Nemanja Matic| BBC says deal agreed

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AshRK said:
Which other clubs, Chelsea have spent money on an unproven defender and jury is yet to be out on bakayako.

City are spending insane amount on Walker and Mendy ( who is not even that great defensively)
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Chelsea buy youngsters, or youngsters on track to be good/great players - and typically make a profit.

TBH City have done very very well this window IMHO.
Their attack is amongst the best in the world, and they've bought some obvious big signings for their defence. Not perfect but they're all at a decent age too.
 
If he's coming in as Fellaini's replacement as a squad player in midfield, we can't do much better really.
 
For those unhappy with the fees, you can't go shopping at a direct rival and then expect a sensible price. Would we not sell a player abroad for less than what we'd sell them to Chelsea for? Its the same for them. They're selling us Matic knowing we'll use him to compete with them next season. Why would they ever entertain a sensible price?
 
AXVnee7 said:
I think you're missing the point.

Firstly forget the Pogba fee. The fee is irrelevant. Focus on the quality. As it so happens Pogba is our most expensive, and most talented player and thus we should aim to build the team around him. I've already said twice that the role of our DM is to decrease (but not relinquish) the defensive burden on Pogba. That doesn't mean Pogba doesn't have to carry any defensive duty, but it's lessened.

However what I'm arguing is that Matic is not the most mobile midfielder and this could hinder his ability to be an effective DM. You say you want Herrera unleashed upfront so that puts even more defensive liability on Matic. As it is Herrera is very good although probably short of Kante's quality. But unlike Kante, Herrera will be expected to play a more pivotal role in the build up play offensively. This is why I feel someone like Fabinho could potentially be more effective. You do know Fabinho is a DM right? He will have an identical role to Matic, which is to patrol the back line and shield them.
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I'd agree Fabinho would have been the better option between the two but Monaco ain't selling. Matic may have been 2nd choice but he will hit the ground running for us and will give us 2-3 good seasons while we look at TFM or see how Dendoncker progresses.
 
Member 5225 said:
Chelsea buy youngsters, or youngsters on track to be good/great players - and typically make a profit.

TBH City have done very very well this window IMHO.
Their attack is amongst the best in the world, and they've bought some obvious big signings for their defence. Not perfect but they're all at a decent age too.
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We have signed plenty of young players and City/Chelsea have signed old players too.
 
Bloxy said:
I'd agree Fabinho would have been the better option between the two but Monaco ain't selling. Matic may have been 2nd choice but he will hit the ground running for us and will give us 2-3 good seasons while we look at TFM or see how Dendoncker progresses.
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As I've said before re other big players, how much is Fabinho probably on at Monaco? We'd double maybe triple him up easily. Why aren't we leveraging that? Why isn't Fabinho kicking up a fuss. No sympathy for players that lose out on transfers by being passive (e.g. Morata to us).
 
Bit of a 'meh' signing, but we've been crying out for a Carrick replacement for quite some time now and I understand why Mou wants to go with a safe option in that position. Be it that he's not fit or whatever, the other options are a 2 man midfield with Herrera and Pogba or a 3 man with someone not 'specialised' in the role and/or very inexperienced. I think his experience will prove to be very important for us .

People talk about being ambitious and gambling, but also speak of unshackling Pogba and Herrera. If the gamble doesn't pay off, the latter isn't happening for shizzle and we're back to square one. Is a risky signing really what we need at this point of building the squad, in a problematic position?

I was initially a bit bothered by the fee but as we near the start of the season, would much rather wrap our dealings up and get on with the prep.
 
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Member 5225 said:
Am so underwhelmed.
Mainly due to his age to be honest. Add the crazy fee on top. Hmm

I see the logic behind the signing, but let's just say I won't be rushing out to get his name on my shirt. A solid 7/10 for me.
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Im curous but whats your take on Bale then,a year younger and would cost us a fortune ?
I'm glad we have addressed one of our midfield woes with what is available as he will improve us.
 
Bloxy said:
I'd agree Fabinho would have been the better option between the two but Monaco ain't selling. Matic may have been 2nd choice but he will hit the ground running for us and will give us 2-3 good seasons while we look at TFM or see how Dendoncker progresses.
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Are Monaco not selling, or have we not pushed them hard enough? Monaco have let B.Silva, Mendy and Bakayoko go - All to PL teams. There is talk that Lemar might join Arsenal. The only Monaco player who is potentially unattainable this window is Mbappe because he is the crème de la crème in terms of assets, and Monaco will want to maximise the fee.

I agree with you in that Matic is a good option and it's completely understandable why we've gone for him, but I feel there are other better options out there. Of course if indeed we have tried for others and failed, then that's fine and we go for Matic. But I'm not convinced we have.
 
royboy16 said:
Im curous but whats your take on Bale then,a year younger and would cost us a fortune ?
I'm glad we have addressed one of our midfield woes with what is available as he will improve us.
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Clear Tier1 (ie a player any team would take and improve their first 11) is whole different kettle of fish...
 
I get a bit of a reckless vibe from Conte letting players like Matic and Costa go. There's no way Bakayoko and Morata are anything close to an upgrade or even good replacements.
 
He isn't going to set the league alight but I think he is going to be a good solid signing. A little on the pricey side but thats to be expected when buying of a direct rival. I have no doubt that he will strengthen us though so its money well spent.
 
AXVnee7 said:
Are Monaco not selling, or have we not pushed them hard enough? Monaco have let B.Silva, Mendy and Bakayoko go - All to PL teams. There is talk that Lemar might join Arsenal. The only Monaco player who is potentially unattainable this window is Mbappe because he is the crème de la crème in terms of assets, and Monaco will want to maximise the fee.

I agree with you in that Matic is a good option and it's completely understandable why we've gone for him, but I feel there are other better options out there. Of course if indeed we have tried for others and failed, then that's fine and we go for Matic. But I'm not convinced we have.
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Fantastic top paragraph. This is an echo of my points. It's as if we get a 'no' and just give up!
 
JTW95 said:
He isn't going to set the league alight but I think he is going to be a good solid signing. A little on the pricey side but thats to be expected when buying of a direct rival. I have no doubt that he will strengthen us though so its money well spent.
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So 7/10 then
 
Offside said:
I get a bit of a reckless vibe from Conte letting players like Matic and Costa go. There's no way Bakayoko and Morata are anything close to an upgrade or even good replacements.
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If they are better fits for his system, and don't disrupt the squad, he might have done the right thing.
 
Offside said:
I get a bit of a reckless vibe from Conte letting players like Matic and Costa go. There's no way Bakayoko and Morata are anything close to an upgrade or even good replacements.
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Good point. They'll be in a top4 battle rather than title challenge IMO.
 
Mourinho really managed to get the best out of Matic while he was at Chelsea. Hopefully a good signing for us.
 
Member 5225 said:
Chelsea buy youngsters, or youngsters on track to be good/great players - and typically make a profit.

TBH City have done very very well this window IMHO.
Their attack is amongst the best in the world, and they've bought some obvious big signings for their defence. Not perfect but they're all at a decent age too.
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That's what I said, unproven. Chelsea could afford that considering they have a somewhat stable squad. We cannot sign all young players, we signed pogba 23, Bailly 22, lindelof 22, lukaku 24. 4 young players who could form our spine. We need experience too and matic is perfect for that.
 
Could we drop the Fabinho talk for gods sake, we were clearly not bothered about him, Luckhurst was dead on the money.
 
AXVnee7 said:
Are Monaco not selling, or have we not pushed them hard enough? Monaco have let B.Silva, Mendy and Bakayoko go - All to PL teams. There is talk that Lemar might join Arsenal. The only Monaco player who is potentially unattainable this window is Mbappe because he is the crème de la crème in terms of assets, and Monaco will want to maximise the fee.

I agree with you in that Matic is a good option and it's completely understandable why we've gone for him, but I feel there are other better options out there. Of course if indeed we have tried for others and failed, then that's fine and we go for Matic. But I'm not convinced we have.
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It's funny though that we were the only club linked to Fabinho and for whatever reason we didn't push harder like you said and maybe there is something in that. It may also mean that Monaco rate him more than they do the others and selling Mendy for £50m + was just good business. I didn't rate bakayoko much.
Mourinho needs a few players he can trust and he is hoping that Matic will recapture the firm he showed when he first arrived.
 
Strange to see the Caf horrified at the idea of signing a 2x Premier League winning midfielder. The same midfielder the Caf was falling over itself to praise in 2014/15!

For my part I'll be very pleased if Mou gets a player he knows, who knows what he wants, who doesn't need to adjust to England and who has shown he can do it in the big games
 
Offside said:
I get a bit of a reckless vibe from Conte letting players like Matic and Costa go. There's no way Bakayoko and Morata are anything close to an upgrade or even good replacements.
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Not to mention publicly criticizing Morata and Bakayoko and saying how much he loves Kane. With no Hazard, Costa and Matic, reckon Chelsea are going to implode this season.
 
I was very against this signing but watched a bunch of Chelsea games from last season and if you actually watch what he does it's not glamorous but he makes the team function, positionally excellent.

Really pleased if this is true. Top, top addition. Surprised Conte is willing to let him go, especially to a rival.
 
Hope a poll is added when this is wrapped up.. would be interesting to see the true thoughts of the caf. I'm happy enough with bringing him in, it will allow Pogba further forward and add more bite into our midfield.
 
Would genuinely love those that call 29 old to post their own ages. If he signs, he's likely to get a 3-4 year deal I imagine taking him into his early 30's. If he is being bought in to play as CDM I don't see a problem at all. He has more experience in this league and more titles than any other CDM we've been linked with. Great signing if it completes in my eyes.
 
I just find it disappointing that we are signing from our rivals, a player that isn't one of their best.
 
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