Who opened the door? My money is on Janus! 2024 January transfer thread.

[GhostoftheBok]

I for one didn't see him as one of the leagues best prospects last season, but that isn't the argument. Some of us think we need to improve midfield, both for the division above but so we have some different answers to get us up a division. We know we don't have pots of cash, so assuming we need to make room who would go for you? Or are you happy as is?

Buying players isn't the only way to improve. We need to buy some players, but we also need to coach the talent we have.

Aaron Morley is coachable. He's nowhere near the best version of himself yet.

We've barely seen CMG yet. Mags has started 9 games for us. Thomason and Morley are young.

There's only Dempsey and Sheehan where we can say, "That's basically what you'll get" and both of them are very good players.

We signed two mids in the summer and they've played 900 minutes between them.

Like I say, it's reactionary stuff. This midfield has a load of headroom. We need to add to what we have built, not tear it apart.

[officer_dibble]

if you listened to some, we'd be looking at upgrading on all of Santos, Iredale, Toal, JDC, Williams, Morley, Dempsey, Bod, Jerome, Dan & Vic this January, as well as adding more depth up top and cover for both wing-backs.....

They all sound like good ideas if we want promotion. But I suspect we can only do 2/3 max.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

I for one didn't see him as one of the leagues best prospects last season, but that isn't the argument. Some of us think we need to improve midfield, both for the division above but so we have some different answers to get us up a division. We know we don't have pots of cash, so assuming we need to make room who would go for you? Or are you happy as is?

Buying players isn't the only way to improve. We need to buy some players, but we also need to coach the talent we have.

Aaron Morley is coachable. He's nowhere near the best version of himself yet.

We've barely seen CMG yet. Mags has started 9 games for us. Thomason and Morley are young.

There's only Dempsey and Sheehan where we can say, "That's basically what you'll get" and both of them are very good players.

We signed two mids in the summer and they've played 900 minutes between them.

Like I say, it's reactionary stuff. This midfield has a load of headroom. We need to add to what we have built, not tear it apart.

Replacing one player is not tearing it apart. A tad reactionary? CMG I haven't seen enough of, but from what I've seen so far is nearer to being a forward than anything else. Paris has done well, but will he still be ours in the summer?

Take Paris out, we've got last seasons midfield plus CMG. Most weren't happy with midfield last season. Sheehan has done well, Paris too and Thomason has become one of our most important. The rest I'm not convinced are delivering as consistently at the level we will need. I don't think that is reactionary, just looking critically at where we can seek to improve.

[BWFC_Insane]

Are we not allowed to discuss upgrading players and areas of relative weakness in the transfer thread?

Sure, but for people to suggest binning off a player who was widely regarded as one of the league's best prospects last season because he's had a couple of bad games is bizarre, reactionary stuff. Not least when he's been directly involved in 5 goals in about 700 minutes on the pitch in this woeful campaign of his.

He's just very obviously a talented lad and it seems like people are playing "He's shit, 'im" bingo until they get one right.

I agree he needs to kick on, but he's so far from being a liability to the squad it's not even funny.

Players should be able to hit bad form without fans calling for their heads. Loyalty works both ways.

Widely regarded? He scored some great goals on telly but he wasn’t widely regarded indeed he was very poor imo second half of the season and that’s continue and he’s out the side.

Thomason might be widely regarded given a championship side wanted to pay £1M for him before he’d really hit top stride here. But nobody is paying close to that for Morley.

[GhostoftheBok]

Widely regarded? He scored some great goals on telly but he wasn’t widely regarded indeed he was very poor imo second half of the season and that’s continue and he’s out the side.

Thomason might be widely regarded given a championship side wanted to pay £1M for him before he’d really hit top stride here. But nobody is paying close to that for Morley.

Don't forget that you also thought Thomason was crap. Now he's the stick you're using to beat on a different player.

I'll look forward to the time you start using Nlundulu's miraculous 50 goal season to have a go at Vic for only scoring 45.

[Prufrock]

If footballers were unchanging datasets or universal constants then sure, Aaron would be for the chop. He's not been setting the world alight. But he's 23.

3 months ago many of us were set to drive Thomason on to Bristol (myself included) and the best anyone could muster was "well if he stays he might get a lot better".

And fair feck* to the lad he has. But Morley is only 11 months younger and for the vast majority of the time they've both been here has been much the better player.

He needs to kick on, but he is still very young.

[jimbo]

I think debate on Morley is valid. I raised the issue in the match thread on Saturday. He’s been generally good while he’s been here. He’s been a key part of us going from division newcomers to a playoff side. I do feel he’s plateaued in the last few months though.

There is near universal agreement that our midfield as a collective needs strengthening to make the next step to promotion.

I appreicate Ghost’s suggestion that we can improve things through coaching, however the other option is through shuffling personnel. In the last few months it feels Morley has fallen behind others and must be the most vulnerable should a high quality midfielder become available.

I don’t think anyone is coming at this from a position of malice towards him. I like him and appreciate he’s been good for us, just questioning whether he might be a bit vulnerable.

[BWFC_Insane]

Widely regarded? He scored some great goals on telly but he wasn’t widely regarded indeed he was very poor imo second half of the season and that’s continue and he’s out the side.

Thomason might be widely regarded given a championship side wanted to pay £1M for him before he’d really hit top stride here. But nobody is paying close to that for Morley.

Don't forget that you also thought Thomason was crap. Now he's the stick you're using to beat on a different player.

I'll look forward to the time you start using Nlundulu's miraculous 50 goal season to have a go at Vic for only scoring 45.

I didn’t think Thomason had the necessary to make the step up. However as I said he proven me wrong and I also wasn’t that keen to sell him to BC as once someone the level up starts offering a million quid for a player you start having to think ‘have I got this wrong’.

And clearly he’s shown that he’s far and away our best midfield player and his performances are nothing short of spectacular week in week out.

I am happy to be proven wrong on him.

Morley for me though is going the other way. Put simply the things he lacks are things that are going to be hard to add. And Thomason has in the last year developed massively as Evatt says himself ‘because of his attitude to do so’. Morley has gone backwards. He’s not a first pick and has definitely regressed since the early parts of last season.

[Abdoulaye's Twin]

In an ideal world we keep him and sign someone that will help get us up and thrive in the Champo. If, and this is where I'm coming from, we have to shed a player to get that midfielder in then it is Morley that goes. I'm not and I don't think anyone else is trying to hound him out, simply stating he's the weakest link currently.

[BWFC_Insane]

In an ideal world we keep him and sign someone that will help get us up and thrive in the Champo. If, and this is where I'm coming from, we have to shed a player to get that midfielder in then it is Morley that goes. I'm not and I don't think anyone else is trying to hound him out, simply stating he's the weakest link currently.

I think that we have 6 mids for 3 spaces so I don't think its unrealistic to say regardless of cost one should go if we add another.

And as you say that one would be Morley.

The broader question is whether we can improve on Morley or not and for me I think we can - adding more mobility is the key. We've seen how much Thomason's running has transformed us but another who can do that would be helpful.

The other point is - whilst we've had setbacks in the last week we've got to still be driving to promotion so there is the question about the level up and I think we're going to need at least one more athlete in the championship.

[GhostoftheBok]

I think that we have 6 mids for 3 spaces so I don't think its unrealistic to say regardless of cost one should go if we add another.

Regardless of cost?

[boltonboris]

If footballers were unchanging datasets or universal constants then sure, Aaron would be for the chop. He's not been setting the world alight. But he's 23.

3 months ago many of us were set to drive Thomason on to Bristol (myself included) and the best anyone could muster was "well if he stays he might get a lot better".

And fair feck* to the lad he has. But Morley is only 11 months younger and for the vast majority of the time they've both been here has been much the better player.

He needs to kick on, but he is still very young.

No, you're wrong. He's shit, he's finished, he's never going to improve, his shit stinks and we should never spend our time on anybody who isn't 100% bang at it at this exact moment

[boltonboris]

I think that we have 6 mids for 3 spaces so I don't think its unrealistic to say regardless of cost one should go if we add another.

And as you say that one would be Morley.

If Sheehan had played on Saturday you'd have said it would be him

[GhostoftheBok]

If Sheehan had played on Saturday you'd have said it would be him

I've been away a while. Is Sheehan off Insane's shitlist?

[dave the minion]

there's only room for 1 member of the squad to be off the shitlist at any given moment. I think Bod is the current incumbent, so Sheehan must still be shit.........

[GhostoftheBok]

Well, let's try to find common ground.

I think most roughly the same issues with the squad at the moment - aside from some just thinking Santos is crap.

We struggle to defend one-on-one down the left against the better sides. We can lack edge in midfield. We're very inconsistent down the flanks. If we lose Dion we feel there's a lack of goals up front.

I rate a lot of our players more than some on here, that's clear; but there are certainly issues that need fixing.

Johnson coming back next season will hopefully cure that wide one-on-one issue, so that's not something for this window. Personally I think a player like Wiredu is a much better use of resources than replacing one of the lads we have, but others disagree. We still need that RWB option. We definitely need to get a new striker in one of the next two windows - it may be hard to do this time around.

Of the various issues, the wing back problem seems like the easiest and most logical to fix.

We've dominated midfield in about 70% of games this season and I'd say we've only lost two based on being beaten in that compartment. So it may be that Evatt would argue it'd be a poor use of money this window to go and get a mid. I certainly think better outs and box entries down the flanks would be worth more points.

[The_Gun]

A loanee wing back, ideally who could play on either side, would be something I'd be gunning for this window. I still think JDC and Williams are good League One players, but some strong competition for one or both would be most welcome.

I'm sure there will be some decent youngsters available to us whose parent clubs wouldn't mind them getting 6 months League One football. Who they might be, I don't know.

[GhostoftheBok]

A loanee wing back, ideally who could play on either side, would be something I'd be gunning for this window. I still think JDC and Williams are good League One players, but some strong competition for one or both would be most welcome.

I'm sure there will be some decent youngsters available to us whose parent clubs wouldn't mind them getting 6 months League One football. Who they might be, I don't know.

I'd like to see us try and get a deal done for Azeez at Reading as a show of ambition, but taking over Baah's loan (as we did with Nlundulu) would also be an option.

[The_Gun]

Not a wingback, but Dion and Eoin's 19 year old international colleague Callum Marshall has banged in 15 goals in 9 games for West Ham in PL2. Maybe Nobby Nolan could put in a good word for us?

[GhostoftheBok]

Clubs have already started making signings. Interesting to see Carlisle sign Armstrong from Harrogate, which may mean they've conceded defeat on Afolabi.