7/10. Feel we need to find a way to get Ladapo sharp and fast.
Coventry a good signing. Ramsey no idea. Gillesphey looks decent if fragile. REG looks more like a winger than a defender for me.
The outs - CBT is a loss, but he really impacted how we played. It was through him or bust. Without him the squad has to figure out multiple ways to play.
7/10. Feel we need to find a way to get Ladapo sharp and fast.
Coventry a good signing. Ramsey no idea. Gillesphey looks decent if fragile. REG looks more like a winger than a defender for me.
The outs - CBT is a loss, but he really impacted how we played. It was through him or bust. Without him the squad has to figure out multiple ways to play.
It also has to figure out how to make and score goals as we were very reliant on him for this apsect.
Happy to have got rid of the deadwood. There's a lot of names I'm relieved never to have to see again. Sorry to see CBT go. Quietly hopeful about the incoming players. I particularly like what I've seen from Bakinson and Coventry. Happy to give the others a go.
7. Quality brought in seems an upgrade on what we had. Nailing our colours to not playing wingers is an interesting choice and we could probably do with a 10. However, can see Kanu & Ladapo up top with May in the 10 for some games which could work. Once the CB's are match fit I think they'll improve us. Bit disappointed not to be able to get rid of Fraser/McGrandles permanently but their loans balance the squad well.
January is a hard window to strengthen in and it doesn't look like we got tempted into paying over the odds for anyone which is a positive sign. Good building blocks for the summer window
7/10, a lot of players that people on here wanted rid of, went. Some good young players came in, like Posh do, again many wanted this. Some we will have to wait and see. Cannot remember so many in and out in one short window. I may regret my score, either up or down, but we will not know until end of season. Let us sit back, fingers crossed and wait and see, and hopefully enjoy the rest of the season.
I will give it a 7. That score may go up or down depending on how we get on under Jones.
Realistically Coventry and Ladapo were the best signings we could have made in this window imho. Edmunds Green and Ramsay also looks like interesting signings
I would have liked a replacement for Fraser ( Joe Powell at Burton?) and another left footed Wing Back.
Obviously it's very early to judge these things, but here goes:
The Good: The players we brought in are largely good additions, and in the case of Coventry, Gillesphey, REG, and Ramsay not just for this year but hopefully for the future. Three of them are 23, and all seem to have the ability to become better as (hopefully) the rest of the team does. Ladapo adds quality and depth up front. Bakinson looked better playing deeper in midfield at the weekend but going forward he looks like a poor man's Camara. Fiorini definitely has quality but he's nowhere near fit so that remains a strange one.
The bad: we lost Fraser and CBT. I get that Fraser was having a poor season, but he scored nine and assisted five last year. Who in our current midfield looks like they could do that? He wanted to be closer to home, and you should honor that (even if it's a week late), but he wasn't really replaced, certainly not with a fit player. CBT was inevitable, and getting something for him now rather than nothing for him in the summer is the wise move. But that's eight goals and eight assists we just lost, not to mention our most creative outlet by far. Him moving on does finally allow us to do what we've been trying to do for three windows now: switch to 3-5-2.
But that brings up another problem: is there enough quality, depth, and creativity in the wide areas in this team? We saw Appleton switch to a 4-4-2 diamond when chasing the game against Burton. We didn't look great going forward on Saturday until Watson and Kanu came on. I get that a new coach can definitely help that, and Camara and Aneke coming back can make a massive, massive difference, but I think Ladapo and May are going to find themselves isolated and this team will struggle for goals which used to be its strongest suit.
Also, Asiimwe and Anderson not going out on loan feels like a miss. Obviously could happen with the National League, but with Anderson, we have like eight other central midfielders, we can take the risk of not being able to recall him. I get that there might not have been interest there, but still, it felt like FB and CM depth was also important to allow them to go out on loan.
The difference between this and the player rating scores is that this is being done before we see how they perform rather than after. So, not as transparent. But, on the face of it I would give it a 7/10. If they produce the goods that could go up to 9 but if they don’t it could go down to 4. I don’t think the latter will happen but just putting it out there. Overall, on the face of it I think it was a good window.
People get excited by bringing 8 players in, which is above average, but the reasoning for that was we needed more new players than virtually everyone else. As it turns out we’ve let 8 go so we’ve not strengthened in numbers but we hope in quality.
Going into Jan 1st there were three main things that needed addressing
1. we cannot keep a clean sheet 2. we had not a fit player who could keep the ball further up the pitch 3. creatively we were very limited and reliant on one player
As the month progressed, you could add a fourth that we keep conceding late goals.
There’s been 6 games since the start of the window and we’ve made no improvement yet with point 1. Players have been signed now to improve the defence but we are into February now and we’ve not seen any fruition yet for that. Jury out.
Weve not seen any improvement yet with 2, and have basically wrote this off until Miles or Chuks reappears and hope that Ladapo can get fit and gel with how Alfie should play in the interim. Jury out.
3. We have weakened as we have let that one performin creative player go and not replaced them.
So it’s a big unknown for me. We’ve made 8 signings yet for me a fit Miles or Chuks will be well ahead of any of them, so that’s a bit disappointing. People are very positive on Coventry but there’s a big overlap with Dobson there, and Dobson wasn’t a weakness area we needed to urgently address.
Come summer, we’ll still have Fraser and Mcagrandles back taking up squad places and wages and will be difficult to shift off with a year left on contract.
No point in rating a transfer window at this stage, you can only do it in hindsight. Our 21/22 window is a good example. Plenty of people moaning that Dobson was an unwanted player at Sunderland, and on paper the worst summer signing of that window was CBT, a League 2 reject. It didn't matter though, because he was just going to play backup to our best signing Charlie Kirk. Couldn't wait for all the assists he'd provide to our other marquee signing Jayden Stockley. And we got our old mate Leko in, he'd been great for us at Championship level so this was a coup. We were pretty happy with Chuks and Fraser in January as well. Payne and McGrandles were the big hopes the following summer and Kilkenny was the new Kinsella for 5 minutes the following window.
We'll be able to assess how good this window was next window
I have a big question and I don't have the answer to it yet. But if you look at our midfield and defence post window, are are they going to chip in with the goals and assists CBT gave us? And that is for a largely failing team. I suppose, they don't have to if they plug the goals, which dictates the other question.
5/10. Given as we seem to have signed players who are not match fit and most definitely rusty. When we needed players whare up and running g from day 1. None seem to be capable of playing the midfield creative role or the wing back role.
I opened this thread expecting it to be like the rate my plate thread. I was expecting PVC-u side hung windows, timber framed top hung and aluminium secondary glazing
I'll give it a 6. Mainly because as always I know little about the six incomings. And none of us have a good idea how they will perform in a CAFC shirt even if we think we know a bit about them.
On the other hand, we have managed to offload a fair old bit of chuff.
In Perm - Coventry, looked decent then he was injured/concussed! Gillesphey, the bar for Charlton defenders is so low as to be ground level at best, hard for him not to raise it - not seen enough yet to judge Edmonds-Green, too soon Ward & Ramsey unseen
Loans - Bakinson moments to suggest he's adequate but long periods of inaction/invisibility in his games so far, Fiorini - looks like he's with us to recover fitness and he must be a long LONG way off, and Apples rated him which is not good news Ladapo - talks a great game in the SLP and has some stats in this division but bugger me he's looked less like a donkey more like an old pit pony after 25 years being flogged underground!
Out Kirk - good riddance to bad rubbish, Walker dunno never saw him play Tedic loan return - premier league? that's not even funny, C.Campell loan return - fragile or just duff, CBT - truly sorry to see him go, if he was set on returning to the midlands then fair enough, definitely worth every penny he cost us and he'll rub salt in the wound this month, Abankwah loan return - if he cost a measurable amount of money it was all wasted, wrong bloke? wrong time? makes no odds Fraser loan - he's never had the physicality/lungs/whatever to back up his glimpses of silky skill, I won't miss him one bit, if he gets us a fee that's a big bonus McGrandles loan - always looked like a raffle prize winner to me, I can't equate the stories of his play elsewhere with the couple of hours of utter dross I saw him serve up in Charlton red, just weird - Apples rating him is the only thing that makes sense
Window overall? Some deadwood swept out. Dobbo retained absolutely the top achievement. Apples sacked a positive. Jury not even been sworn in yet on any of the new arrivals. Main source of assists has gone without replacement so overall that's not good at all. Mark today has to be a 3 - with hope 🙄 of more to come
7 - The SMT ruined any better score by the timing of Apples departure, what player with options will join a club without a manager and fighting relegation
If it was a summer window it would be 5/10, but for January I’ll be generous and give it an 7/10 because we’re just above the relegation zone, so I’m amazed anyone wanted to join us at all, let alone a player like Coventry.
I like Bakinson whose work seems to go under the radar. Ladapo will only improve. Gillesphey and REG look decent so far, and the two wing backs are going to be ones to watch.
Not sure about Fiorini at this stage, but he’s only a loan.
Comments
Coventry a good signing.
Ramsey no idea.
Gillesphey looks decent if fragile.
REG looks more like a winger than a defender for me.
The outs - CBT is a loss, but he really impacted how we played. It was through him or bust. Without him the squad has to figure out multiple ways to play.
Sorry to see CBT go.
Quietly hopeful about the incoming players. I particularly like what I've seen from Bakinson and Coventry. Happy to give the others a go.
January is a hard window to strengthen in and it doesn't look like we got tempted into paying over the odds for anyone which is a positive sign. Good building blocks for the summer window
Let us sit back, fingers crossed and wait and see, and hopefully enjoy the rest of the season.
Would be higher if we had a real replacement for CBT
Realistically Coventry and Ladapo were the best signings we could have made in this window imho. Edmunds Green and Ramsay also looks like interesting signings
I would have liked a replacement for Fraser ( Joe Powell at Burton?) and another left footed Wing Back.
I do fear that the squad remains unbalanced.
Obviously it's very early to judge these things, but here goes:
The Good: The players we brought in are largely good additions, and in the case of Coventry, Gillesphey, REG, and Ramsay not just for this year but hopefully for the future. Three of them are 23, and all seem to have the ability to become better as (hopefully) the rest of the team does. Ladapo adds quality and depth up front. Bakinson looked better playing deeper in midfield at the weekend but going forward he looks like a poor man's Camara. Fiorini definitely has quality but he's nowhere near fit so that remains a strange one.
The bad: we lost Fraser and CBT. I get that Fraser was having a poor season, but he scored nine and assisted five last year. Who in our current midfield looks like they could do that? He wanted to be closer to home, and you should honor that (even if it's a week late), but he wasn't really replaced, certainly not with a fit player. CBT was inevitable, and getting something for him now rather than nothing for him in the summer is the wise move. But that's eight goals and eight assists we just lost, not to mention our most creative outlet by far. Him moving on does finally allow us to do what we've been trying to do for three windows now: switch to 3-5-2.
But that brings up another problem: is there enough quality, depth, and creativity in the wide areas in this team? We saw Appleton switch to a 4-4-2 diamond when chasing the game against Burton. We didn't look great going forward on Saturday until Watson and Kanu came on. I get that a new coach can definitely help that, and Camara and Aneke coming back can make a massive, massive difference, but I think Ladapo and May are going to find themselves isolated and this team will struggle for goals which used to be its strongest suit.
Also, Asiimwe and Anderson not going out on loan feels like a miss. Obviously could happen with the National League, but with Anderson, we have like eight other central midfielders, we can take the risk of not being able to recall him. I get that there might not have been interest there, but still, it felt like FB and CM depth was also important to allow them to go out on loan.
Started well.
Ended Charlton.
Going into Jan 1st there were three main things that needed addressing
1. we cannot keep a clean sheet
2. we had not a fit player who could keep the ball further up the pitch
3. creatively we were very limited and reliant on one player
As the month progressed, you could add a fourth that we keep conceding late goals.
There’s been 6 games since the start of the window and we’ve made no improvement yet with point 1. Players have been signed now to improve the defence but we are into February now and we’ve not seen any fruition yet for that. Jury out.
Weve not seen any improvement yet with 2, and have basically wrote this off until Miles or Chuks reappears and hope that Ladapo can get fit and gel with how Alfie should play in the interim. Jury out.
3. We have weakened as we have let that one performin creative player go and not replaced them.
CBT is a loss which we haven't replaced which I think will make the rest of the season a slog
None seem to be capable of playing the midfield creative role or the wing back role.
dissapointed
Mainly because as always I know little about the six incomings. And none of us have a good idea how they will perform in a CAFC shirt even if we think we know a bit about them.
On the other hand, we have managed to offload a fair old bit of chuff.
Perm - Coventry, looked decent then he was injured/concussed!
Gillesphey, the bar for Charlton defenders is so low as to be ground level at best, hard for him not to raise it - not seen enough yet to judge
Edmonds-Green, too soon
Ward & Ramsey unseen
Loans - Bakinson moments to suggest he's adequate but long periods of inaction/invisibility in his games so far,
Fiorini - looks like he's with us to recover fitness and he must be a long LONG way off, and Apples rated him which is not good news
Ladapo - talks a great game in the SLP and has some stats in this division but bugger me he's looked less like a donkey more like an old pit pony after 25 years being flogged underground!
Out
Kirk - good riddance to bad rubbish,
Walker dunno never saw him play
Tedic loan return - premier league? that's not even funny,
C.Campell loan return - fragile or just duff,
CBT - truly sorry to see him go, if he was set on returning to the midlands then fair enough, definitely worth every penny he cost us and he'll rub salt in the wound this month,
Abankwah loan return - if he cost a measurable amount of money it was all wasted, wrong bloke? wrong time? makes no odds
Fraser loan - he's never had the physicality/lungs/whatever to back up his glimpses of silky skill, I won't miss him one bit, if he gets us a fee that's a big bonus
McGrandles loan - always looked like a raffle prize winner to me, I can't equate the stories of his play elsewhere with the couple of hours of utter dross I saw him serve up in Charlton red, just weird - Apples rating him is the only thing that makes sense
Window overall? Some deadwood swept out. Dobbo retained absolutely the top achievement. Apples sacked a positive. Jury not even been sworn in yet on any of the new arrivals. Main source of assists has gone without replacement so overall that's not good at all.
Mark today has to be a 3 - with hope 🙄 of more to come
Bought in a lot for a Jan window in 8 but still can't be certain of staying up in the 3rd division so can hardly call it a success.
Coventry looks a good signing, Gillesphey seems ok, Ramsey might be decent. The others I can't help but think are average L1 joes.
Dobbo, Kanu, Campbell, Adigun and Elerewe all still out of contract in the summer.
If you compare to Bolton/Pompey it isn't close to being as good in terms of incoming quality imo.
Ask the question again at the end of the season.