As much as I’ve been incredibly critical privately about the manner of Chelsea’s spending (and especially the summer window), I can’t help but be very excited to see Estevao play in England. Fingers tightly crossed he doesn’t suffer for all these minutes he’s played this year down the line.

Ryan Kavuma-McQueen is a shooter, pass it on.

(Josh is possibly the best U20 cb talent on the planet. I’m in the camp of not going into the market and trusting what you have unless you’re signing a clear starter when everyone’s fit - otherwise, might be 3-5 points worse off this year, but if Josh scales development then that would be worth it)

Ryan Kavuma-McQueen is a shooter, pass it on.

Okay gotcha, and I think if I was to disagree I would be splitting hairs.

I’m hoping that when there’s less financial burden (UEFA, Summer of Todd, FOS sponsor), that they’d keep the Nico level hits, and that hope is fuelled by the other hope that they’re actually trying to win.

I don’t think they see player trading is the vehicle for their ROI, but for making the team better, if only because they seem to be deliberately pushing the PSR limits and losing lots of money, so it can’t be the former. It could just be that deals are the aim as everyone gets paid I guess 🤷‍♂️

Oh I dunno, there’s a pretty significant gap from Jackson to Cole, at the least ~£50m in value.

And I’m not sure it’ll calm down, I imagine there will be significant turnover, but even this window has seen many fewer children signed. I imagine if they bought another club that would change.

I don’t think successes HAVE to be Cole-esque, but making ugly sales have had to be a part of remedying their bleak initial windows, so they’ve made certain compromises to comply.
What they do once we’re more stable financially will be revealing . Ultimately, it’ll all depends on how well they roll

Jackson is a shame. I think we needed to make one ugly sale for UEFA spending restrictions, and it was him rather than Andrey or Josh. I think Noni was sacrificed for Steve, who was further ahead than we thought, and because Neto couldn’t be sold for profit.

I can see a world in which it works, and I wouldn’t have said that 6 months ago. Don’t think it’s the best way of doing it, and I’d feel a LOT better if they’d kept Jackson alongside JP Delap, but I think there’s a fair chance we finish 3rd this year (injuries depending). Give the 🏆 a go 26/27.

I see Delap as the No2, and JP as the Jackson swap. Delap vs Nkunku/Neto/George 9 mins is good, JP vs Nico maybe a wash?

I think they think it is. Might take longer than just spending it on guys readier now, but they’ll just keep dice rolling at 40-50m on 20-23yos until they have loads of hits.

The existing relations aspect is obviously tough to stomach, though at the least this summer I haven’t viewed their picks as destructive.

You’re right that I’m choosing to view some of this sunny side up, allows me to enjoy the football more I think at the end of the day.

It does, I’m also higher on Sanchez than most and believe any CB signing that wasn’t somebody genuinely WC would have been a bad move.

And I’m at peace with the level of risk. I don’t like the Gittens fee, and am Hato sceptic, but otherwise I don’t mind it’s a safer pool.

That’s fair re Andrey, but the signing is consistent with the strategy employed since Stewart joined, and I credit them for not selling the player this summer for the undoubted windfall they’d have got, and I credit them for not doing a makeshift CB deal or a bad GK signing too.

Give Steve a year and maybe Noni is no longer an upgrade. Eze I do like, but I could make the same argument at LW and CAM about Garnacho and JP (it’s a little punchier at LW but not out of the question). I’m a Gyok sceptic and happy that’s not where we went. Ekitike though …

I have, but they are also key parts of our window, and weren’t guaranteed to be so when they were signed. At some stage along the line, I suppose I have to credit the SDs and seems easiest when they join the squad.

They do all improve us yep, but hopefully only marginally so in each case this year

Steve and Andrey are both players they’d want imo, especially at their prices. Garnacho at £40m probably interested Arsenal, but went after Noni instead so a straight LW no longer played (Eze covers Odegaard too).

Also - how many of Arsenal’s players this window actually interest you?

(Josh is possibly the best U20 cb talent on the planet. I’m in the camp of not going into the market and trusting what you have unless you’re signing a clear starter when everyone’s fit - otherwise, might be 3-5 points worse off this year, but if Josh scales development then that would be worth it)

I didn’t watch the game, but simply can’t get enough of watching Estevao and Palmer play together. I must have watched the same comp 3 or 4 times.

I want Sesko to go to Manchester United as I think it could well be a total rerun of all their business over the last ten years, and that makes me happy.

I want Sesko to go to Newcastle as I don’t think Manchester United will spend on Jackson who I want Chelsea to keep.

I don’t know what I want.

The Benfica fee was supposedly going to be for only about half the rights, so we’d have had a 40-50% sell on on top of the €20m.

I think if he doesn’t meaningfully change their attack when on the field, given the opportunity cost of all the strikers moving this summer and how long awaited a ST has been, that would be a bust for Arsenal

Yeah I know, I just like to pretend otherwise sometimes to feel good. I am a JP9 believer though, so I’m less bleak than those that aren’t.

I think this hypothetical bank was metaphorical for all the PSR room they could possibly have if they sold everyone they haven’t already (Nico, Felix, Nkunku, KDH, Sterling, probably Trev, etc).

(If it wasn’t the whole bank … but it would be and the wages and it won’t happen. Unless it was the whole bank and a bit of somebody else’s bank)

Perhaps a little controversial - but I am totally content with Chelsea not betting the bank on Isak (so long as they don’t sell Jackson).

(Not that I would have sold Noni)

Petrovic I don’t mind the £25m. He’s probably our best keeper, but I’m higher on big Bob than most, and not sure Petrovic will ever be truly WC (though he may be a WC shot stopper).

Basically praying Penders is the truth along with the rest of the world.

That’s a pretty safe bet. I wouldn’t feel secure in JP and Delap if they sell Nico, though performances obviously could change that, and both together is an improvement on only Jackson for two years. I’m quite bullish on Estevao, and 433 Palmer RW, so less concerned by winger production in 25-26

I’m happy with Chelsea’s window so far, especially if JP continues as he has begun. But I fear I will always be watching Ekitike thinking ‘what if’.

Winners win