I think what Harry is trying to do by looking at players such as Gallas last summer, Neville, Adam etc in January and Friedel now is he is trying to build a consistent, solid, experienced core with proven Premier League credentials. There is an old saying which is that you cannot lose if the opposition don't score, which I have to say I do agree with.
However, you also cannot win if you don't score, which is exactly the situation we found ourselves in at the tail end of this season just gone. Too many draws cost us a top four finish. Remember when all we had to do was beat Blackpool to go third....
What this means is that obtaining players like Friedel on a free and looking at people like Neville etc are good moves, however unless we get 1, 2 or 3 top quality strikers that can score we will find ourselves in the same situation year on year, and without CL football, can anyone blame Bale, Modric etc for looking elsewhere???
For this reason, combining solid, dependable, cheap players like Friedel with top quality, proven players THAT WILL FIT INTO OUR TEAM SYSTEM is essential for us to build a team that does the routine things well and adds some flair for good measure!