Jude Bellingham (Dortmund)

I don’t really care about other clubs, so they can do whatever they want although I do think football has been ruined with the money involved.

I agree we should look for value and worth but I think there’s a limit to what we’re willing to spend on transfers unless we have brought cash in from other sales first. You dont think that and that’s fine. On the point of what’s expensive I agree, it is subjective. From my point of view I’m referring to those players that are 60-80mill. Beyond that you’re going into mad figures that I don’t realistically expect us to compete with. But I think FSG have very little appetite to go for players in that market unless we have sold first. I might be wrong but that’s what I perceive the case to be, but it’s obviously all speculation unless John Henry comes out and gives us his point of view.

Breaking transfer record isn’t a big tick in the box either, the transfer market has gone mad so that would always happen, gone are the days of 25mill being our record transfer unfortunately.

The point I’m trying to make is players are £60mil to £80mil aren’t guarantees at all

We have nought players like Mo , Fabinho , Jota etc for that £40-£50mil bracket - plus players like Naby - are the players going for the extra £10-20mil that much better ?

I don’t think so - Rodri was £60mil ? Is he better than Fabinho ?

There will be a number of examples

Alright mr literal. F**k me - talk about being pedantic.

I’ll keep in mind in the future to absolutely spell everything out for you.

Obviously every signing is a risk, or do we really need to explain that basic premise every time this topic gets discussed?

nice back pedaling. So you went from "absolutely sure the player is going to work" to "every signing is a risk".

That basically affirms what i said; that the cost of the player does not mean much.

nice back pedaling. So you went from "absolutely sure the player is going to work" to "every signing is a risk".

That basically affirms what i said; that the cost of the player does not mean much.

Honestly you must be an absolute half wit if you thought that is what was meant and not be able to read the tone of a message.

But I suspect you’re being deliberately difficult rather than actually answer the points raised.

But then again, I mentioned Morientes earlier I doubt you even know who he was, spend too much time jizzing over balance sheets rather than learning about the history of the club or even footy in general.

The point I’m trying to make is players are £60mil to £80mil aren’t guarantees at all

We have nought players like Mo , Fabinho , Jota etc for that £40-£50mil bracket - plus players like Naby - are the players going for the extra £10-20mil that much better ?

I don’t think so - Rodri was £60mil ? Is he better than Fabinho ?

There will be a number of examples

Will pick up on this later mate, need to get back to work now 😂

Will pick up on this later mate, need to get back to work now 😂

Don’t work too hard 😂

People (on both sides) of this "discussion" are getting hung up on the words "spend big".

I'm all for spending "right" vs spending for spending's sake. But sometimes spending "big" may not even mean spending for one player. It may mean strengthening the team by adding multiple players who added up equal one Haaland or Mbappe type fee. Are we now in a situation where we can only add one Jota or Konate type player each window? Because as it sits now, we have 3 attacking players (three of the better ones in the world when they are on their game) all having contracts run down. You would assume FSG won't be stupid enough to let Salah walk which points to the possibility that Mane and Firmino may be leaving anywhere from this summer to the actual end of their contracts. That means we are going to need two first team, starting 11 type attackers in the next year or two. Yes Jota will slot in but then we need to have someone of his caliber as backup at a minimum even to keep Klopp's small squad number consistent. That's just for our attacking players. Never mind the midfield which is going to need some tweaking based on possible outgoings/injury issues, etc...

Keeper we should be good, defense we are probably good as long as Joe Gomez doesn't decide he wants to leave for guaranteed first team football somewhere else. Because if he leaves and Nat Phillips leaves I'd imagine we are going to need to replace those two with at least one reasonably decent player that's not named Rhys Williams.

So honestly (and sorry for hijacking this conversation about Bellingham) we could be looking at needing two first team level attackers, at least one or two first team level midfielders (Bellingham being one?) and possibly a rotational defender, possibly first team quality.

That's a lot of money that's going to be needed and that doesn't even address if Origi goes or any other outgoings that would need like for like replacements.

This all needs to happen before Jürgen decides to exit stage right or we could be finding ourselves in a very uncomfortable spot.

3 days left in Transfer window, is it?

No way we signing Jude B or anyone but could they agree Mo's contract and say that's where our money went this Transfer window? Not holding my breath.

If we land Carvalho and then get Gravenberch and Tchouameni I think that might trump getting Bellingham.

Those 3 give you everything you want from a midfield, plus Fab Hendo and Jones stiil in the mix.

Did anyone catch him against Rangers last month? Feisty character for an 18 year old he was bollocking his team mates throughout.

Not sure if that's a good or bad thing but he clearly sets himself and others high standards.

Not sure if that's a good or bad thing but he clearly sets himself and others high standards.

Of course it's a good thing, it's a sign of leadership and given his age and the fact he can likely only speak partial German, it's a good sign.

Seen something on my phone then about Henderson cosying up to Jude in England training. Putting the good word in obviously!!

He's a cracking prospect for sure isn't he. Would love to see him at the club next season. Milner, Henderson and THiago are all the wrong side of 30. Ox will be off, i don't think Jones will stick long-term, and they need to decide what to do with Naby regards a new contract. It makes sense to bring in some youth in midfield, particularly given the way we play. Whether they go for a big money signing like Bellingham or a player like Tielmans (who would be in that 40-50 million bracket) remains to be seen.

I do like this kid though and i daresay Klopp has direct links to many people in Germany who will have been raving about the lad. He'll cost 80-100 though. Will FSG allow that sort of spend? The last time it was straight off the back of selling Coutinho for 150 million so the books were balanced. 

He's a cracking prospect for sure isn't he. Would love to see him at the club next season. Milner, Henderson and THiago are all the wrong side of 30. Ox will be off, i don't think Jones will stick long-term, and they need to decide what to do with Naby regards a new contract. It makes sense to bring in some youth in midfield, particularly given the way we play. Whether they go for a big money signing like Bellingham or a player like Tielmans (who would be in that 40-50 million bracket) remains to be seen.

I do like this kid though and i daresay Klopp has direct links to many people in Germany who will have been raving about the lad. He'll cost 80-100 though. Will FSG allow that sort of spend? The last time it was straight off the back of selling Coutinho for 150 million so the books were balanced. 

Off the back of this season.
Getting to the final of everything.
You'd have to say the money is probably there for a one off signing like Bellingham.
There will definitely be players moving on so wages etc will probably work out that way.

Karius' contract runs out.
Milner's contract runs out.
Ox looks likely to leave.
Origi is off to Italy.

Off the back of this season.
Getting to the final of everything.
You'd have to say the money is probably there for a one off signing like Bellingham.
There will definitely be players moving on so wages etc will probably work out that way.

Karius' contract runs out.
Milner's contract runs out.
Ox looks likely to leave.
Origi is off to Italy.

Swore I saw a report the other day of a new contract for Milner. But I haven't seen anything since so maybe it was just rumors.

Swore I saw a report the other day of a new contract for Milner. But I haven't seen anything since so maybe it was just rumors.

It's hard to know what will happen with Milner. Will he fancy playing more with another team or move onto the coaching staff.
Certainly one of the voices that you'd keep around if you could find a way.

Swore I saw a report the other day of a new contract for Milner. But I haven't seen anything since so maybe it was just rumors.

Same as, from what I remember it was a year long contract

Of course it's a good thing, it's a sign of leadership and given his age and the fact he can likely only speak partial German, it's a good sign.

Yeah some of it was a bit Bruno/Ronaldo type petulance though.

If channeled the right way it could be a great thing. We bollock each other all the time but throwing your arms up and that sort of stuff can go either way.

I think we are the perfect club to harness the player and the man to reach full potential.

I think that out of all the players with huge price tags attached to their names and that have been discussed in the past few years, Bellingham looks like the most plausible transfer out of all of them (Mbappe, Haaland, etc.)

Young, super versatile, workhorse, talented, and mentality appears to be that of a winner and future captain. He is in that category of players that I see FSG making an exception for and gladly pay the 60M to 80M (number I invented, I have no idea what they will ask for) BVB might demand, especially if we are going to be letting go of a number of players in that area of the pitch + in my opinion, some players will slowly be relegated to less playing time because of age.

What I saw as a problem earlier (BVB probably not wanting to let both Bellingham and Haaland go in the same summer) seems to be a fitting piece to our puzzle. In my opinion, Thiago and Hendo still have a season of starting most games, Milner might extend but in any scenario he wont be there past next season. Ox will most probably leave this summer and be replaced by some sort of versatile, three lunged CM à la Gini (most probably Tchouameni or a very similar player). All in all, what I'm trying to say is that if Klopp likes Bellingham and wants him, striking a Naby-type of deal with Dortmund for Bellingham is very possible considering the circumstances of our midfield (it can wait another season).

Talking about the midfield, it will be very interesting, in that context, to see what is the plan for Carvalho. I have not watched him play other than in one game + highlight videos. He strikes me as a very Countinho-esque type of player. So what is the plan for him, is he coming here to play as a CM, winger, or even as a false nine (maybe some sort of long term Firmino replacement)?

He's a cracking prospect for sure isn't he. Would love to see him at the club next season. Milner, Henderson and THiago are all the wrong side of 30. Ox will be off, i don't think Jones will stick long-term, and they need to decide what to do with Naby regards a new contract. It makes sense to bring in some youth in midfield, particularly given the way we play. Whether they go for a big money signing like Bellingham or a player like Tielmans (who would be in that 40-50 million bracket) remains to be seen.

I do like this kid though and i daresay Klopp has direct links to many people in Germany who will have been raving about the lad. He'll cost 80-100 though. Will FSG allow that sort of spend? The last time it was straight off the back of selling Coutinho for 150 million so the books were balanced.

FSG sanctioned the transfers of Van Dijk and Allison because they were the best in the world in their respective positions. If the scouts and analysts make the case that Bellingham will be in that bracket in his prime as well then there's no reason to think the money wouldn't be there.

That said, it's probably more realistic that Dortmund hold onto him this year since Haaland is leaving. Perhaps a deal like the Keita one a year early would work though. Waiting a year would also reduce his price tag quite a bit too, making him more affordable. Tchouameni this year and then Bellingham next looks like the sort of plan Klopp would aim for.

He's a cracking prospect for sure isn't he. Would love to see him at the club next season. Milner, Henderson and THiago are all the wrong side of 30. Ox will be off, i don't think Jones will stick long-term, and they need to decide what to do with Naby regards a new contract. It makes sense to bring in some youth in midfield, particularly given the way we play. Whether they go for a big money signing like Bellingham or a player like Tielmans (who would be in that 40-50 million bracket) remains to be seen.

I do like this kid though and i daresay Klopp has direct links to many people in Germany who will have been raving about the lad. He'll cost 80-100 though. Will FSG allow that sort of spend? The last time it was straight off the back of selling Coutinho for 150 million so the books were balanced. 

Dortmund will not sell both Bellingham and Haaland.

Dortmund will not sell both Bellingham and Haaland.

You are probably right, but maybe a Keita style deal with a 12 month deferral might be the way forward. 

I don’t really care about other clubs, so they can do whatever they want although I do think football has been ruined with the money involved.

I agree we should look for value and worth but I think there’s a limit to what we’re willing to spend on transfers unless we have brought cash in from other sales first. You dont think that and that’s fine. On the point of what’s expensive I agree, it is subjective. From my point of view I’m referring to those players that are 60-80mill. Beyond that you’re going into mad figures that I don’t realistically expect us to compete with. But I think FSG have very little appetite to go for players in that market unless we have sold first. I might be wrong but that’s what I perceive the case to be, but it’s obviously all speculation unless John Henry comes out and gives us his point of view.

Breaking transfer record isn’t a big tick in the box either, the transfer market has gone mad so that would always happen, gone are the days of 25mill being our record transfer unfortunately.

I do agree with you to an extent but I also think you’re missing a couple of important points:

Age is important - younger players can be resold if they do not work out. Players who have established themselves tend to be older and therefore there’s increased risk because if we sign them and they aren’t successful then it is harder to sell them than it would be if they were under the age of 25

The second point is availability - the established players are often on longer contracts and are harder to sign … when you get a player like Bellingham who is younger and is available then you’ll get most of Europe showing some interest and then it often sadly becomes about wages. Yes we could probably afford to offer £250k per week but that would impact on the wage structure already and would almost certainly mean that the high profile players we already have will get their agents to ask for more money … before you know it we either have an unhappy squad or a wage bill that is astronomical. Higher wages are also an issue if we want to sell those players as players will often choose to stay at a club on high wages rather than take a pay cut and move to a club for more game time.

In a nutshell, you aren’t wrong but it isn’t as simple as just spending a bit more now and again … behind the scenes the club will be very active in their scouting and will be actively looking at younger players who they can bring in prior to them becoming first team players (eg Sterling, Elliott) … the trouble is so does everyone else which is why you hear some terrible stories about the tactics used by clubs to get these youngsters to sign for them.

I do trust the club on transfers - we buy well and we also sell well (sell on clauses on most of the younger players who didn’t make it, Coutinho etc)

The summer is always hard because pundits and journalists always compare signings and use the amount spent to measure the quality of those signings but we have shown over the past few years that formula is rubbish (United have also shown it for the opposite reasons!)

It’s not easy to trust the club when you’re not privy to everything that is going on but I do think we need to have confidence that if the right players become available then we will be in for them!

a few stories about Dortmund interest in Naby is their a deal to be done and is Bellingham ready to be the focal point of our midfield at his age?