S-Clarke

I'd also say that Stu was a different profile to Fernandes. Stu was a 10, he could float across the 3. Fernandes is a CM. We don't have a Stu type player in the team at all, which is why the club are trying to sign one. I'm not really sure what Lighthouse is on about.

As has been obvious since July really, this is another 'top target' fail by SR. A constant theme sadly. No idea if he'd have been revolutionary for us or not, but he was clearly our main target in the attacking area - as was Gakpo, Ramos, O'Riley etc in past windows. Zero of these big moves over the line. We did manage to get BBD, Archer and Onuachu though at least. Sigh.

Didn't we sell Ox in that summer, so he was never part of the champ side? He was replaced by the infamous Steve De Ridder. Puncheon I think had a strop that season, so wasn't part of the club. JWP was a squad/cup player only at that point. Other than that I'd agree with your overall point. The spine was the most important thing there, once you get the spine right the rest can usually just slot in around it. We have a crappy spine nowadays. A fairer compassion, IMO, is our away game at Plymouth (game 3) last time out in the Champ: Bazunu KWP Bednarek Stephens Manning Charles Stu Armstrong Adam Armstrong Nathan Tella Che Adams Samuel Edozie Subs brought on: Sam Amo Aribo I think that's miles better imo.

And the other way round, if we go down to 10 or 9 men, we lose 9-0.

I think he's off, I saw bids of around £250-500k being floated around (Boro being one I think).

I think it'll be closer this year than the last couple. If I was West Ham or Brentford I'd be a little nervous. For the sake of the Champ > Prem promotions I hope at least one stays up, otherwise it's just going to become a closed shop.

I was more focusing on the people calling him to go, which I have seen (not just on here). Nothing wrong with debate at all, I'm not saying that, it's the nuts comments from people suggesting he can leave and calling out Downs as not ever being able to perform for us (not just on here btw)

This is my concern. I did say last season that it's going to take a few windows to cycle through this squad IMO. I did want us to be ruthless (giving Jack Stephens a new contract wasn't a good start), but we've got dross on big money which other clubs don't want to pay. Until we can cycle through some of those on contract expiry our hands are tied I think. Joe Aribo and Edozie are examples, we're struggling to shift them due to their wage demands. The mess SR have created here is unprecedented. How we ended up with a weaker squad in the PL than we had in the Champ is beyond me, so it's no real surprise to see us chugging a long a bit at the moment.

I'd be totally down with this. But would we get any takers? We know, bizarrely, that our players are on stupid money which clubs without Parachute Payments simply can't match. It's crazy really, we won't put down £2m on the Stoke Keeper (for an example), yet we throw down 50k p/w on people like Archer and Armstrong (and Stephens). This is why I think we're struggling to shift them and it's probably a case of being easier said than done. We're going to need to wait for a lot of these contracts to expire to be free of the dross, which will take many transfer windows.

I saw today that Wrexham are readying a 7.5m-8m bid for Smallbone. Wouldn't say no to that, would be a good move for him to leave for Hollywood at such a young age. It would mean we get another CM in too which is a bonus.

I think it's way too early to question anyone who has been here for 5 mins in my opinion. That includes players too. If the same things are happening in December and we were going into January with the same concerns, then maybe yeah - but I don't think there's a valid reason to criticise until we have a much bigger sample size of games, 3 just isn't enough to come to any conclusion or form any strong opinion.

I think Bazunu was a £12-14m project signing. But we won't die on our sword. The only reason we got Ramsdale is because Bazunu was injured, had he been fit we would have 100% not signed Ramsdale.

I think we huffed and puffed to be honest, too slow with the ball, too passive off the ball. Of course we had some chances, but overall I'd say that Stoke 100% deserved that win. They carried a genuine threat in transition whereas we just didn't move it quick enough. Low blocks like that need width and quick movement of the ball in between the lines, it's the only way you get around it - especially 10 men, stretching the game wins it. Sadly our options for Stretching the game were an aging Fraser and a full back in Manning. It's a bit of a mess right now.

Another game where you come away thinking ''Should he have saved that?'' - the answer is probably yes.

I think the majority of success boils down to having good players, but obviously as a manager they need something about them to fully execute it - but better players can hide a managers flaws IMO. I'm not a fan of Martin at all, so he would probably overcomplicate it with better players.. But basically to the original point, I think it is completely and utterly ludicrous that people are actually questioning or have doubts around Still at this stage, it's not like we're in November or December - it's August. It's utter nuts in my mind. It feels like as a fanbase we've been conditioned to just change the manager when things aren't going how we want, but I think we just need to take a step back and look at the player available to Still, which funnily enough is the same trash that has been failing us under previous managers too. It's a horrible bunch.

If we ever get to a position of watching BBD and Stewart up top as a pair, I will gouge my eyes out. Stuart and BBD being included as options shows how much we've regressed tbh. And they were our PL options too, what on earth.

They're arrogant, sticking with players as they're projects. They need time etc. We're in a position now, totally different from last time out, where we are an incredibly weaker side - so we need ready made players who can start for us tomorrow. As a squad, we are now in a position in this league where players like Bazunu will harm our league placing and aspirations because we don't have the quality at the top end to bail them out.

Sadly it's what we've all said. It's not a clanger, but it's a shot an easily capable GK would have got something on. Again, you're left thinking 'should he have saved it?' after a game. It's the only consistent factor in the 3 years of watching him. Not much more we can say about him really. The club still seem to think he'll get better and that he's fine, which is the sort of naivety, in such a crucial position, that will send us tumbling down the league without better players to rescue him at the top end. Ignoring the availability of Johannsen for £1m to back him was utter 'woke' nonsense.

At the end of the day, the success of any manager boils down to one thing really. The quality of the player he has available to him. Put Koeman, Poch, Adkins in charge of this squad at this moment of time and they'd equally struggle to get a consistent tune out of them. If a manager has crap players, he will ultimately get crap results. Russell Martin was wedded to his approach with inferior players, but if you put him into the Man City system with players who 'play his way', then he'd probably get success. It's as simple as that really. We can keep cycling through managers such as Rusk, Juric, Will Still if we want, but the same consistent factor remains - we're still playing Bazunu in goal, Jack Stephens at CB and Adam Armstrong up front. As a club we keep trying to repeat the known flaws of the past, somehow expecting different results. The squad needs major major work before next week. I don't know if we'll get it that soon, as this may take a few windows to sort.

The rep Stewart has got is so odd. He played 13 games at this level for Sunderland, that's it. A purple patch does not equate to someone being quality at this level. The way he's viewed by fans and pundits is odd, everyone seems to class him as this proven Champ striker. He is anything but.

Just to avoid re-writing history slightly, and proof that everyone needs time, when Robins first went in at Stoke he struggled. Their fans were questioning him and believed he was the wrong choice. But people need time. And still, it's only 3 games so who knows who will be sat where in May.

Piss off, seriously. Go and support your own team you weirdo.

Still a better profile of player than we have available to us today though, you'd have to say.

Your dugouts need a clean.

Archer, BBD are much, much, much less quality than we had in that season. Stewart too. BBD isn't really a footballer as far as I'm aware, he's not proven it yet. I'd 110% categorically say that our squad at this stage in the last Champ season was stronger than the one we have today. I included Tella because he'd contributed two goals before he left, two of which were match winners - so he was important, even for the small period.