We picked up a few knocks again yesterday. Star man Conor was hobbling. Jonny Williams looked subdued as he was helped off round the side of the pitch.
An impressive 19,400 yesterday Derby didn’t quite sell out, and there was a fire drill in the away end after the third goal.
Great saturday. This team just keeps getting better and better. Bowyer seems to have instilled a team ethic most teams would kill for. It's a great time to be a Charlton fan to be honest, owner aside, but I get an itch when I talk about Lee Bowyer - he should be negotiating a four year contract with us right now. I guess the downside at the moment from saturday was that a couple of the players came off hobbling. given we will be trekking down to Bristol on wednesday, where another tough test awaits. But if we can keep this momentum going, I guess we can start to look at what the teams at the top of the table are doing, and aim to nip into the play offs. I never thought we'd be doing that back in august.
Good summary Ken, but personally I think another Duchatelet January will derail us. We need to be at the 30 point mark by 1 Jan, as an insurance policy against this. That way we can limp through the second half of the season if necessary and get the 52 points that should guarantee safety. Nobody thought we would be 7th at this stage - it’s a massive bonus. It’s very hard (impossible) not to see Taylor leaving in January for any fee - where’s the new contract offer to him, you Belgian prick ?? , and Cullen is likely to be recalled - sold by WH ?
A lot depends on whether the Brighton pair come good or not. The signs are not good atm, especially Hemed, but you never know. I'd also expect Bowyer &co to have contingency plans for if we lose Cullen and Taylor.
I did hear on CL that Cullen has been offered a new deal bu WHU, which could keep him with us to the end of the season, as it means they don't need to sell him to avoid him walking for free, There was also a mutter that we will be shaking the squad in january as a couple of the signings haven't been up to scratch. Personally, I loathe january windows, as we never seem to do anything other than damage ourselves then, but I guess we'll have to wait and see.
He has been offered a new contract but I presume the money is not up to what he wants, therefore he will not sign it.
Taylor will leave for a token fee in January - £500,000 max. Every club in the Championship will be trying to induce him, knowing his contract situation. The likes of Norwich & Watford in the Premier League might be having a look as well. The only way to keep him is to offer him £10,000 a week plus for 3/4years, and a signing on fee. Taylor is nearly aged 30, and after a journeyman career this is his last chance of a payday. And under this owner, there is precisely zero chance of that happening.