Topic: The Push Square Football (Soccer) Thread

@Wesker sorry to tell you this mate but Arsenal are a top 10 club for the next few seasons. Liverpool, Man City, Tottenham and Chelsea are the top 4 (maybe not this season but for the next few seasons they will be the top clubs). Leicester, Wolves and Man utd are ahead and in much better positions as a club. Man Utd in particular will start to come good again with their financial outlook. You will then have to contend with Everton and West Ham as if they get their act together financially and size wise would be competing for Arsenal's place in the next few seasons. Then you have the surprise packages like Sheffield United this year. Maybe a Leeds or crystal Palace next year. In your current state its going to take a couple of years at least to sort out you have no identity.

@themcnoisy Lol! No. That’s not going to happen mate. We’re a top 6 club. With a better strategy, Arsenal could easily be sitting in 3rd place right now. Issues need to be solved like the defense, protecting the defense, accommodating Ozil, playing to Auba’s strengths... There’s is plenty of potential that a top coach could unleash.

@Wesker Hahaha 😂 That's a good one you nearly had me at top 6 but top 3? Come on Wesker.

@themcnoisy We have the best striker in the league. The service he gets though is awful. Our defense is not that bad, it just needs more protection from the midfield. Pepe as well is full of potential. If Arteta, can make them gel, the potential is there. They just need to work together.

Best striker in the league?? Kane, Aguero, Mane, Salah, Vardy and Sterling may all have something to say about that. There is no doubt that Aubameyang would be amongst those names but to say he is the 'best' rather than one of the best is a stretch...

Salah would have to rank as perhaps the best currently with his goal involvement - not just the one putting the ball in the net but assisting his team mates too. I think the 'best' striker would have the best 'goal involvement' figures which is determined by Goals/Assists per 90mins (or could be a goal/assist every 'X' mins with the lowest value of 'X' determining the best striker). The amount of Goals AND Assists he has had in his time at Liverpool is astounding - especially as he plays more as a winger a lot of the time rather than just a Striker.

Having the best striker though doesn't guarantee a top 6 (let alone top 3) if they can't defend, can't create chances etc...

Looks like Ashley Young is a new Inter player, but I don't know him at all... Why did he leave Man Utd?
BTW, let's hope he is as bad as Lukaku (18 goals so far)!

@andreoni79 Man U also offered him a new contract and he rejected it.

Thanks for answering!
I wonder if his arrival is connected with Lukaku's new bed: it looks there's enough space for Pogba too.

At least Celtic have made one signing. One. Measly. Signing. The board hate spending money and Rangers are seriously catching up so it’s tense in the absolute car crash that is the Scottish league.

@DonJorginho Could be the difference between getting into the top 4.

@JohnnyShoulder If we manage to get Mertens I say we finish in top four, but if we don't then I say we will drop out as we need support for Tammy.

@DonJorginho Luckily for Chelsea, the rest of the league are doing the upmost to not take 4th place.

@Thrillho With Tottenham, Arsenal and United all making smart signings I can see us finishing 7th.

All thanks to our wonderful board for not backing a club legend when he was begging on national telly for signings.

It has been confirmed in the last 20 minutes that we are signing no-one and are keeping Giroud.

@Thrillho I imagine Man City sitting round a table saying ‘Well we’ve done well the last few years but let’s give Leicester a go, eh?’

@DonJorginho Yeah didn't think the Mertens deal would happen. Mind you liverpool didn't sign anyone last summer and look where we are now.

@JohnnyShoulder And only signed Minamino for £7.25m (at least in terms of first team players) this window. I can see Liverpool looking for wingers in the next window - losing Salah and Mane (as well as Keita of course) for the Africa Cup of Nations will hit hard.

ZIYECH IS A BLUE!!!

Hakim Ziyech will join Chelsea FC on July 1st 2020 for a fee around £38m.

In his Ajax Career in 160 appearances so far he has registered 48 goals and 82 assists, with some of these coming in important UCL ties against the likes of Juventus, Real Madrid and Tottenham Hotspur.

@DonJorginho That’s not a bad price at all. Shame they couldn’t nab him in January but he’s a great talent which Chelsea really need right now.

@Arugula I think he is an average winger but if we play him in the 10 we could have something special in Ziyech indeed, a very good bargain seeing as we paid £40m for Bakayoko in the past.

Now we just need a ST, LB and a winger.

My personal targets for each position:

ST - Moussa Dembele, Raul Jimenez, Odsonne Édouard.
RW/LW - Jadon Sancho, Jeremie Boga, Samuel Chukwueze
LB - Grimaldo, Telles, Jose Gaya.

@nessisonett I agree, it was stupid how we did not get someone in, but I will take quality bargain signings like this over another Ross Barkley or Drinkwater on Deadline Day!