That Camara looked the part for Plymouth last season. He would be my pick.
Unproven beyond L1 at the age of 25 though why wouldn’t we just throw Matete in if that’s the standard we’re after?
That Camara looked the part for Plymouth last season. He would be my pick.
Fair point this, I’ve sung Camaras praises too but if I’m honest I’m basing it on one game v matete where matete ultimately won the battleUnproven beyond L1 at the age of 25 though why wouldn’t we just throw Matete in if that’s the standard we’re after?
Loads of people are doing thatFair point this, I’ve sung Camaras praises too but if I’m honest I’m basing it on one game v matete where matete ultimately won the battle
he was decent against us, certainly nothing special…100%!! He is a decent player but I think he's a top L1 CM, but that's his limit. Its so easy to judge a player when we see them play against us only, it was a cup final for L1 teams playing us so players lifted their game - I dont think Camara is the answer.Unproven beyond L1 at the age of 25 though why wouldn’t we just throw Matete in if that’s the standard we’re after?
This is where you utilise loans. Highly rated prospects you have no chance of affording but their parent club wants regular football.
Good post mate. Out of those Gomes would be the most suited, then Tyler Morton. Hannibal and Devine are great prospect but feel they are better higher up the pitch at the minute. The other player I'd add would be Charlie Savage, I know i've mentioned him a few times, he is a quality CDM, probably the best CDM I watched at that level last seasonI agree with this and you definitely get the talent, but there's a compromise in terms of experience.
Just having a look at some of the Premier League clubs players, here are a few options:
Could Claudio Gomes be our man? 5ft 11 defensive midfielder from Man City, aged 22. Likened N'Golo Kante by his teammates for his efforts recovering the ball (and presumably because he's French and black). He spent last season on loan at Barnsley where he started regularly, but they did get relegated. He was linked with a move to Celtic previously this summer, but that interest seems to have cooled. Given how City were pleased with our handling of Doyle last year, they'd surely be happy for us to take him, and there's potential for a permanent deal if everything worked out.
Alfie Devine might be a special talent. A loan move could be too soon for him as he only turns 18 this week, but he's the already the youngest player ever to play for Spurs after his debut in the FA Cup 3rd round last season. He's probably more famous for his tackle (assault) on Danny Drinkwater in an Under 23's game and the aftermath, but it shows that he's not afraid of mixing it in the men's game. He's a regular in England under age games, most recently being a part of the U19's Euro Championship win this month.
Harvey White, Devine's teammate, is someone we were linked with in January. He's previously played 20 games in League One with Portsmouth and was rumoured to be going out again, before Spurs held on to him in January, letting Alli, Lo Celso and Ndombele all go instead. White captained the Spurs U23's a number of times last season and scored 5 goals with 6 assists in his 18 games. He's expected to go on loan this summer with Swansea and "several other Championship clubs" rumoured to be interested. I'd assume we're on that list.
Tyler Morton has already made 9 appearance for Liverpool across all competitions with a Premier League start amongst them. That being said, he's unlikely to breajk into that team any time soon and a loan to the Championship could be just what he needs. He's been linked to Blackburn but would be a great option here.
Hannibal Mejbri has the lot. A highly rated 19 year old who is gifted on the ball and has 16 international caps for Tunisia already. He's a creative player who has played predominantly further forward, but can play in a deeper playmaker role. He's been linked with a loan move to several Championship clubs and we'd face stiff opposition for him.
There will be dozens more and most that we've never heard of, but any of them would be an interesting option for me. Though most of them are probably top tier loan options for Championship clubs so competition would be fierce.
As many managers and others have already said, this transfer window staying open until the end of August is not helpful, as at least half a dozen games will have been played... a couple of managers mat even get sacked!
We have okay atm, mainly tying down a few players and bringing in a couple that could be useful.
Am I the only one who thinks in order to step up to level of the championship (thinking of last nights game) we need to a lot more?
Excellent post.I think the main reason this goes against the grain of the recruitment model would be the price point. Someone who fits all of that criteria will cost millions. I've no problem with us spending this and improving the midfield, but I think we need to be certain what we want, because we'd be signing our main midfielder. With that in mind, we'd need to know who is essential and who is expendable in our midfield.
For the sake of this discussion, I'm going to make the assumption that Embleton is battling for a front 3 place only and that Winchester is expendable. That leaves us with 4: Evans, Matete, Neil and O'Nein. I'd say Evans experience is vital next season and he's the 1st choice of that 4. I'd have O'Nein as the weakest of the 4. He has his role to play in this squad, but we've invested more in Matete and Neil who have more technical ability.
I've seen some people say they want a back up for Evans who is essentially anchoring our midfield, others say they want someone athletic who can compete physically and dominate (a Matete improvement) and others wanting a playmaker (a Neil improvement).
Looking at the league last season, a lot of the best midfielders are largely out of our reach - Billing, Yates, Rothwell, O'Brien (all in the Prem), Hamer (£10m Premier League interest), Sheaf and Field (both signed for their clubs last season so would be large fees - if interested) and Swift (signed for WBA this summer).
I don't know enough to be able to find the right fit for us, but it looks like it needs some digging through the data from our scouts. Personally, I'd be looking for a 6 footer who is a bit of an all rounder. Evans is a specialist position and I don't think we replace him like for like without just signing a back/replacement. We need a little versatility. Maybe when Evans is out, Neil as a deep lying play maker with Matete and our allrounder to protect him. When Neil is out, we'd be looking at this lad to play the incisive forward balls whilst Matete destroys and we also want him to be a bit of a box to box player in our strongest 3 which would be alongside Neil and Evans.
Essentially, I want Vieira but about 23 years old and for about £3m.
I think Alex Neil knows we need to do more and hopefully we get the players he wants.As many managers and others have already said, this transfer window staying open until the end of August is not helpful, as at least half a dozen games will have been played... a couple of managers mat even get sacked!
We have okay atm, mainly tying down a few players and bringing in a couple that could be useful.
Am I the only one who thinks in order to step up to level of the championship (thinking of last nights game) we need to a lot more?
Excellent post.
I am all for improving the team where we can, but equally I want to see us developing our own young lads. By that I dont just mean our homegrown ones. Take Hume at right back as an example - I dont see any reason to not play him, and develop him, rather than bring in another right back. I know a lot of our players havent played at this level, but in my opinion we have been buying players with this in mind for the last 2 windows, so now is the time to see how they get on. Matete is another who we paid a good fee for and I have no doubt the club policy is for him to play games to develop. A coaches job is to improve players, more than it is to buy them, and you can see how much attention Alex Neil pays to that. Matete needs to read the game better, but a half decent coach will instill that into him.
Overall I wouldnt be rushing to bring in many more to be honest. I would like Broadhead done. I can see the rationale for another centre midfielder, but I think finding an upgrade might be the challenge, unless we dig deep. And I would hate to think we loan one in that stops the development of our own. I'd like a keeper but accept I might be on my own there - maybe when we get a new goalkeeper coach the pressure to do that will grow.
It’s a good post this but I think that if we sign a midfielder we need one proven in this league.I agree with this and you definitely get the talent, but there's a compromise in terms of experience.
Just having a look at some of the Premier League clubs players, here are a few options:
Could Claudio Gomes be our man? 5ft 11 defensive midfielder from Man City, aged 22. Likened N'Golo Kante by his teammates for his efforts recovering the ball (and presumably because he's French and black). He spent last season on loan at Barnsley where he started regularly, but they did get relegated. He was linked with a move to Celtic previously this summer, but that interest seems to have cooled. Given how City were pleased with our handling of Doyle last year, they'd surely be happy for us to take him, and there's potential for a permanent deal if everything worked out.
Alfie Devine might be a special talent. A loan move could be too soon for him as he only turns 18 this week, but he's the already the youngest player ever to play for Spurs after his debut in the FA Cup 3rd round last season. He's probably more famous for his tackle (assault) on Danny Drinkwater in an Under 23's game and the aftermath, but it shows that he's not afraid of mixing it in the men's game. He's a regular in England under age games, most recently being a part of the U19's Euro Championship win this month.
Harvey White, Devine's teammate, is someone we were linked with in January. He's previously played 20 games in League One with Portsmouth and was rumoured to be going out again, before Spurs held on to him in January, letting Alli, Lo Celso and Ndombele all go instead. White captained the Spurs U23's a number of times last season and scored 5 goals with 6 assists in his 18 games. He's expected to go on loan this summer with Swansea and "several other Championship clubs" rumoured to be interested. I'd assume we're on that list.
Tyler Morton has already made 9 appearance for Liverpool across all competitions with a Premier League start amongst them. That being said, he's unlikely to break into that team any time soon and a loan to the Championship could be just what he needs. He's been linked to Blackburn but would be a great option here.
Hannibal Mejbri has the lot. A highly rated 19 year old who is gifted on the ball and has 16 international caps for Tunisia already. He's a creative player who has played predominantly further forward, but can play in a deeper playmaker role. He's been linked with a loan move to several Championship clubs and we'd face stiff opposition for him.
There will be dozens more and most that we've never heard of, but any of them would be an interesting option for me. Though most of them are probably top tier loan options for Championship clubs so competition would be fierce.
Not at all. Neil said it himself
He's a playmaker though, which is what you mentioned, if your going to have Clarke, Roberts, Pritchard , Stewart , and Simms playing you don't need anymore play makers, you need another like Evans to keep it simple and cover for the more attacking playersPritchard isn’t a centre midfielder, he’s a no.10. He shouldn’t be coming that deep to pick the ball up off the defence - if we play him in the middle we’d need a 3rd midfielder in there and to play without a no.10 similar to city’s formation.
Depends how we play, everyone said that on league 1, yet ok once AN came in he proved that you don't need that type of player if you play to your strengths.Not sure how long we've been saying we need that sort of cm athletic and a bit height
He's a playmaker though, which is what you mentioned, if your going to have Clarke, Roberts, Pritchard , Stewart , and Simms playing you don't need anymore play makers, you need another like Evans to keep it simple and cover for the more attacking players
What formation do you expect us to play if we’ve got those 5 on the pitch + Evans and another holding midfielder? 2 full backs and no centre backs?
It’s a good post this but I think that if we sign a midfielder we need one proven in this league.
That's a fair point, but then we'll likely have to go without because there's few around who are available, proven and affordable.