Remember we started slow last year and I think that was previously a characteristic of Jones' teams at Luton as well from memory. Will be an adjustment period for the squad and for us having got used to winning most weeks!
We started with three wins last season IIRC
And three clean sheets. Then the wheels came off and our leader started fluttering his eyelashes at Vincent Tan! Fair play though we got back to basics after the Crawley debacle, stumbled across a random formation, smashed Northampton and never looked back! What a strange season it was really. I'm liking the look of the recruitment so far and don't doubt for one minute that we'll be competitive next season. COYA
All this chat of us having signed lots of defenders. We needed them and I would suggest we still need two more. Squad currently looks something like the below to me...which means a RWB is absolute priority but another LB, CAM and Striker certainly wouldn't go amiss.
I am still hoping for 3 real stand out players in those positions who elevate the whole team to another level but I am likely being greedy.
Kaminski
Mannion
New. Ramsey. Jones. Gillesphey Edwards
Z Mitchell Burke A Mitchell. Bell. new
Coventry. Rankin Costello
Docherty. Anderson
Carey
Berry/New
Olaofe. Leaburn
TC Godden
Dixon New
Would make a squad of 25 v's a match day squad of 20 so allow for 5 injuries/off form.
Loans
Assimwe, Kanu, M'bick, Casey
Sell
Taylor, AMB, Ahadme
Controversial opinion, as it is, I think this team struggles
This isn't a controversial opinion, this is the realistic opinion. All this talk of mid-table and comfortably staying up is pie in the sky stuff, unless we significantly strengthen.
I think we have been out of the championship for too long and people don't pay attention to football other than Charlton, that or it is just a case of exreme optimism. A mid-table finish for Nathan Jones would deserve the manager of the season award.
Or people do pay attention to the championship and other teams by side Charlton and just have a different opinion to you, I think you’re underestimating the momentum we have and the team Jones has built and the togetherness we have as a club the last 6 months.
I think you’re underestimating the step up. The best of the 3 promoted sides last year finished 16th. If we finish any higher than that it would be a miraculous effort
First year is all about being above the dotted line, year after we can start to push on with another year of championship money
Anything above the drop I’ll be happy but I just don’t think we’ll be in trouble, we might go through rough patches but believe we’ll be between 14th-20th
Pompey, Derby and Oxford all had times last year where it looked like they would go down. I think we will be right in the scrap at times unfortunately but do back us to stay up. I think the momentum will hopefully mean we start strong, but there will definitely be bad periods later in the season that see us looking over our shoulder
We need to win our 'mini-League' against the season's lower 8 clubs.
Achieve that and then we're making a foundation to stay in mid-table at least
“I’ve mentioned him a few times, Davis Keillor-Dunn. He increasingly looks closer and closer to going to Charlton, although I’m led to believe that Parky is still very much keeping tabs on that situation. My counter to that would be that they’ve known the price for a while £2.5m-£3m.
“If you really wanted to Davis Keillor-Dunn, you could have got that done by now.”
Oxford fans think he's heading to them
Wasn’t it rumoured there was one player deciding between us and another club whilst Costello was also visiting the club. Potentially DKD deciding between us and Oxford although can’t see us dropping 2.5M on one player
Agree, that’s a lot of money to spend on a player turning 28 in Nov. I like us spending money but that seems like a frivolous way to spend it
If he produces moments of class that keep us in the division it can be as frivelous as it wants to be.
Our owners get ridiculed for not spending money, but if a rumour comes out that they might do, then that gets moaned about. FFS
Classic & basic CL 101
What does that mean?
Damned if they don’t, damned if they do, classic CL behaviour
Really liked the look of Mwamba today, thought he kept things simple and worked hard with Anderson in the middle. I think an injury free Burke will be a good addition too.
Really liked the look of Mwamba today, thought he kept things simple and worked hard with Anderson in the middle. I think an injury free Burke will be a good addition too.
Promising interview from Nathan, I never really did believe we’d only get 7 in I still think it’ll be 10 by the end of the window, be nice to get one or two in Slovenia with us.
Post match interview with NJ. He said definitely a few more players in within the next weeks, if he can in the next few days. He hesitated a little to make sure he did not commit to they are negotiating with a player but clearly intimated they expected another signing in the door but it’s taking longer (perhaps that’s the Apter signing) how exciting !!!
We still need another striker for sure. Has to be a priority imo
It all depends on how he lines us up at the start of the season.
Olaofe, Godden and Leaburn fighting to be the sole starter whilst we play 343 is probably enough, especially if Kanu and Mbick don't go on loan.
We'd then need more wingers as TC and Apter if he signs won't be enough, and you'd be relying on Carey to play out there or Leaburn, or playing Dixon.
If we're sticking to 352 then someone like DKD makes sense as he can play up top or in a 10, but then Apter makes less sense unless we use him as a super attacking RWB
Comments
#unfinishedbusiness
(I am joking but I would welcome Albie back with open arms)
Achieve that and then we're making a foundation to stay in mid-table at least
Olaofe, Godden and Leaburn fighting to be the sole starter whilst we play 343 is probably enough, especially if Kanu and Mbick don't go on loan.
We'd then need more wingers as TC and Apter if he signs won't be enough, and you'd be relying on Carey to play out there or Leaburn, or playing Dixon.
If we're sticking to 352 then someone like DKD makes sense as he can play up top or in a 10, but then Apter makes less sense unless we use him as a super attacking RWB