I'm becoming a little worried about our prospects next season given that we've shipped a total of 8 players - a Keeper, 3 Defenders, a Midfielder and 3 Strikers. 2 of those removed from the wage bill were first choice names and there may yet be more key names to follow. In return, our current additions amount to a midfielder and a defender. We saw last season that when first choice players were injured or suspended we didn't have the strength in depth to maintain our top 6 push. I know we have a little over a month of the window left but can we honestly sell ourselves to potential "quality" signings as an ambitious club or are we branding BCFC as a nursery club? The latter will limit our potential signings to youngsters currently playing in the lower leagues only and offers no re-assurance that Bristol City is a club on the move. Please give me confidence that it's all part of a genius master plan.
Southampton are probably the best recent example of a club who were able to sell their assets but also replace them and have success throughout. All players want to play at the highest level they can, so I'm OK with someone coming here with the intention of it being a stepping stone to a bigger club, provided they do the business for us whilst they're here. With all this turnover though, there'll be fierce criticism if we struggle.
A very good question, I had to think this one through. A club can be ambitious and and nuture youngsters coming through surely, I share your concerns about the amount of experience leaving the club , I won't name names but we did have a lot of dead weight hanging about for one reason or another and we have cleared the decks, the 'Crown Jewels' we have let go will more than finance their replacements and we do have a steady stream of quality younger players coming through or at least that is what is stated. If we are to progress we must improve on 11th place, although an advance on previous seasons being outside of the top ten is no achievment, to progress we need quality, the 2 new additions appear to be quality, we now have the finances and the rumoured 'Master' plans are already in motion but now is the time to hold our nerves, have faith in the leadership and await developments. We can't do anything else now but hopefully enjoy the ride and await the news but I can make you a promise if we get into the new season and we return to previous habits there will be uproar from the fans and LJ will be bounced out of the club or we could be carrying him on our shoulders to the promised land if he keeps his word, interesting times.
At present we are bottom six material in my opinion,however hopefully this will change with signings.
Foden on loan for a year would be good!! (unlikely to be that one) - are you thinking of someone specific RP?
Why, you’ve stated many time Taylor is better than Reid. So on that logic we’ve only lost one defender plus a back up defender. But replaced one of the defenders.
He was technically gone last season being on a season loan. Kent and Diony came in January after the injury crises so no need to panic just yet.
Smhbcfc - no player in particular but I remember during the Man City cup ties that Pep admired the way we played. The speculation that followed those games might lead to a Man City squad player coming to us.
The problem is you never played the same way after those Man City Carabao games - whatever happened, your second half of the season tactics would mean you'd be more likely to get players from Millwall. Unless Johnson has got something up his sleeve that you (and everyone else for that matter) doesn't know about, it looks like a major rebuild could be on the cards, and getting that spot on is the skill. Computer generated tactics and measuring the length of the grass is no substitute for manager/player rapport. No apologies for mentioning Warnock again, but the guy built a squad that believed in him and each other - I don't see that across there.
Sparkey - I'm LJ's biggest critic and you may well be right about Millwall but I think you're last paragraph is unfair. Unless you saw last summer a squad that believed totally in Warnock.
Don't quite understand what you mean in that last sentance RP. Do you mean that Warnock didn't get a squad together last summer that believed in him, or that Johnson actually did?
Perhaps I've got it wrong Sparkey but you said Warnock built a squad that believed in him last summer and you may well be right seeing you were promoted. My point is how can you say that our squad (with no doubt more comings and goings) doesn't believe in LJ with still 2 months to go before a ball is kicked.
“Sentence” not “sentance” you baboon. Why do you feel the need to turn this thread into a Cardiff got it right thread again? There was no mention about anything Cardiff before this. Just about Man City and Pep and we all know what he thinks about you lot. So please don’t ruin a thread.
OS raises a good point which has been raised before - Up until the second Man C game we were looking like the perfect team - winning games and playing wonderful football. What happened? Diedhiou returned. That’s the only thing I can think of that actually changed - and that should have HELPED not hindered. In fairness to Diedhiou he resumed scoring straight away - and although our results tailed off and we started playing more ‘direct’ (I’m ignoring the ‘freak’ Villa result) we were still SCORING goals - but we started CONCEDING them whereas up to then we hadn’t. This was with the same lineup at the back which had done so well up to that point. We can criticise LJ for many things (like keeping Flint forward against Wolves grrrr) but mostly our tactic of ‘lumping the ball to the big man’, horrible though it was,actually worked - we scored goals from it. It was our defence that let us down and LJ didn’t change that much at all - apart from dropping Hordur - and tbh I would have too after those embarrassing errors. I saw potential and liked his throw but to me he was always scary! I think the players let LJ (and us) down, but why? That’s the mystery. One of the main culprits was Bryan who seemed to lose interest after we were out of the cup. I think we are TRYING to progress and don’t want to be a ‘feeder’ club for established sides, but if a player wants to go and good money is offered then we don’t have much choice.
Wind your neck in ROD - you're playing the arsehole again. So I made a typo - big ****ing deal you twat. Not ruining a thread at all - nothing to do with "Cardiff getting it right again". This is all about your club and the way it's developed this past season - in fact the way it went downhill. The comparison is fair even if you can't handle it. It's a generalisation and I could have mentioned Neil Harris, Jokanavic or any number of others. "Warnock" is irrelevant on here apart from the point about a football manager building and managing a squad unlike yours that appears to be dismantling it. .
Again?? I’ve never had a problem with your constant hi jacking threads, and I regularly banter with some of the Cardiff posters on here. I just choose to ignore your little digs. Think you’ve bitten a bit hard there or have you been drinking courage?
