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Injuries and Squad Depth
Defeat in the FA Cup to Bournemouth means that for the first time since 2009, Blues aren’t in the hat for the 4th round draw. Although that’s somewhat disappointing, what’s more worrying is that once again Blues have picked up injuries – and in an area where they don’t have so much cover.
(Before anyone says it – I know Blues went out to Leeds in the third round in 2013, but that was only after a replay meaning that we were in the fourth round draw even if we didn’t get to play in it…)
I think the most concerning injury has to be the one to Neal Eardley. For the third time this season the Welsh right-back had to be withdrawn due to injury with the 27-year-old only having played 21 games in his two-and-half year stay at St Andrew’s. The injuries haven’t been consistent, with Eardley suffering a dislocated shoulder, a groin strain and now a knee injury in the past four months.
It’s a shame for Eardley but with his record being so patchy I don’t think we can rely on him at all this season leaving us with Paul Caddis and Jonathan Spector as the right-backs within the squad (although Maikel Kieftenbeld did play there early in his career). With Spector also one of the few centre-backs we have at the club I think it pushes up the need for a defensive signing even further to ensure that there is enough depth in defence to last out the remainder of the season.
I’m not as worried about the Cotterill injury for the simple reason I didn’t expect him to complete the game anyway. I think it was always going to be a case of easing him back into the team with this game and Gary Rowett has already said that he should be fit for the Forest game. I would like to see Blues bring in a left-footed winger though; if only to give us a slightly different dimension to our attack.
I’ve seen it reported that Blues are close to the signing of Will Buckley from Sunderland which would be an interesting one; I’m honestly not sure if he’s right- or left-footed but I think he has something to prove in the next six months and if we can get him to the standard he was at when he was with Brighton he could be a very good signing.
I’ve also been following the local press from Bielefield Germany who have been updating their readers about Felix Burmeister; apparently he’s enjoying being on trial in Birmingham and he’s not been included in Arminia Bielefield’s winter trip to Turkey; whether that means Blues will take him on I have no idea. I’ve not seen anyone at Blues even mention him so I do think it’s a speculative one in the same way as Pene Mlapa and maybe not a proper target to be concerned about.
With games coming thick and fast the hope has to be that Blues can now tie up a couple more signings to shore up the squad, to provide the depth and quality needed for a sustained push for the playoffs in the second half of the season.
111 Responses to “Injuries and Squad Depth”
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trying to figure out why we still havent actually made a single signing of significance. in the cutthroat world that is the championship,sometimes a move has to be made sooner rather than later. before the window we were bombarded with reports of how much and how many players we are likely to sign. with some critical games coming up it makes sense if we are to challenge and believe.
imo pointless rushing in when the loan window doesn’t close for the final time till about March 20th and loans will probably 100% of any signings we make.
No good blowing every penny this month then there’s none left over the next two months for emergency loans
Simple answer Gaz stop believing any transfer nonsense you read this month. Could be umpteen reasons why we ain’t signed anyone probably money being the first and waiting til the FA cup 3rd
Round was over could be another factor.
Trust Rowett and KRO
Always the same in the window, players, managers and agents waying up their options. The majority of deals are always done in the last week or so.
Pretty sure Buckley is right footed and I agree would prefer a left footed wide player to give different options.
All this club is doing in this transfer window is trying to stay “still” whilst other clubs like Bristol City are bidding for the likes of the Zach cloughs of this world!! Yes Bristol City…the longer this nonsense of all them dragging there feet in Hong Kong carries on the further we are falling behind because at present rowett and panos are not cutting the mustard in this window,we haven’t a pot to pee in in footballing terms we are a “poor” club and we all know what happens when you stand still in this game…had enough of all of them in Hong Kong (including panos) and ther stupid games of poker they all play with each other over there as its Us fans that suffer….piss off the lot of them.
How are we trying to stay still Mickey? I’m at a loss here.
And you’ve made your point plain re HK – so you going to do anything about it? I see this a lot (not just from you) but when people do try to organise some sort of unified front people don’t want to know. That tells me people actually don’t care that much.
When “you” start mentioning things like trying to organise things then things must not be going to plan or at a speed you want it too?? Not trying to put words in you’re mouth Dan but “why” mention it?? Also what can us fans do? I will tell you what absolutely nothing because everyone has us by the bollox over there,as you’ve said yourself even e&y stonewall you nowadays so what chance do we have….regarding standing still the overall picture is we have a pittence to spend in the transfer market (like the last four years) so all that says to me in the bigger scheme of things is mid-table mediocrity rules which pisses me and most fans off because yet again and I keep saying it there is no sign of a takeover whatsoever.
Okay
So if you believe that there is nothing that we can do, and we’re in the grip of overlords that are killing the club to me you have two choices:
1) Forget about football and do something else or
2) Enjoy the football and don’t worry about the rest because there is nothing you can do.
Continually bleating about the lack of progress just makes you look like a moaner – especially if as you say there is nothing we can do about it. If that’s the case, why say anything? It makes no difference…
2/ is what most of us have settled for.
Continually bleating about the lack of progress?? There is “no progress” take a look at the last four years it’s not hard to work out is it what does that tell you for the future? Think I’m entitled to a moan I pay my s.t . Money so why not…you’re also missing my point how long will they continue to piss arse about playing there stupid poker games out in Hong Kong?another four years with counter sueing each other non stop all the same,blues are a nice little earner for e&y arent they Dan…
I’m not getting into it with you Mickey, I’ve tried to explain things many, many, many times and you never seem to take it in so I’m not bothering any more.
If you want to moan that’s your prerogative mate, just as it’s my prerogative to point out you’re just pissing in the wind…
Hang on the other week you was saying you had a feeling things were happening did you not?? Since then it looks like things have reverted back to there usual self….many many many times Dan you’ve tried to put a positive on things but they never seem to come to fruition do they,you don’t know whats going on yourself fella which is understandable with e&y telling you jack.
Mickey
I do have a feeling things are happening. Doesn’t mean it’s going to happen overnight, does it? As I said, not getting into it with you Mickey cos you don’t/won’t listen.
I’ll believe when i see It until then mid table mediocrity will rule this club as with no money other clubs will just pass us by.
I’ll leave it there.
I agree – I believe it when I see it too – but I don’t see the point in whining like a stuck pig.
How can you not worry? this is our club we care about it, I cant get my head around the fact that a club like Bristol City can outbid Birmingham City. They are third division club in my mind,
As for having no money well we were assured there was money available before we sold gray, to my mind that means we should have more money available now.
That loud thud you heard was the sound of my head hitting the desk.
We’ve signed Vaughan. I know you don’t think it counts – but we’ve signed him on a long term loan deal AND he’s permanently ours for a season after that.
I’m reasonably sure we’ve got another one coming reasonably soon – no doubt he won’t count either cos it’ll probably be a loan and loan fees/big loan wages don’t count for some reason in other people’s eyes.
How are they dragging their feet? just because they haven’t sold the club?
Even if the club is sold doesn’t mean anything will change, it doesn’t mean we will get a rich owner.
Bristol City have a fairly rich owner but may also be loading their club with debt living beyond their means but i’m not 100% sure on this but they did so in the recent past which is why they got relegated two or three years ago and changed owners.
Until the fans come back if they ever do little will change unless we find a wealthy owner, but there is no certainty we will, ask Forest, Huddersfield, Bolton, Charlton, Fulham, Blackburn etc none are spending that much this season and some of them have rich owners yet we are above them.
Derby were we are now about 4 years ago and built steadily under Clough and now for the last two years are top two candidates, that i believe is what GR & Panos are trying to do.
We don’t need to splash cash on stars or has beens but buy or loan players that can improve the starting eleven, one or two now then three or four in the summer when more cash is freed up once Novak, Eardley, Hancox, Duffy and Thomas have moved on.
Bristol City got a well earned draw against a near full strength PL team ,we lost against
an almost total PL reserve team and they are strengthening to avoid the drop .
Mickey you`re not alone.Thousands of us are equally pissed off with the crap from HK. We`ve heard for ages that something is happening,be patient etc but seriously how long do we have to put up with selling our best players and replacing them with others of lesser quality (all due respect). I`m afraid until a takeover is finalised and some investment is forthcoming we will tread water. But a word of warning Mickey….don`t have a view that`s an affront to the mindless optimists lest you get panned on here.
What did people think of Lowry’s performance at centre half? I thought it showed promise.
I said that in pre season . Kro
He’s played well at centre back, even in the developement side. I think we should stick with him and Robbo, with Spector covering right back. That means we need a decent attacking left back, but I think Rowett agrees with that. A lot of our attacks come down the right side of the team. Block that off and the opposition nullifies a lot of our attacks.
I think that if we bring in that left back, a natural left winger/midfielder, plus an attacking/goalscoring midfielder, we could go places. I truly believe we’re that close.
I didn’t realise Zach Clough was such a world renowned player . Kro
exactly
He’s not… but he has massive potential. In today’s money, he’s not that expensive at 3 mill.
Were short in the first eleven of goalscorers so there is no in depth in that department , nothing coming out of Sunderland , were too slow again in the market I take it Washington is out now , need to move on , I feel a farce coming on ,
Conor Washington was never on.
So do I , mainly from the fans ! Kro
I have no qualms about how supporters choose to spend their Saturdays… it’s nothing to do with me. I’d love to see 20,000+ crowds down StAns again…but it is what it is.
But playing devil’s advocate here a bit Dave, if the club chooses where and when and how much to spend during a season… don’t the fans deserve that right too? Just saying.
I’m just annoyed that we have got 3.75 million from Gray sale, but we seem reluctant to spend any. I heard from another fan who heard from tom Ross that Blues will only get loan players and not sign any… I really hope this is nonsense, if Leicester or any one else did not sign Gray, we wouldn’t have 3.75 million and would have to operate as normal. So why can we not spend all 3.75 million on players? 1 million for DC, 1 million for DL, 1 million for a winger and use the other 750,000 to buy 1 or 2 up and coming players. Does panos not realise if we buy 3 or 4 quality players we might get to the promised land, without them we will end up mid table. And if the board don’t start backing GR, he will leave sooner rather than later for a side that will give him finance and backing.
We all know we need a DC to partner Morrison, Robbo to old and Spector not reliable enough. For me the biggest area we need to improve is DL, Hancox clearly isn’t in GR plans, and his performances at Crawley don’t look great, personally I feel Grounds is the teams weak link. I am a season ticket holder, every game I go to I see Grounds constantly giving away the ball, or long ball it up. I can’t remember the last time he stopped a cross, wingers get round him to easy and he backs off all the way to the box as seems afraid to tackle, he is awful, most goals against comes from his side and his mistakes. On Saturday he gave away the penalty, and went AWOL for the cross on his side for the second, can GR not see he is an average League 1 defender.
We also need another winger to replace Gray on the left. After those 3 we could possibly to with a pkaymaker MC. I think the striker situation is sorted as we only play one up, Donalson, Vaughan back up, Brock back back up and Jones back back back up. I do have concerns about Brock, have we bought a flop? Hasn’t even scored for the reserves which is concerning. Personally I would loan him out to get confidence and goals in league 1 or 2 and keep Wes at the club. I wouldn’t mind seeing Duffy get a chance as he has done brilliant for Burton, same as Novak, but I think GR has his favs and I don’t think there is any chance for Edgar, Duffy, Hancox, Wes or Novak. I thought Edgar could have been fantastic with Morro and he has been playing DC for Sheffield, so why all the talk he wanted to play MC?
Just hope the board give a large portion of the Gray money to GR to allow him to buy a few players that will allow us to maintain a push for promotion and not lack ambition and fall off to mid table again
Charlie
Cos players need to paid wages. You pay a player 20k per week for the remainder of the season that’s an additional £520,000 to be paid to that player that wasn’t budgeted before that has to come from somewhere. A loan signing that may appear free could easily set the club back 500k in loan fees and 500k in wages for six months.
How do people not understand this?
no wonder so many people in this country are in debt if how they expect their football club to be run is how they run their household finance !!!
Point well made.
I do however agree about Grounds.
GR was reported to have looked at Graeme Shinnie in the summer, would be worth another look as he is having a good season with Aberdeen.
I think we’ll sign a defender because we have to – there is no cover in that position.
We haven’t got £3.75 million for starters.
We will have been paid maybe £2 million up front, the rest will probably be paid over the next year or two.
Yes we could do the same if we bought players, so four player for £4 million total means £2 million up front but nothing left for wages.
You say spend million on this player etc but what about their signing on fee of another £100,000 or their wages of at least £500,000 per season, DOES IT GROW ON TREES?
Four quality loans players till June on £15k a week could mean £1.6 million plus loan fees on top.
If we spend all that money now we have none of it left for Feb or March emergencies.
Also, the club made a trading loss year ending June 2015 so some of the money may go towards those losses.
Also, we may have payments due towards the transfers for Kleftenbeld, Brock-Madsen.
Some of the money may well be going towards Vaughan’s loan/loan fee till the end of the season.
We have to spend this money wisely and i trust Gary and Panos to do just that.
I do agree that Brock seems a waste of a precious £500,000 especially when funds like that haven’t been spent for a while, who was our last £500k signing ???
AFAIK
There are no further payments for Brock or Kieftenbeld.
I think most of the Gray money is up front but some is going back into the club rather than being being spent on the playing side; ie continuing to shore up the infrastructure so we can do more with what we have.
Last 500k+ signing? Pablo Ibanez I think.
Thanks Almajir, blimey Ibanez was a while ago
This is the most important month of the season.. and we have to recruit sensibly. I really believe that, with the addition of 3 decent players in the right positions, we have a wonderful chance of making the play-offs this season.. and not just 6th place. If it takes the whole month to bring in those players, so be it… as long as they’re the right ones at the right price.
I’m not sure that we need a new right back. Even with Eardley permanently injured we still have Spector and Caddis. If Lowry moves on then maybe we will recruit defenders but I doubt it. Even though we have more money than before we are not flush by any means. GR will be looking for value for money and you tend to find that at the end of the window when clubs are getting desperate to either get money or players in. It seems that Buckley is a bit 2 footed and his deal is likely to be a loan.
Some of our fringe players played really well yesterday & with better finishing would have been in the next round. I thought it also showed how much Maghoma & Toral have improved, both have the quality going forward that so many don’t (although Mags should have scored). I think Tesche must be on GR’s mind with them having Gardner on loan, surely he is just surplus to Forrest now? Another left back is definitely needed, I think too many people jump on Grounds when we’re not at our best. However when we’re against any decent winger, he is a liability. I trust GR to use whatever money he has wisely and surely this can now be our playoff push!!
I totally agree staffs though you do make it sound so easy .. You maybe right but our manager obviously doesent see it that way .. We were good yesterday with only four regulars , I don’t think there’s much wrong with the way we’re playing .. and new signings after walk in to the team otherwise don’t bother and play the kids !! Kro
That’s what I said earlier Dave. I think we’re only 3 decent players away from a play-off place. And no, it’s not easy, that’s why I said if it takes the whole month to get the right players at the right price, so be it. That’s not easy.
Gary Rowett did say yesterday that he hoped to make a signing by Monday evening
To save wages and recruit replacements it would not surprise me to see Shinnie,Eardley,Brock and Athur go out on loan. Not required and certainly a burden in wages.All 4 would be useful outside the championship.
The only place Eardley will go Heartlands
I can’t understand why we are not using player plus cash deals to get the star players from the lower divisions like hourihane , Maddison , I mean we have six players out there that could fetch a fee , which would pay toward the wage bill , we also have Gray’s wages there and possibly Brown’s, kro
Maybe no one wants those players?
Well I’m not to concerned about the Cup match the team gave it a go and lost but lost trying to win and could have won it. Signings we will sing players but most of the players we have been linked with are bull crap buy that I main made up by the press. Everyone keeps saying we need to replace Gray
well I don’t think that’s what wee need to do we have 5 players at the club that can play lest wing the same 5 players can play right wing so we are covered there. I know what will happen next someone will ask me who are the 5 players OK Vaughan IS a inside forward lift/right Maghoma is a left winger
Viv is a left winger Cotterill can play right or left wing Toral started as a left winger and is good with both feet. We do need to sing a CM Playmaker plus A LB & A Striker with pace. KRO
Hardly falling behind Bristol City though Mick they’re in the bottom 3 whereas we could get back in the play off spots on Tuesday all being well.
KRO feller in Rowett we trust
Agreed. Brizzol City are spending silly money because they’re desperate. We’re not.
waycoolblue, your right in what you say but please sort out your vocabulary, no large caps and just news which we aren’t sure about . Kro
If Eardley is out of contract at the end of the season then it’s time to let go. He is a half decent player but just too fragile for the Championship. With our finances we cannot carry someone who is so rarely available for selection.
Only a week gone and the departure of Dimmi was quick and clean. We have signed one player already with no big deal money wise. He is approved by the fans already so what a good trial the short loan was.
A hint of another deal on Monday. Exciting week coming up then with money in the purse.
The Bolton forward going to Bristol!?? The player must be livid with his agent and certainly not wanting a move there. Well, we will see.
I won’t believe he’s theirs until he’s waving a scarf; Bristol bid big money for Andre Gray – remind me where he plays now?
Where?
Not Bristol City is his point………Burnley
Burnley. Top scorer in the division. Clearly you pay attention to the other teams in the Champs…
Probably get slated here but I think yesterday’s result was the best thing that could have happened for our season OVERALL. Good performance against a good PL side, a game we could have won but didn’t. Took the competition seriously and tried to win the game. GR can dust the players down, take confidence from the performance and push on in the league without cup distraction. Pride intact, league the focus. I understand the counter argument but personally I think any chance of PL football has to be the priority. Think about how different it would be now had the Bolton result not happened. I think the difference between getting promoted in the next 2 years and not could be that significant.
Regarding players I am happyto sit tight and wait and see. Rowett knows where we need strengthened and he will do the job. Buckley can cut in or get to the byline from what I’ve seen, so would like a forward thinking LB who can give an overlap option when we counter.
Agree.Football is a money driven business with the financial rewards to get in or stay in the Premier league so high that the FA cup has become a hinderance to the top 2 divisions.
I completely agree. I don’t think this is a particularly strong championship this year and we have got to go for the playoffs because we might not get a better chance than this. The parachute money is more than doubling from next season onwards which means it will be even harder for clubs like us to compete with the clubs that get relegated. We just haven’t got the depth in the squad to fight on two fronts caused by a lengthy FA cup run. I’m less concerned about another injury to Eardley because we have Caddis and Spector to cover RB. We need VSO and Cotterill fit though with Gray gone.
we win draw Man U away in next round, television money , gate money and money from winning extra round in cup. Do you still think best result was to lose in the cup.
madness!!
We picked up three injuries in Saturday’s FA Cup match alone which will probably affect what we can put out tomorrow night at Forest followed by an even tougher game on Saturday at Derby . I am glad it didn’t go to a replay as we would then have another game the following Tuesday. As I said we simply don’t have the depth in our squad to be playing twice a week every week .If you think we have I think you are deluding yourself.
It’ll be interesting to see how Mr Rowett approaches the next two games. Will he pick the same side for both matches, or a stronger team, with all our big guns for the Derby game?
I think if we are lucky with injuries he will pick the same team for both. Unless we get someone over the line in time, in which case you would think they would feature.
As for the cup, it is madness to take a small instant payment from a Man U cup game rather than to be sensible and think about the long term future of the club. We all know our squad is tight, and with hopefully 49 league games to play I think exiting the cup gracefully was the best thing. Don’t get me wrong if we were an established PL side, or had nothing to play for in whatever league we were in then yes, prioritise the cup. We are not in that situation! Our cup run in 2001 did us out of promotion that year and 2011 saw us relegated. In 5 years time I would rather see us playing premier league football thinking about ‘that season Rowett got us up’ than scraping around the bottom of the Championship or League 1 reminiscing about ‘that time we got knocked out of the FA Cup but made a few grand’
Put the strongest possible team out against Forest because that’s the one we are more likely to win.
It seems obvious to me that their are very few blues fans that have the capacity to do silence , anymore , as silence has made us suffer , the January window is a hard window to sign players we know that , Gary rowett and co are good for us , we know that , panos is good for us we know that , you have done a lot for us we know that , but the waiting makes mardy ,we know that , picking fault in such times makes bitchy, we know that , waiting for GazR to buy a player does our heads in ,we know that ,
kNOWALLS…….
Just joking : we know that……
We are very unfortunate to suffer the ongoing saga of the ownership situation. We are very fortunate to have a manager who except for the odd hiccup has been our saviour and has generally inspired and organised the team to play above their individual abilities. It does not stop us getting very frustrated at times and Dan’s site is the best for expressing our opinions. Long may it continue.
Well said kc , my dad took a bullet in the second world war , and was hauled off to Germany to be tortured by the Gestapo , he kept quiet so that others were free to speak ,this is true ,keep right on…
I agree totally with KC’s comments. In Gary Rowett we have a manager who can inspire players to play above their natural ability. Just look at the spending table for the teams in the championship and see what he has achieved with next to nothing. His backroom staff who are mainly ex blues players are doing a fantastic job. I see nothing wrong with the development of our young players.The problem is the takeover and I think we are more than fortunate to have dan on the ball for without him we would know next to nothing. He has report that this is not an easy task for E and Y because of the legislation in Hong Kong. however it appears that E and Y are taking the right steps even if it appears to the fans that it is never ending. I have no doubt that soon Dan will be jumping over the moon reporting the great news we have all been waiting for so long. In the meantime Gary Rowett will surprise us with 2 or 3 unexpected signings.
We could do with at least one defender coming in this month as robinson isnt the answer, even as well as hes come in for the odd game hes not getting younger and gets caught out, specter isnt the best cb but has done well and i do rate him but has had a fair few injuries. The main concern is that if morrison gets injured where that leaves us. I have constantly said since the summer we need defensive players yet they go and spend X amount on brock madsen in fees and wages for him to play several cameos. Gary rowett has done well but i think he has been slightly naive in regards to squad depth. With the reported money from gray sale we could easily bring 2 new faces in in loan or permanent capacity with a bit left for the club. Im talking about players that you would at very least expect to look the part and maybe one or both turn out to be great buys not just speculation signings.
The game is about risk/reward, the highest spenders tend to get the best rewards.
Like when Portsmouth “bought” the FA cup?
Yes
Just for interest Claire Montgomery Carsens QC is over here in Mauritius representing Pravin the Prime Ministers son for some allegedly unstatesmanlike behaviour of a pocket filling nature.Looks like being a very busy and profitable year for Ms Montgomery.
Off subject but worth a watch,Blues acadamy last man standing http://www.skysports.com/watch/video/tv-shows/soccer-am/archive/last-man-standing/10116681/last-man-standing-birmingham-academy
I notice Birmingham Ladies have lost another player. Goalkeeper Becky Spencer has gone to Chelsea.
Sorry to see Becky go but not surprised. Family live in Wembley so travelling will be much better for her. Nice girl. I wish her well.
Any news on signing anyone , can’t find a whisper out there…
Absolutely zilch. But with Cotterill suffering atm, we’re in need of another winger. Maybe Buckley?
Relax Rowett said he will sign a winger by tonight we will see. problem is a striker, midfielder, and left back are a priority.
Agree Tony, those should be the priorites without a doubt.
Okay Tony, now I’m starting to be concerned.
http://www.bcfc.com/news/article/gary-rowett-birmingham-city-2896110.aspx
Just sounds like the usual Rowett dithering to me. I’m sure he’ll get a couple over the line by the end of the month. I’m not going to worry until then. I just hope Pavlakis and the board are true to their word and will give him some backing. Saying and doing are two different things..
Reading the piece again, it seems like he has some money to spend.. but isn’t quite sure what positions to spend it on. Seems like his mind is changing almost daily. He needs to make a decision quickly and go for the players he needs… before others beat him to it.
Bournemouth spending £17m.on Afobe and Grabban highlights what importance it is to remain in a league that pays £100m plus per season. One day we hope to be on apar with this ambition – but until then we plod along regardless. I know Daniel gets a little tired of fans complaining about the snails pace of our hoped for takeover process and the unlikelihood of getting CY to sell his shareholding. As of today I have now decided that should CY return with money and ambition to match that of Bournemouth -then I will welcome it. Perhaps it it that time of year,but suddenly feel that BCFC should climb again without any hang ups even with a possible sugar daddy in a man we have grown to dislike.
Carson must have run out of cash by now. I think there’s more chance of seeing Pannu host Masterchef than there is of Carson returning with a lorry full of cash.
Mind you he might have a winning run at the tables in Macau
Patience, I would not swap winning that Trophy for all of these years of stagnation. Look on the bright side, we won a major trophy in our lifetime which I honestly thought would never happen.
We have a decent manager, relative stability (refer to Bolton etc) and the Villa are getting relegated so not all that bad.
Don’t ever count Carson out. He might have run out of cash, but he’s not run out of backers… which if you ask me is half the problem
Mitchell the man flies by the seat of his pants all the time, and has questionable, friends, better rid of him I think.
Yes you are right Tony. It is just the thought of 2016 possibly passing without any meaningful ends-apart from being free from Administation. I really do feel that this has to be the year for us to make that play off push as I cannot see another season holding such promise-also vital year for GR-although he is in a win win situation as better times are surely heading his way. This transfer window holds such a lot for many reasons.
I think you’re right about this being the season if we’re going to make it. The three sides coming down next season will be even richer, pushing us even further back. But, do BIHL/E&Y/TTA have the foresight to see that? I’m afraid that if the board don’t back Rowett to the hilt this month (however much they can muster) then they’ll have let the manager, the players and the fans down… and we might not get another chance as good for a long time.
Totally agree Staffs. The time is now.
Another day gone, no signing, no speculation, no names,
This is gonna go down to the wire, followed with the “we done everything we could ” chestnut.
I hope and pray that I am wrong, but have a big big feeling of deja vu.
KRO.
I’m not really perturbed by the lack of rumours or names.. I’d rather not alert other clubs to our ‘targets.’ Like others though, I just hope it’s not a pile of the same old beef droppings.
I know where your coming from but you’ve got to give it to the end of the month before you can form an opinion of how good or not this window has been.
I was kind of under the impression that we may of had a few signings lined up tbh but I hope it doesn’t end up with all that last day panic buying carry on.
Have faith. We have a creative play maker who chips in with a few goals a left back who knows how to defend his patch-then a surprise 20 goal season goal poacher ( but not sure how he fits in with Vaughan and Donaldson ), all lined up before the end of the month and possibly if anything is then left in the kitty an additional winger or even a centre back. Always the optimist.
Clough a target ,
Or too expensive, first division attacking midfielders worth a punt = hourihane……j.mellis……..b.dack……..p.coutts…….Sean.Murray…….E. Upson…..Maddison….kro. And then Bradshaw for a striker …and happen a deal for kouyate with brown as deposit ….kro
Loved Paul Coutts when he was a regular for Derby. Definitely one of the best wingers in the Championship. Not sure how he’s been since that bad knee injury he had and they let him leave for Sheff Utd.
If Bradshaw’s a Wolves or Villa fan we have no chance
If we want a really top class striker who could make that difference-it would obviously require money. For that reason I would consider using Donaldson as a bargaining tool. As much as I admire him -I cannot see goals and holding up as a lone striker will not progress us into a guaranteed play off spot. GR needs to alter the approach work and only a quality striker would suffice. Washington would come I am sure for £1m.plus possibly a player like Shinnie. Donaldson would command a decent fee IMO and I have to say would open up a new dimension to our now very static predictable approach.
Mitchell – Now we have Vaughan effectively permanently Donaldson could be offered as part exchange or sold but I would want a proven striker in and I’d be looking at a £1.5+ valuation for him
Agree. My only concern is that GR may feel reluctant to sell Donaldson in fear of upsetting the fans. Boldness required but still have my doubts as to whether Gary has this. Big call but a necessary one.Vaughan is a welcome addition and will prove useful. My main point here is that if GR can get ‘his man’ without releasing Don. then great-but if it falters and we scratch around for whatever then consider my Don.alternative.
We’ve just sold our main asset for nearly 4 mill up front.According to GR we had funds and were in a strong position in this window before that..We don’t need to sell anybody.
Donaldson scored 20 goals for us last season. How much more “proven” do you want?
You are quite right TBone about last season-but can you see the current system producing the same return. We are so close to top six that sticking with the big man holding things up is imo not going to produce what’s needed. I would love to think Don. and Vaughan could get the goals for us but know that in reality we need a goal scorer. If it means getting a ‘Philips’ in that costs money then I would go for it.Brentford for example have a live wire scorer in Judge-that type of calibre.
Judge is a midfielder, not a striker. But I agree, that’s the kind of player we need behind Donaldson if we’re to persist with 4-2-3-1..
Getting Sone Aluko back would fit the bill
Left footed, direct, pacy, can play striker and wing and a blue nose
By my reckoning, last season Donaldson scored 15 in the league and 1 in the League Cup. I’d be very surprised if he got anywhere near that this season. Before his injury, he’d only scored in 3 of 17 starts.
He needs help from the 3 behind him. That’s where we need to buy goals. Or, buy two central midfielders that will allow us to play two up front. We’re not exactly prolific with 30 goals in 25 games. At the end of the season, goal difference could be vital.
GR is saying strengthen not sell …….donaldson is the only proven striker that has done a job for us for years , Vaughan could do the same , if he remains fit , which is why it would be sensible to buy Bradshaw , or Clough , which would give us a wealth of strikers with the young bloods in the youth sides to replace them in time , Bring it on , and bring forest on …….kro