Transfer Window Opens! Liverpool's Ex-Head of Scouting Analyses YOUR Club's Targets | The Overlap Breakdown

0:00Hello everybody and welcome back to the Overlap Breakdown Podcast. Now we have a very special episode and a return of the podcast and a return of Patrick Montgomery on the channel, who is the ex-head of scouting at Liverpool for eight years. And today we're here to decipher all of the best January transfer rumours.

0:20Okay, welcome back to the channel. For people who are watching this, it's probably going to go out on the 1st of January, so happy new year and hope everyone's had a good time off. We're recording this ahead of time and we're going to go through all of the biggest at the time of recording January transfer windows We're going to have Patrick analyse them from a technical tactical standpoint Go through their strengths and weaknesses and where they may see fit at their specific clubs And we're going to kick start this Obviously, welcome back Patrick, you were brilliant on the last podcast and obviously the bits in between on the board So, something a bit different today and obviously it's a return for the podcast And people have been keen for the longer form pieces of content So, yeah, we're going to go through every single one of them.

1:01And I think fitting for me, I think anyway, is to start with Liverpool's ideas going into the January transfer window. Now, at the time of recording, obviously, they are in for Antoine Semenyo and presumably going to go back in for Mark Gahey. Now, right now I'd like to focus on Mark Geyi because for me, it does feel like Liverpool at the moment need defensive depth. Obviously, the amount of injuries to their back line is now tallying up and they've really only got Van Dijk and Canate. And obviously, his contract's up in June 2026. He can agree a pre-contract with clubs outside of England come January.

1:44So, Bayern Munich potentially, Barcelona looking for a centre-half. but what have you made of Mark Gay as a player over the last couple of seasons and what he's now led up to become you know what I mean yeah I think to be honest he's definitely improved I think he's been somebody that's taken a step away from one of the bigger clubs that he's come through the U system of he's obviously become now an internationally recognised player somebody that I think when teams look at him he's Premier League proven he's played a lot of games now at a very high level I think he's shown what his attributes are and I think for a club like Liverpool for any of the bigger clubs he'd be a very interesting prospect to bring in Yeah I think I was looking at I was looking at sort of the other clubs that could potentially look at him so as we mentioned like Barcelona need a central defender but I think Liverpool maybe more so than an attacker need defensive reinforcements and this is a player for me who despite everything the professionalism he handled the situation with in sort of the summer with Liverpool, the contract, Glasner, the club itself, the way he come back out of that.

2:51And he's now performing again back at the elite level, obviously coming off an FA Cup win, a Community Shield win. At the time of recording, again, Crystal Palace is now on for another potential trophy in the AFL Cup, still in the FA Cup, obviously Conference League. And he's become a really, really good Premier League Central defender. I think that left side of the back three, which is where he's mostly been used, he's been outstanding. I've got a stat here that says, for line-breaking passes in the Premier League by central defenders, he ranks fifth only behind Van Hex, Sanese, Van Dijk and Joachim Andersen and more than Ibrahim Kanate.

3:25So I think for me, there are defensive questions of Liverpool about the reinforcements, where they're going to sign a defender, who they're going to sign. I think me and you had a conversation more before about they might potentially go to someone who's a more bolstered physical option. I think we were talking about the types of defenders that Liverpool may need. And I think we were in agreement of it could be someone who's a little bit more of a physical first player rather than a technical first player. Because I think for me, I'm looking at Mark Gahey and he does play on the left side of a back three and he can play in a back four.

4:01But will he have the physicality to sort of rest assured that back four? I think, yeah, I think obviously you never quite know until somebody's sort of put into that position. I think yes the demand is placed on Liverpool centre-backs for sure they need to be front foot, they need to be dominant they need to be able to defend big spaces particularly in transitions as well so I think he does have the capacity to do that I think possibly in the way that he's been playing in the systems that he's played with at Palace you don't necessarily always get to see that element of his game so I think you've always got to keep an open mind from a recruitment perspective that some players may not be able to demonstrate their entire capabilities due to the playing style of the club they're at.

4:46I think for him, you touched on it at the start, I think what he does show is real maturity as well. So I think a lot of players in the summer window, if they'd been linked with the move and the club that he was linked with, would have found it slightly difficult to then reset, go back to their club and perform at the level that he's done. So I think, yeah, it'll come down to, in my opinion, I think for sure Liverpool would be looking at somebody to bolster that defence. And I think it is an area that, with the uncertainty around the Canarte situation, both in form and in terms of contract, you've also got Van Dijk that is obviously getting older.

5:25There's been a lot of conversations about his form, rightly or wrongly. And I think in general that back line hasn't been settled. So I think if you're him and you're looking at a move, that's a question he has to ask himself. does he want to jump to a club like Liverpool, which is an incredible club now, while they are, yes, slightly recovering? Or does he want to wait until the summer? Or as your views touched on, has the ability to sign a pre-contract, possibly with a certain club? Does he take up that option? Yeah, I wanted to actually ask you there, because you mentioned something about jumping from style to style.

6:01Obviously, Palace play a very distinct style in terms of what they do. They like to hit big spaces. There's another player on this list who we've likened to Crystal Palace, so we'll talk more about them as a tactical setup later on. But for him to be fifth on a line-breaking passes list for centre-half for a team that doesn't necessarily have a large share of the ball consistently throughout games, you as a scout, you as an analyst over players, and we'll use Gehi as an example, if we're looking at a stat there where he's fifth on a list for line-breaking passes for a central defender, if he's producing that in a team that's getting a lot less touches potentially in them areas to break lines, how would you go right how high would he platform if he went to a yeah I think that's a really good question yeah I think that's where you'd have to as a scout where you're looking at a player's qualities and attributes I think you have to understand like you say first of all how they play if he is able to hit those numbers in the team that aren't necessarily looking to build through midfield step in break lines he can still show the capacity to do that then that would be a really positive element I think you can flip it the other way and say he also made sure elements that Liverpool defenders aren't asked to or demanded of either so that can be something you can go well actually we can see defenders of the box yeah bigger spaces so I think that's something that you would obviously have to take into context you would then implement data into that like you've done yourself just to try and see I think it's the hardest thing sometimes as a scout to try and understand how a player may contribute and come into your style of play in the smoothest way possible.

7:37I think you have to, it comes through experience and understanding different profiles of players. And I think the biggest thing with him, like I touched on before, is he's played in the Premier League as well now for a long period of time. So I think the basics or the basic demands of the Premier League, he's able to deal with. Would there be something, just the last one, but on Gehi, before we wrap up, not wrap up, before we move on into the next one, is could you imagine him playing, could Liverpool form a similar dynamic where they actually could play free central defenders. I remember there was a lot of talk around the distinct lack of wide players that Liverpool have available to them.

8:12Obviously, they've signed two number nines. They've got a few number eights now knocking about. Could there be a potential shift in what Liverpool are doing? And could they, in fact, recreate, get Van Dijk as a central centre-back where he would obviously shine because he's got that brilliant range of passing, but obviously he's an aerial presence and he doesn't have to defend maybe out wide. Could Gehi potentially offer them a feedback solution? I think that's definitely an option without obviously knowing any inside information. I think for sure that's something that you touched upon there, especially with wide players being a struggle for them at the moment in terms of availability and injuries.

8:49I think it's something where we spoke about it before. There seems to be a narrowing off of the midfield and forward players. So that does then enable the three at the back and the wing backs to provide certain width. and you've obviously got win backs that can play in those positions in Frimpong, in Kerkers, in Bradley and obviously Robertson as well. So I think that's probably something that you'd have to keep an open mind on as a scout if you were working in that environment right now. You'd have to be open-minded that it's not necessarily a set system that it may have been for the eight seasons I was at the club.

9:25It's something now that the coach has shown he can be adaptable and fluid to in terms of systems and shapes. Yeah, I think I've got another central defender here and this is more one that I text Patrick about this yesterday and it was one that just come up on my radar because we covered the live Bundesliga games on the main overlap channel I do a preview for him and I've become a massive fan of Nico Schlotterbeck and I know Patrick's aware of the player for sure but this is a player for me who could be one more for the summer but we were talking before about maybe a physically imposing left central defender if they wanted to do this back three potentially with the signings they made in the summer, maybe it's an option for them to go for.

10:06Nico Schlotterbeck for me has become a centre-half who I'm really big on and I think FC Barcelona, similar to Bayern Munich and Liverpool and potentially even other clubs to be fair I was trying to think of another one but there's a lot of teams that need that left-sided defender Manchester United potentially and Nico Schlotterbeck come up on my list because he's got a similar contract situation where he's up in 18 months. I think the club have offered him a contract and now there's a decision and there's going to be a time to wait for the club and player. And I think this is one you could probably set in motion right now.

10:40And we were talking before about the line breaking passes of Gahey and stepping up to a team. Obviously, Schlotterbeck plays in a 3-4-3 under Kovac at Dortmund. Has played middle centre half, has played left centre half. But I've got some really impressive numbers on Schlotterbeck. So line-breaking passes under high intense pressure. He's got the most. This is UEFA Champions League 25-26 data. Total line-breaking passes the most. Line-breaking passes into the final third the most. And then forward passes under high intense pressure. He's got the highest completion, showing that he's a bit like a quarterback.

11:14He can do everything under pressure, breaking lines. And that's a player for me that I could see fitting into, especially a Barcelona. I can't get that sort of name off my head because they're defending a ridiculously high line. You've got to, you know, your body angles have got to be okay. And he's obviously defended a very transitional league. But the volume he's got on the ball, we were looking at his pass maps before, the amount of diagonals, there's clearly a pattern in his play. And there was a lot of diagonals from going from left to right. So a lot of interesting dynamics where I've got Schlotterbeck who likes to play these really sweeping long balls from left centre half to the right wing and there's a lot of interest in obviously Yamal's at Barcelona he's their main threat at the right hand side so how do we get the ball over there again Manchester United they've got all their wide frets on the right hand side so he's a player for me who would be a really good B tier option or a plan B option I just wanted to ask you what you think about him I think he's at a stage of his career as well I think 25-26 where he'll be looking for that big step now He's obviously taken a step to go to Dortmund and I think he's shown attributes that for sure can translate into the Premier League as well as the top leagues.

12:28You've mentioned the Cubs in Spain and obviously even Germany if he was to stay domestically. But I think we've spoken about this before. There's always a good bias towards left-footed centre-backs. I think they always look nice. I think they look smooth. I think he obviously has elements to his game in terms of the aggression, the ability on the ball to step in and build from the back. You've touched a lot about the long diags, the switches of play, and I think just a variation of his distribution, ability to be able to defend big spaces. And I think he will be somebody that, if you're a club in the Premier League, of course what you have to take into account is how much will he cost.

13:08You weigh that up then against an English option. Could it be preferable to go for someone like Schlotterbeck? is there more scope I think a lot of these things you have to think about is your current set up of the squad short, mid and long term have you got players out injured have you got people coming back will he form relationships with the left wing back or the left back will he complement your right centre back you've got to think about so many different elements not only of the player themselves but the team that they could possibly translate into I'm going to move on now into the next player which we've got is Kobi Mainu.

13:44Now, this is a bit of an interesting one because obviously in the last few days of recording, Bruno Fernandes has picked up a bit of a lengthy injury which is going to obviously carry him over January which is the busiest part of the year. So it does appear that there were concrete rumours definitely that he was looked at by Everton on loan for January. I think Spurs and Chelsea were a little bit interested here and there. So, yeah, it's a very interesting situation with Kobi Mainu. I think there is definitely a player in there. I'm a massive fan of him, obviously. Manchester United fan. I love Carrington.

14:18I love the academy players. But for me, it does feel like there's not that many suitable fits. Especially if I'm going off Ruben Amirim's words and his analysis of the situation, which appears to be that the two in midfield have to cover a ridiculous amount of ground. They have to be intense. They have to be battlers. They have to duel well. And if he's not picking Kobi Meynou because he doesn't believe he's good at that, then I'm looking at the teams that are interested, especially Everton and Spurs. They have got very, very metal midfields. They have Paulinho, Benton, Kaur, Saar, players like that, and Adrissi Garnie Gaze, obviously one of them for Everton, who are very steel, energetic midfielders.

15:04I don't know, what would you make of Kobi Meynou if he were to go on long? where possibly could he go? Yeah, I think it's one of those, I think for him, I'm a fan as well in the sense of I think he's at his best when he can knit things together. I think technically he's one that can help build the team through the pitch in smaller spaces. It's like anything, I think he ideally would want to be in a team then if, like you say there, the words of the coach, he has legs around him. So it's like anything, if not every player is going to be amazing at every single attribute, I think if he can be alongside legs that can maybe complement this area of his game.

15:40If that is an area that's being spoken about as being a potential area for development, that is somewhere that he can flourish. I think people are very quick to forget. I'm obviously not a Man United fan, but when he first came through, the excitement around him, international recognition, those types of things don't happen if you don't have talent and you don't have ability. Now, obviously, he's in an environment as well at Man United which has not been stable. he's obviously struggled to get into the team and find rhythm and to find form and consistency but I think like you touched upon I think for me if he is to step away and he wants to keep playing he needs to be thinking about clubs and styles of play that will complement him in the areas that he feels maybe he's got time to improve upon Yeah, I think one of the links that was actually going around I think a couple of months ago was Napoli I quite like that as a potential move because they have a player in Stanislav Lobotka who's a bit of a Cobby mould who's a bit more of a low centre of gravity not the most mobile type of player and I'm looking at their midfield especially with Scott McTominay in there obviously there's an easy relationship there with him to have and settle down there if he wanted to go I think there's definitely scope for him to move again I think you were talking about how hard it is to do certain deals in January I think Manchester United now will be looking at it going we're a midfielder down the midfield options are already slim he's got an opportunity now to come into it and make the most of it and I'm going to be really interested to see what happens with him over the next couple of weeks because it's now the biggest time for him to kick on obviously all the stuff's happened on the social media with his brother doing the stuff but it does feel like now it's time to knuckle down and get your spot Hill on clarity, I think he obviously, without knowing the situation internally, I think he obviously, I imagine, wants to play football and he's at a stage of his career where he needs to play football.

17:40So you've touched about certain leagues abroad that could suit him, particularly leagues in sides where they're ball dominant, maybe a slightly slower tempo, environments where we've seen British players go across to Italy and Spain and flourish. If he's open to do that, then that could be something that helps him. But also, we know how quickly football can change. We could be sat in two months. No one wants to see, particularly as an English fan as well, you want to see players that have shown what they can do have an opportunity to keep progressing, to be honest. Yeah, I think it's interesting to mention as well that Ruben Amarim always profiles him as a good midfielder for a midfield three in comparison to a good midfielder for a midfield two.

18:23And obviously, he's reluctant to change the amount of bodies he's getting in midfield. and that's obviously the reason why he's not playing as many minutes. As an analyst, what do you actually make of someone saying that he's good for a midfield free? And this is a player who's played in a European Championship semi-final for England, played really well, scored a goal that kept Manchester United in the Europa League last year, scored an FA Cup final goal. would you not just for me it feels like if you've got a player who his reputation especially in England is so good and I mean I can't tell you how many players for Manchester United went in that Euros at all let alone played in the semi-final against the Netherlands if you've got a player of that quality who you think suits a midfield free would you not expect more from the coaches?

19:19I think it's difficult Because you might look at that in that area of the pitch, but then if you then change that for that area of the pitch, does it neglect another area of the pitch? Yeah. So I think the manager will be thinking, yes, of course, in the central positions, but maybe if I tweak it to suit this individual, do we then become more imbalanced in wide areas or in forward positions or more vulnerable defensively? So I think that's the challenge for a coach. I think you can't fit every player into your system. Yeah, I think some players can be really good players individually, but for what you want to do and how you want to play, some players become sacrificial lambs and unfortunately for them, I'm not saying this is the case here, but it seems like if he's not, the coach isn't necessarily willing to mix up in the field in terms of numbers and shape and formation, he seems quite reluctant to do so because he obviously feels he wants balance in other areas of the pitch.

20:14Yeah, I quite like him. it was only a loose rumour but I do have Chelsea down as a potential option I mentioned this to you before we're speaking about teams who can maybe get more bodies in the middle who can cover ground who can counter-press who play at a little bit of a slower tempo Chelsea doesn't seem like a bad option for me I'm not sure if Manchester United would let him go to Chelsea regardless obviously they've sold Alejandro Garnaccio to Chelsea but I think this is more one of Manchester United have got to be thinking long term about Kobe Manu because I don't think he's a player with that I think Garnaccio was sold for more than just football whereas Kobe Manu does seem to be a little bit different of a situation but stylistically I think Kobe Manu would suit that Chelsea team you've got the box in the midfield, they play at a slower tempo he's a knitter as you've just said, a connector I'm thinking about where Enzo plays everyone's within close proximity with each other there's a lot of one-two touch going on around the box he's obviously nipping around the box, we've seen that multiple times and I do think Chelsea could be a decent opportunity for Kobe to have a look at Yeah, I mean, again, you come down to playing devil's advocate.

21:17Will he be able to nail down a place there straight away, having not played regularly at Man United? So is he best off going to a team that he knows he can play every week and he knows that, yes, you might not be winning every match and you might not be in the top, top part of the table, but he's got that decision to make if he does step away. I agree in the sense of maybe playing styles and certain players have a similar sort of dynamic to him. Yeah. But does he want to be in a position where he is at Man United now in maybe 12 months' time at Chelsea? Yeah. Because as we know at Chelsea as well, there's a big squad.

21:57There's sometimes quite a high turnover of players. So that's a decision he has to make. I think it's a really tough one because he'll have ties to Man United, as you said, coming through as a kid. Yeah. Of course he wants to play football, but there'll be an element of, have I got unfinished business at Man United too? So does he want to go to Chelsea and leave Man United? It's a really difficult decision for him. Yeah, I think given everything we've said, I think Everton does appear to be the one where he could go get the game time. I think Everton are trying to be a little bit more expansive out the back and they are trying to not be this just pure physical team.

22:35So I do think adding that little bit of quality in there and a player like Kobe Main who definitely would be one to keep an eye out of for Everton. And again, this is one that may or may not happen given what Manchester United wants to do now that Bruno's injured. But regardless, it'll be a massive January for Kobe even if he doesn't move because of the game time he will get given. We are going to move on next into Brennan Johnson. Now, Patrick's done quite a lot of research on this. He was explaining it really well to me before. So just off the top, Brennan Johnson is one of nine players just to have converted 100 % of their big chances in the Premier League this season, whilst the only other players have 100 % conversion rate to have more big chances is in Jai and Daniel Munoz.

23:16Now, we're not going to just cast the club out here because we think this is a pretty versatile profile for a lot of different clubs. Obviously, Crystal Palace is the one that's been rumoured the most. And to be fair, given the analysis that Patrick has actually done, it does feel like this would be a good fit for the player. But do you want to go through what his strengths are and what he does stylistically. Yeah, well I think he's one straight away we've spoken about before. I think he's at his best for me in teams that play in quick transitions. So quick counter-attack, direct, big spaces to attack.

23:48He's somebody that basically relishes seeing a high line. I think the pace that he has and the agility that he has, he's somebody that can hurt teams 100 % in these moments. So I think he's somebody that if you can isolate him, either 1v1, with his ability just to shift it beyond a full-back and deliver or get a shot off. He's somebody that can be super effective. I think you saw that for us. And he's shown it in glimpses as well at Spurs. I think there was a goal earlier in the season at Man City where he runs forward and attacks the box. Yeah, yeah. And he's shown variation as well. You can finish different types of goals, whether it's inside of the foot, outside of the foot, little dinks over the keeper, arriving to side foot finish.

24:30I think from the outside looking in, he's just slightly been a victim of a changing manager, a change in style, a change in what possibly Thomas Frank wants from his wide players. Watching them and sort of seeing how Tottenham play, he tends to lean towards more ones that can build, help the team build through the pitch, maybe slightly more reliable back to goal, can actually come inside and combine. whereas I think Brennan Johnson is fantastic at the really direct, quick, transitional moments. So it may be an area that he would have to adapt and maybe work on in order to maybe get into that starting XI.

25:11But he is somebody I think, particularly with his attributes, everybody loves pace, everybody loves somebody who's direct. He gets into goal-scoring positions as a wide player. I think he's only 24, maybe just 25, so he's still young. he'll want to play with Wales possibly getting into the World Cup with a big playoff game to come so I think without knowing the situation he's desperate to get minutes whether then an agreement can be made whether a loan or a permanent for him to get away he obviously again like the others we've discussed is going to have to pick the right place where he can do that but somebody I think in the right system can be really effective really effective no 100 % I think Palace is a really good link because obviously So we've seen Palace and what their number 10s are capable of, especially like Ishmael Asar, Jeremy Pino, Ebrechieze.

26:01Obviously, they've been playing more shooters, strikers as the 10s. Eddie Nketiah has played quite a lot of games as number 10 recently, and he's more of a pure goal scorer who's playing there. So I think definitely Brennan Johnson is someone who Palace are looking for on the left side to give you that same dynamic of goals, runs in behind, can sniff a goal out more importantly, can finish in different ways. obviously this is a signing that I think we mentioned before there's a good few clubs in the Premier League who could do with this profile if it's a short term loan if it's a permanent deal I think we mentioned that Brentford likes to attack space quite a lot think of what Kevin Shard has done quite well at Brentford recently what Dan Gortara has done well and now he's signed there we'll get more minutes but very diagonal inside attackers who like to make them run through out to wins all the time and I think we actually looked at when Thomas Frank first come to Spurs we were saying that he loves them outside to inside runs which are obviously still there and we've seen it for the Johnson goal at the Etihad but because there's so much going on in their own after in the build up phase as you were mentioning before there's a lot more being asked of that player and you can see Kudu shining in the same respect which is the contact on the back the off balance stuff coming inside going through the middle and then obviously combining in the middle and arriving in the final third that's what more types of his wingers are looking to do yeah I think he's you only have to look again at what Brennan Johnson did last season I think he was top goal scorer maybe with 18 goals obviously scored in the Europa League final really important player again for Postacoglu in a style that Postacoglu played so we've spoken about this with a few players I think a lot of the time players can just be victim of new manager coming in they don't quite fit the style at that time for that club so they end up having to make decisions not through poor form or through suddenly becoming a poor player it's just more circumstance so he has a decision to make I think and an important one whether he stays or whether he goes because he'll want to be at the World Cup if Wales can qualify because it's obviously a huge tournament for him I think this is one that a lot of clubs should be looking at for value for money Palace are obviously in there Brentford should be in there I think I said to you before Sunderland could do with a little bit more of a dynamic attacker on the left-hand side who's more of a getting behind sort of player but they have got Talby and Enzo Lefeu who play there quite a lot but I'm just looking around that lower that 10-17th pack of teams I think a lot of them just could do with a few extra goals and he can find a goal I think he brings experience as well now I think he's obviously experienced he's played Tottenham are a big club he's maybe not obviously performed this season He's not had the opportunity to perform this season, but he's shown last season he can perform at a big club.

28:54He's obviously an international player. Maybe a Bournemouth replacement. Possibly, yeah. I think we know the January window, again, moving pieces. So I think it might be that this player goes here and then all of a sudden a club that weren't interested come to the front of the queue and it's quite a simple move. No, yeah, 100%. I think we're going to move on now into a bit of an interesting one because obviously I really like this player and when I said it to Patrick before, I do think this player's got a really, really high ceiling and that is Evan Ferguson who's obviously had a strange couple of years now obviously broke through at Brighton was really exceptional had this break onto the scene I think he was 18, 19 there was so much to like about his profile from a technical, physical standpoint and I think he was getting rumoured straight away to be the next big thing at number nine and this is football for you and yeah he's gone to Roma on loan for people who aren't aware and I think he's only scored a couple of goals there obviously the game in the Europa League I believe against Celtic being the main standout one but Gasparini's not having him really and this isn't unlike Gasparini to be fair he has a lot of these moments but it does appear that he could be going back to Brighton and the loan could be cut short and that obviously produces a potential for him to move again in January given that Brighton don't want him there's a bit of tetchiness there with Brighton where Danny Welbeck is obviously getting on they could do with maybe a different dynamic up front you said something really interesting to me before about the changing manager and how he was being asked to do a lot different of a role and that could have been the start of possibly yeah I mean I think obviously for me I agree with you in the sense of what he's about I think he's you may look a traditional number nine but he's somebody that can not only attack the box, his hold-up play, his footwork inside the area is fantastic.

30:49He can bring others into play, but I think his finishing, even in those Celtic goals, you can see that his movement and his alertness is fantastic. Maybe not the quickest. He's mobile, but not somebody that could necessarily run away from people, but he'd work the channels. He'll make movements in behind. But again, could be somebody that a new manager comes in. I think slightly maybe different demands being asked of that number nine, maybe to come shorter, to be more of a focal point, to allow runners beyond. And then as a result, he's not the one finishing the move. So as a centre forward, if he wants to sniff goals and score, he's not necessarily maybe going to be happy if the runners off him and the ones rotating around him are the ones picking up the goals and assists, if he's maybe not in the area to finish moves.

31:33So I think he's in a really interesting situation. I'm a big fan. I think he's somebody that has real potential. I think in the right system, he can be super effective. I think I admire him for going to Italy because I think it's different. It's a big club. He's obviously been criticised quite publicly in periods over there, but I think he's somebody that has scope to play at a good level, shown in elements and in sparks that that's the case. Yeah it was actually funny Because we said this before We were looking We were just talking about Sort of He's got this box movement And he's got this really Good feel for a goal I remember when he first broke on He was scoring all types of goals Headers left foot Right foot arriving One two touch Dribbles and shots But It's interesting Because we were trying to think Before about a club That he could go to And we actually I think it was you Actually said Celtic Because it could be Very interesting obviously He's got the Irish affiliation Potentially And then he's got this idea that he could go there and Celtic have already seen the damage he can do at Celtic Park they're more of a team who likes to camp in the opposition's half throughout games and that could be one where I think they're obviously struggling for a centre forward as well, Celtic.

32:49I think he needs it's like anything, he'll want confidence from what I can gather, he's a centre forward he obviously knows what he can do, I think you look at the majority of some of the best centre forwards, they tend to go through little lulls whether it's between 20 and 22 Harry Kane you can list some of the top strikers that do that I think he just for me Nisan Al being in an environment where he's the main man so he may look at with respect to Celtic as not a league he wants to be in long term but a huge club possible European exposure second half of the season although he probably is tied I'm not sure in terms of with his eligibility but I think could be somewhere where he goes gets minutes scores a lot of goals comes back to Brighton what's the situation they can sort of reassess but somebody I think like I said I admire his like bravery to go out to Italy there's definitely scope there for him to be a regular for me in the Premier League for sure yeah I think this is definitely a player that I'd be looking at for them clubs who do spend a lot of time in the penalty around the penalty area who can feed this this lad a lot of chances I do think he'd be wicked it's really unfortunate that it happened at Roma because I was in the same boat as you when I seen him go to Roma I was like something fresh something new a bit more exposure obviously playing on a big big European stage but yeah in the league he scored 6 goals in 46 matches between 22-23 and 23-24 a rate of 0.14 goals per game but since then has just scored 2 goals in 32 appearances at a rate of 0.06 so there's definitely a drop off there as you can tell but also he's another player who's struggling with injury quite a lot so that has been definitely unsettling but I think this is a good opportunity for a lot of clubs to be taking a look at him even if it's potentially another Italian club.

34:38Yeah, I think obviously he's been linked with certain other Italian clubs as well but I think you've made a good point there in terms of these types and these profiles of players when they do get niggles and they do get injuries they need games and minutes to find their rhythm quickly because I think if they don't they then can look a little blunt and a little clunky if they're not quite up to match sharpness quickly whereas he obviously has the ability with his feet with his skill set to be cuter in and around the box but like anything if you're not playing regularly or you pick up niggles you can then look a little bit not as clean as you usually would be Yeah, I'm just going to go on to the final one now this is one that I have jotted down but I'm not 100 % confident on but I did want to give it some coverage so I've got the Carlos Beliba saga if you like on the list Now, I was thinking about this before and it was more of a case of, I don't think Manchester United or any other team that needs a midfielder are going to do this deal in January.

35:39But this is a bit of a situation where it's been quite publicly known that it's somewhat affecting him on the pitch because of the summer rumours and stuff like that. And I was wondering if the opportunity come up for a cut price deal. Obviously, I think they wanted£100 million in summer just gone. but given what's going on at the club right now potentially them wanting to find a replacement maybe I know Mats Vyf is playing right back a lot and he's more of a natural central midfielder have you ever experienced that where it's like you've got this player and then it's like oh no now we need to maybe cash and it's affecting the player couldn't that be a genuine thing?

36:17Yeah I think so yeah I think you've got to look at first and foremost is the player contributing to your club? Yeah yeah So if you strip it right back, you're paying the player a salary. If he's in that bad of a headspace, I don't know the situation, but if he's in that bad of a headspace where he doesn't feel he can even contribute on the pitch, then obviously you're losing money on an asset. So you then would have to think strategically as to what's the best exit strategy? What's the best value for money we can get? How would you structure that? Are there genuinely interested teams? January obviously is a difficult window.

36:52so the other thing you've got to think about is if teams know that you need to offload somebody or you're keen to offload somebody they're in a stronger negotiating position straight away so all of these elements you've got to play a game and understand that you don't want to be losing money or value on somebody but you then put yourself in a position where if other clubs know you want to get somebody out you are then slightly vulnerable in terms of your valuation and what you can do but I think it happens a lot I think it happens at multiple clubs with multiple players and they've got to somehow come to a solution that works for both parties really Probably the only one on this list that's actually potentially got to a point where it's like we might have to do solve this problem He's won the ball in the midfield third 3.4 times per night this season which is the fourth best average in the Premier League I've watched him this season a few times and it does seem like there's something going on.

37:51It does seem like the levels are dropping. And I just look at Brighton and I look at Manchester United, obviously in for Antoine Semenu as we've covered. So they probably think that they've got£65 million at least to spend. And I wonder if Brighton walks over to United and go£75 million potentially. Could United buy a deal like that if they know that? I think, yeah, listen, that's the whole point. Clubs have to understand the market. I think you need to that's where it's all about sniffing what other clubs could be doing might not be doing which clubs need to sell which clubs have to buy I think people maybe don't see that from the outside but that's so that's such an important aspect of working within a football club to understand the market understand different elements different clubs what they need what they don't need and then like you say you can then use that as a negotiating element and say well if you're willing to pay this we know you've got that we could give you this player but then we may get this player in return so I think that's a really valid point I think it's something that goes on every single day not just around windows that's going on 24-7 to be honest It's funny we were talking about the sliding doors on the first other time you come on we had a conversation about the sliding doors effect and it was like if Brighton go out and sign a right back which is where Vyfer's played at the moment the amount of sliding doors that could go from right if Haifa goes back into midfield maybe they now get rid of Belieber and if United sign Belieber they pull out of Semenya but who gets Semenya yeah it's a domino yeah it's a domino I think you can say that like I reckon there's been so many moves in the past that were a million miles away but it only takes one trigger and then all of a sudden people end up where they didn't expect to be and I think that's what makes it for fans and for people on the outside I think that's why always why transfer windows are super exciting because the January one I think in particular because it's middle of the season, players can genuinely come in and impact a team during a campaign.

39:51The summer one obviously is longer, so I think there may be less of an exciting element unless it gets to the last stages, but I think because the January window is so condensed, for clubs it's not ideal, but I think for fans it's super exciting. Yeah, and if you, just to wrap up now on this January transfer window special, which of these signings are you the better? do you think are the most exciting? Obviously, the Semenya one's a massive one. So if it's Semenya, but it's to which of the clubs? Yeah, I think Semenya is obviously the standout one in terms of his contributions this season for Bournemouth.

40:27I think of his potential to impact one of the bigger clubs. I think we've spoken about the clubs he'd probably be best suited to, but I think on the flip side of that, you can also maybe look at someone like a Brennan Johnson who could still have a super impact at another side and suddenly he's regained his confidence, regained his form and have more of an impact than people maybe anticipate. So I think you always look for the big names, you always look for the big clubs who they're signing but I quite like as a fan to see the clubs at maybe the mid-level or the lower level sign somebody that people were aware of but maybe didn't take the hit on and then they come in and do really, really well.

41:08Yeah, yeah. Well, that's brilliant. that's all we've got time for today on the overlap breakdown channel if you are listening to this on the overlap podcast format then please don't forget to go over to the overlap breakdown channel and drop us a follow and that's it for today so thank you very much don't forget to like comment and follow the YouTube channel and we'll be back next week for some more analysis thank you very much

41:40Yes, yes.