JoeSo it’s been a while since my last post, I’ve been enjoying a break but with the new season just a few mere weeks away it seems a good time to get going again. Pre-season proper kicks off later today against Nuremburg over in Germany before we depart for the US next week. There seems to have been a lot of transfer talk but not a lot of activity so here I’ll do my best to wrap up what I know.
Gabriel Jesus
After one of the longest transfer sagas in memory – what a signing this man could be. It’s been a while since I’ve been really genuinely excited by a signing like this one. He arrives with Premier League pedigree, a well suited playing style and probably a point to prove. His record at Man City is deceiving. Playing second fiddle for his entire time there and being deployed in different roles means that he doesn’t look “prolific”. However his record when starting is hugely impressive and I don’t think there’s any doubt that he’ll be starting up front for us. Let’s hope he can show his full potential.
Fabio Vieira
This transfer really came out of the blue but from what I understand he’s a player we’ve long admired. There’s not much you can gleam from the Portuguese league really and only time will tell how well he can cope with the demands of the Premier League. But he looks to have quick feet, good vision and a good left foot. That isn’t to say he isn’t capable with his right foot either and players able to work with both feet are indeed a rare commodity. I expect we’ll see plenty of him in the Europa League.
Marquinhos
I’m going to be honest here I know absolutely nothing about him. South American football expert Tim Vickery described him as “exciting” so that’s something at least. I suspect he’s very much one for the future but then and again we said that about Martinelli.
Matt Turner
The American arrives having spent his entire career in the USA so far. I don’t watch any MLS so wouldn’t like to comment on his ability. At 28, he’s still relatively young for a goalkeeper but will very much be cover for Ramsdale. This leads me to believe that we are willing to let Leno go this summer and rumblings suggest Fulham is a likely destination. I’d like to keep Leno as cover but the realist in me knows that’s unlikely and its definitely best for the player himself to get some real playing time.
That’s it for incomings so I’ll leave it there today. I’ll be back next week with hopefully more incomings and some news on departures.
COYG!
-Joe