Re: Diarra...

[AuburnSpur]

Seems like a very good potential acquisition, especially with his ability to play both defensive midfield AND right back.  Likely a stretch unless on loan, though - didn't realize how much Real paid for him: "...on 1 January 2009 for a fee of around €20 million."

[Aosoth]

This is the thing that other (particularly pompey) fans seem to forget in their vitriolic predictions about how Redknapp will take Spurs to the cleaners.  Redknapp signed players for small amounts at Pompey, they were put on high wages by idiotic chairmen and agents hammering out deals and they got games and got better.  When it came time to sell, Portsmouth made a fortune in profit on some of them.

These profits disappear and suddenly it's Redknapp who has destroyed the club financially....it's amazing to wonder where all those transfer fees went when they sold those players for such inflated amounts a lot of them.

(I don't include Kranjcar - at £2.5mil even as a staunch Spurs fan I think we robbed them blind!)

[AuburnSpur]

This is the thing that other (particularly pompey) fans seem to forget in their vitriolic predictions about how Redknapp will take Spurs to the cleaners.  Redknapp signed players for small amounts at Pompey, they were put on high wages by idiotic chairmen and agents hammering out deals and they got games and got better.  When it came time to sell, Portsmouth made a fortune in profit on some of them.

These profits disappear and suddenly it's Redknapp who has destroyed the club financially....it's amazing to wonder where all those transfer fees went when they sold those players for such inflated amounts a lot of them.

(I don't include Kranjcar - at £2.5mil even as a staunch Spurs fan I think we robbed them blind!)

No kidding.  Portsmouth paid £5.5mil for him and ONE YEAR LATER sold him to Real for £20mil.  That's a ridiculously good return on investment.

[WilsonJet]

20M euros - but still a huge a profit

[dedleysting]

Diarra is a great player and I would love to see him here.

In yidjoe's rumour thread it mentioned Diarra having issues....never looked like he has in the past... He was quality at Pompey and I really wanted us to snap him up then. Still young at 25 too. Could be what we need seen as Sgt Wilson form has disappeared understandably since the murder of his little brother.

[Aosoth]

Diarra has a blood disorder.  It's why he wasn't available to France for the world cup.

Essentially it has big impacts on his body in certain circumstances, like for example this summer he was physically unable to cope with altitude.

[CountPuchi]

Blood issues or no he used to play in the Prem didnt he?

The only stumbling block between us and Diarra is that Harry himself said he(Diarra) is on a very high pay. That high wage demand would be a big challenge for us.. i wonder how Levy can convince him to reduce his wage..

[Gareth Keown]

think he has sickle-cell anaemia which is a common blood-disorder with Africans... the red-blood cells have mutated from a 'standard' spherical shape to a 'sickle' shape.... this is  actually a positive mutation  for humans living where malaria is prevalent, as it helps fight the virus taking hold... but can lead to less oxygen carried in the blood-cells which will obviously heighten fatigue (especially at high-altitudes where theres less oxygen)... butreally,  the main drawback  about Diarra tho is that...

he smells.

[CountPuchi]

I donno if ur joking or being serious Gareth. Talking about someone's BO isnt right lol...

[RiffHard]

think he has sickle-cell anaemia which is a common blood-disorder with Africans... the red-blood cells have mutated from a 'standard' spherical shape to a 'sickle' shape.... this is  actually a positive mutation  for humans living where malaria is prevalent, as it helps fight the virus taking hold... but can lead to less oxygen carried in the blood-cells which will obviously heighten fatigue (especially at high-altitudes where theres less oxygen)... butreally,  the main drawback  about Diarra tho is that...

he smells.

Well-well-well, who's the racist now?

[Gareth Keown]

judging from my statement.... nobody..

unless your'e inferring that Diarra smells BECAUSE he's black...

you obviously havent read the many articles of roadies for a chap called Elvis Presley... they didnt call him Smelly Elv for nothing you know...

Smelly Elvis was not black btw...

[RiffHard]

You just like to stir up some controversy, don't you?

[AuburnSpur]

judging from my statement.... nobody..

unless your'e inferring that Diarra smells BECAUSE he's black...

you obviously havent read the many articles of roadies for a chap called Elvis Presley... they didnt call him Smelly Elv for nothing you know...

Smelly Elvis was not black btw...

I assumed he meant he smelled because he was French.   

[Gareth Keown]

ignorance in United Statesions is very understandable.... I call you that as others dont have the presumption to claim an entire continent as a nationality...

save up for a passport.... theyre nice...

[AuburnSpur]

ignorance in United Statesions is very understandable.... I call you that as others dont have the presumption to claim an entire continent as a nationality...

save up for a passport.... theyre nice...

Why so defensive about French jokes?  I even used an HILARIOUS dancing smiley to indicate I was kidding.

Also, we don't claim an entire continent as a nationality.  See, the continent is North America, and we're the United States of America, so it's shortening the name to say "American."  If we claimed the whole continent, we'd call our country North America and ourselves North American.  You know, like BRITISH.  I though you were supposed to have a mastery of language, or something?  Didn't I read that somewhere?