Transfer Rumours

[simon]

Aug 30, 2024 23:00:48 GMT zx10racer22 said:

So, Champions League club Liverpool have spent £10m, possibly rising to £12.5m, to sign Federico Chiesa from Juventus.

Birmingham have spent £15m, possibly rising to £20m, to sign Jay Stansfield from Fulham.

Bonkers.

And Chiesa has effectively been paid for by Spurs thanks to the sell on for Solanke, who once scored a goal for Liverpool

[simon]

Just reading that based on revenue streams Birmingham paying £10m plus for Stansfield is the equivalent of Man Utd signing a player for £300m.
That’s what we are up against.

[djs230480]

Agree with others most, if not all, of who we can sign is determined to us by where we can afford to shop.

Mainly going to be higher level players coming down, got an injury history, or hasn’t worked out for whatever reason.

Liked Scully, remember he tore us a new one a few years back for Lincoln but he has hardly played since.

The area that slightly disappoints me, which we don’t seem to enter, is the other market open to us, the lower leagues.

I’m sure this isn’t an easy area and may well have been looked at but from an outside perspective it seems that way

[malotru]

Tom Brady probably found that 10m down the back of his sofa.

[malotru]

Aug 31, 2024 8:55:01 GMT djs230480 said:

Agree with others most, if not all, of who we can sign is determined to us by where we can afford to shop.

Mainly going to be higher level players coming down, got an injury history, or hasn’t worked out for whatever reason.

Liked Scully, remember he tore us a new one a few years back for Lincoln but he has hardly played since.

The area that slightly disappoints me, which we don’t seem to enter, is the other market open to us, the lower leagues.

I’m sure this isn’t an easy area and may well have been looked at but from an outside perspective it seems that way

I suppose you could class Liam Bennet as a signing from the lower leagues but I think he’s seen more as one of our own.

I would love it if we constantly scoured the non league scene and signed rough diamonds that we developed into EFL quality and sold them on but I think with every EFL club having similar access to vast player data and stats, finding a non league talent that no one else knows about is impossible.
If we did identify a talent, say 5 levels below us, it’s unlikely it would be just us interested (even Prem clubs look out for non league talent like Wolves signing Kilman from Maidenhead and Fulham signing the lad who went to Man U and Roma).
So a fee would be involved and then it’s a gamble whether the player has what it takes to play at L1. How long do you give them to adapt? Throwing them in too early could be a disaster.
Do you back them with a 2 or 3 year contract?
So many unknowns and I guess Strang and co have a recruitment model of signing established EFL players where the risk is as minimal as possible.

[irishfan]

Lincoln have a model and that is signing League of Ireland players

Attacking midfielder Danny Mandroiu was signed from Shamrock Rovers, played in Lincoln for 2 years and returned back to Dublin after rejecting a contract but it does show Lincoln wanted him to stay

Winger Dylan Duffy was signed as a 20 year old and scored in their 6-0 win. Hmmmm might be a bad egg though as he has been charged with gambling offences.

Best recruit of all Jack Moylan was top scorer in LOI and turned down a chance to stay around and play European football this season to join Lincoln. Scored two against the U’s and is quality. Now what wages he is on I do not know

Gearóid Morrissey & Rory Gaffney were almost 10 years ago and ok, not legendary signings.

I see many posts here that non-league is ignored and Peterborough are more successful at trawling through the divisions. I’d chip in Lincoln do this market better also.

[Andrewlang]

I'd like us to be in the non-league diamond market but I'm content enough not to be while we have a flourishing youth team - last season Jobe, McConnell, Hoddle, Njoku and Barton where all at various levels and all could have a big part to play this season. I think five players you're looking to develop at first team level (plus Kaunda who'll probably feature on a pizza night) is probably as many as a club on our budget can carry and I feel like when it's a player you've had from anywhere between the ages of 9-15 where you know their personality, you know their strengths and weaknesses, you know their family, you know their injury history, and you have a strong sense of their potential and have been able to monitor them closely and get reports back from the coaches at the their loan club(s) it helps minimise the risk you might have when signing someone from a lower level.

Jobe is another one we think of as one of our own but I think he joined as a 17 year old from Royston so I think we are looking locally, albeit long term rather than immediate impact.

The only 'complaints' I have with our transfer policy this season is how many loans we've got. I think we've used the loan market well in fairness, and I think I think it's probably a needs must situation to get in the sort quality we might struggle to sign permanently, but even so I'd prefer fewer players. We've gone from under using the loan market to going in a bit too heavy for me.

Andrew

[Brophypants]

Tbh I'm fine with the amount of loan signings we've got. It would only really be a problem if they were all expecting to start every game and start stinking the place out when they don't.

It does mean we're likely to have another big rebuild in a year, but some of them might like to return, and who knows how our youngsters are going to progress?

[smartspud]

I suppose the point of having a youth team development plan is to develop our own stars. Again this has its own probs, but is prob the only way to beat the cycle.

[zx10racer22]

Aug 31, 2024 10:21:32 GMT Andrewlang said:

I'd like us to be in the non-league diamond market but I'm content enough not to be while we have a flourishing youth team - last season Jobe, McConnell, Hoddle, Njoku and Barton where all at various levels and all could have a big part to play this season. I think five players you're looking to develop at first team level (plus Kaunda who'll probably feature on a pizza night) is probably as many as a club on our budget can carry and I feel like when it's a player you've had from anywhere between the ages of 9-15 where you know their personality, you know their strengths and weaknesses, you know their family, you know their injury history, and you have a strong sense of their potential and have been able to monitor them closely and get reports back from the coaches at the their loan club(s) it helps minimise the risk you might have when signing someone from a lower level.

Jobe is another one we think of as one of our own but I think he joined as a 17 year old from Royston so I think we are looking locally, albeit long term rather than immediate impact.

The only 'complaints' I have with our transfer policy this season is how many loans we've got. I think we've used the loan market well in fairness, and I think I think it's probably a needs must situation to get in the sort quality we might struggle to sign permanently, but even so I'd prefer fewer players. We've gone from under using the loan market to going in a bit too heavy for me.

Andrew

Thing with loans is that we’re mostly signing older players on 1 year deals anyway (apart from Loft!), so it doesn’t really make a huge difference if it’s a one year permanent free transfer or a one year loan.

This model of signing 32 year olds on the way down, instead of 19 year olds tearing up non league or falling out of Premier League academies, is I think a reflection just of where we’re at on the playing side versus where we are at off the pitch. We got a gift going up from L2 much earlier than expected and have lasted four seasons, got the ground ownership, built the training ground, but we need the Abbey to be a 12k stadium before we can compete in League One. I imagine at the moment we’re just signing anyone we can afford, or available on loan, who is decent enough to keep us in this league and break even until the ground is redone.

After that, I would love to see us shift recruitment model to something more akin to those f**kers up the A14.

[El Goodo]

Aug 31, 2024 12:38:59 GMT zx10racer22 said:

Thing with loans is that we’re mostly signing older players on 1 year deals anyway (apart from Loft!), so it doesn’t really make a huge difference if it’s a one year permanent free transfer or a one year loan.

Smith & Gardner are both on 2-year contracts.

[foolhandy]

Anyone got de Gea's number?

[Andrewlang]

Usually it's 1 for a goalkeeper mate. Try that.

Happy to help.

Andrew

[malotru]

Sept 4, 2024 14:57:53 GMT foolhandy said:

Anyone got de Gea's number?

Fiorentina have it currently

[foolhandy]

Sept 4, 2024 15:01:34 GMT Andrewlang said:

Usually it's 1 for a goalkeeper mate. Try that.

Happy to help.

Andrew

It's 43 actually, smart arse!