IF.....

[Guest]

Central midfield most important for me. And surely going to get one quality one in. Striker is important too obviously.

Joe Williams and Nketiah would not cost loads and would be exactly what we need. 

As for back up left back, well maybe they trust Rowe there. Hasn't played there for a long time, a gamble.

Right back I'm happy with what we have. Assuming Vyner is as good as I read at the end of last season, having top wingers like Hernandez of Norwich in his back pocket. That's something Hunt would not be able to do, but Hunt decent too imo as back up.

Depending on how we set up, I wonder if we will be after a AM too. Palmer might not happen now.

We will have to surely sell a few too. Really have to get this right now as we are close to having a top top side. 

[cidercity1987]

It would be beyond bizarre to continue to spunk millions on the defence and strikeforce but yet again totally neglect centre midfield.

Korey Smith was the last upgrade we made in that position and despite all the changes since promotion we havent purchased for immediate improvement in CM at all since then.

The only two of note that have come in after Korey are Pack and Brownhill but they were for development, not immediate first choice.

[BarnzFM]

What i’d like to know is who is this mythical 20/25 goal proven goal scorer, anyone scoring that much in the Championship will be heading to the premier league 

[CyderInACan]

12 minutes ago, cidercity1987 said:

The only two of note that have come in after Korey are Pack and Brownhill but they were for development, not immediate first choice.

Pack joined before Korey - 2nd Aug 2013 - Korey joining him in BS3 on 27th June 2014. 

[cidercity1987]

2 minutes ago, CyderInACan said:

Pack joined before Korey - 2nd Aug 2013 - Korey joining him in BS3 on 27th June 2014. 

Thanks, so Brownhill is the only CM purchase of any note since Korey? Except someone like Walsh who has barely played.

[Sparkz 76]

I think we need defensive midfielder Cm St maybe a RB as Pisano is gone

[BarnzFM]

Think we’ll keep Vyner or Moore around as RB back up, a cm and forward must be priorities 

[CyderInACan]

6 minutes ago, cidercity1987 said:

Thanks, so Brownhill is the only CM purchase of any note since Korey? Except someone like Walsh who has barely played.

Hegs? Should've worked out much better for him - maybe a case of the right player at the wrong time? 

[Robbored]

I have a strong suspicion  that LJ sees Semenyo as the answer to the lack of firepower and that we won’t see a Championship quality striker arriving at AG this summer. Plus he’s signed Szmodics who has a decent goal tally from midfield.

Im sincerely hope that I’m wrong - none of us would want to see LJ make the same mistake as his Dad by not recruiting a recognised striker.

I was delighted at the arrival of Kalas but disappointed when Ashton described him as a ‘ marquee’  signing.

10 minutes ago, cidercity1987 said:

Thanks, so Brownhill is the only CM purchase of any note since Korey? Except someone like Walsh who has barely played.

Walsh was injured for long periods last season.

[Robbored]

You don’t agree with my post BobBobSuperBob?     

[mozo]

50 minutes ago, Robbored said:

I have a strong suspicion  that LJ sees Semenyo as the answer to the lack of firepower and that we won’t see a Championship quality striker arriving at AG this summer. Plus he’s signed Szmodics who has a decent goal tally from midfield.

Im sincerely hope that I’m wrong - none of us would want to see LJ make the same mistake as his Dad by not recruiting a recognised striker.

I was delighted at the arrival of Kalas but disappointed when Ashton described him as a ‘ marquee’  signing.

Walsh was injured for long periods last season.

That would be a bit mad given that he's not shown any signs of being a goalscorer 

[Robbored]

5 minutes ago, mozo said:

That would be a bit mad given that he's not shown any signs of being a goalscorer 

It’s only my suspicion Mozo based on me reading between the lines of some of the comments LJ has made. 

[Red Army 75]

The hardest and most expensive position to fill . Everyone wants a 20-25 goal scorer but who . I reckon we could be shopping abroad 

[Tom193]

8 hours ago, pillred said:

Blimey didn't realise things were that bad, though hopefully last season was a lot better with the new stand, cup runs match day income etc, that has shocked me must say.

This was before the sales of Reid, flint, Bryan and Maggs, accounts will look a lot better this year

[Mr Popodopolous]

Vydra I think would be an excellent fit- would we pay out £10m on a player though, albeit without further sales? Were we

Kalas is a marquee signing @Robbored not only for his quality last season but 2 promotions and 2 playoff losing causes in the prior 4 seasons- one of the most decorated defenders at this level or at least experience of the right end of it.

[downendcity]

8 hours ago, pillred said:

No way we lost £25 million surely, where do you get that from, shocked if true. 500,000 a week!!

Hence the old saying that if you want to make a small fortune from owning a football club you better start out with a big fortune!

[downendcity]

22 minutes ago, mozo said:

That would be a bit mad given that he's not shown any signs of being a goalscorer 

Nor had Bobby Reid - before he became one!

[Onthefence]

I don't see another striker coming in - at least not a 20/25 goal a season player costing a small fortune. I think LJ has faith in FD - and let's face it he has improved each season. The stats show how many chances we created last year - which highlights that the midfield must be doing their job well. I don't understand the critisism that Pack gets from some on this forum, for me he has improved year on year and did a brilliant job last year without the defensive qualities of Korey alongside him. And Brownhill will show his undoubted class this year.

They key is keeping hold of Webster now. We have a great defence with good backup if needed, if Webster stays we will finish in the top 6. True a proven 20 goal a season striker would cement our chances of that and probably push us for an automatic promotion place, but looking at how this club has built a team it's a case of slowly slowly catchy monkey. 

I suspect the striker will come in the form of a loan signing - or in the January window if we are still struggling to get the goals needed.

 

[ZiderEyed]

46 minutes ago, Robbored said:

It’s only my suspicion Mozo based on me reading between the lines of some of the comments LJ has made. 

So just speculation?

[bcfc01]

5 hours ago, YorkshireSection said:

This.

A striker isn't going to do much with the type of service Pack will provide from CM. We need a CM upgrade and a 20+ goal a season striker IMHO.

I read somewhere on here that there is a stat which stated that City created the most chances in the division.

Also that Diedhiou missed the most.

I don't think I dreamed it....

It doesn't seem to be the service or the chances created, its having a player(s) that can put them away. In that respect a good striker is key.

[Mr Popodopolous]

12 minutes ago, bcfc01 said:

I read somewhere on here that there is a stat which stated that City created the most chances in the division.

Also that Diedhiou missed the most.

I don't think I dreamed it....

It doesn't seem to be the service or the chances created, its having a player(s) that can put them away. In that respect a good striker is key.

Diedhiou is a funny one.

I remember some terrible misses- Bolton at home springs to mind- but I also remember a number of theoretically harder, mid-range chances. Instinctive almost- Blackburn at home, WBA away spring to mind. Millwall away too.

Number of big chances he missed definitely a big flaw but he fulfilled a role too that wasn't necessarily his favourite- seemed to improve too with 2 up front- nice assist at Sheff Utd IIRC. West Brom at home though he didn't score, he played fantastic- real handful.

Would be open to £10-12m sale if it helped get a striker with more natural movement striker and able to score with ease, but his signs- only signs but they have been there- may well make him a saleable asset. Indeed took a look and his conversion rate from 2017/18 definitely seems down in 2018/19- well the big misses alone are a key indicator.

It seems to be good or terrible with him- not a lot of middle ground. His passing accuracy FWIW, can range from mid 70s and a little above- down to somewhere in the 40s.

[Always Believesham]

I'd overlooked midfield but the lack of turnover in midfield is actually quite startling over the last couple of years (only really lost O'Neill & Hegeler?)

We've seen 2/3 players leave from most positions with the exception of each of 4 traditional midfield positions (LM, RM, CM, AM) I'd like to think it's a well oiled machine but we certainly need to be prepared to bring in competition for Brownhill, Smith or Pack's place.

Others have noted the depth we could have at Right Back, it wouldn't surprise me if we had some experience joining the squad as cover there (or 2 cm's knowing that Brownhill & Smith are both capable deputies at Right Back)

Da Silva, Rowe, Pring I'm confident would be ok

Hunt, Vyner, Moore I'm not so confident because Hunt is definitely susceptible to a dip in form

[Major Isewater]

39 minutes ago, Onthefence said:

I don't see another striker coming in - at least not a 20/25 goal a season player costing a small fortune. I think LJ has faith in FD - and let's face it he has improved each season. The stats show how many chances we created last year - which highlights that the midfield must be doing their job well. I don't understand the critisism that Pack gets from some on this forum, for me he has improved year on year and did a brilliant job last year without the defensive qualities of Korey alongside him. And Brownhill will show his undoubted class this year.

They key is keeping hold of Webster now. We have a great defence with good backup if needed, if Webster stays we will finish in the top 6. True a proven 20 goal a season striker would cement our chances of that and probably push us for an automatic promotion place, but looking at how this club has built a team it's a case of slowly slowly catchy monkey. 

I suspect the striker will come in the form of a loan signing - or in the January window if we are still struggling to get the goals needed.

 

This Monkey , what’s his position ? 

 

[Super Scotty Murray]

And we need a quality centre midfielder as well. Add that to the 20 goal striker and we are genuine promotion contenders.

[Major Isewater]

28 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

Diedhiou is a funny one.

I remember some terrible misses- Bolton at home springs to mind- but I also remember a number of theoretically harder, mid-range chances. Instinctive almost- Blackburn at home, WBA away spring to mind. Millwall away too.

Number of big chances he missed definitely a big flaw but he fulfilled a role too that wasn't necessarily his favourite- seemed to improve too with 2 up front- nice assist at Sheff Utd IIRC. West Brom at home though he didn't score, he played fantastic- real handful.

Would be open to £10-12m sale if it helped get a striker with more natural movement striker and able to score with ease, but his signs- only signs but they have been there- may well make him a saleable asset. Indeed took a look and his conversion rate from 2017/18 definitely seems down in 2018/19- well the big misses alone are a key indicator.

It seems to be good or terrible with him- not a lot of middle ground. His passing accuracy FWIW, can range from mid 70s and a little above- down to somewhere in the 40s.

Famara has been asked to adapt his game since his arrival here, this he has done and with no small credit.

He is well capable of getting 20 goals a season if the team is set up slightly differently. 

It can’t be easy as the lone striker to , not only act as the offensive  fulcrum , but to notch goals for himself as well.

FD is a top pro and we haven’t yet seen the best of him. 

[Guest]

24 minutes ago, bcfc01 said:

I read somewhere on here that there is a stat which stated that City created the most chances in the division.

Also that Diedhiou missed the most.

I don't think I dreamed it....

It doesn't seem to be the service or the chances created, its having a player(s) that can put them away. In that respect a good striker is key.

But then the season before he scored a goal every 180 minutes and was not missing many chances.

I think even that stat can be slightly misleading. Often he was on his own with defenders all over him. Is this stat only counting sitters or every single chance however difficult?

I wonder about the quality of service. Also the speed in which we are attacking. At home we can do too much backwards passing from Pack or Weimann. Too slow moving forward and teams can get back and make it much harder to create a real good chance.

I recall Diedhiou doing a number of ambitious overhead kicks from the edge of the box, or headers at goal when running backward. Almost impossible to score from but all on his own and no real other option.

Not saying Diedhiou is top top quality at this level. But with more support, I think he's get better quality of chances. Obviously he did miss a handful of sitters that the season before I expect he would have put away too.

 

[bcfc01]

3 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

But then the season before he scored a goal every 180 minutes and was not missing many chances.

I think even that stat can be slightly misleading. Often he was on his own with defenders all over him. Is this stat only counting sitters or every single chance however difficult?

I wonder about the quality of service. Also the speed in which we are attacking. At home we can do too much backwards passing from Pack or Weimann. Too slow moving forward and teams can get back and make it much harder to create a real good chance.

I recall Diedhiou doing a number of ambitious overhead kicks from the edge of the box, or headers at goal when running backward. Almost impossible to score from but all on his own and no real other option.

Not saying Diedhiou is top top quality at this level. But with more support, I think he's get better quality of chances. Obviously he did miss a handful of sitters that the season before I expect he would have put away too.

 

It was alluding to sitters re Diedhiou - I forget the terminology used but he missed the most in the division by a long way.

Someone must have those stats..

[WhistleHappy]

No idea what's gonna happen squad wise, other than things are looking good in BS3 right now...

However the thread title reminded me of this film   …. IF  ,  

...so while waiting patiently for the new season to begin proper and watching the preparations for it with interest, excited anticipation and the usual nervousness in the belly... I thought IF … its on Youtube so I'm gonna watch it again after all these years... Oh what a lucky man I am while I await the return of The Mighty Reds...

Thanks.  

 

 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mufpDXIss5A  

 

[Mr Popodopolous]

58 minutes ago, JonDolman said:

But then the season before he scored a goal every 180 minutes and was not missing many chances.

I think even that stat can be slightly misleading. Often he was on his own with defenders all over him. Is this stat only counting sitters or every single chance however difficult?

I wonder about the quality of service. Also the speed in which we are attacking. At home we can do too much backwards passing from Pack or Weimann. Too slow moving forward and teams can get back and make it much harder to create a real good chance.

I recall Diedhiou doing a number of ambitious overhead kicks from the edge of the box, or headers at goal when running backward. Almost impossible to score from but all on his own and no real other option.

Not saying Diedhiou is top top quality at this level. But with more support, I think he's get better quality of chances. Obviously he did miss a handful of sitters that the season before I expect he would have put away too.

 

He's too deep for me, in all honesty.

5-10 yards higher up the pitch where he can get into the game more- witness his assists v Bolton away and Norwich at home. Both to Weimann? Good possible indicator of a combination for this coming season...?

[WhistleHappy]

15 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

He's too deep for me, in all honesty. 

As the actress said of @Rudolf Hucker to the bishop.