Yep. Maybe I'm a dinosaur but I like to see a midfield enforcer on the pitch. Doesn't have to have that much skill( Ash) but when you're under the cosh you need a battler breaking up the play. Won't score any goals and won't get any glory but come the end of the season might be worth half a dozen points through sheer grit and graft when hanging on for a win or a draw.
I have to agree, I think we need someone to get amongst 'em when we need a lift. Apart from the lack of a regular goalscorer that was the other thing that was clearly missing at times last season. That sort of player often gets others up and at 'em as well and some of our current players need a spark to give them an edge to their game.
Hull City and Fulham are leading the £2m race for axed Sunderland midfielder Lee Cattermole. (Source: SkySports)
I think it will be in their favour. He may have worked with Bruce before, but they are an established Premier League side and will likely offer a higher salary.
I take the point about Cattermole "getting amongst them" in the midfield and how important that can be but I was talking to a fella I work with the other day who said that - at least from his observation - Cattermole comes across as "sound and fury" as opposed to actually achieving much. I guess the point being that coming across as an intimidating figure, making late challenges that don't actually win the ball and getting sent off, is not as important as winning the hard ball and doing constructive things with it. I stress that this was an opinion shared with me and I don't claim to know enough of him to properly comment but if Palacios is capable of breaking up play, which is primarily what you want from a defensive midfielder along with a bit of creativity, might he not be a better bet?
HDM state that we'll only go for Palacios if Stoke release him for nothing. £6million 2yrs ago is a lot to shell out for no return so I'd have thought that unlikely even to get his wage off the bill. Personally I think he's worth £1.5 to £2 million of our budget.
The problem with Palacios, is he's got a year to run on a £40-50k a week contract, I'm assuming that's why we're not prepared to pay a fee, we'd have to get him on a free and offer him a longer deal on a lower wage.
HDM same article states 2yrs left (Transfermarkt confirms) and that he's on £26k per week but still it'd take all if that £26k to get him here and for Hughes to genuinely not fancy him.
He has got two years left, I can't count(signed a four year deal on 31st Aug 2011), but I don't believe the wage, he was on £60k a week at Spurs and there was a load of fuss at the time about him having to take almost a £20k a week pay-cut to move to Stoke.
