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"Lopitegui will want a largish budget and to get deals done early, so I expect the club to put up 75m regardless of who we sell. if Paqueta goes we should have a budget of around 200m and we're going to need it if Lopitegui is going to rebuild which I hope he does. However as he proved at Wolves he can be pragmatic and work with what he's got but not sure he's come here for that. We could do with letting at least 6 or 7 go and getting in players who suit his style to replace them. That still leaves us with a small squad so he's gonna have to actually use a few of the youth prospects, not just stick them on the bench. I think he will as his record shows."
"If Ings leaves I'll be flabbergasted. Firstly no one will.take on his wages, and secondly in Lopetegui's standard setup, he's probably the most useful striker we have...dropping in deep, cycling possession to the flanks, then drifting into the box late to apply a finish from a pocket of space. It's horses for courses, and I think he's now more useful than Antonio. Plus he's 3 years younger, and has a better career goalscoring record. Just he was an idiot but for a Moyesball setup. We might get some value from him yet."
dealcanvey Even if we didn't sell any players we must have some funds allocated to transfers from EL and TV money. By all accounts we were set to buy players in January but that was vetoed at the last minute... those funds should still be in the 'war chest'. On top of that we should get in and save the wages on: Soucek 15-20m Cresswell Ogbonna Ings (big wages) Benrahma 10-15m Kehrer 10m Aguerd? 20m Zouma 10m from Saudi Johnson Say that lot brings in 60m then we should have around 100m to spend without Paqueta. Those that come in have the wages of those that left...
Ludo Agree with most. But I don’t think our budget is anywhere near 100m with paqueta also staying. Even next season with being able to spend 90% of revenue on wages and transfers it wouldn’t be possible to spend 100m on players and also pay their wages.
"West Ham Football @westhamfootball Pablo Sanz seems another odds-on favourite to join Lopetegui in his West Ham new look back-room team. The former Spanish midfielder for Barcelona academy and B side is a long-term ally of Lopetegui. In 2014, he joined Lopetegui at Porto FC as his assistant moving to Spanish national team with his boss in 2016. In 2018, he left the national team with Lopetegui, and joined him in Real Madrid as an assistant. In 2019, he was appointed as the assistant coach of Sevilla. And in 2022, he joined Wolverhampton Wanderers as Julen Lopetegui's assistant. The Wolves assistant head coach received a one match touchline ban and a £6,000 fine following an incident against Nottingham Forest after Sanz admitted “improper and/or violent” behaviour when squaring up with Nottingham Forest assistant boss Alan Tate."
"Deffo not that guy, but been doing a bit of research about Lopetegui setup and approach. In fairness the conclusions around our current squad are pretty apparent so no great surprise if someone else has surmised something very similar."
Stubbo Have you lifted these directly form the hammers chat... ghe views are almost identical unless you are that bloke? https://youtu.be/eDkljsB5R9U?si=ma54Z61ziSXuo77y
"You'd have to assume the whole point of getting in Steidten and his 'pearl diver' reputation is to be able to get in players on the cheap who are of greater value than their current reputation, and this make our money go further whilst then being able to sell them for much bigger prices. If he's just looking for established players, then there's no great skill in that."
dealcanvey - I don't think that we need to break the bank to get decent players in... most teams with a proper recruitment structure seem to manage it... it's only teams like Man Utd / Chelsea etc.. that throw 60-100m around on unproven players. We are linked again with En Nesryi who would only cost 20m and who seems quite likely given the Lop connections. Various other targets linked at similar prices plus the odd out of contract 'free'. Should be quite capable of getting 6 decent signings for 100m which should be around the budget without any funds in from Paqueta. If Paqueta goes then bigger budget.
We won’t have the finances to do all we need to do in one transfer window. Massive overhaul needed. How much are we going to be paying for a decent forward? Let alone LW CB and wing back positions plus replacing Paqueta if he is sold. Prwtty sure Ogbonna and/or Cresswell will still be here next season as there will be no other choice.
"Simms was a product of Everton's youth side and never remotely shone when he played for them so I'd be surprised if anyone went in based upon his performances in the cup run. Mind you, I also said Dominic Solanke would never make a premier league striker"
Ellis Simms at Coventry might be worth a look? Hardly prolific with 13 Championship goals but looked very Handy in the FA cup against Prem opposition and is only 23.
"Agreed Dolph, new right back is essential, we’ve had our moneys worth out of Coufal but he is pretty shit now and we need pace in the side. 2 new centre backs, forward & Right back most importantly needed imo."
"Agreed Dolph, new right back is essential, we’ve had our moneys worth out of Coufal but he is pretty shit now and we need pace in the side. 2 new centre backs, forward & Right back most importantly needed imo."
"Stubbo 2:25 Fri May 10 Good post that, Stubbo. Agree about Emerson. He provides no width at all. He linked up really well with Paqueta but it didn't amount to much because neither one of them wanted to make runs into that left hand side. I would have been more concerned about Kudus if Amorim came here and we were going 343. I don't think he'd be a problem playing central and deeper in a 433. He likes getting stuck in and can carry the ball a long way so it should work well. We would probably see some of the better aspects of Aguerd's game if we play a high line but I reckon he's just not suited to the physicality of the English game, while he might okay for the Spanish or French. He probably had a better rep than he deserved simply because there's fewer left footed CBs about."
"Sport Witness ‘Summit with representatives’ as player could be sold to West Ham – Club now ready to sell to Hammers By Naveen Ullal Sporting’s Marcus Edwards was linked with a move to West Ham United in January, but the London club never made an approach for him. The winger has scored six goals and registered nine assists from 43 games in the Lions’ title winning season, yet his future seems to be away from Sporting. That’s according to Record, who say West Ham could be an option for the 25-year-old in the summer window, with the Hammers having a longstanding interest. It’s claimed the Englishman has a clear desire to return to his country and wants to play in the Premier League. The report says several clubs from the Premier League have followed the player’s situation at the Portuguese club, and West Ham are mentioned. His deal lasts until 2026, and Sporting are ready to negotiate his sale in the next window. As of now, there are no offers on the table. With West Ham in the mix, Record state there will be a ‘summit with representatives’ at the end of the season, and the player will then decide the best option for his career. Faced with the possibility of losing Edwards, the Portuguese champions are looking at the possible candidates who could replace him next season. They feel that now is the right time to sell and maximise their gains."
"the exile 11:48 Thu May 9 Re: The summer transfer window thread Figured I'd give my thoughts in response to yours. Historically JLo has favoured a 4-3-3 over a 4-2-3-1, with fullbacks providing the width. I see a few issues: 1. Emerson is not an overlapping fullback....if anything he drives inside when attacking. Whether he could do the wide left role, or the left side midfield role in a 4-3-3 I don't know (he's pretty good on the ball), but I suspect he won't be our left sided full back. 2. With no 'no 10' what does that mean for Kudus? He's not a natural left sided inside forward, and has talked about his preference for playing in the middle. He is hard working though and carries the ball well...maybe he could play either right or left of Alvarez...I believe he plays more midfield for Ghana. 3. Given JLo often plays a 'false 9' or at least a striker that drops in to lay it off for the wider players before arriving later (Scamacca, Haller as examples of the type of striker that would work for him), I don't see that Bowen central, or Antonio central will work. So with these considerations I think we could line up (if using the current squad): -------------------------Areola Coufal--Mavropanos--Aguerd*---Cornet* --------------Kudus*----Alvarez*---JWP -------Bowen--------New Striker--------Emerson* Some considerations/thoughts, given the above looks somewhat barmy: 1. At PSG, Cornet played at wing back. Could JLo see an option there...he's converted wingers in the past like Navas, and Cornet is a more natural player to overlap down the left. 2. Emerson 'could' play anywhere up the left side...from what I've read of JLo's setup, he's probably least suited to left back though as he doesn't really provide width. I could also see a scenario where we move him on. 3. Kudus and Bowen just feel totally at odds with each other, with both best when coming in off the right flank. Kudus is the stronger player physically so maybe he can drop into the middle line, and he does work hard, but wonder if this negates his ball carrying ability too much. Will be interesting to see where Kudus gets used, with his goal threat having been heavily negated when played left side (actually think Bowen would have been more adaptable as he has a more neutral body shape when moving with the ball). Bowen is very clearly the logical right sided forward in a 4-3-3 though...likely to get used in a similar way to Ocampos. 4. Coufal is good in the final third, and playing a high line and with the wide players key in providing the width, could he have a role to play? Obvious we need a younger faster man in that place, but he could still offer some value. 5. Aguerd was the first choice to be signed by Sevilla to replace CBs when Lopetegui was there...and he's clearly more suited to a high line with his recovery pace. Could he have a way back in....we clearly still need a LCB to replace Ogbonna, and if we could get Kilman, expect he'd get the not as brings Aguerd's good bits, while being physically stronger. 6. The Alvarez role is SO important...someone to drop between the centre backs, start the possession phases, as well as hold the midfield while the players either side of him rove up and down. Could a Downes, or Potts, really be trusted with a role of that importance? Suspect we sign someone to come in as understudy. And lastly....Soucek. Surely the only spot for him in the squad is as a 'chase the game' substitute...where you accepts the loss of possession he will bring in favour of hitting the box in the last 20 mins when throwing caution to the wind. Don't see him staying as can't see that role is one he'll be ok with, and he's a saleable asset, but don't see any other role for him in the squad as he's simply not good enough under pressure when with the ball at his feet."
"HACKNEY has had good reviews and obviously well named for an East London club I'd be happy to see SOUCEK moved on for players better on the ball and to see HACKNEY, DOWNES, F POTTS, ORFORD & EARTHY all around the squad being assessed"
Apparently we’re very keen on Hayden Hackney from Boro. He looks very comfortable in possession so would suit playing under Lopetegui. Not sure what it would mean for Downes though.
