Hanging on, January Transfer Window thread 2017

[Worthy4England]

Looks like a "balance the books transaction. Can't say I'm not disappointed. Oh and we still have Trotter.

[Tombwfc]

About as depressing a day for the club, probably since we drew with Blackpool and missed out on the playoffs. And another reminder of the neverending shit-show that is our financial situation. In a world where everyone else's promising youngsters are going for 10s of millions a piece, we've barely raised five for both Holding and Clough - money which duly tides us over for a matter of weeks before the next round of late payments and finger pointing start.

Senior players contracted to the club on July 1st now total three goalkeepers (Alnwick, Howard and Amos), an injured Darren Pratley, a group currently/recently banished out on loan (Proctor, Taylor and Wilkinson), plus Beevers, Derik and Vela (who presumably is next in line to be poached for pittance). I don't know what Plan B is if we don't go up this year, that's literally what whoever is in charge at that point will have to work with. And we'll still be losing 500k a month.

At the time he signed, briefly it looked as though ALF was here to be the missing piece, now he's basically the whole jigsaw. We've been flawed going forward this season, but it's still asking a lot to expect Parky to forge an entire new attack in February, using Madine, Henry, Clayton, Le Fondre (30, three clubs, four goals since he left), two youngsters and presumably the additions of Felipe Morais and Peter Odemwingie, both in their thirties and fresh off the scrapheap.

[bristol_Wanderer3]

Not a good TW. We have lost our quality in Ameobi and Clough. It seems pretty clear now that we HAD to raise some money in this TW. Selling Clough for £3m might get us through till the end of the season financially but doesn't solve anything long term and loses one of the building blocks (home produced talented youngsters with some feeling for the club) that the recovery of the club was to be built on.

I can't see where the goals and creativity are coming from for us to win many more games at this level. And the message to the agents of Vela and Beevers, and indeed Parky, must be to line up a move because it is hard to see progress here.

I hope I am wrong and somehow Parky makes this work. But my expectations are low

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

Sad to see Clough go, but deep down I know the finances are a disaster and if it helps the club survive then it has to be. Same as with Holding. There is going to be huge pressure on Henry and Vela to create the sort of chances ALF will feed off. Hopefully the players will remember ALF is knee high to a grasshopper!

[LeverEnd]

I'll join the ranks of the miserable and say January has been a disaster. Best two creative players gone from a team that was struggling to create with them. Hopes pinned on 2 untried youngsters and a guy we are fond of but has done nothing for 2 years. His link play with Clough was a highlight we will now never see.
Add in no wins for the month, the shambles of the Charlton game and the promise of protracted litigation and possible administration. We're fecked.
Oh and last but not least, we TURNED DOWN a bid for Trotter apparently, which means he'll probably play the useless c*nt again.
Over and out.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I'll join the ranks of the miserable and say January has been a disaster. Best two creative players gone from a team that was struggling to create with them. Hopes pinned on 2 untried youngsters and a guy we are fond of but has done nothing for 2 years. His link play with Clough was a highlight we will now never see.
Add in no wins for the month, the shambles of the Charlton game and the promise of protracted litigation and possible administration. We're fecked.
Oh and last but not least, we TURNED DOWN a bid for Trotter apparently, which means he'll probably play the useless c*nt again.
Over and out.

To be honest, I find that more depressing than losing Clough. My fear is that with Trotter still lurking someone will offer him a (reduced) contract in the summer and we'll be lumbered for another season

[jetsetwilly]

Given the transactions, top half has to be our aim now. I just get the feeling we are treading water until the next financial issue. Administration has been delayed for a few more months. After a brief glimmer of hope, I think we now know that the bottom two leagues is where we will be for the foreseeable. Anderson talks utter nonsense. What happened to being open and honest?

[BWFC_Insane]

Well, this is a personal view and based on what I've seen this season. People know I personally think Clough is s bit overrated. However, selling him to strengthen is one thing. Selling him last minute to pay wages of the likes of Trotter for the next 6 months is just a shit feeling. I mean we are where we are, we can't grow money on trees.

However, in my view we are far weaker than we were going into the window. Had we kept Ameobi and Clough we had a team that had natural balance. And it's main weakness was a lack of a top striker. In January had we kept those two and added a different option to Madine it'd have been a great window. But what we've done is lost our two creative players. And signed two strikers who aren't suited to play up front on their own.

I don't see balance in our squad now. Deep down I suspect Parky didn't really want ALF. I don't see him fitting into a Parky blueprint. I don't think we have the midfield to play a 4-4-2. We may go back to that horrible diamond with no width, but that only works in some situations.

Essentially I don't see how Long and ALF fit in. We have no left sided player and a midfield that already was somewhat pedestrian without the flair of Ameobi in it looking even more unbalanced.

I personally think (and others will disagree) that with the way we play we need a target to hit up front. And without that Vela's running and effort will be wasted. I don't think Vela plays well deeper or on the right. His role is to work off a target man. Neither Long not ALF offer that.

Overall I feel now we will struggle for a play off place. Sorry to once again be negative. But I don't think the changes are what Parky wanted. He can't say that of course, but just my gut feel.

[officer_dibble]

Did we sign ALF to appease fans over Clough? I can't see how he fits into Parkys team either. Probably out wide...

We certainly sold Clough on the cheap to the only bid on the table, to pay the wages. Holding and Clough in the last two transfer windows. I cant see anyone coming through to replace these, and we cant sell other peoples loans...

Yeah Ameobi & Clough / ALF & Long & the guy from birmingham. I wish we could go back to NYE again!

[Prufrock]

Christ. Gutted. The two best kids we've produced in a decade, gone for roughly a 2011 David N'Gog. And no SammyAmmy. Even if we go up, which looks a hell of an ask, we're clearly so skint we're coming back down.

Last six months was clearly an "enjoy out while it lasts" interlude. Hell of a lot of pressure on Henry now, which is concerning given what he's shown so far.

And Zach will play in the premier league, to all those "he's overrated" jive-talkers.

[General Mannerheim]

last night i was just relieved to retain Vela, but woke up to a sour taste about Clough. >£5m or so maybe but this undisclosed bollocks is despicable (its £3m innit?) If selling Zach cancels or promotion hopes surely it will end up costing the club double? shame we couldnt hang on till the end of the season.

so what are the rules with no of loanee's in a side now then? how many do we have? i assume a couple of them will have to miss out every week??

[jimbo]

What an awful January! I wonder how much we were relying on beating palace to get the money game against City?

Losing holding and clough 6 months apart for bugger all in today's money hurts as well. Vela next to go for probably £1mil in summer.

Agree with what everyone is saying about how we now lack balance. There's no way I can think to arrange the front 6 that looks useful or creative. Promotion has gone now, as will most of the other players in summer. I can see us being one of those teams with only 7 players 2 days before the season starts.....

[Andy Waller]

It's alright everyone harping on about Clough, but what about it from his point of view?

He's in a league he consistently gets the crap kicked out of him, he's really not physical enough and (I'd assume) there'll be a decent wage rise for him.

He might have wanted to go?

He's obviously a talent but didn't seem to be developing here, who knows what his agent has advised?

He hasn't seemed that up for it recently, like Saturday, a brilliant free kick but nothing much else.

Good luck to him and if we can make some money, all the better.

As for the fee, it's a business marketplace, everyone knows we're skint so we'll never be able to command top dollar.

[Harry Genshaw]

You're a miserable lot. ALF will hit the ground running, the two youngsters will tear defences in this division apart, Vela will stick two fingers up to Wigan and Madine will be born again. We won't lose another game this season YHIHF

[jimbo]

Also the short termism of last summer is pissing me off. Binning off people like threlkeld and maher who could maybe do a job for a few yrs in this division for short term loans and Buxton leaves us up the creek in summer!

[General Mannerheim]

so its a maximum of 5 loan Players per matchday squad. we have Henry, Taylor, Long, ALF, & king solomon. One of the new boys isnt getting a sniff.... be funny if its ALF

[plymouth wanderer]

goals from open play

Madine 6

Clough 4



Alf if used right will bag a load!

[Bijou Bob]

So far this season we've struggled to score. Take Clough's penalties out of his total goals tally and you have a poor return for someone lauded as our goalscorer and creative genius. I wish the lad well but I'm not sure he'll cut it long term.

We've brought some pace in, a recognised finisher and kept our back 4 intact. I'm not too unhappy this morning as far as the football goes. On the financial side, I still think there are some shocks to come.

[Tombwfc]

How many of those penalties did he win? (at least two off the top of my head) Why do you think he was trusted to take penalties ahead of our recognised central striker?

Also, seen a few people now (admittedly mostly on Twitter) talk about 'goals from open play' as though scoring free-kicks is essentially also a 60-40 proposition.

He still has a way to go to improve, and finishing in one on one situations is one of them, but you don't go at a rate of a goal every 2.8 games (for a shit team) by just rolling away penalties.

[Peter Thompson]

Forward options are much better....its just the complete lack of mobility & creativity that we are left with in midfield for the rest of the season, that I think will mean that we will struggle to change our long ball style of play to provide the chances on the deck for these new attacking players (and that's if Parkinson would ever drop Madine, which I doubt that he will)

I wasn't that bothered with Clough going TBH, but would have expected £3.5M as a minimum and as I said last night we needed a creative midfield in to give us that fluidity & passing ability that is so clearly lacking in our current midfield