We know that the two new signings bought us up to the limit financially. It seems likely but not yet confirmed that Levitt has gone back.
I suspect that we need to move a few more people on first, and that any further transfers in depend on other clubs doing some business first.
Wheels are no doubt turning and phone calls being made but I don't expect to see much business done until towards the end of the month now.
Agree, we put Oztumer in the shop window at one point, and Lapslie as well of course so that will be some outgoings too. Plus if Doughty goes that could be key to our plans later in the window.
Think bogle will get a night off from the scapegoat job tonight step forward Deji.we new at start of season our strikers aren’t the best but it’s all we could get can’t see how slagging and berating them helps.god help Ronnie if he doesn’t score in first 3 games
Think bogle will get a night off from the scapegoat job tonight step forward Deji.we new at start of season our strikers aren’t the best but it’s all we could get can’t see how slagging and berating them helps.god help Ronnie if he doesn’t score in first 3 games
I first read that as Deji was playing as a forward... oh well you never know with Bowyer selections/formations lately.
If the cap is so hard to work under, why did we spend so much on the wages of Watson and Gunter? There are better players out there who will be on far less
We desperately need a CB. I rate him very highly, but Famewo isn't much use to us on the treatment table. Would it not make sense to send him back to free up some of the wage bill? (Assuming we're footing some of his)
Need a CB and a box to box midfielder more than we need another winger, Sorba is either completely off the list because of Millars arrival or someone we'll consider very late in the window.
Sorba starts against Millwall today... Game is on BT Sport for anyone who wants to see how he does
It's impressive, the commentators have already managed to mention our failed bid for him twice in the first two minutes, don't think they have much else prepared
Levitt gone back, Doughty being sold this coming week, Lapslie and Oztumer both free to find other clubs this window. But I think we actually might need one more senior player (not U21) to leave the club in order for us to bring in the two or three we want.
A central midfielder is definitely a target, we are now short with the injuries and suspensions and even then, the midfield doesn’t look as strong as we would like. A new midfielder is needed.
As much as Bowyer has said not really to a centre back, I am 100% sure they are looking at bringing one in. I think Bowyer knows neither Oshilaja or Pearce are good enough to start for us to get promoted. Start one and play Inniss or Famewo and we got a chance, but we can’t take that risk. We are so soft and sloppy in defence. They’re looking.
Another striker or attacking player who can play across the front 3 or in the 10 role is also what we need. If we lose Aneke for any period of time, we’re in trouble. Now we have Schwartz, Bogle seems to be pushed down to 5th in the pecking order. We need something better again up the attacking side of the pitch. Whether that’s another striker or not. Maybe someone like Sorba Thomas. Maybe someone who can properly play out on the right.
Once Doughty is sold, I’m expecting another 3 to leave which includes Lapslie and maybe Oztumer, and another 3 to come in.
Levitt gone back, Doughty being sold this coming week, Lapslie and Oztumer both free to find other clubs this window. But I think we actually might need one more senior player (not U21) to leave the club in order for us to bring in the two or three we want.
A central midfielder is definitely a target, we are now short with the injuries and suspensions and even then, the midfield doesn’t look as strong as we would like. A new midfielder is needed.
As much as Bowyer has said not really to a centre back, I am 100% sure they are looking at bringing one in. I think Bowyer knows neither Oshilaja or Pearce are good enough to start for us to get promoted. Start one and play Inniss or Famewo and we got a chance, but we can’t take that risk. We are so soft and sloppy in defence. They’re looking.
Another striker or attacking player who can play across the front 3 or in the 10 role is also what we need. If we lose Aneke for any period of time, we’re in trouble. Now we have Schwartz, Bogle seems to be pushed down to 5th in the pecking order. We need something better again up the attacking side of the pitch. Whether that’s another striker or not. Maybe someone like Sorba Thomas. Maybe someone who can properly play out on the right.
Once Doughty is sold, I’m expecting another 3 to leave which includes Lapslie and maybe Oztumer, and another 3 to come in.
Got to wonder what happens if we can’t offload them ?
If we pay up their contracts that’s counted towards the cap.
Sorba starts against Millwall today... Game is on BT Sport for anyone who wants to see how he does
It's impressive, the commentators have already managed to mention our failed bid for him twice in the first two minutes, don't think they have much else prepared
Not in the game to much, there are some lumps in the Borehamwood side. Anyone taking the ball around their keeper will have to pay to get back in. The commentators given up apologising for the swearing, I can see it all going off soon getting lively 🥊🥊🥊😂😂
Excellent post Sage. That’s how I see it as well. I do wonder who the additional player to leave the club will be. Purrington is probably one of the most obvious names, if Bowyer trust Matthews as a cover at left back.
The success of the window comes down who we can allow to leave the club before we even think of bringing someone else in.
Levitt gone back, Doughty being sold this coming week, Lapslie and Oztumer both free to find other clubs this window. But I think we actually might need one more senior player (not U21) to leave the club in order for us to bring in the two or three we want.
A central midfielder is definitely a target, we are now short with the injuries and suspensions and even then, the midfield doesn’t look as strong as we would like. A new midfielder is needed.
As much as Bowyer has said not really to a centre back, I am 100% sure they are looking at bringing one in. I think Bowyer knows neither Oshilaja or Pearce are good enough to start for us to get promoted. Start one and play Inniss or Famewo and we got a chance, but we can’t take that risk. We are so soft and sloppy in defence. They’re looking.
Another striker or attacking player who can play across the front 3 or in the 10 role is also what we need. If we lose Aneke for any period of time, we’re in trouble. Now we have Schwartz, Bogle seems to be pushed down to 5th in the pecking order. We need something better again up the attacking side of the pitch. Whether that’s another striker or not. Maybe someone like Sorba Thomas. Maybe someone who can properly play out on the right.
Once Doughty is sold, I’m expecting another 3 to leave which includes Lapslie and maybe Oztumer, and another 3 to come in.
Really hope this happens, we need it to.
You might say the next three weeks will be crucial.
I usually try to avoid “I told you so posts” but screw it I’ve got little else try and pick my spirits up with at the moment. A few of us said back in October that we lacked quality and depth in midfield but were repeatedly told we had too many midfielders many of whom were too good for League 1. Reckon I and a few others can claim to have been proven right on that one. Midfield was a shambolic disgrace last night.
Ladies and gentlemen I feel your pain. You are all of course entitled to your footballing opinions. I am not going into all of that though I confess to being somewhat amused at some of the double standards. Apparently you are all entitled to vent your spleen at all and sundry while Bowyer cannot express his professional views of the same performances.
You are also entitled to your expectations. Whether they actually align with the stated targets set by the new owner is a matter for you. Your expectations - your pain. Whether your expectations are in anyway realistic is also a matter for your thought processes.
What we are seeing today is for me far from unexpected. It sort of reflects the narrative I have felt obliged to follow for far too many years.
While I do concede Covid has exacerbated the challenges the business has been failing for 6yrs.
- It has operated on skeleton operations and survival budgets for 3yrs.
- It has operated with zero executive participation for that same period.
Clubs at a County League Level had a greater executive participation than evidenced in SE7. It matters. It is not normal. The executive represent what the club is about. There has been no one there. You denude the fabric of organisational infrastructure at you peril.
In Pre Covid times such absence was overcome when Bowyer sparked a dwindling crowd to raise a new momentum and a special relationship between the players and the crowd. Now for nearly a year there has been no crowd. Nothing to relate to. Just a job to do.
- 3yrs of inadequate budgets has seen the guts of the clubhouse ripped out for 3 seasons in a row. It has consequences.
- 9 months of utter chaos operating on the verge of oblivion has consequences.
- Trying to rebuild under a trading embargo only lifted 2 weeks before the transfer window closed has consequences.
- Trying to rebuild under a Covid 19 cloud has consequences
- Trying to rebuild after a hastily restructured 2019 campaign, truncated close season and no pre season has consequences.
- Operating within a rapidly imposed Salary Cap has consequences.
63 debuts since August 2018 (23 months of active football) speaks to such consequences.
If you believe Messrs Gallen & Bowyer have YET been empowered to deliver to the club I respectfully disagree.
In a business which has resembled a footballing version of the Marie Celeste they have represented the only functioning stability needed to keep the club trading. In a stumbling business bereft of any other stability if you wish to remove such personal you are sending entirely the wrong message to the entire industry. It merely perpetuates the insanity of recent years. No brave new world there - new CAFC as flaky as ever.
Are Messrs Gallen and Bowyer above reproach? Of course not but I am not going to ignore their service of the past 2 1/2 yrs on the basis of the past 6/7 weeks.
If you think you can literally throw together a new squad involving 10 signings in a matter of 2 weeks without challenges then I suggest your expectation is beyond any realistic interpretation.
Something like 15 players are playing for contract (with us or elsewhere) for next year but you simply cannot keep rotating 15 players into/ out of the club every year
I believe we have just 5 senior players on which to build next year. Gunter, Inniss, Gilbey, Schwartz, Washington with hopefully Barker, Davison, Morgan and Vennings able to progress
You would like to think the performances of Amos, Shinnie, Watson, Williams would warrant an extension of their time with us.
If we are able to add 1 or 2 more senior contracts now it would be extremely helpful. When I say senior contracts I mean for experienced players over the age of 21 on 2 - 3yr contracts.
We have to move away from these stop gap solutions. Under the new ownership if we cannot offer a new player a 2-3yr contract then why are we signing them at all? Can it be done within this salary cap I simply do not know.
I understand and applaud Mr Sandgaards' management style but he still has some work to do. He needs to rebuild the club infrastructure with a few industry wise non executive directors to represent the club alongside the operational executive of Roddy and Mumford. Maybe Mr Peacock, Mr Curbishley, Mr Varney, the right Mr Elliott, maybe an interim fan representative, a CACT member to represent the club to the players, the supporters and the industry. It is not a one man job. Every management team needs an informed sounding board.
We also need voices in ears against the restraint of trade under the Salary Cap We have to lobby for 5 changes to the Cap.
The extension of the; a) U21 exemption to U23 in line with industry development squad disciplines b) Senior squad size to 25 in line with PL industry standards c) Overall cap limit by £500k d) Permissible financial excess by £500k subject to comparable financial penalties
and e) the addition of an injured reserve
As it stands you can make your own determination as to whether is a good or bad thing when come seasons end under the cap many hundreds of players out of contract will be out of work. On an employment level there is simply no capacity for late developers like Lapslie, or the injury profiles of Aneke, Pearce, Forster-Caskey, Williams.
It facilitates endless stop gap solutions, restricts the strategic development of a business and degrades the quality of the League 1 product to the level of non league football. It is no accident the likes of Crewe, Lincoln and Accrington all worthy clubs very well used to operating within such a business environment are progressing well. I applaud their progress but this is their territory their business model and such commercial restraint will increase the divide with the upper echelons of the game.
Ladies and Gentlemen I recognise the fervent desire to secure promotion this year but it is not and never has been a god given right. Do Hull, Portsmouth, Ipswich, Sunderland have that same right? There is much work to be done on and off the field of play.
In the interim it is entirely a matter for you if you wish to panic and lash out wildly throwing abuse in every direction but please recognise much of the unrelenting self serving negativity renders this board all too often as unreadable and that serves nobody.
Great post Grapevine... I'd also add another condition that needs changing as part of the Salary Cap
Doesnt matter your age... If you've come from that clubs Academy then you're exempt from the Cap regardless of age - Whether they add a rule stating that player had to play U18 minimum to stop clubs from taking the piss slightly then so be it
But its farking ridiculous we're losing Doughty because we have to be concsious of what we offer the lad
We've bloody well produced him, he's our player effectively, as shown by the stats that endlessly get produced, we're one of the biggest producers of Academy to First Team in the whole of the 92
Yet still at the end of the day, we cant keep our kid because he's got to a stage in his progression where his wage demands alone have grown beyond the club... Am sorry thats crazy, especially when you consider Dillon Phillips who has admitted he may well have stayed this season himself had it not been for the Salary Cap!! - If a Academy player feels their progression has out grown the level of the club in question and want to play at a higher level then fair enough, but we're at another stage where being in League One is forcing us to lose a player for peanuts when we dont even want to
Comments
Sorry let's get back to Oshilaja, Barker and Bogle 😂😂
We desperately need a CB. I rate him very highly, but Famewo isn't much use to us on the treatment table. Would it not make sense to send him back to free up some of the wage bill? (Assuming we're footing some of his)
A central midfielder is definitely a target, we are now short with the injuries and suspensions and even then, the midfield doesn’t look as strong as we would like. A new midfielder is needed.
As much as Bowyer has said not really to a centre back, I am 100% sure they are looking at bringing one in. I think Bowyer knows neither Oshilaja or Pearce are good enough to start for us to get promoted. Start one and play Inniss or Famewo and we got a chance, but we can’t take that risk. We are so soft and sloppy in defence. They’re looking.
Another striker or attacking player who can play across the front 3 or in the 10 role is also what we need. If we lose Aneke for any period of time, we’re in trouble. Now we have Schwartz, Bogle seems to be pushed down to 5th in the pecking order. We need something better again up the attacking side of the pitch. Whether that’s another striker or not. Maybe someone like Sorba Thomas. Maybe someone who can properly play out on the right.
Once Doughty is sold, I’m expecting another 3 to leave which includes Lapslie and maybe Oztumer, and another 3 to come in.
You might say the next three weeks will be crucial.
Llera scored a last minute winner for Wednesday and Sarr was MOTM for Huddersfield a few weeks ago.
You are also entitled to your expectations. Whether they actually align with the stated targets set by the new owner is a matter for you. Your expectations - your pain. Whether your expectations are in anyway realistic is also a matter for your thought processes.
What we are seeing today is for me far from unexpected. It sort of reflects the narrative I have felt obliged to follow for far too many years.
While I do concede Covid has exacerbated the challenges the business has been failing for 6yrs.
- It has operated on skeleton operations and survival budgets for 3yrs.
- It has operated with zero executive participation for that same period.
Clubs at a County League Level had a greater executive participation than evidenced in SE7. It matters. It is not normal. The executive represent what the club is about. There has been no one there. You denude the fabric of organisational infrastructure at you peril.
In Pre Covid times such absence was overcome when Bowyer sparked a dwindling crowd to raise a new momentum and a special relationship between the players and the crowd. Now for nearly a year there has been no crowd. Nothing to relate to. Just a job to do.
- 3yrs of inadequate budgets has seen the guts of the clubhouse ripped out for 3 seasons in a row. It has consequences.
- 9 months of utter chaos operating on the verge of oblivion has consequences.
- Trying to rebuild under a trading embargo only lifted 2 weeks before the transfer window closed has consequences.
- Trying to rebuild under a Covid 19 cloud has consequences
- Trying to rebuild after a hastily restructured 2019 campaign, truncated close season and no pre season has consequences.
- Operating within a rapidly imposed Salary Cap has consequences.
63 debuts since August 2018 (23 months of active football) speaks to such consequences.
If you believe Messrs Gallen & Bowyer have YET been empowered to deliver to the club I respectfully disagree.
In a business which has resembled a footballing version of the Marie Celeste they have represented the only functioning stability needed to keep the club trading. In a stumbling business bereft of any other stability if you wish to remove such personal you are sending entirely the wrong message to the entire industry. It merely perpetuates the insanity of recent years. No brave new world there - new CAFC as flaky as ever.
Are Messrs Gallen and Bowyer above reproach? Of course not but I am not going to ignore their service of the past 2 1/2 yrs on the basis of the past 6/7 weeks.
If you think you can literally throw together a new squad involving 10 signings in a matter of 2 weeks without challenges then I suggest your expectation is beyond any realistic interpretation.
Something like 15 players are playing for contract (with us or elsewhere) for next year but you simply cannot keep rotating 15 players into/ out of the club every year
I believe we have just 5 senior players on which to build next year. Gunter, Inniss, Gilbey, Schwartz, Washington with hopefully Barker, Davison, Morgan and Vennings able to progress
You would like to think the performances of Amos, Shinnie, Watson, Williams would warrant an extension of their time with us.
If we are able to add 1 or 2 more senior contracts now it would be extremely helpful. When I say senior contracts I mean for experienced players over the age of 21 on 2 - 3yr contracts.
We have to move away from these stop gap solutions. Under the new ownership if we cannot offer a new player a 2-3yr contract then why are we signing them at all? Can it be done within this salary cap I simply do not know.
I understand and applaud Mr Sandgaards' management style but he still has some work to do. He needs to rebuild the club infrastructure with a few industry wise non executive directors to represent the club alongside the operational executive of Roddy and Mumford. Maybe Mr Peacock, Mr Curbishley, Mr Varney, the right Mr Elliott, maybe an interim fan representative, a CACT member to represent the club to the players, the supporters and the industry. It is not a one man job. Every management team needs an informed sounding board.
We also need voices in ears against the restraint of trade under the Salary Cap We have to lobby for 5 changes to the Cap.
The extension of the;
a) U21 exemption to U23 in line with industry development squad disciplines
b) Senior squad size to 25 in line with PL industry standards
c) Overall cap limit by £500k
d) Permissible financial excess by £500k subject to comparable financial penalties
and e) the addition of an injured reserve
As it stands you can make your own determination as to whether is a good or bad thing when come seasons end under the cap many hundreds of players out of contract will be out of work. On an employment level there is simply no capacity for late developers like Lapslie, or the injury profiles of Aneke, Pearce, Forster-Caskey, Williams.
It facilitates endless stop gap solutions, restricts the strategic development of a business and degrades the quality of the League 1 product to the level of non league football. It is no accident the likes of Crewe, Lincoln and Accrington all worthy clubs very well used to operating within such a business environment are progressing well. I applaud their progress but this is their territory their business model and such commercial restraint will increase the divide with the upper echelons of the game.
Ladies and Gentlemen I recognise the fervent desire to secure promotion this year but it is not and never has been a god given right. Do Hull, Portsmouth, Ipswich, Sunderland have that same right? There is much work to be done on and off the field of play.
In the interim it is entirely a matter for you if you wish to panic and lash out wildly throwing abuse in every direction but please recognise much of the unrelenting self serving negativity renders this board all too often as unreadable and that serves nobody.
Doesnt matter your age... If you've come from that clubs Academy then you're exempt from the Cap regardless of age - Whether they add a rule stating that player had to play U18 minimum to stop clubs from taking the piss slightly then so be it
But its farking ridiculous we're losing Doughty because we have to be concsious of what we offer the lad
We've bloody well produced him, he's our player effectively, as shown by the stats that endlessly get produced, we're one of the biggest producers of Academy to First Team in the whole of the 92
Yet still at the end of the day, we cant keep our kid because he's got to a stage in his progression where his wage demands alone have grown beyond the club... Am sorry thats crazy, especially when you consider Dillon Phillips who has admitted he may well have stayed this season himself had it not been for the Salary Cap!! - If a Academy player feels their progression has out grown the level of the club in question and want to play at a higher level then fair enough, but we're at another stage where being in League One is forcing us to lose a player for peanuts when we dont even want to