Deal or no deal? - Summer 2022 Transfer gossip!

[GhostoftheBok]

Highlight of the day is getting blocked by Marc Iles on twitter for saying his autocorrect had replaced shite with scattergun.

Were you being a scattergunhouse?

[jmjhb]

Highlight of the day is getting blocked by Marc Iles on twitter for saying his autocorrect had replaced shite with scattergun.

To be honest I doubt you will miss much.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

I certainly think he’s learnt from last summer - arguably we needed to improve on a lot of players he kept around. We need the best players we can get, not the ones we have had before who are good lads or whatever.

Yep. Think he’ll be wary of this year’s Tutte. Not good news for Liam Edwards or Liam Gordon. Or indeed Andy Tutte.

Evatt will know that the squad churn will be lessened, because we will have thinned out the turkeys from the first supermarket-sweep summer; most of the squad now has been recruited over the past three windows. And with lower churn, you have less room to make mistakes, including trusting the “good lads”.

I make it we have 18 overage outfielders (inc Darcy, who’s overage from next season) contracted to summer 2023+. Considering the universal agreement we need defensive reinforcements, and would take Fossey if Fulham and the medics allow, that doesn’t leave much room for sentiment.

Looking even further ahead, there’s only really Rico in the summer 2023 contracts that I would like to extend. Rest of them (Dixon, Aimson, MJ, Lee, Thomason, Sheehan, Darcy, Isgrove, Kachunga, Bakayoko, Bodvarsson) are all on notice: let’s see how 2022/23 goes.

[GhostoftheBok]

I make it we have 18 overage outfielders (inc Darcy, who’s overage from next season) contracted to summer 2023+. Considering the universal agreement we need defensive reinforcements, and would take Fossey if Fulham and the medics allow, that doesn’t leave much room for sentiment.

This is the reality of it. We have a squad that is young, but almost entirely over the registration threshold.

The recruitment for the B team may help there. It could be that we fill our registration out with quality and rely somewhat for more extensive depth in the non-specialist positions on the B team.

Most clubs have players coming through that they want to blood and who offer cover in extreme situations. We don't to any great degree. If the B team can offer that it'll be very handy.

[BWFC_Insane]

I certainly think he’s learnt from last summer - arguably we needed to improve on a lot of players he kept around. We need the best players we can get, not the ones we have had before who are good lads or whatever.

Yep. Think he’ll be wary of this year’s Tutte. Not good news for Liam Edwards or Liam Gordon. Or indeed Andy Tutte.

Evatt will know that the squad churn will be lessened, because we will have thinned out the turkeys from the first supermarket-sweep summer; most of the squad now has been recruited over the past three windows. And with lower churn, you have less room to make mistakes, including trusting the “good lads”.

I make it we have 18 overage outfielders (inc Darcy, who’s overage from next season) contracted to summer 2023+. Considering the universal agreement we need defensive reinforcements, and would take Fossey if Fulham and the medics allow, that doesn’t leave much room for sentiment.

Looking even further ahead, there’s only really Rico in the summer 2023 contracts that I would like to extend. Rest of them (Dixon, Aimson, MJ, Lee, Thomason, Sheehan, Darcy, Isgrove, Kachunga, Bakayoko, Bodvarsson) are all on notice: let’s see how 2022/23 goes.

I will stick my neck out and say we should get Dad Bod on a longer deal. He’s a good player for me. Rest I agree with we need to see how they go both form and fitness wise. Though I think it’s harsh on MJ. But whether he could step up a league or not is a question mark. So for that reason we wait.

[DJBlu]

Highlight of the day is getting blocked by Marc Iles on twitter for saying his autocorrect had replaced shite with scattergun.

Were you being a scattergunhouse?

Hardly.

He said "That was a real scattergun half"

I mearly said my autocorrect changes shite for scattergun.

[The_Gun]

Has Nixon been binned by The Sun? He seems to be selling his gossip on Patreon now, and I can see he’s got a story about us chasing ‘a highly rated League One left back’.

Obviously I’m not going to pay for this, but can anyone guess who he might be talking about?

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

Has Nixon been binned by The Sun? He seems to be selling his gossip on Patreon now, and I can see he’s got a story about us chasing ‘a highly rated League One left back’.

Obviously I’m not going to pay for this, but can anyone guess who he might be talking about?

I’m sure Lion of Vienna or somesuch will lift it soon enough.

I will stick my neck out and say we should get Dad Bod on a longer deal. He’s a good player for me. Rest I agree with we need to see how they go both form and fitness wise. Though I think it’s harsh on MJ. But whether he could step up a league or not is a question mark. So for that reason we wait.

Exactly. I like MJ as a bloke but read any match thread, including yesterday’s early doors, and you’ll find plenty of people berating him in the moment. He also now sometimes seems lost in some of our system options. I hope he’ll kick on next season but I have a suspicion - or hope? - we might evolve beyond him. If the target is promotion next season, would you play him in the Champo?

On Bod - I like what I see, he has a good all-round game and you’ll notice I put him in all my “theoretical” XIs. But I suspect there’s a reason we only agreed 18 months - probably money. Is he worth much more of it than other strikers? IDK yet, so let’s see next season.

[BWFC_Insane]

Has Nixon been binned by The Sun? He seems to be selling his gossip on Patreon now, and I can see he’s got a story about us chasing ‘a highly rated League One left back’.

Obviously I’m not going to pay for this, but can anyone guess who he might be talking about?

I’m sure Lion of Vienna or somesuch will lift it soon enough.

I will stick my neck out and say we should get Dad Bod on a longer deal. He’s a good player for me. Rest I agree with we need to see how they go both form and fitness wise. Though I think it’s harsh on MJ. But whether he could step up a league or not is a question mark. So for that reason we wait.

Exactly. I like MJ as a bloke but read any match thread, including yesterday’s early doors, and you’ll find plenty of people berating him in the moment. He also now sometimes seems lost in some of our system options. I hope he’ll kick on next season but I have a suspicion - or hope? - we might evolve beyond him. If the target is promotion next season, would you play him in the Champo?

On Bod - I like what I see, he has a good all-round game and you’ll notice I put him in all my “theoretical” XIs. But I suspect there’s a reason we only agreed 18 months - probably money. Is he worth much more of it than other strikers? IDK yet, so let’s see next season.

The thing with MJ is…he’s the best midfield player we’ve got apart from KL. And by that I mean he can do his role better than the others can do theirs. He’s most likely to be ok in the championship in the right system. But midfield is a big question mark for me. I’m fairly sure Morley will be eaten alive in the championship. We saw yesterday how much he struggled against what is probably a lower level championship midfield.

We need to be realistic a bit about what it takes up there. Wednesday and Wigan showed the presence and speed of midfields at a higher level and I think completely gobbled ours up at times. Yet they aren’t close to even mid table championship sides. So yeah. It’s a big issue to resolve. If we truly want to go for the top end of this league we need to be able to match these teams midfields and that needs additions.

[The_Gun]

Has Nixon been binned by The Sun? He seems to be selling his gossip on Patreon now, and I can see he’s got a story about us chasing ‘a highly rated League One left back’.

Obviously I’m not going to pay for this, but can anyone guess who he might be talking about?

Jack Iredale, left sided defender currently at Cambridge, apparently.

6’3, turns 26 next month and out of contract in the summer. Certainly the age profile we’ve been targeting in the past few windows, and would cover some of the current areas of need in the squad.

Can’t recall him from our encounters vs Cambridge, but presuming he’s half decent he sounds like a sensible target.

Edit: He suffered an injury playing against us in Feb and then missed 10 games. I must’ve been on here berating the referee and/or the ifollow co-comm, because I can’t recall that at all.

[Dave Sutton's barnet]

∆ Interesting. Scots-born, moved to Australia as a kid; played over there then in Scotland then Carlisle then Cambridge.

I don't know him but can see the merit: tall, has played LB and CB (and DM), could presumably switch between systems, competition for Johnston. There'll probably be those who decry the signing as lacking ambition - "who needs an Aussie?" - but Plymouth signed a centre-back from the Australian league and he's just helped them to their eighth clean sheet in nine.

[GhostoftheBok]

We scouted a few Cambridge players last season. Iredale, Digby and Mullin were the ones mentioned in passing as interesting to a few clubs, including us.

Iredale is exactly the sort I'd expect us to look at to push Johnston in the 3 and give us options to play other systems. Obviously I've no clue if Nicko is right or not, but it's a believable story.

Edit: He suffered an injury playing against us in Feb and then missed 10 games. I must’ve been on here berating the referee and/or the ifollow co-comm, because I can’t recall that at all.

I watched that game back a couple of times and I recall him having a good game. Their commentary team was really annoyed when he got injured, as they thought he was vital to them getting back into the match. I think it was a switch on the half after a collision with one of ours, but can't remember.

[GhostoftheBok]

"who needs an Aussie?" - but Plymouth signed a centre-back from the Australian league and he's just helped them to their eighth clean sheet in nine.

Geth is technically an Aussie and a former teammate of Iredale. Seems a decent rejoinder to any potential objections.

[Bruce Rioja]

For me, a loan player needs to be much better than anything you could get on a permanent deal. I'm not sure Trafford is that yet.

Think we'll have to disagree on this one, Chap. We've seen Trafford grow into the role comfortably over the course of the season, to such a degree whereby I personally think that he's now, with the exception of Bazunu, at least the equal of any other keeper we've seen this season and clearly on an upward trajectory.

[BWFC_Insane]

For me, a loan player needs to be much better than anything you could get on a permanent deal. I'm not sure Trafford is that yet.

Think we'll have to disagree on this one, Chap. We've seen Trafford grow into the role comfortably over the course of the season, to such a degree whereby I personally think that he's now, with the exception of Bazunu, at least the equal of any other keeper we've seen this season and clearly on an upward trajectory.

I like Traff too. He’s 19. Remarkably good for 19 and lots of time to improve too. The thing that stands out about him is mentality. Rarely if ever looks flapped even if he’s made an error.

[GhostoftheBok]

Think we'll have to disagree on this one, Chap. We've seen Trafford grow into the role comfortably over the course of the season, to such a degree whereby I personally think that he's now, with the exception of Bazunu, at least the equal of any other keeper we've seen this season and clearly on an upward trajectory.

I'm not sure we disagree that much about Trafford's level. I think we've seen a couple who are better than him, but his level is decent for League One and he will improve.

The question is what we can get in the market and whether we have designs on Trafford beyond next season or not. If we are looking at a 12 month loan then all that matters is how good he will be in that 12 months vs an asset of our own we could add. That slot is potentially worth millions to the club if we sign and develop our own player. Trafford therefore needs to offer us a much better chance of going up next season than a player we could develop in that role to sell at a profit.

Easiest way to put it is that if we had the option to sign Trafford on a 4 year deal or loan Bazunu for a season, I'd sign Trafford. Bazunu is clearly a better player at the minute, but I'd rather have the development asset and the chance of making millions for the club in a couple of years.

In the same way, if we had the option between loaning Trafford or signing a player of a similar level who we could flip later, I'd do the latter. Trafford's not so far beyond other keepers we have seen at this level as to make him worth the potential loss of income.

That's my take on it, anyway. I can understand why people would disagree and want the known quantity that Trafford now is.

[The_Gun]

If we discount Scott Carson, would I be right in saying that Trafford is currently fifth in the pecking order at City, Ghost?

I know the lad is very ambitious and has designs on playing in the Prem, but that surely won’t be with City anytime soon. Ederson is only 28.

[GhostoftheBok]

If we discount Scott Carson, would I be right in saying that Trafford is currently fifth in the pecking order at City, Ghost?

I know the lad is very ambitious and has designs on playing in the Prem, but that surely won’t be with City anytime soon. Ederson is only 28.

I honestly don't know how likely Trafford is to get a look in at City. I know he has Slicker coming in behind him from City's academy and Bazunu ahead of him, which makes life more difficult for him.

As I say, if he was available and willing to come here in a way that could make us some money then it's an easy decision.

[Bruce Rioja]

As I say, if he was available and willing to come here in a way that could make us some money then it's an easy decision.

Think on though, this was exactly the position with Ben Amos too. Let's just hope we remember not to gamble the farm this time.

[GhostoftheBok]

Think on though, this was exactly the position with Ben Amos too. Let's just hope we remember not to gamble the farm this time.

Amos is generally regarded as having had a blinding season in Wigan's (probably) title winning run and has done well generally since leaving us.

The fact that transfer can go wrong can't put you off buying players. We have got to make money trading players if the club is to be financially viable in the long term. We can't avoid it.