Option/replacement for Casemiro

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

Exequiel Palacios would be the wild card for me, only 25 and having a great season with Leverkusen. Great tackling, good passer and good engine...



EDIT: If you actually watch that video or have seen much of Leverkusen he is so rounded in his game and it won't be long before he is snapped up by a traditionally bigger team.

He'd be a worthy partner for Mainoo

 

[daba]

If T

Tchouameni would be a dream if he ends up being a casualty of Real’s spending and excess of midfielders.

I’d be looking to create extra midfield budget by shopping Bruno too and would target De Jong if attainable, if not - Eze.

If Tchouameni is available we should be take a serious look. Would basically only be us, Liverpool and Bayern competing for him. Difficult company, but with Klopp going and Bayern in turmoil, if we have a positive end to the season we might look like the best project with INEOS getting started.

If Tchouameni isn't available, then Joao Neves is a must combined with either Thuram or Rabiot.

 

[LuckyScout78]

i vote for Everton Onana. Double Onana is double trouble commentator.

Seriously. He has that aggressive and fighting spirit mentality. Tall but quick in the first metres and with good tackles too.

 

[Member 109952]

I feel like I say it in every thread about Casemiro, but he's not a 6, so we need to buy a midfielder who's physical (stamina), high win % duelling/tackling and can progress the ball - that can be via carrying or passing, but preferably carrying.

For me that would be João Neves.

I would get someone like Wieffer as well for the height in midfield, but as a direct replacement into the team, it would be Neves.

Really we need both. A younger DM to rotate with Cas. And a box to box to rotate with Mainoo, given that Eriksen and Amrabat won't be here.

That alongside a dribbling LW if we can bring Greenwood back would leave us in great shape for the upcoming season.

Shame we'll sell Alvaro as if we kept him he's more than good enough to be the backup LB, instead we'll probably spend £30m on an comparable player.

 

[Lash]

Really we need both. A younger DM to rotate with Cas. And a box to box to rotate with Mainoo, given that Eriksen and Amrabat won't be here.

That alongside a dribbling LW if we can bring Greenwood back would leave us in great shape for the upcoming season.

Shame we'll sell Alvaro as if we kept him he's more than good enough to be the backup LB, instead we'll probably spend £30m on an comparable player.

We do need a few options, I guess I don't know where Gore fits in with that, so maybe he's the Mainoo rotation? It's going to be an interesting new look to our side soon, there's lots of different permutations that it could be and I'm excited to see where we end up.

 

[Prodigal7]

I say plan for the future and don't spend ridiculous money. Go for Archie Gray.

 

[bucky]

For the regular Serie A watchers, a friend of mine thinks Scalvini could potentially turn into that type of midfielder? Perhaps not too dissimilar to what Stones did for City last year. Could anyone comment whether that might be possible? I haven't seen enough of him. @giorno @General_Elegancia

 

[Adebisi's Hat]

i vote for Everton Onana. Double Onana is double trouble commentator.

Seriously. He has that aggressive and fighting spirit mentality. Tall but quick in the first metres and with good tackles too.

yes i like midfield Onana too. I think we will need a least 2 as i feel a big offer from Saudi and Ineos would sell Cas and also i don't see us keeping Amrabat. The Thuram kid at Nice would be another one that is interesting.

 

[Florida Man]

Remember a player called Mason Mount?. Yes, we signed him and one day he might even play. Granted he's not a defensive midfielder by trade but he can be converted or if not him move Dalot to that role. Save spending more money and taking a risk. Mainoo will be the player to do most of the work when Casemiro plays.

McTominay as striker, Onana in midfield, Bruno at right back

 

[giorno]

For the regular Serie A watchers, a friend of mine thinks Scalvini could potentially turn into that type of midfielder? Perhaps not too dissimilar to what Stones did for City last year. Could anyone comment whether that might be possible? I haven't seen enough of him. @giorno @General_Elegancia

Mmmm. Could probably play like Stones, yeah. Depends on the setup. Though his best qualities imo are off ball runs more than ball passing or ball progression/movement

 

[bucky]

Mmmm. Could probably play like Stones, yeah. Depends on the setup. Though his best qualities imo are off ball runs more than ball passing or ball progression/movement

I see, thank you!

 

[davidmichael]

One of Tchouameni or Camavinga would be perfect or Kimmich who apparently said he’s not signing a new contract at Bayern would be too, I think Rabiot on a free is a must as he has a good combination of passing range and steel.

 

[simonhch]

The midfield has been the problem for years, to be honest ever since Roy Keane left. I believe Mainoo can be one of the best, and yes he needs support. Casimero for me is not a PL player, he doesn’t get time on the ball, and he’s not the quickest, and he has been very lucky recently having been booked in games in first few minutes. He will have a problem with refs all the time now, he reminds me of Scholes in that respect, the times Paul was booked for his first tackle in lots of games, and yet other players seem to commit foul after foul and then they get booked in last quarter of game. Also when a referee sees the tackle by Mainoo and decides it’s a foul and a booking, I’m afraid Casimero stands no chance.

The midfield hasn’t been a problem since Keane left. Come on now. 3 CL finals in 4 years from 2008 on, would say differently. Carrick and Scholes was a brilliant midfield. As was Carrick, Scholes and Hargreaves. And Carrick and Giggs.

It’s been a problem for a decade.

That aside, I agree that Casemiro is not the answer because he has clearly slowed down. But When he first came he was fantastic.

 

[antohan]

The way Mainoo has walked into the first XI I do wonder why we didn't take a punt on Fabricio Díaz.

We still could, he moved to Al-Gharafa on the condition they wouldn't block a European move in future windows. Understand the release is about 10M USD.

 

[Giggsy13]

Casemiro hasn’t slowed down, he’s just returning from a lengthy absence. We need an experienced midfielder alongside Mainoo. I think we’ll sign another midfielder this summer in their early 20s to rotate.

 

[Rozay]

One of Tchouameni or Camavinga would be perfect or Kimmich who apparently said he’s not signing a new contract at Bayern would be too, I think Rabiot on a free is a must as he has a good combination of passing range and steel.

I think Camavinga is definitely untouchable but I feel like there’s a small window with Tchouameni. He’s not necessarily a fixture in that team, and Carlo has been playing him centre half lately and seems to feel the role is perfect for him. There’s a chance that Tchouameni may want to go looking for a permanent midfield role. But with Cama, Bellingham, Valverde, Kroos, Diaz all expecting to fit into the middle 3 along with Tchouameni.

 

[DJ_21]

I like Joao Neves from Benfica. Very young and will only get better and better. With him and Mainoo we’d have midfielders for years. We should also target an older more experienced one.

 

[The Irish Connection]

I like Joao Neves from Benfica. Very young and will only get better and better. With him and Mainoo we’d have midfielders for years. We should also target an older more experienced one.

Been watching Benficas games for the last while. He’s a class player. Playmaking #6, great energy, passing and he dribbles a bit like Maradona.
The only cons with him I’d say are he might be a bit small and the price tag while only being proven in a lower league.
He does win a lot of headers despite his height though and maybe if we got Rabiot for free as well it would offset the investment on Neves along with Mainoo of course being from the academy.
Im still a bit iffy about Rabiots supposed attitude problems though.

Havent watched much of the lad Palacios mentioned above, but he does look good from the clips.

 

[Pscholes18]

Joao Neves or Khephren Thuram for me.

Didn't think Neves was a DM?

 

[Yagami]

Some disagreed with this thread thinking 3 is too much:

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/we-need-3-new-cms-who-do-we-sign.480717/

but I was in total agreement. We only have one good midfielder in Mainoo. Casemiro, Fernandes, Mount, Eriksen are all rubbish and need binning off. McTominay is fine as a sub.

One 18 year old and an alright super sub is not enough. My choices for the two deeper CMs are Dan Neil and Thiago Helguera. I don't know about the more advanced midfielder yet.

Unfortunately, we're probably stuck with Fernandes and Mount for the foreseeable.

 

[Wheato9]

Pepelu from Valencia could be a decent cheaper option as a true DM. Strong passer, over 6ft. Probably could come for under 40 mill.

 

[Adnan]

Wouldn’t you worry about the physicality/athleticism of that midfield though?

I'm not sure a midfield 3 of Mainoo, Neves and Mount/Bruno is ideal as far as height is concerned. And I think it also lacks quite a bit physically and athletically. There is a notion on here among certain posters who seem to be obsessed with 'press resistant' midfielders and completely ignore or are oblivious to what else is required to control the game out of possession. It's why players like Henderson and Wijnaldum were frowned upon but the press resistant Paul Pogba was lauded by us. So it's about creating a system of play where there's a good mix of players who have the ability to thrive in small spaces against the opponent's press whilst also having players who will be strong at controlling the game in large spaces against the transition in rest defense. We have some very good players in smaller spaces like Martinez, Shaw, Mainoo and even Dalot who has potential in that regard. And i'm sure we'll improve in that regard with whoever we bring in to replace Casemiro. Resisting the press starts with the GK and then the CBs, so before we focus on midfielders when it comes to resisting pressure, we need to focus on the positions behind the midfielders, because other teams have created strong build up phase capabilities which rely on their Gk, CBs and fullbacks and not their midfielders.

But IMO we as a team need to raise our level both physically and athletically which in-turn will allow us to control larger spaces when playing higher up the pitch. So without sacrificing technical ability on the ball, we need players at the base of the midfield who will ideally be strong duellers, large space controllers, and if possible improve our ability to defend set-pieces and also attack set-pieces in the opposition's box. I think both players mentioned by the OP (Onana & Wiefer) are two players who fit what i'm talking about. Wiefer I've mentioned on here a number of times since last year, and he potentially represents a low risk, high reward type of deal.

We have Mainoo as someone who we can develop as the deep lying midfielder to dictate the play in a roaming role but a player like Amadou Onana besides Mainoo does the job out of possession that Mainoo struggles with along with making us stronger on set pieces in both boxes. Onana's recovery pace, physicality and athleticism will provide us with something we severely lack out of possession. And he's more than capable in possession and in the highlights below he's being utilised as the first receiver in midfield against Man City. The only slight worry with him would be the injuries he picks up, which might be a reason not to sign him.



I also think the CB signings are linked to the criteria I've mentioned above about a new midfielder. And the clip below from Sky Sports where they have Jesse Marsche analysing the game is a great one because he's saying something about 'rest defense' which I've mention on here for a while which some posters seem to think is a buzz word. So it's important that whoever we sign as the CB(s) should also have the ability in small spaces (ideally), but we absolutely cannot ignore the physical and athletic element of the role because defending in a compact high block and allowing your fullbacks freedom of movement going forward will require your CBs to defend the channel in 1v1 situations. And for us to have a strong rest defense, it's absolutely imperative to have CBs who can defend on the front foot in a higher line. If the aim is to play the game in the opponent's half, then it's important to target CBs who are not only good box defenders but also good channel defenders. And for me, the most important attributes for a CB in such a proactive approach is to first have a level of technical quality in possession along with being physically and athletically dominant. That's more important than being aerially dominant imo.



Ideally we sign a CB with all the requisite attributes but I'd sacrifice aerial ability for pace and physicality along with technical ability in possession if idealism doesn’t materialize. You can make up for having a lack of height at CB by having strong aerial midfielders, fullbacks and even a striker. But you won't make up for having a aerially strong CB who is weak at defending the channel in a proactive attacking system.

 

[croadyman]

I swear Rabiot is out of contract every summer ! What is that guy up to.

He might feel differently this summer looking at what we are trying to build behind scenes,maybe we could get him and Kimmich for reasonable fees but that's probably completely unrealistic. Thuram might be another option as we are supposedly looking at players in the last year of their contracts.

 

[ArbeitervonWien]

The midfield has been the problem for years, to be honest ever since Roy Keane left. I believe Mainoo can be one of the best, and yes he needs support. Casimero for me is not a PL player, he doesn’t get time on the ball, and he’s not the quickest, and he has been very lucky recently having been booked in games in first few minutes. He will have a problem with refs all the time now, he reminds me of Scholes in that respect, the times Paul was booked for his first tackle in lots of games, and yet other players seem to commit foul after foul and then they get booked in last quarter of game. Also when a referee sees the tackle by Mainoo and decides it’s a foul and a booking, I’m afraid Casimero stands no chance.

A midfield of Scholes, Carrick, Fletcher, Anderson and either Hargreaves, Giggs or some other players to fill in (O'shea, Gibson, etc) has never been a problem. It's been absolutely fantastic, only the barca midfield was better.

 

[Highfather_24]

Thuram is a good shout for Mainoo competion. Would be cheap too.

Still need a DM though to compete with Casemiro. Maybe Onana?

 

[BeforeKeanetherewasRobson]

Really we need both. A younger DM to rotate with Cas. And a box to box to rotate with Mainoo, given that Eriksen and Amrabat won't be here.

That alongside a dribbling LW if we can bring Greenwood back would leave us in great shape for the upcoming season.

Shame we'll sell Alvaro as if we kept him he's more than good enough to be the backup LB, instead we'll probably spend £30m on an comparable player.

Got Harry Amass. (I quite liked Alvaro too)

 

[Brightonian]

Yes, seriously or I wouldn't have suggested it. He's not a right back in my view, not a defensive right back anyway. AWB is and Dalot is too good just to play when someone is injured. Bear in mind we haven't got any money to spend without breaching FFP at the moment. Even if it's a stop gap before we sign a world class DM.

Dalot is currently playing exactly how ETH wants his RB to play. I expect if he had to rate who was doing the job he wanted them to do currently, the clear top three would be Hojlund, Mainoo and Dalot.

Garnacho and Dalot, between them, did a phenomenal job shutting down the crosses coming in from Luton's left hand side, which is their main supply line normally. You could see how hard they had worked on it, and cross after cross got blocked. It was notable that Luton's attacks primarily ended up coming through the middle or down their right hand side.

I like AWB personally but Dalot is shining at the moment, there's no way we should be shunting him out of position. AWB is the quality of player a title-challenging side should have as second choice.

 

[Lash]

I'm not sure a midfield 3 of Mainoo, Neves and Mount/Bruno is ideal as far as height is concerned. And I think it also lacks quite a bit physically and athletically. There is a notion on here among certain posters who seem to be obsessed with 'press resistant' midfielders and completely ignore or are oblivious to what else is required to control the game out of possession. It's why players like Henderson and Wijnaldum were frowned upon but the press resistant Paul Pogba was lauded by us. So it's about creating a system of play where there's a good mix of players who have the ability to thrive in small spaces against the opponent's press whilst also having players who will be strong at controlling the game in large spaces against the transition in rest defense. We have some very good players in smaller spaces like Martinez, Shaw, Mainoo and even Dalot who has potential in that regard. And i'm sure we'll improve in that regard with whoever we bring in to replace Casemiro. Resisting the press starts with the GK and then the CBs, so before we focus on midfielders when it comes to resisting pressure, we need to focus on the positions behind the midfielders, because other teams have created strong build up phase capabilities which rely on their Gk, CBs and fullbacks and not their midfielders.

But IMO we as a team need to raise our level both physically and athletically which in-turn will allow us to control larger spaces when playing higher up the pitch. So without sacrificing technical ability on the ball, we need players at the base of the midfield who will ideally be strong duellers, large space controllers, and if possible improve our ability to defend set-pieces and also attack set-pieces in the opposition's box. I think both players mentioned by the OP (Onana & Wiefer) are two players who fit what i'm talking about. Wiefer I've mentioned on here a number of times since last year, and he potentially represents a low risk, high reward type of deal.

We have Mainoo as someone who we can develop as the deep lying midfielder to dictate the play in a roaming role but a player like Amadou Onana besides Mainoo does the job out of possession that Mainoo struggles with along with making us stronger on set pieces in both boxes. Onana's recovery pace, physicality and athleticism will provide us with something we severely lack out of possession. And he's more than capable in possession and in the highlights below he's being utilised as the first receiver in midfield against Man City. The only slight worry with him would be the injuries he picks up, which might be a reason not to sign him.



I also think the CB signings are linked to the criteria I've mentioned above about a new midfielder. And the clip below from Sky Sports where they have Jesse Marsche analysing the game is a great one because he's saying something about 'rest defense' which I've mention on here for a while which some posters seem to think is a buzz word. So it's important that whoever we sign as the CB(s) should also have the ability in small spaces (ideally), but we absolutely cannot ignore the physical and athletic element of the role because defending in a compact high block and allowing your fullbacks freedom of movement going forward will require your CBs to defend the channel in 1v1 situations. And for us to have a strong rest defense, it's absolutely imperative to have CBs who can defend on the front foot in a higher line. If the aim is to play the game in the opponent's half, then it's important to target CBs who are not only good box defenders but also good channel defenders. And for me, the most important attributes for a CB in such a proactive approach is to first have a level of technical quality in possession along with being physically and athletically dominant. That's more important than being aerially dominant imo.



Ideally we sign a CB with all the requisite attributes but I'd sacrifice aerial ability for pace and physicality along with technical ability in possession if idealism doesn’t materialize. You can make up for having a lack of height at CB by having strong aerial midfielders, fullbacks and even a striker. But you won't make up for having a aerially strong CB who is weak at defending the channel in a proactive attacking system.

I agree with most of what you're saying, but take umbridge at the idea Neves would mean we lack the required athleticism.

He is very physical, aggressive in his duelling and covers ground well and as mentioned earlier, he wins a surprising amount of headers for his size.

Liverpool regularly play a midfield of Endo, Mac Allister and Jones. Gravenberch and Szolozbai are the only tall ones and they don't even offer the attributes you mentioned in their midfield.

 

[Andersons Dietician]

The brief occasions I’ve seen Onana I like what I’ve seen.

When I look at our midfield bar McT it just isn’t very athletic, in modern football you need athleticism especially in midfield where demands are going to be huge on your energy systems.

Too often our midfield just doesnt have that ability or intensity to get back and they just jog back in to position or when they get back they don’t have the energy or clarity of mind too pick up the danger, they just sit off of people.

Having players that could get back at people and make life difficult would be a huge plus and Onana certainly has that ability. However I’d also like to add in Neves to our midfield with Mainoo as he is quick and aggressive in to tackle and I’m guessing ETH’s plan would be to be winning the ball much quicker in oppositions half rather than the chaos and openness we see now mostly due to lack of athleticism.

 

[Adnan]

I agree with most of what you're saying, but take umbridge at the idea Neves would mean we lack the required athleticism.

He is very physical, aggressive in his duelling and covers ground well and as mentioned earlier, he wins a surprising amount of headers for his size.

Liverpool regularly play a midfield of Endo, Mac Allister and Jones. Gravenberch and Szolozbai are the only tall ones and they don't even offer the attributes you mentioned in their midfield.

Liverpool have the most physically and athletically gifted collection of CBs in the league bar none imo. And what those CBs allow Liverpool's midfield and fullbacks to do, is to sacrifice defensive stability for goals. And they will most likely look to upgrade on Endo in the summer with a superior player because as we saw in the previous summer window, they made attempts to sign Lavia and then Caicedo. And it does seem like they will have someone lined up to come into midfield as a deeper lying midfielder.

I'm not against us signing Neves (Benfica) but for what he will cost from Benifca I don't think it would be money well spent considering we need a CB or probably two CBs along with signing a couple of midfielders. I think we have some very good young players that could potentially emerge from the youth, and they're mostly of the creative type in both a deeper role and in advanced positions. But what we don't have are players who can control space in a higher defensive line and win duels with the exception of possibly Oyadele, but not sure if he will be good enough for our first team.

 

[jamesjimmybyrondean]

Palacios, Caqueret or Onana. We need a ball winner as well as a midfielder that can keep possession.

 

[parmenio]

Neves would be a great signing. But it’s probably at least a year too early for him and us. Will cost at least £100m and we would still need a physical unit for midfield to cover. Bruno, Cas and Mainoo are a very good 3. Mount no comment yet. McTom is an offensive unit Which finally we found out. An injury to Cas or Mainoo we are in trouble. Come summer maybe Thuram makes sense has he won’t cost silly money. Then we can still surely have funds over to strengthen defence and attack. This may be a footy manager summer though with a larger than normal amount of players moved on and in. Exciting times ahead which starts with 3 points Vs Fulham please.

 

[Roboc7]

Some disagreed with this thread thinking 3 is too much:

https://www.redcafe.net/threads/we-need-3-new-cms-who-do-we-sign.480717/

but I was in total agreement. We only have one good midfielder in Mainoo. Casemiro, Fernandes, Mount, Eriksen are all rubbish and need binning off. McTominay is fine as a sub.

One 18 year old and an alright super sub is not enough. My choices for the two deeper CMs are Dan Neil and Thiago Helguera. I don't know about the more advanced midfielder yet.

Unfortunately, we're probably stuck with Fernandes and Mount for the foreseeable.

We definitely need 3, probably can’t get them in one window but the midfield needs to be completely rebuilt. Amrabat is gone in the summer, Casemiro and Eriksen are both already in decline and Mctominay is just a stop gap.

We have to replace all four of those over next couple of summer windows, I’d hope as absolute minimum two will be brought in this summer, maybe can squeeze another year out of Casemiro but if get a good deal and fund a replacement like Palacios it has to be done this year.

 

[JohnnyLaw]

I'm not sure a midfield 3 of Mainoo, Neves and Mount/Bruno is ideal as far as height is concerned. And I think it also lacks quite a bit physically and athletically. There is a notion on here among certain posters who seem to be obsessed with 'press resistant' midfielders and completely ignore or are oblivious to what else is required to control the game out of possession. It's why players like Henderson and Wijnaldum were frowned upon but the press resistant Paul Pogba was lauded by us. So it's about creating a system of play where there's a good mix of players who have the ability to thrive in small spaces against the opponent's press whilst also having players who will be strong at controlling the game in large spaces against the transition in rest defense. We have some very good players in smaller spaces like Martinez, Shaw, Mainoo and even Dalot who has potential in that regard. And i'm sure we'll improve in that regard with whoever we bring in to replace Casemiro. Resisting the press starts with the GK and then the CBs, so before we focus on midfielders when it comes to resisting pressure, we need to focus on the positions behind the midfielders, because other teams have created strong build up phase capabilities which rely on their Gk, CBs and fullbacks and not their midfielders.

But IMO we as a team need to raise our level both physically and athletically which in-turn will allow us to control larger spaces when playing higher up the pitch. So without sacrificing technical ability on the ball, we need players at the base of the midfield who will ideally be strong duellers, large space controllers, and if possible improve our ability to defend set-pieces and also attack set-pieces in the opposition's box. I think both players mentioned by the OP (Onana & Wiefer) are two players who fit what i'm talking about. Wiefer I've mentioned on here a number of times since last year, and he potentially represents a low risk, high reward type of deal.

We have Mainoo as someone who we can develop as the deep lying midfielder to dictate the play in a roaming role but a player like Amadou Onana besides Mainoo does the job out of possession that Mainoo struggles with along with making us stronger on set pieces in both boxes. Onana's recovery pace, physicality and athleticism will provide us with something we severely lack out of possession. And he's more than capable in possession and in the highlights below he's being utilised as the first receiver in midfield against Man City. The only slight worry with him would be the injuries he picks up, which might be a reason not to sign him.



I also think the CB signings are linked to the criteria I've mentioned above about a new midfielder. And the clip below from Sky Sports where they have Jesse Marsche analysing the game is a great one because he's saying something about 'rest defense' which I've mention on here for a while which some posters seem to think is a buzz word. So it's important that whoever we sign as the CB(s) should also have the ability in small spaces (ideally), but we absolutely cannot ignore the physical and athletic element of the role because defending in a compact high block and allowing your fullbacks freedom of movement going forward will require your CBs to defend the channel in 1v1 situations. And for us to have a strong rest defense, it's absolutely imperative to have CBs who can defend on the front foot in a higher line. If the aim is to play the game in the opponent's half, then it's important to target CBs who are not only good box defenders but also good channel defenders. And for me, the most important attributes for a CB in such a proactive approach is to first have a level of technical quality in possession along with being physically and athletically dominant. That's more important than being aerially dominant imo.



Ideally we sign a CB with all the requisite attributes but I'd sacrifice aerial ability for pace and physicality along with technical ability in possession if idealism doesn’t materialize. You can make up for having a lack of height at CB by having strong aerial midfielders, fullbacks and even a striker. But you won't make up for having a aerially strong CB who is weak at defending the channel in a proactive attacking system.

I have my doubts about Onana personally, I’ve tried to watch a few games of his but the times I’ve watched him he’s usually been bypassed by his own teammates and looked rather passive. At times he’s reminded me of Bailly where he’ll pull off really difficult plays at times but also overcomplicating things and looking rather foolish other times.

I’m all for Wieffer, Redondo (before his alleged move to Miami) and I also think Rabiot would be very good next to Mainoo as someone who’s experienced, good stature, athletic and strong in both defensive and offensive transitioning. But all I base that on is stats and youtube clips to be honest. It’s been reported that Ineos will look at players with short or outgoing contracts to boost summer investment and I really can’t think of a better opportunity out there for us atm than Rabiot.

 

[Goldfiessli]

Altough perhaps a bit expensive for his age, I think Palhinha would be the sort of player United are looking for in DM.

 

[Adnan]

I have my doubts about Onana personally, I’ve tried to watch a few games of his but the times I’ve watched him he’s usually been bypassed by his own teammates and looked rather passive. At times he’s reminded me of Bailly where he’ll pull off really difficult plays at times but also overcomplicating things and looking rather foolish other times.

I’m all for Wieffer and I also think Rabiot would be very good next to Mainoo as someone who’s experienced, good stature, athletic and strong in both defensive and offensive transitioning. But all I base that on is stats and youtube clips to be honest. It’s been reported that Ineos will look at players with short or outgoing contracts to boost summer investment and I really can’t think of a better opportunity out there for us atm than Rabiot.

I think what Everton are asking from Onana is slightly different to what we'd want from him due to the players we already have at the club. Both Onana and Wiefer play for managers with slightly different approaches to how they implement their vision. Dyche will look to bypass the press by going direct and utilising his players to win the ball high up the pitch with a player like Onana utilised to win duels. And at Feyenoord, Arne Slot implements a playstyle that involves building play through the thirds, which will probably make a player in their midfield look aesthetically more pleasing on the eye.

But I think if you analyse our games including the last one against Luton. It's very clear to see that our players struggle to win duels in midfield and also get bypassed way too easily when losing the ball. The likes of Bruno and Casemiro are easily bypassed, which in Bruno's case might not pose a huge problem, but your DM just cannot get dribbled past as much as Casemiro does. And that basically happens because because when we look to be more proactive in our actions, then upon losing the ball, players like Bruno and Casemiro don't have the athletism to thwart the transition and the small space then becomes a large space and people then complain there's too much space between the attacking and last line. And the reason for that is quite simply down to not having strong players at defending in large spaces. Luton's superior physical and athletic capabilities enabled them to be effective in transition, as well as being superior at winning ground duels in central areas where they caused us a number of problems. I think with players like Martinez who lacks height but is elite in possession and Mainoo who is potentially elite in possession but isn't quite developed physically to defend transitions, they require a player who will control space in transition in midfield but also aliviate some of the defensive burden on Martinez when defending set-plays. And Onana is also more than capable on the ball from what I've seen.

And as you can see from the graph below, it clearly indicates where our problems lie where our players get dribbled past too easily and Onana is absolutely elite at winning ground duels and I suspect he will only improve in that regard due to him being young.



People are mentioning Palacios now due to how well Leverkusen are doing. And he's without a doubt a good player. But if you put him in our midfield, he would struggle because Leverkusen's backline consists of Tapsoba, Tah and Kossounou who make up arguably the bundesliga's most formidable backline as far as pace and power is concerned and it allows Leverkusen to implement a style of play which allows their coach to play the game in the opponent's half with the backline being adept at defending on the half-way line.

 

[The Irish Connection]

I think what Everton are asking from Onana is slightly different to what we'd want from him due to the players we already have at the club. Both Onana and Wiefer play for managers with slightly different approaches to how they implement their vision. Dyche will look to bypass the press by going direct and utilising his players to win the ball high up the pitch with a player like Onana utilised to win duels. And at Feyenoord, Arne Slot implements a playstyle that involves building play through the thirds, which will probably make a player in their midfield look aesthetically more pleasing on the eye.

But I think if you analyse our games including the last one against Luton. It's very clear to see that our players struggle to win duels in midfield and also get bypassed way too easily when losing the ball. The likes of Bruno and Casemiro are easily bypassed, which in Bruno's case might not pose a huge problem, but your DM just cannot get dribbled past as much as Casemiro does. And that basically happens because because when we look to be more proactive in our actions, then upon losing the ball, players like Bruno and Casemiro don't have the athletism to thwart the transition and the small space then becomes a large space and people then complain there's too much space between the attacking and last line. And the reason for that is quite simply down to not having strong players at defending in large spaces. Luton's superior physical and athletic capabilities enabled them to be effective in transition, as well as being superior at winning ground duels in central areas where they caused us a number of problems. I think with players like Martinez who lacks height but is elite in possession and Mainoo who is potentially elite in possession but isn't quite developed physically to defend transitions, they require a player who will control space in transition in midfield but also aliviate some of the defensive burden on Martinez when defending set-plays. And Onana is also more than capable on the ball from what I've seen.

And as you can see from the graph below, it clearly indicates where our problems lie where our players get dribbled past too easily and Onana is absolutely elite at winning ground duels and I suspect he will only improve in that regard due to him being young.



People are mentioning Palacios now due to how well Leverkusen are doing. And he's without a doubt a good player. But if you put him in our midfield, he would struggle because Leverkusen's backline consists of Tapsoba, Tah and Kossounou who make up arguably the bundesliga's most formidable backline as far as pace and power is concerned and it allows Leverkusen to implement a style of play which allows their coach to play the game in the opponent's half with the backline being adept at defending on the half-way line.

How much would Everton ask for Onana though?

 

[Adnan]

How much would Everton ask for Onana though?

I think they'll ask in excess of £50m but it doesn't have to be Onana, as long as we sign someone who fits the needs of the team.

 

[Lash]

Liverpool have the most physically and athletically gifted collection of CBs in the league bar none imo. And what those CBs allow Liverpool's midfield and fullbacks to do, is to sacrifice defensive stability for goals. And they will most likely look to upgrade on Endo in the summer with a superior player because as we saw in the previous summer window, they made attempts to sign Lavia and then Caicedo. And it does seem like they will have someone lined up to come into midfield as a deeper lying midfielder.

I'm not against us signing Neves (Benfica) but for what he will cost from Benifca I don't think it would be money well spent considering we need a CB or probably two CBs along with signing a couple of midfielders. I think we have some very good young players that could potentially emerge from the youth, and they're mostly of the creative type in both a deeper role and in advanced positions. But what we don't have are players who can control space in a higher defensive line and win duels with the exception of possibly Oyadele, but not sure if he will be good enough for our first team.

I agree, we would need to upgrade our CBs, but also looking at Caicedo and Lavia, they're not exactly giants either. I think you're right we are missing that profile, but see that more as what Amrabaat and McTominay should be.

I think Neves covers a hell of a lot of ground and space defensively, just doesn't have the height you are potentially looking for - which I also agree with. I think he's a talent we'd be mad to miss out on.

 

[The Irish Connection]

I think they'll ask in excess of £50m but it doesn't have to be Onana, as long as we sign someone who fits the needs of the team.

Yeah, I’m just trying to weigh up cost vs what they offer in my head. 50m would be about right, but I could see Everton looking for a fair bit more.
I really like Neves but 100m is a risk.
Wieffer looks good stat wise but I haven’t really watched him. Obviously wouldn’t cost a bomb.