Steven N'Zonzi

[brap2]

I don't think this would be a good signing.

Good player but not at all what we need in midfield. I'll also trot out one of my greatest hits and say that he's too old to be worth spending anything significant on.

Can absolutely see where you’re coming from, but anything that removes Schneiderlin and gets a quality DM in the side ASAP is a good use of money, plus 25m euros ain’t that much.

He’s a good passing DM and a defensive-minded regista kind of player, not defence splitting passes but just pass pass pass, keep the ball and dictate. Basically what Schneiderlin should be doing.

However, it does raise that question of what the hell are we going to do with Gueye / the other midfield position...

Think rooney has made a really good case for being the 8, his quality on the ball has been evident and he’s even getting amongst the Goals (could do with more none pen Goals if possible).

Gueye better as a ball winner, but we seem intent on pushing him up (imo so he can win the ball further up the field and we can use his energy).

Hopefully Gueye / N’Zonzi is a better fit than what we have, but I can’t shake the feeling it’s going to be quite similar, and that his transfer has a SLIGHT air of Alex Song at West Ham about it..

[Bluedylan]

Good player but not thrilled about £25m on a 29 year old personally.

[Juanito]

Can absolutely see where you’re coming from, but anything that removes Schneiderlin and gets a quality DM in the side ASAP is a good use of money, plus 25m euros ain’t that much.

He’s a good passing DM and a defensive-minded regista kind of player, not defence splitting passes but just pass pass pass, keep the ball and dictate. Basically what Schneiderlin should be doing.

However, it does raise that question of what the hell are we going to do with Gueye / the other midfield position...

Think rooney has made a really good case for being the 8, his quality on the ball has been evident and he’s even getting amongst the Goals (could do with more none pen Goals if possible).

Gueye better as a ball winner, but we seem intent on pushing him up (imo so he can win the ball further up the field and we can use his energy).

Hopefully Gueye / N’Zonzi is a better fit than what we have, but I can’t shake the feeling it’s going to be quite similar, and that his transfer has a SLIGHT air of Alex Song at West Ham about it..

 4-3-3.

                   Pickford
Coleman  Holgate Keane  Baines
           N’Zonzi Gana Rooney
 Bolasie         Tusan      Sigurdsson

[brap2]

4-3-3.

                   Pickford
Coleman  Holgate Keane  Baines
           N’Zonzi Gana Rooney
 Bolasie         Tusan      Sigurdsson

Yeah probably, N’Zonzi did used to do that job as a younger man I think but I would think N’zonzi deepest midfielder Gueye pushing up.

Or

4-2-3-1

      N’zonzi Gueye

Bolassie Rooney Sig
           
           Tosun

I’m still really pissed off it hasn’t worked out for Klaassen. Should have been a good box to box fella.

[van der Meyde]

Good player but not thrilled about £25m on a 29 year old personally.

Urgh. Having seen the struggles we've had with Howard and Distin start to repeat with Baines, Jagielka and Williams, I'd hoped the club would have be looking a bit more long term.

Bolasie, Sigurdsson, Gueye, Schneiderlin and Nzonzi will all be 30+ and past their peak in two years. Having multiple midfield players all 30+ and difficult to shift on big contracts doesn't sound like a recipe for success to me.

[MmmblueBernard]

I was impressed with him in the preseason friendly.

Yes, him and his midfield compadre we also failed to sign.

[Escla]

Urgh. Having seen the struggles we've had with Howard and Distin start to repeat with Baines, Jagielka and Williams, I'd hoped the club would have be looking a bit more long term.

Bolasie, Sigurdsson, Gueye, Schneiderlin and Nzonzi will all be 30+ and past their peak in two years. Having multiple midfield players all 30+ and difficult to shift on big contracts doesn't sound like a recipe for success to me.

You need a mix of experience and youth, Gateth Barry had a great season last year aged 36 1/2, Lampard
played well into his mid thirties, Vincent Company at 31 plus the players you name will be just thirty in two years time, your hugely talented 23 year olds won’t stay with us beyond a couple of years if they are that good and we are not playing in CL, we need experienced players to get us near to qualifying.

[van der Meyde]

You need a mix of experience and youth, Gateth Barry had a great season last year aged 36 1/2, Lampard
played well into his mid thirties, Vincent Company at 31 plus the players you name will be just thirty in two years time, your hugely talented 23 year olds won’t stay with us beyond a couple of years if they are that good and we are not playing in CL, we need experienced players to get us near to qualifying.

Don't buy this argument at all personally. If the players we have were good enough to get us to qualify for the CL then would they be playing for Everton at 28?

[Escla]

We won’t qualify for CL with kids alone, you need a few experienced heads in there to get to qualification.

[Goaljira]

Urgh. Having seen the struggles we've had with Howard and Distin start to repeat with Baines, Jagielka and Williams, I'd hoped the club would have be looking a bit more long term.

Bolasie, Sigurdsson, Gueye, Schneiderlin and Nzonzi will all be 30+ and past their peak in two years. Having multiple midfield players all 30+ and difficult to shift on big contracts doesn't sound like a recipe for success to me.

Buying the 26 year old version costs you more money and you've got greater competition for.  Buying a 29 year old to play for a couple of years whilst our youngsters we've been stockpiling and developing continue to grow and develop isn't the worst strategy. 

[Bob Sacamano]

If we get this guy are we still allowed to buy young players in the future if the right ones come along?

[van der Meyde]

Buying the 26 year old version costs you more money and you've got greater competition for.  Buying a 29 year old to play for a couple of years whilst our youngsters we've been stockpiling and developing continue to grow and develop isn't the worst strategy. 

I guess buying the 23 or 24 year old version and then selling them on for a big profit is just too much hard work eh.

Better off taking the risk that our 20 year olds will develop while their gametime is restricted by the 30 year olds.

[Goaljira]

I guess buying the 23 or 24 year old version and then selling them on for a big profit is just too much hard work eh.

Better off taking the risk that our 20 year olds will develop while their gametime is restricted by the 30 year olds.

But the 23/24 year old version still needs to develop.  Still needs to learn.  We need someone ready to go.  We're hopefully past the need to 'buy young, sell soon' model for now.

[Bluedylan]

I know a lot of people don't like them but Spurs has to be the sustainable blueprint for how we want to break into the top 6.

We're never going to be able to outspend the rich clubs, so we have to find another way and aside from Leicester's freak season, Spurs have provided the only obvious alternative way to do it.

Yes Kane is a big part of that but even with him, there was nothing in his early career to suggest he was going to become the monster he's become so it's hard not to conclude that the manager is a massive part of his development.

In the main they have invested in talent in the 20-24 bracket, got a very good manager to work with them and improve them and grown the side into greater than the sum of their parts through good scouting, good recruitment and brilliant coaching.

Nzonzi is a good player but he's unlikely to improve at 29 and it's probable that he will decline a bit, and then 2/3 seasons later you probably have to replace him.

RBLeipzig are another team who do what Spurs have done. Identify the best young talents before they become big, and get them before they become £50m players.

Surely that has to be the way for us.

[Ross]

I know a lot of people don't like them but Spurs has to be the sustainable blueprint for how we want to break into the top 6.

We're never going to be able to outspend the rich clubs, so we have to find another way and aside from Leicester's freak season, Spurs have provided the only obvious alternative way to do it.

Yes Kane is a big part of that but even with him, there was nothing in his early career to suggest he was going to become the monster he's become so it's hard not to conclude that the manager is a massive part of his development.

In the main they have invested in talent in the 20-24 bracket, got a very good manager to work with them and improve them and grown the side into greater than the sum of their parts through good scouting, good recruitment and brilliant coaching.

Nzonzi is a good player but he's unlikely to improve at 29 and it's probable that he will decline a bit, and then 2/3 seasons later you probably have to replace him.

RBLeipzig are another team who do what Spurs have done. Identify the best young talents before they become big, and get them before they become £50m players.

Surely that has to be the way for us.

And the rabble next door.