My cat has just pranced downstairs and told me we are in for Tom Ince. I trust my cat, she doesn't mess about.
My cat has just pranced downstairs and told me we are in for Tom Ince. I trust my cat, she doesn't mess about.
I feel similarly, although I do wonder if Cortese is just being cautious right now.
Lets think - our First XI and bench (IMO)
Starting: Boruc; Clyne, Fonte, Forren, Shaw; Cork, Schneiderlin; Puncheon, Gaston, Lallana; Lambert.
Bench: K. Davis, Fox, Yoshida, S. Davis, Ward-Prowse, do Prado, Rodriguez.
Can that team/squad get 15 more points, maybe 17 points? I think so yes. The big "if" is injuries.
Probably, but Cortese has made it clear he is aiming higher than 'survival'. If he is serious about that we need to sign more players.
Can that team/squad get 15 more points, maybe 17 points? I think so yes. The big "if" is injuries.
Can that team/squad get 15 more points, maybe 17 points? I think so yes. The big "if" is injuries.
Do we "need" to? This squad threw away 6 points against Swansea, Stoke and Norwich and there is an argument that says the two games against Fulham should have been put to bed as well. That's ten poinst just there. Don't get me wrong, I think we do need to add at least one, maybe two signings, but if we don't then we should still be fairly comfortable early on and ready to push on.
Agreed. If Rickie, for example, or Ramirez were to get injured I think we'd struggle and would certinaly not be able to replace them with the same quality.
Of the bench mentioned, only Yoshida, Ward Prowse and Rodriguez will realistically form part of the long term vision and future of the club so I don't think brining someone/a couple in really upsets the balance at all. Take Fox off that bench and put a potential match winner who can start games when RL needs a rest and it looks far stronger.
No need for another striker, have Rodriguez as lamberts understudy. No point in keeping him if he's not going to play when the big mans injured. You then have mayuka as 3rd choice with the kids getting minutes in cups etc. we only play 1 up top at the moment so can't keep 4 first team strikers and expect them to be happy. Need another attacking midfielder and cb to improve the squad otherwise its just buying to replace our current 1st team. I don't believe jrod is effective at left mid. If guly is out it would have to be Ramirez on the left with Davis or jwp jumping into a 3 man midfield for me.
Think it could be on the cards for us to grab a point. Just hope Rooney and rvp don't start together. Forren and maya to start for me at cb, as I imagine they are our most agile cb pairing, Hoover would get turned inside out by any of their strikers! Great for the stokes etc but united will keep it on the deck which is where he struggles.
Do we "need" to? This squad threw away 6 points against Swansea, Stoke and Norwich and there is an argument that says the two games against Fulham should have been put to bed as well. That's ten poinst just there. Don't get me wrong, I think we do need to add at least one, maybe two signings, but if we don't then we should still be fairly comfortable early on and ready to push on.
Which is why I think that we need a couple more players. Not necessarily to replace any of our starters, but if we're a team with ambitions we can't really afford to be in a situation where we're one injury away from starting Steve De Ridder.
Could argue that we wouldn't be trowing away points like that if we brought a few new faces in.
Yes. If Cortese is serious about his stated ambitions, he needs to put his money where his mouth is. If all our best players were fit all season long and we never gave away any daft goals then we might finish in the top half, but reality dictates that we need to improve our squad.