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Roberto De Zerbi *OFFICIAL*

Raziel said:
We shouldn't, but lets say we buy a striker and they don't work out? I also think certain players like Gallagher/Maddison/Tel/Xavi/Udogie, even Deki all have this season to prove they are worth sticking with. That itself could be significant change next summer.

I would expect we won't need 6-8 players next season, but quality upgrades will be needed regardless of results.

I get the point re what we pay, and I'd agree we have had great success from Europe in the past for much less, that said, RDZ seems to want (and maybe it's just for now, just for the first rebuild) PL proven, and that will never be cheap.
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Yeah, I think the key with the Lewis kids is, do we end up in a situation that Saudi Sportswashing Machine are in now, at some point, because our power in the market was predicated by their willingness to spend? Because if that’s all it is, then it would prove Levy right.

What I hope, is that we are in the realm of Liverpool and Arsenal now. We use the strength that our infrastructure gives us to pay proper wages, and are able to attack the market decisively to back the manager when there are clear gaps to fill. We won’t need to do this summer each summer, so I won’t be worried if next year isn’t like this. I will be worried if we start selling off our best players and buying unproven replacements again. That will the tell for me. If we have a gap and move decisively for the best possible player, and it’s one or two players because that’s all we need, then great. Right now I feel like we’re playing at the top of the market, and you’d be able to tell if we fall back.

So far, so good.
 
SissokoWasGood (BoL) said:
Yeah, I think the key with the Lewis kids is, do we end up in a situation that Saudi Sportswashing Machine are in now, at some point, because our power in the market was predicated by their willingness to spend? Because if that’s all it is, then it would prove Levy right.

What I hope, is that we are in the realm of Liverpool and Arsenal now. We use the strength that our infrastructure gives us to pay proper wages, and are able to attack the market decisively to back the manager when there are clear gaps to fill. We won’t need to do this summer each summer, so I won’t be worried if next year isn’t like this. I will be worried if we start selling off our best players and buying unproven replacements again. That will the tell for me. If we have a gap and move decisively for the best possible player, and it’s one or two players because that’s all we need, then great. Right now I feel like we’re playing at the top of the market, and you’d be able to tell if we fall back.

So far, so good.
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In my head, this is a one off summer with regards to churn and spend. The key indicator is probably the difference between our transfer debt and our transfer income. When you break that down into total total and the following year P&L impact, that sort of informs what spending might happen in the next summer. At least we're now seeing some player sales that create multi-year income to somewhat balance the transfer debt equation.

As far as the squad goes, it currently sits at about 30 players on the official website with a month to go of this transfer window. After the next tranche of ins and outs we need to have reduced further. That gives us the manoeuvrability for future windows as players leave naturall at end of contract and we decide to sell others.

For me, this was always the problem on Levy's watch. He could never find a football ops strategy that right-sized the 1st team squad. We'd go through these culling cycles and get it lean only for it to bloat again with some average purchases. What RDZ needs help with is to keep this squad at the right size for multiple years.
 
DubaiSpur said:
Well, Dan Kilpatrick said it last week, now Ali Gold's also said it this week -

"De Zerbi's 'bomba' comment put pressure on those above, especially when bigger deals take time to close, particularly if the selling club wants to find a replacement first. It was therefore no shock when the Italian walked back the comment slightly the following day, claiming 'bomba' means something different in his homeland. If you listen to the press conference carefully you can hear the English media giggling like schoolchildren as what they predicted came to pass."

Seems increasingly clear his 'bomba' was the modern equivalent of Capello and Baldini taking Sconcerti to dinner - a way to engineer urgency amongst club decision makers to get whomever de Zerbi wants.
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“What they predicted came to pass”…. WALOB!
 
Gutter Boy said:
He's gone in a bit two-footed on Lange in his interview today. Saying he has to ring prospective signings because Lange can't establish connections
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Eh? This is what he said (as per Ali Gold's transcipt) :

... the Italian loves the thrill of the hunt, calling himself a "shark" when he wants a player.
"I don't know why I love it, maybe because when you take the decision, you take the responsibility, but I think if the coach calls the player, you can build a special connection at the beginning with them," said the 47-year-old.
"The player knows you are the key for this transfer, and maybe this player feels they have to give you back something more than if, for example, Johan Lange calls the player."

That's nothing like saying Lange can't establish connections.
 
Glenda's Legs said:
Eh? This is what he said (as per Ali Gold's transcipt) :

... the Italian loves the thrill of the hunt, calling himself a "shark" when he wants a player.
"I don't know why I love it, maybe because when you take the decision, you take the responsibility, but I think if the coach calls the player, you can build a special connection at the beginning with them," said the 47-year-old.
"The player knows you are the key for this transfer, and maybe this player feels they have to give you back something more than if, for example, Johan Lange calls the player."

That's nothing like saying Lange can't establish connections.
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Accept the narrative. 🤣
 
Glenda's Legs said:
Eh? This is what he said (as per Ali Gold's transcipt) :

... the Italian loves the thrill of the hunt, calling himself a "shark" when he wants a player.
"I don't know why I love it, maybe because when you take the decision, you take the responsibility, but I think if the coach calls the player, you can build a special connection at the beginning with them," said the 47-year-old.
"The player knows you are the key for this transfer, and maybe this player feels they have to give you back something more than if, for example, Johan Lange calls the player."

That's nothing like saying Lange can't establish connections.
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....plus who cares what gets deals done, I'm sure everyone has their skillets, and any outsider would bet RDZ can positively twist the mind of a potential new recruit better than Lange.

No different to when Ange was here.
 
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