Keep Ned!

News reports indicate Everton are keen on pinching Nedum Onuoha to replace the probably City-bound Joleon Lescott. I'd hope Onuoha would be a player we'd hang on to, personally. He was excellent on coming into the team for the second half of last season, and did very little wrong at all. He's obviously an excellent professional, too, and as with most of the better academy graduates, i'd like to see him continue to get his chance. He has all the attributes needed to be a top centre-half, and though we almost certainly do need to strengthen in that area, i'd be more than happy for Ned to get games.

Since breaking into the first team squad Nedum has perhaps struggled with being able to fill in at a number of positions. We've seen him play quite a bit at right-back, even occasionally on the left, and whilst that's been handy, it's probably come at a cost for his progression. His main qualities in my opinion, are his sensible head, athleticism and strength. He rarely tries to overplay and is eager to put himself about. I think he'll go on to be at least as good as Lescott.

You could quite easily see us paying the £20m for Lescott and turning him into a donkey whilst Onuoha, who might command a third of that fee at best, could go to a club like Everton and flourish. Moyes has a track-record for turning unfashionable players into regular performers. Phil Jagielka was perhaps thought of as a bit of a risk at £4m, but now he's arguably the best English centre-half in the division barring Ferdinand & Terry. Lescott, a good player on arrival but injury-prone and completely untried at Premier League level having missed Wolves entire last campaign in the top flight, has also proved a snip, now a regular international and adept at centre-half or full-back against the very best in the country.

I don't think Everton would be any weaker with Onuoha in their side rather than Lescott, Moyes' man-management appears second to none. There are plenty of players in their squad who might not be too great technically, but they work hard for him, and the results follow. I'm not convinced that we'd see the same Lescott here as has come on so much at Goodison over the last three years. There's more to it than just bringing good players in, they must continue to be motivated and coached to the same levels as before.

With pretty much every defender on our books going backwards over the last year, i do have concerns about the defensive coaching methods Hughes and his team employ. Likewise with John Terry, he's looked like a great player for Chelsea and England because he's been playing alongside the likes of Rio Ferdinand and Ricardo Carvalho, but also under coaches who are good motivators and tacticians. I'm not convinced it's simply a case of bringing these guys in and assuming we'll suddenly transform into some sort of impenetrable and cohesive defensive unit.

While i do want to see Lescott arrive, i'd be against it if it meant using Nedum as a makeweight in any deal. I'd go as far as saying i see him as future captain material, and a possible England regular further down the line. He's a great example to young lads coming through the ranks, aswell, and someone who i'd imagine would be a positive influence around the place. If they're short of a centre-half, let them have Micah, Dunney or Ben Haim, even better, all three.