League 1 team next season

Evatt seems to think Gethin will be back next season, he said the terms of an extension had almost certainly been met which means he expects him to be here. It also seems to be an open secret that Dapo will be here,  I've seen West Ham fans suggesting that. It will be fun to see the team building again, with perhaps actual transfer fees being paid if needed.

I'm wondering if Darcy, Politic and Edwards are good enough to break through next season?
I'm thinking fringe at this stage but if they can push on it will free up budget for better recruitment.

Politic would have been one of the first names on the team sheet if he hadn’t done his acl

Last year we had a blank canvas and that caused recruiting problems, just to get a squad, so next season it's fair to assume that you keep the contracted players to form the basis of the squad, Santos and Doyle given extended contracts, Lee, Williams,Delfounso  and Sarcevic part of IE plan and the spine of the team. Isgrove and Jones for me deserves another chance as well. King Arthur not sure ?

Add the kids Brockbank, Thomasson, Darcy, Politic, and Edwards. Then you need to be honest with the other contracted players likes of Comley,Delaney , Gordon, Faal. and ship them out if possible, whilst trying to bring back Dapo and John.

Then add quality just like Evatt did in January, leaves the Keeper, No way is Alexander ready and for me not getting a recognised number 1 nearly cost us the season, Gilkes stepped up but cannot be the solution great back up, but we will get caught out next season if we do not learn from that mistake.

I fear if we keep too many of this squad we will be relegated by Christmas. Swindon walked League 2 last season, but found the step up too much.

I'd keep the defence, Thomasson & Sarc, but the rest need replacing with better players, or perhaps I should say more consistent performers.

One thing is for sure, we need a striker with pace, Doyle can't do it on his own.

Even if we turned out the exact same side I think we would be good for a mid table finish.....add 3 or 4 good players and we could mount a challenge.  Would consiladation be good enough considering the state we were in a year ago.....are we in a financial position to take on Championship clubs - dunno.

We should have a good spine to the team nest season with Gilks, Santos, Baps, Lee, Sarvevic and Doyle but we do need to add players especially in the wide positions.

Norpig wrote:We should have a good spine to the team nest season with Gilks, Santos, Baps, Lee, Sarvevic and Doyle but we do need to add players especially in the wide positions.

I think with the addition of Politic next year and hopefully Dapo, the wide positions shouldn’t be too bad. Our main weakness is up top and assuming we keep Doyle, we need at least one and possibly two strikers. I don’t expect Miller to stay and there doesn’t seem to be anyone coming through from the youth team, so we’re going to have to either raid the piggy bank or look to loans. Strikers don’t come cheap so loans look the most likely solution but even then there will be fees and wages. I’m sure IE knows exactly what he needs and I’m confident he’ll bring in those he believes can have us challenging next season.

I think Doyler on his own doesn't really work and for the most part swinging it across the box isn't his forte unless it's pinpoint, but he has a great work rate and would be great playing off someone else. Problem is Evatt's preferred playing style doesn't allow for two strikers and anyhoo we'd have to sacrifice some midfield possession if we played with two - even though Doyler does track back a lot.
Finding the goals we'll need is a dilemma, but there are a few ways of doing it so I guess we'll have to see how the manager approaches it and the signings should give us a decent idea. Wouldn't mind a few more quality loanees this season - not my usual preference but given our position I wouldn't be rushing into permanent signees unless absolutely certain it's a gem.

Got to sign a keeper, Dapo, somebody ready to step in for Baptiste and a striker in case Doyle can't make the step up. To be honest, i think the most important thing is keeping as many of this first team together as possible, there's a good system in place which works and they players are following, that needs to be retained and any new additions must fit into it - i think that's more important than a raft of new signings.

T.R.O.Y. wrote:Got to sign a keeper, Dapo, somebody ready to step in for Baptiste and a striker in case Doyle can't make the step up. To be honest, i think the most important thing is keeping as many of this first team together as possible, there's a good system in place which works and they players are following, that needs to be retained and any new additions must fit into it - i think that's more important than a raft of new signings.

I agree we need to keep the core of the team together but unless we strengthen significantly, though we shouldn’t do a Swindon and go back down, we won’t be anywhere near challenging for promotion. Doyle alone up top won’t cut it so whether it means IE changing his system slightly to accommodate it is just something we have to do. I think having a more physical target man is essential, even if it’s not every game, because there have been times this season we’ve struggled to get on top of defences. What we do need is more goals from other positions, especially midfield when attacking and central defenders from set pieces and corners. I don’t see either Baps or Rico doing that so I think we do need another commanding centre back. I always thought Greenidge could have been that but he doesn’t seem to have the confidence of IE and will probably be away anyway. I do though trust IE to recruit the players he needs to field a challenging team next year, so first things first, let’s see who he retains tomorrow.

Our advantage this time around is that the embargo is lifted and we have the so-called big club perception and bigger crowds than most in league one. Therefore more attractive to new players - having said that I don't know where we stand financially at the moment. In theory we should be able to land whoever Ian fancies all things being equal.

terenceanne wrote:Our advantage this time around is that the embargo is lifted and we have the so-called big club perception and bigger crowds than most in league one. Therefore more attractive to new players - having said that I don't know where we stand financially at the moment. In theory we should be able to land whoever Ian fancies all things being equal.

Well technically I'm not sure it is until FV pay off the unsecured creditors from the Administration this summer?

I'm certain that will happen because it will trigger a 15 point penalty if it doesn't!!!

I think the club have already indicated that they can pay the creditors Sluffy and I can’t see them lying about such an important thing, so I’m not unduly worried on that front. We won’t have a lot to spend on transfers though, so I still expect mainly freebies and loans but at least we should be able to match most clubs on wages in L1.

Whitesince63 wrote:I think the club have already indicated that they can pay the creditors Sluffy and I can’t see them lying about such an important thing, so I’m not unduly worried on that front. We won’t have a lot to spend on transfers though, so I still expect mainly freebies and loans but at least we should be able to match most clubs on wages in L1.

Yes I agree 63, I'm sure they will, I only mentioned it really as a technicality that hasn't been dealt with just yet.

I'm sure there will be a great many players looking for clubs at the end of the season in the EFL and it wouldn't surprise me if we pick up some former Championship regulars, as many clubs will probably be looking to tighten their financial belts following the Covid hit season just gone (and the part hit one the season before).

I can't see Evatt changing his game plan by much so let's hope some of the ones he brings in know where the goals are because we need to be scoring a few more than what we have been doing (as you have been advocating on WW before the usual suspects turned against you!).

You (and anyone else for that matter) are always very welcome on here any time you like, whatever your views and opinions are - you certainly don't have to keep in sweet with the clique on here!

I think we all expect some budgetary constraints so Evatt will have his work cut out and I imagine the real target will be consolidating in league 1 with anything above and beyond survival being a bonus.
I can't imagine in a month of Sundays that we have the funds to attract the talent required to put us in with a chance of promotion - which some fans think is on the cards.

Sluffy wrote:

Yes I agree 63, I'm sure they will, I only mentioned it really as a technicality that hasn't been dealt with just yet.

I'm sure there will be a great many players looking for clubs at the end of the season in the EFL and it wouldn't surprise me if we pick up some former Championship regulars, as many clubs will probably be looking to tighten their financial belts following the Covid hit season just gone (and the part hit one the season before).

I can't see Evatt changing his game plan by much so let's hope some of the ones he brings in know where the goals are because we need to be scoring a few more than what we have been doing (as you have been advocating on WW before the usual suspects turned against you!).

You (and anyone else for that matter) are always very welcome on here any time you like, whatever your views and opinions are - you certainly don't have to keep in sweet with the clique on here!

Ha, thanks for that Sluffy. I found it hard to see why the abused (me) in trying to defend myself and politely, unlike the effing and blinding abuser cretins frequenting the site, would be the one suspended but hey ho, if that’s the way they want to work, I’m happy to leave them to it and stay here and Trotters sites. 

Like you I don’t see Evatt changing his methods, why should he when he’s got them working and will hopefully improve and build on them even more next season with new recruits on board? I agree there should be a plethora of talent available as clubs look to cut costs, so IE should be more than able to bring the players in that he wants well within the budgets he’s been set. I’m really looking forward to next season in a way that I haven’t for years, feeling much more confident that we are eventually on the way back up to where we belong.