Current Squad - Keep or Let Go

[Peterdev]

Keep. All the players
Leave. Clotet and let a new manager decide who to keep and let go

 

[North Wales Yellow]

Rothwell has got to be a Keeper surely?

He is the best technical footballer at the club. The way he picks the ball up and carries it forward is brilliant, he glides past people.

Yes he has been icosistent, but it doesn’t help that he is always played on the left hand side. If we played a diamond or a theee man midfield he would flourish.

I don’t think he will sign a new contract with us, and he will go on to play at higher level.

 

[Deleted member 462]

Rothwell has got to be a Keeper surely?

He is the best technical footballer at the club. The way he picks the ball up and carries it forward is brilliant, he glides past people.

Yes he has been icosistent, but it doesn’t help that he is always played on the left hand side. If we played a diamond or a theee man midfield he would flourish.

I don’t think he will sign a new contract with us, and he will go on to play at higher level.

No he’s Definitely an attacking midfielder

 

[Paul B]

I'd also definitely keep Wes Thomas. A very good finisher for this level. Makes intelligent runs that are not always seen. Would score quite a few in a good team.

 

[eraser]

GvK out definitely but would keep Rothwell. Binning every striker at the club seems harsh!

 

[dabigfella]

A lot would depend on whether Clotet wanted his pretty-pretty tippy-tappy 4-2-3-1 formation or 4-4-2. Chose which one you want and alter the list to suit.

 

[Yellow River]

We have a large squad by league 1 standards, too large in my view.

We have a couple of quality players eg Eastwood & Nelson, add Ledson as well, but like a lot of young players he’s been inconsistent this season.

The remainder of the squad is very average, not a lot to choose between players for the various positions. So it doesn’t really matter who you pick you’ll just end up with the same very average team.

As I’ve said before too much quantity and not enough quality.

I’d much rather have a strong core of quality players with the bench filled by the likes of Napa, Carroll, & Roberts rather than huge squad and the bench filled by Van Kessel, Williamson and ageing journeymen.


As I've just said on another thread currently we've.....

A squad of 35 players.
7 players out on loan.
4 players with long term injuries - Nelson, Pekalski, Hall, & Rothwell.
That leaves 24 'available' players to pick from.

I don't think it would matter much which 4 defenders, which 4 midfielders & which 2 attackers you picked, it would still be a very average team.

 

[ljs]

A lot would depend on whether Clotet wanted his pretty-pretty tippy-tappy 4-2-3-1 formation or 4-4-2. Chose which one you want and alter the list to suit.

I dont think different formations would alter the list at all.

Apart from keeping Rothwell, and possibly Thomas the list in the OP would stay the same.

 

[captainox]

I think we'll struggle to keep Rothwell - another one who could be tempted by a club in the north-west. He will go on to have a good career, hopefully after being a regular with us next season and earning us some cash.

 

[Yellow Mustard]

I think we'll struggle to keep Rothwell - another one who could be tempted by a club in the north-west. He will go on to have a good career, hopefully after being a regular with us next season and earning us some cash.

Correct

 

[MiddleBartonYellow]

Interesting comments. Now we are at the end of the season with a new manager I wonder if people still think the same.

 

[Neville60]

Let's imagine we all had a deck of football stickers with our current squad in front of us. You have to filter the stickers into two piles; 'Keep' and 'Let Go', knowing that the more players in the latter will free up money and wages to sign replacements in August. Let's forget about current contracts for the sake of this.

The reason I'm posting this, is because a couple of years ago - I think I would have retained a majority of the squad. Not so much anymore! I feel that we need a complete refresh - with the lack of work ethic, passion, leadership and attacking threat being my main concerns.

Keep
Eastwood - The best keeper we have had for a long time.
Nelson - Great young defender with plenty of experience behind him.
Hall - Inconsistent, but shines every now and then - and is a more traditional winger. He does take people on.
Ledson - Solid ball winning central midfielder at this level.
Mousinho - Many may not agree, but based on his experience - I think he's definitely worth keeping as a versatile squad player.
Raglan - I see Raglan as a solid 3rd or 4th CB, and he has proved his worth.
Ruffels - Great season last year, and deserves a chance to rediscover that form.
Napa - Has looked decent in his limited time on the pitch. Hopefully one for the future.
Mowatt (Loan) - Absolute gamble. He has shown glimpses of class that you'd expect of a championship player. If he finds some consistency, then I would keep him (if possible!).

Let Go
Thomas - Although he is a good poacher, I still think there are better options out there who are more prolific, with a better all round game.
Obika - I feel he has the potential to shift himself into the 'Keep' pile, but hasn't shown enough thus far this season.
Hemmings - I still feel he could have had a 20+ season in L1 with the right supply, but I think you would have to build a team around him to achieve that.
Henry - He is a good footballer, but can be very frustrating to watch. He has a good game 1 in 3 or 4, and as a winger/wide player - very rarely takes players on.
Williamson - Great start to the season, but tailed off - making some mistakes and probably feeling the effects of ageing.
Martin - He'll end up in L2, or lower when he leaves Oxford.
Tiendalli - Concerns over fitness, positioning, and regularly seems to make mistakes. Not a fans favourite. Replace him with someone in the 'Baldock' mould.
Mehmeti - Maybe harsh to judge so early, but just hasn't looked like the type of player that will concern L1 defenders.
Xemi - The buzz around Xemi died quite quickly after his first few appearances. It's a shame, but I don't think he'll get enough game time to prove doubters (like me) wrong.
Ricardinho - The early signs were very exciting! - He's getting on a bit, and I'd rather we got hold of a young and aspiring wing back.
Rothwell - This guy has the potential to play blinders, but I don't think he's going to have a big enough impact consistently on L1 matches. Having said that, I do think given a run of games, he could push himself to folks' 'Keep' piles.
van Kessel (loan) - The arrogance the guy showed in his first few interviews was incredible - so much so that I (and probably he) thought he was going to score 48 goals this year. This chap won't be signing for £800-900k in the summer...!
Roberts - It's a shame it hasn't worked out, but I think he should head to a conference team and play regular football. If he cracks that, he'll be back in the football league.
Carroll - A tough one, because I like the chap - but MApp thought he'd end up being a defensive midfielder, and I agree that he would be better suited there. He's never going to be a marauding full back, and technique can often let him down. I think he'll end up in L2/Conference (not with us...).

Too early to judge:
Brannagan - Please god, be good.
Pekalski - I honestly don't think even Pep knows how good this guy is.
Dickie - Wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't get much of a shot, but I hope he does!
Buckley-Ricketts (Loan) - TBC

Keep



Eastwood
Nelson
Hall
Ledson
Raglan
Ruffels
Napa
Henry
Rothwell
Carroll
Brannagan
Dickie


Ricardinho one year option then maybe assist with under 23's coaching
Hemmings could be worth another try with different delivery / set up.

We have some very good development/under 23's comming through also. This will help us alot with our recruitment budget I think.

 

[makv]

Spell ‘em right at least!

 

[Neville60]

Spell ‘em right at least!

Thank You

Feel free to correct.

 

[Marked Ox]

Thank You

Feel free to correct.

I believe they mean Ruffels and Napa.

 

[Mellowyellow]

Keep



Eastwood
Nelson
Hall
Ledson
Raglan
Ruffles
Nappa
Henry
Rothwell
Carroll
Brannagan
Dickie


Ricardinho one year option then maybe assist with under 23's coaching
Hemmings could be worth another try with different delivery / set up.

We have some very good development/under 23's comming through also. This will help us alot with our recruitment budget I think.

Agree with that apart from Napa, far too lightweight to work effectively in the area of the field he works, as shown this season. He has the speed but eternally then gets pushed off the ball.

 

[Marked Ox]

Agree with that apart from Napa, far too lightweight to work effectively in the area of the field he works, as shown this season. He has the speed but eternally then gets pushed off the ball.

He will develop physically just like O'Dowda did. COD was easily knocked off the ball in his 1st season and look how he developed. Napa is in his 1st year, what exactly were you expecting?

 

[Common Villager]

A few key players will be entering the last year of their contract so it will be interesting to see if we’re able to get them to extend, and if not, if we stand firm in rejecting bids from other clubs.

The main ones I’m thinking of are: Nelson, Ledson, and Eastwood. The only one I can see signing an extension is Eastwood. And I think if we receive suitable bids for Nelson and Ledson they will be off.

Add to that the likes of Rothwell, Thomas, Ricardinho, Martin, Williamson and Tiendalli will all be at the end of their current contracts. Of that group, the only three I’d like to see us extend are Rothwell, Thomas, and Ricardinho but I wouldn’t be surprised if the former already has another club ligned up.

Some of our youth team products will also be leaving I imagine, unless we can agree favourable deals with them. Ashby will almost certainly be departing, but I wouldn’t be averse to extensions for Long and Roberts.

I’d also like to see the following released or made available for transfer: Pekalski, Mehmeti, Obika, and Hemmings.

Out of all the loanees, the only one I’d be interested in retaining on a permanent basis is Kane.

So, based on the above, we’d be starting next season with a squad of:

Keepers:

Eastwood
Shearer
Stevens

Defenders:

Kane
Dickie
Raglan
Mousinho
Ricardinho
Long
Carroll
Kelleher

Midfielders:

Brannagan
Ruffels
Hall
Napa
Henry

Forwards:

Thomas
Roberts

So, we’d almost certainly need: 2 wingers, 2 central midfielders, 2/3 strikers. If Ricardinho doesn’t extend then we’d also need a LB. some may also argue we’ll need another CB. This will almost certainly be the case if either Raglan or Mousinho leave.

It’s going to be an interesting summer, that’s for sure!

 

[unification]

One item of note, Solihull have managed to drag themselves into a position of safety in the NL. I wonder how much impact Kelleher has had in that regard? It’ll be interesting to see how KR regards him and whether he has any games during pre-season.

 

[Bornyellow]

Think KR will let Thomas go and look to move Obika on as well. As he’s stated our squad will be a lot smaller next year and both have proven they can’t stay fit for any decent run in the side. We can’t afford to carry to many players who’s bodies just aren’t up to it.