We now have 4 players signed up. The cost is somewhere around £15 million. Do you think we have got our money's worth? Coatsy, if he can perform as he did at the end of last season, is well worth the price paid. Matthews is a bit of an unknown quantity. Celtic fans seen to like him but he was 3rd choice for them (who have Stokes as a first choice striker). Will he be an improvement on Billy or is he cover for him. Lens, he appears to be just what we want so why was he so cheap. £8 million, although a tidy sum, is no big deal nowadays. Have we made the buy of the season and got a great player or not. We're any other clubs after him. Here's hoping. Kaboul, At 29 he should be at his best. Can Big Dick get him playing to his full potential. I don't care about what was said 7 years ago, we are here now and he's one of us. There's a good player in there and he was cheap. So then, are the mags doing it the right way by buying quality first team players for £14 million or are we doing better buying some players that may get into the first team. Is Lens this years 'marquee' signing or can we look forward to a £10-£15 million player coming in. Will we get Dick van Dyke? My thoughts are that I really don't know what we've got and that we won't find out until well into the season and in my humble opinion our best signing is tying up Cattermole.
Excellent. Worried about the amount of football Kaboul has played but if he stays fit he improves us massively. Very happy with this window so far. Only need a CAM and ST now. I except one might be on loan but I really hope spent big on someone creative, our present strikers don't get enough chances and to achieve true balance in attack we need the right centre point. Mags have plenty of time to strengthen but at present, that one peice of exceptional quality just isn't enough to sort out a dreadful point. Price doesn't dictate quality, other factors do too, Lens wanted to leave the club and Kiev don't have the spending power as some of the Russian Clubs across the boarder, I think they'll be very happy with the price.
IMO - we have bought well under the influence of a solid winner in Dick - as for Williams being cheap - Kevin Phillips - £650,000 (approx) I believe - trust in Dick - he knows how to win but with Sunderland always .. KTF and ETU
We have done well but need to address the creativity problem and get as much pace into the side as possible. That said, a fit Giacc and an in form Johnson would be great, and a couple of flying pigs
Happy so far. I like the fact that the club, after not getting in their 1st target, quickly signed up kaboul. No messing about, chasing after the same player for weeks on end until its too late. good stuff from Cogs there, obviously had a plan.
Cant rreally judge. 2 i know nowt about. Of the other 2.1i think is good business. The other not as imprrssed as most on here. Thats all im saying
I personally think the best bit of business we have carried out was last season in bringing Duncan Watmore to the club .. I, like many others on here, have been watching this lad progress and I am guessing that he may have a big impact this season if Dick gives him a chance .. I think he will be like Maclean but with more pace and a brain IMHO. If Johnson gets into bother (which I hope he doesn't) then Watmore will slot in very well if he can make the leap from reserves to first team.
I'm generally happy. They all seem pretty solid buys and if Dick can mould them into a team we should be a solid mid-table outfit with hopefully a run in one or both of the cups.
This sums it up for me. Just shows how farcical last summer was spending months chasing Borini. Couple more signings, Striker and midfielder, then we can ship out a couple of the deadwood.
I think we`re doing ok. The players coming in look to be better than what we had and improvement was what it was about. Still not finished but it`s starting to look decent.
I would like to see Lens in a 4-3-1-2 formation, playing behind Fletcher and Defoe as he will catch defenders out, Mathews is an attacking defender so they can rotate attacks all over the pitch now. It will be nice to get back to 1999-2000 with this team, plenty of attacking and hopefully 10 home wins, 52 points and 8th -10th in the league. Dick is signing quality players.
We've done really well, for a small outlay. Matthews impressed me greatly in the one game I seen him, Coates was superb last 6 games and will improve further in the side, Kaboul whilst an injury risk has long been a decent footballer and kept fit, for peanuts, a potential asset. Lens, for me, is way more than signing a player of excitement and talent, it's signing a player from a top nation in his absolute prime, from a Champions League club. A clear indication of Dick's standing in Europe, and as a former player a glowing reference that people like to play for the man, an issue we have had with the last 3 managers seemingly. It's also a watermark. In negotiations going forward we can point to 2 Dutch, a Uruguayan and an Italian international in the squad, whichever way you look at it that adds a bit of weight to the club, backed up by great facilities and stadiums and a well known gaffer. I think we have another big one, at least Lens level maybe higher to come, and the forward will be a loanee. I'm expecting another Dutchman in, a CAM, we can dream of Scneider, bit of a long shot, but more likely be someone like Adam Maher or anoher of the excellent, young lads at PSV & Feyenoord. We are better already than last year, in the dispute as well, people are forgetting that Alvarez if he found his feet is another incredibly creative, left sided Argentine international, another player of pedigree.
That Kaboul deal could be an ace up our sleeve when it comes to other deals. Clubs will have seen how quickly we moved on from Lombaerts and might think twice about dicking us about. I'm pleased with our business so far. CAM and Rw to come hopefully Fer - Permanant Januzaj - Loan Can't see us buying a striker unless its a young kid. Can anyone see both Wickham and Defoe on the bench? Not to mention Fletcher and Graham. I think Defoe will get till January to prove he can still do it and Wickham will get till January to prove he can do it If we are baron and they just aren'tcoming up with the goods then I think Short will keep some of the budget aside for a striker in January
I like the fact we are buying players and not loan deals which has been our downfall for the past few years we have to rebuild every time they go back to their clubs. I agree we need a creative midfielder
I think I'd use the word hopeful to describe my feelings about the transfers so far, not quite excited but on the way. Coates is well worth giving a chance after showing he's capable in the last few games last year. Kaboul is a good player but has injury problems, feels like when we signed Brown and I think all things considered he's been a decent player for us over the last few years, so I'd hope Kaboul can have a similar impact Lens is that pace in the final third we haven't had in far too long, hopefully he'll get to grips with the league quite quickly Mathews I'm hoping from what I've read will be a right footed van Aanholt but has to prove himself stepping up a level from the SPL. In truth I think that the next signing is the crucial one someone with a creative spark to play somewhere between the forwards and the midfield grafters, if we get that signing right I'll be very excited with the transfers that we have done if we sign a dud I'll be battening down the hatches for another hard year and relegation battle. Oh and another striker would be nice if we can offload some of the ****e.
