... but how far away currently do you think david nugent is away from a call up to the england squad?! Ahead of him currently id say: Fraizer Campbell Gary Hooper Peter Crouch Gabby Agbonlahor Jay Rodriguez Harry Kane Dwight Gayle Danny Graham Charlie Austin Grant Holt Then our Nuge!?
Lads just a bit of fun im not saying for one minute he will be called up! But the bbc were asking who the next in line was, with recent(ish) capped strikers left being nuge, bothroyd and kevin davies!! Im aware he is way down, just some fun on how far down the list he is!
Ed, no point trying to have "fun" on this forum, it's becoming overrun with cynical, grumpy old curmudgeons that have next to nothing positive to say about our football club. It's becoming exceeding monotonous.
Im quite surprised on how negative people have been over the summer and even now. In some ways this was our best summer in a very long time. We kept all our best players who are 1 year stronger and wiser then last year. We have also developed a better team ethic. Something which is invaluable and can not be brought. Im pretty positive about us along with a few more and Ed im sure.
We still play in blue, er we are still called Leicester City and not King Power Foxes and erm yeah we are in the play offs!
I'm surprised that you guys are so positive, this isn't a wum but it just intrigues me. When I did some mindless research I found out that you guys have the smallest squad in the division with just 26 on the books and yet some of your fans are still talking more about getting rid of Danns, Konchesky and whoever else more so than bringing new players in, you seriously lack strength in depth and it must be something that your manager and backroom staff are looking at.
Josh, I wouldn't say we are positive on this board, I don't think anyone here expects us to get promoted, or even expects us to reach the playoffs. But we do believe, you have to really...! Expect the worst, hope for the best and all that... Our small squad is due to a combination of Sven and FFP. Where in some squads, you may have three players all on £10k per week, we just have Neil Danns... Why have Konchesky on £25k per week when we have Schlupp AND Bakayogo at a combined wage of £15k!? (I am just guessing these figures, no idea how much Schlupp is on, but Bakayogo was signed on a free transfer after playing for Tranmere, and Nigel is no Sven... ) Unfortunately, I think FFP will lead to smaller squads overall. Saying that, I don't think 26 players on the books is even a small number? How many are on your books? On another note, we seem to be investing heavily in our academy and youth, and one of the (few) positive sides of FFP will hopefully see more youth players come through. I just hope we unearth another gem pretty sharpish (though more Emile Heskey than Levi Porter please...)
Well its the smallest in the league, we have 32. The average is around 33 with Blackburn on 40 and a few others close to it. Anyway, just looking at your squad it doesn't look like you have much strength in depth in a lot of areas to me.
Wouldn't disagree Josh ... we are also carrying players within our 'total' that don't look likely to get a game now whilst the manager has any other alternative i.e Danns, Konchesky, Gallagher and Waghorn ...
Yeah I'm not disagreeing with you, just saying I don't think 26 is a low number. Though like Fosse says, a number of them are nowhere near the first team and aren't likely to get game time. I think strength in depth is our main worry, and the reason nobody is getting carried away after a relatively good start to the season.
We really have a squad of 21 as Danns and Gallagher wont be used much if at all Schmeichel, De Laet, Konchesky, Drinkwater, Morgan, Whitbread, Hammond, James, Vardy, King, Dyer, St. Ledger, Waghorn, Schlupp, Moore, Bakoyogo, Miquel, Knockaert, Logan, Nugent and Wood Others may have squad numbers but I doubt they will play
What is a point of having a large squad that scarcely figures? Quality is more important than quantity. We have a very strong core of about 15-17 players. We have very few (if any) squad players that couldn't step up and do a job. If injuries get so bad we can't accommodate them, we'll simply bring in loanees where possible. Besides, our squad has actually only gone down by one player from last year (I believe it's four out, three in, which also includes loanees in/out). Of those, Futacs and Wellens were virtually useless, Marshall wasn't much better and don't even get me started on Beckford. So none of those are big loses. Regarding getting rid of Danns and Konch. that was (or is, if we're talking loans) under the proviso that we replace them with equal quality for less money - which I believe isn't much of a challenge. While I don't think anyone should "expect" to get promoted from this league, I think we have a great chance. We've started better than last year (in terms of results anyway) and we're a better, more experienced unit. Basically, I "expect" us to do better than last year. Whether that means finishing fifth and losing in the play-offs remains to be seen, but I do "expect" improvement.
