- A goalkeeper, at least one, who I am assuming one of which will be Sullivan. If Elliot is still around I am assuming he will miss his customary 1/3 of the season leaving just Sullivan. So given that I have seen nothing of Gough that may necessitate seriously considering bringing someone else in as well or we will be left in the same boat as this season.
- A left back, at least one, though this is obviously critically linked to what happens with Youga and Bessone
- Centre halves, two (assuming that Llera and Fortune are done and Dailly and Doherty stay), one needs to be QUICK, the other a beast and a captaincy candidate
- Central midfield - a total minefield which could go from our strongest position 2 years ago to having nobody left... completely dependent on departures but we must sign somebody who can move with the ball and without it with vision - Bailey had a lot of drawbacks but one thing he did do was push the ball around and get himself involved in the final third (could do with Parrett back again here)
- Right winger - need to be inventive here, Wagstaff plays better when he has competition, this season Eccleston should have spurred him on but he was grossly underused
- Left winger - assuming Reid is off as he has intimated and as to an extent Powell has too
- Strikers, assuming Anyinsah probably won't stay, two, one speedster and one big lump who causes problems and links up in the Grant Holt mould but likely not of that calibre obviously
Depending on what happens with the likes of - Dailly, Youga, Llera, Bessone, Reid, Stewart, Racon, Semedo and Anyinsah, this needs to be padded out accordingly
ISLS says it for me. Priority though, looking at the squad has to be improving the defensive spine of the team. So for me, a better keeper than Robbie - if that is Sullivan then so be it. Pace and power in central defence. Box to box midfielder. We need at least one more striker, assuming Benson stays and Anyinsah goes. A couple of high energy full backs wouldn't go amiss either.
Now I know I'm gonna get laughed at but I reckon Jose could be our playmaker/creative midfielder next season
Did you see some of the balls he sprayed about Saturday? And keep Parrett alongside him again for next year and bring in a defensive midfielder in a 4 3 3 formation
Another big shout from me would be Dean Howell from Crawley as left back, has been excellent all season, gets forward well and can cross a ball, very quick but is on the other side of 30 unfortunately, he had an excellent game against Man Utd in the FA Cup this year
Creepy, I think you are right. CP has asked him to play more of that role. Without going into one again, the problems with the team that Parky built was the lack of pace in central defence. This had a huge influence on not just how we were set up, but also how teams played against us. It meant that the likes of Semedo were stuck in front of the back four struggling to get out. It meant that our full backs were reluctant to get too far forward.
Teams who have done their homework would push up on our wingers/full backs and also push our central midfield deep. We would then defend too deeply. That created space in front of our defence and in midfield which they exploited. On the other hand defending so deeply mean't our forwards were often too isolated.
CP tried to get the centre backs to move out of defence, allowing Semedo to get forward. This worked to some extent but the lack of pace meant that we were vulnerable to the counter attack and to teams who played a pressing game.
Next season I expect us to be much less vulnerable than we have been, especially if we bring in some pace and power in defence. The likes of Semedo, and Racon if they stay can only benefit from this.
We also desparately need a couple of players who can deliver a decent free kick and corner.
Important thing is to build from the back - replace the back 4 and strengthen midfield and attack bringing in players across the park who are mobile - can and will run into and create space and are comfortable on the ball - not too much to ask surely.
Looking across the successful teams at the moment, I would like to see us looking at the Spanish peninsula and South America for creative and attacking players, and Eastern Europe for defensive players. Also maybe look at Africa for emerging talent. The world is a much smaller place these days, and although we are currently in League 3, for many foreign players one look at our stadium and one sight of our plans for growth should be enough to do it. With people like Jiminez and Vetere around we should be able to sniff out some players that were not yet good for the Man Uniteds of this world.
I dont care who they are or where they have come from, as long as they are better than what we have had this season.
No gambles on League 2 players who may or may not be good enough to step up; no loan players who may or may not put it in every week; no veterans on their way down who haven't got the legs anymore; no foreign players who are not suited to League One football. A squad of honest and hard-working players who will compete and deal with teams who beat us this season by simply closing down our midfield and capitalising on our lack of pace at the back. The signing of BWP gives me hope that we will put together a squad of similar ability to him.
Some players at the height of their game - probably aged c 25 to 30, with a good few years' experience but plenty more to give. The current squad has too many who are "getting on a bit" or "young and still learning". We need more at their peak along the lines of Jackson, Semedo and BWP.
Wouldn't mind Sean Morrison on loan from Reading. I know loans aren't that popular a choice but he's a talented, committed centre back who had us in his back pocket when he played for Swindon. Even got forward and scored against us in Parky's last match. Reading picked him up in January but then they loaned him out to Huddersfield in the same season so they seem open to a loan. Would shore up our defence and offer a little more pace at the back
What I really want to see is improved coaching and motivation so that players brought into the first team go forward ratehr than backwards as has been the case in the past few years.
not that weve had much luck with ex shrimpers players this season at least but Anthony Grant has been getting some great write ups, central mid and is a local lad to maybe worth a look.
What I would like a mixture of talented players and influential players, all willing to give everything to get us promoted.
I would also like a manager who knows what he wants from the side, is willing to admit when he got things wrong, not afraid to drop players and make bold decisions. Whether Powell will step up and be that man remains to be seen, but I certainly hope he does
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Gus Poyet
Mark Reid
Steve Thompson
John Pender
George Shipley
John Pearson
Important thing is to build from the back - replace the back 4 and strengthen midfield and attack bringing in players across the park who are mobile - can and will run into and create space and are comfortable on the ball - not too much to ask surely.
I dont care who they are or where they have come from, as long as they are better than what we have had this season.
No gambles on League 2 players who may or may not be good enough to step up; no loan players who may or may not put it in every week; no veterans on their way down who haven't got the legs anymore; no foreign players who are not suited to League One football. A squad of honest and hard-working players who will compete and deal with teams who beat us this season by simply closing down our midfield and capitalising on our lack of pace at the back. The signing of BWP gives me hope that we will put together a squad of similar ability to him.
I would like to see more fans brought to away games.
Apparantly Marlon Mussleborough and Devon Pears have been released. Might be worth a look?