William Carvalho

[Amadaeus]

I've watched him quite a few times now, and he isn't rapid across short distances, but in the few times he's had to sprint there are no deficiencies there.

I think his movements, and some other qualities actually, are quite similar to Paul Pogba. He is no Yaya, not necessarily because he is too slow to be, but because he rarely passes the halfway line.

As for speed in general, it isn't necessarily the most important asset in central midfielder. Personally, I like the idea of one midfielder with the ability to run with the ball. It can open up a game in an instant and give great variety. The likes of Oxlade , Wilshere or Toure are more difficult to contain as they can burst past 3 in a central area. This nullifies any opposition tactics. It is for this reason I have some reservations over Kroos, and between the two may be leaning towards Gundogan. Such players are also very useful off the ball too, like Fernandinho for example, who close apace aggressively.

There is a Lisbon supporter in the newb section and we discussed about this topic about his pace a few times already. You basically echoed what has been known for quite awhile for those that has watched him. From what I have seen though, rather than saying his attribute is similar to Pogba, I will say he is more similar to Alexander Song without the inclination to consistently go forward .

Nevertheless, and what I find most compelling about your post is when you stated your reservation about Kroos being his midfielder partner. He would need a more dynamic player like Gündogan or Kovaciç to balance his natural attribute out. So, as you stated, their are some reservation regarding this potential midfield partnership.

 

[Sandikan]

I think Moyes would if we had top-class CM additions. I reckon Carrick could grow into the role very well & his passing ability outta defence would be immense. He has that effortless Martinez style about him (or the other way round of course) & Carrick does a great job defending the last third - especially at corners & clearances, so its in his locker to play CB quite easily & he never gives away silly fouls, so peno's against would be to a minimum from him..

Might be an interesting idea to play Carrick at centre back in the "lesser" games, where teams come to defend.

However, you couldn't really get away with it in harder games.

Going to be an interesting summer. For all the wild talk about just how many centre backs we're after, we have to remember we generally only play 2 there, and we already have a 27.5m man recently bought who will surely play.

 

[Bebe]

Although in saying that, if you remember something similar has been done before with Michael Johnson & Donovan Bailey over 150m's. That was a complete anti-climax after all the trash-talkin that went on beforehand. Johnson was gettin his arse served in the 1st 75m's & to me - he faked a hamstring injury as an excuse for failure & dropped back - hobbling over the line.

Here's the footage to judge for yourself:

Remember this, was absolutely hilarious for Canadians. Still clearly recall the local paper following morning "No Contest!" headline with a picture of Bailey crossing the line in the foreground, and an MS Paint looking arrow pointing to Michael Johnson in the background. Caption "We drew the arrow, just in case you couldn't find him".

 

[Inigo Montoya]

Remember this, was absolutely hilarious for Canadians. Still clearly recall the local paper following morning "No Contest!" headline with a picture of Bailey crossing the line in the foreground, and an MS Paint looking arrow pointing to Michael Johnson in the background. Caption "We drew the arrow, just in case you couldn't find him".

WTF is going on here? I was hoping for interesting stuff on Carvalho and i find some crap about Johnson and Bailey

 

[Bebe]

WTF is going on here? I was hoping for interesting stuff on Carvalho and i find some crap about Johnson and Bailey

Hey I didn't bring it up. But when one of the iconic (in a comedic sense) moments in my country's sporting history crops up on a primarily British football forum you can be damn sure I'm going to address it.

 

[Inigo Montoya]

Hey I didn't bring it up. But when one of the iconic (in a comedic sense) moments in my country's sporting history crops up on a primarily British football forum you can be damn sure I'm going to address it.

Can you take it up in the general sport thread then and stop derailing the thread

 

[Bebe]

Can you take it up in the general sport thread then and stop derailing the thread

There are at least 6 posts on page 11 about Mo Farah, Michael Johnson and Donovan Bailey. As well as an interesting sidebar about Javi Martinez (though that's much closer to being relevant that track & field). I make one comment and I'm derailing the thread. Ok then.

 

[Rozay]

There is a Lisbon supporter in the newb section and we discussed about this topic about his pace a few times already. You basically echoed what has been known for quite awhile for those that has watched him. From what I have seen though, rather than saying his attribute is similar to Pogba, I will say he is more similar to Alexander Song without the inclination to consistently go forward .

Nevertheless, and what I find most compelling about your post is when you stated your reservation about Kroos being his midfielder partner. He would need a more dynamic player like Gündogan or Kovaciç to balance his natural attribute out. So, as you stated, their are some reservation regarding this potential midfield partnership.

Yea, there would be a lot of quality in a Kroos/Carvalho pairing, but it would be quite pedestrian. I barely see Kroos run.

 

[lysglimt]

Carvalho - from what I have seen of him, is exceptionally good at reading the play and winning the ball. He is not a bad passer of the ball, but he is more the kind of player who breaks down the opponents game, rather than producing much himself. That be said - he is VERY good at breaking down the opponents game. But as mentioned - he needs a creative midfielder next to him. He could probably work nicely with Mata in front of him for instance

He looks a bit sluggish - but he is quicker than he looks, and he is good at closing people down.

 

[Chabon]

Probably show Mendes his new VIP suite at Carrington.

The Bebe suite.

We could play with midgets ahead of them like Mata and Kagawa constantly without the fear of being over-powered. Cityizing our formation maybe?

One of the reasons we didn't get fecked yesterday like we have so often when playing Carrick at CB is that we were able to have some height and strength in his place in midfield. Too often in the past we had to play Gibson or Scholes or Park as the DM in front of Carrick, to disastrous effect.

 

[Ekeke]

In hindsight we probably would have ended up with Garay and Matic had Fergie stayed another year and that would have been very nice...hindsight is a wonderful thing though

If he wanted them he'd have signed them like he did Zaha. It was nonsense.

 

[Beachryan]

He looks ideal for the 'anchor' man in a 3-man midfield. Which we don't ever play under Moyes.

 

[Damien]

Any info on this dude?

We have two prominent Sporting fans in the newbies. Here is what they say (they've been talking in a thread about him for last couple of months):

Hi everyone im a new member and a Sporting CP fan... obviously most of you have heard of all the rumors and interest in William CarvalhO. As a Sporting CP fan I watch him every weekend and have a pretty good insight on him so I wanted to give my opinion on him and if he would be a good player for United. William Carvalho is a very good player and offers a lot to the team he has a very good passing ability let it be long or short passes he thinks quikly and is always the first to start an attack because of his strength he recovers the ball really well and he reads the game brilliantly for a tall guy he has good technical ability and is good with the ball at his feet and making space to pass the ball to an open player one weak point in his game would have to be his shooting its something that he needs to work on but he is a fantastic player ...even tho I hope he stays in Sporting for another season I definitely think he would be a fantastic buy for United just the type of player I think United need in getting him United would definitely have a a great player on their hands and one who I think can become a world class player. im open to any questions about him or any Sporting CP player you might have a question on ..Also I follow united and watch them a lot im sorry for the unfortunate season they are having im sure they will bounce back next year Sporting had a similarly bad season last year so I kno how it feels

sadly theirs no good video of him in a sporting shirt which is where he has put his best displays.....in terms of reaching yaya toures level I think he can hes been most compared to yaya toure and Patrick viera but like I said in my first post he needs to work on his shooting which is the weakest point in his game if he does that then I definitely feel he can reach that level...he makes a big difference in the sporting team we are a completely different team without him

Fernando is a good player but I think William offers more to a team Fernando is good defensively not as good at attacking William does both and he is younger and is smarter with the ball

How do you think be compares to Matic? I realize Matic is much improved compared to when he came to benfica and is more of a finished article, but can he be as good and is he similar in his game?

as you mentioned Carvalho is younger and still can improve ...can he be as good? personally I think he can be better...I dont think their too similar in their game Carvalho I think is a bit better defensively Matic is a better shooter of the ball and that's a point in Williams game that he needs to improve but William is a better distributer of the ball and is very good at not just recovering the ball but he starts the attack straight away as I mentioned in a previous poste he is often compared to Patrick viera and yaya toure but shooting is definitely something he needs to improve but for a big guy he has very good technical ability and can make space for himself if needed to pass the ball ...personally I feel he is a better option for united then Matic is/was

I watched the first half of Sporting's game at the weekend, against Olhanense to watch a bit of William Carvalho. His passing with both feet was great, and his composure on the ball. But, I didn't really get to see his pace with or without the ball as he never really dribbled with the ball, or had to defend in a situation where there was a quick transition and he had to run back. But, from what I saw he looked quite slow, probably the only negative aspect of his game as a DM. We already have many slow midfielders so I'm not sure about this. Looked slower than Fellaini to me, but this is the only time I've seen him play. What do you think?

im not sure if it was in the first half or second but their was a play where he took the ball and went on a yaya toure style run passed players with decent speed but then took a wayward shot...he is not the quickest but he can definitely keep up and is faster then fellaini one thing that helps William a lot as well is that because of his strength he slows down the attacker but the reason you probably never saw him run a lot was because Sporting play with a midfield trio of 3 Adrien,Martins,and William and Martins tracks back a lot and helps defend along with Adrien to cover space it is one of the reason we have the best defence in the league we recover the ball quickly ...but those runs that yaya does at time William does as well ....
go to minute 1:30 and you will see the runs I am talking about

I watched the first half of Sporting's game at the weekend, against Olhanense to watch a bit of William Carvalho. His passing with both feet was great, and his composure on the ball. But, I didn't really get to see his pace with or without the ball as he never really dribbled with the ball, or had to defend in a situation where there was a quick transition and he had to run back. But, from what I saw he looked quite slow, probably the only negative aspect of his game as a DM. We already have many slow midfielders so I'm not sure about this. Looked slower than Fellaini to me, but this is the only time I've seen him play. What do you think?

Slower than Fellaini? No way. I don´t consider Carvalho slow. He has decent pace for a player with his physical atributes. Sometimes he gives the wrong impression because of his playing style and how Leonardo Jardim (our manager) limitates his midfield range due to his tactical approach. In the second half of the Olhanense game, he made plenty of pacy attacking runs. I´ve seen some posts in the main, likening Carvalho to Makelele but he is nothing like Makelele. He is similiar to Vieira in his playing style. Boa Morte also has the same opinion.

Also a Sporting fan and I have watched this kid play every match this season. Here is my honest assessment:

Pros
He's a tall, slender, defensive minded CDM. Think a faster, stronger Carrick. Incredible stamina (you'll often see him sprint the length of the pitch at the 90 minute mark), perfect positioning and one the best standing tacklers I have ever seen. Very agressive pressing off the ball, allows the team to play further up the pitch because he can recover possession very quickly. No injuries to report in his 3 professional years so far. Almost endless potential, could be one of the best midfielders in the world within 3-4 years.

Cons
Good passer, but needs to improve his vision and needs to take more risky passes, because he tends to settle for easy side passes a little too often. Not a great header of the ball despite his height. Not a Center Midfielder at all, would probably be a poor fit in a classic 4-4-2 formation. Would need some time to adjust to the high pace, intense play of the Premier League (Sporting plays slower, possession football). At this very moment, Porto's Fernando is a superior player, more experienced and better on the ball.

He looks similar to Yaya Touré, but is completely different in play style. Verratti, Pogba and Matic are also poor comparisons. Better ones would be Makelele, Busquets, the Bender twins and a former portuguese DM, Paulo Sousa.

Although Sporting is not swimming in money, he is considered a non negotiable asset, which means at least 15-20 million pounds would be needed to start negotiating.

At this very moment, Porto's Fernando is a superior player, more experienced and better on the ball.

He looks similar to Yaya Touré, but is completely different in play style. Verratti, Pogba and Matic are also poor comparisons. Better ones would be Makelele, Busquets, the Bender twins and a former portuguese DM, Paulo Sousa.

I agree with the first two assessments but no way is Fernando better on the ball than Carvalho. Off the ball i agree, but Carvalho has much better technic and passing range than Fernando. Fernando is a very good defensive and positional player but is somewhat limited on the ball.

Again with this Makelele comparison. He is nothing like Makelele. Makelele was a better man marker and defensive midfielder but Carvalho is a more technical player with better passing range and pace. Makelele barely left the defensive zone and Carvalho usually does more attacking runs than him. Carvalho is also more dangerous at set pieces and has better aerial ability and shooting. Will have a better goal ratio for sure. Has two goals this year which isn´t bad for a DM (Against Porto and Paços Ferreira).

Too bad this one hit the post, would be a wonderful goal

I totally agree with this evaluation [Sly's, above]. Most people think that Carvalho is a physical player, but he is more of a technical one. He's our best passer, he plays a lot of through ball from that spot (especially over the defense balls) and he often runs through the midfield. He's also got a wonderful first touch, as you can see from the Sporting vs Porto Youtube clip.

I'm a Sporting fan, so I've watched this guy a lot of times, and I must say that since Ronaldo and Quaresma I never saw a player with so much potential. He could be a World Class player in just a couple of years.

I'm not a Sporting season ticket holder, but I am a die hard fan, so we're both equally qualified for this discussion. Fernando is no doubt a superior player on the ball. Much better passer, especially in that first transition pass you need from your defensive midfielders in a 4-3-3, and has better technique overall. Calling him limited on the ball is outrageous.

When I made that comparison to Makelele, I didn't say they were the exact same player. I just said he's closer to Makelele than he is to Pogba, Matic and Yaya. That's why I mentioned those other guys. William has his personal set of skills, which do not include great shooting ability. His two goals consisted of an easy header inside the goal area against Paços and a left footed volley against Porto that was going wide until Fernando deflected it past the goalkeeper.

That one against Arouca would have been a beauty though.

How can you say no doubt? You can say that it´s your opinion. I´m not the only one thinking that Fernando is limited on the ball. Arruda who is a Porto fan, who posts in the main forum, also thinks the same. You must be the first Sporting fan that thinks that Fernando is better on the ball and has better technic. That is ludicrous. Everyone knows that Fernando´s main ability is tackling and positioning period. Doing easy passes at the first transition phase doesn´t make you better passer. Carvalho is more dangerous and influential in the attack also. Just look at the numbers. Fernando has 3 goals in 172 Porto games. Carvalho has 2 goals in 19 games. Everyone has the right to their opinion but i don´t agree with yours at all and most of the people i know think the same. Either Sporting or Porto fans. Even so at the moment, i think Fernando is better but with Carvalho´s potencial i think he will be much better in the future and a main player at a top club and our National team.

Adrien is our best passer, then Montero, then André Martins, and then William. He does not play a lot of through balls, those other three guys do. Youtube clips are nice for highlights, but if you want to get to know players you got to watch them over the course of several matches (which you have).

Give a five minute Youtube clip and I'll make John O'Shea look like Ferdinand and Vidic.

You're cleary deluded. Sorry for being rude, but that's the only way to put it. You can argue that Adrien is a better passer than William (alhough I don't agree) but Montero and André Martins? Especially Martins, that is showing no signs of improvement and constantly enrages Sporting fans with his lack of creativity and passing abilities.

In my opinion, William is the better passer in our squad. The thing is that he plays in a specific position, where he doesn't have to much freedom to roam into higher positions. But even so, he pulls a lot of great passes (like the lob to Wilson against Olhanense). And he rarely misses a pass, you know that if you give this guy the ball, he will put it to a teammate forward or, if it's to risky, he will pass to the defenders to pick it up again.

And in comparison to Fernando, he his much better technically. Fernando is more consistent in terms of defending, but that's about it. With the ball, William is much better.

Are they not strapped for cash

We have a very good president now, that defends the club and doesn't let players out for small amounts of money. Also, he wouldn't let the best player of the squad out in January, because that would compromise the rest of the season.

Don't think that because we have financial difficulties it will be easy to get William, because this president is a Bad Mother*****. And he's called Carvalho too.

I feel that United is missing a player like Carvalho. All Fellaini will do in the role Carvalho plays is win the ball back and pass it to the guy next to him Carvalho does much more and offers much more...He is the defensive player United need to win balls back in the midfield and help out the defence as well as being the first to start the attack and stretch the play out to wingers or the Striker . His passing ability is something that would help United a lot along with his presence in midfield and his technical ability in the middle of the park. Along with his runs he occasionally does and his threat in the box he would be a huge boost for United ...Put him along side a player like Strootman and it would work wonders...Also with him it will give Carrick more time on the ball to pick a pass or even give Mata or Rooney that extra bit of time on the ball that can make a difference....

I think United should really try to get Luke Shaw as well very talented left back who could have a bright career at Old Trafford . As for cb u guys have a promising new cb pairing forming but it would not hurt to get one more as for wide men I do think United need to get rid of young who i don't hink is good enough for United and Valencia who is to predictable and easy to defend ...Adnan is the future and a great talent Nani i feel deserves to be given a chance because his talent is unquestionable when he is on song he fantastic to watch and the type of wideman United need but United do need another winger

William played fantastic yet again tonight in Sporting 2-1 win over Braga it really is a joy to watch him play easily MOM
also well done to Mane who played well again and won the penalty that began the comeback

This piece of play really just shows the intelligence and quality William has as a player

Yep monstrous game by him again. Running out of adjectives to describe him, another great performance. Rojo also played very well (this comes from a person who doesn´t really like him). They were the best tonight. Unfortunately i doubt Carvalho will stay at Sporting next year.

Sporting vs FC Porto today very important game for the potential outcome of the league for anyone who is interested ...William and potentially Mane will be starting if you guys want to see them in action


nice skill by William in the last game

SPORTING 1-0 FC Porto and now we are 5 points clear very big win

Fantastic performance by William Carvalho if you missed this game you missed one of if not his best game in a Sporting shirt completely bossed the midfield and showed a lot of class for such a big guy his technical ability is great his control with the ball the way he flicks it around players its just great to see and it was his fantastic ball to Andre martins which led to the goal William just oozes class and now sadly I am almost certain he wont be with Sporting next year especially since im sure their was a lot of scouts there all in all great win

William yet again 4 guys could not take the ball from him...there are other nice bits of skill he did but I have not seen gifs of them yet

Completely bossed the midfield, against a Porto midfield with Fernando, Carlos Eduardo and Defour. Looked like a seasoned vet, so much composure and always delivering the ball with purpose. Him and Adrien complement each other very well. What a performance. Unfortunately i can´t see him staying another year even if we reach the Champions League. Any scout can see that he has the potencial to become a great, great midfield. Even if we do earn big money, it will be very hard to replace him. Our academy keeps on giving. And Dier? Again a flawless game against Porto and Jackson Martinez. Not many defenders can claim that. Only 20 years of age and already showing so much maturity. He should be a starter alongside Rojo clearly.

You can forget that 18m€ plus player. From what our President has been saying, i think he will decline any deal involving player plus money. What we need is fresh money. No way Bruno de Carvalho (our President) will accept that. And that can be easily explained by two reasons. On the negative side, the fact that we only have 60% of his sporting rights (40% in the hands of a Peter Kenyon fund i think) limits our chances of accepting a player plus money deal. On the positive side, we have pretty good chances (being second in the league, 5 points in front of Porto) of achieving Champions League qualification and that will give us more financial leverage in our negotiations. It will be a case of take it or leave it for a deal with values close to his release clause.

Potential big blow to United Portuguese newspaper Abola have reported [Fri 21 March] that a source very close to Sporting has said that William will not leave for anything less then 45 M and will increase his wages significantly with CL looming in hopes to keep him for 1 more season ...as has been said before we have not had a president like Bruno de Carvalho in a long time and he seems to be like Portos president in the selling aspect where he will always try to get the most money possible and is very difficult to sell a player for just any amount so it will be very interesting to see what will happen in the summer

Carvalho has been improving his goal threat [talking about yesterday's game]. Must be Jardim´s work. Important goal today. Not a great performance by the team but a good victory never the less in a ground where Porto and Benfica lost. Agree with you about Adrien´s MOM nomination.

My point is, because so many clubs take players from them, they don't want them to take anymore unless that pay more money than they should.

As you are a sporting fan, do you honestly believe this guy would cope with the high intensity of transitions of the PL and the high pressing?

His reluctance to move and pass is incredible, he just sits just in front of the back four. Yes he is a good passer, but the opposition can just stop all possible passing destination and he is useless.

He is worth £27-30 max.

Yes i honestly believe. That bolded part is wrong. How many times have you seen him to make that kind of conclusion? I´ve seen all his Sporting and National team games (Sporting ones at the stadium) and he isn´t reluctant to move, he is a tactically disciplined player, playing for a very strict manager. It seems you don´t know the player at all. His main assets are his positioning, tactical awareness, passing, physical strenght, ability to shield, recover and pass the ball with criteria. He is also showing goal threat and scoring a decent ammount of goals for a DM. I agree that he isn´t worth the value of the release clause but Sporting will use the top club interest and our financial leverage with a potencial Champions League qualification to sell him for a record value. About 90% of the players in the market nowadays have inflated values, it´s not something new, it´s just how the market works with the ammount of Oligarchs, Sheiks and TV money deals

Look even if the deal is real, don´t expect any confirmation soon. Both clubs are in the crucial phase of their season (United still in the Champions League; Sporting trying to achieve a direct Champions League spot at second place) and won´t obviously disclose any information. I can only understand a deal if the release clause is met. Negotiating a player before a World Cup (where he will probably be a starter for our National Team) and with all the other top club interest (City, Chelsea and Real Madrid) would be an amateur error only seen in the incompetent levels of our previous board. Just relax and wait for the end of the season.

Np mate. Feel free to correct me if i make any mistake too.

This is what our President Bruno de Carvalho said tonight after the game (translated from the Abola site):

"Sporting has a series of players with percentages sold to Funds, as our financial reports show. We are always trying to make the best possible deals for the club. I´m not talking about any specific player. We have recovered percentages in many players. There are alot of news about William Carvalho but he is a Sporting player. He has a five year contract and the board made an important effort to get him back after he was loaned abroad. He appreciated our efforts and is grateful. We like him. He is a brilliant player and he should be a starter in Portugal´s national team. We have no interest in selling him."

Fresh declarations after tonight´s game.

 

[Nickosaur]

Very encouraging comments there.

Also very interesting to see one of them mention Eric Dier. English CB, only 20, was hyped as a big prospect but he went off the radar a bit. Still plays for England U-21s every now and then I believe.

 

[Dante]

Alright, that's me convinced.

The only concern is bm_5 saying he can't play in a midfield 2. Any thoughts on that portutards?

 

[Damien]

Very encouraging comments there.

Also very interesting to see one of them mention Eric Dier. English CB, only 20, was hyped as a big prospect but he went off the radar a bit. Still plays for England U-21s every now and then I believe.

Yeah, Sly really likes Dier. There's a few other comments by him about Dier, I'll bring them up in a bit.

 

[Kag]

He looks ideal for the 'anchor' man in a 3-man midfield. Which we don't ever play under Moyes.

This is the impression I'm getting, too. I'm not all that convinced. If we were going to play a genuine three in midfield with an anchor and two attacking midfielders then great but I don't see Moyes doing that.

 

[Sandikan]

Alright, that's me convinced.

The only concern is bm_5 saying he can't play in a midfield 2. Any thoughts on that portutards?

It's funny, can anyone play in a midfield 2 these days?

 

[TheNewEra]

Alright, that's me convinced.

The only concern is bm_5 saying he can't play in a midfield 2. Any thoughts on that portutards?

Midfield 3, 3 up top, 4-3-3 next season, hard to play against.

 

[KiD MoYeS]

We'd arguably still need a creative midfielder, and his signing would potentially signal a meaninglessness to Fellaini's transfer. But, having said all that, I'm all for it. There's obviously serious potential.

 

[Buchan]

He's a tank and would be terrific in the Premier League.

I'd also argue that his frame and style of play are ideally suited to the English game, definitely more so than La Liga, Serie A or the Bundesliga.

 

[Snipers Breath]

Yeah, Sly really likes Dier. There's a few other comments by him about Dier, I'll bring them up in a bit.

Would like to see this.

 

[Dante]

What worries me is that his physicality seems to be his main weapon in the Portuguese league. That's all well and good against teams which you can physically dominate, but how will he cope in the Premier League when he's just another big guy? It's going to take a huge change in his playing style to make the transition.

 

[The Red Thinker]

What worries me is that his physicality seems to be his main weapon in the Portuguese league. That's all well and good against teams which you can physically dominate, but how will he cope in the Premier League when he's just another big guy? It's going to take a huge change in his playing style to make the transition.

I think you'll find that that is not his real weapon. His real weapon excellent positioning. He has the body to get in front of balls, but he tends to use his quick feet to quickly get rid of the ball and pass it onto other players when he's under pressure.

Of course, he can also pick a long pass if needed. He's not just about his physique. He's a very intelligent player.

 

[Dante]

I'm not doubting that he has other qualities. I'm just worried about how much he'll have to adapt his game (and whether he'll still be the same player when he does).

 

[Barney]

What would you lot be paying for him? Can't help but feel his buyout is a bit extravagant.

 

[Lu Tze]

What would you lot be paying for him? Can't help but feel his buyout is a bit extravagant.

I'd imagine between 25-30m personally. It'd be a fair price.

 

[Barney]

I'd imagine between 25-30m personally. It'd be a fair price.

I'd be looking for a more established player at that price personally. Either way, sounds like he's a good prospect but if what the Sporting supporters are saying is true, he definitely sounds more suited to a midfield 3.

 

[Lu Tze]

I'd be looking for a more established player at that price personally. Either way, sounds like he's a good prospect but if what the Sporting supporters are saying is true, he definitely sounds more suited to a midfield 3.

Meh, look at what Chelsea paid for Luiz. 25m Euro and Matic. Portuguese clubs can always extract plenty of money for their top prospects, it comes with the territory. He seems very talented, and I'm quite sure the lad could adapt to playing the more reserved role in a 2, given that he has all of the attributes physically and seemingly mentally for it.

 

[gasmanc]

Technical, powerful, intelligent, composed, the exact opposite of our current crop, yea go on then.

 

[smallred]

apparently is a very very good player, but similar in style to what we already have in Carrick, Fletcher and Fellaini. signing him, still means we need to sign a goal scoring creative force in the middle, like Scholes in his prime.

we need somebody in to replicate what Giggs does in the middle, just 15 years younger. him and Kroos, behind Nani, Mata and Rooney would be insanely delicious thou.

 

[Baxter]

I have the feeling that this will be like Garay. He will have signed for us about 20 times without actually signing for us.

 

[Barney]

I think this one will happen. I have a feeling with him. I think Gundogan will join you too.

 

[Buchan]

Gundogan - Carvalho

Kagawa - Mata - Januzaj

Rooney

​

Holy smokes.

 

[GledTheRed]

Gundogan - Carvalho

Kagawa - Mata - Januzaj

Rooney

​

Holy smokes.

Man I'd suck a d for that ish.

 

[KanieKaned]

Gundogan - Carvalho

Kagawa - Mata - Januzaj

Rooney

​

Holy smokes.

Or

Kroos - Carvalho

Kagawa - Mata - januzaj

Rooney

 

[Arruda]

Oh dear, two Sporting posters likely to come up soon. This in an year where they're most likely to finish the league ahead of us. I tremble.

 

[Glanville95]

Gundogan - Carvalho

Kagawa - Mata - Januzaj

Rooney

​

Holy smokes.

If Moyes somehow contrives to fail with that team, the media will start spouting about us needing to strengthen our midfield and attack. That really is a high quality front six, that competes with most in Europe.

 

[Mainoldo]

If Moyes somehow contrives to fail with that team, the media will start spouting about us needing to strengthen our midfield and attack. That really is a high quality front six, that competes with most in Europe.

They'll blame Rafael and say he needs time to get Coleman.

 

[Reapersoul20]

Can you take it up in the general sport thread then and stop derailing the thread

Christ. They're very sorry for having fun and a bit of a chat on a message board. So, so sorry.