Central midfield

Agree 100% after watching tonights debacle. We had no one who could get on the ball and make anything happen...at all. Omari Patrick was the only one to actually get the ball and run at PNE tonight.

 

A midfield 2 in a 4-4-2 of who? It would be car crash

 

Scannell Imo has not done very much since he has been at the club. No goals and the 1 assist. Pace but not enough end product, so often cutting back than whipping the ball in. I'll be honest, I wouldn't be overly sad if he left and we could utilise his wages. If the first two league matches are to go by, he could be an expensive bench warmer for L2

 

It was obvious when O'Brien went back to Town how badly we would miss that type of player. just like we badly missed Josh Cullen. We knew it in pre season, we knew it when the first game started and we still know it three games in. that midfield was and is a disaster waiting to happen. Its killing us and will continue to do so unless new recruits are brought in to rectify it. Reeves ain't gonna change, Akpan ain't, Anderson ain't, Devine most definitely ain't, Colville ain't. palmer has hardly set the world on fire but he gets the benefit of the doubt since he's the new kid on the block. Worse thing is i can't see it changing.

 

Corrected for you

 

We should be getting a decent centre midfield general loan in asap, perhaps a couple. Todays result was expected but doesnt excuse the previous two poor results.

Loosen the purse strings mr chairman, distinct lack of quality that needs addressing asap.

 

We clearly have too many squad makeweights and not enough first choice midfielders. Any one of Anderson, Devine or Wood might just be ok at L2 level with a couple of clever/hard/experienced players alongside them. But relied upon together they are woefully inadequate, especially against the Championship players they faced tonight. Totally outclassed.

But the one who really gets my goat is Akpan. With his experience and physique he should be leading by example and bossing the midfield. Instead he wanders around, pointing at others, never breaking sweat, shirking challenges, avoiding the action as much as posible and looking completely uninterested. He clearly has talent - I've seen it - but he just isn't using it.

I'm puzzled as to what he wants. If he wants to be in the first team he's doing nothing to warrant it. If he wants away he's doing nothing to attract other clubs to come for him. If he's happy to just sit out his contract on the bench then that's appalling.

I'm really not one for slagging players, but this guy is totally stealing a wage and I'm happy to call him a disgrace. I'd honestly rather we just paid him off now and waved goodbye than have him hanging around for another season doing the square root of feck all.

 

Akpan infuriates me almost as much as Doyle does. At least Doyle looks like he's trying but Akpan plays like a fecking fairy. For such a big lad he might as well be Jack Payne's size for the amount he's imposed himself on games. Once him and Doyle go I'll be such a happy man.

 

You have to be patient with the arrival of loanees.

I know someone who plays for a championship club (U23’s last season) and is well thought of. He had 3 or 4 league one clubs wanting to take him on loan. Firstly his manager didn’t tell him if he’d be letting him go until after the window closed, then once he said he would, he had the other managers ringing him with information on their systems of play, how much he’d feature etc etc. He then spoke to various people in the game about each club, then went back to his manager. Once he’d decided, the two clubs had to agree how much of his wages would be paid (he wasn’t involved in this bit). After all that, which took 2/3 weeks, he signed on loan.

This could be what Bowyer means when he says he has plates spinning. It’s out of his and the clubs hands. It’s a waiting game unless we actually buy somebody. If it’s anything like what I know, the players will be doing their due diligence and will want to play, for as high a club and as stable a club as possible, amongst other things.

Unless we stop with the constant chopping and changing (take heed those wanting or thinking about ditching Bowyer), we’ll always be labelled as a basket case club, where players of any real potential will avoid like the plague.

 

Bowyer created this problem.

No way should Devine, Anderson and Colville all been offered new contracts.

We'll know Anderson isn't good enough but Bowyer seems to like him.

I don't know but I said it since the transfer window opened that we need a decent midfielder and with 2 weeks or so left of the transfer window we still need this it's embarrassing.

 

Excellent and spot on.

 

Akpan seems to think he’s some kind of Yaya Toure type.....yet he’s more Darren Morgan

The recruitment this summer has been as lopsided as last summers so far. It was clear to everyone last summer that if Wyke left we’d need a physical centre forward yet we didn’t bother. This summer it’s been obvious we need a stronger midfield....yet we haven’t bothered.

The fact that a midfield kid from Huddersfield was our best player by a country mile last season in a shit team should have made that even more obvious.

If we are relying on Devine, Colville, Gibson, Akpan and Anderson we may as well give up, they are conference players. We need 2-3 midfielders urgently, 2 who can play in the middle and a left sider.

However, what do I know I’m just some idiot that pays to watch

 

I don’t think the contracts given to Anderson, Devine and Colville will be impacting us signing a better quality CM. I can’t believe they will be earning much of a salary between them and they provide some much needed depth to the squad. The issue is we are currently relying on 1 or 2 of them to be in the starting XI when they aren’t good enough for a team aiming for top 3. What we need is a quality CM to play alongside Palmer in the starting XI.

 

We can't moan about money then waste it on players that are not good enough to make the 1st or the squad in my mind.

Think you're underestimating how much Bowyer rates Anderson. He won't be near the lowest paid member of our squad.

It's all about spots. 3 midfielders, all 3 not good enough, so we need to add to them with quality but now have to worry about budget.

I would of offered 1 a contract and let 2 go then put the wages/budget towards a better quality midfielder myself.

 

Doesnt matter what they are earning, they simply are not good enough and Devine and Anderson should not be here even if playing for free. Still dont know what hold Colville has on Bowyer to be allowed to take the pi55 all summer