Rebel

My god that was disappointing yesterday. Roerslav was done by Murphy the first time he ran at him and never really recovered his confidence after that. And the aimless long balls forward to Archer was just a complete waste of time. We really did waste the first 45 mins. I think we are going to regret not buying a centre forward this summer. We may have the wingers and a Number 10 for 4-2-3-1 now but I am not sure we have the forwards to play it. Downs looks far from ready to play at this level. Stewart looks off the pace and a shadow of the player he was supposed to be. Archer and Armstrong are too small to lead the line and are second strikers at best or maybe inside forwards. It looks like we need to play an old fashioned 4-4-2 with a big man and little man up front if we are going to score goals. Or a 4-3-3 with inside forwards. But then where do Azaz and Matsuki play as then we don't need a 10 - just a 6 and one or two 8's in the middle. On the plus side Fellows looked good, as did Jander when he came one. And I thought Charles had a good game as well.

I don’t think it’s going to end up being a great window for us. It looks like we will sell Edozie and BBD for relatively small fees and replace them with loans from the premier league - my money would be on Rak-Sakyi and Iling-Junior. It also looks like we’ll get rid of Aribo and Smallbone to raise some cash and cut the wage bill in the hope we can bring in a 10 - but I think that means we are also going to sell Fernandes. But I don’t think we are signing anyone like Finn Azaz. Why would Boro sell one of their best players to a promotion rival. Spertsyan doesn’t look like he is going to happen either - he’ll end up somewhere like West Ham or Leeds. I think we’ll end up with Besfort Zeneli or Scienza - or someone like that as the AM But I don’t think we are going to sign the 6ft plus first choice centre forward we all knew we needed - or the extra midfielder we need to cover defensive midfield. Hopefully Spors proves me wrong and plays a blinder in the next few days.

ow we have some money we should give Boro £12M for Finn Azaz and then sell them Armstrong for £12M. That would be a good deal!

Here's an idea for you. We let West Brom have Ben Brereton Diaz for a reasonable fee if they let us have Tom Fellows. He's from Stoke so a return to the midlands could be good for BBD and Fellows would solve our problem on the right if we sell Dibling. And similarly we let Boro have Adam Armstrong if they let us have Finn Azaz. Boro supposedly need a striker and there have been rumours Armstrong would like to move back up North. And it doesn't really look like we are going to play a system that suits Armstrong and we have another very similar player in Archer -but we need a 10 /AM like Azaz. I have no expectation this will happen - but would it make sense?

I read that as Leicester are in financial trouble and really need to sell players to raise some cash but are trying to keep hold of their best players. Lets hope they are forced to sell El Khannoussi and Fatawu as well. I am not sure they will be promotion challengers this season. At the moment Ipswich, Coventry and maybe Norwich looks like the main title contenders and possibly West Brom, Boro, Brum City and Wrexham look like they could be promotion chasers based on squads at the moment. And hopefully we will be title challenger and not chasers - but its hard to call it really until the window shuts.

would a Russian in Spertsyan - born and bred in Russia but chose Armenia for football - be any better considering the war in Ukraine someone of Irish/Jewish background born in England would be a lot less problematic surely

I am pretty certain Romeu is going to re-join Girona on a free now that he's officially left Barcelona.

Would it be that bad a window if we kept Fernandes, Dibling and THB but didn't bring anyone else in this summer, but also managed to get rid of ABK and Aribo on loan for the final year of their contracts to reduce the wage bill and sold Taylor and Edozie for small fees to reduce squad numbers? We'd still be short cover at defensive midfield but the squad would be good enough to put us in the promotion race.

Could Palace make a move for THB to replace Guehi?

I don't think clubs like West Brom and Coventry who see themselves as promotion contenders are going to sell players like Fellows or Rudoni to Saints who they see as a competitor for promotion I looks like we'll end up sending Aribo and ABK out loan for a season and letting them go for free next summer. I get the feeling we need to get rid of the deadwood in the squad and reduce our wage bill before we bring any more players in - and even then I think it will be relatively cheap loan deals unless we make a big sale (THB, Dibling or Fernandes). Whatever happens in what's left of the transfer window I just hope we move away form playing 3-4-2-1 or 3-5-2. I'm not convinced we can't play 4-2-3-1 with one of Fernandes/Smallbone/Aribo as a 10 and one of Robinson/Dibling/Edozie/Fraser as a winger and one of Armstrong/BBD/Archer as an inside forward behind Stewart/Downs. I actually think it will suit the players that we have better than the current set-up.

My question is can we afford not to sell one or both of Fernandes and/or Dibling from a financial perspective - to breach the £100M gap/drop in revenue caused by relegation. I was expecting us to sell both of them this summer for financial reasons as much as anything else - and also THB - as well as the players on the fringes if the squad like ABK, Aribo, Taylor, BBD. If we keep both does it mean we don't really have the money to bring anyone else in permanently - or maybe just the 1 or instead of 4 or 5?

From a footballing perspective Dibling would be better of signing a new contract and staying at Saints for at least another season, getting game time without the pressure of a big fee - and taking his time to learn and develop as a footballer - and become a first team regular - and maybe stay for 2 or more if we go up at the end of this season. He'd still be well off..... But from a financial perspective he is far better off signing for a premier league club - even a club in a relative mess like Everton - who will give him a a 4 or 5 year contract for a stupid amount of money - and he and his family will be set for life and he will never need to play another minute of football. The chances are he will never fulfil his footballing potential - but he will be in the money. Someone told me at the weekend he'd heard a rumour that Dibling is not that bothered about football - and as a lad from Exeter he doesn't have any great affinity for Saints beyond being in the academy. So there is no reason for he and his family to not chase the money if its there.

That will be Matt Ryan as competition for Bazunu then. Even if we kept one or both of Aribo and Smallbone we still need defensive midfield cover for Downes and Charles - Jon Varane at QPR would be my pick for a player who is Championship hardened. But I am guessing we need to get rid of at least one of Aribo or Smallbone and their wages first before signing another midfielder.

that kind of implies we would buy before we sold - if not why would you bother saying it? Or did he just mean even without selling anyone they know we need add 3 players in those key positions - which makes it more understandable that some supporters are worried that we are selling Fernandes and Dibling (and Edozie not to mention Sulemana) making ourselves weaker in that creative/attacking position. Maybe they have decided that Matsuki and Robinson have shown enough in pre-season that we are covered already. As you say I would guess we are working on signing an attacking/creative player (Zeneli, Rudoni or someone like that) - but until its signed and sealed I would always be a bit worried with our track record of not signing the players we need.

you are right it was Solak - I apologise. I did think it meant we would get those 3 key players in before the start of the season, or early in pre-season so they and we were up and running for the big kick-off. I think most of us accepted it also meant players leaving - but hoped it meant we could replace before selling in these key positions I have never thought we would keep any of Ramsdale, THB, Fernandes or Dibling - but I was hoping we would have signed an ACM to replace Dibling and/or Fernandes by now. Maybe we are holding out for Rudoni if a premier league team doesn't come in for him. I also always thought we would look to take the maximum 5 players on loan from the premier league at the end of the transfer window to fill a few holes - but expected a few more foreign players from 'lesser leagues' to be signed and sealed by now.

I think as fans we are frustrated because firstly Spors said we would sign a defender, forward and ACM before needing to sell anyone - and that has not happened Secondly they gave Stephens a 3 year contract when he didn't really warrant or deserve one. I think one year people could have swallowed but 3! And thirdly I think we all thought we just might hold on to one of the jewels - Ramsdale, Fernandes or Dibling - but it doesn't look like that is going to happen (some would include THB in that probably) I think most were also expecting a bit more movement in and out on the forwards/attackers by now as well. I bet the new ACM we were promised ends up being Matsuki when they answer the inevitable question on Thursday at the fans forum

lets hope we can repeat that trick with Downs and Archer

he had one good season at Boro - the question is can he repeat at another club. He failed to do so at Ajax. But if he's played the right way in the right system he can probably repeat it. But it does mean you have to play that way.

I think we'd happily accept what we paid for him to shift his wages - plus with Edwards, Stephens, Wood and Kayi Sanda all right footed centre backs and Quarshie two footed do we need him in terms of numbers - not really

I fully expect THB to end up somewhere like Burnley, West Ham, Palace or Everton before the window closes - a lower end Premier league club that needs to add some depth to its centre back ranks. It makes sense for clubs to wait until he is pretty much training as normal and ready to play for us before they splash the cash on a fee and wages. To be honest I would imagine we are not rushing him in to games for us as we want to sell him and don't want him to get injured again before we sell him. THB also wants to move as he thinks he has a chance of getting an England place - and need to be in the premier league for that. Whether he's really good enough for that or the premier league is another matter.

With Saints its not the selling of players that kills us - its the buying. We are nit very good at it anymore. The line-up against Brighton tomorrow will tell us a lot about who is halfway out the exit door. Whatever team we put out I just hope we don't get a good beating. I am pretty sure that Dibling, Fernandes and THB will all leave this summer - along with the likes of Sugawara, Taylor and Aribo. Partly driven by the need to get rid of players on large wages and those who don't want to be here. I worry the club is much more strapped for cash than people think or the club is admitting. We need to raise about £100M in cash to fill the hole between premier league revenue and championship revenue - to keep paying the over inflated salaries for the players we can't get rid of as well as all those off field managers and directors, not too mention outstanding transfer fees and compensation to sacked managers and staff. Without those players mentioned above, not to mention Oguchukwu, Ramsdale, Bednarek, KWP, Edozie who have left already or are in the process of leaving - and players like Stu Armstrong and Che Adams - the squad is a lot weaker than the team that scraped through the play-offs the season before last. Even then we lacked cover at CDM and a reliable goal keeper - neither of which have been addressed so far. Matsuki and Smallbone are Attacking Midfielders - neither suit the profile needed to play in a double pivot - an injury to Charles or Downes and we are in trouble. There is time left in the transfer widow - but it is running out if we are to start the season well and create the momentum needed to get promoted. Its hard to pick a 11 players good enough to play in Still's preferred 4-2-3-1 at the moment. Robinson and one of BBD/Fraser/Adarma as wingers, Matsuki as a 10 perhaps. Giving Stephens another 3 year contract when he is 31, error prone and symptomatic of the teams loser mentality was a big mistake - if for no other reason than it demoralised the supporters. Surely being Captain last year - and getting 2 red cards - not to mention being out of contract was more than enough reason to let him move on. I think we are all worried it means as captain he is a guaranteed starter when Edwards, Quarshie and Woods should all be in front of him - but maybe more than that it signifies another 3 or 4 years of mediocrity as team and club. And being stuck with his wages for another 3 years when we need to spend every penny wisely. Maybe we will bring 5 or 6 great players in before the window closes (some on loan) and we will have a great season. I guess we will just have to wait and see.

To be fair to Ross Stewart he had a great goal scoring record for Sunderland in the Championship for the brief period of time he was fit. My issue is the odds on him being match fit for any length of time this season are not good. I think he will stay for this season - but we should let him quietly leave next summer when his contract is up. BBD and Armstrong proved they can play together at Blackburn as part of the 3 behind a centre forward - and score goals. But I don't think either of them work with Archer - for a start both BBD and Archer are best as inside forwards on the left. And if you play Armstrong and Archer they are too similar albeit on different sides of the pitch - both want to be the finisher. Neither is creative or good at taking on and beating a man or putting a cross in. Archer looks a lot more clinical than Armstrong though who needs 4 or 5 chances for every goal or so it seems. Also I have a feeling we have seen the best of Armstrong and BBD in terms of their career - I am not sure they will score that number of goals again. Neither exactly shone during their loans last season. I think we will lose Archer to a low end premier league team late in the transfer window - but I hope we replace him with a more all round and versatile forward - William Boving perhaps. I think we will stick with Adarma and BBD - and they will score goals for us just not as many as we'd like. I don't think either will be first choice forwards though. If we do go back up we need to sell both of them quickly and upgrade. I think there is an outside chance Adarma will leave for somewhere like Boro this summer though.

So who is next out of the door after Ramsdale and Edozie? My money would be on Sugawara or Taylor, probably followed by THB and Fernandes. I hope it's ABK but I think we will be stuck with him for a little longer unfortunately. I also think we will move on Aribo if we can due to his high wages.

Matt Ryan on a free as a back-up keeper has Saints written all over it. If you look at his stats it suggests that's more or less what he's been everywhere he has played. He's 33 so a one year deal perhaps - or maybe 2 or 3 years and he replaces McCarthy as our veteran back-up keeper in the long term. It does look like we will be starting the season with Bazunu as our number one. I am hopeful that with a competent defence in front of him and not being forced to play out from the back all the time he will be better keeeper than he last time we were in the Championship.

Anyone else think we are selling Edozie because we can't sell Fraser or Bereton-Diaz and we need the money - or am I just being very cynical?