he'd be the better option.
I would argue Baines has proven himself to be outstanding. For me, he's in the top five left backs in the world.
Or we could get Coentrao who will cost half the price of Baines, leaving us with a lot more money to get a talented young player like Luke Shaw.
The only thing that Baines is comfortably better than Coentrao at is probably set-pieces. Coentrao is probably a better footballer, Baines has moulded himself into a great specialist left-back.
Yeah, Baines has a great set piece and cross on him, but is that really a good enough reason to splash a massive fee on him? He's obviously very good, but we can sign a younger player for half the price who has impressed on the biggest stages of world football for club and country. No brainer for me.
I know that's what you're saying, that's why it's an unfair comparison, completely.
I think Coentrao is potentially a better player than Baines, is three years younger, and would likely cost half as much. It's a no brainier for me.
Coentrao is the better option (in terms of age, value, etc.) and if it was Liverpool looking at the two of them, I would want him. Baines is the better player though.
The issue about Baines for me is the price. Everton will demand an extortionate fee for him and he won't put in a transfer request. Which is why I'd prefer Coentrao. I rate Baines higher, but Coentrao is younger and most probably cheaper if we want to make it a permanent deal.
He possibly is, though he has the benefit of playing every game and is a level above most of his teammates, he's also at his peak as a footballer at 29.
I certainly don't think he's s comfortably better player.
Did you actually read what I said? Baines won't be twice as much as Coentrao in the summer, he will only have a year remaining on his contract, and considering Coentrao was signed for 30m euros and has super agent Mendes in charge of him I'm going to make an educated guess that he's on more money than Baines too.
That could be interesting.
Marcelo, Alaba, Jordi Alba & Lahm are comfortably levels above him, so saying he is top 5 is the same as saying he is in the top 10 along with Evra, Alex Sandro & Coentrao. Actually I'd say that he is more on Coentrao & Evra's level than on Marcelo & Alaba's level.
Having a year left means very little. We paid £18m for Young and £24m for RvP, it all depends on how much we want the player and how much the club want to keep them.
Coentrao will be cheaper because Real won't try milk us dry like Everton would. We paid them £27.5m for Fellaini, lest we forget.
Luis Filipe would have something to say about that too. He's a brilliant left back. Has been for ages. Just not as flashy as Marcelo or Alba, but a much better defender.
Evra will somehow still be culpable for most goals that we concede.
Baines is up there with Marcelo, Alba and Alaba.
Evra is not on their level, he used to be, but he's in a rapid decline defensively.
Jordi Alba is a bit overrated. He can be as woeful defensively as Evra.
Having a year left doesn't mean very little at all, how much do you think it would have taken for Arsenal to sell one of the best players in the world to their rivals if he wasn't in the last year of his contract? Somehow, I think it would have been quite a bit more than £24m. Everton wanted £20m in the summer, of course that price will drop considerably in the summer, he'll be a year older and they'll be at risk of losing him for nothing a year later, Everton aren't exactly cash rich.
Arda Turan tore him a new one last night.
I don't agree with you, so let's just leave it at that.
Nobody is up there with Alaba, he's the best left back in the world by some distance. I think Baines is just as good as Alba though.
Agreed re. Alaba.
Yet they still managed to prevent us getting Baines in the summer and we only got Fellaini with an hour to go on deadline day for TWENTY SEVEN MILLION!
I don't think it'll drop considerably at all, if Everton are tough with us again and non compliant, we'll still pay a lot to get him, probably around £15m, which is more than any figure that's been banded around for Coentrao.
I guess we'll just have to wait and see, hopefully we'll just get Coentrao and forget about spending big money on a 29 year old then.
I think Alex Sandro will join that lot soon. He's the most talented left-back I remember seeing at Porto. This isn't the best season to gauge him though, with us being overall very shit and the ridiculous pressure we have on our defence game in game out.
So Leighton Baines, who can't even consistently remove an ageing Ashley Cole from the England side, is 'up there' with the best the world?
I would say thats more of an indication of England managers who still pick players on past glories and reputations instead of actually building their own sides.
I agree but I also think if Baines was as good as is being claimed, the manager wouldn't really have much choice.
I fecking hope not.
Football Manager!
Baines is probably better in set pieces, but Coentrao is much better on linking the game, shooting and dribbling. I think that Coentrao is better at defending too though neither of them is really great at it. Both have had games when they weren't that great like Coentrao vs Lahm or when Baines made Downing look like Messi.
Coentrao is more proven on the top level, having played on UCL, World Cup and Euro, something that Baines hasn't done. One other thing which personally I think goes against Baines is that he hasn't played on that level and IMO it is a bit too late to start doing it now. It isn't impossible to be a success and it has happened on the past like Milito at Inter or even Barzagli at Juve but usually players who have played for all their career on midtable clubs doesn't do that well if they get transferred into a top club near the end of their career. The other problem is the price of Baines, he is simply very expensive for a 29 years old left back. And seriously if he really was that good (someone said top 5 on world, have heard before calling him the best in Europe) he wouldn't have been playing on Everton. Usually players who are on top 5 on the world in their position play on the biggest clubs.
About being Premier League proven, personally it is the last thing I count for a player. Young, Downing and Fellaini were all Premier League proven players who looked good at midtable clubs. Just imagine if we would have signed some players who were not Premier League proven (like Mata and Herrea) instead of Young and Fellaini. I think that being Premier League proven means that you have to pay a bit more for a plyer (especially if he is British) but that's it.
For me it is a no brainer that we should go for Coentrao instead of Baines and I really hope that Moyes will do the same.
I have to a agree. I think that he was really great at Valencia and looked that he will become the best on the world in his position but he didn't continue being as good for Barca. He is still very good going forward and has a crazy speed but he's not doing well defensively.
Bingo. And how one of the best players in the world in his position is still playing for Everton is a big mystery too. I mean no disrespect to them but if he really was that great likely Chelsea, Spurs and City would have been only some of clubs who would have tried to sign him.