[Brighton] RDZ post-match

[Springal]

I think that's harsh.

We know what's missing - width - and at the moment we have 5 players injured/away (Mitoma, March, Enciso, Ansu Fathi and Adringa) all of which would add to the team.

As far as DCM is concerned, let's see how Baleba progresses - let's remember what some fans first thought of both Biss and Moises...

It’s true though. We are quite an unbalanced team this year - stacked in some positions desperately crying out in others

The club near after January that Caicedo & Mac were off and we don’t appear to have addressed either properly

 

[Uh_huh_him]

West Ham apparently in the process of agreeing a loan deal for Kalvin Philips, to help keep them in the European spots, would seem to be a sensible piece of business.

 

[Wozza]

West Ham apparently in the process of agreeing a loan deal for Kalvin Philips, to help keep them in the European spots, would seem to be a sensible piece of business.

For a £7m loan fee though?!

 

[Uh_huh_him]

For a £7m loan fee though?!

I think we are paying similar for Fati aren't we?

 

[Wozza]

I think we are paying similar for Fati aren't we?

For a full season.

Not clear if the Philips fee actually includes wages. Guess it must do.

 

[Machiavelli]

For me the sqaud is unbalanced. Having ‘numbers’ isn’t enough.
For example we have almost unlimited number tens (Gross, Lallana, Pedro, Buonanotte, Fati, Ensico) but no PL ready defensive midfielder.

We have four/five centre halves all at a high level but no fit right winger.

All this talk of having two many first team players if we signed a few misses a key point. You really want two players competing for each position, we have positions where we have none.

Fair enough, but I think you're missing a key point: it's not your or my money; RDZ was involved with or consulted about recruitment over the summer and presumably was keen to get Dahoud, Baleba and (pushing it a little) Milner in -- all of which (have) play(ed) CM; and if we want a 'PL ready defensive midfielder', it'll cost a fortune in Jan, and will probably require moving a player (or even two) out -- and said players may resist such moves.

 

[Machiavelli]

It’s true though. We are quite an unbalanced team this year - stacked in some positions desperately crying out in others

The club near after January that Caicedo & Mac were off and we don’t appear to have addressed either properly

What like wingers?

 

[Uh_huh_him]

For a full season.

Not clear if the Philips fee actually includes wages. Guess it must do.

Yeah possibly -

I'm not saying we should do something similar, but there are plenty of clubs that do.
The club's recruitment strategy is beyond reproach of course.
But I can imagine RDZ might be frustrated when there is (seemingly) no replacement for March, knowing he would be out for the rest of the season.

 

[Milano]

The transfer window is still open for another week......
I have a sneaky feeling we will make at least one signing before 1st Feb and I'm normally gloomy when it comes to those types of sneaky feelings! Based on nothing really apart from Bloom/Barber in recent interviews have not specifically ruled it out and nor have their usual media mouthpieces. By now Naylor or Owen would be publishing that the club are very unlikely to do any more business, and they're not doing that yet. It's actually very quiet.

 

[tigertim68]

Rewind a month ago .... RDZs ambitions are top 4. He said if we sign first team ready players we could achieve that. If we didn't we are a top 10 club. The club and his ambitions don't align at this point. Maybe he feels he's already outgrown us.

I love the guy but I'm sure theres other top managers out there and bloom knows that too.

Like whom ?

 

[tigertim68]

Unless he’s somewhere like Man City or Chelsea then he’d better get used to that. There aren’t that many clubs who can afford to just go out and buy what the manager wants. Look at Arsenal for example, they need a striker but with FFP probably can’t afford to get one.

Arsenal spent over £100 million on rice , they also signed 3 or 4 other players in the summer as well

 

[tigertim68]

I agree I don’t think we’ll get anyone in this window, but i don’t think squad size is necessarily such an issue as people are making out. Dahoud is clearly on his way out, and I’d be very surprised if Lallana goes beyond the end of this season. Fati will probably go back to Barca/on somewhere else at the end of the season. So there are some spots available. An athletic DM (replacing Dahoud) and a winger (replacing March for now, and then Fati next season) seems like what RDZ probably wants. But availability (at a reasonable price) is probably a bigger stumbling block. Kudus would have been ideal…

Absolutely. It's clear we were a winger, DM & fullback short going into the season.

I do like how we sign these wonderkids, but i think the club are a bit too reliant on them when they are just not ready to be important players.

I entirely agree about we short of a fullback , DM , and a winger at the beginning of the season and nothing has changed
people seem to think all the injured players will come back and hit top form straight away , I fear they will want at least 3 games to get their match fitness, , I can see us playing with a fit full strength team trying to achieve a top 10 place , by the time they are all fit
our chance of European football gone

 

[tigertim68]

Saying what was spent in the Summer ignores the fact that when he took the job the team he looked at included Mwepu, Trossard, Mac Allister, Caicedo and Sanchez. Have they been replaced adequately to his mind?

We have never replaced Mwepu

 

[chaileyjem]

I entirely agree about we short of a fullback , DM , and a winger at the beginning of the season and nothing has changed
people seem to think all the injured players will come back and hit top form straight away , I fear they will want at least 3 games to get their match fitness, , I can see us playing with a fit full strength team trying to achieve a top 10 place , by the time they are all fit
our chance of European football gone

Well we're 7th so in the European places for next season. Our next games are against Luton, Palace, Spurs and Sheffield Utd. Ansu Fati and Adingra (barring some v.strange results in AFCON later today) will be available for us for the first two of these games. Mitoma will be available for Sheffield Utd or earlier if Japan are knocked out of the Asia Cup. There's also a good chance Enciso will be getting minutes by then as well. Our chance of European Football is hardly gone. Anyway we're going to win the Europa League so we'll be fine.

 

[chaileyjem]

We have never replaced Mwepu

Do we ever replace anyone ? We make signings or bring young players through that are very different and - as required by RDZ - can play in multiple positions. Have we ever replaced Glenn Murray or Trossard or Ben White or Maupay or Dan Burn ?

 

[Paulie Gualtieri]

For a full season.

Not clear if the Philips fee actually includes wages. Guess it must do.

Was quoted as apparently now £5m fee and 70% of wages and short obligation to buy window in June

Pinch of salt if accurate, I guess the fee upfront is essentially the depreciation

 

[Littlemo]

Arsenal spent over £100 million on rice , they also signed 3 or 4 other players in the summer as well

Yeah but my point is they still think they need more, Arteta wants a striker and I think another left back. They probably can’t buy them in January, so all managers have to get used to not getting all the players they want, when they want them.

It’s not as though he wasn’t backed, we brought in Dahoud (who was said to be his choice) Fati, Balaba, Igor, Joao Pedro - nearly all have gone into the first team and done well.

 

[chaileyjem]

For me the sqaud is unbalanced. Having ‘numbers’ isn’t enough.
For example we have almost unlimited number tens (Gross, Lallana, Pedro, Buonanotte, Fati, Ensico) but no PL ready defensive midfielder.

Our man of the match yesterday was a defensive midfielder and he's started 15 games this season.

 

[Jimmy Grimble]

Well we're 7th so in the European places for next season. Our next games are against Luton, Palace, Spurs and Sheffield Utd. Ansu Fati and Adingra (barring some v.strange results in AFCON later today) will be available for us for the first two of these games. Mitoma will be available for Sheffield Utd or earlier if Japan are knocked out of the Asia Cup. There's also a good chance Enciso will be getting minutes by then as well. Our chance of European Football is hardly gone. Anyway we're going to win the Europa League so we'll be fine.

I admire your positivity but there’s still more chance of Ivory Coast staying in AFCON than going out in the group stage.

 

[dwayne]

Like whom ?

Ask tony bloom I guarantee he will have a list. Had you heard of RDZ before he joined us?