28 Jul 2026 14:10:29
Afternoon Gents.
Attention will be turned to Konsa, after Barcola has been concluded.
Regarding Diomande.
I'm still not being told that a deal is completely Dead, even after the Real Madrid interest.
Apparently, that's being exaggerated.
Still, last I heard is Liverpool reluctant to offer a substantial up-front payment.
Time will tell.
Cheers.
{Ed025's Note - thanks Robbo..
28 Jul 2026 14:36:09
Cheers, Robbo. I'd be happy with Konsa. Ticks a lot of boxes.
28 Jul 2026 14:38:21
The move for Konsa makes a lot of sense. Premier League proven and, of course, home grown.
Thanks, Robbo!
28 Jul 2026 14:40:41
Carra reckons Kounde, so it'll be interesting to see who we're in for. Thanks for the info, Robbo.
28 Jul 2026 14:49:55
Interesting, cheers, Robbo.
28 Jul 2026 14:50:47
We're looking at a few options.
Kounde seen as a two bird one stone hit.
Illia Zabarnyi is very well liked also.
Not sure about Konsa but I wouldn't be at all surprised.
Ta.
28 Jul 2026 14:51:19
Nice one, Robbo.
If I remember rightly, Konsa was under consideration last summer as an alternative to Guehi.
28 Jul 2026 14:53:57
Just a question that doesn't really need an answer, but why does it appear we are only working on one deal at a time?
28 Jul 2026 14:55:55
Konsa will
Be more useful than Gomez.
28 Jul 2026 14:57:57
Thanks, Carra and Robbo. Looks like we want someone who can cover both CB and RB.
28 Jul 2026 14:58:02
This post is like a Beatles reunion of ITKs -
Love it! ❤️
28 Jul 2026 15:05:26
Are Villa in any need to sell after Rogers? Surely Konsa would be massively overpriced.
28 Jul 2026 15:10:14
Just watched Kounde on YouTube (highlights only, I know), but he looks great!
28 Jul 2026 15:12:42
Konsa wouldn't be for me. Has to be better options out there for the money Villa would want and the age of the player. Featuring for the worst England defense in my lifetime does not make him good enough. Bit of WC fever here for me.
28 Jul 2026 15:15:50
Cheers, Robbo. You've certainly never wavered on your Diomande stance, mate, kudos to you, especially with some of the posters on here. Obviously it's whoever you get your info from. Good to hear from you, as with all posters. Keep the info coming.
28 Jul 2026 15:17:37
Any of those defensive additions would be a massive help to what we have, I'd be more than happy with any.
Cheers, Carr/Robbo, for further updates. :-)
28 Jul 2026 15:20:42
This Diomande circus is looking more and more
likely to be a Deadline Day deal at 10.55pm... whoever gets him.
28 Jul 2026 15:36:27
Is right. We need numbers.
28 Jul 2026 15:42:00
Cheers, Robbo & Carra, nice to hear from yas both.
28 Jul 2026 15:46:31
I trust Carra, Robbo, Macca, Ned and everyone else with their news, but until I see players training with the rest of the squad, I'm not getting too excited.
Been hurt too many times. ?
28 Jul 2026 15:50:47
Ohhh! All those naysayers, and there is still hope for my prediction based on my contact, Dave at the Coach & Arms.
Good lad, Dave.
Sticking with Diomande to sign.
Boom.
28 Jul 2026 15:53:11
Konsa seems a bit underwhelming if I'm honest. More reliable than Gomez, that's but sure, but still, there has to be a better option?
Kounde is a decent player all the same. ?
28 Jul 2026 15:56:44
Cheers, lads.
Would take Konsa over Kounde based on injury record. Would solve a HG issue too.
Diomande? Don't do that, Robbo.
28 Jul 2026 14:38:40
Surely that would be surprising because didn't the likes of Romano confirm it's all done with Real Madrid
Not sure on Konsa, not for the price that has been touted or maybe they trying to get him for less? I guess would mean we don't have to waste a non-hg space on him and as a CB could still give us a few quality years.
28 Jul 2026 16:08:38
We don't have a HG issue.
28 Jul 2026 16:21:33
Florian, Ndukwe's visa situation says otherwise. Maybe I should have said EQP instead of homegrown to be precise.
28 Jul 2026 16:22:40
Robbo / Carra / Fields,
Is there no interest at all in Tomori? Would be a lot cheaper than Kounde or Konsa, same profile really (although a bit more average obviously). But as experienced home grown cover for a reasonable fee, he would make a lot of sense.
Cheers.
28 Jul 2026 16:36:26
I love when Robbo, Carra and The Fields are all posting on the same thread. It saves me doom scrolling for their names further down the pages! And Ned is back too! Great info and thanks, all!! Much appreciated!!!
28 Jul 2026 16:40:04
Carra, or whoever knows, - I remember you said it took us months of hard work to untangle Diomandes legal situation.
Would Real even be able to also pull that off now so late in the window?
28 Jul 2026 16:41:11
Nice to see Robbo / Carra / Fields on the same thread. Let's keep such discussions coming. Btw, I have hardly seen Fabrizio here we go, not going through so I believe Diomande deal is past now, we should all move on for that.
28 Jul 2026 16:44:48
I'd leave the Diomande deal and concentrate fully on signing Rayan. If Iraola is pushing for him, then I'd certainly advance negotiations with Bournemouth. He's Mane 2.0 in the making. imo only.
28 Jul 2026 16:57:32
Is Rayan after CB deals?
28 Jul 2026 17:23:51
I'd take 22-year-old Ordonez to cover CB/RB over Kounde, 27, and Konsa, 28, who will likely both cost far more than Ordonez - but maybe it's felt that we need an older head in defence.
28 Jul 2026 18:01:18
Cheers Robbo, Carra, The Fields and Ned. Looks like things are heating up.
How about we stop calling people itk and just posters?
Seems all the bitching comes from people saying you're itk or you know f*** all.
There, problem solved.
28 Jul 2026 18:06:43
Hopefully he's Mane 2.0 but sticks to the RW.
28 Jul 2026 18:06:48
We deffo need 3/4 players, but at fair prices.
28 Jul 2026 18:16:56
Konsa is a great defender and has been very reliable for Villa. Not fair to write a player off based on a World Cup campaign playing for England.
On that basis, Palmer didn't even go, so he must be terrible?
The recruitment team will be doing their due diligence.
The main downside to Konsa, I would think, would be Villa would want a large fee for him.
I'd prefer Zabaryni, albeit he can't cover RB if we needed him to.
28 Jul 2026 18:17:34
Robbo, Carra and TheFields in the same thread!!! All we need is Flanders now.
28 Jul 2026 18:32:32
Konsa is nearly as old as Bowen. Can't people count anymore?
28 Jul 2026 18:58:19
Konsa is 29 in a couple months time. If he was a top top player I'd have no problem paying the money that Villa would want. Probably around £80m. The fact is he is a good standard Premier League defender. He has never been looked at as top class. If we can’t identify a better option from all the players in Europe then I don’t know why pay DOF's and Technical directors.
Zabarnyi for me would be a much better buy. Don't see the point in signing players because they can stand in two different positions on a pitch if they are not top top at either of them. Also, this homegrown lark will never be a deciding factor for me on whether we sign a player, hear the same time wasting needless worry about this subject every summer.
28 Jul 2026 19:01:22
FPF, we've got 11 senior HG players currently on the books (for EPL purposes): Woodman, Jaros, Bradley, Frimpong, Gomez, McConnell, Bajectic, Jones, Elliott, also Chambers and Beck are 22 also, so some will already have to be de-registered/sold.
CL is where the issue lies, as the youngsters will have to be registered unlike the EPL.
28 Jul 2026 19:20:33
Konsa & Tomori are definitely scraping the barrel.
28 Jul 2026 20:00:53
Can't believe we didn't look into going for Lacroix before Chelsea snapped him up. Would have been a brilliant signing!
28 Jul 2026 20:08:18
I am going to say, what I said before, from a business mindset. I do not feel like Diomande gets done to Madrid as quick as people think. I think if we sell a couple of players and get in Barcola, we meet Leipzig's valuation and put a cat amongst the pigeons, either just to piss off Madrid, or upset the apple cart.
28 Jul 2026 20:49:21
Lofty, technically you can pad out your squad with average HG players, but with the new rules it now bites you on the young foreign player visa slots if you don't have enough English qualified players getting starting minutes.
Based on last season's appearances, we only qualified for 1 out of 4 slots, meaning we'll have to send Iffy Ndukwe out on loan because he can't get a visa.
28 Jul 2026 22:38:48
Sounds like a game of chicken between Liverpool and Diomande's "agents"
First, they flirt with PSG to get us to pay more, and we didn't blink; then Madrid, and we have still not blinked.
Wouldn't be surprised to see that fall through next.
Liverpool is arguably the right move for the lad if he wants playing time. He's just a squad player for Madrid; he's a starter for us.
28 Jul 2026 23:20:50
Why are people still mentioning Diomande? Ship has sailed, and his entourage and representatives are toxic. Hard pass.