James Rodríguez

[StevO]

1 hour ago, Sibdane said:

That's actually an astute observation!

I have often been called astute

[Btay]

This will be the signing that Gylfi was meant to be.

[barryj]

31 minutes ago, StevO said:

I have often been called astute

Spotting him topless was very astute!

[Romey 1878]

2 hours ago, Aidan said:

Theres a lot of negative nellys on here tonight

I wasn’t being negative, just asking if I’d missed anything in the picture that made people so convinced it was happening. 

[barryj]

I always take the slightly pessimistic view as been put through it all too many times only to be disappointed. Default setting is it all goes wrong and then when it doesn’t it’s brilliant

[Hafnia]

I think this signing is all about the mix.

If he was the only signing we make then realistically I think it would be like tits on a bull.....  he would be playing with a shambolic midfield which consists of Davies, Gylfi, Gomes.... non of whom can physically impact a game and turn over the ball enough and lose it too often. He would likely get pissed off very quickly after the quality of player he has been surrounded by for the past 6 years.

With Allan & Doucoure providing legs, energy and quality - they "should" bring out the best in Gomes first and foremost... at least cover him enough in a game so that of things aren't going right then he isn't under immense pressure as our only hope and hopefully picks himself up. We know how good he can be when on his game. 

That scenario should give James the platform and quality of player to interact with to maximise his talents.  This then should give us the creativity we've been badly missing - Richarlison should be licking his lips. 

 

[Aidan]

8 hours ago, Romey 1878 said:

I wasn’t being negative, just asking if I’d missed anything in the picture that made people so convinced it was happening. 

You missed this I suppose... Contract Dave is lurking. 

 

[Matt]

Creative but poor photoshop on that

[Palfy]

Reports say we have agreed terms on a year loan deal and he is coming for medical next week. 

[Shukes]

3 minutes ago, Palfy said:

Reports say we have agreed terms on a year loan deal and he is coming for medical next week. 

I hope that’s a loan to buy at least. I want us to be building for the next few years, not giving other teams players game time. 

[Romey 1878]

11 minutes ago, Shukes said:

I hope that’s a loan to buy at least. I want us to be building for the next few years, not giving other teams players game time. 

He has a year on his contract and the loan would take him to the end of that contract. 

[Bailey]

1 hour ago, Shukes said:

I hope that’s a loan to buy at least. I want us to be building for the next few years, not giving other teams players game time. 

 

1 hour ago, Romey 1878 said:

He has a year on his contract and the loan would take him to the end of that contract. 

Yeh definitely don't want to be buying him at the end of the year! Although I imagine that's something Steve Walsh would have done

[SpartyBlue]

31 minutes ago, Bailey said:

 

Yeh definitely don't want to be buying him at the end of the year! Although I imagine that's something Steve Walsh would have done

If it is a loan it makes sense for both parties, though I’d prefer to buy him. He gets all the games he wants for a manager he knows before being on the market and getting a chance at another huge club. We get a potentially world class player and at least a chance to sign him beyond that. 

[RuffRob]

two stories now  - 3 year deal or a season long loan - so quite an interesting question.  What would people on here prefer or think the club should be pushing for?

1. getting him on a 3 year deal - bigger commitment so more risky, but he's ours for the three years or

2. low risk years loan - but if he does well (what we all want) the chances are he will sign for another club with CL football, or maybe  (if he loves it with us) sign for us on bigger wages and contract.

whats every bodies preference?

 

 

[Bailey]

Personally, I would go loan mainly because of his injury record.

This is a tough physical league and it can be a real grind in the winter. He clearly has physical issues and they will get worse as he gets on and they will be more likely to occur under the greater strain of the premier league.

[SpartyBlue]

1 minute ago, Bailey said:

Personally, I would go loan mainly because of his injury record.

This is a tough physical league and it can be a real grind in the winter. He clearly has physical issues and they will get worse as he gets on and they will be more likely to occur under the greater strain of the premier league.

Problem with that is if he stays healthy and performs we may have a lot of trouble keeping him around. The risk is higher with a 3 year deal but the reward is far greater. 

[Shukes]

56 minutes ago, RuffRob said:

two stories now  - 3 year deal or a season long loan - so quite an interesting question.  What would people on here prefer or think the club should be pushing for?

1. getting him on a 3 year deal - bigger commitment so more risky, but he's ours for the three years or

2. low risk years loan - but if he does well (what we all want) the chances are he will sign for another club with CL football, or maybe  (if he loves it with us) sign for us on bigger wages and contract.

whats every bodies preference?

 

 

Definitely three year deal for me. 
I hate to think we are here just to put him in the shop window for bigger teams. 
 

Again, we need to start thinking like a big team. Risk v reward.

[Palfy]

Maybe the loan is the way his agent and himself wants to go, just in case the PL isn’t the right place for him, or Ancelotti doesn’t stay after next season, after all he wouldn’t be coming if he does if it wasn’t for Ancelotti. I’m sure Real would rather a sale because he goes on a free next season. 
Personally I think a loan is a good way to go, that way we save around 20 million and if he is successful will he want to leave Ancelotti who he has a great bond with, and enjoys playing for 

[StevO]

If Real want a loan we’ll more than likely still end up paying them £20m+ with the loan fee and some form of payment should he join permanently anyway. So I very much doubt there would be a cost saving, but reduced risk for us and James. 
That said, I’d rather we just sign him and remove any uncertainty next summer. 

[Palfy]

He has posted on social media in English “ I am ready “ as a signal he wants or he is coming according to reports. 
Also reports that it could be a 4 year deal worth 4.5m a season, only sticking block is coming to a valuation for his signature, we want to pay €20m they want more, speculation changes hourly which is a good thing if only to prove that something is going on in the background. 

[Romey 1878]

57 minutes ago, Palfy said:

He has posted on social media in English “ I am ready “ as a signal he wants or he is coming according to reports. 
Also reports that it could be a 4 year deal worth 4.5m a season, only sticking block is coming to a valuation for his signature, we want to pay €20m they want more, speculation changes hourly which is a good thing if only to prove that something is going on in the background. 

Louis, is that you?

[Bill]

Medical on Wednesday.   

[Palfy]

14 minutes ago, Bill said:

Medical on Wednesday.   

Are there any old pictures of him floating around at John Lennon airport. Got caught out with Alan

[Bailey]

11 hours ago, SpartyBlue said:

Problem with that is if he stays healthy and performs we may have a lot of trouble keeping him around. The risk is higher with a 3 year deal but the reward is far greater. 

If other teams wanted him they could be in for him now. The only reason he would come here is for PL and Ancelotti. That isn't going to change in 12 months. 

The same could have been said with Gomes, Arteta, Pienaar, Lukaku etc etc. 

If he does really well, we will be in Europe and be even more attractive to him and other players too. 

[Palfy]

4 minutes ago, Bailey said:

If other teams wanted him they could be in for him now. The only reason he would come here is for PL and Ancelotti. That isn't going to change in 12 months. 

The same could have been said with Gomes, Arteta, Pienaar, Lukaku etc etc. 

If he does really well, we will be in Europe and be even more attractive to him and other players too. 

Exactly he wouldn’t be coming here for us to put in the shop window, he’s already a player with proven ability, if it wasn’t for Ancelotti we wouldn’t be having a conversation about him anyway, and why would that change in a year, other than 2 things he doesn’t like the PL or Ancelotti goes. 

[RuffRob]

Sounds like he is definately coming to us now. So it will just be a question under what contract. Think I am kind off hoping a three year deal on reduced wages, but loan would be good, in the hope that he enjoys it so much he wants to sign a 2 or 3 year contract and wages wise, if he plays as good as what we know he can and isnt injured to much - just pay him whats fair!! 

[barryj]

1 hour ago, Romey 1878 said:

Louis, is that you?

[Cornish Steve]

14 hours ago, Shukes said:

Definitely three year deal for me. 
I hate to think we are here just to put him in the shop window for bigger teams. 
 

Again, we need to start thinking like a big team. Risk v reward.

But we need to wait for some deadwood contracts to expire to free up the cash. Loan all the way for me. 

[SpartyBlue]

3 hours ago, Bailey said:

If other teams wanted him they could be in for him now. The only reason he would come here is for PL and Ancelotti. That isn't going to change in 12 months. 

The same could have been said with Gomes, Arteta, Pienaar, Lukaku etc etc. 

If he does really well, we will be in Europe and be even more attractive to him and other players too. 

I think this is a bit naive. Other teams are likely unwilling to take a chance on big wages for a player with his injury history. They have the luxury of signing players of his caliber who have less concerns because they can attract those players, something we cannot currently do. This is a guy who went from Monaco to Real Madrid to Bayern Munich. It’s unrealistic to think that if he has a great season for us he won’t be courted by some of the biggest clubs in the world (again).
 

I don’t know where his priorities lie at this stage of his career but 12 months can change quite a lot, which is why a player who is worth 20m one year can be worth 60m the next. It’s a risk worth taking however we get him but the reality is that he could simply  view us as a place to recharge his batteries under a manager he knows well before moving on to a CL team. 

[Bailey]

1 hour ago, SpartyBlue said:

I think this is a bit naive. Other teams are likely unwilling to take a chance on big wages for a player with his injury history. They have the luxury of signing players of his caliber who have less concerns because they can attract those players, something we cannot currently do. This is a guy who went from Monaco to Real Madrid to Bayern Munich. It’s unrealistic to think that if he has a great season for us he won’t be courted by some of the biggest clubs in the world (again).
 

I don’t know where his priorities lie at this stage of his career but 12 months can change quite a lot, which is why a player who is worth 20m one year can be worth 60m the next. It’s a risk worth taking however we get him but the reality is that he could simply  view us as a place to recharge his batteries under a manager he knows well before moving on to a CL team. 

You say other teams don't want to take the chance on him but he has gone from club to club and they haven't taken up the option. There are clearly enough doubts about him otherwise he would have signed for one of them.

I'm not saying he won't be courted by them but having a good season for us isn't suddenly going to alert the rest of the world. The rest of the world are very aware and I have no doubt some of them have made enquiries about him. 

I think people underestimate how much money this fella will be on. If we get this wrong and we have a crock or dud on our hands for three seasons we will be significantly hampered in what we can do in the following seasons. I am personally not comfortable with that. He is clearly far superior to the likes of Gylfi, Sandrao etc etc but these players have sucked us dry and we need to move away from that. Its one thing getting a player in his prime, playing at the top of his ability but its another taking a punt on someone who hasn't played a full season for however long.