Ezequiel Garay

[Arruda]

Normally I'd ask why he hasnt played more than 15 times for Argentina given defence is their weakest point. But then again its Argentina and they consistantly pick squads and teams that are half as good as they should be so thats no slight on him. Must be politics. But I do raise the point again about Madrid earning so much money from his sale... If he's such a good CB that we should be signing him if there are concerns over Vidic, why arent Madrid signing him to be first choice at half the cost of what we'd have to pay? Talk about a bargain right?

He has played in all the WC2014 qualifying games for the past 12 months, 90 minutes every time. He his one of their first-choice CB's at the moment. Given what you and jojojo say about him in Racing Santandar then I'd guess he's either a vastly improved player or Argentina has fewer options now than they had in the previous seasons, which doesn't seem the case as they've been traditionally skint there or a long time.

So while he may have reached the NT late, he is an Argentinian International at the moment. South American teams also tend to allow their European-based players to skip a lot of friendly games due to travelling issues so they end up with less caps than they would otherwise.

 

[bosnian_red]

What's the price that's being quoted for this? I haven't really been following this transfer, but it seems like the only signing that's likely at this point...
Anything over 15 million I'd think would be too much, given how we already have Evans, Jones and Smalling there as cover.

 

[Decotron]

I can't see the first pic, and Sneijder's run just lasted 2 years. And there were other players in that treble winning squad as well. It's not as if he was the only and best player in that team.

There was also van der Vaart, who for all his talent, just wasn't cut out for big teams. And the same can be said about Garay. Might be a good player for a mid tier team, but never for a top tier club.

There in lies your difference.

Not sure its possible to say that until hes given another chance. Especially at a big club that isnt a circus.

Personally Id be v happy if we bought him.

 

[Revan]

I can't see the first pic, and Sneijder's run just lasted 2 years. And there were other players in that treble winning squad as well. It's not as if he was the only and best player in that team.

There was also van der Vaart, who for all his talent, just wasn't cut out for big teams. And the same can be said about Garay. Might be a good player for a mid tier team, but never for a top tier club.

There in lies your difference.

What are you trying to say, seriously? A Real Madrid, reject? fecking hell, tell that to Sneijder, Robben, Cambasso or Makelele. Especially he was young when Madrid rejected him, only 24 years old. And is Flo Perez, surely a lot of players should be replaced every year in his philosophy.

I am against that signing purely because I think that if we are going to replace Vidic we should aim for one of the best centerbacks in the world, like Hummels or Thiago Silva, and because I think that Evans, Smalling and Jones are quality and if we gave them their chances, they'll be great players. Also, I think that we need to sign a midfielder or two before we look at defenders.

But using that he was a Madrid reject is the poorest argument you can make.

 

[Brophs]

Not sure its possible to say that until hes given another chance. Especially at a big club that isnt a circus.

Personally Id be v happy if we bought him.

Yeah, his Madrid spell can't be the only thing taken into account, as he was never given any sort of real chance.

That said, on the few occasions I've seen him he has looked like he has a massive ricket in him. Hopefully I wrong, though.

 

[Red Hand Devil]

Yep. I fully expected us to smash it in the transfer market this summer. Use it as a true statement of intent.

There is still plenty of time to make some key additions to our squad,but the number of genuinely available top class players seems to be getting smaller with each passing week.

Every player could be available if a bid is lodged, we should atleast test the water & see what happens!

Like i've said before, Real have apparantly lodged a €37m offer for Vidal last week. If he ends up goin there & we didnt do a thing that would be gut-wrenching!

 

[Ekeke]

Yeah, his Madrid spell can't be the only thing taken into account, as he was never given any sort of real chance.

That said, on the few occasions I've seen him he has looked like he has a massive ricket in him. Hopefully I wrong, though.

He was actually given a chance, he got a run of games due to injuries. It was Mourinho who decided to use him as 4th choice...

 

[Ekeke]

He has played in all the WC2014 qualifying games for the past 12 months, 90 minutes every time. He his one of their first-choice CB's at the moment. Given what you and jojojo say about him in Racing Santandar then I'd guess he's either a vastly improved player or Argentina has fewer options now than they had in the previous seasons, which doesn't seem the case as they've been traditionally skint there or a long time.

So while he may have reached the NT late, he is an Argentinian International at the moment. South American teams also tend to allow their European-based players to skip a lot of friendly games due to travelling issues so they end up with less caps than they would otherwise.

Well thats positive I guess that all his international caps are coming in a recent run. Again like I said, Argentina's selections are often baffling so only having 15 matches isnt a great indicator. Honestly Argentina's CBs before werent very good, it wouldnt surprise me if Garay has been better than the others for some time but had to wait for his chances.

 

[Spider]

looks like we have signed him

 

[Randall Flagg]

looks like we have signed him

nobody cares.

I wonder will the press even turn up for his unveiling

 

[RedRonaldo]

But why, why defenders again?

 

[SharkyMcShark]

Get excited

 

[Platato]

Same here.

Even if on paper we are well stocked in central defence, some analysis shows the situation less rosier than it seems:

Rio - just signed a 1 year extension. Still got some fuel left in the tank but not to play every game. This year could be his last.
Vidic- the best defender at the club has barely played 30 games in the last couple of seasons and he s injured once again.
Smalling - still not there yet
Jones - he has the potential but lacks the experience.
Evans - Overall the best of the pack - experienced and at the same time not injury prone.

I don't mind seeing us investing in yet another central defender, rather than seeing Carrick at centre back. With Scholes out, Carrick is indispensable in the middle of the part. Even if we sign a midfield, he could take time to settle down.

What happened to giving these lads a chance? You gain experience through playing. Great confidence boost to bring in another CB.

 

[StuCol]

Get excited

Why?

 

[elmo]

What happened to giving these lads a chance? You gain experience through playing. Great confidence boost to bring in another CB.

Because apart from Evans, the rest always seem to pick up injuries after they start getting some form back.

 

[marjen]

Evans is injured a lot as well.

However, signing a CB now has to be so far removed from top priority it's unreal. Would be a crazy priority unless we're absolutely certain about getting players in in other positions first.

 

[Cina]

Evans is injured a lot as well.

However, signing a CB now has to be so far removed from top priority it's unreal. Would be a crazy priority unless we're absolutely certain about getting players in in other positions first.

Not nearly as much in recent times.

 

[Stickles]

Vidic has huge injury problems and Ferdinand is getting on a bit. I don't think a CB is a top priority but I don't think it's as far down the list of priorities as some think.

 

[marjen]

Vidic has huge injury problems and Ferdinand is getting on a bit. I don't think a CB is a top priority but I don't think it's as far down the list of priorities as some think.

I agree. It's somewhere above "new tea lady" but below "new cones".

 

[Red Indian Chief Torn Rubber]

He's definitely leaving Benfica. To where, it's yet to be seen.

I hope its to United

 

[Stickles]

I agree. It's somewhere above "new tea lady" but below "new cones".

I dunno. Those hot drinks machines aren't nearly as good.

Something must be afoot though, surely, to consider this investment if there was no issue with Vidic or Ferdinand. I'm convinced if this goes through it'll be because the coaching staff are strongly under the suspicion that either Vidic's best days are long behind him and/or Ferdinand won't be predicted to make as big a contribution this season as he did last.

 

[Sam]

I hope its to United

You rate him Chief?...I got the impression he was decent, but not in the same league as Rio/Vidic...and he's also rather slow?

 

[Amir]

So where is this 6-month-imminent-deal?

 

[Ekeke]

He's not very mobile but probably faster than Vidic. With Smalling and Jones around I dont think that would be the biggest deal.

Rio was more broken than Vidic and he came back to play last season. If anyone is on their last legs its Rio

 

[Siorac]

I dunno. Those hot drinks machines aren't nearly as good.

Something must be afoot though, surely, to consider this investment if there was no issue with Vidic or Ferdinand. I'm convinced if this goes through it'll be because the coaching staff are strongly under the suspicion that either Vidic's best days are long behind him and/or Ferdinand won't be predicted to make as big a contribution this season as he did last.

Going by that logic we should sign players for just about every single position. The fact is that we have FIVE senior professionals for two positions; all of them are proven quality and I don't buy it that Vidic is past his best at 32, he's been excellent throughout the second half of the season. Phil Jones can't even get games as a CB... unless we want rid of Ferdinand AND Vidic, there's no point in signing Garay or any CB.

 

[Stickles]

Going by that logic we should sign players for just about every single position. The fact is that we have FIVE senior professionals for two positions; all of them are proven quality and I don't buy it that Vidic is past his best at 32, he's been excellent throughout the second half of the season. Phil Jones can't even get games as a CB... unless we want rid of Ferdinand AND Vidic, there's no point in signing Garay or any CB.

There clearly is, if we're linked to him. Big if of course, but we won't be making the signing for the sake of it.

As much as I like Jones and Smalling I don't think they're 'there' yet to carry a long campaign should fears about Ferdidnand and/or Vidic end up to be founded.

If we get to a situation where Vidic is once more a write off and Ferdinand is struggling to play regularly I think a few people who call this signing pointless will be making comments about how vulnerable at the back we look with two comparatively inexperienced players and Evans as cover.

 

[Ekeke]

I think we could go 1 for 1 if one of our senior CBs is gone. But I cant work out for the life of me how people are assuming its most likely to be Vidic. Ferdinand has a year left in his career at most and even that looked unlikely 12 months ago

 

[Ekeke]

There clearly is, if we're linked to him. Big if of course, but we won't be making the signing for the sake of it.

As much as I like Jones and Smalling I don't think they're 'there' yet to carry a long campaign should fears about Ferdidnand and/or Vidic end up to be founded.

If we get to a situation where Vidic is once more a right off and Ferdinand is struggling to play regularly I think a few people who call this signing pointless will be making comments about how vulnerable at the back we look with two comparatively inexperienced players and Evans as cover.

They might not be "there" yet, but neither is Garay?

Surely if we want someone "there" we'll be signing Hummels or one of the top CBs in the world

 

[Stickles]

They might not be "there" yet, but neither is Garay?

Surely if we want someone "there" we'll be signing Hummels or one of the top CBs in the world

He's 27 in a couple of months, if he isn't "there" now we'd not be interested.

 

[Ekeke]

He's 27 in a couple of months, if he isn't "there" now we'd not be interested.

Yeah we've never got it wrong with a transfer

 

[Stickles]

Yeah we've never got it wrong with a transfer

What point are you even trying to make?

Can we reduce all arguments over who a club should and should not sign to "yeah because bad transfers never happen" sarcasm?

 

[Siorac]

It's still odd. The pros of signing Garay seem to be based on what "might" happen to Ferdinand and Vidic; the club, seemingly, wants to ensure that all angles are covered, that there's absolutely no danger of coming up even a little bit short in CB. Let's say Rio and Vidic can both manage 25-30 games next season - Garay would barely get a look-in or he would end up blocking the progress of Evans, Smalling and Jones.

In midfield we've been quite content to base our hopes on the ongoing fitness of Carrick FOR YEARS now; we haven't shied away from relying on players approaching their fourties and nobody at the club seemed bothered by the fact that one of our senior midfielders spends half of every season injured. This kind of forward planning was nowhere to be seen in the case of midfield.

 

[Ekeke]

What point are you even trying to make?

Can we reduce all arguments over who a club should and should not sign to "yeah because bad transfers never happen" sarcasm?

Are you thick? We can't just assume that every player we sign will be "there". Use your own eyes and brain, decide for yourself. If you havent seen him play, be quiet.

 

[Stickles]

Are you thick? We can't just assume that every player we sign will be "there". Use your own eyes and brain, decide for yourself. If you havent seen him play, be quiet.

If only scouts existed eh?

That way the club could do so kind of research on players before they sign them. Oh well, we live in hope.

 

[Sixpence]

If we sign this guy it'll be up there with the most needless transfers of all time.

 

[Revan]

If only scouts existed eh?

That way the club could do so kind of research on players before they sign them. Oh well, we live in hope.

Clubs get it wrong many times. I don't get the logic that people have to be excited for a signing, because the club think that he'll be a good signing.

I think that it is a pointless signing. If I am wrong than better but I don't see any reason at all to get it.

On the other side, I can't understand for life of me why Benfica is selling him. I know that they need to sell players, but considering that they'll get only half of the transfer fee, they will get only 9-10m for him, which isn't that much.

 

[Arruda]

On the other side, I can't understand for life of me why Benfica is selling him. I know that they need to sell players, but considering that they'll get only half of the transfer fee, they will get only 9-10m for him, which isn't that much.

For the 12315th time, Benfica doesn't want to sell him, but since he has a low release clause, they have to, unless they can get him to renew. Something he won't want, if he knows there are other clubs interested.

In fact, I'm not even sure if Benfica can renew his contract. I wouldn't be surprised if Real Madrid dictated all the details in Garay's contract. Since they guaranteed the 50% they may very well have also guaranteed a realistic clause to make sure that Benfica would be forced to sell him and hence make them cash in.

 

[Revan]

For the 12315th time, Benfica doesn't want to sell him, but since he has a low release clause, they have to, unless they can get him to renew. Something he won't want, if he knows there are other clubs interested.

In fact, I'm not even sure if Benfica can renew his contract. I wouldn't be surprised if Real Madrid dictated all the details in Garay's contract. Since they guaranteed the 50% they may very well have also guaranteed a realistic clause to make sure that Benfica would be forced to sell him and hence make them cash in.

Didn't know that he has a release clause.

feck, we are getting him.

 

[Amir]

If we sign this guy it'll be up there with the most needless transfers of all time.

To be fair, I remember many people thought so regarding Vidic and Evra in January 2006. That ended up OK.

 

[Nate Dogg]

Is this the longest "done deal" ever?