https://www.barnsleychronicle.com/article/30804/clarke-gets-calls-for-more-firepower-up-front Doesn't sound like he's convinced it's just down to a striker bur more how we create if I've understood it correctly?? Is he hinting on wingers? I'm not sure tbh
Reading that, all the way through it hints to us needing someone who can finish chances. Then takes a swerve at the end.
We have no money to bring in a decent striker so the only way to improve on what we’ve got is to go down the loan route I’m afraid.
I think it's best we just wait and see who comes in before the window closes. That interview snippet doesn't tell us a great deal that's new and it feels contradictory in just a few short sentences.
Sorry I’ve nothing against loan players infact it makes perfect sense to do this I’m just pointing out that we haven’t the funds to do what Huddersfield have done .
I see that Blackpool are after Niall Ennis on loan from Stoke, following the £2.5 million transfer of Kyle Joseph (we were in for him when he was a kid at Wigan) to Hull City. I would think that they can come up with plenty of cash to attract both Ennis and Stoke to do the deal. That leaves us looking at Ryan One as a loan possibility, if the rumours are true. Clarke has a reputation at previous clubs for taking young loanees for higher division clubs and sometimes making their career. For me, One fits what we need. Although only 18, he is a muscular, but technically gifted target man striker, who should be able to hold the ball up and bring others like DKD, Phillips and Connell into better attacking positions, whilst scoring the occasional goal himself. There is no doubt in my mind that he fits what we lack in competition for striker places - a muscular target man. From the Blades' point of view, he would benefit in his development from the coaching of Jon Stead, who I can recall tearing us apart in a 5-3 defeat at Bristol City. It was a model of how to play the target man role. Get him in. We won't be able to keep him, but it would be a win-win for me, both for us and the Blades.
I think if the right player at the right price is available, then we'll do business. If they aren't, then we won't. And with our financial position, I'm happy with that.
It's looking more and more like One is the one (lol). Evans at Rotherham has hinted that he wants another striker too so locally we could have competition. For me we need two if we can shift Cosgrove but that's unlikely to happen.
I thought Clarke was hedging his bets in his interview. Placating the fans by saying 'I get it' and saying we need to score but not committing to anything specific.
I don't just think it's the defence though. It's the protection our midfield fail to give. Yes, we have some disasters waiting to happen in our defence, but out of possession, we can look all over the place and the defence is easily got at. I think coaching and structure could improve that aspect to some degree.