105m what a bargain lol.

2 English CMs costed over 100m turned out to be bargains in the same window. Unreal

Without him we would have dropped at least 6 points already. He's a mentality monster and drives the team forward in difficult times. The English Vieira

Only setting on him is beast mode

this fucking guy is something else. I just know he's going to be there in big moments for us in the coming years. a man for the biggest occassions

living proof of the old saying 'you buy cheap, you buy twice'. 105m bargain

2 games now he's saved at the death. Clutch.

    3 goals now, right? here, vs Chelsea and vs Man United?

    I think his long range shooting can still improve too. With teams focusing so much on Martinelli, Saka and Odegaard, he gets quite a lot of shooting opportunities. Would like to see him add the curlers we saw from Partey last season to his locker.

      Good goal but we really need to see him score a Champions League knockout round hat-trick before we seriously start comparing him to Nicklas Bendtner. Folks are getting ridiculously ahead of themselves there.

        Pepe LeFrits the openings are there and his shooting is pretty good, it just seems to be getting blocked at the last minute. have a feeling we'll see a couple of pelters from him at some point this season

          One thing I thought was interesting last night - maybe it's just me reading too much into things - when King Declan the First was being interviewed with Saka afterwards, you could see how happy (relieved/ happy & relieved?) Saka was at the late winner. King Declan seemed much more serious and focused, almost as if he realised how close we'd been to fucking it.

          As most of you will know, I never really bought into the Xhaka mentality issue being a, y' know, issue (not in the last couple of years anyway) but I do think that Rice has a seriousness about him that speaks to a truly elite mentality and awareness of what it takes to get a job done. I'll be very interested to see how he goes and how he affects the team at Villa Park and then Anfield. These games are the ones we bought him for really.

            Tbf Rice looked delighted and very relieved in the post match celebrations, it was kind of adorable. I don't think he's a Roy Keane type who will feign not caring because they want to project that 'I'm all business' image.

              Great goal by him but thought he got beat a little easy on the corner that Raya fucked up.

              RocktheCasbah King Declan seemed much more serious and focused, almost as if he realised how close we'd been to fucking it.

              Spot on, last season we kept having to rely on late winners and that is simply not sustainable as we brutally found out.

              I think someone described him as a mentality monster, that is what he is. I think he is the true leader of the club on the pitch now.

                  goon Tbf Rice looked delighted and very relieved in the post match celebrations, it was kind of adorable. I don't think he's a Roy Keane type who will feign not caring because they want to project that 'I'm all business' image.

                  Oh of course he did, as he should have been. I guess I was more getting at the realisation sinking in, once the initial euphoria started to fade, that we were very, very close to not winning. I think he'll play a key role in keeping the dressing room honest. But as I say, I am aware I might be reading too much into it.

                    JazzG last season we kept having to rely on late winners and that is simply not sustainable as we brutally found out.

                    My sense is that we were reliant on blowing teams out in the first 15 minutes and that was what turned out to be unsustainable.

                      RocktheCasbah He also remarked (more than once) about how Arsenal were 8 points clear at one point last year [and ultimately not by the end]. I took that as him having his feet on the ground, focused on the marathon and keen to avoid slippages, that unfortunately we have a wider recent reputation for (and he has been witness to it as an outside observer).

                        RocktheCasbah agree regarding the leadership vacuum xhaka left behind. it was an bit of an intangible quality, but i think its what makes the 105m stretch worthwhile. if we'd gotten a caicedo instead for example, I think the difference in impact would be marked. the on-pitch general mantle that xhaka carried now sits nicely on rice's shoulders