Qwiss! wrote:

kamikaze wrote:

This windows been pragmatic, but it doesn't exactly say to the world that we're gunning for the title. It's more like, watch out, we're threatening to be competent in 18/19!

Was anyone expecting a "we're gunning for the title" window though? We'd have to spend a couple of hundred million for that realistically.

A couple hundred million? Jeez, maybe for Southamption to challenge for the title... I reckon we could easily challenge for less than 100m net spend. But Emery probably doesn't want to shake up the squad too much before he even starts (and we've already had so much churn).

We'd have to spend 200 million at least to genuinely compete in a way that wasn't some kind of miracle.

I think we'll see what a difference it makes to have modern training and matchday preparation. We're nowhere near as bad as last season's results.

For sure, but it'd be a hell of a thing if we won the league next year. Not quite LCFC but certainly not normal or expected, even if things went surprisingly well. If we went out and absolutely smashed the bank, then there might be some suggestion that we should be challenging to the end.

Honestly, even then...

If we were out of the Europa league - like Chelsea were a few seasons back - then we'd have a better chance.

Plus their dip was only a season, and they had a title-winning team. We're two years into the funk now and we were only good enough for 4th to begin with.

Looks like the big bad winda is over now. Think we are a forward short - need a good WF to round off the team and make it competitive. I'd even say that we are one short at CB unless Mustafi turns his form around completely. Let's see where we land.

Still a month to go... not sure why everyone's saying it's definitely done. Ornstein or no Ornstein.

I think it's partly Ornstein and also partly that all the targets we had been strongly linked to are either done or gone elsewhere (bar Soyuncu perhaps). The rest feels like wild speculation (Nzonzi, Draxler, etc.). Also, feels like transfer budget's broadly spent - need to have some significant outgoings now (Welbeck?) to see anyone else come in.

On top of that we've signed Auba, Mkhi, Mavropanos, Leno, Stephan, Sokratis, Torreira and the Metteo guy immanently. That's 8 players in the space of 7 months. That's a lot even by FIFA/FM standards. Half of our first XI lineup has changed since this time last year, that's a lot of change as it is.

If there's anyone manager you'd want coaching a thrown together bunch like this it's Emery by the way. I don't think he's ever coached the same squad in consecutive seasons, has more than a decade experience of having to deal with his teams makeup changing every summer.

Don't worry guys, the plug says that we're not done.

Maybe we're bringing Allegri in as a player.

Plug talking about Dybala apparently

I don't follow that kid no mo'.

jones wrote:

If there's anyone manager you'd want coaching a thrown together bunch like this it's Emery by the way. I don't think he's ever coached the same squad in consecutive seasons, has more than a decade experience of having to deal with his teams makeup changing every summer.

There was a season he had 12 new players at Sevilla yeah. And then he won the Europa league again

we would end up getting "Koscielny coming back will be like a new signing"

@lorddulaarsenal wrote:

Can you imagine where we’d be with Wenger now. No signing, us all desperately hoping to get someone in at the 11th hour

Every time I look back at Wenger’s time here I get more and more wound up about it

We'd be close to agreeing terms with Johnny Evans.