Now go get that quicksilver striker in the January window

[where's the joy]

Ok i admit i was wrong, didn't think that promoting Holden was the right call, couldn't see us improving on the streaks of previous seasons.

But fair play as i cannot praise the coaching staff enough for finding the right positions for key players.

At last COD is tearing up a midfield role, Nagj looks so much better further forward and Bakinson looks so silky.

We are getting results and showing some nouse when it comes to closing games out.

We are not playing well for very long in games but we can string moves together and do just enough to shade a game; 

This is remarkable given the amount of talent on the injury list

and to get the results that we have without half of what should be the first 11 names on the team sheet shows real application.

But what i hope Father Christmas will bring is a live wire striker with a selfish eye for goal to enable us to make the very most of this season.

If we are still in the top 6 at the end of December then i hope Holden gets the backing he is earning.

Oh and by the way how fast is Zac Vyner becoming the main man; growing into a real asset. COYR 

[Rocking Red Cyril]

Don't you think wells can be/is that you want for xmas

[fatchers]

I think we need a creative midfielder to supply the forwards. 

[Rocking Red Cyril]

2 minutes ago, fatchers said:

I think we need a creative midfielder to supply the forwards. 

Yes a more needed player definitely. But then could that not of been Palmer? And what will Williams and Walsh bring that to the team in the creative area. Should they ever get fit 

[David Brent]

9 minutes ago, fatchers said:

I think we need a creative midfielder to supply the forwards. 

Don’t think we do. It’s possible we can still create using the two number 8s. Weimann has been missed but O’Dowda has shown he is capable there.

[Davefevs]

Think we might need a striker (on loan???) if Diedhiou goes or signs a pre-contract.

[Sheltons Army]

2 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Think we might need a striker (on loan???) if Diedhiou goes or signs a pre-contract.

I’d like us to have a look for a channel runner , pace and mobility , as opposed to an out and out goalscorer

 

[Davefevs]

Just now, Sheltons Army said:

I’d like us to have a look for a channel runner , pace and mobility , as opposed to an out and out goalscorer

 

Me too.

[Davefevs]

Just now, Davefevs said:

Me too.

In the summer I was keen on Bonne (now QPR) and Tyler Walker (now Coventry).

[Prinny]

Who is the next Jonathan Kodjia?

Go go scouting department.

[Sheltons Army]

4 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

In the summer I was keen on Bonne (now QPR) and Tyler Walker (now Coventry).

Prefer Walker

An unimpressive record but I’ve always been impressed with Ashley Fletchers all round game and the sort who could be a good value pick up

[Prinny]

Also, we should recall Watkins and Adelakun if we can, because if we're playing this 4-3-3 we need spares for the wide forward position.

[Lrrr]

11 minutes ago, Prinny said:

Who is the next Jonathan Kodjia?

Go go scouting department.

Whose at Angers?

[redsapper]

22 minutes ago, Lrrr said:

Whose at Angers?

Remember it’s going to be harder to sign players from outside of the UK. 

[stephenkibby.]

41 minutes ago, Sheltons Army said:

I’d like us to have a look for a channel runner , pace and mobility , as opposed to an out and out goalscorer

 

Don't know about a channel runner, reckon Nagy would be a good channel swimmer!!

[tin]

21 minutes ago, Prinny said:

Also, we should recall Watkins and Adelakun if we can, because if we're playing this 4-3-3 we need spares for the wide forward position.

We definitely need a wide forward, ideally someone who can play on the right of the three to allow Semenyo to play on the left. I was impressed by Osayi-Samuel again last night, Jed Wallace would suit, or a loan move for Arsenal’s Floarin Balogun would be ideal. I’m sure @Davefevsknows a few other names to throw into the hat for this role. 

[Sturny]

Sorta reminds me of that 17/18 season where we were 2nd (Or 3rd?) at Xmas. With hindsight it's a lot easier to say this but I felt then we should've jumped into our pockets in the January window to solidify our play off chances and keep the momentum. We did get the odd player that window but they felt rather underwhelming and we fell flat with injuries, performances, teams around us strengthening.  Whether the finances were avalible or not I don't know. I remember even an ex player coming on the forum discussing the same, he was puzzled why SL/LJ weren't splashing the cash considering our league postion. Perhaps they didn't think it was needed. 

Last January we got Nahki Wells which was great and he wasn't cheap. It's certainly possible to bring these players in when our league position is looking good. 

[Davefevs]

28 minutes ago, tin said:

We definitely need a wide forward, ideally someone who can play on the right of the three to allow Semenyo to play on the left. I was impressed by Osayi-Samuel again last night, Jed Wallace would suit, or a loan move for Arsenal’s Floarin Balogun would be ideal. I’m sure @Davefevsknows a few other names to throw into the hat for this role. 

I know zilch about Balogun, and Wallace is gonna be way too pricey (imho) for this climate.

[Lrrr]

1 hour ago, tin said:

We definitely need a wide forward, ideally someone who can play on the right of the three to allow Semenyo to play on the left. I was impressed by Osayi-Samuel again last night, Jed Wallace would suit, or a loan move for Arsenal’s Floarin Balogun would be ideal. I’m sure @Davefevsknows a few other names to throw into the hat for this role. 

Whenever I've watched him I've thought Onyedinma at Wycombe could be an interesting one, however perhaps I've just happened to watch good performances, not watched him enough overall.

[Davefevs]

5 minutes ago, Lrrr said:

Whenever I've watched him I've thought Onyedinma at Wycombe could be an interesting one, however perhaps I've just happened to watch good performances, not watched him enough overall.

We were linked with him a while back from memory.

[ExiledAjax]

We've got some decent strikers in the U23s and on loan. I know we're still sort of blooding Semenyo* but is there any scope for any of Bell, Britton, Janneh or maybe even Pearson to get a promotion to the first team squad?

*and perhaps we're stung from when we brought him back in January

[Ron W]

2 hours ago, Rocking Red Cyril said:

Yes a more needed player definitely. But then could that not of been Palmer? And what will Williams and Walsh bring that to the team in the creative area. Should they ever get fit 

Always been a fan of Palmer but when two managers both don't think much of him you have to wonder whether he may have been the problem and not their choices.

[Davefevs]

2 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

Always been a fan of Palmer but when two managers both don't think much of him you have to wonder whether he may have been the problem and not their choices.

Pretty confident that LJ wanted Palmer....if you’re suggesting it was an MA signing.

[Lrrr]

1 minute ago, Davefevs said:

Pretty confident that LJ wanted Palmer....if you’re suggesting it was an MA signing.

Useful club in the bag, he's a driver whereas you've rocked up to play a par 3 course

[Ron W]

2 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Pretty confident that LJ wanted Palmer....if you’re suggesting it was an MA signing.

No not that, but it wasn't long before LJ would rather pick anyone over him and now Holden's let him leave... There's just plenty we don't see behind the scenes, said without any knowledge beyond what we all have seen.

[Davefevs]

3 minutes ago, RonWalker said:

No not that, but it wasn't long before LJ would rather pick anyone over him and now Holden's let him leave... There's just plenty we don't see behind the scenes, said without any knowledge beyond what we all have seen.

Bonkers imho that he barely played in 18/19 on loan, LJ signed him, played him a bit then froze him out last season.

Wish LJ had spent 9000 hours interrogating him before signing him!

Personally think he’s a talented boy, but I think it’s him that’s gonna have to adjust, because I think no manager will build a side around him.

 

[Rocking Red Cyril]

13 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Bonkers imho that he barely played in 18/19 on loan, LJ signed him, played him a bit then froze him out last season.

Wish LJ had spent 9000 hours interrogating him before signing him!

Personally think he’s a talented boy, but I think it’s him that’s gonna have to adjust, because I think no manager will build a side around him.

 

Yes total agreement there Dave

[tin]

10 hours ago, Davefevs said:

I know zilch about Balogun, and Wallace is gonna be way too pricey (imho) for this climate.

I was thinking you might be aware of other suitable players who can play across the front three. 

The virus has probably pushed Wallace’s price down, and I’m not sure he fits the club’s profile in terms of increasing his future value.

Look into Balogun if you get a chance. He can play across the front three, has been scoring in the Europa League and Brentford reportedly placed a £5m bid for him in the summer before going for Toney. I trust their scouting network more than our own. I reckon we might be able to get him loan until the end of the season. 

[TonyTonyTony]

We have Wells, FAM, Semenyo, Martin - a striker in January is unlikely. In fact i cant see much business being done

[Davefevs]

42 minutes ago, TonyTonyTony said:

We have Wells, FAM, Semenyo, Martin - a striker in January is unlikely. In fact i cant see much business being done

Diedhiou is the big unknown in January.

[Major Isewater]

Akinfenwa your moment has arrived. 

[glastonred]

12 hours ago, Prinny said:

Who is the next Jonathan Kodjia?

Go go scouting department.

Look Back In Angers.....

[Sturny]

What happened to Garita? 

[Robbored]

Semenyo is pretty quick, all he needs a Championship goal from open play.

[Sturny]

13 minutes ago, Robbored said:

Semenyo is pretty quick, all he needs a Championship goal from open play.

I think we should turn him into an inverted winger, working his way into the box. Pretty much how he is played now but be expected to create rather than score 

[Roger Red Hat]

11 hours ago, RonWalker said:

Always been a fan of Palmer but when two managers both don't think much of him you have to wonder whether he may have been the problem and not their choices.

I think you'll find its more than two managers!

[spudski]

Whoever we sign in the future, I'd like to think they would fit our style of play.

I look at the likes of Leeds as an example, and you can see the players they have suit what is being asked of them.

When we play 532...do you think our wingbacks are suitable for such a formation?

We have other players recruited as reasonably priced rough diamonds...imo some of them were bought because of their potential talent and sell on, rather than for a specific game plan.

[Dazy07]

Don’t think we need a striker. For me we should go get Bannan in Jan. Creative spark we need

[Finley_Smith10]

2 hours ago, tin said:

I was thinking you might be aware of other suitable players who can play across the front three. 

The virus has probably pushed Wallace’s price down, and I’m not sure he fits the club’s profile in terms of increasing his future value.

Look into Balogun if you get a chance. He can play across the front three, has been scoring in the Europa League and Brentford reportedly placed a £5m bid for him in the summer before going for Toney. I trust their scouting network more than our own. I reckon we might be able to get him loan until the end of the season. 

Balogun is a great shout, one we should defo be going after on a loan for rest of the season

[supercidered]

20 minutes ago, dazy07 said:

Don’t think we need a striker. For me we should go get Bannan in Jan. Creative spark we need

Good grief!

[Curr Avon]

13 hours ago, tin said:

We definitely need a wide forward, ideally someone who can play on the right of the three to allow Semenyo to play on the left. I was impressed by Osayi-Samuel again last night, Jed Wallace would suit, or a loan move for Arsenal’s Floarin Balogun would be ideal. I’m sure @Davefevsknows a few other names to throw into the hat for this role. 

Osayi-Samuel's deal expires in July 2021, and he can begin pre-contract talks next January. Unsurprisingly the lad is generating interest both here and North of the border; ‘Destined’: Manager thinks reported Crystal Palace and Celtic target is Premier League-bound – HITC 

[redapple]

35 minutes ago, dazy07 said:

Don’t think we need a striker. For me we should go get Bannan in Jan. Creative spark we need

What’s the obsession with Bannan ? He only has 2 good games a season. Unfortunately they’re always against Bristol City . 

[Alex_BCFC]

Striker is the one area I have no concerns. Midfield and defence (if still lots of injuries) need improvements.

[Unan]

We need a creative midfielder who can also defend, but that's a £10m job there...

Walsh & Williams fit this role, to an extent, but we don't know if they're good enough. I feel people are pinning their hopes on these two too much, neither are proven to be at a top level for this league, not that I'm saying they can't be in the future.

[Phileas Fogg]

24 minutes ago, Banned User said:

We need a creative midfielder who can also defend, but that's a £10m job there...

Walsh & Williams fit this role, to an extent, but we don't know if they're good enough. I feel people are pinning their hopes on these two too much, neither are proven to be at a top level for this league, not that I'm saying they can't be in the future.

Williams is pretty proven at the level, albeit with Wigan. Agree about Walsh but with both I think lots of fans can see the potential in both. Nothing wrong with that really. 

[Major Isewater]

9 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

Williams is pretty proven at the level, albeit with Wigan

To be proven in this division in an unfashionable team is better than being proven when surrounded by the cream at the bigger clubs . ( hhhmmm cream) 

[tin]

2 hours ago, spudski said:

Whoever we sign in the future, I'd like to think they would fit our style of play.

I look at the likes of Leeds as an example, and you can see the players they have suit what is being asked of them.

When we play 532...do you think our wingbacks are suitable for such a formation?

We have other players recruited as reasonably priced rough diamonds...imo some of them were bought because of their potential talent and sell on, rather than for a specific game plan.

I get your first point, but what is our style of play? Sit back, soak up pressure and try to nick one on the break? Until we have close to a fully-fit squad, I don't think any of us can define our style. 

As for Leeds, five or six of the team playing in the PL were average Championship players until Bielsa came in. The way he's coached the best out of Ayling, Cooper, Klich etc is something only a handful of top coaches can do. 

I don't think we do have the wingbacks to play 3-5-2 or 5-3-2. Dasilva's a better LB than LWB, despite being ripped apart by Osayi-Samuel; Hunt's a better RWB than RB, IMO. 

Your final point is spot on, a lot of our recruitment has been a scattergun approach to Moneyball. 

[Davefevs]

2 hours ago, Curr Avon said:

Osayi-Samuel's deal expires in July 2021, and he can begin pre-contract talks next January. Unsurprisingly the lad is generating interest both here and North of the border; ‘Destined’: Manager thinks reported Crystal Palace and Celtic target is Premier League-bound – HITC 

This is a murky area.  BOS is 23 at the end of the month, and players 23 and over can sign pre-contracts with non-English clubs in January.  However in the UK, u24s (which BOS is) are entitled to compensation, so the rules aren’t well aligned.  He certainly can’t sign a pre-contract with Palace, but I don’t know whether Celtic would need to pay compo?

[GrahamC]

5 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

This is a murky area.  BOS is 23 at the end of the month, and players 23 and over can sign pre-contracts with non-English clubs in January.  However in the UK, u24s (which BOS is) are entitled to compensation, so the rules aren’t well aligned.  He certainly can’t sign a pre-contract with Palace, but I don’t know whether Celtic would need to pay compo?

Pretty sure they would, think Celtic signed a young lad from Bolton who was out of contract a few years ago & had to do so.

As for us I would be amazed if we brought anyone in next month & if a few our long term injured returned I can’t see why we would.

Wells can be the consistent scorer we need & the 3 options we have to play up top apart from him cover all the bases.

[Murraysrightplum]

Goalscorers always on the Xmas list. Wells hitting a bit of form helps but agree we haven’t got a lot of pace up front. A quick channel runner I agree we should be on the lookout for. Michael Owen still playing?

[Oh Louie louie]

If given the choice, id go for the bloke up front for reading on saturday.

Big, quick, skillful.

He caused us plenty of issues, never looked like giving the ball away.

Looked a diffrent class.

[Davefevs]

2 hours ago, GrahamC said:

Pretty sure they would, think Celtic signed a young lad from Bolton who was out of contract a few years ago & had to do so.

As for us I would be amazed if we brought anyone in next month & if a few our long term injured returned I can’t see why we would.

Wells can be the consistent scorer we need & the 3 options we have to play up top apart from him cover all the bases.

Thanks Graham, makes sense.

Luca Connell is the guy you’re referring to.

1 hour ago, Oh Louie louie said:

If given the choice, id go for the bloke up front for reading on saturday.

Big, quick, skillful.

He caused us plenty of issues, never looked like giving the ball away.

Looked a diffrent class.

funnily enough, a mixed reaction at the suggestion / rumours of Lucas Joao in the summer of 2019.

 

[GrahamC]

55 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

Thanks Graham, makes sense.

Luca Connell is the guy you’re referring to.

funnily enough, a mixed reaction at the suggestion / rumours of Lucas Joao in the summer of 2019.

 

Going to sound a right smartarse now but always rated Joao, gave us problems every time whilst at Sheff Wed.

[Davefevs]

6 minutes ago, GrahamC said:

Going to sound a right smartarse now but always rated Joao, gave us problems every time whilst at Sheff Wed.

Me too....

[Sheltons Army]

2 hours ago, Davefevs said:

Thanks Graham, makes sense.

Luca Connell is the guy you’re referring to.

 

Connell made his (very impressive for one so young) debut against us at AG IIRC , for that awful Bolton side 

[Lrrr]

3 hours ago, Davefevs said:

Me too....

*checks back at thread*

Seemingly I was too...

[Carey 6]

I really like that Wilks at Hull, he looked decent in a poor Hull side last season & is doing well in League 1 this season.

Remember last year he had a horrid run where Hull didn't win any game he started in for ages like Bale had at Tottenham. 

He's only 21, exactly the sort of player we'd normally go for. 

I also think it's worth keeping our eye on Jephcott at Plymouth. Finishes well with both feet & is decent in the air. 

[Davefevs]

1 hour ago, Carey 6 said:

I really like that Wilks at Hull, he looked decent in a poor Hull side last season & is doing well in League 1 this season.

Remember last year he had a horrid run where Hull didn't win any game he started in for ages like Bale had at Tottenham. 

He's only 21, exactly the sort of player we'd normally go for. 

I also think it's worth keeping our eye on Jephcott at Plymouth. Finishes well with both feet & is decent in the air. 

Definitely one to keep an eye on.  Got good instincts in the area.

 

[Curr Avon]

I've got a bright idea. Lets buy Bright, please. Now, how are we going to break FFP and beat Celtic to his signature?

[Sheltons Army]

2 hours ago, Carey 6 said:

I really like that Wilks at Hull, he looked decent in a poor Hull side last season & is doing well in League 1 this season.

Remember last year he had a horrid run where Hull didn't win any game he started in for ages like Bale had at Tottenham. 

He's only 21, exactly the sort of player we'd normally go for. 

I also think it's worth keeping our eye on Jephcott at Plymouth. Finishes well with both feet & is decent in the air. 

Didn’t Wilks have some off field issues ? (I may be wrong)

Not a channel runner but Keane Lewis-Potter there , is the one we should be all over - would currently be my No 1 target in L1 /L2

[Scrumpylegs]

It's likely that we'll end up going for a whole 12 months soon without any crowds. If we've got any money to spare I would hold out for the inevitable 'fire sale' that's just around the corner. Will be a buyers market soon - wait and see.

[Davefevs]

12 hours ago, Sheltons Army said:

Didn’t Wilks have some off field issues ? (I may be wrong)

Not a channel runner but Keane Lewis-Potter there , is the one we should be all over - would currently be my No 1 target in L1 /L2

Got some technical ability hasn’t he?

Harry Randall at Exeter worth keeping tabs on too.

[Davefevs]

4 hours ago, Scrumpylegs said:

It's likely that we'll end up going for a whole 12 months soon without any crowds. If we've got any money to spare I would hold out for the inevitable 'fire sale' that's just around the corner. Will be a buyers market soon - wait and see.

I think you are right, will be lots of clubs willing to sell cheap to get the wagebill down.