Signings so far

I agree - in both positions, but quality not just 'bulking out' the squad. We have more than enough to fill the bench, the quality of the squad will define our season, not the numbers in it.

 

Half the team wasn't involved last night plus I would have thought the squad will be trimmed down by the time the season starts.

 

If we had put out our strongest side we would have easily have won last night. We had 2 side mixed with first teamers,young scholars,development players plus a trialist on each side. You can't expect a decent standard of football with the mixture we had ,plus most haven't even played along side each other. Last night was just a workout nothing else so there's no need to panic and I also agree we are still carrying a lot of dead wood that we need shut of but it's not that easy to move them along.

 

Agreed, and last night was pretty predictable with the 'two teams' selected. But yet was proof again, that playing too many youngsters in a side will not return too many good results - indicating further that the squad still needs 2 or 3 more decent signings, to add depth that is still missing.

 

Half the team? Who, out of those absent, would you expect to be in the team?

 

I'd expect/hope for another striker/no 10, Robinson, Seedorf, Reaves and Akpan.

 

And NKP for the bench. An attacking midfielder and another forward and we will be much stronger than las season

 

But Robinson won’t play if Seedorf does and vice versa. We can’t play Reeves and Akpan and two of those that played last night. As for getting another no10, not convinced that will happen either.

Provide your 1st team at Shrews based on what we have today (or you hope we will bring in). I’d be surprised if you want 6 new players to add to the best of the players that played last night.

 

Obviously it all depends if we get anyone new in, let a couple go and how the team play in pre season games but I'd go with:

O'Donnell
Riley
McGowan
O'Connor
Wood
Seedorf
Akpan
Wright/Reaves
Robinson
New No 10
Wyke

I doubt we'll play a 442 so a 5311 would see Wright/Reaves maybe drop out for a holding midfielder.

 

So I think because Tyrell performed pretty well last season, we've decided you need experience in the middle, but none out wide.

Great!

 

You need a mix all over the pitch and for the most part we have got it

 

We absolutely need an experienced wide man. We can't go into this season with 3 young kids as our only wide options. Surely?

 

So the ‘half a team’ out is actually just, Seedorf, Akpan, Robinson and a new no10? And even then, you have doubts that some of them may not play anyway if we don’t go with a 4-4-2?

You’ve listed a 4-4-1-1 based on our squad and your hope for a new no10, but then said you don’t expect us to play 4-4-2 and that you expect us to go with 5-3-1-1 instead. So where would the likes of Riley, Wood, Seedorf and Robinson play in that formation?

 

But does Rahic (sorry, I mean our transfer committee) want to play with wingers? I thought that Riley and Wood were more wing-back than full-back and that we would expect them to provide the width? Can’t see us playing wing-backs and wingers.

This is the biggest question for me this season. What formation will we adopt (as our PlanA) and what style of football will we be trying to deliver? Will it be 4-4-1-1 (or 4-4-2) with wingers or 5-3-1-1 (or 5-3-2) with wingbacks and no wingers?

 

Half the team would be 5, I mentioned 4 - I'll try be more accurate the next time I post.

In all honesty I'm not that bothered about trying to explain, it was a comment on someone moaning about the performance of our first pre season, a very meaningless game that gave new, old, young, inexperienced players 45 minutes of football. I'm not the manager so have no say on the formation/tactics of our new squad it was just a suggestion and a guess at how we may or may not play. 532, 4411, 442, 433, 4321 - take your pick.

 

Name your team. What do you expect? Who do you see playing?

 

"All over the pitch"? We're talking out wide, is there really that experience "all over the pitch" and out wide?

 

Sorry if you felt attacked. I was just trying to get the debate moving and thought “half-a-team missing” was optimistic.

As I’ve said in another, I have no idea what Collins (transfer committee) wants to set up as. We signed wing-backs and a loanee winger to add to the boys we already have. Absolutely no clues yet as to how we will set up. That said, we appeared to play a 4-4-1-1 formation in the 1st half on Tuesday, so I expect we COULD be looking at

- - - - - - - - - - - O’Donnell - - - - - - - - - - -
Riley - - McGowan - - Kilgallon - - Chicksen
Gibson - - Wright - - Akpan - - Seedorf
- - - - - - - - McCartan - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Wyke - - - - - - - -

Not my preference BTW. With the players we have, I’d much prefer something more similar to this.

- - - - - - - - - - - O’Donnell - - - - - - - - - - -
- - McGowan - - O’Connor - - Kilgallon - -
Riley - - - - - - - Akpan - - - - - - - Chicksen
- - - - - - - Wright - - - - - Reeves - - - - - - -
- - - - - Jones - - Wyke - - Robinson - - - - -

 

Think we'd all prefer to have 12 players on the field!

I think take McGowan out of that though and turn it into a 433 and it looks good.

 

Hope you are sitting down Park for I agree with you. Early friendlies should be disregarded. The Minnow will always want the result more and in the 2nd half there were some silly tackles. They don't cut the grass for a couple of days and don't have a full blown stamina training session that day. Looking at the players we have (and I am confident changes will happen), it looks as though we will have a central defensive 3 with 2 attacking wing backs and we certainly have the personnel for this, with experience in the middle and not exactly novices out wide. Again, we have good options in central mid but up front we don't really know how we stand at the moment; will Charlie be here? If not who? Will an injury free Jones fill the bill? He looks to have filled out a bit and at times looked a handful against admittedly lower class opponents but bear in mind the support he had. Our German leader who some on here would have us believe Stuart begged Edin to sign, would unfortunately not make Guisley reserves.