20 Oct 2026 19:43:48
Hi all,
Virgil is in progressive talks with the club over a potential deal renewal. Iraola has made it clear he does not want to the let the skipper depart at the end of the season. However, nothing is guaranteed at the moment.
I lean towards an extension, personally.
20 Oct 2026 19:50:48
For me, our greatest-ever defender and an incredible professional who still has plenty left at the top level.
I really hope he stays for another two years or more and helps oversee the next generation coming through to eventually replace him.
20 Oct 2026 20:05:41
At the time of reading this, VVD has just had a mare!
20 Oct 2026 20:21:19
Red it was not a great header but if you watch it again it is not that far from Alisson's starting position but he moves towards Virgil something he would not have seen.
And fatspanishwaiter he is not better than Hansen.
20 Oct 2026 21:04:35
Disagree grino, vvd is better than Hansen mind you, Alan is 71.
20 Oct 2026 21:47:31
I would very much like VVD to move on. He is no longer good enough. He is not a good captain and his mistakes are costing us nearly every week.
20 Oct 2026 21:49:56
As much I hate to say it, VVD is done. He's all over the place at the back and Jacquet has been making him look good, not the other way around.
20 Oct 2026 22:09:04
Move over Kirkez, Wirtz and Barcola, the cross hairs are now aimed at one of the club's best CB's. One mistake and . BOOM, you're dead.
As I said last week, I don't have the UEFA Pro Licence and tend to focus on enjoying the match. I have to say I enjoyed it again and I reckon Araujo is on his way to becoming a little bit of a legend already (has someone on loan ever had their own song).
I believe that most of the people on the planet make a number of mistakes every day, especially me. Fortunately, I'm not under a microscope and I don't have forums dedicated in searching for faults I have or may have. We've lost one of eleven games and we end up talking about getting rid of the club captain who is still one of the best CBs in world football. If he wants to stay we should be honoured and proud to have him.
Anyway, bring on Brighton ?.
20 Oct 2026 22:36:34
I haven't liked VVD's performances for a number of years. I actually think Barcola has done great since joining. No issues with Kerkez, and I think everyone would agree that Wirtz has been poor for last 18 months.
I like to watch and enjoy the matches but it is hard when your club captain is so lazy and laid back at the back. He doesn't seem to run anymore and he has not been playing well. It is not a case of moving cross hairs. My opinion is he is not the player he used to be and not a very good captain. Your opinion is different than mine, and that is fine.
20 Oct 2026 23:47:20
Yeah, as you say @inbeta, it's about opinions and there's a really good cross section going on here - long may it continue!
Just got myself all hot and bothered that we won an entertaining match and the first thing I saw when I came onto the board was a thread about getting rid of someone.
Anyway, like I say, bring on Brighton - should be a good test.
20 Oct 2026 23:52:10
I'm curious as to why people say VVD is not a good captain given that 90% of what a captain does is behind the scenes and no one sees it.
{Ed666's Note - I disagree that 90% of captaincy is off the pitch. In my humble opinion he’s not the best captain on the pitch..He hasn’t got enough oomph
20 Oct 2026 23:58:46
VVD has been outstanding.
It's absolutely fair to say his best days are behind him though, mistakes are becoming more regular and his does not react well to a mistake either.
Maybe one year extension but if I'm honest I quite like the idea of Zabaryni joining the reds.
{Ed666's Note - I would give him till the end of the season and give him the send off Bobby, Mane and salah didn’t get.
20 Oct 2026 23:58:47
I'll judge our defenders when they are given real support from the middle of the park, as they're exposed every game.
{Ed666's Note - I agree and Camara will change the dynamic of that midfield
21 Oct 2026 00:12:36
I would not be against VVD signing for another year, despite his brain fart tonight. I think a way to judge how important he is to the team, would be to stick him on the sidelines (providing Leoni and Nduwke are available) for a few games and see if we're better with or without.
{Ed666's Note - we have to let him go at the end of the season for a few reasons. Give him a royal send off and long live the king the king is dead
21 Oct 2026 02:52:56
He absolutely deserves a new deal, and the club should be trying to keep him. However, the captaincy needs to go elsewhere - Virgil remains a fantastic player but he simply doesn't have the aggression to be the captain. The issue, however, is that no one else in the squad does, either - definitely not Szoboszlai or MacAllister, and forget the other recent purchases. The only ones I'd consider would be Alisson or Endo, the latter of which doesn't play, while the former wouldn't be the right choice due to his position (Alisson is an inspirational player but he isn't Oliver Kahn yelling at everyone within a mile radius).
You need to remember that the captain is the only player allowed to communicate with the referee now, and having a headstrong, mean leader is more important than ever.
21 Oct 2026 04:50:32
If he is happy to get less game time then one more season makes sense. But we can't develop a new CB partnership with him playing almost every minute of every game!
21 Oct 2026 06:55:50
Yip.
Cant wait for the next player to make a mistake so that the knives are out for them as well.
21 Oct 2026 06:56:08
Who else in our squad then Lowe, has that aggression you talk of? For me every time Virgil makes a mistake now we are going to have people saying it's time to go. Still so important for me.
21 Oct 2026 07:05:21
Extend for another year. he's still one of the best cbs on the planet. We have young centre backs in the squad and virgil is the best player to have around while they develop.
21 Oct 2026 07:05:21
Virgil has not been playing well? Since when? He has been uniformly great pretty much every game except for the mistake and bizarre decision not to sprint towards the goal after that header. He has looked comfortable and assured leaving a lot of responsibility to Jacquet.
21 Oct 2026 07:38:02
Would rather move him on, he's a poor captain and he will want to be first choice in the team, I'd rather start bringing on the young cbs that we have squirrelled away, been a unbelievable player but he's still no where near Hansen.
21 Oct 2026 07:45:47
Virgil doesn't need to shout and gesticulate. He has aura.
He deserves more years at the club. Who cares about FSG or Bezos money? Virgil has earned it.
And with the newer financial rules allowing greater owner equity contributions, there's more scope for owners to put their own money in without the same FFP constraints. So let's not start pleading poverty.
21 Oct 2026 07:51:55
None, Florian. This has been my biggest gripe with the squad for ages - they're all pals who get on well with one another, but they don't hold each responsible enough when someone is having an absolute stinker or has started the game asleep, which is partly what explains our consistently poor starts, in my opinion.
The squad, aside from in central midfield, is stacked with talent, but it is missing intimidating and responsible leaders that demand and inspire more from everyone, including the referees who cheat us out of games.
21 Oct 2026 08:25:46
Looking forward to see what Leoni can bring to the table, who knows.
Virg is one of my all time favourite players and wouldn't mind if he extended but to say he's still elite level is arguable, i think he has wained in his age but still one of the best out there.
I would love to see him sharing a lot of his minutes next season with younger and faster defenders, give him a break and he can save that energy and power for pivotal games.