Our squad building has been weird so far. We are strong at centre back and wing back and (at time of writing) have quality 8/10s. We massively lack a behind the ball midfielder and a centre forward.
So why have we spent money on wingers? They don't complement the squad as it is and is money spent on positions that are a poor fit for the best way to use the current squad.
It seems the long way round to stability and success to me, and much riskier than building on our current strengths.
And, Enzo apart, I think it is far, far too soon to say whether any of them are going to end up at the standard required to be stalwarts in a top four side, let alone as potential league winners.
Great points. This is why I worry about going for Osi. No doubt he is a top striker but not every player is Enzo in terms of handling big price tag on him. We should look for smart signings and keep the wage structure in check so that we can build for future and compete for trophies with smart recruitment, sustainably.
Great points made- look at how arsenal got back to challenging as well. Saliba, Gabriel, Odegaard, Jesus etc didn’t cost a bomb and were able to be moulded in an effective and well drilled team for the majority of the season. Like you said our recruitment team have made so many quality signings that I hope continue along with the odd Caicedo who you know will come in and instantly improve us
The other difference is that they appointed a manager with ideas about how to attack, make chances. Sure, it took a while to implement, but their play this year has been good to watch.
Potter appeared to have zero ideas or couldn't communicate them, and for all that we love TT, it was not obvious to see how the team created clear chances other than relying on individuals (Kante, Reece, Chilly) rather than method.
So it's not just recruitment, but also the system and method. As you say, Arsenal needed to be moulded, and had a manager who could do that. I have high hopes for Poch to do similar.
For balance, everyone points to Brighton model as the standard bearer; they spot unknown talents who they buy in cheap, they develop them in a team that plays good football, and sell for a huge profit. Yet, what has Brighton won?
That is the very essence of the knock on the "moneyball" method. It gets you a good team but not premier league winning team.
In the end you need everything, good talent spotting, good negotiators, a good manager and good medical staff. Above all you need good judgement. There is a time to go big on a transfer. A good team can make that call.
ManC have done better because they recruited more smartly as the author points out. We sell De Bruyne the buy him. We sell Sarah, Liverpool buy. Our judgement has been very poor.
Love these articles, keep up the good work
Great Article again, what are your socials ? Unlike let's say Ben Jacobs, you're a bit unknown outside of this site.
Great article 👍
Up to a point, Lord Scorio.
Our squad building has been weird so far. We are strong at centre back and wing back and (at time of writing) have quality 8/10s. We massively lack a behind the ball midfielder and a centre forward.
So why have we spent money on wingers? They don't complement the squad as it is and is money spent on positions that are a poor fit for the best way to use the current squad.
It seems the long way round to stability and success to me, and much riskier than building on our current strengths.
And, Enzo apart, I think it is far, far too soon to say whether any of them are going to end up at the standard required to be stalwarts in a top four side, let alone as potential league winners.
Great article , could not agree more
W article.
Great points. This is why I worry about going for Osi. No doubt he is a top striker but not every player is Enzo in terms of handling big price tag on him. We should look for smart signings and keep the wage structure in check so that we can build for future and compete for trophies with smart recruitment, sustainably.
Great points made- look at how arsenal got back to challenging as well. Saliba, Gabriel, Odegaard, Jesus etc didn’t cost a bomb and were able to be moulded in an effective and well drilled team for the majority of the season. Like you said our recruitment team have made so many quality signings that I hope continue along with the odd Caicedo who you know will come in and instantly improve us
The other difference is that they appointed a manager with ideas about how to attack, make chances. Sure, it took a while to implement, but their play this year has been good to watch.
Potter appeared to have zero ideas or couldn't communicate them, and for all that we love TT, it was not obvious to see how the team created clear chances other than relying on individuals (Kante, Reece, Chilly) rather than method.
So it's not just recruitment, but also the system and method. As you say, Arsenal needed to be moulded, and had a manager who could do that. I have high hopes for Poch to do similar.
Good article.
For balance, everyone points to Brighton model as the standard bearer; they spot unknown talents who they buy in cheap, they develop them in a team that plays good football, and sell for a huge profit. Yet, what has Brighton won?
That is the very essence of the knock on the "moneyball" method. It gets you a good team but not premier league winning team.
In the end you need everything, good talent spotting, good negotiators, a good manager and good medical staff. Above all you need good judgement. There is a time to go big on a transfer. A good team can make that call.
ManC have done better because they recruited more smartly as the author points out. We sell De Bruyne the buy him. We sell Sarah, Liverpool buy. Our judgement has been very poor.