Buying kante means no change in transfer policy. Old players on big wages. Next is who? dybala I guess. Won't be surprised if the board wants big names to attract sponsors while telling everyone that ETH wanted them.
N'Golo Kante
- Thread starter Giggsyking
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With Pogba, Cavani, Matic, Lingard and Ronaldo off the books you have room for a ton of wages I guess.
Reality is a funny old thing
Yay, another past-it Chelsea midfielder.
Would be good. He needs a new challenge and would deliver for us.
We've been desperate to put midfield right for so long. Let's not make the mistake of bringing in someone who has to be "managed properly" in the face of mounting injury issues.
Whoever we sign to improve our midfield defensively, I want them to be robust and durable enough that we can rely on them to play game after game with minimal rest. Not leave us in a situation where we'd have to keep turning to McTominay or Fred more than we'd like.
Whoever we sign to improve our midfield defensively, I want them to be robust and durable enough that we can rely on them to play game after game with minimal rest. Not leave us in a situation where we'd have to keep turning to McTominay or Fred more than we'd like.
I’m pretty hopeful the club has learnt it’s lessons and ETH himself will surely be pushing for younger players who are more likely to adapt to his way of playing.
We’ve gone from having a young team to probably being one of the older squads in the league. Even outside of the ones leaving this year, a lot of our players are entering their prime years (Lindelof, Shaw, Varane, Maguire, Fred, De Gea, Bruno, Bailly).
The younger squad players (below 25) like Dalot, AWB, Rashford, McTominay are all ones that the fans would like to see sold. It’s going to need a full squad change in 3 years if we keep signing this profile of player.
We’ve gone from having a young team to probably being one of the older squads in the league. Even outside of the ones leaving this year, a lot of our players are entering their prime years (Lindelof, Shaw, Varane, Maguire, Fred, De Gea, Bruno, Bailly).
The younger squad players (below 25) like Dalot, AWB, Rashford, McTominay are all ones that the fans would like to see sold. It’s going to need a full squad change in 3 years if we keep signing this profile of player.
Cant understand why some fans still wants us to walk the same path as before after 9 years of misery. Kante is on the decline, and want massive wages. Take a chance with Kamara for free instead. If he doesnt work out we can sell him for 20m and get someone else.
Wanted him desperately at United back when Chelsea bought him. We always seem to make the mistake of buying good players once their best years are over, so yeah I can totally see that deal happening.
How about Kamara on a free transfer + FDJ + Kante?
Would rather take FDJ, Kamara and Erikssen.
Rather Fred.
I usually drink mine, but each to their own.
No thanks, will be another matic situation, how about buying a young talent that can tie us over for a decade in a position we have form of neglecting and still have resale value in 8-10 years time instead of having to replace kante in two years time and the only way to move him on being for free due to big wages, over the hill at that point and constantly injured.
We can't just sign a load of 20-24 year olds. We do need some experience. Wouldn't be adverse to this signing, provided we don't keep resigning him on bigger wages and move him on when his legs fully go.
Mata > Matic > Kante
Good for a season before fizzing out
Good for a season before fizzing out
I remember last year people were saying our squad is too young
I'd say Kantes defensive ability is much more consistent based in watching them both.
Fred gets bypassed a lot
The Matic comparison is understandable, but falls flat when you highlight some important differences:
- Kante deserved a ballon d'or last season, Matic was nowhere near as good before we signed him.
- Matic got old really fast. It happens, but in no way is such a sharp decline at 30 the norm.
- Matic was pretty good for a while when we got him. He hasn't been a bad signing by any means, and this French bloke is even better.
- We're actually in the position that we could use some short term fixes to save money. That wasn't the case when we signed Matic imo.
The stats show this too (that Fred's gets dribbled past way more easily than Kante).
If he were free and were adding some extra quality on an already quality team. I see it also in the Koulibaly thread, a lot of people in this forum don't admit to the fact they love it when the club hands out big contracts to players on the decline. Take Pogba, Cavani and Matic off the big wages and add Ngolo /Koulibaly. I wanted both few years ago but not today.
On a free, maybe.
Not like this though.
Not like this though.
Ronaldo isn't leaving though, is he?
I feel like getting Laimer would be a more sensible way of getting a player of this midfield profile in.
I thought he was.
If he's staying to play in the Europa for the first time in his career then fair play to him.
Possible that Ten Hag thinks some leadership qualities and experience is needed in the side with the likes of Matic, Mata etc leaving the dressing room and not having a strong captain. Kante alongside someone younger for a year or two isnt the worst idea in the world.
If he don’t want to play for Utd he can feck off, Europa league or not.
I agree with this. Kante on a decent fee will be a good signing. We do not have 300m to spend on players and need 5-6 quality players. The math is simple.
Brilliant, but in decline. If ETH thinks he can build a squad capable of winning the PL next season and if thinks Kante is a piece of that puzzle, I’m on board. But I seriously doubt he thinks he can put together a PL winning squad next season and of that’s the case Kante just isn’t a player for future.
I don’t want Kante because that could mean Pogba stays. Add that to Kante being 30 and although a world class player, we need to be moving in the opposite direction. Younger, and perhaps a player that hasn’t already won it all where he will come with some hunger to prove himself.
Better than what we have currently stinking the place up.
Would be a solid stop gap for a couple of years if we cannot sign the required player this summer.
Not sure we have this type of player ready to make the step up from the reserves either. So if we can get him relatively cheap, on decent wages and not on a longer than 2+1 contract, I’d take a punt.
We’re not going to be able to sign every player we want this summer, a low risk, low value signing like Kante would be shrewd. Whilst he is not a muppet signing, he’d improve us a lot in the middle of the park.
Would be a solid stop gap for a couple of years if we cannot sign the required player this summer.
Not sure we have this type of player ready to make the step up from the reserves either. So if we can get him relatively cheap, on decent wages and not on a longer than 2+1 contract, I’d take a punt.
We’re not going to be able to sign every player we want this summer, a low risk, low value signing like Kante would be shrewd. Whilst he is not a muppet signing, he’d improve us a lot in the middle of the park.
Signing Kante when Pogba leaves. Kinda funny.
One thing for certain, signing Kante, you know what youre getting for a couple of years.
1. A guy who has no record of being a disruption in the team.
2. Keeps to himself when it comes to the media.
3. Seems like a genuine nice guy.
4. A player who can actually play football and is something we have been lacking, a ball winning midfielder who will cover every blade of grass.
Id sooner pay a transfer fee and his salary before id give his french fraud compatriot a new contract.
1. A guy who has no record of being a disruption in the team.
2. Keeps to himself when it comes to the media.
3. Seems like a genuine nice guy.
4. A player who can actually play football and is something we have been lacking, a ball winning midfielder who will cover every blade of grass.
Id sooner pay a transfer fee and his salary before id give his french fraud compatriot a new contract.
Bring im on if there is a smallest chance!
What?
All of those who are acting like we sign geriatrics in midfield all the time are a bit wide of the mark. Since Fergie we have bought:
13/14
Mata 25
Fellaini 25
14/15
Herrera 24
Blind 24
15/16
Schneiderlin 25
Schweinsteiger 30
16/17
Pogba 23
17/18
Matic 28
18/19
Fred 25
19/20
Bruno 25
20/21
VdB 23
It's hardly a list of especially old or poor players. Just the wrong fits. If Kante's injury issues this season are deemed short term then I think he'd be a great buy to work with a De Jong or a player of a similar profile.
Edit: Not to mention he embarrassed our midfield not a few weeks ago.
13/14
Mata 25
Fellaini 25
14/15
Herrera 24
Blind 24
15/16
Schneiderlin 25
Schweinsteiger 30
16/17
Pogba 23
17/18
Matic 28
18/19
Fred 25
19/20
Bruno 25
20/21
VdB 23
It's hardly a list of especially old or poor players. Just the wrong fits. If Kante's injury issues this season are deemed short term then I think he'd be a great buy to work with a De Jong or a player of a similar profile.
Edit: Not to mention he embarrassed our midfield not a few weeks ago.
Which claim do you find laughable? That Kante was the best player in the world in the 20/21 season or that Matic was not the best player in the world in the 15/16 season?What?
Quite hilarious that so many seem to believe that the 5th placed player in the 2021 Ballon D'Or voting is beneath Manchester Uniteds midfield in 2022..
He's not the same dynamo he once was, which is understandable as the best destroyer of his generation at his peak, but he would still provide the biggest upgrade in our biggest position of need we've had in ages.
He's not the same dynamo he once was, which is understandable as the best destroyer of his generation at his peak, but he would still provide the biggest upgrade in our biggest position of need we've had in ages.
We should be signing players no older than 28, even that's a push.
Why did you cut half of my post out to support yours?
You missed out the sentence right before the one you quoted which says:
“So if we can get him relatively cheap, on decent wages and not on a longer than 2+1 contract, I’d take a punt.”
Also, why would signing Kante mean we couldn’t sign Kamara? If we could get both it would transform our midfield options. Kante is proven in the PL, and Kamara could learn a lot from him.