Tooling up: The summer 2024 transfer thread

[nicholaldo]

So with Paris gone we need to replace what he offers, but the player we sign also needs to be able to win the ball, battle in the air and lead the team by running through brick walls.

That Clark Kent lad who plays for Sporting Kansas is supposed to be good...

I'm desperately trying to work a Superman / Supera Moras pun here but I'm not getting there.

[irie Cee Bee]

Nice touch this. I wish him well. Never rated him in the beginning as his work rate, defensive side and flirting in and out of games with flashy dribbles didn't impress me. But credit to him, he clearly worked on his game and became a valuable player to us in the end.

Which is also to the credit of a coaching team currently under fire.

They got a talented lad in and improved him. They've done that a lot.

Agreed.

[GhostoftheBok]

I'm desperately trying to work a Superman / Supera Moras pun here but I'm not getting there.

If we spend much longer in League One we'll have to change it to "Super Morass."

[officer_dibble]

I think the shopping list will be:
Two leaders - one centre half, one centre mid.
Charles replacement (unless we think that’s Victor, but we’ll still need another forward at least).
Then your onto wing backs… unless we look at Iredale left (helps with leadership as well) back. And a new formation.

[Worthy4England]

I think yesterday, crystallized a few things in my mind around what needs to change.

Formation, I'm pretty ambivalent on. Any formation can probably work in this Division, for the purposes of getting out of it. I don't have anything against 3-5-2 (or whatever spin-off), but I like to watch a game that has intensity. Opta shows us that our direct speed was the second slowest in the Division (yes Wigan even beat us at that by being slowest). This bores me, probably every bit as much as a longball hoof bores some others (me included). But I'm happy playing 3-5-2, as long as it gets more of a move on. Otherwise, it looks laboured and boring, sometimes even when you're winning easily - it's not a panacea nor easy on the eye.

Goals - there is an underlying and not incorrect tale, that we've scored lots of goals therefore we are on the right track. Obvious innit. Well, not the whole story for me. The 121 goals stat (or 125 or whatever), didn't mean "we went up" so in outcome terms it's less relevant for me, than getting the right amount of goals to go up, our 5 against Oxford a month or so back, didn't count for anything over the weekend - at least not for us. There needs to be balance between attack and defence and for every "Look we scored 121," we conceded in the League, 51, which would have been the second highest of any promoted team, had it not prevented us getting promoted. If you can't guarantee 3 a game, and no one can, you need to reduce the number of times you concede 2 or more. The average goals against for a promoted team is lower than 40. I know some folks may view defending as boring, but it's a fair old chunk of the game, still, until we move to tag football.

Personnel. Having said that I think any formation can work, when it doesn't, it obviously comes down to "people." Either on the pitch or off it. As the old saying goes "That team looks very strong on paper, it's just a bit shit on grass." Cup half full, we were pretty close this season 5 points off automatics. Whilst I could argue that this was down to a bit of bad luck with some key injuries, if I write ours off, I have to write Pompey's 10 long terms off too, 3 in Feb, and maybe I'm then no closer. Derby had injuries too. I'd need some convincing we had "more injuries" or a hugh excess over the two, but stats are pretty tricky to find. So we have the base of a team/manager, that has now twice choked in the play-offs. Yet the argument is many of these players are "Champo capable." If that's true, then the Manager has to go, because he clearly doesn't know how the feck to play them, if it's not, then we should stop convincing ourselves some of these key players don't need a refresh - or maybe just another addition in the same position for rotation, maybe a slightly less skillful but better defensively 6, for example. There's no getting away from the fact that half the team have probably been here for at least 18 months of the last three seasons. Dion, Thommo, Sheehan, Ric, Gethin, Toal, Williams. We managed this season, to improve upon last, without two players who went on to play a decent amount of games in the Prem, so well done recruitment on minimising those holes, but I still have a sneaking suspicion that this year's league wasn't as strong as last and won't be as strong as next.

Leaders - we need one, pretty urgently.

Manager - I've voted "out" because I'm at the point where I don't think he gets us up next year either. We've improved year on year and this year I was in the "see how it goes" camp - so still "in." It's easy to forget that 1st Jan, we were 2 points off top, with a game in hand, 7th Jan 2 points off top with 2 in hand, 19th Jan, 2 off top with 3 games in hand. If that doesn't equate to massive "cock-up," I dunno what does. 19th Jan P24 points 51. We then played the remaining 22 for 36 points (1.63 ppg), a long way from the 2 per game, that Evatt said was the benchmark. That's three months of sub-par performance - and for me Evatt teams are always prone to a feeling sorry for ourselves couple of months. By contrast, Pompey went 2.84 ppg, Derby 2 ppg. Results somewhere near our target would obviously catch Derby. We choked, disasterously.

I want us to go up, as we all do, I want us to entertain (rather than aimless going nowhere passing with little intensity every bit as bad as hoofball) - We were only the second highest scorers in the League, Peterborough won that race, and they weren't consistent enough to go up either.

For me we need better options for Santos and Sheehan for games when they disappear as realistic competition, Aaron isn't keeping Sheehan out of the side any time soon (for example) - when they disappear, they're often the important ones that they can't just boss, because the other side is pretty good. We will need a new Maghoma. We need 2 new WB's, then maybe a new GK and depending what happens with JDB and Cameron we might need a new "project" up front.

If he's still here at next season's opener, I don't think he has any leeway to slip. Getting a tough first 10 fixtures and not cutting the mustard, I think he's a dead man, walking. In that sense, I might cut my losses now, because a new bod would likely get more leeway.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Regan Riley released by Norwich. 21 now. Also released by them, while I'm here: Ben Gibson, Dimitris Giannoulis, Sam McCallum, Danny Batth and Jon McCracken.

Non-Regan releasees from the Canaries Academy (whence Nelson Khumbeni came, if memory serves): Marcel McIntosh, Dubem Eze, Michael Reindorf, Flynn Clarke, Joe Duffy, Joe Rose, Kenny Coker, Ben Watt and Sean Stewart.

[Worthy4England]

Can we get Danny Batth to fcuk up my auto-correct?

[GhostoftheBok]

On the Norwich theme, Placheta was released by Swans.

Lad would tear League One to bits, fitness allowing.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

On the Norwich theme, Placheta was released by Swans.

Lad would tear League One to bits, fitness allowing.

I noticed his name last week and thought of you. But at that point I thought we might be a Champo team in for him

Can we get Danny Batth to fcuk up my auto-correct?

He's the lad that scored an oggie for us on his Sunderland debut, isn't he?

[nicholaldo]

Regan Riley released by Norwich. 21 now.

Take it with the obligatory pinch of salt, but I heard from someone that he was in the players' lounge for the semi-final second leg.

He could've just been taking in a game. He could, however, be a prospective B Team signing.

[nicholaldo]

Can we get Danny Batth to fcuk up my auto-correct?

We'd probably like to ask him to refrain from diving headers in his own penalty box if we do.

[Worthy4England]

Can we get Danny Batth to fcuk up my auto-correct?

We'd probably like to ask him to refrain from diving headers in his own penalty box if we do.

indeed.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Regan Riley released by Norwich. 21 now.

Take it with the obligatory pinch of salt, but I heard from someone that he was in the players' lounge for the semi-final second leg.

He could've just been taking in a game. He could, however, be a prospective B Team signing.

No idea what he's like now - he left three and a half years ago - but before that, Evatt liked him enough to give him an EFL Cup game, and IIRC we all thought he did rather well.

He'd be overage so he'd have to be content with *just* B-team unless we're throwing around squad registrations. And I *think* he could play in the EFL Trophy anyway, if he's in that Matheson middle-world.

[GhostoftheBok]

I noticed his name last week and thought of you. But at that point I thought we might be a Champo team in for him

An injury-prone Placheta and a NOX-addled Brandon Williams.

I can pick 'em, lads. I can pick 'em.

Get it done.

[GhostoftheBok]

Posh have started doing their usual thing of reaching down into the lower league for fast, dribbly lads.

Abraham Odoh this time, formerly of 'Dale.

Good fit for them.

[jmjhb]

Meanwhile we haven't even produced a retained list. Hope this period of soul-searching doesn't delay everything for too long.

[BWFC_Insane]

Meanwhile we haven't even produced a retained list. Hope this period of soul-searching doesn't delay everything for too long.

I doubt much is going on. People will be on holidays. Am sure a retained list will follow.

[GhostoftheBok]

I doubt much is going on. People will be on holidays. Am sure a retained list will follow.

If Markham is on holiday it'll be a quick one. Usually the busiest time of year in that department.

Retained list has to land soon, per the rules.

I'd like a settler in through the door, but I imagine an announcement like Moulden or Ashworth would go down like turd sandwich in the current climate.

[nicholaldo]

Meanwhile we haven't even produced a retained list. Hope this period of soul-searching doesn't delay everything for too long.

To be fair, we get allocated additional time to publish it. Which is only right considering we didn't know which league we'd be in until Saturday tea time.

[GhostoftheBok]

New link to the "Merseyside Messi" Liam Walsh, formerly of Everton and most recently Swans. Had his only season of note at Coventry when they won League One.

26. Never been able to stay fit.

Possibly the most "We have no money and are in the League One, but have ambition" signing possible.

Could either help you win the league or feature in 5 games in which he struggles to walk. God knows if it's true or how to judge it if it happens.