[Albion] Marc Cucurella *Signed For Chelsea 05/08/2022*

[wellquickwoody]

I’m amazed so many people think this is done and dusted. He’ll be gone by the end of the window with Man City stumping up close to 50m.

Replying to this post as I have not read the rest of the thread.

For this transfer to happen, one side will need to back down. I’m confident it will not be TB.

If City do blink and cough up then every confident chairman in pro football will know how to play them. And Albion fans can rip the piss endlessly.

 

[atomised]

Indeed. I'd always understood that coaching players - making good players better - is exactly what Pep has been admired for.

I hate Manchester City. Because of their blood and oil stained owners, because of the way they have corrupted football with money and because of their enthusastic involement in the superleague shambles. I think they have played this Cucarella transfer very badly and I think the reporting has often been laughable (with the endless references to how they may 'walk away' as though Brighton have anything to lose either way).

But none of that makes Pep a bad coach!

if this is the case with Pep though, and I do think hes a good coach on the whole, surely he could have coached Ake into a left back worthy of his price tag just like Bielsa turned White into a world class defender

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

No, but Elvis has left the building

ManU?

 

[nickbrighton]

In the vast majority of the tweets, reports, breaking news alerts up to now there seems to be an underlying narrative that I find hard to understand- its the City will walk away from the deal and making it sound like Brighton are the ones wanting this deal-and pushing for it and its city standing firm, when the reality is the exact opposite

The collective media and internet dont seem to be able to grasp that this is an attempted robbery by City. Player was perfectly happy at Brighton, Brighton certainly happy with him. City then decided they wanted him and the whole tapping up, unsettling the player, twitter tsunami from Romero, low bid scernario is put into play, whilst City PR people make out they are the ones being mugged!

Its only in very recent days that I have seen a few press pieces starting to say that Brighton are right to hold out, that Brighton took the initial "risk" that he would succeed and that City simply dont do that anymore, they just let someone else do all the work, and then just nick the mostly finished article, and that if thats their way then they should pay for it

I assume and hope that Potter is planning for both the keep him and lose him scenarios, and that Tony is factoring in that the closer it gets to the season the bigger impact losing him will have in the transfer fee he has in mind

 

[SeagullinExile]

The Times focussed most of its Charity Shield report on Cucurella and City's desparate need for a left back. If they hadn't been slaughtered down their left side on Saturday, I'd be more confident of keeping Cucu. But I think everyone can see how badly they need to fill that role. They will be back. They will offer enough (though the amount may be disguised as "add ons" to help them save face). And we'll lose a very good player just as the season starts.

My hope (and expectation) is that BHA will have an alternative LB target waiting in the wings. I'd be amazed if we didn't.

After Saturday, my expectation is that Cucu’s price has risen even more tbh.

 

[kevo]

In the vast majority of the tweets, reports, breaking news alerts up to now there seems to be an underlying narrative that I find hard to understand- its the City will walk away from the deal and making it sound like Brighton are the ones wanting this deal-and pushing for it and its city standing firm, when the reality is the exact opposite

The collective media and internet dont seem to be able to grasp that this is an attempted robbery by City. Player was perfectly happy at Brighton, Brighton certainly happy with him. City then decided they wanted him and the whole tapping up, unsettling the player, twitter tsunami from Romero, low bid scernario is put into play, whilst City PR people make out they are the ones being mugged!

Its only in very recent days that I have seen a few press pieces starting to say that Brighton are right to hold out, that Brighton took the initial "risk" that he would succeed and that City simply dont do that anymore, they just let someone else do all the work, and then just nick the mostly finished article, and that if thats their way then they should pay for it

I assume and hope that Potter is planning for both the keep him and lose him scenarios, and that Tony is factoring in that the closer it gets to the season the bigger impact losing him will have in the transfer fee he has in mind

Yeah just noticed that. All the twitter headlines today saying 'City have walked away' - rather than us ending negotiations.

 

[Springal]

Yeah just noticed that. All the twitter headlines today saying 'City have walked away' - rather than us ending negotiations.

They’ve walked away as the asking price is to much. If anything we are still there because we’ve presumably given some idea on what it’ll take

 

[Hugo Rune]

The fact is, keeping Cucu this window will be the best bit of business we do.

 

[Icy Gull]

They’ve walked away as the asking price is to much. If anything we are still there because we’ve presumably given some idea on what it’ll take

Lost me there. How does saying we are ending negotiations turn into City are walking away?

City have failed in their lowballing and been told to go away and presumably, only come back if they pay the full asking price. If you want to interpret that as them walking away it's just semantics

 

[junior]

I'm still certain he'll go. Later this week for around £50 million. The final figure will probably be undisclosed..

I wonder if we'll get a replacement or go with what we've got.

 

[Uh_huh_him]

Lost me there. How does saying we are ending negotiations turn into City are walking away?

City have failed in their lowballing and been told to go away and presumably, only come back if they pay the full asking price. If you want to interpret that as them walking away it's just semantics

City's response is a PR exercise only.
It's a little bit childish, wanting to have the last word after we have said only come back to us with an offer of £50m+

No one on our side (Cucu excepted) is the least bit perturbed at them looking at other options.
If there was a better LB valued at £35m, we'd know about him.

They need a Champions League level LB, why are they offering Europa league level prices?

 

[SeagullinExile]

Lost me there. How does saying we are ending negotiations turn into City are walking away?

City have failed in their lowballing and been told to go away and presumably, only come back if they pay the full asking price. If you want to interpret that as them walking away it's just semantics

I doubt we’ve even given City an asking price. Just that a bid needs to be ‘eye watering’.

 

[dazzer6666]

Yeah just noticed that. All the twitter headlines today saying 'City have walked away' - rather than us ending negotiations.

I did the same at the local Porsche showroom - offered them half the asking price and when they laughed at me and said no I ‘walked away’ from the deal.

 

[Mancgull]

I'm still certain he'll go. Later this week for around £50 million. The final figure will probably be undisclosed..

I wonder if we'll get a replacement or go with what we've got.

While I think that this is a possibility, it will show that they have capitulated and I don’t think they’ll want to do that.
They have ‘walked away’ from other signings and I think they’ll do that with Cucurella. Time will tell.

 

[Commander]

I'm still certain he'll go. Later this week for around £50 million. The final figure will probably be undisclosed..

I wonder if we'll get a replacement or go with what we've got.

I think he'll go too. If we can get £50 million then fine, that's a great deal for us, even with no replacement. It's also another great message for us to send out. That we buy young, promising players and play them in the first team and if they do well they will get their move to a top 6 club. They either play most of their contract with us and then we let them go for a fair price as we did with Bissouma, or if they want to go early then fine, but the buying club has to pay through the roof for them. It's a great model.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

I did the same at the local Porsche showroom - offered them half the asking price and when they said laughed at me and said no I ‘walked away’ from the deal.

I've heard similar stories but, in one case at least, the dealer called him back a few weeks later to offer him the car for the price he offered!

But that won't happen here, clearly. Brighton won't want to strengthen a title rival lolol, so I think they should stick an £80m price tag on him and tell City the ball is in their court...

Edit: I *slightly* undervalued MC!

 

[Postman Pat]

After Saturday, my expectation is that Cucu’s price has risen even more tbh.

Assuming we will buy a replacement, and that replacement's price will increase as we get nearer the start of the season/end of the window, then so it should.

If City had bid at the start of June when they first mentioned it, I suspect this transfer would have gone a lot smoother. No idea why they dragged their feet on this deal, other than to try and get a few more quid for Zinchenko.

 

[Harry Wilson's tackle]

I think he'll go too. If we can get £50 million then fine, that's a great deal for us, even with no replacement. It's also another great message for us to send out. That we buy young, promising players and play them in the first team and if they do well they will get their move to a top 6 club. They either play most of their contract with us and then we let them go for a fair price as we did with Bissouma, or if they want to go early then fine, but the buying club has to pay through the roof for them. It's a great model.

Yes. And a message to those ostensibly sensible chaps who consider that by selling players to top six clubs for 30-50 million (depending on length of contract) for the first time in the club's history, this is an indication of failure and hopelessness.

 

[chaileyjem]

I'm still certain he'll go. Later this week for around £50 million. The final figure will probably be undisclosed..

I wonder if we'll get a replacement or go with what we've got.

Certain ? Would anything change your mind that this transfer is anything but inevitable ? Ie: City pay Albion’s asking price. And everything else is just theatre (insisting they won’t, looking for alternatives) .
If that’s the case - why haven’t they ?
I’m still perplexed that some see this as the only possible outcome. Or that City are the only possible suitors.

 

[madinthehead]

I've heard similar stories but, in one case at least, the dealer called him back a few weeks later to offer him the car for the price he offered!

But that won't happen here, clearly. Brighton won't want to strengthen a title rival lolol, so I think they should stick an £80 price tag on him and tell City the ball is in their court...

I really hope we get more than £80 for him...