The Rebuild

[Cozzie]

Has Gana confirmed ?

No, hence why I said "nearly as good as"

Like to think if it's in the stages of negotiation, he will have probably had offers elsewhere so it shows he's happy to stay.

Here's hoping nothing scuppers it like.

[sam of the south]

Put that Delap money into an electric RW and a quality CM partner for Gana.

This would be totally transformational.

[Goaljira]

No, hence why I said "nearly as good as"

Like to think if it's in the stages of negotiation, he will have probably had offers elsewhere so it shows he's happy to stay.

Here's hoping nothing scuppers it like.

99.9% done....

[superpull]

Until PoD confirms, I won't believe anything

[Cods]

This is why I feel a bit more comfortable about the window than usual.

Moyes cares about having quality players who can legitimately play football but he won’t chase that quality at the expense of our team ethic and being difficult to play against.

It occasionally causes the team to be quite boring and one-dimensional but it keeps our floor high. I’m hoping he’s 10-20% softer in his advanced age because some of his hardline stances during his first spell were counterproductive.

But at least you know the team isn’t going to be completely soft and easy to play against like under so many of Moshiri’s hires and you also know he doesn’t think 1D defensive hoofball is the pinnacle of what his teams can achieve like Dyche.

And no d***heads/ only good humans.
Good for the dressing room

[superpull]

And no d***heads/ only good humans.
Good for the dressing room

Plus Royston Drenthe
And Andy Van Der Meyde

[Cods]

Plus Royston Drenthe
And Andy Van Der Meyde

Yeah fair call.
In the main. Perhaps built on a solid base of good character, with a sprinkle of wayward genius.

Think they're both turned the corner OK on later life.


Now that he is retired and clean from alcohol and drugs, Van der Meyde has laid bare his past in his autobiography and a series of interviews. He summed up his own squandered career speaking to BBC Radio 5 Live. “At one moment I was second behind Figo as the best winger in Europe and sometimes I think I wasted it. That is a lesson and now I want to help other players and help them not make the same mistakes I did.”

In 2013, Dutch news website HP De Tijd revealed voicemails that Van der Meyde had left former Real Madrid man, Royston Drenthe, attempting to warn his compatriot about the pitfalls in Liverpool prior to his move to Everton in 2011. “Liverpool has too many temptations for guys like us. Before you know it you will be dragged into the nightclubs. The Bacardi flows and you can ski on cocaine; and the women, Royston. Oh man, oh man, oh man. Those British women with their short skirts.”

[kramer]

When the financial risk is low, those are the sorts of talents you gamble on. If they don’t meet the club’s standards for professionalism, they can be moved on easily.

At the time, it felt like Moyes might’ve been a bit harsh on Drenthe but pretty sure the player has come out and said Moyes made the right decision somewhat recently.

[JoelW7]

Plus Royston Drenthe
And Andy Van Der Meyde

I had Van Der Meyde on the back of one of my shirts, proudly wore it to the FA Cup Final against Chelsea

[Toddacelli]

And no d***heads/ only good humans.
Good for the dressing room

Good humans with the right amount of nasty and ruthless and the intelligence to leave it on the pitch

We’ve often been too nice on the pitch and while I am 100% in favour of good humans at the club, I also want winners on the pitch.

Did I use the word ‘pitch’ enough there?

You know when you look at a word to much and it starts to look weird, funny and unfamiliar?
Pitch.

[superpull]

I was so happy when we bought Van Der Meyde. Felt like a real coup - probably the last player that the echo was the place the news broke for me.

[Nicco]

Plus Royston Drenthe
And Andy Van Der Meyde

He sometimes went out of his comfort zone and took a punt on certain types of non Moysie players.
Thoose above, Artera, to some extension Pienaar, Fernandes, any given striker/forward.
And given his record on these players I would say he is more successful than other managers in this particular area.

[Cods]

Good humans with the right amount of nasty and ruthless and the intelligence to leave it on the pitch

We’ve often been too nice on the pitch and while I am 100% in favour of good humans at the club, I also want winners on the pitch.

Did I use the word ‘pitch’ enough there?

You know when you look at a word to much and it starts to look weird, funny and unfamiliar?
Pitch.

Yes, for sure.

I also left out indefatigably driven.

Is not a pitch, is a beach!

Pi-tch, pit-ch, pi-cha....

[Free Agent]

Nando Fernandes… how I wished we made it permanent at the time.

[Bornblue88]

The reasons for not signing Grealish are pretty obvious and have already been stated but I’d love it if we could make a deal. I’m always a sucker for a reclamation project. A season here were he can get back to just enjoying his football with more freedom than peps restrictive style will put him right in contention for the World Cup next year. I think he just genuinely loves playing football and the limelight so we could sell it to him that he needs to buckle down and get back to his best. It’ll be a lot of money either way we slice it but if we can get our other deals right i.e. cheap/free experience and you g talent circa £20m then it might be worth it