Transfer Window January 2024 Transfer Window Thread

[LeftSideLarry]

Given his contract has been paid up, I’m sure the financial package we’ve offered is very low-risk. If we’d offered him 18-months, I would have been concerned not only about the signing of Edwards, but also of our decision making process and our inability to learn from history.

Win win for me and I hope he comes back and helps us to glory.

 

[Swaby39]

Clever move re; Edwards - frees up a loan space and gives us first dibs in the summer, should we want him. One more winger on loan and a striker and I think that'll be us, with G'OD and AEW leaving on loan. Des spoke about strengthening our forward areas and we have in the short term;

Goodrham
Rodrigues
Burey
Henry
Murphy (poss. back Sat)
Bodin (back soon)
Harris

2 more added makes sense to me.

Am I missing something? I thought he couldn’t play again, or was unlikely to, this season. I’d have thought helping him with his recovery would’ve been sufficient to get him to the table with an advantage in the summer so if he isn’t going to make a meaningful contribution this season can we really say that’s any help to us to have him contracted?

Still 2 wingers needed for me, I don’t see what this solves in the here and now but very happy to be set straight if someone can explain!

 

[WEYellow]

Given his contract has been paid up, I’m sure the financial package we’ve offered is very low-risk. If we’d offered him 18-months, I would have been concerned not only about the signing of Edwards, but also of our decision making process and our inability to learn from history.

Win win for me and In hope he comes back and helps us to glory.

Exactly this, a longer deal would have excited the fans more but it usually ends in tears, I'm glad we're looking ourselves first but also giving Edwards some comfort.

 

[greatunclekip]

He may also be a very good person to have around the place. He and Greg Leigh seemed to be mates from Ipswich.

Yeah, personally I'm delighted that we have some cracking lads around the training ground. For all they don't get onto the pitch, they do offer top, top Bantz.

 

[werthersoriginal]

Yeah, personally I'm delighted that we have some cracking lads around the training ground. For all they don't get onto the pitch, they do offer top, top Bantz.

It sounds like it's a combination of all-day party and mindfulness symposium!

 

[holdsteady]

Well whatever happens, I sincerely hope Edwards pulls his socks up.

Hope not, increases the risk of him pulling a hamstring.

 

[Chippy]

Edit to include Edwards

29 contracted/loaned - 18 of 22 on the squad cap

So we have 11 players in the forward areas, it should be an embarrassment of riches for a club at this level.

Problem is GO’D and Woltmann not good enough at this stage. Henry no longer anywhere near the level needed. Bodin, Edwards, Murphy, Browne all injured or only capable of small cameos as they return and have to have game time managed.

That leaves Burey as yet fitness unknown plus a little unproven. Then Tyler, Rodrigues and Harris who have worked their socks off for most of the season already.

So when you break things down our attacking options are a bit of an actual embarrassment for a club pushing for promotion. We need 3 more bare minimum including a striker or two in these forward areas being realistic.

 

[mooro]

IIRC the cat 3 academy was restarted with promotion back to L2. So assume 2010 and if you were a 9 year old then you would be 23 now. In reality from pretty much a standing start I think it takes about 10 years to really build a system and starting bearing fruit. There have been some such as Shandon Baptiste (although not in the academy for long) and of course the current cohort and those coming through but not significant numbers into the first team. Alongside that there are many talented players who never get to the top of the pyramid ay Oxford. For example in the past year there has been circa £400k of players sales.

The outcome that I think we are heading towards is 1 or 2 a year that are potential first team (after a loan period) and an overall first team squad with 5 or 6 graduates - and elsewhere the player sales to Prem clubs means that the academy is a zero cost or even net contributor to FFP.

The system never actually folded, even when we dropped out of the league, thanks to the efforts of Les Taylor et al, even though grant income from Pl/EFL/PFA etc dropped dramatically.

Investment picked up when the Lenagans arrived (and the development squad appeared), but we already had the likes of Long & ODowda onboard to benefit.

Since then, we have had the likes of Tyler, baptiste, and maybe God come through here, some sold on to bigger things before they graduate, but also some that have been able to establish themselves at EFL level elsewhere - crocombe, ekpiteta, cundy at now lofthouse - after choosing to leave....

 

[Common Villager]

Clever move re; Edwards - frees up a loan space and gives us first dibs in the summer, should we want him. One more winger on loan and a striker and I think that'll be us, with GO'D and AEW leaving on loan. Des spoke about strengthening our forward areas and we have in the short term;

Goodrham
Rodrigues
Burey
Henry
Woltman
Murphy (poss. back Sat)
Bodin (back soon)
Harris

2 more added makes sense to me.

Who is AEW?

 

[Jster]

Aidan Elliott-Wheeler

 

[Common Villager]

Aidan Elliott-Wheeler

Is he well known enough to have his name expressed as an acronym?

 

[holdsteady]

Edwards will be 26 by the time he returns, has played 150 career games with a fair chunk of those as a substitute, the praise for on here seems to come from what is literally a couple of good performances, he has hardly played for us.

Hope the lad can get back fit and get in with his career but we have been here to many times for me to get excited about one of our gambles, he joins a lengthy list of attacking midfielders in our squad who are never fit.

 

[bashamwonderland]

Is he well known enough to have his name expressed as an acronym?

Agreed - surely grounds for a ban there.

 

[chromeyellow]

Yeah, personally I'm delighted that we have some cracking lads around the training ground. For all they don't get onto the pitch, they do offer top, top Bantz.

I imagine the training ground is a bit like a football forum. Some people are great to have about the place , others, have a terrible negativity, or unfunny.

Some are both

 

[Followtheox1]

It's very confusing. According to a couple of posters on here (one in particular), the players don't like Buckingham etc. Strange that Edwards, Bennett and Goodrham have all signed new deals then, it's almost like that poster is talking out of their backside!!!

 

[MJB]

Yeah, personally I'm delighted that we have some cracking lads around the training ground. For all they don't get onto the pitch, they do offer top, top Bantz.

The Robbie Hall factor. Worth three fit and healthy players.

 

[NorthernExile]

Is he well known enough to have his name expressed as an acronym?

EI AE-Double-U,
Acronyms we've got a few,
CB is Cam Brannagan,
Gatlin O'Donkor's GOD,
JM's Murphy,
MB's Browney,
And that's not half the squad!

 

[Marked Ox]

The Robbie Hall factor. Worth three fit and healthy players.

Should get Robbie Hall doing the club's communication, it would improve no end.

 

[werthersoriginal]

It's very confusing. According to a couple of posters on here (one in particular), the players don't like Buckingham etc. Strange that Edwards, Bennett and Goodrham have all signed new deals then, it's almost like that poster is talking out of their backside!!!

There were a couple of boys 'briefing against' Des but they seem to have gone. Wonder what that was about?

 

[Brahma]

Edwards seems a very positive guy; his interview on re-joining see's him wanting to be back by end of March. If the club have been sensible with his contract, seems a great move.

I'd be a bit concerned with Edwards and Bennett being in the 'six' but hey, so be it. Cummings and Burey have been good new recruits, Goodwin maybe if we can close that, plus another striker and midfielder.