Okay then I see where we disagree. I don’t think Rice is an 8 at the level of a Barella or Bellingham or Bernardo Silva or Gundogan.
I’m not selling him short wtf are u reading? He is a good 8 he’s not ELITE at that position. That’s what we need for where we are going.
Again Rice at the 8 is only a short term option because of what we have and it’s a moot point discussing that incessantly. He won’t play 8 long term. Hes our long term 6 and he’s our Partey replacement. Simple.
Why not LCM? Lone 6 Zina is a scary defensive proposition lol
Rice is not a quality 8 at the level we need that position to be im sorry. It’s not his instincts and it’s not his long term position. He has won MOTMs playing 6. He is a World class 6 and a good 8.
We need a top top class left 8
Yes I named players as profile examples, of players primarily as 8s who could also play 6 if needed. Which is what I said
We have Timber though.
What does Zina evolve to on this team? The true LB/RB profile is evolving. We will see more UCL teams with pacey wingers start to target him more. That was part of Chelsea’s plan yesterday.
I think that’s Timbers spot long term, but what does that mean for Zina long term? Do we move him central as a CM option? Not sure
We can agree to disagree. We have two top quality 6s and one quality 8. We need two quality 8s and one quality 6. With one of the 8s being comfortable rotating as a 6 for Rice if necessary. By “quality” I mean Odegaard Partey Rice level and the position is their preferred primary position.
The club would most likely see this summer as the time to cash in on Partey. He’s turning 31 and is injury prone. Not sustainable.
Arteta doesn’t like ESR and would move on from him as soon as he can (see Ramsdale) - he lacks intensity.
Unless Havertz or Fabio significantly step it up this season, it’s a position we should be looking into after this season. Again, we can agree to disagree
You’re talking short term I’m talking long term. Rice is our long term 6. We can afford to play Rice at 8 because we have partey. But Partey will most likely be moved on in the summer and with injury issues and isn’t getting younger. We need a left 8
While I have no doubt that Arteta could eventually get Havertz producing consistently at the left 8, I think it’ll take close to two seasons plus the potential with his physical profile in what we need there is capped imo. Unless we start spamming back post crosses with high conversion rates, I’m just not convinced.
In order of priorities on what I think the squad lacks:
Realistically I think we need to move on from Eddie and ESR and I love them but we have to evolve. After winning the league, Pep went and got Haaland. It’s a business, no hard feelings.
We were tied top two before chelsea game I think. How are we 5th now