Potters at the Liberty

[The Blobster]

I facking hate Stoke with a vengeance ! Happy to see them struggling beneath us in the table , will our ex midfielder continue to haunt us or will we serve up a positive result ?
Shame on the board for their failure to retain the services of our best wing back , his performances deserve better, let's hope he can find a club that appreciates him in the summer when he will leave on a free transfer.
Hoping for a shaky draw from this one , I just can't see us getting a result unless we start with Whitaker and Cullen , but then pigs might fly and I'll have to shoot for pork
We need fresh legs for this one so we can expect a few changes to the starting lineup , maybe this time Martins genius tactics will put out 9 defenders , Piroe and Fisher !

 

[Yankee_Jack]

...
Shame on the board for their failure to retain the services of our best wing back , his performances deserve better, let's hope he can find a club that appreciates him in the summer when he will leave on a free transfer.
...

I presume you are referring to Manning? Has the Club announced anything I missed on regarding his contract?

Manning is 26. He's about as good as he is going to get. Bidwell v Manning ... I think I'd choose Bidwell a very solid, consistent, two-way LB. Note, I say LB - Manning plays as a pseudo WB. Yet, he doesn't have winger skills nor a winger's mentality. Despite often having loads of space in front of him to attack, he rarely takes a defender on (i.e. has no confidence in his speed off the mark), and more often than not takes the safe option. As a LB, he's not that solid a defender and doesn't contain nor block crosses as well as he should. Too often he's late or slow getting back, and at the end of games runs out of gas ... Bidwell was a full 90 minute player.

I would like to get somebody better in that position. In short, Manning is a symptom we see in too many positions ... we could do better!

 

[ivoralljack]

Martin says that Manning has rejected all offers and is expected to leave for nothing in the summer.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

So what should be do at this point? Is there an internal replacement from U-21 ... if so, and he's capable, he should be promoted to the first team squad and started, otherwise we play Naughton at LB/LWB. Why waste time on a player electing not to be a part of our future. If we were serious candidates for play-offs and promotion then it would be a different matter, but we need to focus on the assets that want to be with us for the future.

just realized ... Naughton is out of contract in June. Sorinola returns to his home club. Lati is out of contract in June.

We're stark naked at LB/RB. There are 4 kids there: Lincoln McFayden, Kian Jenkins, Harry Jones, Joe Thomas. Nothing like good player management.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

You can see what's happening here. Agents are looking at our squads, seeing the obvious, and asking for silly money. The Club are taking a purely business approach, assuming a big risk, and declining to engage at those price points.

Question now becomes ... what do we do? Swallow the price? Swallow the risk and promote our unders now? Start hunting for other out of contract defenders as replacements. The only one of the "exiteers" worth putting any money into is Lati as he's only 23 with some potential upside. I presume that Naughton at this point is on a single season deal anyway and this would be renewed.

 

[CroJack]

Question now becomes ... what do we do?

Come to Scandinavia and buy good players for no money. Particularly Denmark produces good players and it's been Brentford's preferred market for years. Danish players are technically gifted, hard-working lads who don't sulk when the temperatures are below zero. They are Vikings.

Do anyone of you know how it is now with the transfers from the Continent after the Brexit?

 

[CroJack]

Start hunting for other out of contract defenders as replacements.

Kevin Diks, 26 yo, from Netherlands, was out of contract a couple of years ago, signed by FC Copenhagen, and is now the best right back in the Danish superliga. We don't know yet how good the Danish goalkeeper we've just signed is. It is possible to find good players who are out of contract. Of course, we must not forget Congreve, Williams, Abdulai, Cotterill, McFayden, Lloyd etc.

 

[ivoralljack]

I remember your observations about Scandy players from a while back and I completely agree. Quality bargains to be had if carefully scouted but our club is not far-sighted enough to do that. And it would cost money, beggar the thought!!!!!

As for tonight nothing less than 3 points should be the aim but I wouldn't bet a penny on it. If we draw, or even lose, which is highly possible, I have to ask how patient will our owners be? Martin's record in the last 15 games or so is appalling. How low do we sink, how bad must he be before getting sacked?

 

[Yankee_Jack]

....
Do anyone of you know how it is now with the transfers from the Continent after the Brexit?

Clearly the EPL clubs are drowning in overseas players and have no trouble onboarding.

I would imagine that importing a player of lesser ability into the lower leagues would cause HM's immigration people to be more difficult if not impossible.

It's an interesting situation. But last season we had no trouble bringing Wolfe on loan, and Benda is not a domestic player either, as is the new keeper. I imagine that it's happening and without too much friction.

 

[CroJack]

Benda is not a domestic player either, as is the new keeper.

They are domestic (homegrown) players. Currently, to be classified as homegrown a player must be on an English team for at least three years before the age of twenty-one. Since Brexit, the clubs have not been able to sign players from overseas until they were 18. With this rule, overseas players can still become homegrown if they are signed at 18 years old and evolve 3 years on an English team.

 

[CroJack]

Martin's record in the last 15 games or so is appalling. How low do we sink, how bad must he be before getting sacked?

Cheer up! Graham Potter spent £300m in the January transfer window and have a similar record as Martin who has not been backed by the Swansea owners at all.

 

[KVetch]

Cooper and Whittaker starting !

 

[KVetch]

Brenda has been with us a long time I feel, since the Premier League days

 

[CroJack]

I am always trying to question myself and my own opinions, so the other day I had a look at our squad.

This season we've had only four senior players performing at an acceptable level!!!

Manning, Piroe, Fulton and Grimes. Naughton has been benched, Paterson first injured and then frozen out, Obafemi sent on loan to Burnley, Ntcham not been able to play for more than 20 minutes, and Allen has been injured and is not ready to play 90 minutes yet.

Apart from Cabango and Lati, who both have been poor and I don't count them as senior players yet, all other players have never played regularly at this level before. Benda, Cullen, Cooper, Fisher, Darling, Wood, Cundle, Oko-Flex, Whittaker, Sorinola, Stevens, and Congreve are all newbies when it comes to Championship football at the regular basis. It's not a surprise that they shine in a couple of games and then underperform in the following two. Cundle and Cooper are two latest examples of these up and downs.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

They are domestic (homegrown) players. Currently, to be classified as homegrown a player must be on an English team for at least three years before the age of twenty-one. Since Brexit, the clubs have not been able to sign players from overseas until they were 18. With this rule, overseas players can still become homegrown if they are signed at 18 years old and evolve 3 years on an English team.

There's a difference between "howegrown" which is a competition designation, versus foreign which is an immigration designation. Benda may be "domestic from the league's perspective, but he is still a foreign national from an immigration perspective.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Swansea City: Andy Fisher; Nathan Wood, Ben Cabango, Harry Darling; Matty Sorinola, Joe Allen, Matt Grimes (captain), Ryan Manning; Ollie Cooper, Morgan Whittaker; Joel Piroe.

Substitutes: Andreas Søndergaard, Olivier Ntcham, Liam Cullen, Joel Latibeaudiere, Kyle Naughton, Liam Walsh, Cameron Congreve.

 

[CroJack]

Fulton not even on the bench?

 

[Yankee_Jack]

Looks like Cullen is on the short end of the stick with respect to Whittaker. Martin cannot make himself sit Piroe and start Cullen, Whittaker and Cooper together.

Piroe is on 4 yellows ... one more and Martin won't have a logical choice ... but I'm sure he'd find one.

 

[Yankee_Jack]

I think I remember Fulton taking a couple of knocks on Saturday, maybe they need a little time.

 

[CroJack]

Martin cannot make himself sit Piroe and start Cullen, Whittaker and Cooper together.

No need to bench Piroe. Just bench Cabango. He is too slow anyway.