So Donny have rejected a ã2.6m bid for Sharp and Coppinger, what do you guys think, should we up it to about ã3.2m and say take it or leave it? For me its good to see that PJ is true to his word and trying to bring players in early!!
What Jason Scotland or the country Scotland Neither are worth alot. Jason Scotland would get around 250K and the country about ã2.50
Think we should prob push the bids up to around ã3m for the pair... Although I did read a post the other day a bout Billy Sharpe tending to fold when the pressure is put on, which would defo hasapen following a large transfer fee...what do u guys think ?
Not surprised they have rejected that offer. When I first saw the offer I didn't think it was nearly enough. As a pair, they would be an excellent aquisition for Town. If you can afford a substantially higher bid it would be worth it in my view.
Agreed, I think its mainly PJ trying his luck to try and grab players at a bargain price early on, ala the reported 750k bid to Dundee Utd for Goodwillie. There are also some (most likely a load of rubbish) rumours going about that Shane O'Connor might be used in an exchange due to a spat between him and PJ over not being used at all in the first team (PJ did pick a 16-old academy player instead of him on the bench).
Scotland can at least put the ball in the net. The formation needs sorting out, the one up front is not happening - sometimes use it but not every game. As for O'Connor, he is a great talent, but he needs to bide his time and work hard and be patient otherwise Jewell will be right to move him on.
The formation really is the key issue to address. Once this is done the manager can focus on which players can stay and which players need to be drafted in. It's clear that 4-5-1 does not work because the midfield and forward line we have cannot cope with the necessity to be fluid in this formation. By this I mean a 4-5-1 is interchangeable with a 4-3-3 and the players need to be able to play both, and be able to switch between the two seamlessly. With Wickham and Carson in the side the potential is there but we would need another player like in the Wickham mould to pull this off from the forwards perspective. This player would ideally be more experienced, strong, good in the air and with ball at feet... essentially a Grant Holt. Then come the problem of the midfield. We need a defensive midfielder who's job it is simply to break up play and pass the ball 5-10 yards to a team mate. Luke Hyam fits the bill but is not liked by the boss it seems. The other two midfielders would be a link to the forwards who would have good passing and work rate and a few goals in them. Norris would have been so good if he'd been given the defensive cover as he's a good attacking player but shoddy defensively. We would also need to have back up in each position and due to this we are not likely, in my opinion, to challenge for auto promotion next season. The play offs would be our best chance and even then we'd be a sure fire bet for Prem relegation. I'd be happy with that though as that'd be 4 years of financial stability and a yoyo club is better than a 10yr Championship club. I hope I haven't ruined this thread but I got carried away and as I can't think of a title I'll leave it here for now. All comments and criticism welcomed
Oh and our defense is proper ****ed now because McAuley has left. Delaney is as useful as the womb of a nun without a strong defensive leader in the team. We're gonna be lambs to the slaughter if Delaney is our most experienced defender.
This makes a lot of sense BillyP and is hard to argue against any of what you say. We have had zero fluidity in the way you describe, which is precisely why 4-5-1 just did not work and Scotland got all the flack (very unfairly). Whilst I do agree with you, I'm not convinced that Norris is a good attacking player but ,that's a moot point now anyway. I'm a little baffled by PJ and Luke Hyam to be honest. He is very effective in that role and we could have used him very sensibly in a number of games in the run in! For whatever reason he is not on PJ's Christmas card list. I sticks in my throat to admit it but, your Grant Holt analogy is spot on - that is exactly the sort of player we need in such a formation. Just please not him......... "He's fat, he's round, he bounces on the ground" !!!
I never liked Norris but he had an eye for goal. Not much use elsewhere though it seems. Maybe he should be a striker?
I never thought Norris was that great, but it was him getting the captaincy that I find most baffling. You need the captain to be playing for the shirt, and for that to mean something to him.
That's another thing we need for our team - a captain. There aren't any in our team by the looks of it. Leadbitter isn't up to the task and I'd say he's the most likely candidate out of who we have. McAuley just couldn't cope with it to be fair to him. He was a lot better once Norris had the armband, but Norris was a strange choice for me too. No obvious choice then, nor is there now.
Does anybody know how long these boys have left on their contracts? If its only 12 months they could be ours for nothing in 12 months time. I'm not saying that we should wait, but it definitely helps our negotiating position. I'd go back with our best offer (dont ask me what that should be) and give them a week or else we move on.
Is it really worth bidding more? It seems to me that prices are always put up when Ipswich come knocking on someones door for a player because they know we have a bit of cash and have been taken for mugs a few times recently. I know strikers are expensive but 2 mil for a championship striker should be enough.
