We had a fee agreed with his club that would have been a club record, rumoured to be about 32m, once PSG got involved and put 40 on the table we couldn't match that, but the club had already agreed a fee with Utd so Lucas could have just opted for Utd if it was his preference.

Dang, Moura looks really fun. Thanks for the link, Andre.

Pretty sure that's not how it works bandit, accepting a bid isn't binding. Seemed like Moura never even got a chance to talk to United because once PSG's bid came in United's was nullified once they decided not to match it.

It might not be binding but if Lucas wanted to join Utd and told the board he had no interest in signing or PSG there's not much his parent club can do about it if he put's his foot down, especially after Utd had been in negotiations with them for the best part of a month to agree a fee.

His dad (agent) was in Manchester and flew to Paris from there once the PSG bid was made, IDK if Lucas spoke to Fergie personally but every report I've read is the deal was all but signed until PSG came in.

Er, citing raw shot stats to support Sturridge seems a bit specious...

Anyways, I think Sturridge is a much better fit at Liverpool than Chelsea. He's perfect for Rodgers' system and Pool's needs atm. 15m seems pretty bad though, with his mentality I think his upside from his current level of play is very limited.

Nah, Lucas could have chosen United. I assume the club pressured him to take the PSG bid but I think there's a good chance if the bids were closer he'd have been at United. There've been at least a few "Lucas feels X about his decision to join PSG instead of United" filler stories since the summer.

Strictly a winger.

i knew Moura was a one on one prodigy (one on four?), one thing that struck me in the vid tho was his shooting technique from long range

Ibra gonna feast on the spaces he creates, like he feast on menez's

about the deal i highly doubt Leonardo came out of the blue to snatch him from Utd ,i think it was more of Lucas agent keeping us on hold ,waiting for negociations to go far enough with wichever big club is interested to get the better price for him

That's what I was getting at.

Beckham leaving Galaxy would seem to make it even more likely that Lamps will end up there.

A great prospect, no doubt but if you watch a video with all his touches you'll see that he also loses the ball way more than necessary. He needs to improve his decision making, pass accuracy and his first touch is also not that great.Also I think he should learn to score more goals. Ancelloti will make a big difference in his career I think.

But his explosiveness and one on one technique is really something scary for opponents. His long range shots are very good. So that does make him one of the best players in the brazilian league.

I checked the websites for the two main awards and he is currently 5th best in one and 6th in the other.They both grade players on every game and the player with best average wins.If anyone is interested here are the links, a lot of familiar faces.

http://placar.abril.com.br/bola-de-prata/bola-de-ouro
http://sportv.globo.com/site/Trofeu-...a/ranking.html

Thanks! i streamd couple of his last games and saw he wasnt polished in all areas of his game yet

What's your assessment on Paulinho ,you think he's ready for a move to Europe?

heard we got him in sight

Yea don't get me wrong.Lucas can become one of the best in the world if worked on properly.

Paulinho is a perfect fit for any european team. He is a midfielder who is everywhere.Defends well, good pass, scores goals. Not a flashy player but really useful.

do want !!
Ancelotti's 3man midfield requires exactly that type of 2way players

It was not supporting Sturridge it was outlining how poorly we are equipped at CF.

What you guys think the odds that Falcao goes to Chelsea for Torres + cash?

slim? torres isnt very good, they're much better off getting the cash and spending it on another import with upside

moneyball tho

It would need to involve us heavily subsidising his wages for the remainder of his contract length he's got with us but it's certainly a possibility.

There really aren't a great deal of possibilities for him to go to that he'd be willing to join. Atletico is one of the few that makes sense.

Atletico are uber broke and there's a very strong possibility that Falcao is partly owned by third parties, so I think the chances are very slim. I could see Torres going to Atletico on some subsidized loan deal, but I think that's the only way.

I thought this was a fact?

maybe I missed something, but I dont think its ever been confirmed.

Commentating on him I've head Michael Laudrup's scout (he is now his assistant at Swansea) often talking about how Falcao wasn't fast at all which I remember thinking just didn't sound right, especially since my first impression of Falcao while at Porto was certainly not that this was a slow player, but it is true that he doesn't have much pace over longer distances (where in contrast sometimes players we consider slow are actually fast) and then with the ball there is nothing from him when it comes to running or being dynamic, which I think is what was mostly the scout's point, but, and I think that's the point that has hit me while desperately trying to get a grasp of that alleged lack of pace, is that Falcao hides it, makes it more of a non-issue, better than anyone you can think of.

As sick as it sounds, cause it must take a something of true football genius, with his masterful link-up play in transition, and he will consistently play his part, it is almost as he designs the counter attack early on in its development to stay alive, sets it up to stay dangerous just the right amount of time, just the needed number of touches from his teammates, that it takes his allegedly slow self in the meantime from dropping deep/linking up to find his way into space where he is most dangerous in the box, where you only have to be fast a few meters, and there he is not just fast but incredibly strong, smart and aggressive in his moves, and finish what he himself was instrumental in making, suited to his characteristics, a deliberate rather than extremely fast counter attack.

Maybe that's glorifying what he does somewhat but ever since I heard from someone who definitely knows his stuff that Falcao apparently was slow I've just been fascinated by why and how good of a transition player he still was, which of course, with all that being said about it, isn't even what he is all about and just one part of his great work.

The third party ownership makes his situation more interesting IMO. Atletico wouldn't sell Aguero to Madrid because of the fans rage but with Falcao it may be out of their hands depending on what % they actually own. Any La liga reg's with some insight into this?

http://blogs.thescore.com/counteratt...bao-continues/

Wasn't aware Llorente was STILL being benched for not resigning.

I am not surprised at all.

I liked Athletic Club until, during the Martínez and Llorente sagas last transfer window, I learned how much bigotry, bordering plain viciousness, there is within their "philosophy".

They have no problem to destroy your career if they deem you a "Traitor".