Dele Adebola

[bernie from barrow gurney]

one of four strikers mentioned yesterday to me and I'm keeping quiet

Didnt GJ attack this very forum for threads like this?

[Leveller]

He's 32 so won't provide a long term solution, but on the other hand shouldn't cost much either. I can see GJ buying someone just to get through half a season, then changing entirely should we get to the Prem.

[tin]

Would be very surprised if this has any substance to it. We've been in for him before, under Pulis I think, and he made it known that he didn't like us as a club or he didn't like the city of Bristol itself. Can't imagine he'd go down too well with the fans for those reasons plus the fact he's 32 doesn't exactly fill me with hope if we did manage to go up. Shortsighted signing if you ask me.

[bh_red]

Would be very surprised if this has any substance to it. We've been in for him before, under Pulis I think, and he made it known that he didn't like us as a club or he didn't like the city of Bristol itself. Can't imagine he'd go down too well with the fans for those reasons plus the fact he's 32 doesn't exactly fill me with hope if we did manage to go up. Shortsighted signing if you ask me.

can see you point about being "shortsighted" however it would be very much another "horse's for course's" johnson signing similar to what we have seen from him in the past, in the last 2 seasons we have brought in players that were good enough for what you needed at the time but quite obviously wouldn't be able to step up to the next level.

in the past he brought in Bas, who was never going to be suitable for a promotion push, but to get us away from the bottom of the league he was suitable and he did what was needed and once he'd done his bit, the club let him go.

last season we brought Andy Smith, never going to be good enough for the Championship but was the "hard working, battling" kinda player that added competition and helped to pushed us up, but was never going to be a long term solution.

I'd imagine he is looking at the Adebola situation in the same way, get him here for 6months or so, do a job to help with a promotion push, then push him out once done.

(at least that's the straw I'm clutching at because I think he'd be a very poor signing.)

[tin]

can see you point about being "shortsighted" however it would be very much another "horse's for course's" johnson signing similar to what we have seen from him in the past, in the last 2 seasons we have brought in players that were good enough for what you needed at the time but quite obviously wouldn't be able to step up to the next level.

in the past he brought in Bas, who was never going to be suitable for a promotion push, but to get us away from the bottom of the league he was suitable and he did what was needed and once he'd done his bit, the club let him go.

last season we brought Andy Smith, never going to be good enough for the Championship but was the "hard working, battling" kinda player that added competition and helped to pushed us up, but was never going to be a long term solution.

I'd imagine he is looking at the Adebola situation in the same way, get him here for 6months or so, do a job to help with a promotion push, then push him out once done.

(at least that's the straw I'm clutching at because I think he'd be a very poor signing.)

For once, I totally agree with you. GJ does have a history of this sort of thing and you make very good points about Bas and Andy Smith. The one thing I'd add to that though is that both Bas and Smith were unknown's who had something to prove. That's what brought the work-rate as they had the burning desire to succeed and help the team. I don't think the potential signing of Adebola would necessarily bring that as his career is winding down and he's achieved a fair bit in his jounreyman career to date.

[Southport Red]

Only thing i will say, we all complain about trundles 3 goals, how much better is 4?

Ooh, ohh, i know!!!

It's One better (Is there a prize, 'cos I'm not normally all that good at Maths

[Red Zeppelin]

Another thing in the mix, Trundle and Adebola are of the few players I can ever remember GJ singling out. In interviews he said things last season such as (not quotations) "We know they've got a tricky striker up front in the form of Lee Trundle", and "Trundle's a dangerous player". Likewise before the Coventry away game, GJ said things like "We know they like to pump the ball up to Adebola who's dangerous".

I can see Adebola being another opponent GJ admires and would like to have here, as with Trundle before.

[Nibor]

I cannot see why you keep on about Brooker. I would love him to come back, strong and firing on all cylinders. But when will that be, who knows, and then, like Trundle, we have to see if he can make the step up.

Quite simply, I keep on about Brooker because he is pretty much fit, and over several years I've seen enough of him to be sure he can do that job at this level.

This is actually about keeping tha ball in the final third, and there are better people to explain that to you, but one of the key elements of attacking football, is that when the ball goes forward, and is lost, you are constantly chasing the game, and the ball.

I don't need anyone to explain to me how direct/long ball football works thanks. I think you need someone to explain to you that that is NOT what we are playing except in the last few minutes of games that are nervous because we haven't scored the second goal. We're playing on the break away and we're playing a short passing pressure game at home and neither requires a target man.

We are doing more of that in recent games. A player like Adebola, and GJ has hinted that he is a player he is interested in, is far superior to any of our current squad at keeping the ball. Our defenders could not get it off of him either. If we did sign him, I would be surpsised if one of the justifications GJ will make, is exactly this point. He keeps the ball, and will bring others into play. This has been a major issue this season, and has stopped us playing 4-4-1-1 (like the top clubs these days) or 4-4-2 in part, as we don't have the quick player either. I could see Carle playing on top of the midfield 4, with a player like Adebola in the side.

I don't know what games you're watching quite frankly. Keeping the ball and bringing others into play simply hasn't been an issue, we have done that, we have no difficulty in approach play or indeed in putting balls into the box. What we have difficulty in is having someone on the end of those scoring them, and Adebola is not going to do that. Trundle and Byfield frequently come wide and deep and bring other people into play, the problem is that when they do so there is nobody in the box to score.

I do not negate the need for a goal scorer either, but I am sure, as I said, that it is not either/or, it is both players we want. I see no issue with signing an experienced campaigner for the situation we are in, there is a huge risk attached to putting the eggs in the Brooker basket, and as joint top, it is a risk that would be strange to take. if £250 k is the fee, as suggested, then it would be money well spent. if we got promoted, you open the door to other types of players. This is also the window, there are not many players available.

It's about focus, I think the management team should be focused on solving the goalscoring problem not solving a problem we don't have. If they can get a goalscorer in then I don't care who else they sign but that should be the priority.

And what if we don't get promoted? You have a player who we don't really need at the end of his career taking up large wages and space in the squad. We should be buying with the future in mind.

Lower league players, well lets look at the recent past, McLeod, Sharp, Trundle, Keogh, Eastwood. So why will Brooks be the exception? Why would Garner be able to make the jump up? It is a huge risk. Reading took it with Lita, and it seemed to work. Reading GJ comments last week, it seems to me, he needs to know what he is buying can perform at the level we are at, we only have 19 games to go, and we cannot be messing around with 'maybes'. In the summer yes, but not right now. Well that is how I see it, no idea what the boss is thinking, but I personally can see the 'why' of signing Adebola at this moment in time, and I have faith in GJ, if he does go through with it, that there is solid logic behind his move. Personally, I think a player like Adebola, will prove to be an excellent signing for BCFC right now, and could prove to be another GJ masterstroke when we get into the run in, when the nerves start, and games get tight.

Garner would be able to make the jump up because he is good enough. Signing players is more about judging their ability and character than it is about ticking boxes like what level they've played at. Garner will play successfully at a higher level, Adebola is on his way down. Reading didn't gamble on Lita, they made a judgement and got it right. It wasn't pot luck.

Of the other players you mentioned, the only ones I expected to succeed at this level were Sharp, Keogh and Eastwood. The latter two have and the former hasn't been given a start by his incompetent manager. Wolves fans will tell you Keogh is one of their best players and they are mystified as to why Eastwood (who scored a decent amount for a relegation side last season) is not getting a game.

We cannot make signings just on the basis that we might go up this season. If you do that and it fails as your older players retire you have to spend money just to maintain a squad. Adebola would want a longer contract and big wages, and would command a decent fee. Even if we wanted a target man which myself I think is well down the list, we would be better off signing a younger one.

Frankly I find it hard to credit that anyone believes Adebola could be the difference that gets us promoted or that anyone is advocating signing a fifth striker who won't score with any regularity.