Will be very interesting to see how we end this market.
Seems like a lot of questions about the existing squad have been answered. Chukwueze undoubtedly passed the test and is locking up the RWB position. We still need a more defensive option as a backup, especially after we loaned out Athekame.
Gila looks to be adapting very quickly and is so much better than every other defender we have. Would be great to upgrade the CB or LCB positions also in this window. That seems like a weak point that needs to be addressed soon. I'm not sure if Sankhoun can step up this season, but who knows.
LWB is our biggest problem right now. Major upgrade needed here. I don't know how balanced it would be with Saelemaekers on the left and Chukwueze on the right.
I think we're mostly fine in midfield, whoever we sell we get someone else to replace them, but overall Rabiot-Modric-Jashari are good enough for the midfield duo. Hojberg seems like an ideal candidate to replace Fofana and Ricci, especially if Rabiot is mostly going to be used in the AM position. Comotto and Musah should flesh out that department, I don't think we're at the stage now to afford to loan Comotto. Maybe loan in January if things settle down a bit and he's not getting minutes.
Same with Alpha Cisse on the left. Sell Leao, the team looks completely different with him and without him. The press just doesn't work when he's strolling around. Nkunku and Leao out would allow us to upgrade the squad in a big way, hopefully investing in the backline. Pulisic, Saelemaekers and Cisse are enough for that left sided AM position.
On the other side i'm actually hopeful that Rabiot will make that position his own, and we just need to find a young player with potential to rotate with him and RLC.
Up front we can't rely on Camarda as the only backup. He also needs regular minutes in a possession dominant team, so maybe a loan to Serie B is best for him. We need a good cheap backup to Ramos. Weird that we're loaning out Santi, honestly. I feel like letting him stay without pressure as the bench option might be best for everyone at this stage.
I'm slowly regaining some optimism for the season, but it depends a lot on what we do in the next two weeks or so. The squad need a LOT of work to make it one that Amorim can depend on. Way too many players right now need to be shipped out. Two weeks to find a home for Tomori, Nkunku, Leao, Estupinian, Terracciano, Fofana, Odogu and Gimenez. Then replace them with a CB, LWB, backup RWB, backup CM, backup AM and a backup CF. Huge amount of work to be done with very little time. I hope they know what they're doing.
