Assuming that we need to sell some of our prized assets in order to bring in any new players and pay off debt, who do people think we should sacrifice?
The most obvious saleable candidates (to me anyway) are Pickford, Branthwaite, Onana and DCL. If we were in a better financial situation, I wouldn’t want to lose any of them but, given our situation, it seems inevitable that one or more will likely have to be sold.
There’s a number of factors to be weighed up here including age, how easily they can be replaced, how much money we would get etc. For me, the reluctant choice would be Pickford who happens to be my pick for Player of the Season!
Why? Firstly, I think we would get a good price for him and at 30 he’s probably at his peak value. His backup (Virginia) has been good whenever he has played and we can bring in a new younger backup for him for a relatively modest price.
Second choice would be Onana. A lot of mixed reviews from fans but personally I rate him and would not sell him unless we were really desperate. He’s young, very versatile (covers a number of positions in midfield), and will get better I believe. I hope we can keep him.
Calvert-Lewin is still relatively young, hard to replace, and would be under-valued on the market even though he has started to find some really good form in the second half of the season. It would be a big blow if we sold him.
Branthwaite is a gem, crucial to the team, very hard to replace, young and likely to increase in value. No way we should sell him.