Greenridge

[quote=Shroppie;25192 I think it was mainly a team of likely fringe players being told to show what they can do, and unfortunately the answer was disappointing. At least 6 of the starting 11 will be first team regulars this season just as they were last season.

It's just marketing hype from the Club. No such thing as a black box. We have a scouting network just like any other club. Look at the signings under Koeman and Puel. Largely made up of players they were familiar with from their leagues / countries. Unless that's coincidence of course that they were also from the black box

Hard to judge Defoe in that pile of a team that was Sunderland. Most thought his career had long gone several years ago but he consistently bangs in goals year after year. Do you think our strikers will out-score him this season?

40? Of course it is but we have made wholesale changes in and out the last few seasons. That was the point. It's been our M.O.

I'm guessing our manager doesn't feel his squad has the ability to play that way.

I don't see that at all. We have quantity in abundance. What we lack is quality.

That's pretty much what we have been doing the last few years.

I dont like to imagine any formation that has Forster as our last line of defence.

Maybe the personnel aren't capabale of playing the high press game. We were already short on quality going in to last season and not much has changed so it shouldn't come as too much of a surprise if that is the case.

No we weren't.

Could be the menopause.

The Club's ambition is the owner's ambition. The owner wants out. We are in limbo.

I had always anticipated he will go despite what the Board have said. If he stays then great but if he goes then that was always my expectation . I actually think he should go. Any one of us would surely try and reach the pinnacle of their chosen careers and he's no different. Yes he signed a long contract recently but we know what they are worth. Diddly squat. They do mean however that we will get the maximum fee which is no bad thing and we can buy 3 or four highly quality players which is what we need. The alternative is we have a disillusioned player who potentially won't be giving his all and we haven't had the chance t make meaningful additions to the squad. It's hard to see a way back for him now and I don't expect him to either.

I'm probably very late to the party but see that according to SSN VvD has not traveled to France for the pre-season training camp. Old news I guess.

Compelling lol. Unusual that something like this didn't leak out if that were the case. Strange, given his performances throughout the season that we didn't give someone else a go. Not that we we blessed in that position but a two-legged average 'keeper would have often performed better than he did on many occasions.

Source?

We'd have quantity not quality.

Seems to get his fair share of headed goals for a relatively small lad.

Condolences to his family and all the others who will have lost someone today young or old.

I think one of those is a definite possibility.

Offset by him coming on a free.

JRod leaving.

And the inference is clear that the majority of signings under Koeman and Puel were 'their' players not some black box findings from Les 'that we've been watching for years'. 'Years' really? I've got no problem with that whatsoever but Reed certainly leaves himself open when he trots out the marketing line.

I don't see any reference to exclusively buying from those markets. Oh, and Redmond arrived in the summer, well before Claude was appointed. Nice try though.

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