SNSUN

I've got to be in bed for 9. It's the wrong week to be doing 5am starts. A striker signing before then would be nice...

Would van Hooijdonk count? 🤪

How many deal sheets have we ever put in for a deadline day extension? I remember Ings was one...

So Stewart may or may not be signing, Roberts deal is off for now, Adams is staying unless he isn't, and ABK is going to Bayern. Nobody wants Sulemana and the Canadian lad has decided playing for Athletico Madrid is more favourable than Championship Saints. That about sums up the last few hours? 😁 Bring on the next few.

I know it's a pipe dream and he'd probably be too expensive but I would definitely welcome him back.

In? Out? In? Out? Make you're mind up Mara! Back to needing two strikers then if that goes ahead. I wonder if Aberdeen heading out the Europa helps our cause there or not.

Who needs to spend money when you can get quality loans in like Downes, THB, Fraser and Holgate...

AC Milan after Patson Daka. Hope that goes ahead as it would weaken Leicester further - even more so if Iheanacho goes too. Weren't Milan also in for Mara or was that just a rumour? Personally if Onuachu and Ballard go, I'd be quite happy for Mara to stay. Yes he's done sod all so far but with AA better deeper/wider and uncertainty over Stewart's fitness, I'd be a lot more comfortable having a 3rd striker in who at least knows the club. Will we still bring another striker as a 4th? I don't think so - I think the club see AA as a striker. We shall see. Under 12 hours now...

Both can also play left back and with Perraud gone and Meghoma largely untested (and Larios only back from a year out), there is definitely room for a versatile RB to slide across.

Really hope we go up then and don't be all Saintsy and lose out on him permanently.

Welcome THB! So squad summery and movement on deadline day, does it look something like this - GK: Fine, we probably need to ship out McCarthy but I think he stays. If he went we'd need to source a 3rd keeper and I think we have too much going on in other positions. RB: PLEASE KEEP KWP!!! Him with Bree as back up will be fine. We've been looking at RBs though I wonder if we're trying to ship Bree out rather than KWP. I will keep everything crossed tonight that KWP stays. LB: Manning, Larios and Meghoma. Fine. Can't see any movement there. CB: Bednarek, Stephens, THB and Holgate. Should be enough with Charles as 5th choice. Bednarek goes? We need another. I can't see it but you never know. ABK to go. CM: Charles, Downes, Smallbone, Armstrong, Doyle, Alcaraz. I think we're done here. AM/Wing: SAA, Edozie, Fraser, Aribo, Djenepo, Sulemana. We've said we want to replace Tella. Aribo and Djenepo surplus to requirements? Roberts in? Sulemana out? Striker: Well fuck me if this needs work today. AA, Adams, Onuachu, Mara, Ballard as it stands. Adams, Mara, Onuachu and Ballard could all go today leaving us with AA. Stewart in. SURELY we need a third striker. I'm really surprised we seem to be loaning Ballard out. Risky IMO. If we go into the meat of this season with AA and Stewart as our only two strikers we are in big trouble. Fingers crossed it doesn't happen. AA is not a striker (though he'll get a few) and Stewart's fitness is questionable. In SFC we trust!

So to summarise the day before deadline day: GK: nothing reported. Which means McC stays. Def: Losing KWP, Bednarek and ABK, worrying the THB deal has stalled, Hoping Zak Awe is the answer Midfield: Patrick Roberts is the Tella replacement after Paintsil changes his mind more times than Nigel Quashie changed teams. Attack: we've decided to do without one. Out go Adams, Onuachu, Mara and Ballard, in comes Stewart who won't be fit for ages but that's ok because Adam Armstrong is staying and will power us to promotion by himself. Am I missing anything? 🤪

Just whip crosses in from right wing to left wing and vice versa like a tennis match until the opposition gets dizzy.

I love what Ballard has done for the B team, kid seems like a natural finisher, but we're going into one of the most important seasons in recent memory (where we need to get promoted or we will likely lose many more of the bits of talent we have next summer) and relying on him as a third striker would be risky. If Che, Mara and Onuachu leaves we need another striker in with Stewart or we won't have enough fire power at least until January. Got I'm going to have to watch SSN tomorrow now.

The preferable choice for me (over Drameh) but this close to the end of the window with no plausible links to KWP leaving, I think he stays. Maybe he's said he's happy to. He only has to stick it until January anyway and then he can reassess and push for the move if he wants to. Hopefully by then we have a good indication of whether we're in the running for promotion or not.

Wow. But wonder if we're still in for Zeqiri

African nationality aside, I'm hoping he's not another Steve de Ridder. And Paintsil doesn't seem to be chomping at the bit to sign for us. Fingers crossed he's decent and makes a big impact.

Any further bids?

Had a busy day, have I missed anything? "Yeah we're close to a loan for Harwood-Bellis, the defender everyone wants including some Premier League teams that excelled in this league last season with Burnley." Ah cool. No striker news then... 😝

My sauce says he's got wood. Bit rude I thought but there might be something in it.

If our striking options going into this season are AA (better as anything other than a 9), Stewart (injured this entire calendar year) and Ballard (completely untested) then we really won’t have learned any lessons from last season. We would need at least another striker in or Fraser will be sending crosses in to nobody. Hell I’d even rather keep one of Tall Paul or Mara if that was going to be the case. If we get Stewart AND one of the Aberdeen lads then I suppose that would do but it would still be quite underwhelming.

We'll have no strikers left if we keep offloading them all! I hope the club don't think AA is the answer just because he's scored 4 goals this season (2 of which were penalties and one he knew nothing about). I like him but he's better anywhere but up top.

There's some real Mandela effect going on with KWP's contract!

Well now Kraken reminded me that we still have ABK then definitely keep the squad. I highly doubt that if we sell Sulemana, ABK, KWP and Adams (all very likely still) that we will bring in players of the same quality, so it's a no-brainer.