January 2022 Transfer Thread

[Bijou Bob]

An excellent post by Pru above, to which I would add the following:

In the last season that we were promoted from this division, our two centre backs, Wheats and Beevers scored 16/17 goals between them. To my recall, we've scored just one headed goal in the last 50 games or so, a stat which is as shocking as it is pathetic. At 6'6, Santos hasn't got his head to a single set piece as far as I can remember and he has scored the sum total of zero. Only Baptiste has anything like an assist or a goal to his name this season.

If we are to have a go at reaching the play off this season (Which for me, seems to be a ludicrous suggestion as things stand) we need the whole team to be contributing goals and assists and far more needs to be made of our set pieces. That means that our centre backs have to get up there and attack the ball when it's in the box in the air. Moreover, our wing backs have to be beating the first man with those balls and we need to cease the practice of loading the box, only for the ball to go sideways two or three times from the dead ball, rather than into the box. Each time we don't cross it into the danger area, an opportunity goes missing, we lose momentum, lose our shape and get caught on the counter.

[officer_dibble]

I think about it even simpler…we have the most fouled player in the league. We win a lot of free kicks. We never score from set pieces!

[BWFC_Insane]

Evatt says he doesn’t believe in working much on set pieces. Even though every single top manager knows they are the difference. If I was to explain my main frustration with Evatt it’s that he’s slow to realise that football is won in the margins not generally in the main piece.

The difference between two sides nowadays in professional football is usually a very marginal one. So a percent here, a corner routine there. And if you aren’t as good as you can be at set pieces in both your boxes you give away a margin needlessly.

He’s had long enough to realise that, more than long enough. If he ever wants a chance at managing in the championship or higher he will have to learn these things and prove over a few seasons that he has.

It’s a bit like kids who watch Guardiola and play fifa yet simply don’t know how hard he and his staff work on every single detail. These people project an image yet you try telling Pep that corners don’t matter….

[Worthy4England]

I think about it even simpler…we have the most fouled player in the league. We win a lot of free kicks. We never score from set pieces!

Sheehan's wasn't a bad one, in first game of the season! DFK...

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Funnily enough, while y'all were posting about set pieces I was interviewing Gary Johnson - a heartwarmingly lovely fella despite prefacing a 30-year (and counting) managerial career by being sidekick to John Beck at Cambridge. Their training consisted entirely of working on set-pieces and simplistic tactics – "nothing Becky would call 'tippy-tappy' like five-a-side," as Johnson put it – and in three years they won two successive promotions and then got to the play-offs.

Now, Beck was a puritan, and I wouldn't want us to do all that stuff. Indeed, I unashamedly admire the attempt to be a passing football team. But as noted, set-pieces are a statistically vital part of football, as are first goals. I would be perfectly happy every single time to go 1-0 up by boncing home a corner then score the second, third, fourth and fifth in a Kama Sutra of passing moves. So would Arsene Wenger, whose Arsenal were for a time both the Premier League's best passers and its most effective set-piece team.

The single most important and immediately improvable aspect of our game right now, IMO.

[TANGODANCER]

Bolton Wanderers snap up Aaron Morley from Rochdale in six-figure deal....B.N. now...

[officer_dibble]

And if we sell him to Blackburn for a profit it will be a six finger deal…

Another one of these at the weekend will do for me https://twitter.com/officiallydale/stat ... 12001?s=21

Welcome aboard cocker!

[KeyserSoze]

https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2022/januar ... an-morley/

I had idly wondered if he would be in contention tonight, but the article states that he will be available for selection from the weekend onwards.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Evatt:

Thank you to the board for enabling this to happen. We feel like we’ve got a very good player on our hands. He’s ready to make a difference. He’s not one with an eye on the future. He’s one to come in and make a difference right here, right now, and that’s what we want.

He’s very experienced for someone so young and played a lot of his games in League One. He has huge talent and is very much our type in terms of he can handle the ball, can pass and break lines, has great vision and a great array of passes and we’re looking forward to working with him. We’re delighted he’s come back. We’re thankful to get him back and he will develop into a very good player for this football club and a huge asset.

https://www.bwfc.co.uk/news/2022/januar ... an-morley/
.

This is a young player who is vastly experienced. He’s played 150 games and for a young player that’s very good and exceptional. He comes in ready to play and ready to make a difference and he will.

He ticks a lot of boxes. I think he’s only 21 and you play that many times, it means you have a lot of ability. He’s played a lot of games in League One, a lot of games in League Two, and has been very successful with Rochdale.

He’s a player that fits our type, he’s very good at possession, can build attacks, but most importantly can see a forward pass, can break lines with his passing, can hurt the opposition with his range of passing and will strengthen that midfield department that we know needs strengthening since we lost Sarce and Josh for the season, we’ve always been on the lookout for midfield players and Aaron’s the first one of those to come in and strengthen that department.

Rochdale have a good habit of developing young talent. Unfortunately for us he was released at 16 but how many times does that story happen. It’s cost us a few quid to get him back but it’s well worth the money. We feel he’s a very exciting young talent and hopefully he can come here and blossom in our team and this is a great place for players to come and develop and it’s a fantastic football club to do so and he’s looking forward to it and we’re looking forward to working with him.

https://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/1 ... gure-deal/

[GhostoftheBok]

Spot on signing, for me. Delighted to have him back in the fold.

[GhostoftheBok]

Interesting graphic from Twitter. Particularly "aerial duels success"....

FI1n7EZXoAIfwuO.jpg (162.15 KiB) Viewed 719 times

[Mar]

Looks like we've found someone who can get the ball up the pitch. Seems like the opposite of Comley.

[officer_dibble]

I wonder if that’s how Evatt pitched it to Sharon - ‘he’s the opposite of Comley’

[GhostoftheBok]

I wonder if that’s how Evatt pitched it to Sharon - ‘he’s the opposite of Comley’

"He's the opposite of Comley."
"You mean he's ugly?"
"What? No....COM-LEY, Sharron, not comely."
"Pretty sure it's pronounced COME-LY, Ian. Anyway, I don't care what he looks like."

[nicholaldo]

Another three-and-a-half-year contract.

Very good.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Another three-and-a-half-year contract.

Very good.

Hopefully! Certainly helps keep resale value high. Notable perhaps that our longest-contracted players are Charles and Morley (2025) and Dapo, Johnston, John and Jones (2024). It's perhaps not a direct match but you imagine they are – or at least were at time of contract offer - seen as those most likely to still be with us in the Championship?

[GhostoftheBok]

Hopefully! Certainly helps keep resale value high. Notable perhaps that our longest-contracted players are Charles and Morley (2025) and Dapo, Johnston, John and Jones (2024). It's perhaps not a direct match but you imagine they are – or at least were at time of contract offer - seen as those most likely to still be with us in the Championship?

Perhaps also a sign that these fees we are paying out are regarded as investments to be recouped, rather than just money to spend to get results.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Hopefully! Certainly helps keep resale value high. Notable perhaps that our longest-contracted players are Charles and Morley (2025) and Dapo, Johnston, John and Jones (2024). It's perhaps not a direct match but you imagine they are – or at least were at time of contract offer - seen as those most likely to still be with us in the Championship?

Perhaps also a sign that these fees we are paying out are regarded as investments to be recouped, rather than just money to spend to get results.

Yeah, for sure (I was genuinely gonna say that but forgot )

The flipside of longer contracts is if the player's bobbins... which we've seen a fair amount of in the past decade. We're hoping these lads will help us move up the divisions, but there were a few bad smells that hung around as we slid down the leagues...

[GhostoftheBok]

The flipside of longer contracts is if the player's bobbins... which we've seen a fair amount of in the past decade. We're hoping these lads will help us move up the divisions, but there were a few bad smells that hung around as we slid down the leagues...

Absolutely. Any signing can flop (look at Ndombele at Spurs). Everyone we sign will have strengths and weaknesses and it's Evatt and Markham's job to make them into a viable team.

I'm pleased so far, but nothing is guaranteed.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

The flipside of longer contracts is if the player's bobbins... which we've seen a fair amount of in the past decade. We're hoping these lads will help us move up the divisions, but there were a few bad smells that hung around as we slid down the leagues...

Absolutely. Any signing can flop (look at Ndombele at Spurs).

article-1352317-0CFEC894000005DC-275_634x360.jpg (52.32 KiB) Viewed 652 times