In a nutshell

[Champagneblade]

None of those you add are bad but I don't see many premier league clubs wanting to sign them imo. They also would have to be at a 8 or 9 of their ability to keep at that level while Berge, anel and Ndiaye could coast it a little bit!

Don’t disagree. I think those will not let you down or at least give a base. What happens next will likely depend on the quality of those we bring in to play alongside them!

 

[3Cheers4Ramirez]

2 CMs would have to become 3 if Berge leaves btw - and I think he'll want to

 

[Tezza1889]

We'd have a good shot at getting Doyle signed I think, they've had him out on loan for the last 2 seasons, just hope they dont have our pants down with the fee.

Possibly mcatee as well, but that may be a loan, both won't get games at City and I think they've enjoyed playing matches regularly, so we'd be in pole position...

That's untill Villa and Forest see what were doing and double the wages we offered..

 

[adiosmiamigo]

We are taking up a weaker squad into a stronger league, than the one we brought down from a weaker one.

It's been mentioned that we have one of the best squads in the Championship,I beg to differ, most of the team who were in the Premiership last time have to be moved on.Yesterday proved what we already knew,players like Doyle and McAtee are really the ones who make a difference.

 

[adiosmiamigo]

2 CMs would have to become 3 if Berge leaves btw - and I think he'll want to

I don't know about Berge,maybe a promotion will make him think again,he seems happy enough here.

 

[Mouth of the South]

Unless Utd receive a big offer (which would be a surprise), I'd expect Berge to remain and leave on a free at the end of next season. Same goes for Ndiaye.
Means Utd have them for next season but would face the challenge of recruiting replacements with no proceeds for 2024/25.
I'd be very surprised if either signed a new contract with Utd.

 

[blade67]

GK: Wes is borderline good enough, Davies is no where near good enough, nor is Dewhurst nor is Amissah, therefore another GK is required, either as Wes' replacement or a better quality reserve.

LWB: Lowe isn't good enough, Stevens is out of contract & past it. RND is coming back from a long term injury and we need more creativity from both WB's, therefore a LWB is needed to be either 1st choice or reserve, replacing Stevens & Osb.

RWB: Baldock is good enough, but Bogle isn't. Sell him & replace.

LCB: I'm not sure JLT is good enough, and you could hedge the risk by having RND play there & JLT as sub, but then you'd need cover a LWB. JOC will retire.

CB: Clark is going back to Newcastle. We need cover for Egan and in an ideal world a player that can also cover RCB. Bash isn't good enough.

DCM, CM & ACM: Two of our starting midfield are on loan, and they'll be leaving, so they need replacing. Fleck is out of contract. Norwood is out of contract and 32. Osb is out of contract and not good enough. Arblaster & Coulibaly need loaning out.

CF x 2: Brewster isn't good enough & coming back from long term injury & needs a season out on loan. Jebbison needs a loan to a championship club for a season, so does Osula. Billy Sharp isn't good enough. I'm 50/50 on McB & see him more as a sub now.

All of that sounds sensible enough to me. We typically bring in quite a few every summer. Last year was a bit of an outlier in that respect.

The only debate I'd say is over Bogle. His form currently is poor but he does have good spells and looks very good when he's in form.

 

[Nick Jansky]

I don't know about Berge,maybe a promotion will make him think again,he seems happy enough here.

He was talking in his post match interview about what we need to do next season in a way that suggested he definitely wants to stick around.

 

[adiosmiamigo]

He was talking in his post match interview about what we need to do next season in a way that suggested he definitely wants to stick around.

That's good to hear,with better players around him,I think he'll really shine.

 

[AWetFlannel]

We are taking up a weaker squad into a stronger league, than the one we brought down from a weaker one.

If you want to get promoted into the best league in the world and have a squad of players that are all good enough for the level, you're supporting the wrong team.

Saying that, has any team ever come up with a Premier League quality squad? Wolves maybe?

 

[Frank the tank]

New GK, LCB, CB (who can play RCB as well), LWB, RWB, DCM, CM, ACM, CF & CF

Ten players ?

 

[Nicolaus_Copernicus]

Ten players ?

Yes. Well done you can count, have a gold star.

Please see post #16 for my rational behind that number.

 

[Frank the tank]

GK: Wes is borderline good enough, Davies is no where near good enough, nor is Dewhurst nor is Amissah, therefore another GK is required, either as Wes' replacement or a better quality reserve.

LWB: Lowe isn't good enough, Stevens is out of contract & past it. RND is coming back from a long term injury and we need more creativity from both WB's, therefore a LWB is needed to be either 1st choice or reserve, replacing Stevens & Osb.

RWB: Baldock is good enough, but Bogle isn't. Sell him & replace.

LCB: I'm not sure JLT is good enough, and you could hedge the risk by having RND play there & JLT as sub, but then you'd need cover a LWB. JOC will retire.

CB: Clark is going back to Newcastle. We need cover for Egan and in an ideal world a player that can also cover RCB. Bash isn't good enough.

DCM, CM & ACM: Two of our starting midfield are on loan, and they'll be leaving, so they need replacing. Fleck is out of contract. Norwood is out of contract and

Yes. Well done you can count, have a gold star.

Are you building a team to win the champions league or survive in the prem ?

 

[Nicolaus_Copernicus]

Are you building a team to win the champions league or survive in the prem ?

I'm looking to have a squad that can at least make a fight of relegation.

We currently have 3 players on loan who will return to their parent clubs, so that's a shortfall of 3.
We do not have a reserve goal keeper able to either push Wes or replace Wes, so that's another 1.
JOC will retire, Stevens will leave on a free transfer, so that's another 2.
Fleck is not up to the desired standard as either a start or off the bench and he is out of contract in the summer, so another 1.
Osborn is not good enough and is out of contract, not sure about the extennt of his head injury, so another player needed. 1.
RND is coming back from a long term injury, and it's 50/50 whether JLT is PL quality at LCB. We'll possibly need one player that can double LWB/LCB, so a player is needed. 1.
Billy Sharp is borderline not good enough for the Championship, certainly not the PL, and is out of contract in the summer. 1.
I believe that Coulibaly is out of contract in the summer also, and may struggle with WP issues. 1.
Norwood is out of contract in the summer and a deal has to be done & a decision made. I think it would be unwise to offer him £40k to £50k week for 2 yrs, when i see him as a sub in the PL. He may get a better offer elsewhere. Possibly 1.
Jebbison, Osula & Brewster would all benefit from uninterrupted season long loans to a championship club. We may retain the services of 1 of them to be a reserve reserve. Probably Brewster due to injury recuperation, but i'd say we are definitely 1 short.

I think with contracts ending & loanees returning, we potentially have 13 players leaving our 1st team squad in the summer, they need to be replaced. We either resign players that weren't really good enough for the championship & are the wrong side of 30 or we loan & buy in replacements.

 

[Frank the tank]

I'm looking to have a squad that can at least make a fight of relegation.

We currently have 3 players on loan who will return to their parent clubs, so that's a shortfall of 3.
We do not have a reserve goal keeper able to either push Wes or replace Wes, so that's another 1.
JOC will retire, Stevens will leave on a free transfer, so that's another 2.
Fleck is not up to the desired standard as either a start or off the bench and he is out of contract in the summer, so another 1.
Osborn is not good enough and is out of contract, not sure about the extennt of his head injury, so another player needed. 1.
RND is coming back from a long term injury, and it's 50/50 whether JLT is PL quality at LCB. We'll possibly need one player that can double LWB/LCB, so a player is needed. 1.
Billy Sharp is borderline not good enough for the Championship, certainly not the PL, and is out of contract in the summer. 1.
I believe that Coulibaly is out of contract in the summer also, and may struggle with WP issues. 1.
Norwood is out of contract in the summer and a deal has to be done & a decision made. I think it would be unwise to offer him £40k to £50k week for 2 yrs, when i see him as a sub in the PL. He may get a better offer elsewhere. Possibly 1.
Jebbison, Osula & Brewster would all benefit from uninterrupted season long loans to a championship club. We may retain the services of 1 of them to be a reserve reserve. Probably Brewster due to injury recuperation, but i'd say we are definitely 1 short.

I think with contracts ending & loanees returning, we potentially have 13 players leaving our 1st team squad in the summer, they need to be replaced. We either resign players that weren't really good enough for the championship & are the wrong side of 30 or we loan & buy in replacements.

You may well be right
You've obviously gone into great detail and your opinions on.most of the players is right
I don't think the club will want to disrupt things that much and will retain the likes of jebbison osula Norwood and mcburnie
I can't see the value in loaning out jebbison and brewster and bringing two more in given the level we will be shopping at they will be just as likely to fall short as these two
I thought jebbison looked decent at that level last time round and I still think brwester has a lot to offer if he can get himself fully fit and stay there

 

[Charlieblade]

I can agree with the content of most posts, and suggested solutions.

My biggest concern is that most posters expect instant gratification for all our problem positions.

By chance I listened to Michael Parkinson interview Brian Clough.
Parky: ‘What qualities are essential in a player’?

Clough: Talent, character and honesty. and if they don’t have the last two, they can borrow mine until they catch up’!

A fair assessment, which should be applied to our current squad, before we buy anyone. We will probably have to accept that some players lack in the talent department, but JLT for example did not attend charm school. In short we already have guys we can keep for their character, honesty and commitment to the club. Osborn is another one, who can fill a place as first choice or number two, in more than one position.

Whoever is in charge next season, and whatever league we play in, the owner will not sanction anyone spending money based on recruitment policy, unless it is fully justified.

Keep as many as we need to fill the squad, and be patient, because we have many needs, wants and desires, but they won’t all arrive this summer.

Start by replacing Fleck, and moving Norwood to second choice CDM on a one year extension with less money. Both fine servant and quality players in their time. Fleck might suit the less demanding SPL job if he want to carry on playing. Norwood gets replaced and signs for on year on less money. Take it or leave it! No room for sentiment at SUFC.

Deal with the rest in a similar pragmatic way, but don’t throw the baby out with the bath water. Why spend money on a bloke who might not fit a close knit dressing room, when we have one here who could do a job for the first season back!
Same pragmatic approach to the current spine of the team. Break the wage ceiling if necessary to keep Ahmedhodzic, Ndiaye and Berge. Show some ambition to go with our new, reasonable and pragmatic approach.
The rest are mixture of past their sell by date, approaching that date, and the jury is still out.

Academy graduates we have pushed forward due to injuries, will need individual assessments for their future, depending on who we retain, and who we buy or loan into the squad.

 

[Mouth of the South]

That’s on the basis of RND at LCB and Jack as back up. If Robinson is a starter in the Prem we’re in huge trouble as he will get targeted.

Imho Robinson is a lower Champ level player whose commitment and effort get him through games. However, as shown on Sat, he's miles away from Prem level and would cost Utd points if he were to play regularly next season - his speed and agility levels aren't close to what they'll need to be. Layer on top of that his proneness to dropping clangers meaning I'd be amazed if PH didn't recruit a replacement.

Depending on budget and ability to land targets, I wouldn't be surprised if he were offered a year as back-up/cover though and I have an awful feeling that we haven't seen the last of Osborn. Quite what he offers other than being a headless chicken in training rondos I don't know but PH seems to rate him.