I know it costs money - but why is every single defender we are linked with able to be described as the ‘cheap’ option? While we can agree that £20m for Danny Rose is over-the-top...look at his pedigree. I can’t fathom the mind of the recruitment team that looks at him and this Pedersen guy in the same process?! It’s no wonder why fans think they don’t know what they’re doing. ‘Hey Giraldi, what’s up?’ ‘Gino, I know you’ve been looking at Danny Rose who played in the CL Final 6 months ago and was a regular for a team that finished in the Top 4 season after season, as well as playing in a WC semi-final....but! What about the Birmingham City LB?’
Good player in the Championship, but as always, it's a bit of a gamble whether he can step up. I wouldn't mind this signing, but I suspect Birmingham would want a lot more money than we would be prepared to pay in order to get him.
I've seen this kind of comment a lot here recently. The club need to be pragmatic in this window. The summer window was the window to seriously improve the squad. We failed to do that and are paying the price. If you are second bottom come the end of January, you would be stupid to start spending big on players in a desperate attempt to stay up. Yes, sometimes it will work, but many times it won't and you'll be limbered with paying a big transfer fee, big wages and having a player who won't want to play in the Championship. Two seasons ago Stoke bought Badou Ndiaye in the January window for £14m. He failed to keep them up and has played 14 Championship games in two seasons since. He is still on their books at the minute but out on loan. Stoke are still struggling in the Championship. The same season, Swansea spent big on Andre Ayew (£18m). In 12 games, he failed to score and they went down too. He was loaned out last season and Swansea ended up only finishing 10th. WBA on the other hand didn't spend too big. They only made loan signings and made Hegazi's move permanent. Hegazi went on to play 38 games last season in the Championship for them. They finished 4th last season but lost out to Villa in the playoffs. They are currently 2nd this season. The point is, clubs have to be sensible when in similar positions to Watford and our current transfer strategy reflects that. What is the point in signing players like Rose/Rodriguez/Todibo/Giroud etc. if we go down? Firstly, except Rose who hasn't played there in a long time, none of these players have Championship experience. Secondly, none of them will want to play in the Championship next year so we will be stuck paying off their transfer fees and part of their wages while they contribute nothing to us (like Ayew and Ndiaye). We need to find a balance between signing players who will help keep us up, but who can also get us back up. On the other hand, players like Gibson, Pedersen and Joe Bryan all have Championship experience and will likely hang around if we do go down. Granted, signing Pedersen isn't as exciting as signing Danny Rose, but it could work out better in the long run. Sadly, due to the failings in the January window, this window needs to be treated with caution in terms of signings - as opposed to throwing money at clubs/players to try and stay up. We have to prepare for the scenario of relegation.
Which is more or less, exactly what I have said on another thread about 20 mins ago. However, other clubs around us will likely be looking at quality reinforcements. We shouldn’t be left behind. Yes players like Gibson and Bryan have the qualities you state - but you know what other qualities they have? Being defensive regulars in a team that has been relegated in the past 2 years from the PL. Being ‘pragmatic’ also has its own pitfalls - the biggest being relegation from the money goldmine that is the PL. Cutting corners trying to stay up could be disastrous. My point was more a criticism in the gulf between the players we seem to be linked with - it appears as though just being a LB is enough! Yes we need to be pragmatic, I’ve said that all month. And realistic too. But we should be aiming for players more of the pedigree that Rose has, than the likes of Pedersen. Only my opinion of course.
This is why the loan market is so favourable in Jan. Instead of buying players of the lesser caliber we should just stump up a good loan fee with a to buy price if we secure premier league football. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
And you believe Gibson and Joe Bryan can be compared with Maguire and Robertson? I have no issue with the Gibson link. It’s someone of a good standard who has lost his way a bit. But Joe Bryan and Pedersen alarm me a bit.
I was positive about the possibility of signing Rose in the summer, but the more I've seen of him play this season the more I'm completely against it, he's been crap for them lately, really. He's past his best. Plus he's a moaning, diving twonk. The general negativity from some in here just because this guy plays for Birmingham is odd. He's their 2nd highest rated player on whoscored (just behind Jutkiewicz who is a solid player, and the two of them being a fair way ahead of the others). You say you're not happy about the links with him and Bryan, but they're the 2 highest rated first-choice LBs in the Champ this season on whoscored. Pedersen has 3 goals and 2 assists from 25 games, which is good as LB for a team in their position. Poor teams can still happen to have a few good players in them. He's good in the air and can also cover CB as well, both of which would be useful for us. Check out his headed goal below at 1:40, certainly some quality in that:
I totally agree. Rose is massively overrated IMO. I always thought he was the weak link for Spurs and England when I've seen him play, plus he seems to have an attitude, which is a no, no for me. I'd have Pedersen over him any day. He's a lot younger and would be a lot cheaper.
In addition to my comment above, here's some quotes on Pedersen from Birmingham fans on that twitter link: "Pleased to see he is getting Premier League recognition though, hell of a player and way too good for the championship." "Best LB in the championship" "We must keep this man at all costs"
Best left back in the Championship. Consistent. Good engine. Strong in the air. 3 goals. 2 assists. What more do you want?
Do Birmingham fans know what it takes to be a regular in the PL? Not saying they are wrong but remember that many fans have overly positive slants on their own players. We even have some ourselves who remain convinced Mariappa is good enough. But what I should add, and probably worded very badly admittedly, is that I wasn’t being critical of Pedersen as a player - I don’t know enough about him. More that the process seems to be that if you play LB, you’re on the list of targets. From Rose and Rodriguez to Bryan and Pedersen. The criticism is of the seemingly muddled recruitment thought process, rather than the names themselves.
That right there is a bit of the Pozzo model. Once solid players losing their way a bit, who possible could be acquired cheap. Or players with potential and a sell on value. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
Ahh the Pozzo model. The model that is no different from 95% of other clubs in the world at this level.
It’s fine. Most of us on here haven’t either but whoscored give him 7/10 every week so who are we to argue?
Bryan and Pedersen are comfortably the two highest rated LBs in the Championship this season on whoscored - I don't think it seems "muddled" or random for a club of our stature in our current situation to be targeting the best player(s) in their position in the Championship, it rather seems logical. Of course the top players from the Champ don't always thrive when they get their move to the PL, but enough of them do for it to be worth a punt. And probably there isn't a huge difference in the percentage of journeymen mid/late-career pros from abroad like Rodriguez that flop in the PL relative to Champ signings.
I didn't say that! Just because a player is relegated with their club doesn't automatically mean they're not good enough to stay in the Premiership. I was giving an example not a comparison.
This could be a good way of tinning Giraldi. We can just get Rousy to check whoscored and give the lowdown to Pozzo Would probably work better joking aside.
With a combination of whoscored, social media posts from fans, and youtube videos, who needs actual scouts! Here are more posts from Brum fans on him taken from their main forum. The vast majority are very complimentary. Though even those that are tend to accept they should probably sell if a bid of £5m-10m came in: "Pearson prowling, surely we say no, our most consistent player this year " "Not suprised someone is interested in him, he's been comfortably our best player this season imo." "I’ve been critical of him and he is still capable of poor judgement and makes mistakes at crucial moments but he has improved a lot this season, especially going forward, whereas many of the team have gone backwards." "Couldn't give a toss about how much their offering, for me hes been our player of the season by some distance and needs to be kept at the club." Only one of the posting fans is critical of him: "he is good but he;s nothing special not a stand out who you would watch and ear mark for a higher level...as good as any of the lb's in the top half of the champ. I just don't see him as being anywhere good enough to play in the PL" Full thread here: https://www.smallheathalliance.com/read.php?1,2801152,page=1
Maybe Pearson is actually getting to give his opinion on incoming and outgoing transfers. The Blues fans rate him, I can't honestly see why he wouldn't want to come. If Masina gets injured or suspended that leaves us with the jolly little Greek fella and his form has dropped off more than Rose's and so many on here still want the poison little dwarf.
That was my thought too. He (and Shakespeare) won’t have sat around doing nothing while unemployed. Bet they watched a fair bit of Championship football between them.
