Doctoroncall

U21 euro champ ends on the 28th June so Edwards likely to miss some preseason if England get to the semifinals/final.

May have been Sunderland with Jack Rodwell and his £70k a week contract with no relegation clause.

If true that the transfers were made solely due to AI modelling, then that’s a huge risk. Of course we have no idea as to what the AI model was trained to do (Brighton do well with theirs in their recruitment process) or the amount of any human interaction in the player selection. They will certainly be players to watch out for as well as the AI chosen Manager to replace Wilder (mad Nate the second)!

Hull City appointed Sergej Jakirovic as their head coach on a two-year contract this week.

Starts on the bench tonight for England U21s against Czech Republic U21s

Plays CB, seems to be a bit of a leader too, which is exceptional for a 15 year old playing in the U18s. Didn’t sign pro for Saints when he turned 16, so of course other clubs have come in. Arsenal and Aston Villa were also chasing him. don't know the details of the deal, usually there is a sell on clause but will be a few years before first team appearance and possible sale.

Hard to say how much Wood got out of playing in the Premier League, certainly a different experience than Edwards’ loan spell in the Championship. Let’s see how the preseason goes, don’t want to discount either.

It’s a flight from Belgium we need to aware of 👀

Like mad hog.

A few quotes: on Max Johnston article Admit it or not, but all Southampton fans have been chuckling since yesterday knowing Will Still's contacts that may help them sign keeper Matt Ryan. Or in fact, overall, for the plethora of brilliant additions Still can bring to Southampton, by using his previous ties. On Archer article And with the season over, the 23-year-old has every right to be angry at Southampton for getting rid of Martin. A coach and by far, the only one at St. Mary's who gradually helped the former to bridge the learning curve in the English top flight. Latest article. Leeds United emerge as surprise favourites to sign Southampton's keeping target Yahia Fofana. Not to sound harsh, but Southampton has endured one of the worst starts in this summer transfer window. And surprisingly, while their efforts have by far failed to convince the fans positively, fortune hasn't been on their side either. 🤪

Having you seen the other articles by Mehdi Gokal the writer of that one? 👀🤣

Martin did the job in the championship, he turned things around and perhaps games were coming too fast but I think he relied on the quality of the players to win games when things were not going well tactically. He managed the playoffs really well. Still comes across better able to manage a game and players in all aspects.

No. Rollbit Isn’t part of TGP. I believe Leicester are affected with their sponsorship deal.

Randomness is a key principle of statistics. It seems all the commentators are interested in is how the match (a sample) compared to the population (all matches) in quality of chances which gives you a number to discuss rather than discussing what happened in the match (the clubs may use it more appropriately in their coaching). As with any statistical modelling, there will be flaws and limitations and it’s important to work within those boundaries and not extrapolate!

From the DT today on MCOs (multi club ownership): It’s a booming alternative transfer market with huge implications and yet it has gone largely unnoticed by the majority of football supporters. So what explains this trend, and should fans be worried? Simon Leaf, who is a partner at legal firm Mishcon de Reya, which has advised clubs on their MCO structures, says that it is “almost a development on” from the situation in South America two decades ago, when agents began owning the economic rights to players, most famously Javier Mascherano and Carlos Tévez. Rather than having agents owning players or clubs you now have clubs owning clubs, and there are multiple benefits that can bring,” Leaf says. These include reducing costs by centralising resources and expertise in key staffing areas, notably scouting and data analytics to optimise player recruitment and development, with MCOs potentially able to develop global academies across entire regions through a handful of clubs. “It is actually cheaper to buy a club in Europe than to pay £30 million for a young player,” says Stephens, who says that you can then “house multiple talented young players, control playing style and development minutes, ensuring they are prepared to play at the appropriate level” This pooling and internal movement of players clearly has huge potential upsides in minimising what are often astronomical agents’ fees, as well as dealing with local immigration rules, such as the UK’s post-Brexit ban on bringing in players under the age of 18. At a commercial level, shared sponsorship deals and unified merchandise platforms across diverse regions are also estimated to enhance income by up to 30 per cent. Multiple concerns have been raised, however. Fans (more commonly outside of England’s dominant Premier League) fear their club potentially becoming a lower-order concern within a structure that might ultimately be about maximising the “mother” club. There is also the fear of lost identity – would Leeds United fans want their club rebranded if Red Bull ramps up its investment? – and the potential loss of proximity to an owner. While certain collaborations may make sense on a practical level, is that compatible with the emotional one-club mindset of so many football followers? Fans at Nice, Troyes and Strasbourg, respectively linked via their owners to Manchester United, Manchester City and Chelsea, have all protested in recent years. “Fans [from clubs] at the top of the model are not so bothered, but lower down they are,” says Niamh O’Mahony, chief operating officer at Football Supporters Europe. Strasbourg supporters wrote a stinging letter in 2023, outlining their fears over the “senseless” recruitment and “over exposition” of very young players. “Fans don’t relate to their team at the moment,” they said, warning that the MCOs risked reducing most clubs “to a simple objective of developing young players and helping the few clubs at the top of the pyramid.” For regulators such as Uefa, the major concern relates to potential conflicts of interest. The Uefa rule book says that no one may be simultaneously involved “in any capacity” in the management, administration or sporting performance of another club in the same competition. There is a lot more to the article, around ownership and player trading.

Buying in these academy kids at inflated prices would have happened regardless of the multi-club status. I don’t think you should conflate the two issues here. SR have certainly messed up and been round the houses in trying to improve the recruitment process, which has cost Saints big money on inappropriate transfers before it was set up properly, but the overall concept should save money and help identify more appropriate players from a wider range of clubs than before.

I know SR have been trying to implement a change in structure since they had bought the clubs but there have been many iterations on the ‘before Feb 25’, and that has sapped goodwill and confidence in what they are doing now. after 25 Feb does seem different but you cannot blame folks to wait and see before actually seeing improvement.

He will no longer be the youngest coach in the division. Ryan Mason (32) has joined WBA.

Rumours that Man United are interested (I think most positions are open at old Trafford 👀) Amorim having lost faith in current no1 and unconvincing performance in last match from their no 2. Also West Ham supposedly interested.

25 players (ex U21 players) in a squad for the championship. That’s approximately six players to go before considering any transfers in with KWP, Lallana and Lumley out of contract. I can’t see much being spent, unless Fernandes and Dibling go for big money. All about trimming the squad and ‘young, energetic players with great potential’ coming in like Quarshie.

…at Championship level and above! just to finish off your sentence. 👀

Data and the collection are not the problem, it’s the interpretation of it which is.

Also have Lawrence (22 this year) and Awe (21) as centre backs.

Poor attitude is difficult to overcome. let’s hope with Still and Spors, they can rebuild the squad and remove those not required or interested. Hoping together, they are the real deal.

Nothing on Physio room about an injury. Scored some important goals and created plenty when getting promoted. Let’s see if he has the same appetite this time, just a question of attitude I’d guess.