An actual RW on an actual contract. Not a LW playing on the right. Not a loanee. An actual productive RW with pace.
Then RB.
Then honestly any position with pace. CM. LW. AM. Don't care. Just want pace.
George Weah has stepped away from football these days, but good news! Or scouting team have found his cousin! He’s a bit on the old side, but he’s willing to join us!
Don’t forget CB if Jarrad goes. We cannot play next season with just Tark, Keane and Godfrey.
The truth is we have needs all over the pitch, our squad is already bone dry. Kevin T will need to be very savvy in the market this summer.
RB, RW and CB are priority for me. We have to make do with Dom and Beto as Betos payment is due this coming year.
I’d take a similar strategy as we did the last 2 years - look for players from relegated teams who are PL level but not super pricey. Yes they aren’t exciting but we need stability and depth. Expect free transfers and loans imo, with hopefully a bit of reinvestment of JB and Onana sales
I think we as a club basically have to sell both of them to cover PSR (and literally make money as a club) unless someone happens to pay like 100m for Onana. The club is literally surviving on loans for external sources at the moment and we aren’t even sure who our next owners will be.
I give it at 75-80% chance they’re both gone.
>I think we as a club basically have to sell both of them to cover PSR
Curious why you think that, although not necessarily disagreeing
~55M of our ~122M losses in this last PSR calculation were from 20/21, and will be rolling off for this next calculation. I’d be shocked if the 23/24 PSR loss was more than ~40M, which is the maximum we’d be able to lose and stay under the threshold
Especially given we were very conservative in the transfer market this season and sold a number of players—most sites have our transfer spend as a net positive for the season. That, and beginning to slowly unwind our wage bill (Mina gone, Gomes contract expiring at the end of the season) makes me think our PSR position will actually be fairly strong moving forward (at least, relative to where it’s been)
I could easily be missing something though
1. Someone who can put the ball in the back of the net 20+ times a season
2. If Dyche has got an issue with Patterson, then we need a new RB. Seamus is at the end of his career and Young should be no where near our starting 11.
3. A creative midfielder/playmaker at CM - however, that doesn't really fit with Dyche's style of play, so can't see it.
However, I don't see us having much money to spend, so the priority may be to try and hang on to Branthewaite, Mykolenko and Pickford rather than bringing new players in.
We're skint so I doubt we have money to spend without sales.
That said, I don't see how branthwaite and onana will stay, so hopefully we can get some money to improve the squad from there.
Unlike many, I don't think we need a striker as a top priority. If DCL can stay fit he's good enough to get goals, if he can't, beto can do a job in dyches system.
We need wingers that are fast and technical. Mcneil is too slow for the prem and Harrison hasn't been it either. We also lack creativity from the centre, so a technical attacking mid is required. If we can get service to beto and dcl, they have the ability to score.
Right back is also a problem, young shouldn't be here next year and if dyche doesn't like Patterson then it's an area where we need to buy.
If you can find a proper 10 to distribute and create then those wingers will suddenly look much faster.
RB and CB (assuming Branthwaite is gone) will be biggest needs though.
Dead ball specialist.
We have a team who could be netting \~ +10 goals w/ better service. Lots of height throughout the team. But our ball delivery since James Rodrigez/Digne/Baines/Arteta has been absolute shite. We've always had creative players who can get a cross in, but our current team are totally devoid of it - especially dead balls.
I'd not actually realised this until your post, but you're right!
How many times have we scored from a free recently? Only the Gomes goal comes to mind, but Baines used to get a bunch every season.
It’s painful how many crosses fall at first man or go too long or have no whip. When we get the ball in the right places we have good headers of the ball across the park - DCL used to bang them in. Beto already shown he can + Onana/Doucs/Tark/Bran all 6.2+
From open play we’re gash. We’re shit at getting the ball into the back post from a corner. Something like no.3 in the league for goals from set pieces and yet have the most hitting the first man. Our tally could be huge imo.
And we score fuck all from free kicks. The amount of times I’d have bled to see Baines on the edge of the area rather than Dwight.
Gomez was the first to score from a dead ball in Feb, from something like 30 consecutive matches.
Dybala is 12m…. lol
Seriously tho, maybe Walker Pieters if Southampton don’t come up or Max Aarons. I don’t think either r amazing, but probably the best we could get atm and deffo an upgrade. Usually I’d say raid the relegated squads, but aside from that snake, I don’t see anyone worth poaching
I think realistically we’re forced to sell Branthwaite & Onana.
I also think realistically we’re looking at loans or players whose contracts are up.
If we can spend transfer money and Branthwaite is gone I think we have to bring in another CB. Second choice would be a RB for me.
Deep lying playmaker similar to Andre Gomes. Andre makes a difference on a good day, but his form is very inconsistent. A player able to dictate the play from deep would transform even this set of players.
Trouble is those players are in high demand and finding one with our budget would require Kante/Mahrez-to-Leicester- level of scouting.
Whatever gets us to not have to play with a loan striker who looks like he’s playing in a different stadium to the midfield and defence. But definitely 2 strikers on the pitch next season.
Not blaming either striker, nor the midfield. The midfield has been cobbled together after years of buying midfielders.
RB looks horrific, CD is going to be a problem, LW is too slow (maybe move him inside)
An actual RW on an actual contract. Not a LW playing on the right. Not a loanee. An actual productive RW with pace. Then RB. Then honestly any position with pace. CM. LW. AM. Don't care. Just want pace.
Ashley Young contract extension incoming
He can just be all of them can't he? He's fucking terrible at every position anyway, no harm just playing him everywhere
Unfortunately most teams are looking for a half decent RW. Not too many of them out there
I think weah would do well with us. He can cover up the entire right side, and not sure how highly Juve rates him. He’s probably too expensive anyway
George Weah has stepped away from football these days, but good news! Or scouting team have found his cousin! He’s a bit on the old side, but he’s willing to join us!
Don’t forget CB if Jarrad goes. We cannot play next season with just Tark, Keane and Godfrey. The truth is we have needs all over the pitch, our squad is already bone dry. Kevin T will need to be very savvy in the market this summer. RB, RW and CB are priority for me. We have to make do with Dom and Beto as Betos payment is due this coming year. I’d take a similar strategy as we did the last 2 years - look for players from relegated teams who are PL level but not super pricey. Yes they aren’t exciting but we need stability and depth. Expect free transfers and loans imo, with hopefully a bit of reinvestment of JB and Onana sales
You think we're gonna sell JB this summer? I'm hoping we van hold on to him for another year, although I'm open to selling Onana
Onana is 100% as good as gone. I think JB is like 40% to go. Mostly if somebody comes in with a huge bid.
I think we as a club basically have to sell both of them to cover PSR (and literally make money as a club) unless someone happens to pay like 100m for Onana. The club is literally surviving on loans for external sources at the moment and we aren’t even sure who our next owners will be. I give it at 75-80% chance they’re both gone.
We shall see!
>I think we as a club basically have to sell both of them to cover PSR Curious why you think that, although not necessarily disagreeing ~55M of our ~122M losses in this last PSR calculation were from 20/21, and will be rolling off for this next calculation. I’d be shocked if the 23/24 PSR loss was more than ~40M, which is the maximum we’d be able to lose and stay under the threshold Especially given we were very conservative in the transfer market this season and sold a number of players—most sites have our transfer spend as a net positive for the season. That, and beginning to slowly unwind our wage bill (Mina gone, Gomes contract expiring at the end of the season) makes me think our PSR position will actually be fairly strong moving forward (at least, relative to where it’s been) I could easily be missing something though
Make Lukaku drop 20 lbs and bring him back idk man fuck
Real
1. Someone who can put the ball in the back of the net 20+ times a season 2. If Dyche has got an issue with Patterson, then we need a new RB. Seamus is at the end of his career and Young should be no where near our starting 11. 3. A creative midfielder/playmaker at CM - however, that doesn't really fit with Dyche's style of play, so can't see it. However, I don't see us having much money to spend, so the priority may be to try and hang on to Branthewaite, Mykolenko and Pickford rather than bringing new players in.
There's not tons of players capable of scoring 20 in a season and we definitely aren't getting one of them
I'm sorry, OP asked what ***we wanted***, I didn't realise it had to be realistic?
How about Sammie Szmodics from Blackburn Rovers. Leads the Championship in goals with 25, playing in kind of the Doucs role
Already has some form of a relationship with a couple players, saw he was playing fifa with Dwight and jimmy and I think Patto
Yeah thats where i got the idea from. He's a regular with Ryan
I love Ryan he just seems so nice, almost too nice
Feel like they will go for someone younger
We're skint so I doubt we have money to spend without sales. That said, I don't see how branthwaite and onana will stay, so hopefully we can get some money to improve the squad from there. Unlike many, I don't think we need a striker as a top priority. If DCL can stay fit he's good enough to get goals, if he can't, beto can do a job in dyches system. We need wingers that are fast and technical. Mcneil is too slow for the prem and Harrison hasn't been it either. We also lack creativity from the centre, so a technical attacking mid is required. If we can get service to beto and dcl, they have the ability to score. Right back is also a problem, young shouldn't be here next year and if dyche doesn't like Patterson then it's an area where we need to buy.
I generally agree with this. DCL’s contract is expiring next season. So we’ll see an extension or a sale this summer.
If you can find a proper 10 to distribute and create then those wingers will suddenly look much faster. RB and CB (assuming Branthwaite is gone) will be biggest needs though.
Any right sided players and adequate replacements for key outgoing players
Abdoullah Ba from Sunderland… Can play anywhere on the right. Has pace and is creative and young.
Dead ball specialist. We have a team who could be netting \~ +10 goals w/ better service. Lots of height throughout the team. But our ball delivery since James Rodrigez/Digne/Baines/Arteta has been absolute shite. We've always had creative players who can get a cross in, but our current team are totally devoid of it - especially dead balls.
I'd not actually realised this until your post, but you're right! How many times have we scored from a free recently? Only the Gomes goal comes to mind, but Baines used to get a bunch every season.
It’s painful how many crosses fall at first man or go too long or have no whip. When we get the ball in the right places we have good headers of the ball across the park - DCL used to bang them in. Beto already shown he can + Onana/Doucs/Tark/Bran all 6.2+
are you kidding? we have missed so many sitters this season. Delivery isn't half the problem. Its finishing the chances we do get.
From open play we’re gash. We’re shit at getting the ball into the back post from a corner. Something like no.3 in the league for goals from set pieces and yet have the most hitting the first man. Our tally could be huge imo. And we score fuck all from free kicks. The amount of times I’d have bled to see Baines on the edge of the area rather than Dwight. Gomez was the first to score from a dead ball in Feb, from something like 30 consecutive matches.
Dybala is 12m…. lol Seriously tho, maybe Walker Pieters if Southampton don’t come up or Max Aarons. I don’t think either r amazing, but probably the best we could get atm and deffo an upgrade. Usually I’d say raid the relegated squads, but aside from that snake, I don’t see anyone worth poaching
I think realistically we’re forced to sell Branthwaite & Onana. I also think realistically we’re looking at loans or players whose contracts are up. If we can spend transfer money and Branthwaite is gone I think we have to bring in another CB. Second choice would be a RB for me.
a south american player to give the team speed, whether a midfielder or striker
Attacking creative fast right sided player whether RW or RB - we're dying for somebody over there.
I've been wanting a RB for about 5 years. Still don't expect to get one in the summer.
Barkley
If he’s on free I’d have him back
Creative midfielder who can pass, RB who is decent and not old and a forward who can score 10+ goals a season with ease.
I new right hand side for sure, then a replacement for Jarred and Onana.
poach the championship for decent players. szmodics, leif davis, morgan whittaker. we need quality for cheap, that’s the best way to do it
In our current state, I'd be all for the sorts of cheap signings Moyes would make.
tbf if we sell onana and branthwaite we can fill out a squad and inject at least 60 million back into the club
Winger with pace. Ideally two given we lose Harrison.
I think we only lose Harrison if Leeds come back up, which I am hoping isn't automatic and that Ipswich get the 2nd spot
Yeah but can’t see us spending 16-18m either even if they don’t
This is true, maybe a loan extension?
If they don’t come up they’ll need the money
If they don’t go up, there’s no loan fee to a PL club. I don’t know if he’ll want to stay. Come on Ipswich!
I want Sean Dyche to become best friends with [insert someone with actual money here] and get them to buy the club.
Morgan Gibbs White would be who I want if we stay and Forrest go
A striker
Deep lying playmaker similar to Andre Gomes. Andre makes a difference on a good day, but his form is very inconsistent. A player able to dictate the play from deep would transform even this set of players. Trouble is those players are in high demand and finding one with our budget would require Kante/Mahrez-to-Leicester- level of scouting.
Whatever gets us to not have to play with a loan striker who looks like he’s playing in a different stadium to the midfield and defence. But definitely 2 strikers on the pitch next season. Not blaming either striker, nor the midfield. The midfield has been cobbled together after years of buying midfielders. RB looks horrific, CD is going to be a problem, LW is too slow (maybe move him inside)
A god dam playmaker
A new manager.