Good job we signed Cundy & McCarthy last year & have kept Williams as well as bringing in a more experienced player on loan. The point I'm making is that you can choose to look at this window however you want. On paper it can look or great or ****. Let's just stop pretending anybody knows and get on with it.
It depends whether your success criteria is the amount of money generated for the owners, or whether the team is stronger than it was last year.
im actually not at all. I’m in the middle. We made the correct decisions to sell Mads and Kitching. The late sale of Kitching means it’s reasonable not to be able to spend any money we got from that sale. We have a good track record in attracting defensive players and I’m the medium term believe that we can replace the ones that have left. At the same time I have the critical facility to understand we have a scattergun approach to recruitment that often leaves us heavy in numbers but low on quality in certain positions. I also see a ground falling into disrepair. A poorly run club in managed decline that has managed to convince a portion of fans that winning football matches is not the aim of the club. You chose a date that’s completely irrelevant because it suited your argument. We were weaker on the 1st of September 2022 than we were on 31st May 2022.
Alfie Mawson probably. But certainly we've needed to do this better for practically the whole post-Dennis era.
But you say that like it's a bad thing? Lopata looks the bees knees, and what I've seen of Shepherd, he doesn't look half bad either. De Gevigney had a bit of a baptism of fire, he's described as an "aggressive" centre half, so getting booked and giving away a penalty in the opening half hour of his debut wasn't ideal. But then I remember a centre back partnership in the Championship consisting of two young foreign players, looking a bit raw and clumsy. Ones still playing in the Championship, the other has just scored his first Premier League goal. I honestly don't know why people are so insistent on making a judgement on a player based on where they've come from. It makes no sense. We've also signed a 26 year old with 200 career games to his name. That one keeps getting ignored for some reason.
But to get the club promoted they'll have to repeat that performance for at least 35 to 40 games. Which for untested inexperienced players will be too much to expect.
They did but they also went down to 10 men pretty early.. knocked em out there rhythm. They where tearing into us before then.. plus the way we set up at Wigan helped the defence..
They really weren't tearing into us. Honestly, watch the game up to the red card again. They barely got over the half way line. They passed the ball from side to side, and didn't even look like troubling our defence. And on the odd occasion they did, we dealt with it comfortably.
I think Pele was from Abroad. And Maradona. And I believe Messi and Ronaldo were also Abroad players.
Not the defence but rest of its as good if not better. Tedic and Cole started at Wembley, Cole and cosgrove/watters avaliable today. Midfield just the same with styles avaliable.
I’ve said this before but I genuinely don’t understand if someone posts anything positive they’re classed has happy clappers, it really is such a childish response, i appreciate you have your own opinion but childish name calling dilutes that opinion
I'm in agreement with the posters of the opinion that it's been mixed. Great business done for Kitching and Andersen that we couldn't really turn down. That being said, that we've chosen not to sign at least one experienced central defender with leadership qualities is barmy. There must be dozens who would be affordable for a year and who would be crucial in bringing the many rookie defenders we have along. I really don't know where a consistent back 3 is going to come from but it will take time. The other sour point is Norwood going. I'm excited by some of our signings up front but James brought something we've been lacking before and since. Nouse, character, leadership as well as quality. Bad move for Barnsley even if we did get money for him and question marks over why exactly he did go. Ultimately, we've gone from coming home from Wembley looking at a definite title challenge to accepting that it might be a mixed bag of a season whilst we wait for a new manager and players to acclimatise. There are many reasons outside of the club's control for that but you have to understand why some fans get fed up of the constant cycle of having the heart ripped out of our successful teams. For me, the biggest lesson we need to learn (and seem to have needed to for a while) is that we can't expect to polish valuable gems to sell on with every signing. We have to add short term experience with one or two. Look at the way Luton have done that in their blend and look at the difference Hammill, Solbauer and Norwood have made in recent seasons.
.....and how could we have stopped that? Every player has a price. Look at the movement in tbe premier league and the championship. Collins - received a good offer. he wanted to go, probably for more money. Mads - received a great offer. he wanted to go. definitely for more money. Thomas - not our player, but even if he was, we'd have received a good offer and he would have gone....foe more money. Kitching - great player. received a remarkable offer. he wanted to go, definitely for more money. Life moves on.We'll buy and sell players whatever league we're in. The determining factor is always about how effectively we can replace them.
If you're so desperate for nailed on promotion this season I reckon you're best trying to find a club who can guarantee you that as a "fan". Good luck with that.
