I’ll welcome him with open arms if he’s the difference between keeping a few clean sheets and not between now and the summer.
I said earlier in this thread that I don’t really care too much in the short term about who we get in to better the defence because it’s such a long running issue for us.
Build for the future yes. That’s how you plan for success long term. But we can’t do that at the expense of improving the team in its most deficit areas in the short term.
If we aren't interested in Bauer because of 'age' and then go ahead and sign Caulker. That will tell you everything you need to know about this mob.
I disagree.
ness is struggling and Thomas isn't good enough as third choice.
sometimes you need a 6 month fix to see you through the season and then get a young target that fits the mould in the summer. Caulker is more than capable of being that third choice cover short term and is better and has played a lot higher than ness/thomas has and will. I think Mitchell will be used more next year, therefore, a short term replacement will work.
if caulker was given a 2.5 year deal then I would agree with you.
Caulker WAS a very good player but has been jumping between clubs for a few years now and sadly has had health and addiction problems.
If he's just training with us to get fit I don't see the harm and he's certainly an experienced pro but a risk if we want him as the main stay of a leaky defence.
I'd keep both CBT and Dobson even if they don't sign new deals. If the owners are serious about mounting a promotion push then better to build around them rather than take small fees now.
However, I fear the management team would rather balance the budget.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
We're 9 points off the play-offs... We need better players who will improve the team immediately, not cover. Our current first choices can be the cover!
If we aren't interested in Bauer because of 'age' and then go ahead and sign Caulker. That will tell you everything you need to know about this mob.
Does it? Doesn't it more tell you absolutely nothing? There's a rumour Caulker is training with us, nothing to say we're signing him yet, but if we are then there's a world of difference between getting in a player on trial, seeing what level he's up to and then offering him a contract based on him being a free player and getting in a player on loan who has no upside. There's very little usefulness to be got out of having Bauer on loan for 6 months and then sending him away again having built up his fitness a bit for Preston. Caulker hasn't played since May 2023 and he's still played more games than Bauer in the last two seasons. We saw with Hector last season that if you can get in a free agent who's been out of the game for a bit you can sometimes find yourself able to afford a player you otherwise wouldn't have had access to and then keep him on for the next season. I've no idea what Caulker's level is, he's had some fairly substantial mental health issues that have taken him down from a Premier League player and one time England international to a player out of the game but if he can get to anywhere like where he was then he's definitely a decent possibility for L1 football this season and next. Age as a significant factor varies based on the context. I've no issue with us picking up Caulker on low money and then keeping him on next season if he looks any good but us getting in Bauer temporarily while covering a large proportion of his reported £9,000 a week salary would be a chump move that limits our ability to get in more significant players within whatever the budget may be. We need to sign at least two centre backs this window. We've got Hector and Jones, with Jones currently injured. Thomas is an ok stand-in but Ness needs to go out on loan. I have absolutely no confidence in him having a run in the team and we've had to bring Deji back from a positive loan to cover because we apparently think that little of Abankwah. I'm hopeful we'll sign a proper first team CB but we'll also need another to cover for Jones being out and hopefully Ness and Deji getting loans. At his age Bauer is a bad loan, but Caulker isn't necessarily a bad free signing if he's up to it. I don't think it tells you anything much about the owners other than they don't fancy over-spending on Bauer and apparently (hopefully) are able to identify targets outside of the 'played for Charlton within my recent memory' shortlist that makes up the entirety of our fans' thinking.
Caulker as depth until the end of the season allowing Ness to go and play regularly out on loan and get his confidence back , would be perfectly happy with that.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
We're 9 points off the play-offs... We need better players who will improve the team immediately, not cover. Our current first choices can be the cover!
If we aren't interested in Bauer because of 'age' and then go ahead and sign Caulker. That will tell you everything you need to know about this mob.
Does it? Doesn't it more tell you absolutely nothing? There's a rumour Caulker is training with us, nothing to say we're signing him yet, but if we are then there's a world of difference between getting in a player on trial, seeing what level he's up to and then offering him a contract based on him being a free player and getting in a player on loan who has no upside. There's very little usefulness to be got out of having Bauer on loan for 6 months and then sending him away again having built up his fitness a bit for Preston. Caulker hasn't played since May 2023 and he's still played more games than Bauer in the last two seasons. We saw with Hector last season that if you can get in a free agent who's been out of the game for a bit you can sometimes find yourself able to afford a player you otherwise wouldn't have had access to and then keep him on for the next season. I've no idea what Caulker's level is, he's had some fairly substantial mental health issues that have taken him down from a Premier League player and one time England international to a player out of the game but if he can get to anywhere like where he was then he's definitely a decent possibility for L1 football this season and next. Age as a significant factor varies based on the context. I've no issue with us picking up Caulker on low money and then keeping him on next season if he looks any good but us getting in Bauer temporarily while covering a large proportion of his reported £9,000 a week salary would be a chump move that limits our ability to get in more significant players within whatever the budget may be. We need to sign at least two centre backs this window. We've got Hector and Jones, with Jones currently injured. Thomas is an ok stand-in but Ness needs to go out on loan. I have absolutely no confidence in him having a run in the team and we've had to bring Deji back from a positive loan to cover because we apparently think that little of Abankwah. I'm hopeful we'll sign a proper first team CB but we'll also need another to cover for Jones being out and hopefully Ness and Deji getting loans. At his age Bauer is a bad loan, but Caulker isn't necessarily a bad free signing if he's up to it. I don't think it tells you anything much about the owners other than they don't fancy over-spending on Bauer and apparently (hopefully) are able to identify targets outside of the 'played for Charlton within my recent memory' shortlist that makes up the entirety of our fans' thinking.
See as I've said to RonnieMoore.
If you believe he would be a good signing and not the exact type of problem we have had for a number of years, then I don't know what to say. Be careful when you receive private phone calls when someone is claiming you've been in an accident I suppose?
There is no such thing as a 'free' signing. He would still be a paid player, there would be other fees involved and then when it inevitably doesn't work, like all the other guff we have signed, it's another poor player in the CAFC history books.
There are plenty of young and upcoming centre backs in this league and the league below, there are also centre backs of his age who have been playing non-stop for numerous seasons and probably better bets.
If Caulker is the level of player we are looking at, I'm genuinely just going to start losing hope. This club is just groundhog day, doesn't matter who owns it. Guff signing after guff signing and there's always the same lines.
'Could do a job' 'could fill a gap' 'good cover' 'he was good 10 years ago before x amount of injuries'
Neither Caulker or Bauer are what we need. We need players that are ready to go and that sounds like what we are looking for
If it comes to the summer and they are available then that could be a different story as we can give them a full pre-season to get ready. But for January we need players that will sign and be available to play the next game
If we aren't interested in Bauer because of 'age' and then go ahead and sign Caulker. That will tell you everything you need to know about this mob.
I disagree.
ness is struggling and Thomas isn't good enough as third choice.
sometimes you need a 6 month fix to see you through the season and then get a young target that fits the mould in the summer. Caulker is more than capable of being that third choice cover short term and is better and has played a lot higher than ness/thomas has and will. I think Mitchell will be used more next year, therefore, a short term replacement will work.
if caulker was given a 2.5 year deal then I would agree with you.
Have you actually been watching the past few games mate? Thomas has come in to the team and replaced Jones adequately. We don't need someone like Caulker when we have Thomas. We already need to replace Hector, so we currently have 0 Charlton centre backs made for the future, but we want a bloke who we can't say for sure can replace our current centre back choices? We need THE man for THE job, not a bloke to cover a crack.
How are we still this content with mediocrity? It actually drives me nuts.
Why does no one seem to be angry or bothered that every year we sign the same type of players? There's literally 0 thought into how we recruit players.
Out of all our best 3 current players, one was recommended by our ex owners clueless son? One basically done the groundwork himself to get signed and I'm not going to give them credit for finding the best striker in the league.
I would genuinely love to see how our recruitment team operates, who they're watching, what their meetings are like. It must be abysmal
Neither Caulker or Bauer are what we need. We need players that are ready to go and that sounds like what we are looking for
If it comes to the summer and they are available then that could be a different story as we can give them a full pre-season to get ready. But for January we need players that will sign and be available to play the next game
Yep need to sign ready to go players, i'm not convinced Caulker comes into that category, if we do sign him that would basically the owners saying this season is over, and we have given up on it.
It's all over for Caulker, he's officially a poor player, our official vlogger & hence voice of authority has declared it so.
Some players at 31 have 7 years left. Some at 31 are Arter. You absolutely don't know until you see them given a run (okay, Joe Ledley needed 45 minutes). Centre-backs can usually go on a bit longer than forwards. Hector, apparently finished after a few early-season errors, is now playing well and looking dominant. Who's to say someone who had a longer top-level career than him, who left his last club because they weren't paying him, can't do likewise?
One thing I can guarantee, like absolutely fucking rock-solid guarantee, is that if Caulker gets fit enough to sign, he'll be a better player than that Piergianni lump you're obsessed with
From memory in the last window players arrived, Alfie excepted, without our knowledge as the Scott played it very close to his chests - will it be so in January ????
If we aren't interested in Bauer because of 'age' and then go ahead and sign Caulker. That will tell you everything you need to know about this mob.
I disagree.
ness is struggling and Thomas isn't good enough as third choice.
sometimes you need a 6 month fix to see you through the season and then get a young target that fits the mould in the summer. Caulker is more than capable of being that third choice cover short term and is better and has played a lot higher than ness/thomas has and will. I think Mitchell will be used more next year, therefore, a short term replacement will work.
if caulker was given a 2.5 year deal then I would agree with you.
Have you actually been watching the past few games mate? Thomas has come in to the team and replaced Jones adequately. We don't need someone like Caulker when we have Thomas. We already need to replace Hector, so we currently have 0 Charlton centre backs made for the future, but we want a bloke who we can't say for sure can replace our current centre back choices? We need THE man for THE job, not a bloke to cover a crack.
How are we still this content with mediocrity? It actually drives me nuts.
Why does no one seem to be angry or bothered that every year we sign the same type of players? There's literally 0 thought into how we recruit players.
Out of all our best 3 current players, one was recommended by our ex owners clueless son? One basically done the groundwork himself to get signed and I'm not going to give them credit for finding the best striker in the league.
I would genuinely love to see how our recruitment team operates, who they're watching, what their meetings are like. It must be abysmal
Yes, I have seen Thomas in the last two games and I've also seen him about 20 other times which has given me enough data to come to the conclusion that Thomas is a car crash waiting to happen which is why most of his games played in his career have been for Woking and Wimbledon.
im not content with mediocrity. I am a realist though.
who are we going to get in January that will be a long term fixture in the team?
we need to repair the leaking roof now and then replace the roof in the summer.
caulker would be a better repair than ness and thomas.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
We're 9 points off the play-offs... We need better players who will improve the team immediately, not cover. Our current first choices can be the cover!
And they grow on trees in January?
To reach the play-offs we now need a points average of 1.8 points per game. That means us basically becoming near enough the best team in the division for the rest of the season. That is not going to happen by signing squad players, but another mid-table finish will. I know there's no way you're content with that.
The club (via Cawley) and the manager have all been bigging up this window so I don't know why we'd set our expectations lower than them. I've had enough of this mediocrity and having nothing to play for in the final four months of the season.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
We're 9 points off the play-offs... We need better players who will improve the team immediately, not cover. Our current first choices can be the cover!
And they grow on trees in January?
To reach the play-offs we now need a points average of 1.8 points per game. That means us basically becoming near enough the best team in the division for the rest of the season. That is not going to happen by signing squad players, but another mid-table finish will. I know there's no way you're content with that.
The club (via Cawley) and the manager have all been bigging up this window so I don't know why we'd set our expectations lower than them. I've had enough of this mediocrity and having nothing to play for in the final four months of the season.
January is a difficult window. The good loans and frees were signed in the summer which leaves transfer fees. These are over inflated in January.
i expect bodies to be added but not an increase in quality. If this was a summer window I would have different expectation levels.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
We're 9 points off the play-offs... We need better players who will improve the team immediately, not cover. Our current first choices can be the cover!
And they grow on trees in January?
To reach the play-offs we now need a points average of 1.8 points per game. That means us basically becoming near enough the best team in the division for the rest of the season. That is not going to happen by signing squad players, but another mid-table finish will. I know there's no way you're content with that.
The club (via Cawley) and the manager have all been bigging up this window so I don't know why we'd set our expectations lower than them. I've had enough of this mediocrity and having nothing to play for in the final four months of the season.
January is a difficult window. The good loans and frees were signed in the summer which leaves transfer fees. These are over inflated in January.
i expect bodies to be added but not an increase in quality. If this was a summer window I would have different expectation levels.
It's one thing to 'expect' and it's another to be ok with it. Are you genuinely ok with signing squad players and having another mid-table finish, with our season over at the halfway point?
It's one thing to 'expect' and it's another to be ok with it. Are you genuinely ok with signing squad players and having another mid-table finish, with our season over at the halfway point?
I can't imagine anyone is ok with it but what are we going to do about it? We all know exactly how January is going to go.
Comments
I said earlier in this thread that I don’t really care too much in the short term about who we get in to better the defence because it’s such a long running issue for us.
Build for the future yes. That’s how you plan for success long term. But we can’t do that at the expense of improving the team in its most deficit areas in the short term.
ness is struggling and Thomas isn't good enough as third choice.
sometimes you need a 6 month fix to see you through the season and then get a young target that fits the mould in the summer. Caulker is more than capable of being that third choice cover short term and is better and has played a lot higher than ness/thomas has and will. I think Mitchell will be used more next year, therefore, a short term replacement will work.
if caulker was given a 2.5 year deal then I would agree with you.
If he's just training with us to get fit I don't see the harm and he's certainly an experienced pro but a risk if we want him as the main stay of a leaky defence.
I'd keep both CBT and Dobson even if they don't sign new deals. If the owners are serious about mounting a promotion push then better to build around them rather than take small fees now.
However, I fear the management team would rather balance the budget.
jones and hector are our first choice central defenders. Jones got injured as did our third choice centre back who has been shit this season.
we are playing out 4th choice centre back.
we have recalled our 5th or 6th choice centre back to sit on the bench
remind me, why is having a competitive squad bad?
I always think they tend to "know the division" so well because they've never been much good at getting themselves out of it.
We need to sign at least two centre backs this window. We've got Hector and Jones, with Jones currently injured. Thomas is an ok stand-in but Ness needs to go out on loan. I have absolutely no confidence in him having a run in the team and we've had to bring Deji back from a positive loan to cover because we apparently think that little of Abankwah. I'm hopeful we'll sign a proper first team CB but we'll also need another to cover for Jones being out and hopefully Ness and Deji getting loans. At his age Bauer is a bad loan, but Caulker isn't necessarily a bad free signing if he's up to it. I don't think it tells you anything much about the owners other than they don't fancy over-spending on Bauer and apparently (hopefully) are able to identify targets outside of the 'played for Charlton within my recent memory' shortlist that makes up the entirety of our fans' thinking.
If Caulker signs, it's very telling.
If you believe he would be a good signing and not the exact type of problem we have had for a number of years, then I don't know what to say. Be careful when you receive private phone calls when someone is claiming you've been in an accident I suppose?
There is no such thing as a 'free' signing. He would still be a paid player, there would be other fees involved and then when it inevitably doesn't work, like all the other guff we have signed, it's another poor player in the CAFC history books.
There are plenty of young and upcoming centre backs in this league and the league below, there are also centre backs of his age who have been playing non-stop for numerous seasons and probably better bets.
If Caulker is the level of player we are looking at, I'm genuinely just going to start losing hope. This club is just groundhog day, doesn't matter who owns it. Guff signing after guff signing and there's always the same lines.
'Could do a job' 'could fill a gap' 'good cover' 'he was good 10 years ago before x amount of injuries'
If it comes to the summer and they are available then that could be a different story as we can give them a full pre-season to get ready. But for January we need players that will sign and be available to play the next game
How are we still this content with mediocrity? It actually drives me nuts.
Why does no one seem to be angry or bothered that every year we sign the same type of players? There's literally 0 thought into how we recruit players.
Out of all our best 3 current players, one was recommended by our ex owners clueless son? One basically done the groundwork himself to get signed and I'm not going to give them credit for finding the best striker in the league.
I would genuinely love to see how our recruitment team operates, who they're watching, what their meetings are like. It must be abysmal
Some players at 31 have 7 years left. Some at 31 are Arter. You absolutely don't know until you see them given a run (okay, Joe Ledley needed 45 minutes). Centre-backs can usually go on a bit longer than forwards. Hector, apparently finished after a few early-season errors, is now playing well and looking dominant. Who's to say someone who had a longer top-level career than him, who left his last club because they weren't paying him, can't do likewise?
One thing I can guarantee, like absolutely fucking rock-solid guarantee, is that if Caulker gets fit enough to sign, he'll be a better player than that Piergianni lump you're obsessed with
im not content with mediocrity. I am a realist though.
who are we going to get in January that will be a long term fixture in the team?
we need to repair the leaking roof now and then replace the roof in the summer.
caulker would be a better repair than ness and thomas.
The club (via Cawley) and the manager have all been bigging up this window so I don't know why we'd set our expectations lower than them. I've had enough of this mediocrity and having nothing to play for in the final four months of the season.
i expect bodies to be added but not an increase in quality. If this was a summer window I would have different expectation levels.