42: Mercato Catch-Up

Another perfect strike from Paul Pogba makes it Javentus 2 Oudene Zinil Hello and welcome back to Season 2 of Serie A Spotlight. We are your hosts Matt and Jake. And we've got a couple of guests with us today and if you're the true OG Serie A Spotlight fans you might have heard of them before. They're the two Jabolanis. It's Luke, I think you remember me. The un-elegant one, the one talks like a rough cunt of course. Explain your theory bro.

So I think that Luke sounds like a working class man and I think Santi sounds like he drives an Audi TT and lives in Slema. Close. We should see what he's driving. It's a Skoda Fabian from Sweden. The AC sounds like it's his own animal. It's asthmatic, my car is asthmatic. At the point the car started coughing and I was looking at him like is the car going to explode? He's like, no it's just the AC. I was like, it's very normal. Insane, insane. So if you didn't catch that, his name is Santi.

He was here last time as well and they did a great job. So we said why not invite them one more time but we could all combine forces. I think it's important for you guys to understand now that we've been drinking for the past hour and a half. I would say maybe like 7. We've just been trying stuff. Two hours and a half actually. We're hanging up bed sheets to improve the sound. Should we take a photo? This looks like a crack house right there.

I really hope it's doing you guys a favor. I hope the audio is better. But what we're going to do today is basically go through the table of last season. So Milan first. And we're going to work our way down. We're going to talk about the transfers that have already happened. Touch a bit upon rumors. And basically we're going to let you guys know if we think they're good deals or if they're shit. So I don't know if there's anything you want to add to that. Milan. Divock. Shitty G. Why is he shit?

He's not to Milan's quality because I feel like he's a player who's at most at the mid table team. But he played for Liverpool. But he played for Liverpool on the bench and came on a handful of times. That's what the goalie and Chavez defined that. Yes, many important two of them. That means that he could be a superstar, but doesn't make him a good player though. Isn't making a player that Milan need for him to start. I think with aging strikers that you have in Ibra and Giroud.

There were way better options. I would have even taken Bellotti on a free then I would have bought. Or Ricky Persson. Really? Yes, man. Maybe because of the CEO experience. Fair enough. But this guy is a guy who was training with Liverpool. I remember a week in week out. He's playing with fucking the Liverpool players like. And he's going to come to a place where they believe in him. And he's going to be a protagonist. Or at least try to be a protagonist.

Aside from that, you mentioned about him not being a good player in your opinion. Sometimes I don't think a player needs to necessarily be a good player. He needs to fit the system. And what Milan have going for them right now is they've got Giroud and they've got Zlatan. They've got two tall strikers slightly on the slower side. Very technically gifted. Play with their back towards goal. They've got those two kind of strikers. They don't have 90 minutes in them technically.

And what Milan are investing in now is a free transfer for a player in his prime with some serious Champions League experience. With room for growth. I wouldn't call him in his prime. He has room for growth. 27 years old in his physical prime at least. And that's the point because the others are old. He can't explode in his 31. Exactly. But this is not the striker Milan should be pursuing if you've just won the league. I'm sorry man. But to me it's a shocker.

But there were other things that needed to be done. Like for example many players needed to be redeemed. Maldini and Massara took forever to be redeemed as well. Look at Messias, Florenzi. These are all deals that had to happen as well. I don't know if you want to say something. I was going to say that Origi, I understand your point because we discussed this like yesterday. And you said that if Origi was good, another big team in England for example would have snapped him up.

Agreed. And I see where you're coming from. But at Liverpool, Origi had to compete with Mane, Salah and maybe not this year but the year before a very good Firmino. And in a system which the way Liverpool play they needed a really good dynamic front three. And Origi is your classic Ponta striker. Just play the ball into him, he lays off to the wingers and then he's running into the box to knock it in. Which is why Serie A I think is a really good move for him personally.

He's probably looking at other big strikers in Serie A because look how many there are. There's Lukaku of course who came back to talk about it. That person later. There's Dekko, there's all these big players. These players do well so I think it's a good move for Milan personally. And he was free now. He came on three so he's free. Which is honestly nothing to lose. This is going to be a profit regardless of what happens. He can flop and we can sell him for a profit. Let's waste time.

Let's waste effort and time. But at the end of the day there are three strikers who can be rotated so if he flops at the end of the day we still have two strikers who might do well. And Giroud. You've won the league man. Continue. That's why there's a right winger man. The ones that have been mentioned are all big names man. Well all big names. There was Marius, there was Ziak mentioned. I'm not saying anything about those but you go for... To me it's still a high point.

It will always be a shocker. So if you're Maldini who's... You said Berlotti who you would have... He's free as well man. He scored a hundred goals in Serie A. But he's much older and... Not much older. No, almost the same age. 27 or 28. I thought he was 30. I thought he was 30. So what are you... So we can use the same... But then you know what it is, Milan want the next step now to do better in the Champions League.

And Origi is someone who the stage isn't new for and Berlotti will be shitting himself on the stage in the Champions League. When he was in Liverpool's team, I'm sorry. But he actually improved the side. Him against Barca, he improved the side. I know that Liverpool were on a high, they were coming back from obviously losing what was a 2-0, something like a 3-0 to Barca and the opening leg. So they were all on a high to kind of prove themselves.

But the fact that the man stood up to the occasion on the biggest stage as well, no one rated Origi, two games, scored in the final as well. Semi-final and final he scored. But dude, if you're that good and if you're saying he's good and he came on and he was a good player and knows how to compose and stuff, I'm not saying he can't. But in this season where Firmino was out of sorts and he had a good chance to replace him.

But there was Joata then who was incredible and Diaz who came in and he was the best. Diaz and Kulusevski were the best January signings the Premier League had. I get the fact that he didn't get minutes though, I could say something about how good he is of a trainer. Maybe he wasn't that hard a trainer, maybe that didn't win him a place. I think it's more his style of play and how Klopp wants to play his Liverpool team. I think it says more about Liverpool's style than Origi.

If you were a bad man you wouldn't have a song as simple as that. I hope he scores more than he goes this season, I know that he won't. No of course not, he's not going to score 20 goals. He scores 11, Giroud gets 11 himself and Zlatan gets 7, that's alright, he can win the league. I think there's a bit too much confidence in winning and I think Inter and Juventus have done much better work. When it comes to winning the league I don't have confidence, I'm not as confident at all for next season.

Looking at Juventus, it's not even Inter, it's Juve that terrify him. You have a question mark as well, they still need to build that squad. They still need to get their defence. You look up front it's fantastic but the defence is looking scary. Who's? Juve. They've lost on most every one. They look a bit like Argentina. They've made great signings, lovely signings. But they have to look at the back, how much money do they have left? They bought Di Maria. Depends if they get the league done.

Wasn't Di Maria free? He was, but his wages are high expensive. So he's not free. You don't pay a transfer fee. Yes but you pay less. For FFP it's a big deal. Long term it's not even a bad deal considering they had players of the likes of Ramsey on that. I think we'll get into the talk about Juve and so on. Let's see if it's done. They're moving on. So we discussed Origi with Milan. Obviously when it comes to confirmed signings Milan have since redeemed a couple of players. And those were?

Milan, Adli and Pobega. Adli and Pobega. And Florenzi and Messias have been redeemed. And Florenzi and Messias. So those are the signings in for Milan right now. We know there's been a lot of rumours about who Milan are going to bring in. But one thing I want to address first is Botman. The fact that for around four months Milan fans and I strongly believe that the Milan board thought that Botman was going to start next season as a Milan player. I thought that for a fact.

I knew it in my heart that he was going to join. Another Simikhan. Exactly. Every time they asked him about Milan he seemed to smile about it. He seemed really confident about the move. He wanted it to be done. Milan spoke highly of Botman. Ends up not going through. Newcastle offer more money than Milan. The player has to accept because the club accepted and he has a good relationship with them. I guess. Whatever. What do you make of Milan losing out on Botman?

Is it detrimental at all for the team? Why are they sorted in that department? Respect to Botman though for giving Lillecash a payday. Like Kessy and Mignoli have just left on a free-hand. As Milan fans we would appreciate that. Where is Kessy going? Kessy is bussing Larsa. He failed to juggle the ball. It always happens with Barsal. The pressure is on really juggling that ball in front of the fans. What I'll say about Botman is... It's a loss.

I think Milan are going to miss someone because they needed someone to partner Tomori. Although... I say what I want about Kalulu. I'm sure you guys love him. But I think Kalulu is very, very good. Is Kalulu-Tomori the partnership to win a league? Debatable. It was. It can. I think it can be. But I think Botman could have helped even if he was a bit better on the ball. And these are the things. But then again you can't blame Botman for not being attracted as well.

Besides the Ligue 1 Premier League but also by the Newcastle project. It's a big one. Because they do look like... The signings they've made, although they're not made very big ones besides Bruno Gomireš. All the others are very, very smart signings. And they've all worked. Not one of them has failed so far. They're on the up. And they could be fighting for Europe next year. So it is attractive for him. And so they're the English Monza.

I personally think that Milan losing out on Botman, obviously they lost out on a fantastic player. I'm talking about one of the young centre backs that has hailed as a future god pretty much. Everyone rates Botman very, very highly and obviously Milan missed out. However, one thing I want as a Milan fan is no matter what is happening in the market, I just want there to be improvement. I want there to be a team that is the best it could be.

And with that being said, I think Kalulu and Tomori, that partnership, is Milan at the best it could be in that department. Last season it was when Kalulu and Tomori got some continuity, we barely conceded any goals. Milan barely conceded any goals at the end of the season. Granted I know that things are different next year. There are some serious players back in this area. I think this area is regaining its attractiveness slowly over time. They did it against Atletico as well.

They did it against some big teams, Milan kept a clean sheet. Yes, listen, last year Milan were definitely the most consistent team and they deserved to win. I'm not going to argue that even though I don't particularly like Milan. Especially in the defensive department. You don't like Milan? No, I don't particularly like Milan. Why not? I don't see the way you play football attractive for me personally. It's very defensive, very contained, but then suddenly there's this quick movement.

Then you get the ball in, then you have these simulations. No matter what it is, it's a team effort. That's what I like about Milan. That's what I say to myself when I think about them. I say for all it's worth, even though I might have reservations and so on, I prefer other teams in this area. It's okay. They had the best team spirit and it won them the league. Unfortunately for one month something happened. I think they were all tired at one point.

But at the same time, don't disrespect Piolli like that because Piolli's tactics were on point. I'm not saying anything about the manager. He's a good manager. But he is right. The play does happen in phases, especially during some games particularly. When there's a low block, you see it a lot. You see failed attempts of creativity, like the whole half would pause, the first half would pause, and one shot on target. Like, Jesus Christ. It's very slow.

You tire them out and then you do find that gap. You're consistently annoying. And suddenly there is that good opportunity. Then you start scoring. Milan are quite unorthodox as well. I think teams like Atalanta, you know what you're going to get. You're going to get that firepower running down the wing, quick 1-2s down the middle. You know what you're going to get with these teams. I feel like with Milan, you never know because are they going to play it down lay-out? Are they going to overlap?

Is Lay-Out going to cut in himself? Is Giroud going to be playing the ball and he's going to lay it down? I feel like Milan could attack from so many different directions last season, except for the right-hand side. Most of the play did come down the middle or towards the left. Most of them towards the left. Did you send anyone for a right midfield? Not yet. What's the most realistic signing?

Let's go through them right now because as it stands, Milan are still favourites to sign Renato Sanchez, but it's been that way for a fucking while and Milan have a lot of money. They're laddering PSG and Milan. But he's a replacement for Kessy though. Yes. He'll be fadaling with Baracer. I still worry more about the right midfield than the centre at the middle. I feel like Tonali and someone else, somehow you'll manage. But the right midfield has to be fixed.

And I'm just wondering who you have to buy someone. I don't know who it's going to be. What happened with the last Zieg? The last thing I read was he changed his agent. He sacked his agent and he had done the status on Instagram. There's always this fucking shit. And it was one of those, it was I can't need to be represented by myself for my true interests. I was like, oh my God. I'm a businessman. It was weird that he came out with that. But clearly I think he wants to move from Chelsea.

Now that Chelsea signed Sterling as well. They don't play on the same side. Sterling would play on the left. But Chelsea is changing their formation, it seems, as the resident Chelsea fan here. It looks like we're going to change to a 4-3-3. Sorry we brought a Chelsea fan. We needed some more information on football. So it looks like Chelsea might change to a 4-3-3. And Zieg, although he's a proper wing guy, if to use the FIFA terms, he's more RM than RW.

He's very good playing off strikers and playing off camps. When he's out wide, he's not that quick or has the incredible 1v1 ability to take on fullbacks and do these things. And he's also made out of glass. So if you buy him, good luck with that. Because every time he had a good spell at Chelsea, he ended up getting a bad injury and missed good periods. I think on the right side though, Milan really do value an industrious player. Salah Makaric contributes so much defensively.

He doesn't do so much though as yet. I have to disappoint you defensively. That is the more conservative side. Calabria does tend to stay back a little bit more. And on the left side, obviously, you have Leo and Theo. You are getting a Harry Potter though with his left foot. He's magical. And great in the final third as well. He gets it done in the final third as well. And his dead balls are brilliant and the way he reads the game is good.

So if you actually get him, you've definitely improved in that department. Now I have three words for you. Charles de Ketteler. How are you feeling about him, boys? I think he looks really good. Bro, if that goes through, I'm going to be a happy man. I don't know too much because obviously I'm working on highlights here, boys. But he looks like he's serious raw talent, man. He looks really good. What I've seen from him is again, YouTube makes everyone look like Neymar.

Well, it made Neymar look like Neymar. So he looks good. But he's a cam, right? He's a number 10. He could be right wing and cam, but preferably cam. Because in that cam role, you have... In that attacking midfielder role, in the number 10 role, you have Adli as well and Diaz. And if you want, you always have to play... He's better than both. Yeah, exactly. But you always need to play the best player in the best position.

So in that case, then you'd have to put, you know, if you don't sign Aziz or someone else, then you'd have to put Brehme or someone there. Adli might be able to play deeper, I think. Like a holding? Yeah. He's quite physical as a player. But I would say Spinal third. It depends because like Benazir Tonali, I think are the fixed ones. I think it's carrying the ball up a little bit. Rather than have a say in the final third, I think it'll be carrying the ball up more than anything.

I think it'll dig it out from the... But I really like how Ziyech looks as a player. Like I know that the right wing needs to be discussed probably more than the attacking midfielder. And I would like to see Mila show a bit more attention to the right wing, especially now with Castillejo leaving. I know that normally we wouldn't want Castillejo to be anywhere near the football. But with him leaving anyway, simply Mila need an upgrade in that position. Salah Makars is on the weaker side nowadays.

He's a little bit moody after he signed his contract. So before he was brilliant and commentators when he was playing in the Champions League were hailing him, Diaz and Léa. And the position managers as well, hailing Salah Makars. Literally. He puts pen to paper, signs a contract and he's shocking, man. Shocking as soon as he signs. And we're like, yeah, finally a player who commits and a good player like his own form. And then it just dips totally.

So yes, please, Milan, show a bit more attention to the right wing. We're talking about the Kettler though, man. We're getting fucking fucked up. We're talking about the Kettler and then we're talking about the right wing. And then it's Matt Wittener around. It's like we've all been quiet and like for the last four minutes we've just been listening to him. Bitch. About how Salah Makars was great and then he became shit, man. The Kettler kind of was really good.

It's like Iličić, man, the way he plays, like it's kind of cool. Iličić to Bologna. That's a fucking... That is a smart signing. So Bologna up next, all right? Ready? Let's stay on Milan a little bit. Noah Lang's been mentioned a little bit here and there that seemed to die down quite quickly. There's an apathetic problem on that guy.

But I think since Milan were originally going to get Buttman and that obviously fell through because he's going to Newcastle, Milan are clearly interested in signing a centre-back, no? And there's been talks about a cherry be joining Milan. I don't know how relevant those still are, but you're in a lot, so I think you'll have an opinion. And he's an Esassuolo kid. He was an Esassuolo. Esassuolo legend. He was, he was. What do you think, boys?

The man's obviously a bit worn out in this day and age, but... I think he would be a good replacement, regardless. I think he'd give you some experience and when RJB is in form on me, like you notice he's on the pitch. He is stopping balls, he's creating plays, he can cross quite well. He has quite a good long ball. And... RJB is an Italian centre-back. A starter. He's not an upgrade. He could play like 15 games. He robs your bench. He could play games where he's important.

Like important games, like against Udinese or Atalante. Overall, what I would say is you can't leave... If you're going to get someone like a cherry be on for a squad depth, I feel like a man of his age, he needs to be introduced to the game quite frequently to stay on top of it. I know he'll be training and he's a professional athlete and stuff like that, but he does need to remain playing minutes. And if he doesn't get those minutes, will Milan give him those minutes?

I would do it to Mario Atreba personally. Starting. I would start them. No way. You're a terrorist. Why, man? Why would you do that to Scarulo after what he demonstrated, man? He's so young and so talented, you don't want to push him away, man. With young players, you don't want to burn them out, man. And that's what happens a lot with young players. You know, but you can trust him, man. If it gets too much, you bench him, granted. But right now, he doesn't deserve to be benched, I think.

He doesn't deserve to be replaced. This is Atreba. He had two bad seasons. I mean, this is not a bad player. I would say he had two bad seasons. I would say he had two bad seasons. Like everyone else, that's all I think. I'm just saying over time, if I know... If Atreba plays the way I think Atreba plays, which is what I know from the last three, four, five seasons, he's consistently quite good. He gets an important goal somehow every season, which wins a game or wins two games.

And sometimes you need it from a defender. I'll take him. Kalulu also scored some winners, so I can't say anything against that. I'll take him, but not as a replacement of Kalulu. I'll take him to rotate a little bit with whoever needs to be rotated, but I won't take him as a starter. I think eventually he would start up. Maybe. It comes... With some leadership, maybe. That's what I was going to say.

Having two centre backs in young centre backs like Kalulu and Tomori, the only negative I'm seeing there is that there's the leadership. Now, although Tomori is quite experienced and Kalulu has very good defensive qualities, sometimes you just need that cool head at the back when things are going bad, who's just going to make... The John-Taker. Exactly. Perfect, perfect. Exactly. Kiss me. Just to calm things down and say, we're going to play through this, stick to the game plan.

And I know Calabria is Milan's captain, right? So you have a defender who's a captain. But I think having a centre back who's a leader is very important because the centre back's main job at the end of the day is... To maintain the formation. Exactly. Is to keep everyone in line. And having a bit more of a leader there could help. So that could help. Is that leader at Cherubi and then... And that's where the debate comes in. He might be a tough man. He certainly has experience, man.

And he's been lots of captain for I don't know how many years. He's had important roles in this career. He has, but then he looks at the post. He's also a cancer survivor. Yes, fair play. I rate him quite well and I think if he's a Milan bowler, over time he should be a core part of the team. Mixed opinions by all of us, but I do believe it is time to move on to Inter, the second best team in Italy. The winners of next season. Oh, that's a bold statement. Is it a landslide or is it close?

It's a hard one. I don't think I can fairly predict. I think it's a landslide, but I don't think it will be. I think it would be a landslide over Milan, but Juventus would be a bit closer. Juventus would be like within six points, I think. We're throwing Milan away here. No, I'd say third place. I think Juve might come back a bit though. Juve will come back, but Milan, it's showing that the longer time goes on, the better they get. So they're going to be in the mix over, believe you me.

But let's move on to Inter have confirmed. So so far it's Onana. How are we feeling about Onana? Brilliant, but apparently he's not going to start immediately. I wouldn't start immediately, but he's one for two years' time. Even less time. I think he'll replace Handanovic this season. I'm telling you, by World Cup he'll be the same. It'll start rocky for Handanovic and Onana will step in. I think Handanovic is one full season, then he retires. Will it be a good season? I think it will be, man.

If he has maintained some kind of fitness over summer, because towards the end he was pretty good. And what was this, sorry, sorry to bother you. No, it's OK, I mean, that's all the same. What was this about Onana? There was a point where he was suspended. Yeah, it was for, I think he failed a drug test. It was after a Champions League game. Cannabis. I don't know what it was. But I think he failed a drug test after a Champions League game.

But from what I heard, and then he failed all the doping subsequent tests as well. But from what I heard, it wasn't an intentional one where he took performance and answers. It was something he took and then it had these bad elements. But he was banned for a year. Like Boriello back in the day. They were taking something for an STD app. I remember. UFC fighters, UFC fighters sometimes they get caught for doping. They're like, you're taking some kind of steroid over here.

They'd be like, no, man, it can't be. I'm not fucking taking steroids. I wouldn't have taken steroids, but who would have had a piece of steak and the cow would have been fucking injected with steroids. It transfers to the steak. There was this Joel Romero, Joel Romero won a lawsuit against the UFC, made around 8 million euros, bought a mansion, bought a Chevrolet, like massive dogs. Like just living life, a Rolls Royce. Just living the life, man. But yes, that's on Ana's doping profile.

But I think I used to really like him when he was at Ajax. I thought he was a decent keeper. He did concede a P-roller in that semi-final then where they lost the spares with the last goal which should never have been conceded. But I think he's a good keeper and I do think he's an upgrade on Handanovic in the immediate term as well. Fair enough. I think he needs to stop, man. He hasn't been training for a year. No, he has been training. He's been back.

He's just not, he wasn't playing, he wasn't playing competitively. It's different when you aren't playing as a keeper, man. You get out of touch quickly. Onana is a hot topic. But there's Lukaku as well. There's Lukaku. The legend is back. Now, hold on, hold on. Hold on. It's a one-year loan, an 8 million no fee with no option or obligation clause. 8 million euros in a year is how much he's earning. And he gets add-ons related to the team's performances.

How do we feel about this move overall as a business, as everything? I think it's solid business from Inter after selling him for 18 million last year. Fair enough. 97. So they've made a shit ton of money and they're only paying him 8 million a year. OK. What do you think it does? Because I agree with you 100 percent, but is it a bit of a quick fix with the one-year agreement? It's a good idea, you know why? Because it gives Inter a good push this year.

And if they see he's not doing what they want him to do again, let's say instead of scoring 30, he's scoring 12, 15, which won't be bad, but it won't be like, oh, Lukaku was scoring every game. So then they can, with the money they have sold from him, buy a replacement. So this is like a kind of a safety card, I feel like. It's bringing back somebody who... The question is, do they have the funds to purchase him if he does do it? I don't think they do. They do if they sell screen yarn.

Bro, the guy dibbled in the Premier League market. He's never going back to Italy the same. They pay less, man, significantly less. 50 million, 50 million, 40 million, what do you think? Let's say 40 million. For Lukaku. More? No way more. He's a bit older now. Chelsea will not accept less than 60, for sure. They will not accept less than 60. Unless it's some sort of thing where Chelsea would rather have him not on their books, then, you know, and they don't really care about them.

Incredible money. At least Chelsea are not paying any... the good thing about this deal, the only good thing about this deal about Chelsea for Chelsea was getting rid of him and not having to pay his wages because originally the loan deal was going to have Chelsea pay part of his wages. And that would have been terrible because even paying part of it would have been like having a full pay. Exactly. But he was, to be honest, when he came, he didn't look bad at all at Chelsea. He was very good.

He scored on his debut with like it was a sixth or seventh touch in the game. And when he came in, he started off brilliantly and he was winning us games. And we were playing the team literally around him. We didn't change formation, but we changed our style to suit him. Then he does this godforsaken interview in November with Sky thinking, I don't know what on earth he was thinking. And decided it's not fine.

The first part of the interview was fine because he just said he didn't say bye to Inter, which to a Chelsea fan doesn't matter. Like fine, you didn't say bye to them. You want to speak to them now, fine, go ahead. But then the interviewer asked him if he misses Inter and he says, yes, every day. I can't wait to go back. And he said, what did you miss most about Inter? He mentions he says everything about the club. And then he said, I also miss playing with Lautaro.

And the interviewer says, OK, so why don't you ask Chelsea to buy Lautaro? And he says, no, no, Lautaro should stay. I'll be there soon. Like, come on. He just made he became one of the most expensive players in the Prem. I've not the I can't remember. I don't think he's no I think Grealish was more expensive. But he was one of the most expensive players in the Premier League. He moved back to what he always said was his home. Yeah, exactly. And then he then he does that interview.

And then to make it worse, he gets injured. I think he got injured before that. He was injured before that. He got better. He wasn't playing because we were playing better without him. Then he makes that interview because he's not playing. We were playing, but we're not going to fix something that's broken. That is the downside to Lukaku. And then you get a class player on the pitch. But then you do get that side to him. But I don't think he'll do that to Intai. I think he loves him too much.

I don't think he'll do it to him. OK, fair enough. He loves the way the people make him feel, I think. Quick question about Lukaku, because this is all that really matters. How many goals and how the winter progress with Lukaku and the team? 20 goals. How many sounds for you? I think you can hit 20. Unfortunately. 18. Not too less. I think 20 is minimum. I think he'll bag. 19 to 23 goals. Somewhere in that region. You like doing those age group for the winter? 0 to 16?

No, because I'm 25 now, so I'm with the older ones. 25 class now. Exactly. How do you feel being 25? Good, man. I feel good. I feel like I'm in the prime of my life. You do? Yes. You have your ambitions for the future? I saw him on the Duve last time and it's 40 degrees. You've changed, man. I heal at times. Another couple of players they decided to randomly get. One of them was Aslani. Fabulous. 20 years old. Full agreement. So they first approached him and they got personal terms with him.

And then they approached the club after and they managed to get him. And I have no information here, but he gets 1.2 million a season. It's along with an obligation if certain conditions are met by the player. And it would be 1.2 million per season. That's just a wise view. Aslani, that's a good deal. And he's going to be learning from Brozovic. I think the only thing is it's weird that it's a loan first.

Because I thought, originally when I saw the deal, I thought they would sign him and then loan him out. Because he's 20 and he's not going to displace Brozovic at the moment. But five sub rule and the fact that it's a long season. And this year there's a massive interruption with the World Cup which could affect the physique of players as well. Which we can't forget. It's important to have a lot of players in the team. So I think Aslani could be a good option. Definitely.

He honestly, they're going to need the debt. And they're going to need to rest Brozovic at times. And I think he's the perfect kind of player to do so. He has a fucking high ceiling. He has top talent, like exciting. I could see him at Inter to be fair. I could see him doing a shift when he comes on. There's no reason why he wouldn't. Another one is Bellanova. He's going to earn 1.5 million a year on a four year deal with the option to extend for a fifth year. Bellanova, I rate Bellanova.

I just don't know how high his ceiling is. Because I think I just like his physical attributes. There's nothing about the way he plays that attracts me. He's a quick guy. Can get back quick and go forward quick. I like him. He's not going to be in the starting lineup in the immediate term for sure. He reminds me of Hans Hatterberg. The way he plays is all in the sooner. There's Fenzel. They have Dumfries, obviously. And they still have Darmian now.

And even if they were stuck and he needs to play on the left, are you going to manage to display someone like Goassens? I think it's impossible. It's tough. Obviously, you just brought him up right now. Inter lost Perisic. And he's being replaced by Goassens in the team. Will Inter be better? Will they be worse? I think they'll stay the same. I think not much will change. And I think now Goassens has had six months to recover from his ACL.

Because of course, once you get back, you're not the same. I can speak personally. I still feel a bit creepy. No, it's true, man. And I probably haven't taken my recovery, even five percent of series, this Perisic down as Goassens injury. So probably now he should be what we're used to seeing from him. If not now, by October, I think we'll be seeing Goassens at his best again. To be fair, on your point. And I think that's a good player. A player who could score a lot of goals at Atalanta.

Now imagine Inter, dude. Yeah. On your point, I think that when it comes to Goassens, Inter played the long game with him and they played the game they should have exactly. So they had Perisic and they would introduce, they would start introducing Goassens slowly, slowly. They came out in the 85th and they came out in the 65th. And Goassens is getting some playing time, getting a couple of assists. Now he's going to have a full preseason as a fit player.

And then he's going to be in the starting eleven. And I think that's where we'll see him really excel. And I don't think they'll miss Perisic too much at that point. But Jake said something just before we started recording. And I think it's very true. Goassens has been super consistent and he's been, if not the best left wing back second, you could argue third, but I wouldn't say he was always third best wing back in the league.

But Perisic last year, that season that he had last year was probably better than any of Goassens. I don't know the number, so maybe I'm speaking out of my ass cheeks. But I think his best, I think Perisic last year, even if it's not just number wise, maybe we can pull them up as well so we can compare actually. But I think even what he gave that team, he was brilliant last year. And he has an attractive play style there, so it's a bit magical. And I've never seen someone so two footed as well.

Obviously they say he's left footed, but his right foot is just as deadly and he can weapon cross unbelievably. And he's super versatile, even though he was 34, I think, something like that. I think 33 if I'm not mistaken. Yeah, 33. There you go. He's 33 and he was one of the best in the league last season. And I think, you know, I wanted a match else as well. He's amazing. He had eight goals and seven assists last season. OK, granted, Goassens' best was 11 goals and assists.

Well, OK, so there we go. I'm stalking out of my ass. There's no reason to be. But to be fair, I think, and like I was saying, though, Goassens gave Atalanta a real lot. But I think what Perisic gave Inter for the last two years was incredible. And I think maybe, maybe I'm more impressed just because Perisic was much older. Maybe that's why I'm more impressed. I think you're sleeping every time Goassens. Perisic has had an 11-9 season, I think. There you go. That's better than Goassens.

OK, thank God. Thank God. Woo! I think you're sleeping on Goassens' stuff. No, Goassens is a top player. I know he's really good, bro. But this transfer is, I think, I think, personally, it's probably better than the one of Lukaku. Of Goassens? Yes, man. He was a man. It was incredible. People are forgetting what he was doing with Atalanta. Oh, you're right. You're right. Numbers-wise, though, I don't think so. Yeah. Because it was once a start to become a last-time.

Is it a freak season, though? Is it a freak season for Perisic? It was the prime, the last hurrah. Do you think that would have maintained for next season? I think long-term, they're better off. But Goassens can do better, I think, to be honest. I think. If he recovers well, man. If Perisic doesn't slow down next season, it's the one after. Let's go back to another confirmed transfer. So, Mkhitaryan with Inter.

I think, for me, this signing is being slept on and it's phenomenal for both Mkhitaryan and for Inter. I think they're going to do some serious work together, man, these two. He could be very good. He could be very good. He'll be rotated and he'll be good. I was thinking that probably he would be at the beginning of the season. He's bought or loaned? He's bought. He was free. He's won a free four million a season. This is a guy in 2020-21. He got 13 goals in 10 assists. That's not bad at all.

He's serious. He's serious, man. Mkhitaryan. If you play him in bursts, he can do really well. I think the point I was trying to make before we started recording is Shala Noglu has too many attributes to his name, which include obviously what he does on the pitch for Inter and how he links up with his teammates, which is already good. Very good. And then he's obviously a dead ball specialist. He's shown it from the spot this season.

He's shown it maybe not directly from free kicks, but slightly wider out, maybe at an angle from his corners as well. So, so much to his arsenal that maybe not irreplaceable, but it certainly gives him an edge over any competitor. Then again, he does tend to shift off a little bit throughout the game. So he is substituted in the 65th when he's having an off one. And Mkhitaryan coming on instead of like Sensi or something like that is incredible for Inter, man.

Yeah, yeah. It's a really good signing. It's a really good signing. Yeah. Smart move. Korea is leaving. I don't know. Korea actually, according to the sheet that I found today whilst I was at work, Korea apparently was confirmed on 1st July to stay. So I think they're going to keep him. However, I think Lukaku coming in, if I was Korea, I'd be a bit disappointed though, because it looked like Zeko was the one who was going to drop out of that front too.

And now, you know, Zeko is dropping out and so is Korea. Korea doesn't have a chance. And to be fair, Korea is more of a lauter or kind of than Lukaku. Exactly. And I don't think Nzaghi will ever need to change that front to whenever he needs to. You know, I think it's too good. Is Zeko confirmed to Monza? No, not yet. OK, there were some talks there. I'm not sure if I can see Zeko there.

But I think there's been a lot of talk about Skriniar as well, about his future. We're seeing PSG interested. Inter are using Penamonti as a cash grab and probably Skriniar by the looks of it. It was between Skriniar and Laotauro. How much are they going to get? 65, I think, for Skriniar. And Penamonti? Penamonti, 20 probably. It's not bad. Bayern are on the lookout for a center back, man. They're looking at the Ligt, they're looking at Skriniar.

I could see Skriniar at Bayern very well. I could see that. I see him at PSG for the sole reason that PSG love a name. It doesn't really matter if it's their system. They read an article and they're in. Money makes you stupid. The prince in his office.

I see him there. Obviously, it makes sense for them because if they need money, it makes more sense to sell the older player who's established that people are going to like than selling, for example, like a Bastoni who many clubs ran for him this year. And then they were all, Inter said no to everyone. It makes more sense because Bastoni is someone you can build around and he's for the future. Skriniar is still younger. Is that old? Is he 20? No, he's 25. No, Skriniar. That makes a difference.

Skriniar is actually 25. He looks 47. No, he doesn't. He looks like he's 30. He's 27. He's 27. OK, OK, OK. He's 95. He's a 95 boy. I saw number 37. I was like, what? I was thinking that with Leclerc recently. I saw that man Leclerc at the same age. Though we're not like. I'm a bit older by a month. It's fucked up, man. But so aside from Perisic and then there was Ranocchia that was confirmed on a 3-2 Monza. There was Satariano. Not a bad player, but a pretty good player.

There's Satariano as a loan to Empoli. Vidal is off to Flamengo and Sensi is off to Monza. So Inter lost those very like fringe players, I would say. And they lost your best player last year. Raudu, of course. Raudu of two, Matap. Cremona is. So he's staying in the league. I really hope he bounces back, Mesquite. That must be a tough one to take. It was heartbreaking for him, I think. In hindsight, when he lost them the league, like it's fucked.

He's young, no? He's very young. Yeah, he's not. He's not too young, is he? For a goalkeeper, he's young. Raudu's young, no? Like 26, is he? 27? 25. He's young, he's young. Ah, Benofec mint. I was in the fist bump. And then there are a couple of rumours and then about Inter, but Tobias has been speaking about Inter for a while. But there's Bremer that's been linked. There's been Milenkovic of Fiorentina.

There's been Skamaka, but that's kind of drifted off, not especially with the signing of Lukaku. I don't really see that happening. And then there's Debala, which I don't really see happening again, unless he takes the attacking with Vildrola. They just got Mkhitaryan. Exactly. I don't think anything. So, any one of those that stick out for you guys, we're happy to move on to Naples. Let's talk about Naples. What a disgrace, man. He said disgrace. Fuck him, man.

He's given them some good time, so not fuck him, but fuck you. He just refuses to take them over the line. He keeps them just below the line. And Saturday's Naples, they've been so good, they just refuse to invest. He cuts the fucking cost. They've lost this year. Insinia, Koulibaly, although I think as of right now, this moment it's not been confirmed. But I actually know it has been because he said he gave his goodbyes. No, it's official. You guys, man, lucky.

What a signing. I'm very happy with that. Koulibaly, Senegalese, Afghan champion. Fucking animal. Very intelligent. And he's actually pretty decent with his feet. People think he's big. And he scores the odd goal, too. And they lost Insinia as well. They lost two massive players. And the replacement is that they've mentioned maybe this Georgian guy, who I will not even attempt to pronounce his name. It might be decent. Oh, do you mean Kvara Kshelyan? It's fine. We can actually call him Kvara.

Kvara, yes. If you follow us on TikTok, you'd know that. He looks OK, but can he replicate what Insinia did? We'll need to see. It's so random, like out of nowhere. It has to be an opportunity to come up with one like that. And the team he's from, I'm reading it off your laptop, Jake. Dynamo Batumi. It looks like it's been invented. So I don't know. But he looks pretty good. There was a friendly game and he scored like... He scored two and assisted one. I saw it today on Instagram.

OK, I didn't know that. That's fucked up. That's really good. He signed. He signed, he's confirmed. He's 21 years old. So they lose Koulibaly, they lose Insinia, they get Kvara. And there are a lot of, I don't think, players like Ozymen aren't 100% committing to Napoli. Fabian Ruiz has been flirting with a move to Spain for ages. Mario Rui never knows if he's going to see the light of day the next day with Napoli. Mario Rui, every day he's more and more merging into Mario from Mario Kart.

He looks so much like him now. I swear. The moustache is going now. I think moustaches are really cool. That's because you have a moustache, man. No. So what I would say about Napoli to just sum it up is shambolic business, man. Well, they're making an ambitious... An ambitious, not shambolic, an ambitious. Exactly. Now we need to see what they do, who they get as the actual replacement, especially the replacement for Koulibaly because... I'm sure they're saying as well.

Interesting. But I think they should go for Milenkovic, for example, someone like Ofiore. You know who Napoli are interested in? Bernardeschi. Oh, good. That's how ambitious they are. And Di Valla. Bernardeschi, wasn't he? Di Valla, they offered him six million a season, official, like take it or leave it. He asked for eight, apparently. I saw Bernardeschi was offered a move to Toronto.

Speaking of that, by the way, because I have to mention it, the photo of Adam Sandler with Insinia is brilliant. Have you seen it? Oh my God. Adam Sandler has no idea who this guy, this midget is. He must think he's from the Make-A-Wish Foundation or something. Look at the photo. Oh my God. That's an amazing picture. Two worlds colliding. It's true, man. It's insane. I respect Adam Sandler. Some people hate Adam Sandler. I like Adam Sandler. I respect the guy who's always in Boston Bush.

I watched all of his rom-coms, 51st dates, bro. He's so rich he doesn't need to dress up. Zero effort. I mean, are we done with Napoli? We are. There's not much going on for that. Yeah, Guevara is the only interesting... Olivera from... Oh, yes, him. Now, him, I've actually seen a bit of him because I was watching a bit of Seria this year to kind of... He's signed? Yes, yes, he's signed. Who's this unit of mass destruction? Is he the one that was at Rome? Oh, wait. No, not... Wait.

No, no, it's not the same. Olivera. What's his name? No, it's not Olivera. Oh, my God. Is he a defender? Is he a defender? Can you check? He's a left back, yes. Exactly. He is one of these left backs who doesn't defend at all, but he always gets forward. So he could be interesting. And thank God because it's a massive upgrade on Mario Rui. So that's good. Don't give too much disrespect to Rui. He was good last season. Yes, but I think this is an upgrade. This is an upgrade.

I like this guy. He's maybe someone to keep in mind for Fanta. Maybe I'm giving away for my own fans. So, boys, I think the next one could take up the entire podcast. Because it's Juve. Juve have been serious. They're not fucking around. They won the league next year. They won the league. They have to. And Champions League, I'll tell you, they'll probably be quite ambitious as well. Juve have me making montage videos on TikTok of their team. Literally, man. Literally.

So the first one confirmed Paul Pogba, 29 on a free transfer of the result of the United States for a hundred dollars. Fuck him. Fuck him. Fuck him. Stay there, you salty little cunt. No, man. Fuck him, dude. I hate players like that. I hate them. He has a terrible attitude. Because they're such shit guys. What do you know about the market, man? I don't give a fuck what market you're on, dude. He has such a shit attitude, dude. He comes, he plays five games, he scores a couple of goals.

He's great. No doubting his abilities. He stops playing. He stops playing the next game. You're right. He chills, he parties. We never saw that with him at Juve, though. Never. Okay. I hope he comes back an excellent. So that's the question I was going to bring up. Is he going to be more of the United Pogba? Is he going to be more of what we saw in that season, bro? He was going with his outstep from outside the box. Fucking had cheetahs tattooed on his hair. Like a tattooed cut.

I don't know what to expect. I can't help but feel like he'll do well. I think he'll do better than United for sure. Now how good that is, we'll see. If it's a no, man. I think, exactly. I think he does suit the Italian football. And also he suits what Juve are going to look like next year. Because Pogba looks very good in two things. One, if he has a very good holding next to him. And I think if Locatelli has a good season, he could be that guy. Now he's not incredible, I have to say.

But I think he's decent. And Pogba also looks good when he's playing with very good players. And having in front of you a front three of Vlachovic, Keza, Di Maria. I think you can't not enjoy that. I think that's ridiculous. And the business side of it as well is just unbelievable. They sold him for a hundred million and they got him back on the free. So we got him for free in the first place. Exactly, in the second place. Eat my ass. Fuck these people, man. They're scum. They're actual scum.

I don't think so, man. Dude, if he acted like that with Milan, he'd say the same thing hands down. We're hurt, stop it. No, man, Chalunoglu acted worse. As if. No way you're going to compare it. Of course you are, man. You cannot compare. A guy, he comes to play football, does five games great, then this takes it easy for two months, not giving a fuck, complains about ambition, doesn't fucking take it seriously. You guys have been a shithouse though, so just Pogba. Pogba was fed up by United.

I'm not just saying it's his fault. The player disappointed the club, but the club disappointed the player. There you go. It's a sad story. We played him, man. We played him and we liked him. Sure, but what was around him wasn't the standard. But that's the point, man, to rebuild stuff. That's why they buy someone like you. But no one else is stepping it up and you don't want stepping it up. He wasn't the only one stepping it up, dude. In that season there was Rushford doing insane stuff.

Where did that get United? He wants to be up there, man. He wants to be winning at least domestically. Okay, man, but let's leave. Don't say flirting with it every fucking six months. But he was always on the game. He's a Raiola client. He was always willing to listen. Maybe football would be better, no? Rest in peace, Raiola. I think we should move on to Di Maria. Another insane free signing by Juve. What a wingback, I'm joking. More of an RM. One year, six million for a 34-year-old.

Replacement for Di Bala, I suppose, in some ways. Of course, not directly, but in some ways, yes. An upgrade, that's for sure. The thing is, he was at PSG last year. At PSG last year, he was still brilliant. He was, even at the finals. Exactly. He's probably one of the most, which is quite rare. You don't find many wing guys, out and out wing guys, who are super industrious on the defensive side as well. But he honestly does so much dirty work.

I think having him in your team, you feel you're happy with him because he does a lot of work, except when I was at United. But he's just walking back like a punt, man. Fuck you, Osteen. He says something about the club, this keeps happening. It just keeps happening. You seem to hit everyone, Rashford. Even Rashford's doing that now. Now the team's fucked. We can't say anything bad about Rashford, obviously. Thank you, Rashford, for all the charity. Yeah, thank you. He's a great guy.

Team Maria, bro, is so good at going direct and at cutting in, man. He's like the perfect hybrid. No, he's brilliant. And as long as Allegri doesn't play him left-back, I think they're in for business. I think so. I think if you take Messi out of the equation for Argentina, out of modern stars, don't even start to compare him with Maradona. A lot of recent stars of Messi was out of the equation. Team Maria would be that guy.

The guy has the most assists for PSG in PSG history over the course of what, four years? He won La Decima at Real, and he was quality when it came to doing that as well. He played an integral part. United didn't really work out, but straight to PSG. He's off it again, just makes history. And he's 34 now. He's 34. I think it's still a great move. I think so. One year contract on the free, you give him six million.

And then obviously if it really backfires, you're going to be a bit upset, because it's six million, but I think he'll be fine. I don't think there's much space for it to backfire. The only concerning thing I would say is I don't really see a future with Di Maria, because he's 34, and obviously next year in the 2022-2023 season, he's only going to be 35. After that, it's 36. Time to start considering it. But I think he's going to really help that front three with Kierza and Vlachovic.

I think that's going to look really delicious. He's going to give some sexy balls. I mean, you guys are really complementing Juve, dude, but their defence is in a disastrous state. We should speak about those. And there's only half a transfer season to go, and some good defenders are already taken. Yeah, so when it comes to defenders, obviously, to add to what Mintov just said, they licked his rumour to be out. And it's looking quite close now at this point. I think he's as good as gone.

They have to sell him. Need money. And he's going to go for near 100m, so it's good. And they lost Kelini, so they've lost two centre, meaning they're going to lose two centre. And they were really trying for Koulibaly. In fact, I think that's a big loss for them, the fact that they're not going to get him, because I think they were kind of resting on that and hoping that would go through. Resting on their laurels. Thank you very much. You're educated after all.

I'm trying to become middle class. Fantastic attempt. Aside from that, Morata is confirmed to be heading back to Atletico. Another money laundering project. All these Spanish clubs, man. Honestly, they're being run for sure by Walter White and Saul Goodman. For sure, for sure. I don't know where they're getting this money from, but anyways. Barcelona are on a whole new level. That's for the La Liga spotlight. How much did Chelsea originally buy Morata for, man? It was like 80 million.

Can you check? I think it was our record signing for sure at the time. And then he was beaten by Kebhar Rizabalaga, which is crazy. 60 million pounds, though. So like 71. Yeah, something like that. I'll take your word for it, because you sound smart. Other players. He's not smart, so. Real Madrid, Juventus, Chelsea, Atletico Madrid on your CV. Only those. And Spain nationally. Youth career get-off. Between Real Madrid and Atletico. But I don't know why Atletico wants him, genuinely. I don't.

Now I'm biased because he was... Play him out wide and okay. Wide, though, I can win Gary. Do not play him in front of goal for me. He has one thing, that it's pace, it's quick turn of pace, man. Quick turn of pace is good on doing. We saw when Vlavic came in and they kind of moved to this 4-3-3 more than anything. We saw him doing just that. I have to mention this, though. So Chelsea signed Morata the same season, United signed Lukaku. And they both did. I think a four-game goal is streaked.

And then the next game was Chelsea United at home, at Sanford Bridge. And I had a bet with all my friends that Morata would be the better signing in the long term. Honestly, how do I work in football? I said that and everyone was like, no, Lukaku is obviously better. That game, Morata scored the winner. And that's insane, had I. And I'm feeling like I'm king of the world. And he scores a hatchet, I think, next game against like a Stoke City or something.

I'm like, honestly, somebody signed me up as a director of football or something. And then, genuinely, I don't think he did anything else for the rest of the year, except crying. He just gave you a week of bragging. Exactly. Sohan, that's essentially, I believe, Uwe's market. I know they brought Cambiaso in from Genoa. They should sign him. Man, we're praising them way too much, you're right. And Mandjagoor out. But they've been doing good business, man. They have been doing good business.

Where do they finish next year? What are we thinking? Second. Behind Inter. Wait, no, hold on. No. I think first, man. First without knowing what defense they're going to have. I think they'll sort it out, bro. That's... who are they going to get? Let's talk. It's not for us to answer. It's not for us to realistically get. Someone alongside Bonacci, who pretty much knows what he's doing and can hold the line. Who is that, man? I think they'll find someone. Bremer. Bremer.

If there are options in the world, they can't decide. Even Milenkovic. Milenkovic, for the next shift as well. These guys are decent. Bremer or Milenkovic, to be honest. Yeah, 100%. That's pretty much Juve for us, guys. There's obviously talk going on about Zaniolo. Zaniolo apparently doesn't want to even train with Roma. He just wants to go to Juve. He's there with his bionic knees. You can all pissy. Kjeza moves to the left, Zaniolo on the right. What the hell happened to Di Maria? No way.

No, it's impossible. But it's a pretty official... It's a bad move for Zaniolo. Who's reported this? I think it was Di Martio. No, no. He's been heavily linked and the sources look credible. But again, like you're saying, it depends where he's going to play. Because if he's going to come and still be second fiddle to Di Maria... It doesn't make sense for him. For him, I think it makes more sense to play in a Roma where he's going to start. Under Mourinho. Under Mourinho, exactly.

And I know we're going to talk about Roma later, but Roma's front line still looks very good. It's still exciting to play in. But you know what it is, man. If they don't come in, you can be Di Maria's understudy for a year or two. And then after you're our main guy, we're investing in you. Plus Champions League. Plus you're at a team that's no stranger to you. Di Maria does get injured. He does, but he also wins titles. And if Keza hasn't recovered properly, that might be an avenue for him.

Exactly. Aside from that, and then there's also some talk about Arnautovic or some weird talk about Arnautovic. I don't even think we should address that. That would be crazy. And very cool. It would be cool. But let's move on to Lazio. Lazio towards the end of last season. Can we also say Shambolic and Disastrous is right? Yes, 100%. One thing I was saying towards the end of the season last year was I was surprised Lazio finished above Roma. Because Roma kind of seemed to pick up.

Lazio seemed to dip off. And to be honest, seeing Lazio in fifth kind of surprises me a little to this day. Because I do think that Roma were a better side than Lazio last season. And Sarri has clearly been given some time to improve the team now over the transfer window. But what's going on with Lazio? Not much. What's going on? You guys know anything? You know what I was going to say, which is like a really random move. They just lost Strakosha on a three. And Luis Felipe on a three.

Luis Felipe is I think probably of the two is a bigger loss. But Strakosha is a young promising goalkeeper. They lost him for a three to Brentford in the Premier League, which is... Rude. It's really random. Because at the beginning of the transfer window he was linked to the better teams. He was linked to top six teams in England. And then he was linked to Fulham. And now he's made the move to Brentford, which is really random.

And I think it's strange because Strakosha was one of the players I thought that was... If he stays, he would really help Lazio improve a bit. Because I still think he's a very good goalkeeper. He is. He's a good keeper. He's decent. However, if you look at their transfers, I have them here if you want. Marcus Antonio, 7.5 million. Who? Alessio Romagnoli for free. Luis Maximiano for 10.1 million. Matteo Cancellari on loan. Nicolo Casale, Trasale, what was it again? Casale I believe.

I think Casale. And Mario Gila for six million. So they have been active. The question is, are these guys any good? Maybe for squad depth, I guess. To address the loss of Strakosha, I do want to bring up that they were originally... Lazio were originally looking at Karinasecki. They were looking at Karinasecki. They were admiring him from afar. They needed to reach a deal with Atalanta to try to get him, obviously, to play with Lazio.

And that is a young goalkeeper, Italian, local, really, really talented. He's a fucking great goalkeeper, really young as well. But for some reason, it doesn't seem like that is too likely to go through. And they shifted their focus at a point to Vicario, who's also a great option for them. Vicario. I really like Vicario. I agree. I think what I was going to say about the Lazio signings, the one that's interesting is they've got Romagnoli at centre back on a three.

They've got another defender in Ciasale, which is quite interesting. But then they've got this guy, Mario Ghila, from Real. Real, 21. I don't think he's played a single game for them. Honestly, I never heard of him before. I did any research. No, absolutely never. But sometimes these clubs sign these random players from somewhere. And all of a sudden, they end up being very important players.

So maybe, maybe this guy, if he actually has anything about him, he could actually be someone that could help out. Just two appearances for Real Madrid and that's it. The rest is for Real Madrid B. Sorry, I'm going to go back to this, but I just found more information about the Kainesecki and Vicario thing. Atalanta wanted 18 million for Kainesecki, and Lazio's highest bid was a reported 12 million plus 3 million in add-ons. So no wonder they want to sell their midfielders as well.

They have Mousseau. Atalanta have Mousseau. So Kainesecki might be interested to move because they have a young keeper there. And if he wants to play and he's a young, good goalkeeper, he might want to move. But yes, I don't think there's much more to add about Lazio. It looks like they're keen to offload one of the two centre midfielders that are two of the best centre midfielders that are in the league. Luis Alberto and Milenkovic Savic, and they're looking to offload.

They are keen to hear what people can bring to the table. But I don't think they can sell them with Letito, man. I think Letito will always demand too much. His players will always end up leaving on a freeway for a reduced price, because he's too greedy. I could see that happening, to be fair. You know who I think Lazio might actually try to sign? And this is purely because I know Sarri from Chelsea time. And the players... Chelsea really is reconnected. It's not.

And with Milen and Lazio in particular, Lazio because of Sarri, but with Milen there's quite a few players. There's Rudiger as well from Roma. We both shared the Bacchaiocco with the Mites. Exactly. And Van Ginkgel. Yeah, Van Ginkgel. Yeah, there was also SCN, by the way, who was a class player. But they have... I think Inter might make... Sorry, Lazio might make a move for Ruben Loftus-Cic, because Sarri loved him.

And there were rumours that Lazio were thinking of offering Milenkovic Savic in an exchange for two players at Chelsea. The other one I think was Emerson, someone like that. Which would be interesting because they need another left-back as well. I don't know how true these rumours were. And if they are, I don't think Chelsea would accept for the simple reason that Chelsea don't need more number eights at the moment. So I don't think it makes sense for them.

And if you have Ruben, kind of, who's younger and is doing well at Chelsea, why get rid of him for someone who you don't know if he's going to do well? But I do think that maybe if they have the money, they might even just launch a bid and see if anyone bites. That's what it means. Because what Sarri has is that once he gets... he can find two good young players and make them into very, very top players. Hudson O'Doher was brilliant with him and so was Loftus-Cic.

And even now, even with Napoli and now with Lazio, the younger players always did well with him. So it would be interesting to see what he does. But aside from that, I don't think there's too much else to say about Lazio. I don't think there's anything to write home about. It looks like they're going for continuity more than anything. And where they were seriously struggling, it's maybe time to address that. However, I am concerned... Sarri has left this. Oh no!

But to talk about not to neglect the defense in this conversation, they lost Luis Felipe on a free and they're going to offload at Cherubi as well. So they need to do something about that defense. It could be that the players that Jake mentioned, some of them could be the centre backs as well. One of them was a keeper you were checking, right? Yes, Maximiliano. Maximiliano was the keeper, 10 million, and the other one was a 5'5 central midfielder. Antonio, right? Antonio, exactly.

It's Sire, you mean? Marcos Antonio of 7.5 million. Those are the guys. And then Gryla is the Real Madrid guy, 6 million. For someone who's played two professional games, 6 million. I find it a bit odd. They're not banking on natural talent, like straight up. Shall we move on to Roma? It's been a bit all over the place over there. Shall we delve into it a little bit here? Nice. So, confirmed they have Nemanja Matic. 33-0, that's the third time Mourinho has signed him.

You know, he's an older Brian Cristante, in my opinion. What do you think about Matic? He's going to bring the experience, eh? As fellow Prem heads, what do you think? I could be bare to stand watching him play. He's the common factor, dude, between all of us. He's the common link. Oh my God. Premier League? Yeah. There you go. We're a bit broader, but... If only he'd join me, though. There you go. I don't know, I think he's... I don't really have much good things to say about him.

He's a good player in the sense that if you ask him to play, he plays. There's no bullshit from him. He just plays and he does his job. What does he do on the pitch? Breaks down play, he's a crusher. He's a proper destroyer. He's just going to go in, stop the counter, no fanning about. If you're going to try and beat him... But can he keep up? Maybe in Italy he can do it better. Maybe in Italy he can do it better.

When he was at Chelsea, again, not to keep mentioning Chelsea every time I speak, but genuinely, genuinely, when he was with us, obviously he was a young guy, in fairness. But the first... because he was with us twice. And the first time he was with us, his debut, he bossed the Iaia Turia, which I don't think anyone has ever done, ever. And in his second spell, he won the Premier League with Conte. So he can give something, but again, he's quite old.

And I don't think he's a major improvement to Roma. But he will help, definitely, having an experienced head that is going to keep things ticking as well, if needed. Mourinho loves those signings. Exactly. So he has the Mourinho mentality, so he'll fit in, but we don't know how much of an asset he'll be on the pitch, I think in the training ground. He'll bring some experience and he'll get people... And it's low risk, anyway. Exactly, exactly. It's one year on a 6 million, 6 million a year deal.

So, yeah, Sergio Oliveira was confirmed out for them. I believe he's going to Galatasaray. He came, spent six months and left. He's basically David Beckham. What the hell? He left? How random. How fucking random. What a cameo, huh? He really wanted to face Roma. No, he just went back. He was alone, I believe. Oh. I believe he didn't exercise the option. Alveira, Sergio Oliveira. Oh, yes. Wow. So, yeah, and then they're linked with a bunch of players, like so many fucking players. Berardi.

Berardi. Oh, no, he was sold to Galatasaray, never mind, sorry. No worries, he was sold to Galatasaray. From, by Porto. By Porto. Ah, but they still didn't exercise anything because he went back from... Porto B. He was playing, he played a game with Porto B apparently. Must have fallen out. The disrespect. He's a decent player. Oh, that was 2019. Okay, okay. Okay, that makes sense. That was a while ago. Zaha. Zaha is interesting. That's cool. I can't see it happening though.

I don't think it will happen because to get Crystal Palace's captain and, you know, you need to, I mean, Crystal Palace is not too expensive, but they need to pay quite a bit because you'll be buying a captain you need to spend. And it would be random because he's, you know, he's only ever played at that level, you know, Crystal Palace. So he was at United, but he was too shit there. Another common theme of this podcast. But he's like, I don't think he's... It would be interesting though.

I'd like him to move there though. He's a very exciting player. He's very direct. He's explosive. Exactly. And he's the kind of winger Mourinho will like as well. So I think it would be interesting if they do get him, but I highly doubt. I agree. And I think they do need to address the left side a little bit as well because like El-Sharawi was coming on at that point. Who was starting left wing for Roma? El-Sharawi was coming on. El-Sharawi was coming on. They were playing with two attackers.

Yeah, because then they were playing with Zaniola. Zaniola was trying to carry and then El-Sharawi was coming in. Exactly. They're looking at Isco as well a little bit. I don't know how true that still is. I feel like everyone looks at Isco at some point. Yeah, Isco is just... Nothing normally happens. He's in the window like you look past as you want. No, he's a Malta bro actually. He was, he was. Him and Alfonso Davies. He didn't have to say anything. Alfonso Davies. Yeah, Alfonso Davies.

Interrupted lessons of a football tournament for the students. Fucking right. Other English language schools are available. It was like, assistant amendment. Alfonso Davies. Gino Bala. My friends and I used to do this thing to make each other laugh. Like when we'd be walking in Slema, we'd say, imagine just like, Yaya Ture starts walking towards us. I used to get a really kick about it. We used to start laughing like seeing Kolo Ture in the background somewhere.

And this actually happens to people like he interrupted their five aside. Alfonso Davies, incredibly random man. Insane. Frattese was something at a point he was very close to joining them. But I don't think Rambo wanted to comment. Frattese Steyn. Frattese Steyn, that's what I think. That is a man in a Sasuolo kit speaking. The listeners have no idea what we're weighing. It's true. Should we mention it now or is it a bit insignificant now? It's kind of fun.

I'm in a vintage third kit Milan kit from 1995. And the pearls and the mustache. Pearls and the mustache. Because I'm like that. I'm in a Sasuolo kit with the best Italian right midfielder at the moment. Mr. Berardi. And with a Latio kit home of last season with none other than Ciro Immobile on the back. Nice. I'm Drake and I felt like this should have come at the beginning. And I'm an Alfonso Home kit of last season. One of the worst teams in the league. One of the worst teams in the league.

The worst. But we're on the loveliest kit I've ever seen. How cool it is. It is beautiful. It is phenomenal. Hey man, it's really cool. I feel bad wearing it. Can Sasuolo relax though? Like 30 million for Frattese they're asking for. I think he needs another season consistently. The Verona president passed a comment. He said like we have no reason to not charge as much as Sasuolo are charging. They're fucking crazy. That's not exactly what he said but that was the vibe.

I think Sasuolo are really like on high and over valuing their players. They have hot talents, very marketable at the business. I think all those players are more or less worth it. At the end of the day it's business man. They're saying we're open to sell. But they want a good price for them because they're good players. I mean 30 million for Frattese is a little bit high but he's a pretty darn good player. Fair enough. You can't tell but say fair enough.

If someone wants to buy Simeone then give them 40 million. What I'd say is valuations, people sometimes they tie it only to the player. But really and truly the valuations are how much the club thinks they need to replace. And that is something you need to keep in mind. For example there's this really good argument I've seen with certain players. For example when they see big prices for like holding with fielders.

Whether it be like for example for Frattese 30 million you might see that's too much. There's other sentiment fielders who are going for 60-70. There's one sentiment fielder in particular who they're asking 150 million for for example. So, I don't want to deck him right. But 150 million is not how much the player is worth. It's how much the club thinks they need to get adequate replacements. On one player? But that's not for one player.

It's to fill the gaps and perhaps they want to use that as an excuse. I've never thought about it that way. It would make so much sense. Because you need to keep in mind that sometimes when the players are overvalued it is because the club thinks I need this amount of money so that I can get adequate replacements or to improve the team. It's a nice feeling to know that the club values you so high. That's true as well. It must be good for the club. It must be bad for the ego.

You need a bit of ego, man, and sports. Not a big one, but you need a bit of one. Who else of Roma have been linked with? Man. Celik. Has he signed? Celik I think signed. He signed. I laughed because of the way you said man. I think Celik did sign. I think I saw it somewhere though. Yes, he did. He played for Roma. And the Turkish national team. He's 25 years old. He's 6 foot 1, he's a defender. Right back, exactly. 5'11". He played for Lille as part of the title winning team. Yes, Lille had...

They had Celik, Botman and Sanchez all three that we mentioned today that were all kind of the big players last year and the year before. They also had Boracay Ilmaz who I think next year he turned 67. Man, Lille are a fucking factory. They make good products. They made Eden Hazard as well. Eden Hazard, that's crazy. Was Ozzy Mann from there as well? Yes, he was. Ozzy Mann was from there as well. Crazy talent.

And they have this guy now, Jonathan David who's been linked to every club in the world. Even Hamroos Sparta is really linked to that. Pierre Calullo. Hello. Ah, as well, yes. Ah, he was with Lille as well. Show some respect. So it's a lot of flirt. I know Roma were flirting with Mertens as well. I don't know how much that's going to happen but Mertens is leaving Naples. No, I think he'll stay, man. I think he'll settle. Really?

Yes, I think he'll accept it. The Maldives keep living in Naples like a gang. Ciro. What do you think? No, I think Mertens will stay as well. I think so. Okay, I don't think there's much to add for Roma. I'm trying to have a think because I think we are missing something. It's hard right now, yes. Thinking is really difficult. They lost that Maitland Niles. That's something to say. They will never survive without him. You know, the next team is really fun, Fiorentina. Yeah.

The under Italiano. The team that did really well but still lost 4-0 to Odinese. So what can we really say? I'm interested to see what Luka Jovovich does. Yeah, same. Because he's a guy that, that season he had at Frankfurt, he looked like he was going to boss international football and become the next best thing. Like what kind of what we're talking about now kind of. Honestly, I'm not exaggerating.

That season he was unbelievable and he was playing in a really cool team. That Frankfurt team is very, very cool. Maud Draugr has a good signing, man. Very, very, like he's a serious staple. Like, you know, it's pretty, it's pretty smart. But I think, I think the guys that they've, that they've been linked with as well are smart and the guys that have got in are good.

I think, I think the most interesting one to see would be Jovovich though. I think he's going to be, I think he's going to be interesting. He said his goal is to score 30 goals. That's maybe in two years. Maybe three. Over the course of two years. Like Jovovich, like you said, he was insane at Frankfurt beyond belief. Like one of those sensations. With Ante Rebic setting him up.

Got a move to Real, rotted on the bench for a lot of seasons, man. I know he was loaned back to Frankfurt at some point, but he spent most of the time rotting on the bench at Real. And sometimes I see players who are on the bench. Still? Last season he was on the bench for Real. The season before he was on loan. Because I was just checking if he was on the, in the squad. Because Frankfurt won the Europa League this year, so maybe he had, he was there. But I don't know. I'm entirely sure.

He definitely didn't play the final, so I don't think so. I think he was, I think he was on the OO with Real. Because I remember seeing him celebrating, but I think it was the Champions League. It was at Frankfurt. It was on loan at Frankfurt. No, that's, that's 21 though. No, 21-22 Real. Yeah. There you go. Okay. Played what? He played... Oh no, okay. I thought he played one game. Wait, no, but one start. One start, there you go. One start. 14, 14 sub appearances. That's ridiculous.

Forgive him, Ašad. Real gets 50% of his sell-on clause. That's just a lazy deal. Exactly. It's like a take and fuck it. We'll see what happens. 50%! 50%! You never see that. 50% is mental. They must have used that to get the price down as fuck, she's gonna be with us for life. 50%, that's ridiculous. Speaking of Fiorentina's relationship with Real, Odriozola went back to Real, by the way. So no more Odriozola, try it back for Fiorentina. It'll be a loss. It will be a loss. I agree.

He was pretty good. But he looked like he needed more time, eh? But he looked like he'd be good in three years, he'd be really good. That's what... I think it's another season, to be fair, man. I think he started adapting towards the league. Didn't they also lose to Torreira? They did. And I think this is the biggest loss they've had. But Mandragora might be at least in replacement if he stays fit. Yes, but Torreira was very capable of scoring goals. Yes, inserting himself.

And he's a very little industrious Uruguayan, so he was a good player for them. And I think he's gagging for a leave, to leave. But... Yeah, yeah, yeah, Fiore. I think it's done now. I don't see him going back, Torreira. He can't, it's impossible. He's not going to play for Arsenal, for sure. I was watching this attentively and I've done my research.

And basically, Torreira, 26-year-old, by the way, sometimes for some reason I forget he's at Youngbrook because he's been around for a while, that 26. He'll not be exercising Arsenal's option to buy for 15 million, which considering 15 million for a player that was your star player this season before, excluding Vlachovic, Torreira was their star player.

You don't pay 15 million for him, especially when you made that money off of Vlachovic, off of Chiesa, and all of these, you don't pay 15 million for Torreira. I think you're fucking up a bit, man, in my opinion. Torreira apparently did everything he could to stay at the club, but Commissar blames his agent for not complying. The classic scenario, no you shit, no you shit.

And then Torreira spoke out against the club as well, so that all ended and it's now a sad relationship between Fiorentina and Torreira. So he's done, he's gone, officially. You're a Prem head, do you think he'll fit back into Arsenal's plans? He won't play for Arsenal, no way. Yo, you're a Prem head. No, he won't play for sure. Okay, and then there's some rumours for Fiorentina. One of them is, these are so outdated, Jesus Christ, apparently Vania Mlinkovic-Savage.

Ah yes, he was mentioned, that would be crazy. What's up with Fiorentina just having good goalers and not being happy with them? Hey, literally. Dragovski, Terracchiano, like that's not bad. You think they're after a goaler. And here it says apparently they were battling it out with Brentford for Mlinkovic-Savage, but I think Brentford have their guy now. Maybe not with Brentford. Maybe Strakosha. Strakosha, yeah.

Ah, as they got Strakosha Brentford, so they're sorted in the goalkeeping department. But aside from that, Fiorentina brought in more players, surely. Fiorentina brought in a couple of people. Not yet, they only brought in Jovic so far. Okay, apparently they're interested in Doddo or Dodo. No, they brought him, no, he's that, no, Doddo. Yes, there's a confirmation of 14.5 million plus 3.5 million in bonuses. That's a lot.

23-year-old, exciting, right back, who's recently picked up by Shakhtar for 2 million and is now valued at 25 million. And Bayern Munich were interested in buying him. He played under Deserbi. Could be another Aaron Hickey. He learned the Deserbi way and now he's off to Roma. That could be quite cool, to be fair. You take him on fun, though, guys. He's off to Fiorentina. What did I say? Roma, man. He's off to Fiorentina. We've been drinking, we've been thumping.

He might be someone to pick up in the Asta for like a cheeky, less than five, no, so on, to be fair, he's right back, so you can go off a bit more. But hopefully he's within the 10-credit range, so you can... That's the attractive range. I'm sure we're missing something for Fiorentina, but I think we're happy to move on if we don't think so. Nice. So we look at Atalanta. Right? Massive disappointment last year. Biggest losers. Was it the players? Was it the manager?

There was that whole debate. What do you guys think? A bit of both. I think there was like a dystemia going on there. It was like consistent depression, man, at Atalanta. It was failure to comply to the system, and that was their strongest point, being able to fill the gaps. Plug and play, that was their favourite phrase. Yeah, plug and play. You were like, bro, I've never heard the word play, plug and play. You've used so many times in my life. I think I'm going to cry.

Just plug and play, bro, plug and play. It's true, though. It's really sad to see them do so badly, especially because Atalanta is Atalanta, you know, and they're so exciting. They have this really insane coach who manages to get the best out of videography sometimes. He ain't dancing no more, is he? Yeah, he's no longer sexy. But Atalanta have had like very slight movement in the market. One of them is that obviously Pesina's off to Monza.

Brilliant signing for Monza, quite a loss, I would say, for Atalanta, but they are stacked in the attacking midfield department. They are, but to be honest, I thought Pesina would side next year. Yeah, but Mirantsog's been on the up as well. Mirantsog is looking very good. Every time he plays, he looks really good, man. But Pesina, granted, he's a player who is really capable of inserting himself. He can't speak well about Russians, though, anymore. Yeah, exactly.

You know, he should play for Manxaktar. Oh my god. Oh my goodness. Brilliant. They've also confirmed the signing of Salernitana sensation. Ederson, bro, 15 million, Lovato and some guy named Okoli. They fucking got them four. That's honestly like crazy. A player who did relatively well at Salernitana looked to give them a creative boost, a little bit of energy, a bit of creativity going forward. But I don't think it justifies that amount.

No, it seems like Atalanta are losing more than they're gaining here. Aha, and I think that has been a bit of a theme for Atalanta in this transfer window because as well I heard, bro, I don't know if it's bullshit, like correct me if I'm wrong, that they've offered Duvan Zapata as part of a potential deal for Inter striker Andrea Pinamonte. You think it's the other way around, right? Literally. It's not going to show youth is really being highly valued nowadays.

It's Pinamonte and cash for Zapata. It's not Zapata and cash for Pinamonte. That's crazy. It's impossible. Like why are Atalanta doing that business, man? Pinamonte had a pretty nice season. He did, he did. He did, yes, he did. The ceiling is really high. I think Gasparini sees that he can make a monster out of him, man. And Zapata has been so moody, man. That's true. He's been injury-prone. And he's been so injury-prone, man. And you need consistency to win, to get up into the league.

You can't have spurts of good, you can't bank on that. It's hard to work with. Yeah, but as a negotiation tool, you should have enough for Duvan Zapata to not have to offer that much cash, I think. You can't just say, hey, StrainSwap will give you five mil, at most. I don't even think... You need to give the five mil. The money should be involved. Like it's Zapata, then they... Pinamonte is a player who, in the right environment, can become a very fucking good player. He could.

Like, if you look at him under Gasparini in that system, he could actually... I think it would be quite a good signing for them. I think it's being slept on a little bit. It might be, yeah. 23 years old. They're investing in the future, eh? But I still think there's a more clever way of doing business to get them on board. Maybe they want to really get off... Maybe they want to offload Zapata completely and keep Morrion and Pinamonte. That's apparently it. And apparently...

Apparently, Inter are holding out for an offer of at least 18 million. And they're only interested in a straight cash offer. So that's that move off in that case. That makes sense, straight cash for Pinamonte. Makes no sense. So they'd rather have cash than do one Zapata, which is interesting. Other than that, I've seen West Ham are kind of flirting with... West Ham just need a striker, because they've been playing... They're going to get Skamaka, right? Most likely.

That's what the rumors were. And 40M as well. I'd like to see that. And the front runners for Skamaka were West Ham and PSG. In an alternate universe, that makes sense, but not in this one. West Ham and PSG. First of all... They're going to breathe the same air. Exactly. First of all, PSG, what on earth do they need another striker for? It's ridiculous. And secondly, I honestly think... I like Skamaka. I think he's pretty decent.

The Italian Peter Crouch, as you always say. I think he's pretty decent. But I think genuinely in the Premier League, he wants to go within six goals. Wait, wait, wait, wait, wait. Listen to me. Listen to me. Listen to my point. Not because the Prem is too hard. Just because the Strikers that were in the Prem right now... Right now. We'll see with Harlan. Maybe Harlan will change that. But the Strikers that were in the Prem now are the ones who are in the classic number nines.

And that's my only argument about this. And Skamaka is a classic number nine. I think Skamaka would do well. I think Skamaka would do well to stay in Serie A, whatever he does. What qualities do you feel Skamaka brings to the table? He is a classic number nine in his stature. He's fucking tall as fuck. He's strong and he's good on the ball. But there has been a handful of games this season where Skamaka has received the ball. Turned and shot. Turned and shot and it's flown in, man.

And that's something that probably any team will take. Any team would take that. Any team would take a fucking guy who's ready to shoot from God knows where and score. Get a goal out of nothing. The goals he was scoring were fucking crazy at the moment. They were wild. They were wild. He has such a shot on him. And I think that with a bit more... Tuning. Physicality and tuning, he could be quite well tuned for the Premier League. And he'll be scoring one in six goals.

The Premier League, there's a lot of balls in the air, obviously. And he's a big guy. He's really good at taking the ball down, volleying, taking it on the volley, heading it. He's good in those departments. His weakness is being Italian, man. That's it. In the Premier League, they just don't have the history. They don't work out, man. That's it. Zola is the only one who's been alright. And Di Canio. But Di Canio used to cry a lot. He would go to England and barely sniff the turf on the pitch.

Gabbiadini. Gabbiadini. To be fair, he had a really good stint at Southampton. I don't know if it was League Cup or FA Cup final. And they lost three-nil. But he was really good. So I think that's Atalanta. I don't think there's been many more rumours. Muriel, what about Muriel? Muriel is leaving. Okay, there we go. The question is, is he staying in Italy or is he going to Spain? It looks like he's going to Spain, most likely. And where in Spain? Like a Sevilla kind of thing? Villarreal.

Let's see. In the meantime, I'll... I think actually Sevilla, man. I think I saw something. He was at Sevilla before, so it makes sense. He's an option for Roma's attack, latest news. There you go, Serri, a spotlight for your latest news. I would definitely pay 200 credits for him there. At Roma? This guy is yours. This guy is going to have a nap. I'm tired, man. You want to stop? No, as if. We're pressing on, man. We're no pussies. Shall we move on to Torino? Let's do it.

Or Muntov starts snoring at the tables. I've yawned once, you fucking babies. You had all this information, you haven't opened it for once. I forgot I had it. As Jake just fucked up. He just opened a massive PDF that's 34 pages long of information. I spent three days preparing this word document over here. And you've not opened it. And I haven't opened it. He's not opened it once. But man, you've been doing it for the same show. I think you have the same one, though.

Yes, I have the same. That's what I've been working on. I have the first to clap. Try not to clap too much. I like clapping. Headphones. What's this? The guy at the gym just dropped the bench press and he's fucking dying right now. You're welcome. Okay, Torino. There we go. Bellotti leaving free. Who's he going to? Monaco. Monaco? Yeah, I think Monaco. I think we'll go to Monaco. Are Monaco losing a striker as well? I heard Benny and Mike going to the wolf.

I know that they're going hard on him, though. And he seems keen on the idea. He seems to be waiting for Milan, man. That's the kind of thing he gives. He said it multiple times, very vocal about his love for Milan. I think he's waiting for the second life to realize that they don't actually need another striker. Or if they do, Bellotti is in the profile. Which, to be honest, I might argue that he is. Low fees, another striker.

It might be good. He might be the one that's the most consistent in game time. He's the least injured. You know who he is? He's been prone. Historically, last season's different. You know who we didn't talk about for Milan? Suarez. That's off. Okay, so back to Bellotti. Last season, he was a bit more injured. Yeah, and last season he seems out of sorts. But those injuries are defunct. And I think even the team is changing. I didn't feel a part of it, maybe, because he knew he was leaving.

Exactly. He came back to a different side. It's as simple as that. So I hope he stays in Italy, because he's literally... If one thing is certain, he's good in Serie A. So I'd like to keep him in the league. And I'd take him at Milan, to be honest, man. Even if he works off the bench, how many minutes is Lata going to stay realistically next year? And Bellotti might be a good little coup on a free. And you limit his wages a little bit. You play the injury card.

Apparently West Ham and everything, as always, are in to things with Bellotti. West Ham is everywhere. Every striker, they're like, oh, he's good. They're so desperate for a striker. I was never playing Mahal Antonio like a striker. He was very, very good. He's with a wide no... He was insane wing back. And they're chucking him there, so we'll see. But for a while it seemed like Bellotti wasn't the only big player that Torino were willing to lose.

For a while it seemed like Bremer was close to Inter, and other teams were flirting with him as well. But apparently he signed a contract extension with Torino up until 2024 back in February. What do you think about him as a defender? I personally think he's one of the best in the league, man. He is, man. He won MVP last season. Oh, defender of the season. I think he's class, but he will probably... I think now is the time for him to make the move.

And with so many big teams interested in Inter, one of the... I think him as the replacement for Scorniart is brilliant business. For Inter and for him, because he's gone aside, he's really young, and he's brilliant. He's just a good player. But Inter need to commit, man. They haven't committed yet to him. Which is why he probably signed the extension with them in the first place. But I read... I think it's more fun to have Torino actually getting money than him.

I read that he already... like, personal terms with Inter is not a problem. I think it could be that they already agreed something. But I'm sure... and he's been gagging for Inter as well. He's been praying for them. It's been common for a while. Apparently there was a deal done for six months between the two clubs. And then it just never went to fruition. They offered him a new contract. Did you see the message that was hung by the fans? I saw that, man.

Short arms, your surrender is at the gates. Sorry about the voice. Cairo, go away. Wow. Yeah, about the president. They feel like he isn't investing enough. And the thing is, Juric, you can't help but feel bad for him. Short time? They're going to give him a T-Rex, basically. Exactly. Short, Torino. Yeah, Torino fan. And the thing is, Juric had the same thing at Verona where they weren't willing to invest and wanted to cut their costs. And it's the same thing now with Torino, it seems to be.

They're losing their two best players. And Mandrake as well. And Pobega. And that happened with Dimarco, with Juric, where he loved the player and didn't redeem him. It seems like Torino have had some movement, but really, really nothing to write home about. They got some guy from Serie C, from Catanzaro. His name is Baieie. Brian Baieie. He's a 22-year-old right-foot fielder. He'll be a vice for Shingo. That is the plan that they have for him.

Again, like you said, well, Juric seems like he's being held by the club once again, just like he was at Verona. And don't forget, Torino also lost Brekalo and Pobega. So they're struggling a little bit in the market there, but we'll see what happens with them. Next up, Sassuolo, Mintov's favourite team. What can you tell us, Minto? There's some pretty good news, I'd say. So far, that means that the main players have stayed.

And there's still half a transfer under the goal, so things could change. And a top man can leave. I do assume that Skamaka will end up leaving. I mean, the club would like to keep him, but I think that probably there'll be someone who'll snatch him up at the end for around 14 million. So it's why they made some moves in the market. It's why they brought in Alvarez from Pinerol and also Christian Thorstvedt, Norwegian from Geng. Both of them are strikers, attacking players.

Alvarez is more of a number nine, or that seems to be the role. And then Thorstvedt is more like an attacking midfielder. I think there's also the potential to play him as a centre forward, but I think the natural role is as an attacking midfielder. I don't know whether those signings are something to find for the future. So for example, if Skamaka leaves, these have been brought in as the direct replacements are not. It remains to be seen.

If not, then I'd say they have a very good line-up up front with regards to first and second teams, because they have a nice number of players to change from game to game. And I think that was something that Sassuola suffered a lot from last year. Is Máxim López staying? Máxim López is staying so far. He has not accepted Roma yet. These two moves, the reason I have hope that they'll work out is because this is seeming to be Sassuola's style.

They get young talent and then sometimes they offload them to the bigger teams. This season we're seeing it a bit different. They haven't really offloaded any to the bigger teams yet, but they're very good at scouting talent, bringing them on board, developing them. And then, be it they move on, or they stay there, like Baraydi for example. Otherwise, like we touched up on, Frattese was wanted by Roma, and that was very advanced, but it never came to fruition. Kirikes is off the cremoneses.

Lucky for them, they're going straight back down. And apparently you guys really raid Bayrami, and you're not willing to let him go. This was meant to happen even in January, or they tried to get him in January, but it didn't go through. And now they really want him again. I think this is a player that they need, kind of. They need someone in the middle sometimes to create a bit more chances, because usually chances do come from Baraydi.

Or towards the end of the year, there was Raspadoori and also Traora giving in that contribution. But most of the work did come from Baraydi. So I think that they do need something in the middle to give a bit of a spark, because it often was a position that was not neglected, but it always needed a bit of improvement. That's true. They've kept most of their team. They've thinned out a few of the ranks. Manuel Lerle became a coach for the club, which is a nice thing.

I think it's a way to keep him there. He's a legend for the club, and it's nice to have him there and then actually keep coaching the squad. So he's kind of not leaving as such. And his role perhaps might be even more important now to nurture new talent. True, and to show them what it really means to play for Sassuolo. Perhaps already, to give some kind of history to the club as well. Maybe we're seeing Sassuolo being a bit more optimistic, keeping their players and shooting for the stars.

I think the season, unless things happen, they sell the front three, and then they have Traor, Torsvedt and Alvarez. Do you believe in Dionisi? He seems quite dedicated. And there have been many times where his tactics did pay off. Against the big team. I think there have been many times where his tactics were paying off, but I think the squad was just 11 players.

And then as soon as there were substitutions and so on, it felt like there was nothing off the bench to help get a goal, often more than not. So now that that's changed, I think if the team stays as they are, maybe they have to sell one player, I don't know. Maybe they have to sell Frattesi. Juricic is being linked to Bologna? Juricic I think is going. I've been reading that he's no longer part of Dionisi's plans. So he's probably gone. And there was also links of Traor as well.

There's a cash grab somewhere there. There is, yeah. This is the world of the day. But overall so far it looks optimistic. Maybe in a month's time it totally changes. It's very likely. I think realistically, I think Skamaka leaves and Alvarez becomes the natural number nine and the first choice, Panta. And I don't think that's a terrible thing. Because although Skamaka was great, he did have, he was very sparky. He'd score a couple of goals and he'd go quite a bit and score another couple.

That's true. Maybe it's time to get a new wave of talent and hopefully over a longer term as well because Skamaka really wasn't there a while. No, he wasn't. So those have been the latest updates on the top 11 in Serie A. There are a few more teams remaining, of course, with Dineza, Bologna and Pulis Amdori. And those guys, it's been a little bit quieter there apart from Monza, who of course have confirmed. Craniore, Anokia, Pessina, Sensi, they're making some moves over there.

They're looking for Petanio, Kutroni. We'll update you on the lower tier guys the second the transfer window is over and everything has been finalized. Because this is impossible to keep up and it's impossible to deliver a podcast of the full service. It's kind of impossible. Especially halfway through our transfer work and giving transfer updates. But thank you very much to Santi and Mintov. You are great as always. We fucking love you.

Santi, you want to explain your situation a bit because it's hilarious. So right now it's half past midnight and in two and a half hours I need to wake up for a flight. So that's why, that's partially why we need to cut this joint. It would be really karma. You've been bitching about missing flights and today you miss your flight. Oh my god. Mintov missed four flights. Hopefully since I'm being picked up it shouldn't be a problem. They'll awaken me. They should.

Thank you very much to everyone for listening. It's been Serious Spotlights with Mintov and Santi. We'll see you guys next time. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram and Twitter and TikTok as well. And give us a rating wherever you're listening be it Spotify, Google Play or Apple Podcasts. Thank you and we love you.