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Jordan Pickford

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hallamblue said:
I think you're being short-sighted here Dave. For a start Forster isn't much good, he regularly makes errors, I'd put him on a level with Robert Green from a few years ago. Heaton I like, but he's 30 years old, and these days even most goalies are going downhill in their early thirties. Butland I rate highly, but Stoke won't sell him. Pickford will be an improvement on what we have now even if he doesn't get better, and given he is only in his early twenties there is a good chance he will improve. Also, £30 million will be if he wins the league with us and the World Cup with England, the actual fee will be more like £20 million.
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Even if you dont like the other English GKs there's a world full of them out there. They will be better and cheaper than Pickford.

He looks bog standard to me. Made some terrific saves? Yes, well he'd have to once or twice with the number of shots that Sunderland team conceded.

This is a terrible use of cash if true.
 
rochdaleblue said:
You'd think a similar fee for butland would get him. I myself rate butland highly, but just maybe his injury issues of the last 18 months have put off potential clubs. Either way Pickford is a serious upgrade on stek and Robles.
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Nah, Stoke would take the mick with that considering Sunderland have priced Pickford at £30m, they'd want about £50m.
 
davek said:
Too much of an if.

He's played 20 odd games in the PL.

It'd be a ridiculous fee. Personally I dont rate him that highly anyway. He looks bang average and I dont see a massive improvement on Robles there.
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The thing is, i agree with you on that. 30 million is massively over priced for a player who hasn't proven anything so far, which is where i think the fee has been over inflated in the media to make the lad sound better than what he is.

The deal if/when it happens strikes me more of a getting in early deal rather than buying a top level goalkeeper if that makes sense. Like if we went in for Forster or Butland now, the price would be higher (assuming we aren't spending 30 on pickford). So in regards to that, the scouts have probably said the lad has big potential, and we are signing him now rather than 3-4 years down the line when his price tag goes up simply because he is english, not that it isn't already.

That is the way i see it anyway.
 

We can keep chancing, picking up a handful of half-decent keepers at the Stek/Robles-level, at an age where they are likely to improve little, for the next decade. The problem being then we have nothing but games lost by the odd goal and lot of wages blown - whilst having no stable selection in place to build a defence around.

Or we can combine the money we would have spent on Robles mark II, mark III and mark IV and get a highly rated youngster - with already bags of PL experience, bags of potential, english to boot and start to develop him in the way we want.

The goalkeeper has always been 1 of three key positions for me (CD and CM are the others). If you are looking to build a sound defence, it starts with the keeper and then you can buy defenders that cancel out his weaknesses.

If he is crap at claiming crosses, then you need 7 foot-tall giants that can ensure he doesn't need to as much.
If he is slow off his line you need pacey defenders that will get in front of the attacker
If he is better with long shots than reaction saves - that affects how your defensive line will look and thus the players you need to achieve it

Pickford just about worth 30m in my mind. Like I say thats that price of 2 shittier keepers - probably without time on their side. If he doesn't cut the mustard in the long term - an english premier league goaley is always gonna recoup a lot of the outlay!
 
Thomasc said:
it's painful isn't it?

Whatever they club do, even when they try to secure a long term goalkeeper who is one of the most highly touted young keepers around, some will still find some fault.
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I think you'll find mate that I've been positive about a lot of Koeman's decisions both tactically and also when it comes to player recruitment (See the Scheiderlin thread for proof of this)

What I am is balanced and prepared to criticise when I feel it is valid. I've always been that way, even during the days of the height of the Martinez Cult

You're slowly morphing into Dave here and you can't even see it. You're being as vitriolic for Koeman as he was for Martinez, with no one being allowed to question any of his decisions lest they face your unending wrath

We all lived through the horror of the Martinez Cult, let's knock this hard-line Koemanista stuff on the head whilst we still can eh?

It's okay to say sometimes that you think Koeman isn't infallible. It's healthy in fact

Much love
 


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