Next Seasons 25

[ThePromisedLand]

A strating eleven as things stand:

Samba
Gabriel
Worrall
Mckenna
Blackett
Yates
Cafu
Johnson
Lolley
Grabban
Mighten

Subs: Smith, Jenkinson, Bong, Soh, Figs, Colback, Arter, Carvalho, Taylor,

Proves the point then Sniff - probably 4 of that starting X1 not good enough ( and 4 more amongst the subs )

[Sniffer Dog (Admin)]

Agree TPL. Definitely work to be done.

[Strawberry Avenger]

I'd rather we jettison Arter and keep the Talismanic Sow.

I'm not surprised we've started to slip in the recent games without him. Our current run of of 'not so many defeats' in 15 (now it's 4 in 17?) began with him and Yates as the gatekeepers before they both got injured. (An area of the park we've not had that much luck with, injury wise or fitness wise.). That said. Garner (WITH) Cafu spoke for itself in the 2nd half. With Lolley doing better ahead of Bong than Freeman. We have two CMs that can actually pass a ball. (Though I don't think Garner was too hot yesterday. Nor the team in general with its passing.)

Yes. He got injured. But what you going to do when a player treads on the back of your foot/tendon or clatters your ankle from behind. I still think he's our best CM.

With Cafu now in hot pursuit.

It depends 'can we bring' in better.

The fulcrum shift of Knocker West's post.

Winger. More competitive keeper as 'back up.' A 'Hughton' inspired CH? A clear out of strikers and 2-3 brought in? Two loans of Luke and Krov' got back. Then we need a genuine 2xACM to replace them. Brennan as heir apparent as part of a 4-3-3 'alt' formation?

I'm counting at least 7 players. And presuming we don't get Garner back next season, who is going to be our deep lying CM pass range finder? Make that 8 players.

And I forgot the full backs. At least one at LB and RB (Christie is a loan?). So that's 12 players.

Good luck Christ Hughton. It's not going to be adding '2-3' players. Or a handful of players. It's going to be a Hughton sweep of the broom. A clear out of patchwork squad of manager's past.

SA.

[Strawberry Avenger]

I will try to calm your fears to the best of my knowledge SM.

Changes behind the scenes have been made. We now know that CH and GB are in charge of signings. Anigo has gone and Modesto is now mainly scouting younger players.

I believe we will do ok in our remaining games and CH will keep his job revamp the squad in the summer and start next season strongly.

To get the best out of Hughton's experience.  I think we'll see a better Summer revolution overall due to that 'twin pillar' relationship with Gary.

SA.

[Knocker West]

I'd rather we jettison Arter and keep the Talismanic Sow.

Sow is the same conundrum he has always been, when he first turned up here on trial, in the early days of his career, we liked the look of him, but passed on him due to physical concerns, a career later & he's back & our original physio team was right, it's been a career blighted by injuries & he still struggles to be anything remotely approaching an ever present & so the same question has to be asked that's been asked all his career, can a club afford to carry him, during his inevitable injury breaks?

My hunch is we won't offer Sow a new contract.

[Strawberry Avenger]

I'd rather we jettison Arter and keep the Talismanic Sow.

Sow is the same conundrum he has always been, when he first turned up here on trial, in the early days of his career, we liked the look of him, but passed on him due to physical concerns, a career later & he's back & our original physio team was right, it's been a career blighted by injuries & he still struggles to be anything remotely approaching an ever present & so the same question has to be asked that's been asked all his career, can a club afford to carry him, during his inevitable injury breaks?

My hunch is we won't offer Sow a new contract.

I think the 'whispers' of a January move tells the tale.

SA.

[tugger2018]

What an awful signing arter has been rumours of a fee between £2 -£5 million paid for him and a weekly wage rumoured from
£30-£40k per week
I recently listened to a article from when Roy Keane fell out with him when co managing rep Ireland accusing him of never being fit and can’t train for 3 days in a row it’s a pity our recruiters never listened to it before signing him

[Sniffer Dog (Admin)]

What an awful signing arter has been rumours of a fee between £2 -£5 million paid for him and a weekly wage rumoured from
£30-£40k per week
I recently listened to a article from when Roy Keane fell out with him when co managing rep Ireland accusing him of never being fit and can’t train for 3 days in a row it’s a pity our recruiters never listened to it before signing him

Tugger mi owd. Don't believe everything you read and everything you hear.

[Salvatore Matrecano]

Arter has been poor and I suspect he will leave in the summer. But we paid nowhere near that figure and his wages are nowhere near that either.
Its a shame because I think he has a good character, bit of a fiery will to win, despite all the criticism of last summers transfers I can see why he was a target.

[Sniffer Dog (Admin)]

Spot on SM ^^

[tugger2018]

Come on lads spill the beans then what do you guys think/know we pay or paid for arter ?

[Knocker West]

I recently listened to a article from when Roy Keane fell out with him when co managing rep Ireland accusing him of never being fit and can’t train for 3 days in a row it’s a pity our recruiters never listened to it before signing him

To many clubs, not just us, don't do their homework anymore, it's all agent recommendations, stats & highlight videos & those things only ever tell you part of the story.

You should know a player inside out before you drop a large wedge on him, that way you increase the chances of signing someone who is not only good enough but that will fit with your squad & work for you.

I mean, I've just mentioned the McKenna situation on another thread.

Inn that first half season that Warburton had, he looked at our squad & determined our defence was not fit for purpose (which I think we'd all agree with) & that the only defender we had, that was really worth sticking with, was the young academy CB Joe Worrall, & to get the best out of him we should buy a left footed CB, & the one he identifed was McKenna.

As everyone will remember we bid for him that summer, he even put in a transfer request to try & push the deal through for us, but Aberdeen wouldn't accept the bid we had on the table & the window closed without him moving.

Come the usual autumn review, where you discuss the season so far, & talk about your targets for January, MW wanted to revisit McKenna & the club said, no, they can provide better, they can get us Figueiredo instead, which lead to our DoF falling out with the club, when he insisted we didn't want Figgy, & should stick with McKenna instead.

As people will remember that falling out led to our DoF quitting & MW followed shortly afterwards because without his DoF his position had become untenable & instead we drafted in David Platt Karannka, didn't revisit McKenna, bought Figgy, then sent Worrall away for "political reasons", & pissed away fees & wages on Robinson, Hefele, Dawson, Benalouane, Miloseovic, Chema & Blackett, before finally deciding Warburton was right & that Worrall & McKenna might make a desirable partnership, so we bought him all in, for a few hundred thousand more than we could have got him for a few years ago.

That long & convoluted journey means we're where we could have been 3 years ago on this one, but all in we've spent twice as much money than we would have done had we done it when the idea was first suggested.

Do your homework, get the right players, because patch & make do, or cheap alternatives rarely work, managers suggest players because they are the players the paid experts think can do the job.

Thankfully it looks like the experts (Hughton & Brazil) will have more say this summer & I am entirely confident both of those two will do their research & homework & therefore we will target more appropriate signings & signings that are more likely to work with the tam & the squad & therefore to be successful.

Time will tell, but while there are reasons to criticize the past there is also the feint rays of hope on the horizon.