Dusic

Who knows? But pretty clear that if he is available to us to buy permanently then half the PL will be interested. Guessing thats why Semmens has been speaking to Chelsea to sort something, but from Ralph's last comments seems we have been told nothing happens this window. Thats the problem with loans with no option/obligation unfortunately. Even if his form tails off he has shown enough now to generate a lot of interest.

Over Ralph's time here he has been the one constant in the #10 position and IMO we are generally better when he plays. Of course he could score more, the same goes for almost all players in his position in the PL aside from the very best. However, there are clearly some things the Manager values that our other #10s don't offer. I would suggest: - Availability: nearly always able to play 90mins and still be fresh. Can playb3 games a week no problem. Picks up relatively few injuries compared to all the others. Pressing: definitely the best in this respect Reliability: more secure on the ball than the others. Armstrong and Moi have a habit of giving the ball away cheaply, Walcott is awful, Tella's first touch poor in tight spaces and teammates don't know what they will get from Djenepo. Better in tight spaces: Walcott needs space to run into, as does Tella. Armstrong good but not the most refined. Redmond's interplay around the box definitely better than the others. Overall its definitely a position we could upgrade but he is definitely with Armstrong as the best we have there, hence why he plays so often.

Can't argue with any of this (Royals Royce a minor blip). Allied to top class usage of proper punditry cliches, I would say its in and around the best posts on this thread.

https://www.goal.com/en/news/chelsea-broja-dilemma-reclaim-or-cash-in-southampton-striker/blt6e2554b0c5914800 This reporter is usually very reliable for Chelsea news, especially on their young players.

Probably the first big match I can remember Salisu getting big TV/media attention. Aa I said before, from a club perspective if we want to maximise his value we should be looking to add a year or two to his contract with a pay rise (obviously his decision).

https://theathletic.com/3082148/2022/01/21/fabio-carvalhos-future-fulham-liverpool-and-a-free-scoring-prodigy-managed-by-his-family?source=user-shared-article Summary is Liverpool are keen, Barcelona have watched him and a huge amount of other clubs are interested (only Liv & Barca specified). Also says his family deal with everything but agents like Mendes are trying to squeeze in to get a slice of the pie. Vibe I got was it would be a very difficult deal to do and he is probably too well known for us to have a realistic chance.

I'm sure in part there is/was an element of showing young players that they will get a chance here, and there is no doubt that Livramento's impact has done that - which could benefit us hugely in the transfer market for the next 2 or 3 years. Equally, he was exceptional for a good while at the start of the season and KWP was playing well at LB too so can understand why he left it at that. Whilst Perraud looks solid I wouldnt say he has shown anything like what KWP and Tino bring going forward, so can understand Ralph picking those two ahead of him, and not wanting to leave either out. Not seen any evidence or suggestion KWP is unhappy playing LB but if he is then hopefully in the next few games at RB he will put in top performances and make himself undroppable there. For ages in some positions we have had no competition (Bertrand for example) so can't be a bad thing.

Its not a u-turn but its definitely a reality check of the situation and his comments suggest to me that there is still quite a lot of persuading that Broja would need to turn his back on Chelsea at this point. Quite similar to the comments he often made about Ings. Clearly there is a difference between being happy and liking it at Saints and actually pushing to sign permanently.

Was obvious they would spend their way out of trouble, but the amount of time Staveley is spending briefing the NE journos like Edwards and Hope is madness. Its obviously amateur hour off the pitch as well as on it but letting everyone know that seems kind of stupid, especially when she is supposedly fighting for her job.

Summarised as very good player, Saints might have a chance but not if Liverpool make a genuine move for him. My opinion - as with Broja, surely no point in Carvalho agreeing a move now. Might as well keep playing well for Fulham and in the summer can have his pick of clubs or an option to stay there and play regular PL football.

KWP has basically been a first choice pick apart from for about 4 game at the start of the season. Would saying this spell at LB only improves him too as he can genuinely play both sides well which not many can do. Don't hear Cancelo moaning at mostly playing LB despite primarily being a RB. Rather than selling him, we should be extending his contract. Excellent player and one of a growing number of good signings during the Ralph era.

Maybe we will start doing some deals of the type Brighton have whereby we sign these types and loan them out for a year or 18 months until they are ready or there is a space for them. If we get next season out of Livramento then we would in theory have a replacement ready if we then sold him.

https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/17359795/liverpool-west-ham-fulham-fabio-carvalho/ Lots more intetested teams mentioned here. Certainly the type of signing we should be targetting but so will plenty of others. Wonder why he doesnt want to stay at Fulham for a couple more years?

He doesn't need to be their main striker and its an area of their strong squad that has been weak this season. Not impossible that Lukaku and Werner both leave in the summer and Havertz hasnt really impressed either - he isnt a genuine no9 like Broja. A club like Chelsea will always sign the best players around but aged 20 I would imagine Broja is a confident lad who would back himself to stay in the first team squad if given a chance to prove himself. Plus Chelsea play so many games, he could be a great 3rd striker for them. From his point of view surely you would at least want to find out...

Lovely finisher judging by some of his recent goals but looks quite slight of build so will need to bulk up a bit. Not all 16yo are physical ready for mens football afterall. Also aware that we have seen a few good goalscorers at that level, Seager springs to mind - who haven't kicked on. Leave him to develop and in 18months if he is still fit and scoring regularly then he might have a chance.

Based on goalscoring alone Olaigbe getting to the point where he needs to be given first team chance to capitalise on his momentum. Or be allowed out on loan if there isn't scope for that here at the moment.

Of course he will have been monitored for a long time by these clubs. I think the club would be totally relaxed about any interest in JWP. The fact we extended his contract means if we were to sell him in the next couple of years we could name the price.

A lot (all) of the reports from 'our journos' are based on Ralph's quotes from the press conferences. I think its pretty obvious Saints would like to keep him longer, and in order to do that we would need to speak to Chelsea. Both of those are things Ralph has confirmed and what the journos have reported. The things nobody has reported which are largely unknown yet extremely important: - do Chelsea have any intention of selling him? - for what price/terms? - does Broja want to leave Chelsea when he probably has a great shot of being in their squad next season? Find his interview from 2yrs ago when he signed his first pro deal and he says he has suported and played for Chelsea since he was a kid and loves the club. Why throw away a chance at playing for them when you finally get close to it? - which other teams would match Saints offer (probably at least 4 or 5 PL clubs) and would Broja want to join Saints over others? As I have said before, from Broja's perspective and Chelsea's perspective I don't see why they would rush to a permanent move at this point, it doesnt really make sense for either party. Ralph's continual comments about Ings being happy and wanting to stay also spring to mind when seemingly he had no intention to. Not saying he lies but wouldn't particularly trust manager comments in the press as they are always working to an agenda even if its not always obvious what that is. Entirely possible Broja is very happy here and his family are no doubt pleased he is doing well. But that doesn't necessarily equal him wanting to join on a permanent deal right now.

I believe that is incorrect. Cedric joined Arsenal on loan, with Arsenal paying a loan fee of about £1m-£1.5m and then signing him permanently when his Saints contract ended. Saints made a saving on his wages for the 6months of the loan which some reports then used incorrectly, in addition to the loan fee to make this mythical £5m sale that you erroneously refer to.

In theory works well but Tino was £5m, I would imagine Broja at the least would be £25m. So then what is an acceptable buy back? Saints would surely want it set at £50m or so which then is pricy for Chelsea when they could just loan him out for another season, or use him themselves.

Its a simple situation. For him to sign for us permanently four things need to happen: 1. Saints need to want to sign him permanently, and be able to afford to do so. 2. Broja needs to want to permanently leave Chelsea, who he has represented for a long time and is probably now the closest he has ever been to getting in their first team squad. 3. Chelsea need to agree to sell a player who is clearly developing well at his loan club (as was the whole point) and looks like he could do a good job in their squad for next year and ehose value is rapidly increasing. 4. Broja needs to prefer to join Saints over any other team who is interested in him. We can be sure that if the price were to be one Saints can afford then half the PL will show an interest. Of these four things, I would say about 0.5 of them are clear, which is that Saints would like to sign him (#1). I can't see there being a rush for #2 or #3 as no need for either Broja or Chelsea to act now. Ultimately, the chances of it falling into place are pretty low and thats what you get when the deal is a loan with no option or obligation to buy. A second loan is far more likely.

Yes, and as Ralph said the other day, most young players who successfully transition from Academy to PL make debuts at 16-18. If you are 20 and not a massive standout in L2 then its odds against, although obviously still possible to have a great pro career.

Can see the logic, and surely no coincidence that after Watts joins Ferry, Ramsay links up with Vokins. Makes it easier for those players to settle, easier for the club to monitor them and in SPL whilst standard overall isnt great it does give exposure to better players than L1/2 level in a handful of games. That said, pretty clear that at the ages Ramsay, Vokins, Ferry etc are they won't be making it at Saints in the PL.

Would hope the club are looking to extend Salisu's contract about now to preserve his value. If not then this summer would be his high point value wise before he approaches 18mths to go.