Young French striker from Nantes . https://mobile.twitter.com/RenanTanandone/status/1379170394188484609 French Under 21 player.
Seem to recall the famous LouOrns said we were linked with him right at the back end of the January transfer window, along with Ademi of Dinamo Zagreb. Scored against PSG recently and is in the very talented French U21 squad, so he could be a very handy option if we don't go up from here, but I suspect he won't be ready for the Prem if we do go up
Agreed all round. Ademi on the other hand I’ve seen vaunted as the best player in Croatia and put in a MOTM performance in North Macedonia’s win over Germany last week.
I saw him play a couple of times for France U21s the other week and he seems a very good prospect, with good dribbling and a lot of pace. I don't think he seems too far off being able to make an impact in the Prem actually, but my biggest concern is that he doesn't appear to be a natural goalscorer or #9, his skill-set seems more suited to being yet another wide forward or support striker, similar to Joao Pedro. He lacks some of the sharpness and urgency required for a 'fox in the box' and does not seem especially adept at holding the ball up with his back to goal either.
To be fair to Gray, he does generally have the instincts and movement of a 'fox in the box', he just lacks the technique to finish the vast majority of the chances which they afford him.
Hmmm, if we go up, we'll have a mountain to climb, should we be signing players who are 'not too far off making an impact'? Is this a sign that we'd be looking at him as a potential JP replacement should we not go up?
Nearly 30 is Ademi, although did miss a year of football through a drugs ban. Don't imagine he'd fancy playing in the Championship, but seems like a solid Behrami-type signing should we go up, we do love Albanian-origin midfielders!
Definitely older, yes but I think he’d be better than Behrami. Here is fbref’s analysis of him based on his Europa League games: https://fbref.com/en/players/ee926a02/scout/365_euro/Arijan-Ademi-Scouting-Report Doesn’t get on the ball too much (not surprising as Zagreb probably aren’t having too much possession in European competition) but astronomical xG and xA numbers. He creates a lot of shots and gets in the box a lot too. He also seems to be one of the smartest, most successful pressers in Europe. Would probably require a bigger fee than other plays over 29 the Pozzos have signed (over £5m) but would likely be worth it.
Hmmm, the xG might be down to a small sample size, he's not prolific even in the Croatian league (either that or he's a terrible finisher lol), but the xA is interesting
Remember the club invests in players they can sell on at a profit, not just as potential first teamers for us.. He may never play for us but represent a good invest to generate more funds for the group, especially if he’s good.....and free.
Our foxes like a box but they prefer to play with trainers and move plant pots around. Therefore we need to sign a hybrid of Paula Radcliffe and Alan T1tchmarsh!
We should have been able to have a good look at the best players in the Championship first hand which is one benefit and probably the only benefit of relegation from the premier league.
The Zinckernagel and Ngakia deals must have deluded you into thinking that we're smart lol, bet we spend £20m on this geezer!
Alex Mowatt on a free if Barnsley don't go up. Excellent delivery from set pieces usually. We're short of natural left footers in the squad.
Would that reduce the chances of them signing Ike Ugbo? As far as I know, they're not quite the same type of player, but still
Nantes 11mins plus stoppage time away from being relegated. Got some decent players. Edit: correction. Relegation play off spot.