Transfer News 2022/23 Season Incoming Transfers and a few other things

[Swaby39]

Is Steve Seddon a specialist Left Back though? I'm not making a snide remark about the use of the term 'specialist' - it's a genuine question.

He's only 24, has had multiple loans at three clubs in L1/L2, a handful of appearances for Brum in The Championship and a season with us (his only full season of professional football with one club).

His suitability as a Left Back for us is questionable to say the least, and I believe he was deployed as a Wing-Back during his various spells at Wimbledon.
May well have been an out-and-out LB for the others, but only for half seasons at most and the only side that was any decent was the Pompey team we beat in the play-offs in 19/20. Even then, they seemed to play some sort of 4-2-3-1 as per the Kenny Jackett way - so did he get more protection? One of those '2' was typically Tom Naylor - if we had that calibre of player at CDM maybe that formation would work for us too?

The long and the short of it is that he's still relatively young, having only had one full season with one club (us) and has been used in a variety of formations, sometimes clearly not as a Left Back (and in others only when afforded the protection of 2x Holding/Defensive Midfielders).

Perhaps he isn't a Left Back after all?

He's specialist in the sense that his professional career to date, however short, has been at left back. But the more I see him, the more I feel he would thrive as a wing back in a 5. I don't think he's been helped by the changes at LCB last year so here's hoping Findlay can really mentor him.

To his credit, he never ever gives up. The boy runs all day long regardless of how the game is going and he offers a lot in possession with a pretty decent left foot. But it is hard to ignore the fact every team we play at the moment picks that side as a way to get at us. Regardless, we need more bodies back there because whether it be injury or lack of form, we can't change it.

 

[BDJ]

4231: Seddon inadequate at LB, Taylor isolated, Brannagan's attacking game hampered.
433: Seddon inadequate at LB, Taylor isolated, No beast of a CDM in the squad.
3412: Gets the best out of Seddon*, Brannagan, Browne/Boden at 10, support for Taylor up front.
Also 3412: Robbo's now filled the squad with wingers, rather than wing-backs, so it's a no go.

*I'd far rather Seddon was sold. He's just not good enough.

 

[Chippy]

Not sure a 90s house band would really care one way or the other, although looking at the tracks on this single @Scotchegg needs to get a copy for the positivity bus...

What about adding their 1996 single as a description of this transfer window and thread: “Never Again”

 

[Lescottsforehead]

We don’t need anyone yet, we’ve been told by the happy clappers there is plenty of time in the window to recruit the right players, so let’s wait and see what happens at the end of August.

Or perhaps the Happy clappers have finally realised after the Derby game that the so called negative posters were right all along, and so far have been.

Said absolutely no one on this forum, but if it suits your narrative you keep telling yourself that.

 

[SteMerritt]

What about adding their 1996 single as a description of this transfer window and thread: “Never Again”

Could also use their single from the same year 'Can't help it' played next time KR goes out shopping for a full back and comes home with a winger.

 

[Thomas/Brock/Jones]

Could also use their single from the same year 'Can't help it' played next time KR goes out shopping for a full back and comes home with a winger.

While Scotchers has there 94 single' I believe ' on repeat all day

 

[MJB]

Could also use their single from the same year 'Can't help it' played next time KR goes out shopping for a full back and comes home with a winger.

“So did you manage to sign those two full-backs we desperately need?”

KR…

 

[Scrongo]

[emoji122][emoji119][emoji114]

 

[forevayella]

We don’t need anyone yet, we’ve been told by the happy clappers there is plenty of time in the window to recruit the right players, so let’s wait and see what happens at the end of August.

Or perhaps the Happy clappers have finally realised after the Derby game that the so called negative posters were right all along, and so far have been.

Not happy clappers, just realistic patient supporters. As you say let’s wait until end of August.

 

[greatunclekip]

I would, because we need to stop the domino effect of “versatile” players dragging everybody else out of their best position. Brown is a centre back who can play left back if you have nobody else, but he shouldn’t be “the left back cover” while he’s also the only proper centre back cover, outside of a 17 year old (who is now apparently being viewed as a potential right back) and a 36 year old semi-retired coach.

If whoever is first choice left back is unavailable and Brown has to play there, and then either centre back gets injured or suspended, suddenly you’re shuffling three, or maybe even all four defensive spots around. You’ve changed pretty much the entire back line and potentially not one player is in their preferred / best position. This has happened multiple times over the last two seasons so it isn’t rare or unlikely to happen at some point, and it costs us every time we have to hobble through it.

As an aside, there has been some quite spectacular rewriting of history to justify the lack of defensive depth over the last month or two (not from you, but from others), particularly regarding the L2 promotion season where it has been claimed we had no real cover. That is patently untrue. We had two out and out left backs, Skarz and Jordan Evans (who at the time was the Wales U21 left back) and the only reason Ruffels ever played there for the final game against Wycombe, and I think possibly the second half at Carlisle, was because both of them got injured simultaneously with a few weeks to go, which is a total freak. But even then, Evans was still playing right up until Newport away on April 19th, and Skarz was then patched up to start against Hartlepool and Carlisle. Long was also the right back cover for both Baldock and Kenny, having played ten games there in League Two the season before, plus half a dozen the year before that under Wilder / Waddock, so he was young but an established first team squad member with 16 league and FA Cup games to his name, plus a brief loan spell one division below. We had two full backs on each side, regardless of how many appearances any of them actually made, plus three senior centre backs in Wright, Dunkley and Mullins. A young Robbie Cundy was the fourth choice in case of emergency, which is a role Golding could fill this season, but it would need to be stipulated that he’s the fourth CB, that he’s ready to play if circumstances require, and that he isn’t also the right back cover. Which is crackers, btw, but that’s for another time.

We need seven players to cover the back four spots, plus (not including) Golding as a potential eighth / fourth centre back, including two dedicated full backs on each side. We still need two more bodies - a right back and either a left back or another centre back if Brown is going to focus on playing there - without a single defender leaving.

Oh those halcyon days of having a transfer strategy, at least two tangibles for every position, a board to actually execute the strategy and we looked closer than ever since to being a genuine Top 30 team.

I keep telling myself that we must have a strategy of some sort. There must be method in this madness. One day all will become clear I'm sure.

 

[Oxford57]

Comment from commonwealth games today.. say less do more perhaps a mantra for transfers

 

[Bicester Yellow]

You don’t need no movement yet, we got ages until the window closes.

No need to panic!

We haven’t though have we. Our squad is paper thin & we have youngsters sitting on the bench currently that KR did not want to bring on Saturday even at 1-0 down. Maybe not panic. But time is of this essence. Target the players you want, if they are attainable, get them. If not. Move on to someone else.

 

[Scrongo]

[emoji848]

 

[headingtonoldboy]

Yes fair point, but not every signing has to be the ultimate world beater. A solid mobile left back who doesn't go on constant walkabout would make us so much stronger.

We have that in Brown. I've said this more than once, he is more than capable of doing well at left back.

 

[Bicester Yellow]

Is that fair to say though?

Ruffels left us for a Championship side who had moments but overall a very good player for us. He was promptly replaced by Seddon who, by all accounts, was a good signing. Up until January he did very little wrong and for whatever reason he struggled after that so that’s only 6 months really that we’ve felt the need to improve there.

18 months ago, Long was arguably one of the best right backs in the division. I certainly wasn’t wanting him replaced so not quite sure what you mean by lacking for 3 years. We only have one RB so we do need another one. But on Saturday Long was absolutely solid. Did Barkhuizen do anything notable? He’s nothing special going forward but that’s not the priority.

We've also brought in 2 first-team ready CBs this year.

We lack in depth which needs addressing but to imply we’ve neglected the defensive positions for 3 years is an over exaggeration.

Ruffels had mentally left by the time the playoffs came round. He was at fault for at least 2 of the goals in the tie through poor positioning. Something we now complain about Seddon for. However he did have a great season before that and the one previous. So I’m not saying he was rubbish.

Long has been limited for a while, the game of football has gone through an evolution the last few years in terms of what a full back is expected to do. Look at the George Baldock mould. That’s what they are expected to do now, plus be adequately good defensively. Sam Long can’t do both & most would argue seddon does too much of the former & therein lies our problem.

 

[Bicester Yellow]

We have that in Brown. I've said this more than once, he is more than capable of doing well at left back.

Won’t be an outlet going forward at all now unfortunately if brown was to play LB & will make us even more predictable in terms of how we attack as both long and brown both are defensive by nature and have very little end product in terms of quality of crosses in the final 3rd

 

[Scrongo]

[emoji140]

 

[Up The U's]

He's specialist in the sense that his professional career to date, however short, has been at left back. But the more I see him, the more I feel he would thrive as a wing back in a 5. I don't think he's been helped by the changes at LCB last year so here's hoping Findlay can really mentor him.

To his credit, he never ever gives up. The boy runs all day long regardless of how the game is going and he offers a lot in possession with a pretty decent left foot. But it is hard to ignore the fact every team we play at the moment picks that side as a way to get at us. Regardless, we need more bodies back there because whether it be injury or lack of form, we can't change it.

So does a dog, but I wouldn't want Lassie to play LB either.

Where I was standing on Saturday, I could see directly down the line on Seddon's side of the pitch.
From the first few minutes two things were clear:
He does not know when to attack and when to defend.
Him and Boden had no partnership.

Seddon was clearly targeted by Derby and there were a few times when their RW just ran passed him on the inside.
It's remarkable how Seddon wasn't played for roughly half a season but now is seemingly first choice, did I hear KR correctly saying on Radio OX he doesn't need a LB this window ?

I would sign a LB & RB, (in a 22 man squad, two players for every position seems sensible).
If KR doesn't add to the defence then it will be another season making do, with players in the defence being shuffled & played out of position, which has & will cost us points.

 

[Bicester Yellow]

Is Steve Seddon a specialist Left Back though? I'm not making a snide remark about the use of the term 'specialist' - it's a genuine question.

He's only 24, has had multiple loans at three clubs in L1/L2, a handful of appearances for Brum in The Championship and a season with us (his only full season of professional football with one club).

His suitability as a Left Back for us is questionable to say the least, and I believe he was deployed as a Wing-Back during his various spells at Wimbledon.
May well have been an out-and-out LB for the others, but only for half seasons at most and the only side that was any decent was the Pompey team we beat in the play-offs in 19/20. Even then, they seemed to play some sort of 4-2-3-1 as per the Kenny Jackett way - so did he get more protection? One of those '2' was typically Tom Naylor - if we had that calibre of player at CDM maybe that formation would work for us too?

The long and the short of it is that he's still relatively young, having only had one full season with one club (us) and has been used in a variety of formations, sometimes clearly not as a Left Back (and in others only when afforded the protection of 2x Holding/Defensive Midfielders).

Perhaps he isn't a Left Back after all?

Personally think he would be better deployed as a left winger. Think he could do real damage if you have a decent defender behind him. When he gets going he does have pace and power to drive past players but it takes him 5 seconds to get up to speed & by then he’s playing catch up against some wingers in this league.

 

[IsleofWightYellow]

Won’t be an outlet going forward at all now unfortunately if brown was to play LB & will make us even more predictable in terms of how we attack as both long and brown both are defensive by nature and have very little end product in terms of quality of crosses in the final 3rd

So if Brown had played on Saturday instead of Seddon, and we’d got defensively stronger but lost something attacking wise… we’d have 1 point now instead of zero??