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

[Mad Dog]

Is Jude Bellingham a ‘kid’ then? Just asking, because at at the age of 18, he’s regarded as one of the best players in the world.

Age shouldn’t define a footballer. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough. Lewis Bate is very highly thought of at Leeds, and judging from the comments made by Leeds fans, he’s too good for our level. Time will tell, but that’s a ridiculous remark.

I agree, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and Bate might go on to be a great player for us this season.

However, my point was to highlight the fact that going into the 2nd game of the season, we’ve only improved our playing squad with a player who has had multiple major knee injuries, and a 19 year old, who is completely unproven at this or any senior level, who also has a recall option in January.

Where are the established top league one/lower championship standard players, that we should have been putting in place months ago, whilst getting our squad ready for the start of the season, before then taking a punt on a talented but injury prone player or two, and then loaning these young starlets during the last few weeks of the window?

FWIW, I’m happy to see these kind of young up and coming players coming in on loan from top clubs, and it’s a good signing by the club, and although it’s definitely a gamble worth taking on such a talent for the season, it is yet another gamble, to go alongside all the other gambles we’ve taken on all the injury prone/unfit players we’ve brought in this summer, and the naivety in the way this season’s squad is being put together is quite frankly astounding.

I’m sure we will make more signings before the end of the window, but will they be the right ones, and how many points will we have dropped by then, due to being short on quality in key areas?

We could find ourselves with a mountain to climb, yet again, due to sheer naivety.

 

[Jaboysmith]

I agree, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and Bate might go on to be a great player for us this season.

However, my point was to highlight the fact that going into the 2nd game of the season, we’ve only improved our playing squad with a player who has had multiple major knee injuries, and a 19 year old, who is completely unproven at this or any senior level, who also has a recall option in January.

Where are the established top league one/lower championship standard players, that we should have been putting in place months ago, whilst getting our squad ready for the start of the season, before then taking a punt on a talented but injury prone player or two, and then loaning these young starlets during the last few weeks of the window?

FWIW, I’m happy to see these kind of young up and coming players coming in on loan from top clubs, and it’s a good signing by the club, and although it’s definitely a gamble worth taking on such a talent for the season, it is yet another gamble, to go alongside all the other gambles we’ve taken on all the injury prone/unfit players we’ve brought in this summer, and the naivety in the way this season’s squad is being put together is quite frankly astounding.

I’m sure we will make more signings before the end of the window, but will they be the right ones, and how many points will we have dropped by then, due to being short on quality in key areas?

We could find ourselves with a mountain to climb, yet again, due to sheer naivety.

Do we know if we can buyout recall clause like we did with Kane

 

[LeftSideBoy]

Where are the established top league one/lower championship standard players

Josh Murphy: Has played in the PL and joined us from Cardiff. Over 100 games in the championship.
Stuart Findlay: Scottish international, over 100 SPL appearances, and has played in the MLS.
Jodi Jones: Played at a higher level.
Ciaron Brown: Full international, and has played in the championship and SPL.
Wildschut: Team of the year when he last played in League One. Played in Europa League. Has played over 70 games in the championship.

That’s where they are.

We all know that the club are working on signing more players. @Symp59 has alluded to a couple of players joining us very shortly. Both good players, and one is better than the other. I’m not going around in circles about the transfer window while it’s still open. It’s been done to death. What will be, will be! The backing is there for all to see, and I trust KR to sign the players that we need.

 

[Foley]

So “Super Sam” will spend the season being deployed all across the back line again, meaning for all his commitment and endeavour, he will be unsettled and his performances will understandably be a little inconsistent, and he will then be criticised for not being good enough, when he once again hasn’t been allowed to settle into one role, and to make one position his own

That said, although I’m confident in Long’s ability, he’s prone to injury, and needs genuine cover for any injuries, and direct competition to push him to his levels of a couple of seasons ago, so a right back is needed, and Sam will need to step up if he wants to retain a starting place.

But we are DESPERATE for a specialist left back, and have been for a number of years, Seddon or Brown are not going to be good enough as first choice.

It amazes me that KR seems to learn nothing from our repeated defensive injury crisis every season due to lack of genuine cover/competition in that area, and poor defensive record every season.

A patched up defence, means inevitably leaking goals, meaning the attacking players need to win us the game every week, which won’t happen.

A rock solid defence allows the attacking players more freedom to flow forward and do their thing, attack.

It’s time he realised that a strong defence is the foundation that successful sides are built on, and he needs to stop naively neglecting that area of the squad, and stock up, so we are ALWAYS able to put a strong back line out, to make us harder to beat each and every week.

I think that KR has a different view than you ( which is fair enough)
And it is his head on the line.
Not sure it is worth people getting worked up about what positions we need. If KR is wrong in the squad he will lose his job

 

[beyondthefourth]

I agree, if you’re good enough, you’re old enough, and Bate might go on to be a great player for us this season.

However, my point was to highlight the fact that going into the 2nd game of the season, we’ve only improved our playing squad with a player who has had multiple major knee injuries, and a 19 year old, who is completely unproven at this or any senior level, who also has a recall option in January.

Where are the established top league one/lower championship standard players, that we should have been putting in place months ago, whilst getting our squad ready for the start of the season, before then taking a punt on a talented but injury prone player or two, and then loaning these young starlets during the last few weeks of the window?

FWIW, I’m happy to see these kind of young up and coming players coming in on loan from top clubs, and it’s a good signing by the club, and although it’s definitely a gamble worth taking on such a talent for the season, it is yet another gamble, to go alongside all the other gambles we’ve taken on all the injury prone/unfit players we’ve brought in this summer, and the naivety in the way this season’s squad is being put together is quite frankly astounding.

I’m sure we will make more signings before the end of the window, but will they be the right ones, and how many points will we have dropped by then, due to being short on quality in key areas?

We could find ourselves with a mountain to climb, yet again, due to sheer naivety.

Just a reminder here that MK Dons, Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday all did plenty of early business, and dropped points on the first day of the season.

No League One squad is complete yet, and all will be missing a little quality in some key areas. Everyone is going to be looking to add before the end of the month.

 

[Mad Dog]

Just a reminder here that MK Dons, Ipswich and Sheffield Wednesday all did plenty of early business, and dropped points on the first day of the season.

No League One squad is complete yet, and all will be missing a little quality in some key areas. Everyone is going to be looking to add before the end of the month.

With respect, there’s a big difference between looking to add before the end of the month, and going into the 2nd game of the season, still in desperate need of filling key positions

 

[tatabanya]

With respect, there’s a big difference between looking to add before the end of the month, and going into the 2nd game of the season, still in desperate need of filling key positions

Do we have a 'desperate need to fill key positions'?

I want us to sign a right and left back, and starting ones at that, but those are the only two positions where you could argue that we need players and it seems like our manager might disagree with regards to a LB.

Some of our fans seem to think we are the only ones short ot players, only ones who players out of position etc, when most fans will be saying the same.

 

[Mad Dog]

Josh Murphy: Has played in the PL and joined us from Cardiff. Over 100 games in the championship.
Stuart Findlay: Scottish international, over 100 SPL appearances, and has played in the MLS.
Jodi Jones: Played at a higher level.
Ciaron Brown: Full international, and has played in the championship and SPL.
Wildschut: Team of the year when he last played in League One. Played in Europa League. Has played over 70 games in the championship.

That’s where they are.

We all know that the club are working on signing more players. @Symp59 has alluded to a couple of players joining us very shortly. Both good players, and one is better than the other. I’m not going around in circles about the transfer window while it’s still open. It’s been done to death. What will be, will be! The backing is there for all to see, and I trust KR to sign the players that we need.

Do you mean Josh Murphy, the player who, by his own admission, has hardly played for two seasons, and isn’t match fit?

Or do you mean Wildschut, the player who, by his own admission, isn’t match fit, and is now out for months injured?

Or Jodi Jones, a player who has suffered THREE major ACL injuries in the last 4 years, and has hardly played any meaningful football in that time?

I will concede the signings of Findlay and Brown are both signings I’m happy with, but out of the rest of that list, Murphy is the only one I’m holding out any hope for that he will come good.

I’d love to be proved wrong about Jones, but can only see another Rob Hall scenario with that one, and time will tell with Wildschut I suppose, although he hasn’t played at any meaningful standard for several years, and is now out for months.

And then there’s Baldock, a very talented player, who has played at a higher level, but a very injury prone player who has been injured pretty much the whole time he’s been here, so I’m not holding out much hope of seeing much more than the odd cameo from him this season.

Then there’s Browne, an awesome player, but nonetheless a player who was pretty injury prone before he wrecked his knee, only just returning after being out injured for a long time after his initial return from his knee injury towards the end of last season.

And then there’s Bodin, and Gorrin….

Can you not understand mine and others concerns?

 

[Paul Cannell]

Do we have a 'desperate need to fill key positions'?

I want us to sign a right and left back, and starting ones at that, but those are the only two positions where you could argue that we need players and it seems like our manager might disagree with regards to a LB.

Some of our fans seem to think we are the only ones short ot players, only ones who players out of position etc, when most fans will be saying the same.

Yeah, we do.

I'd say getting a right back is a 'desperate need', not because Long's not good enough but because a. if we move Brown to LB Long is the only cover for CB and there's no cover for him, b. we need cover for him anyway as he's liable to get injured or carded at some period and c. he's integral as the third CB in a back 3 which we need to be able to play or we'll be very predictable.

I'd say with Baldock likely to miss half a season we desperately need an additional striker to cover Taylor against injury and to give us flexibility.

I think we could do with a defensive full back to support / rotate with Seddon for the sake of flexibility; if we don't get a right back (above) this is a desperate need.


Being a gregarious sort of individual I discuss L1 with a number of Exeter & Plymouth supporters (and a couple of relegated rams) and, rams apart, they aren't saying they're short of players. But they're probably wrong

 

[tatabanya]

Yeah, we do.

I'd say getting a right back is a 'desperate need', not because Long's not good enough but because a. if we move Brown to LB Long is the only cover for CB and there's no cover for him, b. we need cover for him anyway as he's liable to get injured or carded at some period and c. he's integral as the third CB in a back 3 which we need to be able to play or we'll be very predictable.

I'd say with Baldock likely to miss half a season we desperately need an additional striker to cover Taylor against injury and to give us flexibility.

I think we could do with a defensive full back to support / rotate with Seddon for the sake of flexibility; if we don't get a right back (above) this is a desperate need.


Being a gregarious sort of individual I discuss L1 with a number of Exeter & Plymouth supporters (and a couple of relegated rams) and, rams apart, they aren't saying they're short of players. But they're probably wrong

Exeter fans were in absolute meltdown a couple of weeks ago about their lack of business. Didn't make their first signing til 26th July.

I also agree that we need plenty more, but to say we are in 'desperate need to fill key positions' when we'd all be happy with the current incumbents in each apart from LB and possibly RB is pushing it.

 

[SirAndyOfCrosby]

Exeter fans were in absolute meltdown a couple of weeks ago about their lack of business. Didn't make their first signing til 26th July.

Not a good comparison. Not only one of (if not the) smallest budget in the division (not to take away from how well their club is run) but their manager has openly admitted that they are/have struggled to sign players because they (Exeter) are effectively a last resort for players at this level.

"We're probably bottom of the food chain, bottom of the pecking order in relation to bringing players to the football club at League One level," Exeter City boss Matt Taylor tells BBC Sport nine days before the start of the new season.

The same simply can't be said for us - especially now that we are chucking serious money at it. We don't have the excuse of being at the bottom of the pecking order and waiting for whatever is left come August. We have the clout (and respected position at this level) to aggressively go after what we want and early. Granted, we may now be seeing the benefit of this - but we could and should have done a lot more and a lot earlier.

 

[Oxford1996]

Exeter fans were in absolute meltdown a couple of weeks ago about their lack of business. Didn't make their first signing til 26th July.

I also agree that we need plenty more, but to say we are in 'desperate need to fill key positions' when we'd all be happy with the current incumbents in each apart from LB and possibly RB is pushing it.

We are in desperate need for a left back.
Seddon is a major defensive weak-link.

We are also risking it big time allowing Forde to leave with Long as our only right back at the club.

I don’t think there is one Oxford fan who would say we don’t need 2 full backs in if their expectations are play offs minimum.

 

[tatabanya]

We are in desperate need for a left back.
Seddon is a major defensive weak-link.

We are also risking it big time allowing Forde to leave with Long as our only right back at the club.

I don’t think there is one Oxford fan who would say we don’t need 2 full backs in if their expectations are play offs minimum.

Yeah, including me. That's basically what I said.

 

[tatabanya]

Not a good comparison. Not only one of (if not the) smallest budget in the division (not to take away from how well their club is run) but their manager has openly admitted that they are/have struggled to sign players because they (Exeter) are effectively a last resort for players at this level.

"We're probably bottom of the food chain, bottom of the pecking order in relation to bringing players to the football club at League One level," Exeter City boss Matt Taylor tells BBC Sport nine days before the start of the new season.

The same simply can't be said for us - especially now that we are chucking serious money at it. We don't have the excuse of being at the bottom of the pecking order and waiting for whatever is left come August. We have the clout (and respected position at this level) to aggressively go after what we want and early. Granted, we may now be seeing the benefit of this - but we could and should have done a lot more and a lot earlier.

Yeah I wasn't making the comparison, the other poster mentioned Exeter fans not needing more bodies.

 

[Paul Cannell]

Yeah I wasn't making the comparison, the other poster mentioned Exeter fans not needing more bodies.

Mentioned Exeter fans I met not saying they are short of players and I did say they might be wrong Do agree their expectations are low though.

 

[Wallop]

Is Jude Bellingham a ‘kid’ then? Just asking, because at at the age of 18, he’s regarded as one of the best players in the world.

Age shouldn’t define a footballer. If you’re good enough, you’re old enough. Lewis Bate is very highly thought of at Leeds, and judging from the comments made by Leeds fans, he’s too good for our level. Time will tell, but that’s a ridiculous remark.

Indeed - I mentioned him to a Leeds ST holder I know a few weeks ago and his exact words were ‘I’d be amazed if he came to you, I expect he’ll get a first team place this season and keep it’.

 

[Mitcham Exile]

Indeed - I mentioned him to a Leeds ST holder I know a few weeks ago and his exact words were ‘I’d be amazed if he came to you, I expect he’ll get a first team place this season and keep it’.

I also mentioned Bate to my godfather - a Leeds fan (I’d expect a better example). He said he’d heard speculation but didn’t think we stood a chance of getting him. Expects him to stand out in league 1.

 

[Up The U's]

Exeter fans were in absolute meltdown a couple of weeks ago about their lack of business. Didn't make their first signing til 26th July.

I also agree that we need plenty more, but to say we are in 'desperate need to fill key positions' when we'd all be happy with the current incumbents in each apart from LB and possibly RB is pushing it.

And striker and debatably a CDM, so that's 40% of the outfield position, proving his point.

I am bored of the merry go round on here for now, let's get three points tomorrow and have a great weekend all.

 

[ChamonixOx]

We are in desperate need for a left back.
Seddon is a major defensive weak-link.

We are also risking it big time allowing Forde to leave with Long as our only right back at the club.

I don’t think there is one Oxford fan who would say we don’t need 2 full backs in if their expectations are play offs minimum.

We are desperately short of a right back and a left back, but lets not kid ourselves Forde was either, and even in his best possession, good enough.

 

[tonyw]

Do we have a 'desperate need to fill key positions'?

I want us to sign a right and left back, and starting ones at that, but those are the only two positions where you could argue that we need players and it seems like our manager might disagree with regards to a LB.

Some of our fans seem to think we are the only ones short ot players, only ones who players out of position etc, when most fans will be saying the same.

I can see both sides.

If either Sam Long or Matty Taylor get injured early on tomorrow, then we don't have any proper options to replace them.
Whether you call that a desperate sitauation or just a high risk situation probably depends on your psychological makeup! But it certainly needs correcting asap.

But it's definitely true that other teams are in similar boats. Wycome still don't have a senior keeper - they started a 21 year old who had never previously played above Southern League level last Saturday (though he then kept a clean sheet! Probably helped that they were playing Burton......)