The 2012 Summer Transfer Window thread

[Pesci]

Some guy from Sky Sports Germany says he can score, is very fast and 'is like marathon man'. Got like 21 goals for Dortmund last season. I've only seen him a couple of times but I think he's an awesome signing. I think he'll be a better fit than Hazard, at least initially.

EDIT: Oh the 21 goals appears to be over two seasons. Still good though.

Edited June 5, 2012 by Pesci

[MJB]

I wonder if he'll get the #7 shirt now that Owen has gone?

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

I don't think I've watched Kagawa play - what's he like?

His FM performances don't count.

Brilliant with potential to become even better.

Suited to a more central attacking role just behind the main striker really, though he can play out wide. Great passing, fantastic vision, brilliant link up player, lovely finishing, top notch attitude, very nice work effort and the added Bonus of being very marketable.

It'll also benefit us so much in terms of different systems we play. On so many occasions we tried formations such as 4-5-1 and were left short up top, whereas with his addition it should add the much needed help we need to improve under this formation in the attack. I'd say potentially the best signing we've made in quite a few years, time will tell on that front. I'd expect we could see something along the lines of :

De Gea

Rafael, Vidic, Ferdinand/Evans, Evra

Carrick, Cleverley/Scholes

Valencia, Kagawa, Young

Rooney

Rotate that however you wish, with Welbeck or Hernandez also coming in up top on other occasions. This signing could benefit our options and overall play on quite a few levels, plus the possibility of more signings to come, possibly a central midfielder and/or left back .

Yes, I'm a little excited by this signing

[Baddar]

Sold.

I hope you're right!

[MJB]

Still need someone in the centre of midfield though. I really like Claudio Marchisio but can't see him leaving Juventus

[Pesci]

I'd be excited too, I think with Chelsea and City's squads you had to pull something out of the bag and Kagawa is potentially better than any of Chelsea's signings - he cost pretty much half of what Hazard did and looks like a great bit of business. Kagawa, Valencia, Young and Rooney is a really good front four. I can imagine Valencia staying out right to get those balls in and Kagawa, Young and Rooney being quite fluid. Should be a good season with Kagawa and Chelsea's signings, as the three realistic title-chasing teams will all likely be playing pulse-racing, swashbuckling football. Will frustrate me a little with all that going on and Liverpool passing the ball in their own half for 70 minutes over the season

[MJB]

Could he and Rooney get in each other's way though in that formation? We all know that Rooney loves to drop deep, any chance Kagawa could play alongside Carrick or not?

[Asuka's Gonna Kill You]

Still need someone in the centre of midfield though. I really like Claudio Marchisio but can't see him leaving Juventus

Will be interesting to see if we sign anybody else in terms of midfield or whether or not Fergie decides to stick with what we have, considering the likes of Cleverley and Anderson were injured for large periods of last season. I do agree we could do with a hard hitting midfielder to play a more defensive type role, though I cant see that happening really. Such a shame Hargreaves went down the route he did with injuries as somebody like him would of been ideal. Could possibly even see Fergie play Jones a bit more in a midfield position next season, should be interesting.

Edit: Also I wouldn't worry regarding Rooney/Kagawa. If we play Kagawa just behind Rooney it'll give Rooney the chance to once again return to staying higher up the field rather than constantly needing to drop back. There's the added bonus that Kagawa also has great link up play as we've seen at Dortmund. Could produce some lovely link up play between the likes of him, Rooney, Nani and co. Kagawa has the potential to bring the best out of other players, certainly strikers such as Rooney and most importantly, Hernandez, who loves to make constant darting runs. We've been craving some attacking creativity in a central attacking midfield role and this should be what we've been needing.

Edited June 5, 2012 by JohnnyPerfect

[Jimmy]

Gylfi Sigurdsson does not see himself signing a permanent deal at Swansea and he would be interested in joining Liverpool but he has not yet spoken to Brendan Rodgers regarding a possible move to Anfield.

After arriving in January, the attack-minded Iceland midfielder took the Premier League by storm while on loan at Swansea from Hoffenheim and he seemed set to agree a long-term contract at the Liberty Stadium.

Swansea have agreed a fee with Hoffenheim but Rodgers, who was the manager to bring Sigurdsson to England while in charge at Swansea, has since moved to Liverpool and is ready to hijack any deal.

Sigurdsson, 22, has not put pen to paper on a contract amid the uncertainty in Wales following the departure of Rodgers at the beginning of June and the player is thinking about Liverpool.

"It's just unclear at this moment where I will play," he told Icelandic newspaper Morgunblaoio. "I'd like to play on with Swansea since I was really happy there.

"But after Brendan Rodgers left the club for Liverpool, it changed the situation."

Glorious history

Sigurdsson, who scored seven goals in 18 Premier League appearances, added: "I have said that my desire is to continue playing in the Premier League and Liverpool is completely considered.

"Liverpool is a big club that has a glorious history. The English Premier League is the platform that I want to be on and hopefully I continue to play in that division.

"I expect not to stay at Swansea as the uncertainty going on there and it is not clear who is the boss."

Liverpool transfer talks have yet to take place between Sigurdsson and Rodgers but the former has wished his ex-Swansea boss good luck at Anfield.

Asked if there had been contact, Sigurdsson said: "No. But I got in touch with him when he was appointed Liverpool manager.

"I wished him congratulations and thanked him for a great time at Swansea."

[Hobo]

It's been rumoured since he did not complete his transfer to Swansea that he would go to Liverpool. So this is no surprise to me. He will probably end up at Anfield.

[Jimmy]

If they can agree the same price, it's a total steal.

[Lineker]

You'd expect Hoffenheim to try and get more money out of Liverpool than Swansea though, no?

[Jimmy]

Yeah, that's what I was getting at. I would if I were them.

[LexChaney]

Chelsea are trying to assemble the avengers of the premiership at the moment with the signings they've made.

[Crybaby Bunting]

They should get Spiderman Gutierrez off us for £40m

[stokeriño]

We could buy Falcao and ask him nicely to change his shirt name to (THE) FALCON...

[Hobo]

I like that Chelsea are making all these transfer moves but haven't appointed a perminant manager.

I would guess the longer they go without appointing one the more likely it's going to be RDM who gets it full time.

[stokeriño]

Really? I'm of the opinion that the longer it goes on the more likely it is that RDM will tell them they can stuff their "please be our manager but only because you're our last choice and we only want you for a year as well" request and go get himself a real job.

Chelsea managers have transfer input but the workings behind the scenes don't stop without them, lending credence to the idea of Chelsea really having a 1st team coach rather than an English-style 'manager'. But hey, it's not been completely catastrophic so far (looks at trophy cabinet), so why not.

Seems to me that the deafening silence emanating from Chelsea on the subject suggests that either a) they are still on their hands and knees trying to wear Guardiola down with incessant pleasing (in which case I can't comprehend what a good Plan B is, on the assumption that RDM would react how I'd expect him to), or b) they're bringing in one of the international managers like Blanc or Low and can't announce anything yet.

[EddieG]

Kranjcar to Dinamo Kiev.

[ChrisSteeleAteMyHamster]

I love the lad but he was doomed to never get much of a chance while Bale and Modric were around.

So this better mean that we keep Bale and Modric now as I thought he would have a chance of much more game time if either of them left.