Transfer Rumours JANUARY TRANSFER THREAD

Season was over after Derby anyway.

 

Nooooooooooo.
Now its the 1990's..................fighting for the right to stay.
Season has only just begun!

 

Nooooooooooo.

-----------------------

How come when I read that I hear Emperor Palpatine's voice?

 

I have to pick up on two things here spacedsaint:

1. Cedric hasn’t been out first choice RB under Ralph. I would have liked another RB but I can accept the club not being able to get the one they wanted and deciding not to bring in an average back up (that is let of why we are where we are)

2. Wanting rid, but "doing our best" is failure

This is a very black and white statement and I think there is plenty of grey area in between. It is better than doing nothing, so I take the positive from that.

I hoped for a loan in this window; sadly we didn’t get it. The squad might seem weaker, but not that much really as the players gone haven’t been key. I think letting Gabby go weakens us. I’m not convinced letting Cedric go weakens as that much as I don’t think he gave us much going forward. Defensively, if we play a RB, Valery, Stephens, Yoshi can cover that. It’s not ideal but not a disaster.

 

That turn of phrase got me thinking. Can you be ambitious but devoid of ambition? Can you have ambition but not be ambitious? Is it simply a tautology or does it enhance meaning? Can you have unambitious ambitions such as wanting to be relegated? Is ambition a positive concept. If being ambitious means you aspire to succeed does having ambitious ambitions mean you aspire to be aspiring the corollary of which must be you are nor aspiring now? Are we devoid of aspirations?

 

I will highlight a caveat in my post that maybe didn’t stand out.

Ifs and maybes

I truly believe in Ralph and think he looks a fabulous coach. However, he has only been here two months and the new coach bounce could wear off. I don’t believe it will, but we never know.

It could stilll go tits up.

 

Oh that'd be awful wouldn't it

 

This thread has become a magnet for the disenchanted with a single voice of reason in opposition (thanks FLT)

Everything in January has been in accordance with Ralph’s words

No short term back-stop iffy signings. Only quality if it is available. It wasn’t for him, we move on

Forming a smaller squad of players who are all highly committed and playing for their and our future. Done

Utilising the best of the youth squad. Happening

Improving the performance of every player in the squad. Done. Although Ely is his final challenge

Winning points. Happening
We weren’t good v Palace and still got a point. Pre Ralph we could lose a game however we played

Of course we all want to sign fantastic new players every window but look at our recent big signing history therefore ...

If Ralph’s happy I’m happy

 

You are right. He was not first choice under Ralph. However, that is more down to injury and then his impending sale than anything else. Valery is not as good as Cedric (yet).

We now have a very shaky front line with a lack of depth behind it. If we have to play Ely in 3 games more this season then I, personally, will think of this window as a total disaster. I would rather try to get George Weah's cousin in... Like you say, having Gabby around gave us a different dimension.

Anyway, I am not saying we could have done much better, but the fact we are not all raging that we couldn't is a worrying statement about the club. We are in a very bad place, owned by a totally ineffectual man. On the bright side, the board have pulled themselves together and are doing some good things to try to deal with. We have been dealt 2 9 unsuiteed and desperately need to bluff our way to win this hand...

 

Be careful what you wish for. We’ll probably have to drop to League One again to play your beloved Pompey.

 

Hold up... have you actually been reading this stuff? Schad's point is that this is not a great window as we lost players without selling them and our squad has not improved.

Pretty much everyone in the thread is positive about the management, admits that selling crap was our number one priority, and most of us think we will stay up. However, that doesn't mean we can't question the squad and the success of the window.

All I would have expected would be a decent loan. Not expensive. No risk.

Oh, and I bet Ralph would have been happier had we brought in Che...

P.S. Please clarify what you mean by disenchanted? I have not been so positive and enchanted by Saints for years as I am right now. Does questioning the success of a transfer window make me less passionate than those who blindly (I deliberatly use that term to show you the danger of emotively loaded phrases) follow the party line?

 

Not sure how you can say we are owned by a totally ineffectual man? Do you know him? What I'm seeing are changes at the club he owns that I totally approve of.
Les,Ralph etc.

 

What evidence do you have of his involvement? What has he said? Where is the public statement he promised over a year ago?

I totally agree we have made positive changes. You only need to read any of my posts above to see that I can see positive changes - but we are owned by a failing businessman with no access to decent money. In my opinion the board is scrabbling about to make the best of this bad situation - and doing us proud at that - but I see not one positive in his ownership. Currently, if I owned the club I would be able to do as much as he is. Sadly, I am not even exaggerating.

 

I believe I just think differently to you. Your last paragraph confuses me because younstart by saying people should be raging (some are) about the sundown and go on to point out we’re doing some good things. If we’re doing some good things, then we should be feeling ok about things. Not ecstatic, but ok.

I think you’ve overrated Cedric. I think he’s been poor for two seasons. Give me a young learner any day.

Gabbi? I’m one of his biggest fans, but down to how we play and how he was used, we got very little from him so hardly going to be a miss. We still have the same frontline we had before and a frontline that Ralph has gotten wins out of.

I am very thankful you were not allowed to get George Weah’s cousin In. Can’t you see that is exactly what we would have done before Ralph said we shouldn’t sign “just someone”?? I present you Guido Carrillo for 18m

Ely - what if we play him for 6 more games and Ralph gets him doing what he wants him to do? Ely has not been good at all, but I wouldn’t write him off while we have Ralph around.

Don’t be offended now, but it does read a little like you only want to see this as bad. It’s not great, but it’s not a disaster. It’s slow progression towards where our coach wants us and remember he said himself he wants to work with a smaller squad

 

Serious question:

Why is his involvement in the club (activity) or a statement from him important? I work for a billion dollar, family owned business. The family have zero to do with the business. They leave their Board of Directors to run it and we hear literally nothing from the owners.

Is your feeling based on the fact he has no money to spend or invest further?

 

I bet so too, but do you know if we tried or made an offer? It sounds to me like we made an enquiry and Birmingham said “no, he is not for sake”

What do we do then? You can’t but someone who is not for sale.

 

Flt, doesn't it get boring trying to personally goad me all the time? "Don't be offended". "You only want to see this as bad". These statements litter your posts and make an interesting debate unpleasant. If you don't understand what I mean, then please message me and we can discuss decent discussion etiquette without littering the board.

Clearly, you know I was joking anout George Weah's cousin. This was a joke. Glad to see you agree that Ely is bad now. Maybe he will get good, but I see little chance.

Just one point, in seriousness, to take out of your response - as we are pretty much in agreement (even though you don't seem to notice --> good progress, club right direction, window could have been better). I never said Cedric was amazing. I just said he is better than Valery. I do believe that - and I really like Valery. I think you are underrating Cedric. I guess this is the nature of opinion!

 

Sorry these are all coming across as question after question, it’s just I finish one and then read another post that raises a question for me...

 

Wait..l where did I say we didn't try? I am on the transfer thread, gauging the success of the window. We wanted a guy we did not get. This, surely, is not successful?

All I have said anywhere, that seems to be bothering you, is that this is a bit of a "bum" window. Bum, as in bum note, as in flat.

 

. See what I’ve just posted above.

I tried so hard to have a discussion with you without any angst or finger pointing. I have written everything very carefully this morning to you, yet still you fall back in the same old thing. I am not goading you and just wanted to discuss your points and the way in which it comes acros to me how you feel
About the current situation.

Clearly I can’t do it, so I will try my hardest to not post to you in future, as sad as that is.

Have a good day.