Pau Torres

[SpartanSpur]

[/QUOTE]

I still think he is the second CB option, brought in to cover CCB and LCB. I would see him coming in as well as Bastoni, not instead. Torres is quick and can cover the spaces left by Romero and (hopefully) Bastoni well. He organises the defence at Villareal, again another required trait of the CCB in our system. He is fairly passive as a defender, which complements the more aggressive LCB and RCBs in our system and finally he can pick a nice pass to our CMs or WBs. I think he would challenge Dier but probably be backup. At least initially. Good age profile as well being 3 years younger then Dier. Some development areas like 1v1s and could be more physical and clean in the air.

I simply see this as a way to get a decent fee for Lo Celso and a decent CB in return. I would hope no more then Lo Celso+£20m. If we can get £20m or so for Rodon and Tanganga then we have upgraded our CCB and LCB depth with no outlay (given Lo Celso, Rodon and Tanganga aren’t used today).

I might be wrong of course and he is actually the backup to Bastoni which I agree would be dissapointing.

If we were simply trying to extract more value from GLC I'm sure we'd be considering Danjuma as another option.

 

[lukadownthelane]

I still think he is the second CB option, brought in to cover CCB and LCB. I would see him coming in as well as Bastoni, not instead. Torres is quick and can cover the spaces left by Romero and (hopefully) Bastoni well. He organises the defence at Villareal, again another required trait of the CCB in our system. He is fairly passive as a defender, which complements the more aggressive LCB and RCBs in our system and finally he can pick a nice pass to our CMs or WBs. I think he would challenge Dier but probably be backup. At least initially. Good age profile as well being 3 years younger then Dier. Some development areas like 1v1s and could be more physical and clean in the air.

I simply see this as a way to get a decent fee for Lo Celso and a decent CB in return. I would hope no more then Lo Celso+£20m. If we can get £20m or so for Rodon and Tanganga then we have upgraded our CCB and LCB depth with no outlay (given Lo Celso, Rodon and Tanganga aren’t used today).

I might be wrong of course and he is actually the backup to Bastoni which I agree would be dissapointing.

I think our CCB needs to be better in the air than Torres.

 

[ukdy]

Is he Tier 1?

The best a man can get

 

[wiggo24]

Think people are slightly overrating Bastoni and underrating Torres. He's been defensively excellent in several massive European games over the past few seasons, is legitimately elite on the ball, and fairly secure in 1v1 situations.

Poor in the air despite being tall and a bit passive but tbh Bastoni could be criticised for both of those things too. In reality the biggest plus for Bastoni is the familiarity with the back 3/Conte/Perisic. If it weren't for that I'd be very happy with Torres for potentially much less money.

 

[Mark_147]

One of the replacements or Dier could shift over to the right and we play Torres/Bastoni centrally with Davies back into the team?

I'm pretty sure Conte doesn't see Dier as a RCB as he lacks the mobility Conte wants in that position. As for Bastoni and Torres they are LCBs.

 

[SambaSpurs]

I still think he is the second CB option, brought in to cover CCB and LCB. I would see him coming in as well as Bastoni, not instead. Torres is quick and can cover the spaces left by Romero and (hopefully) Bastoni well. He organises the defence at Villareal, again another required trait of the CCB in our system. He is fairly passive as a defender, which complements the more aggressive LCB and RCBs in our system and finally he can pick a nice pass to our CMs or WBs. I think he would challenge Dier but probably be backup. At least initially. Good age profile as well being 3 years younger then Dier. Some development areas like 1v1s and could be more physical and clean in the air.

I simply see this as a way to get a decent fee for Lo Celso and a decent CB in return. I would hope no more then Lo Celso+£20m. If we can get £10m or so for Rodon then we have upgraded our CCB and LCB depth with little outlay (given Lo Celso and Rodon aren’t used today).

I might be wrong of course and he is actually the backup to Bastoni which I agree would be dissapointing.

I know it’s good to have squad depth, I would love us to have ridiculous depth all over and snap up both Torres and Bastoni. But this plan would effectively squeeze Davies out completely at the expense of £20m+Lo Celso.

For Davies to get a kick next year we would need 2 of Bastoni, Torres and Dier injured. I just don’t think the outlay would be worth it. Unless Conte doesn’t believe Dier should start for us (despite saying he has potential to be the best central CB in a 3 in the world) or Davies being good enough to be a first sub at LCB (despite being a key part of his team that conceded 5 In the last 11 games of the season).

I might be wrong but I don’t see both coming, think it’s one of Bastoni and Torres, with the former priority.

 

[Nanky_1988]

This smells to me like a leak to the media by don Fabio to put pressure on Inter!

 

[the yid]

Think people are slightly overrating Bastoni and underrating Torres. He's been defensively excellent in several massive European games over the past few seasons, is legitimately elite on the ball, and fairly secure in 1v1 situations.

Poor in the air despite being tall and a bit passive but tbh Bastoni could be criticised for both of those things too. In reality the biggest plus for Bastoni is the familiarity with the back 3/Conte/Perisic. If it weren't for that I'd be very happy with Torres for potentially much less money.

We were all buzzing last summer at the thought of him to be honest but he turned us down and we got Romero

 

[piedpiper]

Going by the reports, it would be a player plus cash for Torres. Max fee would likely be £25-30mil. Bastoni likely to be £50million as well. Sell Sanchez and Rodon, you've generated about a third of that overall fee.

I see this so often....... last season we had Dier & Romero miss a chunk of the season I'd hazard a guess that it was about 20games.... Sanchez particularly.... filled in. now you have the 5 sub rule coming next season and we'd also need quality off the bench..... why in heavens name would we sell these two.... who do we then play when there are injuries etc.

Factor in the number of games we will be playing....... Time to think big..... look at Liverpool and their defensive options... it's how they managed to compete in 4 competitions right to the very end.

 

[Basil Brush]

I see this so often....... last season we had Dier & Romero miss a chunk of the season I'd hazard a guess that it was about 20games.... Sanchez particularly.... filled in. now you have the 5 sub rule coming next season and we'd also need quality off the bench..... why in heavens name would we sell these two.... who do we then play when there are injuries etc.

Factor in the number of games we will be playing....... Time to think big..... look at Liverpool and their defensive options... it's how they managed to compete in 4 competitions right to the very end.

If we sell anyone, it will be tanganga and rodon, and the only way we sell these players is to fund transfers for extra centre backs.

So say we get Bastoni and Torres in and rodon and tanganga out, that could work.

Mean we have Bastoni/Davies, Dier/Torres and Romero/Sanchez.

Best defence anywhere in the world?

 

[Johno1470]

I see this so often....... last season we had Dier & Romero miss a chunk of the season I'd hazard a guess that it was about 20games.... Sanchez particularly.... filled in. now you have the 5 sub rule coming next season and we'd also need quality off the bench..... why in heavens name would we sell these two.... who do we then play when there are injuries etc.

Factor in the number of games we will be playing....... Time to think big..... look at Liverpool and their defensive options... it's how they managed to compete in 4 competitions right to the very end.

Firstly, I am not suggesting we sell both Rodon and Sanchez without replacing them. That would be idiotic.

For the record, Dier started 35 PL games. Romero did miss a fair chunk. Rodon made 3 sub appearances in the PL. Sanchez was pretty decent this season and if we can get any decent fee for him, now would be the time to sell.

Obviously we're not gonna sign Torres and Bastoni but if we did sign two CB's, then selling two isn't gonna have much of an impact is it?

Secondly, it's been well reported these last few weeks that Rodon is attracting interest. Ali Gold stated Sanchez could leave too. They can both be upgraded upon and should be if we want 'to think big'.

Lastly, Liverpool have been extremely lucky with injuries to their CB's this season. For a man that was out the majority of last season and only returned, VVD played 51 games for them, Matip (43) and Konate was eased in towards the second half of the season.

 

[Snarfalicious]

Before we sell Sanchez we should be looking at moving on CCV, Rodon and even Tanganga. Sanchez will command the biggest fee, but those 3 combined equate to a sizable chunk of change without impacting the options Conte trusts to use. I do wish we would find someone to push Dier and backup Romero, and I don’t think you’d ever trust Sanchez in the Dier role. But, if push comes to shove I think you could put off finding a direct backup to Dier (Romero would be the best option) and re-evaluate come January.

 

[Basil Brush]

Before we sell Sanchez we should be looking at moving on CCV, Rodon and even Tanganga. Sanchez will command the biggest fee, but those 3 combined equate to a sizable chunk of change without impacting the options Conte trusts to use. I do wish we would find someone to push Dier and backup Romero, and I don’t think you’d ever trust Sanchez in the Dier role. But, if push comes to shove I think you could put off finding a direct backup to Dier (Romero would be the best option) and re-evaluate come January.

I know Torres is generally a lcb but he could be our Dier competition.

Sanchez to back up Romero.

 

[ButchCassidy]

I know Torres is generally a lcb but he could be our Dier competition.

Sanchez to back up Romero.

I just get the feeling that Dier is one of Conte’s favorite players in the squad and I can’t see us spending a huge sum on rotation/backup for him when we have such a lack of quality depth in other positions. I also am far from convinced that Man Utd’s top choice (by some accounts) is likely to turn them down to come here and play - what, maybe 12-15 PL games?

I’m also pretty surprised that there are people who think he could play LCB or CCB as in Conte’s system they seem to have almost polar opposite roles. I haven’t seen much of Torres to know what his specific strengths are but it’s hard for me to imagine he would be a good fit in both.

 

[Basil Brush]

I just get the feeling that Dier is one of Conte’s favorite players in the squad and I can’t see us spending a huge sum on rotation/backup for him when we have such a lack of quality depth in other positions. I also am far from convinced that Man Utd’s top choice (by some accounts) is likely to turn them down to come here and play - what, maybe 12-15 PL games?

I’m also pretty surprised that there are people who think he could play LCB or CCB as in Conte’s system they seem to have almost polar opposite roles. I haven’t seen much of Torres to know what his specific strengths are but it’s hard for me to imagine he would be a good fit in both.

All very fair points well reasoned.

We will obviously have to just see what happens

 

[piedpiper]

Firstly, I am not suggesting we sell both Rodon and Sanchez without replacing them. That would be idiotic.

For the record, Dier started 35 PL games. Romero did miss a fair chunk. Rodon made 3 sub appearances in the PL. Sanchez was pretty decent this season and if we can get any decent fee for him, now would be the time to sell.

Obviously we're not gonna sign Torres and Bastoni but if we did sign two CB's, then selling two isn't gonna have much of an impact is it?

Secondly, it's been well reported these last few weeks that Rodon is attracting interest. Ali Gold stated Sanchez could leave too. They can both be upgraded upon and should be if we want 'to think big'.

Lastly, Liverpool have been extremely lucky with injuries to their CB's this season. For a man that was out the majority of last season and only returned, VVD played 51 games for them, Matip (43) and Konate was eased in towards the second half of the season.

How does selling Sanchez and Rodon and possibly replacing them with Torres and Bastoni, who are 1st choice for their respective teams in any event help us....Both of these players would want to be starters... even if we sold both of Sanchez and Rodon... would we get upgrades on both? ...to come sit on our bench? Even if it was just 1 of them.... we've heard the noises of Rodon being unhappy with limited game time as is....

My point is if we Get Bastoni.... I wouldn't sell either of Sanchez or Rodon....unless they wanted out...but would we get the same level or better who'd happily sit on the bench....

Take your mind back to our cup games when we mixed thinks up a little.... remember those disjointed performances?

 

[Basil Brush]

How does selling Sanchez and Rodon and possibly replacing them with Torres and Bastoni, who are 1st choice for their respective teams in any event help us....Both of these players would want to be starters... even if we sold both of Sanchez and Rodon... would we get upgrades on both? ...to come sit on our bench? Even if it was just 1 of them.... we've heard the noises of Rodon being unhappy with limited game time as is....

My point is if we Get Bastoni.... I wouldn't sell either of Sanchez or Rodon....unless they wanted out...but would we get the same level or better who'd happily sit on the bench....

Take your mind back to our cup games when we mixed thinks up a little.... remember those disjointed performances?

Re Rodon, I think he has the potential to be a very good defender. Not sure Conte rates him highly though.

I wouldn't sell him myself, but love to loan to another premier league club which may be best thing for him, and us.

Sanchez, I don't see him improving much more myself. However he was very good late in the season covering Romero. Keep unless a very good offer.

Tanganga is just not really good enough for us anymore, but doubt he has much interest as well, so maybe we keep him for worst case scenario.

CCV as good as gone.

Just my onions.

 

[Johno1470]

How does selling Sanchez and Rodon and possibly replacing them with Torres and Bastoni, who are 1st choice for their respective teams in any event help us....Both of these players would want to be starters... even if we sold both of Sanchez and Rodon... would we get upgrades on both? ...to come sit on our bench? Even if it was just 1 of them.... we've heard the noises of Rodon being unhappy with limited game time as is....

My point is if we Get Bastoni.... I wouldn't sell either of Sanchez or Rodon....unless they wanted out...but would we get the same level or better who'd happily sit on the bench....

Take your mind back to our cup games when we mixed thinks up a little.... remember those disjointed performances?

Rodon doesn't get game time as Conte doesn't rate him, so any replacement would do the job considering how much game time he was given. Like you said previously, if we want to aim big then we need to upgrade our reserve options. Were Liverpool happy with Lovren and Klavan? No. City have Stones and Ake as rotation options.

I get your point, Bastoni is there to upgrade on Davies, leading to Davies being the rotation option.

My point is, if we can sell Sanchez for a decent fee, we can bring in someone more similar in style to Romero. Given his record for picking up yellows and recent injuries, there will be sufficient game time.

 

[C0YS]

Both Bastoni and Torres are great choices and options, and I've been lucky to watch a fair bit of both of them. Torres is a great CB and I would have no complaints, top defender, definitely more suited to playing on the left of a back three in the PL then the centre though. Any fears about heading weaknesses are also lessened by the fact that heading isn't such an essential trait at LCB as it is in a back 4.

Bastoni, however, is both younger and for me a better fit for us. I also think Bastoni has a much higher ceiling and could genuinely be top class.

 

[Johno1470]

Both Bastoni and Torres are great choices and options, and I've been lucky to watch a fair bit of both of them. Torres is a great CB and I would have no complaints, top defender, definitely more suited to playing on the left of a back three in the PL then the centre though. Any fears about heading weaknesses are also lessened by the fact that heading isn't such an essential trait at LCB as it is in a back 4.

Bastoni, however, is both younger and for me a better fit for us. I also think Bastoni has a much higher ceiling and could genuinely be top class.

I'm very much of the same opinion. Torres pre-Conte was always a top target and someone I would have been really happy with. However, since Conte arrived and given the obvious history between him and Bastoni makes this deal the priority for many. It will be an interesting few weeks now before pre-season and hopefully we can provide Antonio with the players he needs to feel backed and hopeful for next season!