Zatara
Player Valuation: £100m
Moyes -- takes over at UTD today having last week made an offer for Leighton Baines. An England international who would not likely move unless he was 1st choice.
The bid whether accepted or rejected then immediately alienates Patrice Evra who was the stand in skipper for many games last season and a key figure in the dressing room. Pretty much a given he will want to leave now, shaking up the squad upon Moyes arrival as the move was made even before he officially began his new job or met the squad.
The fans having had Ferguson in charge for a lifetime and seeing a fans favourite being steeres out of the club will need to see a result in terms of Baines joining-- at the very least to underline Moyes as a strong character who has identified a Baines / Evra switch as his 1st piece of business.
Anything less than Baines signing now and the fans/Squad will be unsettled to say the least especially with Moyes having been so close to Baines. Evra leaving is now a given.
This puts Everton in an EXTREMELY strong negotiating position.
The key here is whether Martinez has already also identified the players he wants to inprove our squad. Is it true that we still have the Fer/Negredo money and if so are the relatively (totally in my opinion) uninspiring signings of McGeady/Alcaraz/Kone just paper talk or do they have some truth in them?
I think Moyes has made a fatal error in making this bid so soon and it is now up to Martinez/Elstone to drive the price as close to 20mil as possible.
The point I will make is this, if Martinez wants to prove himself as a strong manager then unlike Moyes he shouldn't rapidly begin signing players -- he should meet the squad and reserves and assess which areas he needs to strengthen before making any serious transfer moves.
I would actually be happier if we didn't have any new bodies in for another week or two just so we knew that Martinez had been analyzing the squad and devising a strategy and narrowing down targets for the new season.
Also, that he will have the Baines money to spend and perhaps may set his strategy for the season a little differently now with an extra 18-20mil in his pocket (if he is a good negotiator)....
The bid whether accepted or rejected then immediately alienates Patrice Evra who was the stand in skipper for many games last season and a key figure in the dressing room. Pretty much a given he will want to leave now, shaking up the squad upon Moyes arrival as the move was made even before he officially began his new job or met the squad.
The fans having had Ferguson in charge for a lifetime and seeing a fans favourite being steeres out of the club will need to see a result in terms of Baines joining-- at the very least to underline Moyes as a strong character who has identified a Baines / Evra switch as his 1st piece of business.
Anything less than Baines signing now and the fans/Squad will be unsettled to say the least especially with Moyes having been so close to Baines. Evra leaving is now a given.
This puts Everton in an EXTREMELY strong negotiating position.
The key here is whether Martinez has already also identified the players he wants to inprove our squad. Is it true that we still have the Fer/Negredo money and if so are the relatively (totally in my opinion) uninspiring signings of McGeady/Alcaraz/Kone just paper talk or do they have some truth in them?
I think Moyes has made a fatal error in making this bid so soon and it is now up to Martinez/Elstone to drive the price as close to 20mil as possible.
The point I will make is this, if Martinez wants to prove himself as a strong manager then unlike Moyes he shouldn't rapidly begin signing players -- he should meet the squad and reserves and assess which areas he needs to strengthen before making any serious transfer moves.
I would actually be happier if we didn't have any new bodies in for another week or two just so we knew that Martinez had been analyzing the squad and devising a strategy and narrowing down targets for the new season.
Also, that he will have the Baines money to spend and perhaps may set his strategy for the season a little differently now with an extra 18-20mil in his pocket (if he is a good negotiator)....
