Have we signed anyone yet? | Yes, with stupid tax

[OpenIntrovert]

There will be more than 2 otherwise we can write next season off right now. The squad is nowhere near good enough.

You are right on the media though, they clearly have no idea what we are planning. They have the De Jong story where nothing new has been added in 3 weeks and then Timber who some jumped the gun on but it looks like won't happen. Otherwise nothing of any substance.

Regarding current squad, it depends on ETH's assessment. From our perspective, we are too quick to judge that the squad are not good enough as it is also possible that lack of confidence and fitness concerns might have caused this issue. ETH mentioned that this squad got 2nd the season before, which probably tells us that he is not giving up on the squad until he fully assesses what really happened.

 

[devilish]

This is hilariously amateurish if this is true. Sure video replays have some value but only to a point.. So who is giving him this detailed handover? Fletcher and Phelan?

ETH can rely on

a- his TV. According to reputable journalists during Rangnick reign we relied on Lars Kornetka as our main data analyst who was located in Moscow. Surely ETH can figure out more then Lars did

b- Replay games. That include in depth visual data from cameras situated across OT who had been there since the treble

c- Rangnick in depth hand over. Its known that ETH and Ralph had at least one in depth meeting. I am pretty sure that if ETH wants to call Ole or Carrick for their feedback then they would be more then happy to help

d- an army of coaches.

e- our data analysis team. We had appointed a director of sport science in October

f- one to one meetings with key players like DDG and Ronaldo who know what winning is all about and had been training with these guys on a day to day basis

g- data analysis tools that provide in depth stats on almost everything you want.

 

[OpenIntrovert]

The question on my mind is: who will decide which players we sign? It seems highly likely to me that we signed a lot of players because their marketing value was good relative to the fee.

It’s often said the manager has final say but I am skeptical about that. In any case, I believe our managers have sometimes agreed to signings when faced with a choice of player X or nobody, take it or leave it.

Ultimately, if we’re expecting a clutch of new signings to solve our problems, I think we’re going to be disappointed. I’d settle for one elite midfielder and one elite striker but I honestly don’t expect either.

Best hope is ETH gets our existing players fit, organised, motivated and back to better form. I say this because I’m pretty sure that’s how the owners look at it (unless a marketing gold mine becomes gettable).

At the moment the responsibility sits with Ten Hag. It looks like Murtough is directly overseeing the scouts' works and then discusses with Ten Hag if these are the targets he would like to go for. The key thing is how fast they make decisions on the targets.

I agree with you that the existing players being organized and motivated would be the current best hope, coupled with some injects from the academy.

 

[Von Mistelroum]

I know many people were/are expecting a big overhaul but it seems clear from the narrative 'good squad, came 2nd last season etc' that expectations need to be reigned in. Yes we have lost a number of players and we have plenty of players we would like to get rid of, but realistically we're not the kind of club that would bring in multiple new signings for the first 11 in one summer and even if we were, we have £120m to spend. That's two decent players if we haggle a lot!

Yes there's money from sales too, but I suspect we'll struggle to move many of them on. Maybe selling AWB and Henderson will get us £40-50m but then we have them to replace as well.

We'll be playing with essentially the same first team next season and relying on EtH to get the best out of them. Hopefully we can add a couple of quality players to that though; say a DM and a new full back or striker and EtH will find a new level in some of the players who have struggled. He managed to get big things from players who were previously 'flops" before so there's a decent chance he can get the likes of Fred and Maguire firing. I also think he'll find a good use for Dalot.

 

[UpWithRivers]

ETH can rely on

a- his TV. According to reputable journalists during Rangnick reign we relied on Lars Kornetka as our main data analyst who was located in Moscow. Surely ETH can figure out more then Lars did

b- Replay games. That include in depth visual data from cameras situated across OT who had been there since the treble

c- Rangnick in depth hand over. Its known that ETH and Ralph had at least one in depth meeting. I am pretty sure that if ETH wants to call Ole or Carrick for their feedback then they would be more then happy to help

d- an army of coaches.

e- our data analysis team. We had appointed a director of sport science in October

f- one to one meetings with key players like DDG and Ronaldo who know what winning is all about and had been training with these guys on a day to day basis

g- data analysis tools that provide in depth stats on almost everything you want.

a - Ralf was mocked for this
b, g - only to a degree
c- they sacked him and are not interested in anything he says
d, e, f - bunch of back stabbing failures. Good luck with that

 

[MyOnlySolskjaer]

a - Ralf was mocked for this
b, g - only to a degree
c- they sacked him and are not interested in anything he says
d, e, f - bunch of back stabbing failures. Good luck with that

This is the harsh truth sadly. He's starting from scratch (which may not be too awful), but it's poor planning like usual.

 

[Bestietom]

I know many people were/are expecting a big overhaul but it seems clear from the narrative 'good squad, came 2nd last season etc' that expectations need to be reigned in. Yes we have lost a number of players and we have plenty of players we would like to get rid of, but realistically we're not the kind of club that would bring in multiple new signings for the first 11 in one summer and even if we were, we have £120m to spend. That's two decent players if we haggle a lot!

Yes there's money from sales too, but I suspect we'll struggle to move many of them on. Maybe selling AWB and Henderson will get us £40-50m but then we have them to replace as well.

We'll be playing with essentially the same first team next season and relying on EtH to get the best out of them. Hopefully we can add a couple of quality players to that though; say a DM and a new full back or striker and EtH will find a new level in some of the players who have struggled. He managed to get big things from players who were previously 'flops" before so there's a decent chance he can get the likes of Fred and Maguire firing. I also think he'll find a good use for Dalot.

Everyone know we need new faces here including Ten Hag. We need a whole new spine + some others.
CB, DM, CF should be our first targets for new spine. Then add a RB, WF, and another midfielder.

 

[Von Mistelroum]

Everyone know we need new faces here including Ten Hag. We need a whole new spine + some others.
CB, DM, CF should be our first targets for new spine. Then add a RB, WF, and another midfielder.

Nobody is arguing this, but we simply have a very tight budget allowed by the owners and no players to sell who are worth a lot, so that just isn't possible.

 

[Catt]

Nobody is arguing this, but we simply have a very tight budget allowed by the owners and no players to sell who are worth a lot, so that just isn't possible.

How tight is the budget?

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

How tight is the budget?

Tighter than a fleas snatch.

 

[OrcaFat]

How tight is the budget?

As ever, it is more about how the budget is allowed to be spent or able to be spent.

I wouldn’t be surprised if £100-£150m is available in theory but, if I’m not mistaken, Glazer still wants final say on signings and sales. Would be better if they would just approve a gross budget and let ETH get on with it but I just don’t see that happening. All over again we will end up with final decisions being made by people who don’t know much about football, I fear.

Add to that the difficulty of attracting elite players (when we’ve been so shit and have no CL to offer) and the outlook is grim.

 

[Marcus]

As ever, it is more about how the budget is allowed to be spent or able to be spent.

I wouldn’t be surprised if £100-£150m is available in theory but, if I’m not mistaken, Glazer still wants final say on signings and sales. Would be better if they would just approve a gross budget and let ETH get on with it but I just don’t see that happening. All over again we will end up with final decisions being made by people who don’t know much about football, I fear.

Add to that the difficulty of attracting elite players (when we’ve been so shit and have no CL to offer) and the outlook is grim.

I hope the discussion among the decision-makers is not along the lines like "now that Pogba has left, we need to prioritise signing players with a high number of social media followers ".

 

[Charles Miller]

"I find your lack of faith disturbing."
Vader, Darth

 

[OrcaFat]

I hope the discussion among the decision-makers is not along the lines like "now that Pogba has left, we need to prioritise signing players with a high number of social media followers ".

So do I but I wouldn’t rule it out.

 

[Bestietom]

Nobody is arguing this, but we simply have a very tight budget allowed by the owners and no players to sell who are worth a lot, so that just isn't possible.

Then we will just have to look for younger up and coming players on the cheap. We just can't compete without adding players to the squad. It's ridiculous to ask any manager to bring in so many top players on a budget of this sort. We need to sell a lot of deadwood to raise more funds, but our wages are too high.

 

[Wednesday at Stoke]

This is going well. Welcome to another season of Andreas Pereira, Chong, Van de Beek, Martial the moody, Marcus the benevolent and Bruno the gambler in attack.

 

[yamo123x]

This is going well. Welcome to another season of Andreas Pereira, Chong, Van de Beek, Martial the moody, Marcus the benevolent and Bruno the gambler in attack.

Like new signings most of them.

 

[Red00012]

Like new signings most of them.

Don’t forget Shaw will be fully fit going into pre season “ like a new signing “

 

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

In June, no signings, keeping Pereira and Rashford. City have Haaland. Shit start. Awful pre-season, basically write off this disastrous season already.

 

[Silverman]

Was hoping we have signed someone by now.

 

[JB08]

In June, no signings, keeping Pereira and Rashford. City have Haaland. Shit start. Awful pre-season, basically write off this disastrous season already.

Are you kidding? I should fecking hope so.

 

[Canuckred64]

Isn't it a bit early to be worried about this. Transfer window dosent open til Friday. I willing to wait until ti next Monday before I start to worry.

 

[Big Ben Foster]

Isn't it a bit early to be worried about this. Transfer window dosent open til Friday. I willing to wait until ti next Monday before I start to worry.

FFS I swear this nonsense gets reposted every hour

 

[Houdini]

Big month this month.

 

[suheilsworld]

Had read a tweet from Fab sometime back that ETH wants to keep the negotiations and interests under the wrap to avoid drumming up opposition interests and media speculations.
I’ll try and stay positive and hope that we’ll pull a couple of rabbit from the hat signings this season

 

[copen1945]

As ever, it is more about how the budget is allowed to be spent or able to be spent.

I wouldn’t be surprised if £100-£150m is available in theory but, if I’m not mistaken, Glazer still wants final say on signings and sales. Would be better if they would just approve a gross budget and let ETH get on with it but I just don’t see that happening. All over again we will end up with final decisions being made by people who don’t know much about football, I fear.

Add to that the difficulty of attracting elite players (when we’ve been so shit and have no CL to offer) and the outlook is grim.

Aren't we the major, if not only, of the American owners' cash flow? They cannot be faulted for looking after their own interests.

 

[LawCharltonBest]

Been a week or more since there was even a reliable link to a player

Strangely quiet on the United front

 

[dannyrhinos89]

Been a week or more since there was even a reliable link to a player

Strangely quiet on the United front

Only player we've been linked to that's any way reliable is De jong and he doesn't even want to come here. Even Darwin our other possible signing is more solidly linked to the dippers than us.

Seems like nothing much has changed from woodward era. I want to believe but this club has been an embarrassment in transfer dealings recent years. Stands to reason nothing has changed.

 

[Rooney1987]

Only player we've been linked to that's any way reliable is De jong and he doesn't even want to come here. Even Darwin our other possible signing is more solidly linked to the dippers than us.

Seems like nothing much has changed from woodward era. I want to believe but this club has been an embarrassment in transfer dealings recent years. Stands to reason nothing has changed.

So not like the Woodward era then. When he was in charge every day it was a list of players getting linked to us and we all know Woodward loved this. The fact it's gone quiet is a good thing, means they might have learnt something.

 

[atkar83]

Aren't we the major, if not only, of the American owners' cash flow? They cannot be faulted for looking after their own interests.

I would have to think the Tampa Bay Bucs are making them money?

 

[dannyrhinos89]

So not like the Woodward era then. When he was in charge every day it was a list of players getting linked to us and we all know Woodward loved this. The fact it's gone quiet is a good thing, means they might have learnt something.

We get linked to new players almost daily that’s just because we generate clicks, there’s nobody bigger than us in the twitter world, Woodward might have liked it but he had zero control over it. Much like now the club can’t control wannabe transfer gurus spouting bollocks on Twitter.

 

[::sonny::]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[James35]

The laughter/tears when we start the season in just over 8 weeks time with a line up of
De Gea, Telles, Maguire, Lindelof, Dalot, Fred, McTominay, Bruno, Sancho, Ronaldo, Rashford…with Pereira, Williams and Martial back on the bench and Varane and Shaw injured as usual.

I do think we will make signings of course but I reckon they will all be late in window or borderline just when season is about to start so no-preseason training done and time needed to settle in etc.

 

[::sonny::]

Every year is the same since 2009, you already know what will happen

 

[TheRedHearted]

As ever, it is more about how the budget is allowed to be spent or able to be spent.

I wouldn’t be surprised if £100-£150m is available in theory but, if I’m not mistaken, Glazer still wants final say on signings and sales. Would be better if they would just approve a gross budget and let ETH get on with it but I just don’t see that happening. All over again we will end up with final decisions being made by people who don’t know much about football, I fear.

Add to that the difficulty of attracting elite players (when we’ve been so shit and have no CL to offer) and the outlook is grim.

I thought Erik negotiated in his contract about transfers? Was it solely on amount and not on control?

Then we will just have to look for younger up and coming players on the cheap. We just can't compete without adding players to the squad. It's ridiculous to ask any manager to bring in so many top players on a budget of this sort. We need to sell a lot of deadwood to raise more funds, but our wages are too high.

I thought this was the plan, finding young talent who ETH could mold into his system. But it seems like it went out the window when Ragnick left. I hope not because to me that would be a better window then two super expensive signings. A hybrid I would be happy with, Frenkie and then a cdm, fullback and striker that are inexpensive.

We get linked to new players almost daily that’s just because we generate clicks, there’s nobody bigger than us in the twitter world, Woodward might have liked it but he had zero control over it. Much like now the club can’t control wannabe transfer gurus spouting bollocks on Twitter.

Surprised the glazers didn’t buy Twitter then.

Every year is the same since 2009, you already know what will happen

Is that so though? I remember almost every transfer window being different unless you mean last minute business

 

[horsechoker]

This is going well. Welcome to another season of Andreas Pereira, Chong, Van de Beek, Martial the moody, Marcus the benevolent and Bruno the gambler in attack.

Pereira the remainer
Chong the absent
Van de Beek the sitter

 

[youmeletsfly]

The laughter/tears when we start the season in just over 8 weeks time with a line up of
De Gea, Telles, Maguire, Lindelof, Dalot, Fred, McTominay, Bruno, Sancho, Ronaldo, Rashford…with Pereira, Williams and Martial back on the bench and Varane and Shaw injured as usual.

I do think we will make signings of course but I reckon they will all be late in window or borderline just when season is about to start so no-preseason training done and time needed to settle in etc.

The laughter when we sign who we need without half the planet knowing and bumping up the price for fun.

 

[Rooney1987]

We get linked to new players almost daily that’s just because we generate clicks, there’s nobody bigger than us in the twitter world, Woodward might have liked it but he had zero control over it. Much like now the club can’t control wannabe transfer gurus spouting bollocks on Twitter.

Woodward definitely had control over some of it him and those agents were part of this problem, you said it in your first line outside of De Jong in terms of reliable info with no big links to anyone else and we're not even getting many small ITK links (compared to previous windows). Even the other 2 names getting thrown around Timber/Nunez links are agent talk mainly down to ETH being a former manager of one and the usual portuguese agents links, according to Andy Mitten. This is the total opposite to Woodward when everyone could tell you who we wanted and would end up signing. If it still like this end of July then complain but it's not that yet.

 

[Drifter]

Tweet

— Twitter API (@user) date

 

[OrcaFat]

Aren't we the major, if not only, of the American owners' cash flow? They cannot be faulted for looking after their own interests.

Sure they can do what they like with their money and with this club, this commodity that they own - they have been doing so all along and we’re currently deeper in the shit than ever.

Football decisions should be made by the guys who know most about football - that’s what’s best for the club. And if it’s best for the club it’s also best for the idiots that own it. They are rich idiots, I’ll give them that, but it’s no surprise that all that money has got us precisely nowhere.