Rachid Ghezzal signs.

[Master Fox]

Can’t wait for relegation 

[Miquel The Work Geordie]

why would you make your wife your avatar

[FOXSE]

7 hours ago, chapero82 said:

When we said we wanted a Mahrez replacement we didn’t mean a lookalike  

I remember when we sold heskey, and signed Trevor Benjamin.... Lookalikes rarely work out. With one notable exception, Rush/Aldridge!

[Babylon]

5 hours ago, peach0000 said:

He's been picked to be signed by a team of scouts a lot more qualified to know what to look for in a player than 99 percent of people on this forum. They'll have stats and data that we simply don't. If they think he deserves a chance then he probably does. 

In this instance it looks more like a manager pick I'm afraid. The lads 26, had one good half a season in his career and failed to cement himself in any team. His stats don't scream out at you. Maybe he'll be brilliant, but given all the evidence that's probably unlikely. If we were just replacing Musa, fine... but I'm worried he's going to end up being the Mahrez replacement!

 

I'm clinging to the hope Puel is some kind of wizard at getting the best out of this sort of inconsistent player.

[Chrysalis]

I think he is the mahrez replacement, I dont see why we would sign this guy, maddison and another winger.

 

The problem is mahrez has insane performance stats, inevitably a replacement is probably going to be a downgrade, but lets give this guy a chance, he just needs to perform well enough to have us perform well as a team.

[WigstonWanderer]

9 hours ago, Pete from the USA said:

Here's a better Ghezzal compilation. Looks to be a capable winger:

 

 

 

Let's face it folks, these days squad depth is as important as quality. We need capable players who can come on when there are injuries. Seems a decent signing.

 

I think the other compilation was a pisstake of his worst moments. TBF we could probably come up with similar for Mahrez.

Edited 6 August 2018 by WigstonWanderer

[PaulW]

Heck of a number of experts on obscure French footballers on here.

 

[weller54]

9 minutes ago, WigstonWanderer said:

I think the other compilation was a pisstake of his worst moments. TBF we could probably come up with similar for Mahrez.

 

I've got a box set (series 6) of Musa's worst moments too if anyone wants it. 

[ozleicester]

6 hours ago, Ted Maul said:

HE'S CRAZY! HE'S DUMB! HE'S RACHID GHEZZAL.

 

Sign him up and hope for the best.

Whats the tune for this.. i cant quite get it

[roblcfc84]

I think a lot of people are judging him based on a) some feedback from a few fans or videos designed to make him look terrible b) the fee c) their imagination 

 

You don't get in either the Lyon or Monaco team if your that bad! Looking at his career he's played quite a bit over the last few seasons and has done ok. He will only start if Puel believes he's good enough and as a squad player or competition i think this is a decent enough signing and do believe, unlike most people on here I think Puel has done some really good business, made some tough decisions with regard to senior team members and given some of the academy players a chance.

 

I still think 2 more will come in by the end of the week. 

[funkyrobot]

6 hours ago, MC Prussian said:

Rachid Ghezzal on the same level as Mohammed Salah - that after Salah‘s superb season at Roma.

 

You make me laugh.

 

 

You’re clearly desperate for the lad to fail to fit your narrative. Give him a chance ffs.

[lcfcsnow]

I think this is how it would have felt if we’d signed David McGoldrick for 8 million.

[funkyrobot]

8 hours ago, murphy said:

No, that's not good enough.

 

We can't afford to spend £14m and shrug our shoulders if he doesn't make it.  That kind of attitude will catch up with us in the end.

 

We have lost our best player and we should be leaving no stone unturned trying to get the best possible and most proven replacement that we can possibly find.  We don't need squad players in this position.  Gambling on this guy is not the answer.

 

You can’t replace Mahrez directly so you instead strengthen the team as a whole. He was a lucky punt bought at a time when we were in the championship and didn’t have prices hiked up like we inevitably do now we are premier league. A combination of Ricardo, Maddison and Ghezzal is that attempt. All transfers are risks but I understand Puel’s logic here. It probably isn’t the end of his spending. I’m amazed that a good number on here have written the lad off before he has even kicked a ball for us. And btw the £14 million is the top end speculation - most sources state £10 million or less. 

[foxfanazer]

6 hours ago, Master Fox said:

Can’t wait for relegation 

Edited 6 August 2018 by foxfanazer

[MC Prussian]

25 minutes ago, funkyrobot said:

You’re clearly desperate for the lad to fail to fit your narrative. Give him a chance ffs.

Nope, I‘m saying that bssed on his two and a half previous seasons, he‘s not worth the money we‘re paying.

 

That an Algerian is trying to put Ghezzal on a similar or even same level as Salah is laughable, but expected.

 

Ghezzal‘s got a lot to prove - unless he‘s a backup winger, in which case I wonder whom we‘ve got lined up still and what it‘s going to cost. Four more days.

[Weller in Tights]

2 hours ago, Chrysalis said:

I think he is the mahrez replacement, I dont see why we would sign this guy, maddison and another winger.

 

The problem is mahrez has insane performance stats, inevitably a replacement is probably going to be a downgrade, but lets give this guy a chance, he just needs to perform well enough to have us perform well as a team.

This.

 

Come on you miserable lot, at least give him a chance.  We were never going to find someone with Mahrez’s stats. Therefore we now have Maddison as a playmaker and this new fella will along with Gray, Albrighton and Diabate be used on the wing.  Will this all work? I hope so, I’ll give it a chance and see.

 

 

[CarbonVirtine]

15 hours ago, Babylon said:

I don't think he'll be terrible, I've looked through a lot of his "every touch" videos on YouTube and he's done ok. He's just going to be one of them, lovely touch and skill one minute, then play the ball out of play the the next. 

 

There's certainly something to work with. He does show a good first touch, good vision and technical ability with the ball at his feet. Sadly, it does seems that a lot of what he tries to do doesn't come off, but at least he is trying something. Maybe Puel can influence him, make his decision making better. What concerns me perhaps is that that's the sort of thing you say of a younger player. Still, I'll get behind him when he takes the pitch for us, urge him on etc.

 

I'd not worry too much over what  @Alex007 and other Monaco fans might say (without disrespect to any of them), some players divide fans. There were plenty of negative comments from the Le Havre fans when we signed Mahrez (that said, Mahrez was younger and shed loads cheaper)

Edited 6 August 2018 by CarbonVirtine

[Iran]

https://streamable.com/w0emz

 

No, no, no. We should have signed his brother!!!

 

 

All jokes aside, if Claude Puel can somehow trigger his early 2016 form again for us this will be a fantastic transfer!

 

Welcome Rachid Ghezzal!

[urban.spaceman]

Morning mathfackers!

[The Doctor]

19 minutes ago, MC Prussian said:

That an Algerian is trying to put Ghezzal on a similar or even same level as Salah is laughable, 

But they've not...  they've said that opposing fans slagging a player off isn't a sure sign they're crap, after all, Chelsea fans insisted Salah was a dud. That's not comparing their ability.

[Buzzell]

4 minutes ago, Iran said:

https://streamable.com/w0emz

 

No, no, no. We should have signed his brother!!!

 

 

All jokes aside, if Claude Puel can somehow trigger his early 2016 form again for us this will be a fantastic transfer!

 

Welcome Rachid Ghezzal!

Could we sign the two peices of eye candy instead? 

 

Get to work Rudders.

[MC Prussian]

1 minute ago, The Doctor said:

But they've not...  they've said that opposing fans slagging a player off isn't a sure sign they're crap, after all, Chelsea fans insisted Salah was a dud. That's not comparing their ability.

They have.

How can you compare Chelsea fans slagging off Liverpool fans for signing Salah on the back of a superb season at Roma with a "dud" like Ghezzal, who hasn't done much in the past 2 1/2 seasons and made more headlines with the way he left Olympique Lyonnais, his entourage and two red cards in one season?

[MC Prussian]

11 hours ago, Redouane said:

I didn't even know Monaco had fans. It's sole purpose is being PSG and Man City's academy. 

 

Tout les supporters de Monaco sont des footix. Les vrais monegasques s'en tapent completement de ce club... 

"Les vrais monesgasques"...  Ils n'existent même pas, coquin!

 

Monte Carlo has 15'000 inhabitants, most of them people not interested in football, people with a status you and I will never accomplish in two lifetimes, and AS Monaco's stadium holds 18'000.

Of course, you'll thus get a lot of Monaco fans from the region instead (Cannes, Nice, Menton, even Italy).

 

But don't let facts get in the way.

[Lovejoy]

I hope he does well. The sooner people stop saying "Mahrez replacement", the better it'll be for everyone.

[WigstonWanderer]

6 hours ago, Gerard said:

 

It’s actually my wife who looks nothing like Nicole Kidman. 

 

I need to work on my imagination as my forum name is my real name and my profile pic was one that was handy on my computer. 

Congrats on the wife!