Okay. From my limited, low angle trajectory, here's what I think is needed. Quite What Wilder thinks and knows here is suspended. The aim is to defend our way into 17th place, and not get fucking bummed into jelly every fucking week home and away and have Alan Shearer and those smug fuckers review our games barely hiding their complacent smirks and grins on MotD. The mission is survival and retention of the name Sheffield United with dignity. Forget Warnock, forget Bassett, forget Harris. This is Wilder, 2019-20.
We need a PL level goalkeeper. Moore is seriously out of match practice and is not good enough at this level. So, in effect, a £10-13m shot stopper would be in the post 33 age level, plus another capable of stepping in on loan. Ditch the rest. They'll never play.
Let's assume Wilder still chooses the current setup, and there's no reason why not (although he will need a robust Plan B)
Wingbacks. I don't think that either Freeman nor Baldock have the potatoes to defend and track at PL standard. Baldock could be a possible bench warmer, but we need someone again with experience - £15-18m - who can do the hard yards up the touchline and graft when it comes to making the likes of Raheen Sterling's afternoon less easy than it will be. Enda will be okay on the other side, but again, a loanee might not go amiss who has the capability to work to instructions. Putting the likes of Dowell in there will be fucking fatal.
Centrebacks. I think another decent, if not aged and seasoned CB (the likes of Cahill) would be apt. All three current plus Stearman won't last the whole season without injuries and suspensions, so we need some depth. And I don't think we'll get away with the attacking centrebacks any more. PL teams are far too good at cancelling basic overloads like that out and then going straight on the counter. I think we've chanced our luck this season and it's paid off. Besides, our CBs will be far too occupied stopping the very talented attack threats in the PL to be much fucked about bombing on and crossing to an unmarked Didsy or Billy to tap in.
Midfield. A real weak area where we will be over-run. The current drop-two, Norwood and Fleck, will struggle, even against midfields of sides like Burnley and Wolves. I think they are 'okay' in the Championship, but we do need £30m+ spent on more agile, more intelligent workhorses who will press, harry and basically stop the likes of Matic (even at his age), De Bruyne, Henderson from just dominating and wearing us out.
Attacking Midfield. Our first signing. Is Dowell good enough? No. He's too one dimensional, limited in capability and doesn't work hard enough (or at least as much as the tiring Duffy) for me. There's a reason Everton shipped him out and it's because he's not capable enough to go on the attack and either lay off intelligently or smash it in from the penalty D. We possibly need this to be our most expensive purchase, and £25m is the bare minimum. This is where the goals should come from and invariably does in the PL. We also need backup and depth, so the CM purchases should be either capable of doing this role or we should make a loan/purchase of a decent, pacey Champ/foreign talent to mix things up. PL teams need to fear us from this position.
Striker. Billy and Didsy are barely sufficient against top level defences and I'd be surprised to see either break double figures next season. We need pace and intelligence, and/or someone who is an old fashioned, does-nowt-else-but-boots-it-in-the-net centre forward like Murray who much of the midfield and wingbacks can anticipate being in this space in three passes time and is actually there. And we need clinical finishing, no 'oh, we grazed the post' or 'it went straight down the keeper's throat' when it drops in the box. The net needs to bulge eight times out of ten. That costs £25-30m.
So, in total, we are talking £13m + £18m + £30m + £25m + £30m. That's £116m, without loanees and contracting the likes of Cahill when he's released. That's to survive, not go mid-table.
Impossible. Dream on.
pommpey
