I assume it will be said today we were pursuing at least one more incoming but it fell away at the end and we will also look at free agents, blah, blah, 😕
As others have said not losing the ‘names’ we do have does suggest some intent not to asset strip immediately. But, next summer may be different and more at the behest of the players.
I can’t however agree it’s a clear out for the summer when they are only loans for some of the outgoings unless of course their contracts are up then anyway. If they are out of contract then it’s a slightly different story in that we save some cash now on players who were not being used and the hard conversation that would be due in May / June has already effectively been had.
Seems odd that a loan player fails a medical. If we were signing him on a 3 year deal then fair enough. But it was presumably a loan to the end of the season, he’s fit to play now so unless the medical revealed he only had one leg, what’s the issue?
And why leave it until the 11hour when you had a whole month to sign a middle of the road winger? Same as last window with Bonne.
I thought Andy Scott, Gallen and MS we’re working tirelessly to bring players in?
Embarrassing, Holden has lost credibility tonight! The club couldn’t muster a comment, utter shambles. We are lighter in all areas.
Don't think it's fair to have a go at Holden as I doubt he'd have had much influence other than to identify the players who were surplus to requirements who are mainly the costly mistakes of our dysfunctional recruitment over the last 2 seasons. Like his predecessors under this owner he won't have had much influence on incoming transfers. He's on a half season contract to keep us ticking over in league 1 whilst the owner tries to flog us for much more than we're worth whilst cutting costs.
I'll be interested to see if we get the usual transfer window summary piece from Gallen or someone today or if it will be radio silence. Just struggling to make sense of it all beyond cost-cutting. We're left very thin in certain areas and will be relying again on the youngsters to step up before another summer rebuild under whoever is the owner by then.
Feels like every summer is a rebuild to correct whatever signings were made the summer before under a different manager and that needs to change.
But we kept our key players such as Leaburn and Dobson and hopefully improved our 2 weakest areas, getting in Kane & Penney as full backs & Bonne in for Stockley.
Not one player that played on Saturday has left.
I'm not inclined to think that we will be relegated. Assuming that disaster doesn't happen, the real point is who will buy the club (if anyone) and will they be able to move us forward?
The "deadwood" has been removed so a buyer with means is now well placed to do a Chrissy Powell/Varney summer window, but will we be well placed or will we be potless?
The rest such as we have NO players left is just noise.
The voice of reason. The most sensible post of the last day or so
No doubt about it, that’s s lot of unproductive wages off the books - jfc, Mac, kirk, dj, lavelle, and our captain and vice captain pre Holden, Stockley and o Connel - only O’Connell would arguably get in our starting 11 - we have added in the areas needed but jury out re the quality - no doubt thee red books will be looking better, let’s hope that helps a sale and let’s hope the new players are good - got no idea if they are although my son did say the centre half was the one I saw playing for Fulham on tv under Parker and said he will be sacked if he keeps playing him coz he’s awful - however - this is league 1 and all players brought in have champ pedigree whereas the summer a lot had league 2 pedigree - only time wil tell
"Morning Terrell. Look, I know you know I wanted rid of you, but I couldn't because we don't have any other fit or mentally stable centre halves. Fancy 45 mins on Saturday?".........
Went to bed at 10.30 and woke up with all the news I expected other than I though TT was leaving as well, which would have been madness
Not fussed at all on the players that have left and to be able to flip EOC for a fee is decent business on paper as I don’t see him being in Holdens 11 even if his statement was yes man bollocks
IF this is to cut costs to have a proper go in the summer and one of two of these short term options works then I won’t be complaining but we have a tough run of games coming up and things could turn pretty nasty if we lose a centre back or two to injury, it happens as we saw with Wrexham on Sunday
And there is only one way Wrexham knew O'Conell was available. Charlton had let it be known that AT LEAST three of their centre halves were available to buy.
We'll know the truth on Disney + later in the year too!
I doubt Burton, Cambridge and the Wombles are paying a great deal in their wages.
I assume the hope is they impress and they're dumb enough to pay a half baked fee for them in the summer
How much did we pay for those 4? McGrandles a free, but the other 3? Around the million pound mark in total?
Be very lucky to get half of that back
Other than Mcgrandles the rest will all be in the last year if contacts I think, I doubt struggling league one and average league 2 sides would entertain paying anything for them, they'll just be loaned back out again.
Still, Martin did discover Fraser at least, so recruitment ain't been all bad.
I doubt Burton, Cambridge and the Wombles are paying a great deal in their wages.
I assume the hope is they impress and they're dumb enough to pay a half baked fee for them in the summer
How much did we pay for those 4? McGrandles a free, but the other 3? Around the million pound mark in total?
Be very lucky to get half of that back
Other than Mcgrandles the rest will all be in the last year if contacts I think, I doubt struggling league one and average league 2 sides would entertain paying anything for them, they'll just be loaned back out again.
Still, Martin did discover Fraser at least, so recruitment ain't been all bad.
All 4 have 18 to 30 months left to run on their contracts
Just gotta hope that Ness (10 games under his belt) and Inniss (injury prone or red card prone) can stay fit and out of trouble otherwise it's a toss up between two crocked players to replace either. This window COULD come back to haunt us.
Hector hasn't been injured though has he? He was a back up player in his last year at Fulham. Its not a JFC case where he had a serious injury and hadn't played afterwards.
so what has he been doing since last May?
Training for a few months with National League Dagenham
So we have bought in 5 and let a lot more leave. A lot of it makes sense, we had too many players that were nowhere near to getting a game. They have been shipped out, mostly on loan, but the message is clear they aren't required and need to perform to secure a chance to play next season.
The problem is with incomings, one is now injured (will probably miss most of the season) which is bad luck, two have only really played reserve games this season, one hasn't played any match other than trial since May and the only match fit one is already written off by most of you.
Negatives: 1. I’ve been calling for more athleticism in midfield, and our new key signing is only 5‘7“. Fraser, Dobson and Kilkenny are arguably vulnerable against some of L1’s more physical sides.
2. O’Connell was one of our best centre backs, - although if a player really wants to leave, there’s arguably not a lot you can do about it. An injury to Ness or Inniss (and it’s just a matter of time) will leave us exposed at the back. Hector may be a decent replacement, but he’s not fit apparently.
3. Jayesimi is a decent option at wingback, and hasn’t been replaced.
4. We are definitely light up top with only Leaburn, Bonne, and Aneke. An injury to Bonne or Leaburn leaves us exposed, as Kanu may not be ready for men’s football. This is less of a problem if we stick to 433.
Positives: 1. We’ve had a clear out. Although as fans we’d rather have a large squad than a small one it’s undeniable that ours was bloated and full of (sometimes expensive) dead wood. It isn’t now. 2. Kilkenny is supposed to be pretty decent, comfortable playing at a higher level. If he’s a step up from Morgan, that can only benefit the team.
Hmm, I thought the positives list would be longer.
Treble Chance: 1. Hector is a complete unknown to many of us. It’s just possible he’s got a couple of good years left in him? ‘He has played 177 Championship matches in a nomadic career which has taken him from the Hellenic League right the way up to England’s top tier… He had previously been a huge hit for the Owls, winning their Player of the Season award in 2018-19.’ So I’m not writing him off yet. 2. Kane and Penney are total unknowns to most of us. Will wait and see how they get on. 3. I personally quite like Bonne who’s a bit more street-wise than many of our players. Has plenty of energy. Not putting him in the positives column because he needs to prove himself at this stage.
4. There are probably going to be opportunities for younger players to show what they can do, although this can be beneficial to some players, confidence sapping for others. Henry, Kanu, Mitchell and perhaps others could get minutes, maybe others too, if we stay clear of the relegation zone. Hopefully that prove to be a good thing.
Overall it’s not really the window we were dreaming of. Too many unknowns, too little cover in key positions. It certainly wouldn’t be any good if we were in with a shout of the playoffs.
Much hinges on whether there is or isn’t a billionaire behind the takeover bid. It seems unlikely, although I’m not sure it’s impacted on the window, as Sandgaard is still paying the bills.
Went to bed at 10.30 and woke up with all the news I expected other than I though TT was leaving as well, which would have been madness
Not fussed at all on the players that have left and to be able to flip EOC for a fee is decent business on paper as I don’t see him being in Holdens 11 even if his statement was yes man bollocks
IF this is to cut costs to have a proper go in the summer and one of two of these short term options works then I won’t be complaining but we have a tough run of games coming up and things could turn pretty nasty if we lose a centre back or two to injury, it happens as we saw with Wrexham on Sunday
I’m in agreement. For a long time I thought a lot of the players we’ve had on the books haven’t been good enough. I won’t miss a single one, and had I had my way, Inniss would be gone as well.
However, Inniss staying is the rub because to the best of my knowledge, he’s on lower wages than a lot of them. It’s difficult to know who and where the strings were being pulled this window, but given the cost cutting, it’s clear it definitely suits TS, and as you say, is it with a view to new owners coming in (not sure our mystery men are actually going to make a go of it though if they assume control).
TS will be pleased with how that all went, and I’m surprised Leaburn is still here to be honest.
The potential new owners come with a lot of questions and Methven himself is a slimy individual, fronting a bid for the club and taking it off the hands of an incompetent narcissist who in turn owes money to a belligerent old dinosaur. It’s for this reason we are pretty screwed, short and long term.
It’s time for Nostradamus @henryirving ‘s prophecy to come true imo and I think we’ll slowly see Methven slope away leaving a shell run at minimum costs
Well that's that then. With the exception of EOC, the outgoings make sense and the incomings are of decent pedigree although on balance, cost cutting has obviously been the objective.
Hector needs to get himself match fit pronto as Inniss is due an injury and/or suspension. Odd that we have pretty much addressed the full back problem but now weakened CB options (not sure if Mitchell / Elerewe are ready to step up?)
Forward options have also been weakened as CBT and Rak-Sakyi can't play every match. Campbell has looked decent but suspect we will be shuffling Egbo or Sessegnon forward when injuries kick in. Maybe Kanu can get some game time out wide? Bonne will be more useful than Stockley but not exactly a high bar. I don't include Chuks as he is so rarely fit.
Keeping Dobson and Leaburn was crucial imo but without investment and a solid plan now for the summer, next season will be more filling holes and bottom half football.
Change is desperately needed and the thought of parting with my hard earned when the season ticket renewal drops isn't too enticing at present.
If you look at last Saturday's starting XI and subs, only O'Connell out of those that were farmed out yesterday made the squad.
We all thought that some of the under-utilised players would go but I don't think any of us expected all of them to be out of the door and of course O'Connell on top of that is a bit of a blow.
But we also expected some replacements. We've seen before how a promising season (something that this season cannot be defined as) has tailed off due to injuries and loss of form. If that happens from our current position then that could be a major problem.
I'm happy that, O'Connell apart, the main players are still at Charlton but back-up is now worryingly weak.
And at least they should now be able to afford to pay up Andy Scott's six week contract.
Comments
As others have said not losing the ‘names’ we do have does suggest some intent not to asset strip immediately. But, next summer may be different and more at the behest of the players.
all for a clear out and have no problem with 95% of the departures. I'm annoyed (but not surprised) at the lack of replacements.
If we were signing him on a 3 year deal then fair enough.
But it was presumably a loan to the end of the season, he’s fit to play now so unless the medical revealed he only had one leg, what’s the issue?
Feels like every summer is a rebuild to correct whatever signings were made the summer before under a different manager and that needs to change.
Most are loans so they’ll be back in the summer.
Im not too fussed about the outgoings personally, but the lack of quality inbound players, again, is a real concern.
And I don’t buy the line we’re clearing the decks for a summer rebuild. Half the shit we’ve managed to clear is coming back.
Kirk, Lavelle, DJ and McGrandles will all be back.
Not fussed at all on the players that have left and to be able to flip EOC for a fee is decent business on paper as I don’t see him being in Holdens 11 even if his statement was yes man bollocks
IF this is to cut costs to have a proper go in the summer and one of two of these short term options works then I won’t be complaining but we have a tough run of games coming up and things could turn pretty nasty if we lose a centre back or two to injury, it happens as we saw with Wrexham on Sunday
Incomings: D-
Give it up.
I assume the hope is they impress and they're dumb enough to pay a half baked fee for them in the summer
Be very lucky to get half of that back
Other than Mcgrandles the rest will all be in the last year if contacts I think, I doubt struggling league one and average league 2 sides would entertain paying anything for them, they'll just be loaned back out again.
Still, Martin did discover Fraser at least, so recruitment ain't been all bad.
See you at Exeter.
1. I’ve been calling for more athleticism in midfield, and our new key signing is only 5‘7“. Fraser, Dobson and Kilkenny are arguably vulnerable against some of L1’s more physical sides.
1. We’ve had a clear out. Although as fans we’d rather have a large squad than a small one it’s undeniable that ours was bloated and full of (sometimes expensive) dead wood. It isn’t now.
2. Kilkenny is supposed to be pretty decent, comfortable playing at a higher level. If he’s a step up from Morgan, that can only benefit the team.
1. Hector is a complete unknown to many of us. It’s just possible he’s got a couple of good years left in him? ‘He has played 177 Championship matches in a nomadic career which has taken him from the Hellenic League right the way up to England’s top tier… He had previously been a huge hit for the Owls, winning their Player of the Season award in 2018-19.’ So I’m not writing him off yet.
2. Kane and Penney are total unknowns to most of us. Will wait and see how they get on.
3. I personally quite like Bonne who’s a bit more street-wise than many of our players. Has plenty of energy. Not putting him in the positives column because he needs to prove himself at this stage.
Overall it’s not really the window we were dreaming of. Too many unknowns, too little cover in key positions. It certainly wouldn’t be any good if we were in with a shout of the playoffs.
However, Inniss staying is the rub because to the best of my knowledge, he’s on lower wages than a lot of them. It’s difficult to know who and where the strings were being pulled this window, but given the cost cutting, it’s clear it definitely suits TS, and as you say, is it with a view to new owners coming in (not sure our mystery men are actually going to make a go of it though if they assume control).
TS will be pleased with how that all went, and I’m surprised Leaburn is still here to be honest.
It’s time for Nostradamus @henryirving ‘s prophecy to come true imo and I think we’ll slowly see Methven slope away leaving a shell run at minimum costs
Hector needs to get himself match fit pronto as Inniss is due an injury and/or suspension. Odd that we have pretty much addressed the full back problem but now weakened CB options (not sure if Mitchell / Elerewe are ready to step up?)
Forward options have also been weakened as CBT and Rak-Sakyi can't play every match. Campbell has looked decent but suspect we will be shuffling Egbo or Sessegnon forward when injuries kick in. Maybe Kanu can get some game time out wide? Bonne will be more useful than Stockley but not exactly a high bar. I don't include Chuks as he is so rarely fit.
Keeping Dobson and Leaburn was crucial imo but without investment and a solid plan now for the summer, next season will be more filling holes and bottom half football.
Change is desperately needed and the thought of parting with my hard earned when the season ticket renewal drops isn't too enticing at present.
We all thought that some of the under-utilised players would go but I don't think any of us expected all of them to be out of the door and of course O'Connell on top of that is a bit of a blow.
But we also expected some replacements. We've seen before how a promising season (something that this season cannot be defined as) has tailed off due to injuries and loss of form. If that happens from our current position then that could be a major problem.
I'm happy that, O'Connell apart, the main players are still at Charlton but back-up is now worryingly weak.
And at least they should now be able to afford to pay up Andy Scott's six week contract.