Georges-Kévin NKoudou

[parklane1]

Interesting quote from Gunter Jacob, the OM sporting director: ""Mr. Levy is not the easiest in negotiations, but I must say he was very straight with us. I worked well with him. It was difficult, but I'm happy that we were finally able to complete the transfer."

Professional respect for our man.

But that can not be true, i keep getting told by some Spurs fans that every chairman thinks Levy is not good to work with and have no time for him.

 

[Bullet]

If Levy says you're his friend.... you're his friend

True. The secret to Daniel Levy's success is that when he turns you around and slowly unbuckles your belt and then unzips and unbuttons your trousers and slides them down your legs and pulls down your pants and quietly bends you forwards and slides his manhood inside of you, it is only a half incher so really it is more like being tickled by a friend.

 

[NaijaSpurs]

Chances are Danny Murphy knows feck all about the player and probably has never ever seen him play 90 minutes of football so lacks the credibility of being able to make an informed opinion on our new signing. The story is Spurs noticed him and were impressed by him while they were scouting Batshuayi and that works for me.

 

[Bullet]

The story is Spurs noticed him and were impressed by him while they were scouting Batshuayi and that works for me.

Don't. I still remember people on here crowing that Spurs got the best Portugueezer when we got Postiga whilst Utd had to settle on Ronaldo.

Or people arguing that Gary Neville was the rubbish brother and that he had a brother called Phil in the reserves who was way, way, WAAAAY better man...

 

[NaijaSpurs]

Don't. I still remember people on here crowing that Spurs got the best Portugueezer when we got Postiga whilst Utd had to settle on Ronaldo.

Or people arguing that Gary Neville was the rubbish brother and that he had a brother called Phil in the reserves who was way, way, WAAAAY better man...

When I say "Spurs" I mean Poch, and I am going to back him.

As for Gary Neville, well I no nothing about their reserve players nor had I ever seen Postiga play before we signed him. In the same vein I have never seen Nkoudou play apart from utube clips, so if my manager wants a player I will back him until the evidence of my own eyes proves otherwise. I owe him that simply for steering us to a 3rd place finish.

At the beginning of last season people were calling Levy cheap because instead of signing a defensive midfielder we started the season with a central defender in midfield. I remember the outrage on this forum when Rose was offered a new contract when he came back from Sunderland.

Poch will not get it right all the time but I am willing to give him the chance

 

[Bedfordspurs]

I wouldn't listen to anything Danny Murphy says.

He can be good but lately about us he is talking absolute balls

He was saying we haven't improved the first 11 but couldnt name who we signed

I agree we haven't improved the first 11 but we have significantly improved our weaknesses in the squad - which constricted more to our demise last season than the first 11 did

He never criticises Pool though and I genuinely think there signings have been toss. They have weakened their side IMO as their alienating their top striker (that could change) and Only have two players they signed this window who start... Yet it's now Klopps side

Like I say I dont mind Murhphy bug he is jumping on the nature band wagon as we over paid for sissoko

 

[mudshark]

But that can not be true, i keep getting told by some Spurs fans that every chairman thinks Levy is not good to work with and have no time for him.

Sorry, but as testimonials go, that's hardly going to give him a whole new rep as someone people enjoy dealing with, is it?

"That grizzly tore my entire family to shreds in eight seconds flat, so he did, but to be fair, he never looked like he was pretending to do anything else, once he'd peeled our car open."

 

[RunTMC]

Sorry, but as testimonials go, that's hardly going to give him a whole new rep as someone people enjoy dealing with, is it?

"That grizzly tore my entire family to shreds in eight seconds flat, so he did, but to be fair, he never looked like he was pretending to do anything else, once he'd peeled our car open."

I hear you but tbh i think, professionally, there are situations where you really don't want someone to be easy to deal with.

For example you're looking for a lawyer and get feedback from other lawyers.

There's one that other lawyers say was very easy to deal with, very happy to work with them etc.

Then there's another that other lawyers say was a tiger, brutal to work with, very difficult to get anything out of etc

Who would you choose to represent you?

Tbh I'm actually kind of glad that Levy tigerishly represents us, maybe to the detriment of his personal relationships with other chairmen but always looking to defend our interests. Of course there's a reciprocal negative effect but over time since he's been in charge, his tenure hasn't taken the club backwards. Onwards and upwards i say.

 

[mudshark]

I hear you but tbh i think, professionally, there are situations where you really don't want someone to be easy to deal with.

For example you're looking for a lawyer and get feedback from other lawyers.

There's one that other lawyers say was very easy to deal with, very happy to work with them etc.

Then there's another that other lawyers say was a tiger, brutal to work with, very difficult to get anything out of etc

Who would you choose to represent you?

Tbh I'm actually kind of glad that Levy tigerishly represents us, maybe to the detriment of his personal relationships with other chairmen but always looking to defend our interests. Of course there's a reciprocal negative effect but over time since he's been in charge, his tenure hasn't taken the club backwards. Onwards and upwards i say.

Well, I get your point, but I think if I am dealing with anyone, I prefer them to be on the easy side to deal with, otherwise I usually just consider the deal off. That might sort of amount to a judge being able simply to refuse to listen to any arguments my tigrish side put forward, in your analogy, which I think I'd find unhelpful. If it came to it, I'd probably be advised by my other half, since she used to be one, although I'm fortunate enough never to have needed a lawyer, I'm happy to say

 

[Spur of the moment]

We need at least 44 players in the squad I reckon. Like for like cover for everyone plus an alternative that also needs like for like cover.

Plus at least 44 out on loan.

 

[DubaiSpur]

http://www.skysports.com/football/n...delayed-tottenhams-georges-kevin-nkoudou-deal

An equally reputable reporter says that it is not horsebrick. The Guardian is no more a paragon for truthful reporting than Sky Sports.

Which is why I phrased it as a question, although Marseille's subsequent tweet calling Levy 'difficult' sort of adds weight to the Guardian's interpretation, I'd imagine.

http://www.skysports.com/football/n...delayed-tottenhams-georges-kevin-nkoudou-deal
Whether it is penny-pinching, power shifts, Poch not being convinced that he wanted to lose N'Jie, N'Jie having trouble getting a visa for France because of the terror attacks, it doesn't really matter. Your assumption is that having him in earlier could have improved results to an extent that the £1.6m saved could be a false saving. By all accounts, GKN is not one for now and my guess is that he will not start for a while until he gets use to the Poch press/tactics. So, why does it matter if he arrived today, yesterday, last week, last month or 2 months ago?

I get the point you are making. Of course it is ideal that all signings are in on time for pre-season. No arguments there. But, sometimes, just sometimes, other parties don't want to play ball.

That is true, sometimes other parties just aren't willing to negotiate. Like Steve Parish re; Zaha, and Jeremy Peace re; Berahino. But Marseille had the deal agreed in May, and proved perfectly willing to sell Batshuayi and Mendy (as well as Lemina before last season ended), so I guess my point is structured around the low likelihood of them being reluctant to deal with us but perfectly happy to deal with everyone else, *just* on account of them not liking Levy's cologne or dress sense or something.

Also, my suggestion is that N'Koudou, if he'd arrived earlier, could have trained enough to hit the ground running earlier than will now be the case, given that he spent the best part of a month presumably eating overpriced chocolate bars from the minifridge in whatever hotel room he was bunkered up in. The lost opportunities will come in that time period between when he *would* have been fit enough to start and when he now *will* be fit and ready to start, when a late N'Koudou goal, tap-in or tackle could either create, score or prevent a goal.

Or he could have scored nine rabona goals by now and we'd be top of the league with nine points and a +10 goal difference - monstrously unlikely, but whatever. The point is hopefully clearer - when I say 1.6m could be a false saving, I've factored in the likelihood that he won't now start for a while anyway.

If Levy was a penny pinching bastard who had no regard for footballing matters and just wanted to save on fee, then we would not have signed players early. He'd have renegotiated Wanyama's fee 3 times over and then the payment terms 3 times as well. Janssen could easily have been dragged out to save a penny or two. I think Levy has shown plenty of examples of deals done early.

Even the mighty Chelsea have had to resort to doing deals on the last day. Just look at the number of deals that have been done in the last couple of days. Are all those chairmen "penny-pinchers" as well? Or is that just for Levy.

Levy has done deals early. He's stretched deals longer than he has too as well. The thing about Janssen is that we spent a couple of weeks between apparently settling things with AZ and actually signing the guy, because apparently we weren't willing to pay what AZ were demanding - I sounded off about that as well, especially given that we passed up on Batshuayi to sign the guy. And Wanyama in particular confirmed that we were after him last summer as well, but Soton refused to sell.

I've never held a black and white position on Levy that clearly states that he's irretrievably cheap or lost to any sense in terms of pursuing pennies over backing his manager. I have, however, held the position that Levy unnecessarily stretches deals out more than he moves quickly to settle deals his manager evidently wants settled, and I've held that such a practice is sometimes quite detrimental to us. You mention Abramovich's last-minute deals for Luiz and that full-back (Alonso?) as evident counterweights to the idea that Levy's unique in this - my answer to that would be that Abramovich has outbid Levy and swooped in to seal deals to our detriment before, in short spans of time (Batshuayi and Willian, for example), and that his transfer dealings over the years haven't really shown any indication of a desire to scrimp and save over backing his managers (even if he does sack them later).

Levy is generally the opposite - there are certainly times where he backs his manager, but there are more instances where he's tried to save and left the manager short (or ultimately in the position of having to make do with an inferior signing or none at all). One constant in my position has been that this sequence of events is counterproductive, and that we should be doing the opposite.

It is too simplistic to run with the narrative that Levy penny pinching is the reason for all of our delays. His hard negotiating stance has also meant we have made some early signings. There are so many variables that will result in the delay of any transfer and I think the fact that you always resort to blaming Levy just makes it appear that you don't rate him at all. His record (and I know we have gone over this before) speaks for itself. Even if I grant you the others that have done better (which I don't). he would still be in the top 10 chairmen in Europe no?

He has backed Poch, and we are now a net spender!! Credit to you for recognising this at least with regards to the Sissoko transfer. Also credit to you for saying what you think.

I absolutely don't mind recognising it, because I'm quite happy about it - and I applaud the move . For me, instances like these (like I mentioned in either this thread or another one, can't quite remember) will help tip the scale back to the point where I defend Levy from accusations of not backing his man. For now, in this window, Sissoko proved that last summer's relatively quick deals for quality players (beating off competition for them, like with Toby) and (save for perhaps Berahino) lack of long-drawn out sagas wasn't a complete fluke, and that at least some prioritization of actual backing for the manager is definitely present in how Levy approaches the market now. With N'Koudou and others, I felt he delayed too long and fell back towards his flawed previous approach. With Sissoko, he swallowed his distaste and went in, all guns blazing, on a frankly unconvincing player but one that Poch evidently wanted, and that redeems him in my eyes to a considerable extent - and it will remain that way however Sissoko ends up performing, because it's the intent that matters in this instance, not the player.

More of the latter, less of the former, Daniel. Like I mentioned elsewhere, balancing's no doubt necessary, and it can be done later (as we'll likely end up doing if the options on Bentaleb and N'Jie are exercised). But it shouldn't be our priority if we're serious about giving Poch the tools he asks for, so that we can properly judge his time at the club without needing to put an asterisk next to his name that reads 'wasn't given the players he wanted', as happened with AVB.

Also, thanks for crediting me with speaking my mind, mate - I don't usually need encouragement to determinedly holler at random posters here, but it's appreciated nonetheless.

 

[JerusalemMan]

Which is why I phrased it as a question, although Marseille's subsequent tweet calling Levy 'difficult' sort of adds weight to the Guardian's interpretation, I'd imagine.

Is that some mis-quotation there, Dubai?
I thought they referred to the negotiations as difficult NOT Levy. For their actual thoughts on the man, see my earlier post.

It's a very different light.

 

[BrainOfLevy]

Which is why I phrased it as a question, although Marseille's subsequent tweet calling Levy 'difficult' sort of adds weight to the Guardian's interpretation, I'd imagine.



That is true, sometimes other parties just aren't willing to negotiate. Like Steve Parish re; Zaha, and Jeremy Peace re; Berahino. But Marseille had the deal agreed in May, and proved perfectly willing to sell Batshuayi and Mendy (as well as Lemina before last season ended), so I guess my point is structured around the low likelihood of them being reluctant to deal with us but perfectly happy to deal with everyone else, *just* on account of them not liking Levy's cologne or dress sense or something.

Also, my suggestion is that N'Koudou, if he'd arrived earlier, could have trained enough to hit the ground running earlier than will now be the case, given that he spent the best part of a month presumably eating overpriced chocolate bars from the minifridge in whatever hotel room he was bunkered up in. The lost opportunities will come in that time period between when he *would* have been fit enough to start and when he now *will* be fit and ready to start, when a late N'Koudou goal, tap-in or tackle could either create, score or prevent a goal.

Or he could have scored nine rabona goals by now and we'd be top of the league with nine points and a +10 goal difference - monstrously unlikely, but whatever. The point is hopefully clearer - when I say 1.6m could be a false saving, I've factored in the likelihood that he won't now start for a while anyway.



Levy has done deals early. He's stretched deals longer than he has too as well. The thing about Janssen is that we spent a couple of weeks between apparently settling things with AZ and actually signing the guy, because apparently we weren't willing to pay what AZ were demanding - I sounded off about that as well, especially given that we passed up on Batshuayi to sign the guy. And Wanyama in particular confirmed that we were after him last summer as well, but Soton refused to sell.

I've never held a black and white position on Levy that clearly states that he's irretrievably cheap or lost to any sense in terms of pursuing pennies over backing his manager. I have, however, held the position that Levy unnecessarily stretches deals out more than he moves quickly to settle deals his manager evidently wants settled, and I've held that such a practice is sometimes quite detrimental to us. You mention Abramovich's last-minute deals for Luiz and that full-back (Alonso?) as evident counterweights to the idea that Levy's unique in this - my answer to that would be that Abramovich has outbid Levy and swooped in to seal deals to our detriment before, in short spans of time (Batshuayi and Willian, for example), and that his transfer dealings over the years haven't really shown any indication of a desire to scrimp and save over backing his managers (even if he does sack them later).

Levy is generally the opposite - there are certainly times where he backs his manager, but there are more instances where he's tried to save and left the manager short (or ultimately in the position of having to make do with an inferior signing or none at all). One constant in my position has been that this sequence of events is counterproductive, and that we should be doing the opposite.



I absolutely don't mind recognising it, because I'm quite happy about it - and I applaud the move . For me, instances like these (like I mentioned in either this thread or another one, can't quite remember) will help tip the scale back to the point where I defend Levy from accusations of not backing his man. For now, in this window, Sissoko proved that last summer's relatively quick deals for quality players (beating off competition for them, like with Toby) and (save for perhaps Berahino) lack of long-drawn out sagas wasn't a complete fluke, and that at least some prioritization of actual backing for the manager is definitely present in how Levy approaches the market now. With N'Koudou and others, I felt he delayed too long and fell back towards his flawed previous approach. With Sissoko, he swallowed his distaste and went in, all guns blazing, on a frankly unconvincing player but one that Poch evidently wanted, and that redeems him in my eyes to a considerable extent - and it will remain that way however Sissoko ends up performing, because it's the intent that matters in this instance, not the player.

More of the latter, less of the former, Daniel. Like I mentioned elsewhere, balancing's no doubt necessary, and it can be done later (as we'll likely end up doing if the options on Bentaleb and N'Jie are exercised). But it shouldn't be our priority if we're serious about giving Poch the tools he asks for, so that we can properly judge his time at the club without needing to put an asterisk next to his name that reads 'wasn't given the players he wanted', as happened with AVB.

Also, thanks for crediting me with speaking my mind, mate - I don't usually need encouragement to determinedly holler at random posters here, but it's appreciated nonetheless.

Quick point on Janssen, but why should Levy immediately pay what AZ were demanding?

 

[parklane1]

Sorry, but as testimonials go, that's hardly going to give him a whole new rep as someone people enjoy dealing with, is it?

"."

I suppose it all depends on what angle/agenda the reader wants to put on it.

 

[DubaiSpur]

Is that some mis-quotation there, Dubai?
I thought they referred to the negotiations as difficult NOT Levy. For their actual thoughts on the man, see my earlier post.

It's a very different light.

https://twitter.com/x/status/771332930098565122

http://i.imgur.com/VIS63d9.jpg

Dunno, mate, I'm going off that statement above. Even allowing for the possibility of a mistranslation, the tweet pretty clearly *directly* references Levy.

Quick point on Janssen, but why should Levy immediately pay what AZ were demanding?

A) Because we were saving a considerable sum of money anyway given that we chose him over the more expensive option in Batshuayi, and B) him being in training earlier would be beneficial to the team and to his own sharpness heading into the season?

 

[Gazzasrightboot]

Which is why I phrased it as a question, although Marseille's subsequent tweet calling Levy 'difficult' sort of adds weight to the Guardian's interpretation, I'd imagine.

Difficult could mean a whole lot of things though. It doesn't just mean ass-hole. If a negotiation is not difficult, then I don't think it is being done properly. Ultimately if we are buying a player that they don't really want to sell, then a negotiation will always be difficult.

That is true, sometimes other parties just aren't willing to negotiate. Like Steve Parish re; Zaha, and Jeremy Peace re; Berahino. But Marseille had the deal agreed in May, and proved perfectly willing to sell Batshuayi and Mendy (as well as Lemina before last season ended), so I guess my point is structured around the low likelihood of them being reluctant to deal with us but perfectly happy to deal with everyone else, *just* on account of them not liking Levy's cologne or dress sense or something.

Also, my suggestion is that N'Koudou, if he'd arrived earlier, could have trained enough to hit the ground running earlier than will now be the case, given that he spent the best part of a month presumably eating overpriced chocolate bars from the minifridge in whatever hotel room he was bunkered up in. The lost opportunities will come in that time period between when he *would* have been fit enough to start and when he now *will* be fit and ready to start, when a late N'Koudou goal, tap-in or tackle could either create, score or prevent a goal.

Or he could have scored nine rabona goals by now and we'd be top of the league with nine points and a +10 goal difference - monstrously unlikely, but whatever. The point is hopefully clearer - when I say 1.6m could be a false saving, I've factored in the likelihood that he won't now start for a while anyway.

A previous member of the Marseille hierachy had agreed a deal in principle. There's no reason for the new owners/stakeholders to stick to it and "do a Levy". I think that there probably was a low reluctance to deal with us, because we were not as willing to just accept whatever price was handed to us.

Also if N'Koudou had arrived earlier, I don't believe it would have made any difference whatsoever. Much in the same way that Clinton made an impact last season. It's a youngster coming in from a foreign league and Poch is restrained with how he puts them into the team. I agree with you, £1.6m could be a false saving, but it is a real guaranteed saving versus a potential further saving later. Put it this way, would you like £1.6m now or the possibility of getting between £0 and £3m in 12 months time. That variable is dependent on a footballer staying healthy, not getting into any trouble, acclimatising to the EPL and not by any means guaranteed to being a starter. If it were your own money, I'm not sure you'd take the bet!

Levy has done deals early. He's stretched deals longer than he has too as well. The thing about Janssen is that we spent a couple of weeks between apparently settling things with AZ and actually signing the guy, because apparently we weren't willing to pay what AZ were demanding - I sounded off about that as well, especially given that we passed up on Batshuayi to sign the guy. And Wanyama in particular confirmed that we were after him last summer as well, but Soton refused to sell.

I've never held a black and white position on Levy that clearly states that he's irretrievably cheap or lost to any sense in terms of pursuing pennies over backing his manager. I have, however, held the position that Levy unnecessarily stretches deals out more than he moves quickly to settle deals his manager evidently wants settled, and I've held that such a practice is sometimes quite detrimental to us. You mention Abramovich's last-minute deals for Luiz and that full-back (Alonso?) as evident counterweights to the idea that Levy's unique in this - my answer to that would be that Abramovich has outbid Levy and swooped in to seal deals to our detriment before, in short spans of time (Batshuayi and Willian, for example), and that his transfer dealings over the years haven't really shown any indication of a desire to scrimp and save over backing his managers (even if he does sack them later).

Levy is generally the opposite - there are certainly times where he backs his manager, but there are more instances where he's tried to save and left the manager short (or ultimately in the position of having to make do with an inferior signing or none at all). One constant in my position has been that this sequence of events is counterproductive, and that we should be doing the opposite.

But this is just what I don't get from your standpoint. If he has shown that he will get deals done early, why do you think he picks and chooses when to be an asshole? Is it some sort of personality curse? It's not in his interests to drag out a deal if he doesn't have to. By gettins some deals done early, he has shown that he doesn't look to renegotiate everything to a point of unreasonableness. So why choose to do so with certain deals? I just don't see why anyone, especially someone like you, would think that Levy has this desire to be detrimental to the football team that he owns. Plainly he will have a better idea of the cost-benefit than most, and it's his money and therefore his return. If he's a money man, he will recognise the pitfalls of dragging a deal out and feel it more than most. So why assume that it's always him that is the reason for things being dragged out?

I absolutely don't mind recognising it, because I'm quite happy about it - and I applaud the move . For me, instances like these (like I mentioned in either this thread or another one, can't quite remember) will help tip the scale back to the point where I defend Levy from accusations of not backing his man. For now, in this window, Sissoko proved that last summer's relatively quick deals for quality players (beating off competition for them, like with Toby) and (save for perhaps Berahino) lack of long-drawn out sagas wasn't a complete fluke, and that at least some prioritization of actual backing for the manager is definitely present in how Levy approaches the market now. With N'Koudou and others, I felt he delayed too long and fell back towards his flawed previous approach. With Sissoko, he swallowed his distaste and went in, all guns blazing, on a frankly unconvincing player but one that Poch evidently wanted, and that redeems him in my eyes to a considerable extent - and it will remain that way however Sissoko ends up performing, because it's the intent that matters in this instance, not the player.

More of the latter, less of the former, Daniel. Like I mentioned elsewhere, balancing's no doubt necessary, and it can be done later (as we'll likely end up doing if the options on Bentaleb and N'Jie are exercised). But it shouldn't be our priority if we're serious about giving Poch the tools he asks for, so that we can properly judge his time at the club without needing to put an asterisk next to his name that reads 'wasn't given the players he wanted', as happened with AVB.

Also, thanks for crediting me with speaking my mind, mate - I don't usually need encouragement to determinedly holler at random posters here, but it's appreciated nonetheless.

I'm not going to rise to the AVB comment!

 

[JerusalemMan]

Dunno, mate, I'm going off that statement above. Even allowing for the possibility of a mistranslation, the tweet pretty clearly *directly* references Levy.

Look at what you said earlier. You claimed Levy was being called difficult. In isolation. Which is something of an insult.
That tweet directly talks about him being difficult IN NEGOTIATING. That's not an insult but a professional assessment. Context is key.
The speaker has also said Levy was very straight with them

 

[wiziwig]

Anyway, the 40 year old Georges-Kevin Nkoudou....He's youtube vids show him to be two-footed, scoring and attempting to score, and putting in crosses and accurate passes, with both feet so that's all good. If he's also as fast as they say, then maybe we have more than a decent player.

 

[Kandi1977]

Anyway, the 40 year old Georges-Kevin Nkoudou....He's youtube vids show him to be two-footed, scoring and attempting to score, and putting in crosses and accurate passes, with both feet so that's all good. If he's also as fast as they say, then maybe we have more than a decent player.

I look forward to seeing him in action. I'm not expecting we have signed the new Ronaldo, but it will be interesting to see what he can do.

 

[wiziwig]

I look forward to seeing him in action. I'm not expecting we have signed the new Ronaldo, but it will be interesting to see what he can do.

I feel up until now, we've had an over reliance on our full-backs to get to the by line. Poch has addressed this hopefully with the George and Sissoko signings.