Transfer rumours !

My charlton supporting cousin

Ah, I see......

Do you have many cousins?

Just two

Doubt we'd get him, good if we did though. Although I know nothing about him his Wikipedia record isn't bad.

y2johnny wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

the same coaches who obviously agreed a new contract for heskey, signing madine, etc etc

like i said to 58, i am losing faith in their judgement bit by bit.

Little unfair if you ask me (you misery  )

Money rules, and it's clear from what we've been reading that Lennon's had a lot of deals fall through due to funding. Madine's link up play so far has been pretty good, but he desperately needs a partner to play off him.

As a squad player Heskey's an inexpensive option who's done well for us. We're just wanting more from him than he should be asked for (ie being capable of challenging for first choice.)

Lennon's got an eye for a player, give him a chance/ I'd rather see him take his time and get the right man at the right price than gamble on a shit player.

Natasha Whittam wrote:

wanderlust wrote:

But don't you get the feeling that personality-wise, Lennon is a dogmatic stick-to-your-guns my-way-or-the-highway kinda guy? An admirable attribute in a player, but such inflexibility is a flaw in management.

Dougie was the same, same tactics every week despite defeat after defeat....then finally win one and we've "turned a corner". Only to lose again the following week.

Lennon out.

He was and it was incredibly frustrating. Like all armchair managers, I desperately wanted him to try something different but I guess some managers have a plan that they will stick to through thick and thin and as 74 says, they're the ones who see the players day in day out so we have to trust them seeing as we don't have all the facts. But we do get to see the results and performances unfortunately.

Boggersbelief wrote:Igor vetokele

Has Neil seen the light? Vetokele is a midget in CF terms - only 5'8" but he's quick enough and is fairly clinical in front of goal so perhaps a change of system is on the cards.

...unless he sticks with a target man in the hope of him getting the "knock downs" that haven't materialised as yet.

wanderlust wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

It's true 74 - we have no choice but trust them.

But don't you get the feeling that personality-wise, Lennon is a dogmatic stick-to-your-guns my-way-or-the-highway kinda guy? An admirable attribute in a player, but such inflexibility is a flaw in management.

Maybe the kids can't do a job in training, but I suspect they are training to play roles in the existing system? Maybe they are not experimenting with alternative systems that could make the most of their attributes - which you'd think would be the first move in these desperate times?

We just don't know what's going on apart from what we see on the pitch.

I admire the "my way or the highway" in management but not in the player. Players need to be adaptable.

You can't accuse him of not changing the system - he did that at Middlesbro and we were 3-0 down at half time. Every one said "why did you change the system"

So I don't buy your synopsis. 

I don't like this cry baby call just because we've lost a match. Yes we played badly in the 2nd half at Huddersfield, but fans going into panic attacks just because we lose the odd game - come on. Prince, who has played well so far was sick and those it's not an excuse for the rest, it is for his performance - Lennon should have subbed him.

Goal scoring was always going to be a problem - strikers cost money and we ain't got any - we're rebuilding. So if you thought we were going to get promoted that you're in la,la land. Lennon himself has said it will take two to three seasons for Bolton to get promoted, so I'm afraid you'll have to get use to us struggling at the bottom.

bwfc1874 wrote:

y2johnny wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

the same coaches who obviously agreed a new contract for heskey, signing madine, etc etc

like i said to 58, i am losing faith in their judgement bit by bit.

Little unfair if you ask me (you misery  )

Money rules, and it's clear from what we've been reading that Lennon's had a lot of deals fall through due to funding. Madine's link up play so far has been pretty good, but he desperately needs a partner to play off him.

As a squad player Heskey's an inexpensive option who's done well for us. We're just wanting more from him than he should be asked for (ie being capable of challenging for first choice.)

Lennon's got an eye for a player, give him a chance/ I'd rather see him take his time and get the right man at the

right price than gamble on a shit player.

SKD could do that role NOW better than madine could. He is useless. Heskey shouldnt have been given a new contract. Money wasted. And what was the point of dobbie? Three similar players when 1 would have sufficed.

Touchè on the misery though

y2johnny wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:

y2johnny wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

the same coaches who obviously agreed a new contract for heskey, signing madine, etc etc

like i said to 58, i am losing faith in their judgement bit by bit.

Little unfair if you ask me (you misery  )

Money rules, and it's clear from what we've been reading that Lennon's had a lot of deals fall through due to funding. Madine's link up play so far has been pretty good, but he desperately needs a partner to play off him.

As a squad player Heskey's an inexpensive option who's done well for us. We're just wanting more from him than he should be asked for (ie being capable of challenging for first choice.)

Lennon's got an eye for a player, give him a chance/ I'd rather see him take his time and get the right man at the

right price than gamble on a shit player.

SKD could do that role NOW better than madine could.  He is useless.  Heskey shouldnt have been given a new contract.  Money wasted.  And what was the point of dobbie?  Three similar players when 1 would have sufficed.

Dobbie's no target man, more of a replacement for Gudjohnsen in my eyes. Having said that he's barely played so far so waste of money isn't far off (long way to go though), although given his age and history I doubt he's on much.

I still think it's too early to judge Madine, he's desperate for a goal and some confidence but I think in terms of technical ability he's near enough there but needs to work harder to make runs for the 3 behind him to pick out. Definitely better than SKD would be right now!

We need more quality up front, but as fullofsprite rightly says it's the most expensive position to fill, it's not an impossible job but Lennon needs to do something fast.

Just to confirm that we haven't brought anyone in yet?

karlypants wrote:Just to confirm that we haven't brought anyone in yet?

You could possibly cut and paste this statement until January.

FullofSprite wrote:

wanderlust wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

It's true 74 - we have no choice but trust them.

But don't you get the feeling that personality-wise, Lennon is a dogmatic stick-to-your-guns my-way-or-the-highway kinda guy? An admirable attribute in a player, but such inflexibility is a flaw in management.

Maybe the kids can't do a job in training, but I suspect they are training to play roles in the existing system? Maybe they are not experimenting with alternative systems that could make the most of their attributes - which you'd think would be the first move in these desperate times?

We just don't know what's going on apart from what we see on the pitch.

I admire the "my way or the highway" in management but not in the player. Players need to be adaptable.

You can't accuse him of not changing the system - he did that at Middlesbro and we were 3-0 down at half time. Every one said "why did you change the system"

So I don't buy your synopsis. 

I don't like this cry baby call just because we've lost a match. Yes we played badly in the 2nd half at Huddersfield, but fans going into panic attacks just because we lose the odd game - come on. Prince, who has played well so far was sick and those it's not an excuse for the rest, it is for his performance - Lennon should have subbed him.

Goal scoring was always going to be a problem - strikers cost money and we ain't got any - we're rebuilding. So if you thought we were going to get promoted that you're in la,la land. Lennon himself has said it will take two to three seasons for Bolton to get promoted, so I'm afraid you'll have to get use to us struggling at the bottom.

Any manager who can't adapt his players or selection to find the best fit for the circumstances - especially when results have been poor - is weak. It takes courage to say "it isn't working/I was wrong" - but very few do that publicly. Making mistakes is OK if you're prepared to man up and change things to put it right.

If we've actually signed the Charlton lad, it may well be that Neil is finally taking a different approach to attacking and if true, I can only think it's a good thing to at least try something different.

You say that in hoping the manager will try something different it's a "cry baby call" - even when the system he plays every week is not producing a consistent attacking threat. Where does defending the manager's performance against Huddersfield whilst simultaneously criticising the manager for not substituting an unwell player fit in then? A schizophrenic call?

And as for promotion I have consistently said since the pre-season that anything more than survival would be a bonus and I still think that's the case.

I just happen to think that given our situation, our manager should be at least prepared to try something different in attack, if only because everything else he's tried has failed. If the Charlton lad comes in it looks like Neil is going to do exactly that.

wanderlust wrote:

FullofSprite wrote:

wanderlust wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

It's true 74 - we have no choice but trust them.

But don't you get the feeling that personality-wise, Lennon is a dogmatic stick-to-your-guns my-way-or-the-highway kinda guy? An admirable attribute in a player, but such inflexibility is a flaw in management.

Maybe the kids can't do a job in training, but I suspect they are training to play roles in the existing system? Maybe they are not experimenting with alternative systems that could make the most of their attributes - which you'd think would be the first move in these desperate times?

We just don't know what's going on apart from what we see on the pitch.

I admire the "my way or the highway" in management but not in the player. Players need to be adaptable.

You can't accuse him of not changing the system - he did that at Middlesbro and we were 3-0 down at half time. Every one said "why did you change the system"

So I don't buy your synopsis. 

I don't like this cry baby call just because we've lost a match. Yes we played badly in the 2nd half at Huddersfield, but fans going into panic attacks just because we lose the odd game - come on. Prince, who has played well so far was sick and those it's not an excuse for the rest, it is for his performance - Lennon should have subbed him.

Goal scoring was always going to be a problem - strikers cost money and we ain't got any - we're rebuilding. So if you thought we were going to get promoted that you're in la,la land. Lennon himself has said it will take two to three seasons for Bolton to get promoted, so I'm afraid you'll have to get use to us struggling at the bottom.

Any manager who can't adapt his players or selection to find the best fit for the circumstances - especially when results have been poor - is weak. It takes courage to say "it isn't working/I was wrong" - but very few do that publicly. Making mistakes is OK if you're prepared to man up and change things to put it right.

If we've actually signed the Charlton lad, it may well be that Neil is finally taking a different approach to attacking and if true, I can only think it's a good thing to at least try something different.

You say that in hoping the manager will try something different it's a "cry baby call" - even when the system he plays every week is not producing a consistent attacking threat. Where does defending the manager's performance against Huddersfield whilst simultaneously criticising the manager for not substituting an unwell player fit in then? A schizophrenic call?

And as for promotion I have consistently said since the pre-season that anything more than survival would be a bonus and I still think that's the case.

I just happen to think that given our situation, our manager should be at least prepared to try something different in attack, if only because everything else he's tried has failed. If the Charlton lad comes in it looks like Neil is going to do exactly that.

"You say that in hoping the manager will try something different it's a "cry baby call"" No I said it about losing a match. Every time the club loses a match fans want to change the system.


Fact is he changed the system against Middlesbro - it didn't come of. He then changes it to the system the fans say they want and then fans criticise him for "not changing the system" - thankless task being a Bolton manager. 


Didn't defend the performance, though I do think Prince can be forgiven for a below par performance - he was ill after all.


Player fooked up in 2nd half. They've been solid most of the season against strong opposition. Defence has generally been good, midfield leaves a lot to be desired in my book.


I'd think about changing the system after 10 games not before then, but he's already done it at Middlesbro and it back fired badly.


If you're to get anywhere in football you need a midfield that scores goals - ours doesn't so I'd be looking there, not just strikers

Battle of the essay writers

LPP eat your heart out

Outstanding debate.

FullofSprite wrote:

wanderlust wrote:

FullofSprite wrote:

wanderlust wrote:

bwfc1874 wrote:You have to trust the judgement of professional football coaches who see these players train every day.

It's true 74 - we have no choice but trust them.

But don't you get the feeling that personality-wise, Lennon is a dogmatic stick-to-your-guns my-way-or-the-highway kinda guy? An admirable attribute in a player, but such inflexibility is a flaw in management.

Maybe the kids can't do a job in training, but I suspect they are training to play roles in the existing system? Maybe they are not experimenting with alternative systems that could make the most of their attributes - which you'd think would be the first move in these desperate times?

We just don't know what's going on apart from what we see on the pitch.

I admire the "my way or the highway" in management but not in the player. Players need to be adaptable.

You can't accuse him of not changing the system - he did that at Middlesbro and we were 3-0 down at half time. Every one said "why did you change the system"

So I don't buy your synopsis. 

I don't like this cry baby call just because we've lost a match. Yes we played badly in the 2nd half at Huddersfield, but fans going into panic attacks just because we lose the odd game - come on. Prince, who has played well so far was sick and those it's not an excuse for the rest, it is for his performance - Lennon should have subbed him.

Goal scoring was always going to be a problem - strikers cost money and we ain't got any - we're rebuilding. So if you thought we were going to get promoted that you're in la,la land. Lennon himself has said it will take two to three seasons for Bolton to get promoted, so I'm afraid you'll have to get use to us struggling at the bottom.

Any manager who can't adapt his players or selection to find the best fit for the circumstances - especially when results have been poor - is weak. It takes courage to say "it isn't working/I was wrong" - but very few do that publicly. Making mistakes is OK if you're prepared to man up and change things to put it right.

If we've actually signed the Charlton lad, it may well be that Neil is finally taking a different approach to attacking and if true, I can only think it's a good thing to at least try something different.

You say that in hoping the manager will try something different it's a "cry baby call" - even when the system he plays every week is not producing a consistent attacking threat. Where does defending the manager's performance against Huddersfield whilst simultaneously criticising the manager for not substituting an unwell player fit in then? A schizophrenic call?

And as for promotion I have consistently said since the pre-season that anything more than survival would be a bonus and I still think that's the case.

I just happen to think that given our situation, our manager should be at least prepared to try something different in attack, if only because everything else he's tried has failed. If the Charlton lad comes in it looks like Neil is going to do exactly that.

"You say that in hoping the manager will try something different it's a "cry baby call"" No I said it about losing a match. Every time the club loses a match fans want to change the system.


Fact is he changed the system against Middlesbro - it didn't come of. He then changes it to the system the fans say they want and then fans criticise him for "not changing the system" - thankless task being a Bolton manager. 


Didn't defend the performance, though I do think Prince can be forgiven for a below par performance - he was ill after all.


Player fooked up in 2nd half. They've been solid most of the season against strong opposition. Defence has generally been good, midfield leaves a lot to be desired in my book.


I'd think about changing the system after 10 games not before then, but he's already done it at Middlesbro and it back fired badly.


If you're to get anywhere in football you need a midfield that scores goals - ours doesn't so I'd be looking there, not just strikers

That's twice you've mentioned the Boro game to support your point  - which it doesn't.

The Boro match was just after Burton beat us and we were so short of defenders Lennon went 3 at the back against the best team in this league so Nugent, Kike etc tore us a new one for half an hour.

Half time he went back to a back 4 and we escaped further embarrassment.

The only changes I've proposed are to the front 6 - basically suggesting we forego a target donkey and stop doing the bleeding obvious which is proven not to work.

Nothing to do with defence whatsoever.

I just want the team to be the best they can and to fully utilise all the resources we have.

Just seen that stuff about the Charlton manager wanting the lad to stay with them - despite not picking him - but also stating it's up to the lad himself to decide if he wants to go out on loan. Meanwhile Neil has said he hopes to speak to him today.

Not sure what it all means but it appears far from a done deal at this stage and given our inability to offer a large incentive, I just hope Neil has another target in mind as a contingency - ideally someone like this lad rather than another donkey.