synavm

Dybala is an interesting shout. If Tuchel wants to keep the 5-2-3 system with a centre-forward/false nine, then Dybala would suit. He has pretty good close control too. As with all big free agent transfers (apply this to Dembele too), however, they aren't really 'free'. Signing on fees really end up being a transfer fee with a discount more often than not. Is it worth it? Devil is in the detail. How much is the signing on fee? Would Dybala ask for crazy wages knowing the savings from not paying a 'transfer fee'? What would this do to our wage structure?

A little bit of fantasy transfer dealing here but here goes! Out: Rudiger, Christensen, Pulisic, Saul, Alonso, Ziyech, Loftus-Cheek, Gilmour (w/ buyback), Barkley, Drinkwater, Musonda In: Kounde, Torres, Dembele, Nkunku, Lamptey Recall: Emerson, Gallagher, Colwill, Broja ----------------------------------------- Final squad would be... GK: Mendy, Kepa, Betinelli RWB: James, Lamptey CB: Azpilicueta, Thiago Silva, Kounde, Torres, Colwill, Chalobah LWB: Chilwell, Emerson CM: Kante, Kovacic, Jorginho, Gallagher AM/RW/LW: Dembele, Havertz, Mount, Werner, Hudson-Odoi ST: Nkunku, Lukaku, Broja In 2023/24 we'll have to go all out for Declan Rice as a successor to Kante and will also likely need another centre half as Thiago Silva and Azpi will be out. Rice to inherit armband, James as VC.

We could have a Keeper in the form of a brick wall and we'd still concede with our defence set up the way it is.

At this point, Nick Pope or Dean Henderson would probably be my top realistic choices. That said, I'm still not entirely convinced we should sell Kepa. I'd much rather invest in a total overhaul of the defence.

Kepa has been dodgy of late, but lets not scapegoat him. Our centre halves and left-backs have regular concentration lapses and Reece James and Marcus Alonso are fundamentally wing-backs which leaves us exposed constantly. We either need to switch to a more conservative back-line or bring back the five man defence with wing-backs, but probably in a more dynamic formation.

Daniel Sturridge is a free agent. Not sure what the rules on registering free agents are, but surely he'd be worth a punt?

No idea how much of that plot we would look to buy, but hypothetically a larger footprint in Earls Court would be far preferable to a Stamford Bridge redevelopment. We could be a lot more ambitious with the design and if commercially viable we could look to incorporate a higher capacity than was planned. All speculation at this point but I would be surprised if the powers that be weren't keeping a keen eye on the situation.

Ziyech is a clever addition, especially for the price. Good business.

No need to panic. We always knew this was going to be a transitional season (as will the next 1-2 seasons). I'd rather we make the right signings at the right time than panic buy the wrong players with no way of getting their wages off the books.

If I'm honest, I'd rather we not sign anyone than panic buy. The atmosphere in that locker room must be handled with care. I get the sense bringing in a high-paid (all be it talented) mercenary or two would spoil it.

What about... Diego Costa

Seems a Diego Costa style player. I like the look of him. His recent scoring record is outstanding. That said, so was Mateja Kezman's.

I'm a big fan of Digne. Not so sure about Dembele. I'd prefer Gabigol, his record in Brazil is pretty remarkable. A different league, of course, but he could be a sensible buy. Buendia also potentially a clever buy.

Depends if the person speeding at 50mph was driving down a road where said speed limit wasn't signposted. It would be reasonable to treat it differently to a situation where someone was driving at 80 in a 35. Also, it's a pretty rubbish analogy when you consider punishments are different for speeding depending on the severity of the breach. You'd probably get a driving ban for doing 80 in a 35 and would probably get away with a fine and some points on the license if you did 50 in a 35, but I digress!

Thing is Man City signed two players before guidance was issued and held their hands up. We signed 29 players after guidance was issues and tried to deny it. We deserve our ban. If heads should roll it should be our own employees. FIFA would have zero reason to target us unfairly.