Dalot to Real

£40m cash would just about pay for Quenda…

+1 disputing the 'abysmal' description.

Over the last two to three years he has been one of the few players in our back four who isn't a weak point when it comes to progressing from the back. He's comfortable receiving the ball in tight spaces and pretty reliable advancing through playing triangles. He's also one of the few players in the squad who has the athleticism required by both ETH and Amorim and badly lacking as a whole. He's not elite and no one is arguing that it's impossible to upgrade. But he has been one of the better performers in the squad since Rangnick's time. He's also looking like our second or third best option at wing-back at the moment, when ideally we need more depth, not less.

We'll have to make ruthless calculations in the transfer market to improve the squad while dealing with the constraints of Glazer mismanagement. If we can free up cash for other positions by selling Dalot while bringing in an adequate replacement, then fine. But I'll never understand the contempt some of our players receive from fans.

comment by manusince52 (U9692)
posted 1 hour, 9 minutes ago
On the left no, but on the right he's not bad at all. Dalot that is.
I wouldn't sell Zirkzee , or at least until Antony is gone.
He could be another Onana I think criticised by all but then turning it around.
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"Not bad at all" is not an acceptable standard for a club aiming to turn its fortunes around. We must set higher expectations and strive for better players.

comment by Red Russian (U4715)
posted 7 minutes ago
+1 disputing the 'abysmal' description.

Over the last two to three years he has been one of the few players in our back four who isn't a weak point when it comes to progressing from the back. He's comfortable receiving the ball in tight spaces and pretty reliable advancing through playing triangles. He's also one of the few players in the squad who has the athleticism required by both ETH and Amorim and badly lacking as a whole. He's not elite and no one is arguing that it's impossible to upgrade. But he has been one of the better performers in the squad since Rangnick's time. He's also looking like our second or third best option at wing-back at the moment, when ideally we need more depth, not less.

We'll have to make ruthless calculations in the transfer market to improve the squad while dealing with the constraints of Glazer mismanagement. If we can free up cash for other positions by selling Dalot while bringing in an adequate replacement, then fine. But I'll never understand the contempt some of our players receive from fans.
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Good post. I agree.

comment by Vengeance (U23079)
posted 14 minutes ago
comment by manusince52 (U9692)
posted 1 hour, 9 minutes ago
On the left no, but on the right he's not bad at all. Dalot that is.
I wouldn't sell Zirkzee , or at least until Antony is gone.
He could be another Onana I think criticised by all but then turning it around.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Not bad at all" is not an acceptable standard for a club aiming to turn its fortunes around. We must set higher expectations and strive for better players.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

There isn't a player in the squad who is the best in his position in the world, so every player can potentially be upgraded and the club should always be interested in doing so. For me the question is how high Dalot is in the list of priorities for upgrade. The fact that he has played so much under ETH and so far Amorim has him as first choice tells me we're not replete with better options in the squad. Right now he's our favoured LWB option. Quite possibly our second choice RWB (Mazraoui may be ahead of him there but Amorim seems to like him as RCB; it's also possible that Amorim eventually uses Amad behind the striker). We obviously need to bring more wing backs into the squad, but if we sell Dalot at the same time, we probably need to buy depth as well as an upgrade. At the same time, we lack depth at CB and midfield. I could see Dalot as a latter-day John O'Shea who can cover all three positions while we gradually sort out the holes in our squad.

Again, I'm not saying it's the wrong thing to sell him if we get a good price and can use the money well to realign the squad. But people are making out as though there's no trade-off in dispensing with a player who is one of the few who combines having a decent touch and the ability to run for 90 minutes, while playing in a position where we have the least amount of cover.

£50m would be one the greatest heists in PL history. Even in this market he’s barely worth half of that

Please make this happen.

I wouldn’t sell Zirkzee before giving him a real chance, that is a complete season with a good run of games. He is more of a team player (who makes other players perform) than Bruno and Rashford, who even when they score, their overall influence on the game is negative.

comment by Red Russian
posted 5 hours, 28 minutes ago
comment by Vengeance (U23079)
posted 14 minutes ago
comment by manusince52 (U9692)
posted 1 hour, 9 minutes ago
On the left no, but on the right he's not bad at all. Dalot that is.
I wouldn't sell Zirkzee , or at least until Antony is gone.
He could be another Onana I think criticised by all but then turning it around.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

"Not bad at all" is not an acceptable standard for a club aiming to turn its fortunes around. We must set higher expectations and strive for better players.
----------------------------------------------------------------------

There isn't a player in the squad who is the best in his position in the world, so every player can potentially be upgraded and the club should always be interested in doing so. For me the question is how high Dalot is in the list of priorities for upgrade. The fact that he has played so much under ETH and so far Amorim has him as first choice tells me we're not replete with better options in the squad. Right now he's our favoured LWB option. Quite possibly our second choice RWB (Mazraoui may be ahead of him there but Amorim seems to like him as RCB; it's also possible that Amorim eventually uses Amad behind the striker). We obviously need to bring more wing backs into the squad, but if we sell Dalot at the same time, we probably need to buy depth as well as an upgrade. At the same time, we lack depth at CB and midfield. I could see Dalot as a latter-day John O'Shea who can cover all three positions while we gradually sort out the holes in our squad.

Again, I'm not saying it's the wrong thing to sell him if we get a good price and can use the money well to realign the squad. But people are making out as though there's no trade-off in dispensing with a player who is one of the few who combines having a decent touch and the ability to run for 90 minutes, while playing in a position where we have the least amount of cover.
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I don't disagree and he may still remain a player at the club next season. I wouldn’t be opposed to keeping Dalot as a backup, his versatility is an asset. That said, I remain unsure about him as a player. He can blow hot and cold within a single half, shifting from the sublime to the ridiculous, and he’s prone to costly lapses in concentration. There are too many question marks over his passing, defensive abilities, and even his effectiveness going forward. This inconsistency is why I’ve rarely been fully convinced by Dalot.

If we’re serious about fully supporting Amorim, the aim should be on recruiting specialist players for both the RWB and LWB positions. And if someone is willing to offer around £50m for Dalot, we shouldn’t think twice, it would play a small part in fixing the squad long term.

Not averse to selling Dalot but only if there's a decent replacement lined up. Haven't read the story but if we're talking about January then it's highly unlikely we'll manage that which would mean leaving ourselves seriously short. Not good.

Question is what does Carlo know?