Naylor has 10 suggestions for the Albion..

[DavidinSouthampton]

We need players who can kick the ball better than the ones we've got

What about heading? That can be quite important, too.

 

[GT49er]

10 suggestions? Seems more like three to me, really .......







...... spend, spend, spend!

 

[spence]

A totally accurate article, but an element of stating the obvious about all of it. Anyone on here with half a brain would have come up with similar.

Exactly how i read it

 

[Surf's Up]

No 7 - get the business done early, thus simply won't happen. We are only a moderately attractive club for potential players ( and this season hasn't helped), we negotiate hard deals, agents will be advising any half decent players to wait because better offers will come in, and they do, and hey presto ... we lose out.

 

[CheeseRolls]

I wonder how significant it will prove that our season has ended a month earlier than usual? Play-off teams tend to focus their energies on the promotion battle as opposed to getting contracts sorted out.

It's hard to disagree with a lot of what Naylor is saying there, and it pretty much involves wholesale playing changes. I think that extra month might prove handy!

It's also hard to underplay the dual distractions last summer of getting the academy status sorted in record time and resolving the managerial situation. This summer there may not be a large pot for transfer fees, but there is plenty of scope on salaries assuming we release so many of the deserving causes, that have not delivered this season. We have stability, time and money to spend, let's hope they use it wisely.

We do seem to have a reasonable age balance in the squad, aside from leadership, the one aspect we are crying out for is more pace. We don't create enough chances and when we do see a player break with pace, he usually has to check, stop and wait for the wheezing asthmatics to catch up.

 

[grummitts gloves]

We've got to maximise the fact that we have an experienced Championship Manager in place already. The board have got to back him financially. Season ticket renewals are pretty good considering, so the board know how much they have got to top the budget up by. Let CH identify his targets, not Directors of Football or whatever he's called and do his transfer business early, not the usual Albion rummaging around the bargain bin in August. Those players with contracts up need to go asap. Sort out which players CH wants to keep, loan out and get it done. No excuses of any distractions, as the academy is up and running and we haven't got a Manager who wants away. Fair assessment by Naylor, yes it's obvious but it's good to see it in black and white in the press.

 

[Turkey]

I seem to remember the issue with getting things done early is that it means you may have to compromise on your main targets. If you want your number 1 target, you may to have wait. That's what happened with Clayton last summer wasn't it? You might not always get them but the last minute panic buy can be just as bad as the first minute easy buy. I don't think there is ever an easy or obvious or perfect way to do the business unless you have silly money. Otherwise, everyone would do it.

Playing the long game last summer on Clayton didn't work, but would we have been better off signing someone not as good as him early on? Besides, you often get a few very good options come available in the final weeks when the Premier League sides have to trim their squads or the free agents get that little bit more desperate to sign for a club. Don't get me wrong, like any fan, I'd love us to make brilliant signings early in the window but just because it didn't work out last summer doesn't mean that's a totally flawed way of working.

So basically, I don't think we should get in a tizz over when they sign, just hope the quality is better this time around when they do sign.

 

[Turkey]

Looking back over the past 3 seasons and this one why can't TB and PB see a clear pattern emerging that to finish in the top 2 or go up via the play offs you need to play 2 strikers up front and in some games go for it and sacrifice a midfielder with 10 minutes to go and bung on a third striker.

Quite a few sides doing well with a 3-5-2/5-3-2 formation these days. Could see something like that working for us. Could have Baldock up front then and see what he can do.

 

[Sheebo]

I agree with every point and it's a good article - credit where it's due. I agree with [MENTION=20342]Surf's Up[/MENTION] re point 7 though - if only it was as simple as 'get the business done early.' We will get some done and try to get it down as early as poss but for 2 reasons there will still be late August business and we won't have our squad assembled completely by the start of the season:

A) Clubs like us have to play hard ball and get the best possible deals and if that means holding out and waiting than tough luck. Annoying for us but impossible not to do so especially with FFP etc..

B) Like a chain of houses selling, it often takes 1 or 2 big deals to set others into motion and this is why so many deals are done on deadline day...

 

[BensGrandad]

Well CH's job really starts now. Next few weeks he has to decide who is for the Spanish Archer, who he wants and to persuade the bods upstairs pretty much regarding the 10 points of common sense stated here.
Good luck Chrissy boy.

IMHO he has had he time and opportunity to have and watched everybody and done this already so would expect an early announcement of the retained list possibly week. after the Middlesbro game

 

[Sheebo]

I wonder how significant it will prove that our season has ended a month earlier than usual? Play-off teams tend to focus their energies on the promotion battle as opposed to getting contracts sorted out.

It's hard to disagree with a lot of what Naylor is saying there, and it pretty much involves wholesale playing changes. I think that extra month might prove handy!

Also, not having to look for a new gaffa will help...!

 

[Black Rod]

Wonder if Naylor will be getting a tweet from Stockdale blindly denying that he has made any "costly mistakes" in the near future?

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

And at least two of those - either of which I'd welcome for next season - are loanees.

You mean Bamford, and Jones I guess.

Vossen is also a season long loan I think

 

[Bladders]

What about heading? That can be quite important, too.

That will have to wait till the January window.

 

[B.W.]

Obviously it would be nice to improve recruitment effectiveness, and no doubt TB feels that a lot more than you and I, given that it's his money that's been pissed up the wall. But that's not what Naylor was saying. To buy better was too obvious even for Andy to point out (that's not a dig at you BtW). As for loosening the purse strings, how much do you think TB should be happy to lose next season, and what do we do if not promoted, having broken the FFP rules? Because we definitely can't do what Naylor says without breaking FFP rules.

I think we can spend up to the FFP limit (with better recruitment effectiveness) and do what Naylor says. Let's face it, the only way Tony will recoup ANY of his generous and vast investment is if we invest enough to hit the promised land.

 

[B.W.]

No 7 - get the business done early, thus simply won't happen. We are only a moderately attractive club for potential players ( and this season hasn't helped), we negotiate hard deals, agents will be advising any half decent players to wait because better offers will come in, and they do, and hey presto ... we lose out.

... which is why Tony has to loosen the purse strings, so it will happen...

 

[Baaaald]

It's all pretty obvious stuff. Just disappointing that the people that actually need to action these points either don't see them, haven't got the clout to do it or can't afford to!

 

[B.W.]

I seem to remember the issue with getting things done early is that it means you may have to compromise on your main targets. If you want your number 1 target, you may to have wait. That's what happened with Clayton last summer wasn't it? You might not always get them but the last minute panic buy can be just as bad as the first minute easy buy. I don't think there is ever an easy or obvious or perfect way to do the business unless you have silly money. Otherwise, everyone would do it.

Playing the long game last summer on Clayton didn't work, but would we have been better off signing someone not as good as him early on? Besides, you often get a few very good options come available in the final weeks when the Premier League sides have to trim their squads or the free agents get that little bit more desperate to sign for a club. Don't get me wrong, like any fan, I'd love us to make brilliant signings early in the window but just because it didn't work out last summer doesn't mean that's a totally flawed way of working.

So basically, I don't think we should get in a tizz over when they sign, just hope the quality is better this time around when they do sign.

It is VITAL we have a squad in place before the pre-season matches kick-off. We simply cannot afford to make the exact same extremely stupid mistake we made last summer. Sorry, you are very much under-estimating the importance of getting players in early to allow the team / squad to gel. Pay them and they will come...

 

[jamie the seagull]

Vossen is also a season long loan I think

Whilst watching the Norwich v Mboro game on Sky last week they mentioned that Mboro had NOT taken up the option of purchasing Vossen.
He looked useful but went off with what looked like a nasty injury..

 

[BrianWade4]

Good article