You’re asking the man who still maintains we shouldn’t have signed Partey cos he’s 27, you know what the answer to your question is lol
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Oh gtfo. I had legit concerns about signing a holder and not an attacking midfielder. I thought we needed goals going into the 20-21 season more than we needed a holding midfielder. Yeah, I had concerns about his age and coming from a really structured system.
And he had a bad year last year. I think we’re obviously seeing a way different Partey than last year but he’s also being asked to play differently this year.
And I thought we needed a real rebuild which didn’t include starting with a holder, but an attacker. As it happened we did do a big rebuild, it just happened this summer.
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You always used his age a detractor in your arguments against him though haha
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I’m all for depth, so I’m not against this transfer if it is possible, but I do think this is slightly overlooking Odegaard. A month back quite a few were doing the same regarding ESR, so it is my hope that Odegaard similarly makes it hard to be overlooked within the next 2-3 months. I certainly believe in him as long as he can stay injury free. An Arsenal squad can accommodate Saka, ESR, Odegaard, and Sterling though (Pepe would become surplus, esp. as we have Martinelli also).
I’d take Sterling for 45m in a heartbeat. My only concern is fitting him into our style of play. We’d need a big target man up front for him to combine with.
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Yeah, I know you wanted an attacker instead had other concerns, but you also constantly referenced his age as part of your argument, so let’s not act like I’m being unfair to make that point. I also brought it up in the context of you seeming to imply that something seems off or unwise about signing a 26 year old Sterling, so it’s not like we’re pulling this age thing out of thin air mate lol.
That’s just 7 posts I could easily find in the Partey thread in the last ten minutes, I’m sure there are other times you referenced his age too. You mention these other concerns in some of the posts I’ve quoted, and I’m not invalidating them, but age has been a constant theme with you and Partey.
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I think Pepe is done here. I think he’ll be useful at some point during this season but next summer he’s going.
As for Odegaard, I think as time passes more and more people are coming around the idea of him not being a #10. He likes to operate deeper. That’s where his potential lies in.
Picture this front 6:
- ST: Auba(or someone new)
- LW: Sterling
- RW: Saka
- LCM: ESR
- RCM: Odegaard
- DM: Partey
Considering the backline continues to grow, and maybe adding a more offensive RB to the ranks, the team can really shape up into a serious title contender.
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How you planning on keeping these players here with this policy.
The theory and practice are going too be two different things.
ESR and Saka both with a shout of a world cup by next year.
Playing at that level and mixing with players from successful clubs makes them prime targets.
Couple of top 4 finishes isn’t going to be enough. Supplement them with quality availability and we might.
Like it or not top clubs have high earners. Nobody’s winning much with moneyball approach alone. There’s very good reasoning behind changing our profile but not in this isolating manner.
You’ll only get so far if that’s the case. Tbf I have to trust Arteta because I haven’t heard him say otherwise yet.
Don’t become the farming club like Dortmund. Unlike that League you won’t be given free passage into the CL here.
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Having both ESR and Ødegaard in midfield I think will leave our back line over exposed. Partey is better suited for a box to box role so he needs a DM doing the grunt work next to him. I think Sambi can do that job with Xhaka as a backup. ESR will probably rotate with Ødegaard in the #10 with occasional playtime on the wing (ESR).
Exactly a signing like Sterling is the type that turns a project rebuild into the finished article, people are so concerned about ages and finances that they can’t see the forest for the trees. I can’t be the only one looking at £45 million for 26 year old Sterling and thinking that represents fantastic value.
You’re not only getting a young enough player that he wouldn’t drastically upset the balance of the age of the team but someone with vast experience who has genuinely seen so much in his career. I can’t imagine what his insight would provide to the likes of Saka and ESR. It also keeps in line with our British core of talent which is the best thing about this team at the moment.
I really don’t know what the modern fan wants when they turn their nose up at moves like this, it wasn’t long ago we were berating Wenger for showing no ambition in the transfer market and now we’re all scared we over spend a little even if it’s on proven talent. It’s just incredibly bizarre to me and I don’t really know how anyone expects us to get better, they point to models in unique leagues that aren’t remotely tangible in the EPL. It’s all a bit boring, it’s like people don’t want to allow themselves to be excited or optimistic with transfers anymore.
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Meh, that’s imputing a lot of false motives and rationale to people who simply have a different perspective.
You can believe in the idea of buying a player who is the finished article to take the club up a level but also believe that Raheem Sterling would be a terrible choice. There are a ton of red flags with him and it’s just not at all clear to me that this is the position/profile where we really need to strengthen.
When Liverpool looked to bring in expensive signings to finish the project, they didn’t just buy the first big name player that was available and would excite the supporters. They waited for the exact right player at the right positions.
I’m all for signing Sterling to be honest, and it seems like a deal that has a good chance of happening.
He was England’s best player at the Euros, he’s young, he’s experienced at top clubs and has won titles and trophies.
Tack on the fact that Arteta has worked closely with him at Man City and I don’t see him going abroad or Chelsea/United having a need for him…
He’s a London boy, so I could definitely see him being attracted to playing for Arsenal especially with this exciting project we’re working with.
I still feel like a top striker or top cm is more of a priority, but this is one of those cases where when a player of Sterling’s ability and profile is available you just have to go in for him.
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For me it’s one of those where I’d have some minor niggling doubts: how well will he function in our side having excelled in a team that’s vastly superior to ours, will he be hungry to smash it or will he feel less motivate to truly excel without the pressure of his spot being potentially taken by players of the calibre of Foden, Grealish, Mahrez or a potential big money new signing.
But these are smalling nagging thoughts that come naturally to someone like me who is probably more inclined towards pessimism than optimism, I’d be asking these questions of many players, or I’d be finding different things to angst about with any potential signing.
It’s nothing that’d make me oppose this signing. It’d be a move that would excite me, for sure.
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This is a good point too, I know people are quick to pursue the notion that Arteta has zero coaching prowess but even if he didn’t make Sterling into a superstar he certainly probably helped the young man during a transformative period of his career. I don’t think Arteta would be after Sterling if he didn’t think he could get the most out of him.
So if we do pursue this in January or summer I wouldn’t be bogged down in potential negatives.
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It’s not about Sterling alone though. It’s this age and pricing profile and adversity to wages/transfer fees
People surely realise that promising youngsters who deliver then become the high wage earner at the club.
This means they’ll be on the wage that people are adverse to paying. If not he’s gone.
I don’t see how we progress if we aren’t prepared too pay the going rate. Anything else is utopia.
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Is there a chance we could sign him this January? Would certainly beef up our forward options during AFCON.
Also @Castiel idk that it’s people not being excited about Sterling. I think he was maybe England’s best performer at the Euro but I didn’t watch every second of England play.
But it is a risk to sign a guy getting washed out of City. Yes, he’d be a guaranteed starter here, maybe even instantly our best player…but it is a risk. All transfers come with a risk and I think sometimes it’s easier to project your hopes onto a relatively untested or ultra hyped player like Isak for example than a guy like Sterling who has been delivering in the PL since he was a teenager.
I wouldn’t be against the signing at all and it’s not strictly an age thing for me at all. I’ll still want us to sign Zaha when he’s 45 because I just like the cut of his jib.
We need someone to replace Lacazette, we neer someone to replace Aubameyang, and we need someone to replace Pepe. I wonder if Sterling can replicate that Lacazette role? He’s certainly not the biggest dude but Lacazette wasn’t this physically slick when we signed him. He’s definitely morphed into sly veteran Bruce Bowen scrotum tap while setting a screen mode. (That’s an actual NBA reference just in case people think I was having a stroke at the end of the post.)
Mate, I genuinely haven’t seen one substantial link about him to Arsenal, but it’s international break and the talk of his sale alone distracts us enough to the point we don’t go feral and eat each others faces.
As much.
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I fully agree with that. You need to be willing to pay for top quality if you have serious ambitions. I just think a club in our position can’t afford to get that choice wrong and that Sterling isn’t the right player.
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Fair play you did give reasons for that yesterday.
I’d personally still like this to happen.
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Likeliest scenario is Sterling going abroad judging from his comments a while back. City will probably favour that as well and lower their asking price(still doubt it’s only 45 million) for foreign clubs too.
In which case, PSG and Barca are the best shouts.
Barca could certainly use him after the departure of Messi and Griezy, it’s also an answer to Madrid in case they buy Mbappe. And speaking of Mbappe, PSG may look at him as a potential replacement.
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