Don't We Usually 'Get Over' These So-Called 'Disasters'?

Ignore my stupidity.

But I doubt anyone would have come in for Barton anyway.

 

We needed a RW anyway. Barton was just plugging that gap. We have enough CM's to cope. Regardless of JB's departure we needed a RW.

 

Supposedly no one had even enquired, so this is just to speed up any move.

 

Thing that annoys me is we are waiting for Enrique to leave before we look at a replacement. Get one now and if he hasnt ****ed off by September then he can worry about it while playing for the reserves. We should have learned from Carroll to pre-empt the sale of a player.

 

Agree with original post to some extent in regards to thin squad - We have lost Nolan + Barton effectively.
However, We have two new signings in Gosling and Ben Arfa. Plus Cabaye, marveux, Ba , Abeid.
I think we are in a better position already than last year depth wise and with another possible
1 or 2 signings things will be looking rosie agan. HWTL

 

I agree - Although I think Barton plugged that gap very well, so I would've been happy for him to continue playing there. Still needed someone as back-up though.

 

HBA is so far looking quite injury prone.
Gosling is proven to be injury prone.

All our signings are untested in the Premier League. Even Ba hasn't proven himself.

 

HBA and Gosling both got injured from horrific tackles and each had a reactionary injury to them, how is that being injury prone?

 

Ba's about as proven as Carroll.

 

Tiote wasn't proven when we signed him?

 

Gosling was out for a year with his knee injury. He came on for 30 seconds, and that put him out for 6 more months?

Ben Arfa got injured from a horrific tackle. And then picked up another injury from a bad tackle. We're yet to see if it will carry on but he is going to get rough tackles. All good players do. Messi gets kicked the **** out of but is rarely injured.

 

Carroll has played a year in the Champ and a year in the Prem, Ba has played 12 games in England.

True but we had enough of a squad to cover CM if it didn't work out. Now we don't.

 

Barton leaving, in itself, would be a just another transfer window disappointment.

The level of concern, I think, is that it makes it is now hard for even the congentially optimistic, like me, to beleive that any plan, or even real desire, exists to improve the team. We won't spend money. We aren't interested in keeping key players. Predictions have gone from a certainty or 2 - 3 further new players to a possibilty of one.

The future looks troubling

 

...and 97 in the Bundesliga (stronger than the Championship).

 

I enjoyed being congentially optimistic, why dont I get to be that. I like to think we have a plan for improvement, just dont see it. Perhaps I must return to being congentially pesimistic as per usual. I had a brief three month break, it was nice, got some reading done.

 

This. I have a nagging worry that Ben Arfa is a lightweight who is going to find the prem too rough. Seriously hope I am wrong and that he has just been unlucky ... twice!

 

How many times on average did Robert play a year... I bet Ben Arfa is the same... 20 to 25 a year if lucky

 

I imagine the plan is to get the club to a stage where our wagebill is in line with other midtable clubs, our academy supplies us with first team players and we stay relatively competitive in the premier league, making big profit on any young talent who may impress in black and white.

We then get to the stage where our debt (to Ashley) is next to nothing (through him absorbing transfer fees recieved) and we either start spending on established players to push for the Europa league OR Ashley sells a very stable club with a fantastic fanbase, making a small profit and leaving.

I think MA's main target is to make his money back whilst keeping us in the top flight. I don't see him forking out more money to push for Europe though naturally we must be given that hope. This plan will take a few years at least so he needed someone who would help things go smoothly, Pardew. I feel he's definitely got what it takes to turn us into a midtable club without spending too much.

Ashley is a businessman so it's daft to expect any sort of passion to come from him, he needs everyone pulling in the same direction so using Barton as a very public example he is wanting to remind players who's boss. I don't think we'll see great things under him but the longer we're unsettled, the longer it'll take him to make his money back and sell the club. He is setting the club up for a fresh start, this may see our playing staff diminish in quality but our books will look fantastic to any potential investor.

 

Yep Robert played 129 times for us over 5 years so if Ben Arfa can do the same that would be good...