January transfer window

Pearce is saying LFC are still confident in bringing Origi back before the end of the month.
How soon probably depends how quickly Lille can get in a replacement....We have at least 3 they could have.

Pearce is saying LFC are still confident in bringing Origi back before the end of the month.
How soon probably depends how quickly Lille can get in a replacement....We have at least 3 they could have.

He's averaging about a goal every 6 games in the french league isn't he? Says it all about our current lot.

He's averaging about a goal every 6 games in the french league isn't he? Says it all about our current lot.

Yes but you need to take into account he is playing for a team who are allergic to going over the half way line and a manager who plays him out wide.........Has looked pretty decent for his national team and if he is playing with Raheem, Lallana, Coutinho he will be just fine.

He has scored 3 goals in 13 ( +3 subs) appearances with 2 assist for Lille, so not too shabby for a 19 year old playing for a poor team.

Yes but you need to take into account he is playing for a team who are allergic to going over the half way line and a manager who plays him out wide.........Has looked pretty decent for his national team and if he is playing with Raheem, Lallana, Coutinho he will be just fine.

Yep, and even still he has scored as many at 19 at Thierry Henry and he isn't 20 til april. Not to mention it can't be easy playing at 19 when all the fans are booing you for a penalty miss made nearly 2 months ago.

The more the window is open the less I believe we will sign anyone - aside from a new partnership deal or something...

Makes you wish we were being signed by someone, perhaps a nice middle eastern royal family or the such.

Makes you wish we were being signed by someone, perhaps a nice middle eastern royal family or the such.

Not me. I despise the way Chelsea, City, and PSG have bought their trophies in recent years. There is no honor or glory in that, and I'd be sad if we ever stooped to that level....

Not me. I despise the way Chelsea, City, and PSG have bought their trophies in recent years. There is no honor or glory in that, and I'd be sad if we ever stooped to that level....

I wouldn't either, but I'd at least like an owner that doesn't sh*t themselves every time we try to compete for a players signature.

I wouldn't either, but I'd at least like an owner that doesn't sh*t themselves every time we try to compete for a players signature.

Indeed.

Not me. I despise the way Chelsea, City, and PSG have bought their trophies in recent years. There is no honor or glory in that, and I'd be sad if we ever stooped to that level....

Has it ever been any different? We weren't exactly a poor club back in the day, often breaking transfer records for players. Like it or not, money buys success, such has it ever been and you'd be lying to yourself if you said you'd be moaning if we where winning the league year-in, year-out as a result of it.

Has it ever been any different? We weren't exactly a poor club back in the day, often breaking transfer records for players. Like it or not, money buys success, such has it ever been and you'd be lying to yourself if you said you'd be moaning if we where winning the league year-in, year-out as a result of it.

Big difference between buying a Suraez, Alonso, Sturridge or Sterling, developing them and selling them on compared to buying whoever you want with oil money though isn't there?

SO lets say a arab or somebody else comes along and buy LFC. They have a 5-10 year plan.

step 1:
They invest hugely in the squad, the club itself and the academy. They pour alot of money into the club to get it to the top where it belongs.

step 2:
They make sure to get the top talent, and the best coaches so the young talent can develop into good players.

step 3:
Because of our success and being in CL years straight. we get more fans and more money.

step 4:
owners begin to make sure that the club structre is self sustainaible.

step 5:
Make sure blend that young talent with buying quality players here and there. Difference is that now after success and having quality players, we will get more fans. more kits and merchandise will be sold. THe club will be able to run itself.

i honestly dont see anything wrong with that, and its not selling the soul of the club. whats the difference between that scenario and our current one? where we are getting basketplayers to put our shirts on, so we can get noticed in the US?

I dont have anything against our current owners, but this white knight mentality is just pure hypocrisy.

My point was that if we are not going out to buy players and win trophies then the owners should sell up - nothing else doing this window...

I agree that rich owners seems like a total sell out, literally - but out other option is waiting until some players break through and come good. For every Sterling there are a dozen Suso's (who leaving will be the next Pogba IMO)... However the ownership and running of this club is probably for another thread...

With our strikers faltering, to put it mildly we need to do something. January is here and we are doing nothing, or so it seems... Very frustrating

My point was that if we are not going out to buy players and win trophies then the owners should sell up

I am sure if the right offer came in they would listen, but I think we would have heard if a sheikh or Oligarch has been sniffing around.

Barring that huge pocket owner, there would be no guarantees that the next owner would be any better than the current ones, in fact 50/50 chance they could be worse.

Big difference between buying a Suraez, Alonso, Sturridge or Sterling, developing them and selling them on compared to buying whoever you want with oil money though isn't there?

Ian St John, Emlyn Hughes, John Toshack, Ray Kennedy, Kenny Dalglish, Craig Johnston, Mark Lawrenson, Beardsley, Rush; all these players had a massive fee paid for them in relation to their time and all of them signed during our glory years. As I said, we were never a poor club until the Premier League era were we began to fall behind many others. No one was complaining then about the soul of the team being absent and if we got bought by some Sheikh and started winning titles and trophies again no one would be complaining then either.

Ian St John, Emlyn Hughes, John Toshack, Ray Kennedy, Kenny Dalglish, Craig Johnston, Mark Lawrenson, Beardsley, Rush; all these players had a massive fee paid for them in relation to their time and all of them signed during our glory years. As I said, we were never a poor club until the Premier League era were we began to fall behind many others. No one was complaining then about the soul of the team being absent and if we got bought by some Sheikh and started winning titles and trophies again no one would be complaining then either.

There are many more players that could be added to that list as well.

I am sure if the right offer came in they would listen, but I think we would have heard if a sheikh or Oligarch has been sniffing around.

Barring that huge pocket owner, there would be no guarantees that the next owner would be any better than the current ones, in fact 50/50 chance they could be worse.

Of course, but if we were sold to an owner more like City's they would do a lot of good...

Back on Topic - any news today or just the usual Twitter banality..?

Not me. I despise the way Chelsea, City, and PSG have bought their trophies in recent years. There is no honor or glory in that, and I'd be sad if we ever stooped to that level....

They "bought their trophies"?

Maybe, maybe not.

But are you saying that if we won trophies this season, they WOULDN'T be bought?

Mate since FSG have taken over we've spent more than £200 million on incoming players. 

I don't see how we can sit here and pretend we've done it the "right way" and that we've not spent absurd amounts of money on players as well.

The only difference is they spend a lot of money buying expensive, proven players while we spend a lot of money buying a bunch of cheap, sh*te players.  In the end a lot of money is still spent either way.

Let's not make out like we're Leicester or Palace with a payroll of a few quid or something.

They "bought their trophies"?

Maybe, maybe not.

But are you saying that if we won trophies this season, they WOULDN'T be bought?

Mate since FSG have taken over we've spent more than £200 million on incoming players. 

I don't see how we can sit here and pretend we've done it the "right way" and that we've not spent absurd amounts of money on players as well.

The only difference is they spend a lot of money buying expensive, proven players while we spend a lot of money buying a bunch of cheap, sh*te players.  In the end a lot of money is still spent either way.

Let's not make out like we're Leicester or Palace with a payroll of a few quid or something.

We've actually spent over 270 million under FSG.

Problem is, not many of them have been very good. I think it's been 27 players total we have bought and you can count the quality signings amongst those on one hand. That's not their fault, they don't buy players, but whoever is in charge is F***ing up something fierce.

DoF or a new scouting system is much needed.

Not me. I despise the way Chelsea, City, and PSG have bought their trophies in recent years. There is no honor or glory in that, and I'd be sad if we ever stooped to that level....

Take some of FSG's most expensive signings and suppose they were all still here and they had all come good.  Suppose we had this lineup:

Mignolet
Johnson Sakho Lovren Moreno
Gerrard Henderson
Lallana
Downing Carroll Suarez

Well, those signings would add up to £185m, just in the starting XI alone:

£10m - Mignolet
£18m - Johnson
£18m - Sakho
£20m - Lovren
n/a - Gerrard
£16m - Henderson
£25m - Lallana
£20m - Downing
£23m - Suarez
£35m - Carroll

---are you saying if that team won a trophy, that trophy would NOT have been bought? 

Because apparently you think a team like Chelsea, if they win a trophy, will have "bought" said trophy.  And yet their strongest XI right now:

Courtois - £6m
Cahill - £7m
Terry - n/a (academy)
Azpilicueta - £7m
Ivanovic - £9m
Fabregas - £30m
Matic - £21m
Ramires - £18m
Oscar - £25m
Costa - £32
Hazard - £32m

= totals £187m

So at £187m you have "bought" trophies but at £185m if you win a trophy, you... what?  you earned it "the right way"?

There is a harsh reality that some of our supporters need to come to terms with: we are not poor.  We are not the paupers of world football.  We have spent copious amounts of money on transfers over the last few seasons. 

The difference between us and them is they buy proven players, whilst we spend lots of money in smaller chunks on sh*te.

so please.  Enough of this "we take the high road by not buying trophies."  We've spent huge amounts of money just like the other rich clubs.  we just waste it a lot better than they do.

Whenever we discuss transfers, we always ignore one of the most important factors and that is wages. A player's value is made up of the buying price and the wages we would have to pay him over the length of his contract. If we spend 24mn on Lallana and pay him 80k per week while Chelsea buy Fabregas for 24mn(example) and pay him 150k per week, theres a huge  difference in the money club has spent on the players so comparing transfer spends based only on upfront price is highly ignorant and messed up.

Thats a good point Federer.

Take some of FSG's most expensive signings and suppose they were all still here and they had all come good.  Suppose we had this lineup:

Mignolet
Johnson Sakho Lovren Moreno
Gerrard Henderson
Lallana
Downing Carroll Suarez

Well, those signings would add up to £185m, just in the starting XI alone:

£10m - Mignolet
£18m - Johnson
£18m - Sakho
£20m - Lovren
n/a - Gerrard
£16m - Henderson
£25m - Lallana
£20m - Downing
£23m - Suarez
£35m - Carroll

---are you saying if that team won a trophy, that trophy would NOT have been bought? 

Because apparently you think a team like Chelsea, if they win a trophy, will have "bought" said trophy.  And yet their strongest XI right now:

Courtois - £6m
Cahill - £7m
Terry - n/a (academy)
Azpilicueta - £7m
Ivanovic - £9m
Fabregas - £30m
Matic - £21m
Ramires - £18m
Oscar - £25m
Costa - £32
Hazard - £32m

= totals £187m

So at £187m you have "bought" trophies but at £185m if you win a trophy, you... what?  you earned it "the right way"?

There is a harsh reality that some of our supporters need to come to terms with: we are not poor.  We are not the paupers of world football.  We have spent copious amounts of money on transfers over the last few seasons. 

The difference between us and them is they buy proven players, whilst we spend lots of money in smaller chunks on sh*te.

so please.  Enough of this "we take the high road by not buying trophies."  We've spent huge amounts of money just like the other rich clubs.  we just waste it a lot better than they do.

Yeah it's a point worth making of course, we are by far from poor

However you have given a slight tilt to the picture, in our team you have put players not here now that were 'high profile flops' yet in the Chelsea side you have not put any of theirs in there.. Torres, Shevchenko, Veron anyone..
You haven't counted for wages or the amount of players and teams over say the RA period that they have turned over.. Whereas with ours it's simply high money flops for the main part

Like I said I would agree we aren't a poor side in terns of cash revenue but let's face it we aren't on a par with the amounts over the years that Chelsea and City have gone through

If you count only successful transfers compared to the highest figures of transfers of another team its easy to make almost any team look like they go around spending money like morons.
Hell, with a bit of creativity in what constitutes a first XI (ie I don't believe this our real best first XI, but to an outside I might not seem totally off my nut)

Migs

Flanagan Toure Skrtel Enrique

Gerrard Lucas Coutinho

Sterling

Sturridge Lambert

£9m

Free, Free, £6m, £7m,

Free, £5m, £8m

Free

£12m, £4m

£42m - If I add in a few more to take the piss less (Sakho for Skrtel, Moreno for Enrique etc) it still doesn't look huge.

My point (many may have wondered if I had one ) is that its quite easy to manipulate numbers. Its pretty obvious that Chelsea have blown us out of the water in terms of spending and we haven't even brought wages into the question.