25/26 Summer Transfer Thread

Yep, that's what Artell said.  

However it also brings the caveat that if you convert it to an standard work permit then there is a requirement for him to play a certain percentage of games.  I'm not sure if injuries etc. would impact on that requirement.

I think the likelihood of us needing to convert him is less than that of a second ESC spot coming up because we've sold him.

I finally listened to Artell’s post match RH interview from last Saturday. It’s encouraging that he acknowledged our defensive frailties and sounded genuinely frustrated by conceding another identical goal.

I think him and the recruitment team are going to be ruthless with some of our contracted defenders.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Yep, that's what Artell said.  

However it also brings the caveat that if you convert it to an standard work permit then there is a requirement for him to play a certain percentage of games.  I'm not sure if injuries etc. would impact on that requirement.

I think the likelihood of us needing to convert him is less than that of a second ESC spot coming up because we've sold him.

It’s worth noting the player has one year left on his contract and I can’t remember anything about the club holding an additional year option.

Don’t be surprised if he moves on if we receive a suitable offer.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

I finally listened to Artell’s post match RH interview from last Saturday. It’s encouraging that he acknowledged our defensive frailties and sounded genuinely frustrated by conceding another identical goal.

I think him and the recruitment team are going to be ruthless with some of our contracted defenders.

The coaching team has had 15/16 months to get the defence right and still we have basic, glaring errors. I agree there’s a need for better players but something isn’t clicking in the coaching department either. Odd, seeing how many former defenders we have there.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

It’s worth noting the player has one year left on his contract and I can’t remember anything about the club holding an additional year option.

Don’t be surprised if he moves on if we receive a suitable offer.

I would be interested to know what a suitable offer is for any of them tbh 300k was acceptable for Conteh but he had a release clause - not sure if that's common .

I wonder what sort of loss the ownership group are willing to stomach this coming season as it was what 1.7m last season and they said it would be similiar again for this one just gone ? Whether they want to lose more/less or similiar is probably pretty important with outgoings and incomings and whether BP needs anymore 6 figure work again this close season .

The only reason we got Conteh was because we agreed to insert a release clause in his contract. At least, I think that is what has been said.

One thing the injuries this year has taught us is whilst we undoubtedly have a very competitive first 11-13 - there is certainly a lack of depth in the squad, along with experience and physicality. So I think the window will probably need to be a little busier than you'd maybe think as an outsider just looking at where we finished.

Also defensively we do have some issues that need to be sorted. Can we go into next season with McJannet, Rodgers and Tharme being our three first choice centre halves? I genuinely don't think so and whilst I don't think it's as simple as the personnel to explain why our goals conceded is so high, it is a contributing factor. In an ideal world it would see us potentially moving one of Rodgers or Tharme on and bringing in two good options. That's possibly a running theme across a couple of positions - Wright/ Eastwood, Cass/Warren - one of those ok, but would we like both as options for those next year - again probably not.

Couple that with possibly 2/3 strikers, a winger or 2 and 2/3 midfielders you're starting to look at about 10 players across permanent and loans that may need to be brought in. Obviously dependant on if some of the players you bring in cover other positions.  All this assumes we keep hold of all of our players and re-sign Hume. Renewing and tying down a few of our better players to longer deals may also be just as important. McEachran, JDS, McJannet and Khouri are all entering the last year of their contracts - unless there's options I've missed.

So it could be a really interesting window... the foundations are absolutely there that's undeniable in my opinion, it's vital however that we build on them and don't let any momentum we have going into next season be wasted. On the face of it it looks a very National League-esq league, promotion is there to go for.

Quoted from kevikov

The coaching team has had 15/16 months to get the defence right and still we have basic, glaring errors. I agree there’s a need for better players but something isn’t clicking in the coaching department either. Odd, seeing how many former defenders we have there.

What you have to consider is that these are League 4 players, even Premiership defenders make glaring errors, just not as many as lower division players though.  Also we haven't had the same defence for 16 months.

Quoted from Ruuger

What you have to consider is that these are League 4 players, even Premiership defenders make glaring errors, just not as many as lower division players though.  Also we haven't had the same defence for 16 months.

But then you counter that by saying they are playing against League 4 attackers who are not Cole Palmer like - is it any harder being a defender in this league than an attacker - Danny Rose is by no means prolific.

We've looked poor for 16 months at the back - that should tell us all something

Not being critical of your post just making sure that we realise this is League 4 regardless of the position you play in

I think the one thing we might be expecting but never get under Artell is a tight defence.

It just doesn't feel like it's his thing, he likes defenders who attack first and defend second. With the exception of Tharme, every defender he's signed permanently has one eye going forward.  Even someone like Lewis Cass always wants to go forward.  

Can't really say I've got an issue with that approach.  We could have conceded 2 more goals, 20 more goals, 200 more goals this season but the crucial stats are always games won and points gained.   If our ethos in defence is more on attack than actual defending, the question to ask is along the lines of 'does it benefit or penalise us?'.  All in, I think we've probably gained more points from having an attacking mindset than not.  Lots of goals we've conceded have come from general errors like switching off or just howlers, they've got nothing to do with system or tactics.    That leads to the question of would a more dependable defender bring you the attacking benefits that someone like Harvey Rodgers brings?

Bottom 3 budget means you're not likely to be getting defenders who can do both defend and attack, not effectively anyway.  Biggest upgrade we can make is in goal I think.  A good 'keeper gives you an extra 10-12 points a season and we lack that.  But it's more than just those last minute saves that mean you get 3 rather than 1 point in games.  It's about the confidence and command a really good 'keeper brings.   There's going to be some spare budget to play with (we hope anyway!) and I wouldn't be in any way disappointed if we went quite heavy in on a really top drawer 'keeper.

Of course we need strengthening in other areas, but to me that's the one area we can see the biggest improvement and development. Certainly if we could only make one upgrade, that's where I would want it to be.