The squad size is interesting - 24 senior players at the moment with 5 more out on loan. Of those, my guess would be that Martin, Wildschut and Jones won't return in the summer. Not sure about Naismith but Cantwell will be back along with Godfrey, Thompson, Morris and Phillips to make 30, though Reed will leave and possibly Loitner (though he could sign on), Gunn, McGovern and Tettey as well. What happens with Wes may well depend on what happens with Maddison. Then there's Mourgos, Middleton, Fonkeu and Abrahams coming closer to the first team, though some may go out on loan. It's going to be an interesting summer.
There are some excellent posts on here, lots of options and lots of conundrums. I too hoped to see Cameron McG break into the squad, I also liked Cody Mcdonald, shows how much I know
As I said in an earlier post, I'd really like to see Fonkeu and Abrahams in the first team squad, with Mourgos and Middleton on loan (can he be loaned out at 18??). It certainly will be an interesting summer. Good post re JM General and if JM stays to the end of the season, then I feel he'll be able to choose which club he moves to - please NOT WetSham/Palar53!!!
I also had a soft spot for him. He tried his hardest. He never really looked like he would make it at the higher ends of football. But I was really willing him on.
Couple of minor rumours in the gutter press, apparently we'd like a young Chelsea midfielder, with Kasey Palmer and Hudson-Odoi linked. Do we need another young midfielder?
I suspect he's staying however, if JM is a last minute swoop from a PL club, does anyone know what if any sell-on clauses Coventry may have up their sleeve? I'm sure as always the deal would have been "undisclosed" but if he does go for 15-20m a decent wedge of that could head back to the midlands too.
Oh, it was last season he was at Huddersfield. Thought he went back there. He’s a cracking player. Yet another midfielder though. On the plus side, he does love to crack a long shot. Which at the moment, Madders is the only one who wants to shoot.
Oliveira’s dip in form means that he is less likely to be transferred this window. Maddison is the only player at the moment who is likely to score so if he goes with an offer Webber can’t refuse then we are stuffed unless the new German striker starts getting goals. Another thought about Maddison was that in the Chelsea FA cup game away he was fairly quiet so the PL may be a step too far at the moment?
I don't know about Oliveira having a dip in form, if you look at his performance since he joined it's more a case of his current level of performance being the norm. Occasionally he's has a period of a couple of good games before returning to his current level. Indeed most of his best performances seem to be when he comes on as a sub. I agree that Maddison isn't ready for the PL yet, although I'm sure he'll get there. I don't think he'll go in this window unless we get a silly offer with a loan back. I'm not even convinced that he's certain to go in the summer.
Bit of a buzz on twitter this morning regarding the homegrown players requirement (7 of 18 in the matchday squad), we had exactly 7 at the weekend so might we see someone who fits the description squeak in to help if there's an injury?
I don't know whether it is just our Club but over the years our Club and Supporters have always seemed reluctant to give youngsters a chance but equally they seemed reluctant to accept that some were never going to make the grade at Championship/Premiership level and let them go. How long did we hang on to the likes of Henderson and the Jarvis brothers before letting them move on to lower League Club to Lower League Club to Non League Club? I believe that one of the Jarvis boys now plays for Kings Lynn along with other ex City youngsters. As a generalisation I believe that unless a player shows ability to perform at Championship level by the age of 21 then he is not going to make it. Maddison, Lewis and the Murphy twins are examples. Toffolo is 23 this year. He has been out on loan for the last 3 seasons to lower league Clubs without making an impact or maintaining a regular starting place at any Club. He was out of contract at the end of the season and there would have been few grounds to offer him a new one. It is only fair to let him move on now to Millwall although the fact that he has only been given a contract by them until the end of the season indicates that Millwall are not over optimistic about his chances. I suspect that next year he will be with a lower league Club following the path of many before him. If his worst fears materialise he might follow Tom Adeyemi - look where that poor sod has ended up!!!
I count 8 last Saturday, but it is a concern if homegrown players get injured. Looking ahead, it's likely that Godfrey and Thompson will be options as alternatives to Tettey. McLean will be a new option at CM. Cantwell and possibly Naismith will be options at AM and Morris and Abrahams perhaps at striker. Even so, the margins could get tight if we recruit more foreign players. I would hope that SW is aware of the danger and planning to avoid it.
You could be right, but as long as he's our player he's a possibility for next season. DF said he was open to Naismith staying so we'll have to see what happens.
