Albert Gudmundsson

[Tucker]

Think we all need to bear in mind that Ange has said he wants different options. It won’t all be about players being like for like. It’s a good thing to have something different off the bench to change a game.

 

[Ghost Hardware]

Think we all need to bear in mind that Ange has said he wants different options. It won’t all be about players being like for like. It’s a good thing to have something different off the bench to change a game.

Exactly. Really Albert represents a very good versatile attacker who can cover numerous positions and is good enough to be pushing for a starting spot.

I can understand why we might target some other younger players with bigger potential first, that’s the right move, but I think Albert could possibly be a very clever purchase depending on who else we target for the other positions. I mean he’s the joint 3rd top goal scorer in the league with 13 which is the same as Osimhen. Only Vlahovic and Lautaro have more and Albert isn’t a striker. That’s not to be sniffed at especially as he plays for Genoa.

 

[purplemonkey]

I think we as fans tend to think quite rigidly about players and profiles and positions. The article below explains better than I could the importance of versatility in today’s tactical landscape. Think about Gudmundsson in this context and this link makes a lot more sense:

Do positions even matter? How Guardiola, Postecoglou are changing the game

Man City's Guardiola, Spurs' Postecoglou and Brighton's De Zerbi are among the coaches preaching a style of play without traditional positions.

www.espn.co.uk

Ange's style of football at its best is defined by fluidity, flexibility and freedom. Having a player who is more difficult to pigeonhole is a plus in this system. If you forget about his “position” and focus more on his “skills”, he’s probably actually a very good fit for what we need.

More generally though, the top clubs have been targeting these types of players for ages now. The article references Julián Álvarez as the archetypal modern forward and I guess that’s what Arsenal were going for when they signed Jesus and Trossard. Gudmundsson fits the mould of the more rangy midfield/forward hybrids that seem particularly en vogue at the moment like Havertz, Szoboszlai and Gakpo.

He’s very much a wildcard, but this kind of signing seems essential as we rebuild our squad.

 

[ItsBoris]

I cant work out where he would play for us. He is best as a second striker from what I can tell. He wouldnt be a winger or a CF in the prem so would he just compete with Maddison?

We are being linked to a lot of players that dont seem to fit the profiles I and a lot of people presumed we would be targetting. Maybe a system change is on the way next season.

My theory is with the way our wingers play we want a more false 9 player in that forward position. I know others disagree and want an out and out goal poacher but the way we want to play I think just suits a false 9 more. If I'm right though I think he would be quite suited to that.