[Archived] Di Santo -

[CrazyIvan]

Di Santo stays

According to Nicko/Mirror. Great piece of news, the article also states "with a view to a full transfer". Would be interesting to know what that presumably set transferfee is.

That's fantastic news. I'm sure Nicko will tell us some more details... (hint hint... )

[Hughesy]

Great news on Di Santo..........Expected it though.

Nicko - have we agreed a buying price in the loan do you know!?

[G Somerset Rover]

Now we've got this sorted (and I'm guessing a fee for the end of the season) how ironic would it be if he starts banging 'em in?

Come on Franco..starting tonight at Brum please.

[nicko]

Chelsea have agreed to let the lad stay. He will carry on with the loan spell until the end of the season, so that is very good news in the short-term.

The plus side is also that Ancelotti does not see him as part of his plans just now - and possibly in the long term. However NO fee has been agreed. I have to stress that. But the signs are that they would not be hard to deal with.

So we are back to where we were when we started. Franco comes on loan, tries to get games, and then it is all reviewed in the summer.

The 'down' side is that he scores a lot of goals and Chelsea realise that he is a talent or someone else comes in. The price would certainly be big in those circumstances.

But that's just the way it is...

The other bonus for Rovers is that it takes very little out of the budget, which was always the main attraction for me in the whole deal.

So there is scope for a signing or two - but, by the sounds of it, some are going to have to go to pay for it. That is fair enough.

[Eddie]

Hm, not agreeing a fee is a dangerous move.

[47er]

Hm, not agreeing a fee is a dangerous move.

Dangerous for whom? Why assume its our move? Perhaps Chelsea prefer to wait to see if he starts scoring before settling on a fee?

[waggy]

The 'down' side is that he scores a lot of goals and Chelsea realise that he is a talent or someone else comes in. The price would certainly be big in those circumstances.

But that's just the way it is...

i don't think we will have to worry about the goals he scores,its the one's he misses

[Bobby G]

But in your article nicko, you mentioned that it has a view to a permanent transfer, so does that mean we have first option on him?

[Hughesy]

Its a win win situation.

We get to keep him, hes cheap.

HE scores loads - we win more games - yes we might lose him in the summer but it gets us higher placing cash

He doesnt score many - price comes down, then up to us

He does poorly - send him back.

[nicko]

But in your article nicko, you mentioned that it has a view to a permanent transfer, so does that mean we have first option on him?

It's 'with a view' because Rovers will be favourites for the kid at the end of the season because he has tried so hard to stay and is one of the main reasons why it has happened...remember how he was 'never going to stay' according to all sources until the lad came out and said he wanted to.

Chelsea have been quicker than expected in letting him go. They wanted to get a replacement first and then decided 'what the hell' and let him go...there has been a change of heart there about him, he does not look a long-term Chelsea player to me because of the way this has been handled and agreed so fast.

The bottom line is - should a sale happen in the summer you are in position A to keep him.

There is nothing in writing about it yet, but all three parties seem happy for this relationship to go on for some time.

Personally I would have tried to nail down a fee and do it now, but this is a pretty reasonable consolation prize.

[Blue n White Rover]

Its a win win situation.

We get to keep him, hes cheap.

HE scores loads - we win more games - yes we might lose him in the summer but it gets us higher placing cash

He doesnt score many - price comes down, then up to us

He does poorly - send him back.

Realistically, with him scoring more goals he'll take us up the table by a few places which equates to around £1.5/£2million, which nowadays, is absolute peanuts!

So if he does score loads, then I'm afraid we will have made a huge mistake in not agreeing a price beforehand.

[joey_big_nose]

Realistically, with him scoring more goals he'll take us up the table by a few places which equates to around £1.5/£2million, which nowadays, is absolute peanuts!

So if he does score loads, then I'm afraid we will have made a huge mistake in not agreeing a price beforehand.

Thats built on the presumption Chelsea would have agreed to a fee we saw as realisic. It is only speculation but I can't see any real advantage for Chelsea in agreeing a fee, so I imagine they said "wait and see".

[den]

Chelsea have been quicker than expected in letting him go. They wanted to get a replacement first and then decided 'what the hell' and let him go...there has been a change of heart there about him, he does not look a long-term Chelsea player to me because of the way this has been handled and agreed so fast.

The lad will never be good enough for Chelsea Nicko.

I'm very happy for him to be staying for the rest of the season though, because he works hard and does have a certain quality about him. Good ball control - which is essential -, reminds me of Santa Cruz when he runs with the ball. He can certainly get better and who knows, if he can add goals to his abilities, he can still be a Premier League striker.

[joey_big_nose]

He's a great player no doubt, but here's a silly suggestion, why not play him in Midfield instead?

He can hold up play, pass , and create, but ATM cannot score.

Just a thought?

Well, that is a pretty silly suggestion because he is about the most "back to goal" player I have ever seen in my life! If he is on the pitch he is leading the line imo.

[TimmyJimmy]

Hard worker, good positional sense, good strength, tremendous touch, loves Rovers, age 20, finishing needs improvement. If he was already a one chance finisher then he wouldn't be at Rovers on loan would he.

Sam can work with him and he'll get this right. How could we wish for better raw material to work with than this.

One extra plus point for the absent minded ... "Franco Di Santo of Blackburn rises above the Burnley defence to score their 2nd Blackburn goal."

[Hughesy]

Realistically, with him scoring more goals he'll take us up the table by a few places which equates to around £1.5/£2million, which nowadays, is absolute peanuts!

So if he does score loads, then I'm afraid we will have made a huge mistake in not agreeing a price beforehand.

Peanuts to who? NZonzi cost £600k.

Had he taken his chance against Liverpool we would be in 10th - that 1 goal alone would put us in a place where we would earn £2.5m more than planned when we said 13th!

If he can start banging enough in to make Chelsea up their price then we will probably of finished 8th or higher......to me thats win, win - regardless of what happens after!

[CrazyIvan]

This is, for me, a no-brainer for Rovers. He will get better as he finds his feet in the Premier League. His hold up play is the best of anyone at the club and, dare I say it, the best I've seen at Rovers in a long time. His shooting and timing need work but that is more about experience than about ability. He has the ability but needs to gain the experience. The lad has something and I think he'll prove to be a wise investment in the future. Chelsea need someone to pick up and take over the scoring from Drogba when he is away on African Nations duty or if he gets injured and Di Santo is not that player. He might well be in a couple of years though...

[RevidgeBlue]

Chelsea have been quicker than expected in letting him go.

With respect it might be because they've quickly sussed he's not up to Premiership standard. And if they are of that view I'd say they're correct.

I don't understand the "This deal is good because it's cheap" argument.

If he proves not to be good enough and only registers once or twice again in the second half of the season it's bad news for us and our League position regardless of the cost of the deal.

[nicko]

The lad will never be good enough for Chelsea Nicko.

I'm very happy for him to be staying for the rest of the season though, because he works hard and does have a certain quality about him. Good ball control - which is essential -, reminds me of Santa Cruz when he runs with the ball. He can certainly get better and who knows, if he can add goals to his abilities, he can still be a Premier League striker.

Could someone remind me where Didier Drogba was when he was 20?

Playing Premier League football?

Playing for Chelsea?

Playing for Blackburn Rovers?

No, he was in Le Mans reserves in the French Second Division with his coach reckoning he wasn't strong enough to be a player...

I would not be so quick to write off Di Santo considering what he has done so far and the fact that he leads the line so well for a kid of his age.

Right now he is already your number one striker, keeping out someone who was bought for £6 million and two old hands with plenty of experience on a regular basis.

Tell me another 20-year-old in the Premier League who is doing that.

[Bobby G]

I agree with nicko.

It takes time, and the best ingredient is real match practice and experience.

For a club of our size and stature to be ruling him out at the highest level is pathetic.

He may never be one of the worlds top 5 strikers, but he is an excellent prospect.

The best is yet to come from him. He is only 20 for God's sake.

[den]

I would not be so quick to write off Di Santo considering what he has done so far and the fact that he leads the line so well for a kid of his age.

Whoa, - who's writing him off?

I said he'll never be good enough to make Chelsea's first team. The fact that they could well be prepared to let him go suggests they think that as well. That isn't a sleight on the lad, because Chelsea will compete for the best strikers in the world.

[rovers_rob]

One thing that I am impressed with is his attitude, the lad never stops running, he always chases the ball closes down defenders and he isn’t afraid to battle for the ball. The effort that he shows is superb.

He is raw at the moment and he lacks composure in front of goal but that will come with experience and games. He has pace, he is decent in the air and he has strength to hold the ball up. I reckon he will be the best target man in the league in a few years time and I'm just glad we have him this season.

Hopefully we can sign him on a permanent deal in the summer.

[nicko]

Whoa, - who's writing him off?

I said he'll never be good enough to make Chelsea's first team. The fact that they could well be prepared to let him go suggests they think that as well. That isn't a sleight on the lad, because Chelsea will compete for the best strikers in the world.

I think that is one and the same thing...

The guy is 20 and further down the line than any target man striker of his age in the Premier League.

At his current rate of progress I would say he is two years away from being a top-four club player.

Keep thinking who he reminds me of and it dawned on me recently that it is Graeme Sharp. He was another target man who took stick for failing to score goals at first. He cracked it quite quickly and became a better player with age. I think that is the path Di Santo will follow.

Plus 'never' is a very long time.

[Steve Moss]

I think Di Santo (and Kalinic) are stars in the making. They are young, and a bit nervous, but they are the future. And its a pretty bright future, if you ask me.

[Hughesy]

If we can keep Di Santo & Hoilett then it will give us a very strong/ young nucleus for the future.

Samba, NZonzi, Di Santo, Hoilett, Kalinic and then maybe Jones, Fielding & Banton can all make the step up too.