Well it’s just all go isn’t it, lately?
The transfer activity is coming so thick and fast, I’m struggling to keep up, to be honest and it’s going to take me quite a while just to get all the new names sorted in my head.
I think we all knew we were going to have a bit of a clear out this summer, but not for one minute did I envisage that Tim Sherwood would be looking to totally change the team!
So what’s actually happened today?
Rudy Gestede and Jordan Veretout have both signed five-year deals, for, I believe, both undisclosed fees.
I really can’t say I know anything about Veretout apart from he’s a midfielder and frankly, don’t know much about Gestede; except that he was fairly prolific with twenty-two goals for Blackburn in the season just gone.
Perhaps I’m being slightly optimistic, but even with my lack of knowledge about pretty much any player we’ve signed, I suspect Sherwood has carried out some great business in this window.
Perhaps the big shock of the day is Nathan Baker signing a new five-year contract.
I know he’s Marmite to Villa fans, but whatever, that’s one in the eye for The Times, who were insistent that he was going to Burnley for a puny £2 million.
That said, the Times’ story did make a bit of sense where they suggested that Baker wanted to leave to play regularly. I wonder what Sherwood has said about that?
Another surprise was the story that the club bid for Joleon Lescott and seemingly had the bid accepted by West Bromwich Albion, but then overturned by manager Tony Pulis. I’d have loved to have been a fly on the wall watching that conversation between Pulis and Albion’s owner, Jeremy Pearce and it wouldn’t surprise me if Pulis had threatened to resign, as we all know he hates interference.
I’ve had a bit of mileage in that story, in winding a couple of Albion fans up, saying we’re going to get him.
The interesting point here, is that both the fans don’t want to lose Lescott. Serves them right for taking the proverbial and offering a stupidly low £2 million for Cieran Clark, in my opinion.
And finally, some of the papers would have us believe we’re still in for Denis Praet.
Like I said, it’s all go.
And I still don’t believe we’re finished yet.
Last point is that I read a blog in last night’s Birmingham Mail, where the writer voiced his concerns that with all these new players, the team might have a problem in gelling quickly enough.
He was ripped to pieces in the replies, but the truth is, I thought he made a very valid point.
We all know that some players can take a season at least to get used to the English game, after all.
I mean, Ligue 1 is a pretty decent league, but it isn’t the Premier league is it?
I’d personally expect a third of our signings to fail and the blunt truth is, it may be more, which does give me some cause for concern.
But then, I’d take the argument that wholesale change was desperately needed, as we were going nowhere with what we had.
I’m not going to let my slight concern put me off though and I’m still excited.
Oh, sorry, this is definitely the last thing.
Can someone tell me how many strikers we have now and if we sign another one, where do we think this leaves Gabby?
