Midfielders

[ancientblade]

Yeah it’s pretty much all jam tomorrow. The older lads who you’d expect to be more ready in terms of playing men’s football are all either on loan slater, smith, RND or have been released so as not to block the pathway of the younger lads.

rnd has to be brought back think he can cover lcb as well chris would really have lost the plot if he sells him to stoke

 

[Yogi]

rnd has to be brought back think he can cover lcb as well chris would really have lost the plot if he sells him to stoke

If we sell RND for anything less than a “well we couldn’t refuse that” offer to a prem side then yeah I’d be questioning what’s happening.

 

[Nelson1889]

I think RND starts the first match of next season as our LWB. If wilder rated Lowe or osborn in that position they'd be starting by now with the form Stevens has put up the last 12 months. And one would have definitely played on Saturday over a right footer out there.

 

[Goodpinchofclough]

We would be mental to not keep and play Freeman IMO, wonder what effect it would've had if we hadn't loaned him out this season

 

[ancientblade]

I think RND starts the first match of next season as our LWB. If wilder rated Lowe or osborn in that position they'd be starting by now with the form Stevens has put up the last 12 months. And one would have definitely played on Saturday over a right footer out there.

i cant understand why we dont play osborn at lwb hes the best weve got imo at the moment but if rnd comes back think hes got to be our first choice next season

 

[Upton_Blade]

We would be mental to not keep and play Freeman IMO, wonder what effect it would've had if we hadn't loaned him out this season

I agree but it's out of our hands unfortunately as it's a loan to buy agreement so if Forest want him and offer the pre agreed fee then he's off.

 

[bertieblade]

Freeman has admittedly been injured during some of his time at forest but has failed to hold down a spot in the team , is frequently withdrawn, has been constantly criticised and seems to have slapped on about a stone.
The player of two years ago would admittedly be an asset it appears that the current player would not, I subsequently hope that he is obliged to go to forest.

 

[BerksBlade]

I’ve wanted him for a while and if we don’t at least try and get in on him this summer then he will be beyond our reach by next year.

I think bigger clubs than us will be in for Olise in the summer.
Not convinced by Swift either - needs to prove he's not made of biscuits.

 

[PurpleRain]

Jesper Lindstrom, creative, goal scoring midfield player of Brondby, 21 years old. Would be a top signing. Maybe not possible because of brexit rules? If so, we are happy to take him on loan for 3 years

 

[Flatulent_Bob]

Jesper Lindstrom, creative, goal scoring midfield player of Brondby, 21 years old. Would be a top signing. Maybe not possible because of brexit rules? If so, we are happy to take him on loan for 3 years

He's had his first international cap and played in the vast majority of league games so he'd qualify.

 

[Mouth of the South]

At least with CW no longer being around, we may see the re-emergence of the #10 / CAM role

 

[Yogi]

At least with CW no longer being around, we may see the re-emergence of the #10 / CAM role

Depends who comes in. If it is Howe then he’s used a front 3 in the past which I wouldn’t mind seeing given the strikers we have.

 

[Mouth of the South]

Depends who comes in. If it is Howe then he’s used a front 3 in the past which I wouldn’t mind seeing given the strikers we have.

TBH, with the possible exception of Burke, I can't think of any of the current strikers that could play left or right sided in a three and that wouldn't become less effective

- Burke - probably
- Sharp - no
- McBurnie - no
- Brewster - no
- Mousset - possibly
- McGoldrick - possibly.

 

[Yogi]

TBH, with the possible exception of Burke, I can't think of any of the current strikers that could play left or right sided in a three and that wouldn't become less effective

• Burke - probably
• Sharp - no
• McBurnie - no
• Brewster - no
• Mousset - possibly
• McGoldrick - possibly.

Mcburnie is more versatile than united fans think he is because we’ve been really inflexible in how we’ve used him. When he went on loan to Barnsley and tore it up he was used as one of the wide strikers in a front 3 and then at Swansea he almost had a free role in a 3 when he tore it up again. We’ve tried to make him in a line leading number 9. Brewster could work in a 3 but probably only as the central player I grant you.

 

[ancientblade]

Depends who comes in. If it is Howe then he’s used a front 3 in the past which I wouldn’t mind seeing given the strikers we have.

yeah think if it is eddie howe were likely to play 433 and that suits me fine brewster up top with burke right and mcburnie left could work but think we may see a couple of forwards come in to suit the system if thats the way we go

 

[Mouth of the South]

Mcburnie is more versatile than united fans think he is because we’ve been really inflexible in how we’ve used him. When he went on loan to Barnsley and tore it up he was used as one of the wide strikers in a front 3 and then at Swansea he almost had a free role in a 3 when he tore it up again. We’ve tried to make him in a line leading number 9. Brewster could work in a 3 but probably only as the central player I grant you.

You may well be right about McBurnie esp at Champ level. However, whenever he's moved from a central role, whether that be deeper or wider whilst with Utd, I think he's struggled and become far less effective. Happy to be proven wrong though.

There would still be a gap left sided. It's a shame Callum Robinson left on a perm as he'd have been perfect for that role.

 

[ancientblade]

You may well be right about McBurnie esp at Champ level. However, whenever he's moved from a central role, whether that be deeper or wider whilst with Utd, I think he's struggled and become far less effective. Happy to be proven wrong though.

There would still be a gap left sided. It's a shame Callum Robinson left on a perm as he'd have been perfect for that role.

yes callum robinson always played the left side role for preston another one of our signings that just didnt suit playing in a front 2

 

[Yogi]

You may well be right about McBurnie esp at Champ level. However, whenever he's moved from a central role, whether that be deeper or wider whilst with Utd, I think he's struggled and become far less effective. Happy to be proven wrong though.

There would still be a gap left sided. It's a shame Callum Robinson left on a perm as he'd have been perfect for that role.

Yeah I think the more I watch mcburnie the more I view him like Basham. A very unorthodox player for whom there is a sweet spot role or formation where the look a very good player but move them outside of that they appear limited.

I think like ancientblade says there’s room for manoeuvre in terms of the striking options but I think it would have to be someone who’s cheap/free like dembele at Peterborough due to the amount of resources which will have to be allocated elsewhere.

 

[Snowflake]

Jesper Lindstrom, creative, goal scoring midfield player of Brondby, 21 years old. Would be a top signing. Maybe not possible because of brexit rules? If so, we are happy to take him on loan for 3 years

Name too much like another player for comfort !

 

[Berlin Blade]

Norwood RCM - probably still got the legs to play in there in the championship.

Cameron Brannigan RCM - should be attainable pretty cheap from Oxford. Good player, 24. Sprays it around, puts a foot in, covers a decent amount of pitch. A poor man’s Jordan Henderson. Also came out of Liverpool’s academy before working his way up from lower leagues.

John Fleck LCM - just hope he stays

Connor Hourihane LCM - he should be available in the summer and if Swansea don’t go up he could come to us. He won’t be commanding a mega fee, Villa will be happy to have him off the books.

Mowatt (covers either role) - as others have mentioned, too good to not pick up on a free from up the road.

Freeman (no10) - hes always looked good for us, and previously always looked good against us. I wouldn’t be too put off at him not performing for forest. They’re under Chris Hughton and set up very defensively. I’m actually not surprised he’s not thriving.

Skiri Dembele (no10) - my number one target. Is traditionally a winger but has played 10 a lot this season. 4 or 5 million probably. I would like to see us stretch to that, I know it seems silly to think we will spend on a player in the summer, but I consider it a solid investment, will almost certainly increase in value with us.

So:

Norwood/Branagan - Fleck/Hourihane
Dembele/Freeman

With osborn, Mowatt, Ndiaye, Maguire all covering. I think that will be more than enough to get us up, especially with 3 up front.

 

[Yogi]

Norwood RCM - probably still got the legs to play in there in the championship.

Cameron Brannigan RCM - should be attainable pretty cheap from Oxford. Good player, 24. Sprays it around, puts a foot in, covers a decent amount of pitch. A poor man’s Jordan Henderson. Also came out of Liverpool’s academy before working his way up from lower leagues.

John Fleck LCM - just hope he stays

Connor Hourihane LCM - he should be available in the summer and if Swansea don’t go up he could come to us. He won’t be commanding a mega fee, Villa will be happy to have him off the books.

Mowatt (covers either role) - as others have mentioned, too good to not pick up on a free from up the road.

Freeman (no10) - hes always looked good for us, and previously always looked good against us. I wouldn’t be too put off at him not performing for forest. They’re under Chris Hughton and set up very defensively. I’m actually not surprised he’s not thriving.

Skiri Dembele (no10) - my number one target. Is traditionally a winger but has played 10 a lot this season. 4 or 5 million probably. I would like to see us stretch to that, I know it seems silly to think we will spend on a player in the summer, but I consider it a solid investment, will almost certainly increase in value with us.

So:

Norwood/Branagan - Fleck/Hourihane
Dembele/Freeman

With osborn, Mowatt, Ndiaye, Maguire all covering. I think that will be more than enough to get us up, especially with 3 up front.

I believe dembele is out of contract this summer and would be high on my list aswell a very versatile player. Norwood I’m sceptical on an hourihane I think would represent a bad investment but I wouldn’t mind Brannigan although I think he’s fairly injury prone.

 

[Nah den]

I believe dembele is out of contract this summer and would be high on my list aswell a very versatile player. Norwood I’m sceptical on an hourihane I think would represent a bad investment but I wouldn’t mind Brannigan although I think he’s fairly injury prone.

If we got a fee for Fleck I'd rather get Hourihane in. He's only 6 months older than Fleck and far more productive both in goals and assists. In his senior career Hourihane has scored 72 goals, Fleck 23 goals (source Wikipedia). In nearly 2 PL seasons Fleck has managed 4 assists and 5 goals, not a great return for our more progressive midfielder.

For some reason he's a lot of people's favourite but the way he jogs half hearted to close down space and is often easily run past just annoys me.

 

[ancientblade]

Yeah I think the more I watch mcburnie the more I view him like Basham. A very unorthodox player for whom there is a sweet spot role or formation where the look a very good player but move them outside of that they appear limited.

I think like ancientblade says there’s room for manoeuvre in terms of the striking options but I think it would have to be someone who’s cheap/free like dembele at Peterborough due to the amount of resources which will have to be allocated elsewhere.

If we got a fee for Fleck I'd rather get Hourihane in. He's only 6 months older than Fleck and far more productive both in goals and assists. In his senior career Hourihane has scored 72 goals, Fleck 23 goals (source Wikipedia). In nearly 2 PL seasons Fleck has managed 4 assists and 5 goals, not a great return for our more progressive midfielder.

For some reason he's a lot of people's favourite but the way he jogs half hearted to close down space and is often easily run past just annoys me.

i suggested hourihane on here a month ago and got slated for even suggesting it most saying not good enough and too old but all about opinions i suppose and hes better than the john fleck weve seen this season

 

[Yogi]

i suggested hourihane on here a month ago and got slated for even suggesting it most saying not good enough and too old but all about opinions i suppose and hes better than the john fleck weve seen this season

I think a fit fleck is better as a box to box player but fleck has fitness question marks now. If hourihane is available for a reasonable fee and wages then I wouldn’t be against it but I don’t think he should be top of our list of midfielders because I have concerns about his game. Also if we don’t get back to the prem during the parachute period he won’t have resale value so any of the parachute money committed to him would be wasted.

 

[Nah den]

I think a fit fleck is better as a box to box player but fleck has fitness question marks now. If hourihane is available for a reasonable fee and wages then I wouldn’t be against it but I don’t think he should be top of our list of midfielders because I have concerns about his game. Also if we don’t get back to the prem during the parachute period he won’t have resale value so any of the parachute money committed to him would be wasted.

I agree that he shouldn't be at the top of a list of players we bring in, I want to us invest in young players capable of getting us up and staying there (sounds quite easy...), but if it were a straight swap I'd have Hourihane.

 

[Yogi]

I agree that he shouldn't be at the top of a list of players we bring in, I want to us invest in young players capable of getting us up and staying there (sounds quite easy...), but if it were a straight swap I'd have Hourihane.

That’s fair enough it’s in the eye of the beholder at point.

 

[Berlin Blade]

If we got a fee for Fleck I'd rather get Hourihane in. He's only 6 months older than Fleck and far more productive both in goals and assists. In his senior career Hourihane has scored 72 goals, Fleck 23 goals (source Wikipedia). In nearly 2 PL seasons Fleck has managed 4 assists and 5 goals, not a great return for our more progressive midfielder.

For some reason he's a lot of people's favourite but the way he jogs half hearted to close down space and is often easily run past just annoys me.

I do know what you mean. Fleck’s numbers are relatively poor. Hourihane’s are much better when side by side. He’s also amazing on free kicks. I do think however Fleck is (when on his day) far better at controlling a game.

If we had the collection of midfielders in my post above, we could play them both in the same team.

 

[ancientblade]

I agree that he shouldn't be at the top of a list of players we bring in, I want to us invest in young players capable of getting us up and staying there (sounds quite easy...), but if it were a straight swap I'd have Hourihane.

25m plus hourihane for berge ?

 

[Nah den]

25m plus hourihane for berge ?

I'd probably take it, mainly because I'd be happy to get our money back on Berge. Good player, seems like a really nice guy but wrong time wrong place for us given the circumstances we now find ourselves in.

If there were a 'bidding war' for Berge I'd hope we would try and get some sort of cash plus player, or at least a pick of the loanees available.

 

[ancientblade]

I'd probably take it, mainly because I'd be happy to get our money back on Berge. Good player, seems like a really nice guy but wrong time wrong place for us given the circumstances we now find ourselves in.

If there were a 'bidding war' for Berge I'd hope we would try and get some sort of cash plus player, or at least a pick of the loanees available.

hourihane would be great competition for fleck think thats been one of the problems with him this season hes had no competition for his place at all osborn should be used for the lb spot