[Archived] Tony's Transfer Record

[Mike E]

I'm not sure 'creativity' of targets matters too much. Usually managers only 'return' to players that were either relatively successful or fit their puzzle.

Freidel and Tugay being examples under Souness, Sav and Bellamy for Hughes, Diouf for Allardyce, Bennett for Lambert stand out as recent historical examples.

[Blue Cabbage]

West Brom

[roversfan99]

9 hours ago, Blue blood said:

So, we're now halfway through the season and the transfer window has come round again. As we consider who we'd like to buy I thought it'd be good to have a think on how much confidence we have in TM to get it right and sign some good 'uns, by reflecting on his last transfer window. Whilst players can turn around their form in the second half of a season, generally by and large, in half a season they've begun to find their level and you've got a good idea of how a player is going to perform for your club long term. So with this in mind I thought it'd be good to share and get others' thoughts on how they feel we did in the last transfer window under TM.

 

My thoughts and ratings are as follows:

Samuel - 7 I quite like the guy. A bit different to Graham, offers a bit more pace, and has grabbed us some goals. Not cemented his place, but looks a useful signing capable of scoring goals at this level.

Dack - 9 After a slow start, Dack has been excellent for us; goals, assists and excitement. Not a 10 as he's pretty limited in a 4-4-2 which we sometimes play.

Gladwin - 1 As a kid I wanted to play for Blackburn Rovers. As a not-so-fit 34 year old Gladwin encourages me that I perhaps shouldn't give up on that dream yet. Aside from this I don't know what he contributes towards Rovers. Awful signing.

Antonsson - 6.5 Really didn't know what to put for him. Looking at his stats, he's around an 8. When I watch him play he looks about a 4 not offering much. Despite few attributes he has managed to score and assist a few making him a decent signing. I've knocked off a point though as he we signed as a striker which is a position he can't really play as he's only looks ok at wide left.

Whittingham - 3  Doesn't really justify the wages we're paying him. A few decent cameos but hasn't imposed himself or contributed to the team anywhere near as much as he should have. Not enough assists or goals, or even getting us to tick a la Tugay. Whilst he was never going to be that good, I had hoped - and he needed to be - more than just an ok player. Poor signing.

Smallwood - 10. Outside of buying me a Ferrari I'm not sure what more he could do to be a great signing.

Chapman - 8. Just what we need, pace, trickery, excitement and creating chances. Not used very well by TM but that's another gripe. As a signing he has a good shout.

Harper - 3. Waste of space not really imposed himself at all. And given the competition has been a limited Whitingham and a limited and injured Evans you'd like to think anyone half decent would have made the second cm spot their own.

Caddis - 5.  Too immobile for my liking. Decent back up but think it's no surprise we started doing better when he was out of the team. Poor mobility leaves us vulnerable to pace and offers nothing going forward, which isn't a great mix with Bennett being not the most creative, leaving a pretty limited right side of the pitch. An ok back up and cheap but not really adding much to the team.

Hart - 3. Not sure what he offers. At least he's our own so in the unlikely event he develops in 3 years time we may see some benefit.

Downing - 8. Cheap back up but become pretty integral. Admittedly being an upgrade on Ward is not much of an achievement but Downing has managed it well. We're still shipping a few silly goals so would struggle to give a higher rating but generally an excellent value for money signing.

Leuitweiler (sp - who cares, he never plays) - 6. Good reviews from old club but looked pretty average on the few times he has played. Not great, but only a backup, and better than Steele.  

 

By my calculation that gives an average of 5.79 for each signing - or a 6 being generous. This (highly scientific) method suggests to me that overall any signings we make won't harm or make us any worse, but nor will they massively improve the team. Looking at the list as a whole it also suggests that  TM has been very boom and bust with his signings. They work out really well or really badly, there isn't much middle ground, although ironically that probably means for each good signing we make that improves us, a poor one will peg us back.

Overall it confirms my thoughts TM is a decent but not great manager, and that I shouldn't be too excited this window. But what do others think?

Agree with alot of this, would only have Samuel as a 5, for a big fee hes been mainly lazy and as a result ineffectual, far mor miss than hit.

Think Whittingham deserves at least 5, maybe a 6, hes been consistently ok whens hes played and was free but nowhere near what we expected, grnated.

Harper was as much of a waste of time as anyone, as was Hart. 

[blueboy3333]

10 hours ago, Blue blood said:

So, we're now halfway through the season and the transfer window has come round again. As we consider who we'd like to buy I thought it'd be good to have a think on how much confidence we have in TM to get it right and sign some good 'uns, by reflecting on his last transfer window. Whilst players can turn around their form in the second half of a season, generally by and large, in half a season they've begun to find their level and you've got a good idea of how a player is going to perform for your club long term. So with this in mind I thought it'd be good to share and get others' thoughts on how they feel we did in the last transfer window under TM.

 

My thoughts and ratings are as follows:

Samuel - 7 I quite like the guy. A bit different to Graham, offers a bit more pace, and has grabbed us some goals. Not cemented his place, but looks a useful signing capable of scoring goals at this level.

Dack - 9 After a slow start, Dack has been excellent for us; goals, assists and excitement. Not a 10 as he's pretty limited in a 4-4-2 which we sometimes play.

Gladwin - 1 As a kid I wanted to play for Blackburn Rovers. As a not-so-fit 34 year old Gladwin encourages me that I perhaps shouldn't give up on that dream yet. Aside from this I don't know what he contributes towards Rovers. Awful signing.

Antonsson - 6.5 Really didn't know what to put for him. Looking at his stats, he's around an 8. When I watch him play he looks about a 4 not offering much. Despite few attributes he has managed to score and assist a few making him a decent signing. I've knocked off a point though as he we signed as a striker which is a position he can't really play as he's only looks ok at wide left.

Whittingham - 3  Doesn't really justify the wages we're paying him. A few decent cameos but hasn't imposed himself or contributed to the team anywhere near as much as he should have. Not enough assists or goals, or even getting us to tick a la Tugay. Whilst he was never going to be that good, I had hoped - and he needed to be - more than just an ok player. Poor signing.

Smallwood - 10. Outside of buying me a Ferrari I'm not sure what more he could do to be a great signing.

Chapman - 8. Just what we need, pace, trickery, excitement and creating chances. Not used very well by TM but that's another gripe. As a signing he has a good shout.

Harper - 3. Waste of space not really imposed himself at all. And given the competition has been a limited Whitingham and a limited and injured Evans you'd like to think anyone half decent would have made the second cm spot their own.

Caddis - 5.  Too immobile for my liking. Decent back up but think it's no surprise we started doing better when he was out of the team. Poor mobility leaves us vulnerable to pace and offers nothing going forward, which isn't a great mix with Bennett being not the most creative, leaving a pretty limited right side of the pitch. An ok back up and cheap but not really adding much to the team.

Hart - 3. Not sure what he offers. At least he's our own so in the unlikely event he develops in 3 years time we may see some benefit.

Downing - 8. Cheap back up but become pretty integral. Admittedly being an upgrade on Ward is not much of an achievement but Downing has managed it well. We're still shipping a few silly goals so would struggle to give a higher rating but generally an excellent value for money signing.

Leuitweiler (sp - who cares, he never plays) - 6. Good reviews from old club but looked pretty average on the few times he has played. Not great, but only a backup, and better than Steele.  

 

By my calculation that gives an average of 5.79 for each signing - or a 6 being generous. This (highly scientific) method suggests to me that overall any signings we make won't harm or make us any worse, but nor will they massively improve the team. Looking at the list as a whole it also suggests that  TM has been very boom and bust with his signings. They work out really well or really badly, there isn't much middle ground, although ironically that probably means for each good signing we make that improves us, a poor one will peg us back.

Overall it confirms my thoughts TM is a decent but not great manager, and that I shouldn't be too excited this window. But what do others think?

Agree with a lot of those but a 7 for Samuel is being a bit generous. He's been pretty rank and missed a lot of chances in the early part of the season with his head. For £500k I'd give him a 5 at best.

I think Armstrong will be up there with his best signings come the end of the season

[Blue blood]

10 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Fair enough scores. I would give Harper a 2 and Whittingham a 5 though. No way they are the same rating. 

Think Whittingham's wages and expectation (as others have said) factor into his low score. For his wages and experience he should be doing a lot more than ok.  

9 hours ago, RoverCanada said:

Hard to quibble with any of those ratings too much. A fine summary! You're missing Nuttall, but I think it was reported that was a Damian Johnson signing more than anything (and Nuttall's been a mixed bag)

I'd suggest Mowbray should also be given some credit for who we managed to hang on to during the transfer window too (how much of that was due to Mowbray's influence, lack of interest from other clubs, us getting "lucky" that Lenihan was injured... hard to say). Also a touch of credit for shipping Steele out for £500k (who appears to have shit the bed even further at Sunderland)

Also need to weight the signings in some respect. Whittingham's been a bit of a disappointment, if not a disaster, but he was also signed with the expectation of being a heavily-relied on starter, so him being a 3/10 signing (I'd argue he's been more like a 5, but that's quibbling), is more consequential than Harper or Hart being 3s. Samuel's been decent, but also perhaps a bit under expectations given his reported transfer fee. In contrast, Dack and Smallwood have been excellent signings and have been eating key minutes throughout as expected (remember when people were complaining about Dack not being fully fit at the start of the year, and having the audacity to go to a nightclub - how things change!)

As a quick go at it where I put the signings into expectation/cost 'tiers' (and assign my own ratings - not much different than yours)

First tier: Dack 9, Samuel 6, Whittingham 4.5, Smallwood 9.5

Second tier: Gladwin 1, Caddis 5, Chapman 8, Antonsson 7, Downing 8

Third tier: Harper 2, Hart 2, Nuttall 6.5, Leutwiler 5.5

Weighting the first tiers as 5/5, second tiers as 3/5, and third tiers as 1/5, gives 3.82/5 = 7.6/10

Thanks! Think I've tried to do this a bit subconsciously, although not explicitly stated, and not as good a tiered system as you suggest. Mike E makes a great point that Hart and Harper are holding back the progress of our other youngsters, so even though they're perhaps having minimum impact on the pitch, both in terms of how often they are required and performance on those rare occasions that they're on the pitch, they're also hurting us quite significantly by blocking other (promising imo) youngsters progress, and wasting a wage - and loan slot in Harper's case. 

9 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Also a bit harsh docking Antonnsson because he is playing out of position. In many ways, we are luck he was flexible enough to do this. I have read a few posters compare him to Rhodes. Can you picture Rhodes playing on the wing? 

Think Antonnsson was brought to be a striker, but given we like playing 4-4-1-1 and that Antonnsson can't really play as the loan striker, the effect is that it leaves us a squad place short. Like Ward, it means if we play him in his key position we couldn't use the formation we've had most success in. Both factors to me mean limiting the amount of his value for money.   

19 minutes ago, blueboy3333 said:

Agree with a lot of those but a 7 for Samuel is being a bit generous. He's been pretty rank and missed a lot of chances in the early part of the season with his head. For £500k I'd give him a 5 at best.

I think Armstrong will be up there with his best signings come the end of the season

 

1 hour ago, roversfan99 said:

Agree with alot of this, would only have Samuel as a 5, for a big fee hes been mainly lazy and as a result ineffectual, far mor miss than hit.

Think Whittingham deserves at least 5, maybe a 6, hes been consistently ok whens hes played and was free but nowhere near what we expected, grnated.

Harper was as much of a waste of time as anyone, as was Hart. 

Yes, on reflection guys,  Samuel's 7 was a bit generous. I had in my head he was around £250 K, but at double that he's not really had the sort of impact that such a fee demands. Think in retrospect I'd downgrade it to a 5.5 or 6, as he's still been useful and had some good games and been a good option, but has nowhere near the consistency expected for that kind of fee. He does have time on his side, so hopefully he'll improve (starting with the second half of this season) and justify that fee. 

[Herbie6590]

9 hours ago, Kamy100 said:

The only matrix I am using for judging Mowbray is what happens at the end of the season.

If we achieve promotion then he has succeeded and should continue.  If we fail to achieve promotion then he has failed and should be resign/be sacked.=

“...aaannd Blackburn Rovers have just sacked manager Tony Mowbray just seconds after the final penalty at Wembley Stadium after today’s play off final. Rovers final penalty in an epic 24-23 defeat was taken by goalkeeper David Raya who was so exhausted after saving 18 penalties to keep Rovers’ hopes alive that he struck the inside of both posts but the ball failed to cross the line completely and so Rovers missed out in the cruellest possible fashion. 

Rovers fans gathered on Wembley Way seconds after the miss to call for Mowbray’s sacking arguing that it was completely justified and a proportionate response to such a heart-breaking defeat and owners Venky’s, seemingly wanting to re-engage with their fans immediately sacked Mowbray, all his staff and declared that “Raya’s miss Was entirely Mowbray’s fault and therefore they had no option.

In early betting Toby Young is priced as the early favourite to replace Mowbray....” ?

 

 

[JAL]

So far not good enough !

[JHRover]

On ‎09‎/‎01‎/‎2018 at 11:04, Kamy100 said:

The only matrix I am using for judging Mowbray is what happens at the end of the season.

If we achieve promotion then he has succeeded and should continue.  If we fail to achieve promotion then he has failed and should be resign/be sacked.=

Agree. The transfers are merely a means to an end - a step on the road to our target and not what the manager here should be judged on. Of course it is good if we are investing money wisely and developing assets that will benefit the clubs finances in years to come - that is what every club should aspire to do - but only if the primary focus is success on the pitch.

There's a big difference between buying the right sort of players on the right contracts and hoping they will grow in value and be assets for the club IF they were to be reluctantly sold, and then this being the primary focus of the club.

Everyone knows players will move on to richer/higher placed clubs as they always have, but there's a difference between reluctantly allowing this when the time arises and it being club policy to develop players to raise quick cash and sell them asap to the detriment of league performance.

I do worry that as with Bowyer the focus on the manager will shift away from results on the pitch and meeting the minimum target league position and more towards good work in the transfer market. There seems to be a blending or overlap of those two things at this club. Results first, profits on players second.

Perhaps if the worst comes to pass it will become 'oh well we haven't gone up but at least we've made money on player transactions and done well in the transfer market'

 

[Blue blood]

Perhaps this should wait till after the last game of the season - if Gladwin comes off the bench and scores the goal that wins us the league I'd be inclined to increase his rating - but at the end of the season it's interesting to see how TM's transfer record holds.

Interestingly for me most of those ratings would remain the same - although Samuel, Antonsson and Caddis would drop a point (possibly 2 in Caddis's case - when your cm is preferred as back up rb to you there's issues.) Not that encouraging a sign taken in isolation.

 

However the new signings in January all would score highly. Armstrong would easily be an 8 offering goals and pace, Bell a 7 (probably more if he played regularly) as he looked good every time he played, making it surprising he didn't play more. Payne would be a 6.5 as did ok and gave options without having a huge impact, but never let the team down.

My conclusion is TM had a rather erratic first window with some significant blunders. Fortunately a much improved 2nd window (possibly as shopping for less) and getting more than a tune - a symphony- out of Graham, Mulgrew, Bennett and other existing players performing consistently has been enough to get us promoted.

[Vinjay]

I've been thinking the same really it's been mostly existing players. Mowbray signed Dack which obviously has been a big success. Other than that though there hasn't been a lot to judge on transfer wise. That's not a negative remark it's just how it is. Downing was a good signing too of course but he was a loanee initially AND it was last minute. There haven't been any big risks because some of the players are frees and loans. I know Samuel has his critics but he's still contributed and has been worth it as a free transfer really. Gladwin was a cash signing wasn't he and that's been poor.

People moaned about Mulgrew because of his injury record but the signing was always a "no brainer" really given his talent and the lack of a budget. I imagine in future people will treat him as a Mowbray signing but he's kinda Coyle's equivalent of Kidd's Jansen. Of course with Bennett and Graham (though Coyle had to resign the latter) there's something left behind from Lambert too. Should remember Williams too POTY last season and solid enough though he's had his critics.

I've said already that Mowbray needs to put more pieces in place now though he also needs some financial support. That's still a question mark because this season he really hasn't had to answer it besides Dack's success. Not judging Bell yet.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 hour ago, Vinjay17 said:

I've been thinking the same really it's been mostly existing players. Mowbray signed Dack which obviously has been a big success. Other than that though there hasn't been a lot to judge on transfer wise. That's not a negative remark it's just how it is. Downing was a good signing too of course but he was a loanee initially AND it was last minute. There haven't been any big risks because some of the players are frees and loans. I know Samuel has his critics but he's still contributed and has been worth it as a free transfer really. Gladwin was a cash signing wasn't he and that's been poor.

People moaned about Mulgrew because of his injury record but the signing was always a "no brainer" really given his talent and the lack of a budget. I imagine in future people will treat him as a Mowbray signing but he's kinda Coyle's equivalent of Kidd's Jansen. Of course with Bennett and Graham (though Coyle had to resign the latter) there's something left behind from Lambert too. Should remember Williams too POTY last season and solid enough though he's had his critics.

I've said already that Mowbray needs to put more pieces in place now though he also needs some financial support. That's still a question mark because this season he really hasn't had to answer it besides Dack's success. Not judging Bell yet.

I thought we paid a fee for Samuel, I have £500k plus in my mind.  Whittingham is the one that bothered me at the time. A 3 year contract  for a guy I thought was on the way out this time last season. Having said that even I thought he'd contribute more than he has done this season.

[blueboy3333]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

I thought we paid a fee for Samuel, I have £500k plus in my mind

We did and it was £500k. I'm hoping for a lot better this summer. Graham put him to shame with his goal scoring and footballing know-how.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

Just now, blueboy3333 said:

We did and it was £500k. I'm hoping for a lot better this summer. Graham put him to shame with his goal scoring and footballing know-how.

He'll never be a prolific goal scorer as long he has a hole in his bum. He makes Jason Roberts look like  Messi. He needs to make up for that by being a willing runner and get a bit of aggression in his game. Tripping people up from behind in midfield and getting sent off doesn't equal aggression in my book.

[DE.]

With the season basically over I'd say

Dack - 10 - no explanation needed
Smallwood - 7.5 - great first half of the season, not so good second half. Still fantastic value overall considering he was free.
Samuel - 6 - important goals early on but never got going again after his injury around December time
Gladwin - 1 - injured most of the season and didn't do anything in the brief appearances he did have
Bell - 7 - looked decent during his appearances, probably deserved more chances than he got but will hopefully be starting next season at left back/left wing back
Caddis - 1 - when we were struggling for right backs after Nyambe's injury TM preferred to put Bennett there. 2 year contract makes this a DUD for me
Whittingham - 6 - hasn't done anything horrendously wrong, but not had anywhere near the impact I was hoping for
Payne - 6 - as above, was expecting much more. Admittedly he hasn't had a ton of first team opportunities due to Dack's form
Antonsson - 6.5 - scored a few goals and worked hard, even though his talent is very limited. Did a job, wouldn't want him back next season though as L1 is probably about his level
Downing - 7 - solid beside Mulgrew when on loan, not as good after signing but has been dependable enough
Chapman - N/A - can't really grade this one due to the injuries. Huge potential though
Armstrong - 8 - amazing start, tailed off a bit towards the end but mainly because he's being asked to play a position out wide that clearly doesn't suit him
Hart - 1 - not sure why this signing was made, I don't think he has much potential. Hopefully I'm proven wrong
Leutwiler - N/A - hard to grade a backup keeper who has barely made any appearances. 
Harper - 1 - can't remember him doing anything useful
 

Overall a few mishaps but generally a decent enough set of signings. The big ones being Dack, Smallwood and Armstrong. Downing has also played his part and done very well considering where he came from. 

Gladwin is probably the biggest disappointment for me, with Whittingham and Payne also not producing as I thought they would. Never expected anything from the likes of Caddis, Hart or Harper so can't really call them disappointments. 

[Vinjay]

Whittingham was a logical signing on a free transfer. Smallwood's been fine as well. I guess it wouldn't be impossible to build a squad from free transfers, etc but many managers do a better job with than than spending "big money". Look at Souness with Friedel and Tugay but money wasted in other areas. Same with Hughes people have to put more thought and research into things with a lesser budget. At least some managers do but others are just lazy like Grayson signing Steele. Oh look an English GK that's basically all his research I bet. I think Grayson only took the job for the money anyway. His other signings were poor though at least here Steele was just average (some would say worse) whereas Sunderland has turned him into a mini Alan Fettis from my impressions.

[DE.]

Getting money for Steele probably erases anything negative from TM's transfer record tbf.

[Vinjay]

3 minutes ago, DE. said:

Getting money for Steele probably erases anything negative from TM's transfer record tbf.

Maybe but managers have to be questioned on signings whoever they are. For instance Allardyce got a ridiculously inflated fee for the overrated Derbyshire. Of course Rovers may have gotten lucky depending on who proposed the fees first. I wonder how Williams managed not to laugh at Olympiacos whoever proposed the fee first. Maybe Jerome Anderson was advising them!

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

29 minutes ago, Vinjay17 said:

Whittingham was a logical signing on a free transfer. Smallwood's been fine as well. I guess it wouldn't be impossible to build a squad from free transfers, etc but many managers do a better job with than than spending "big money". Look at Souness with Friedel and Tugay but money wasted in other areas. Same with Hughes people have to put more thought and research into things with a lesser budget. At least some managers do but others are just lazy like Grayson signing Steele. Oh look an English GK that's basically all his research I bet. I think Grayson only took the job for the money anyway. His other signings were poor though at least here Steele was just average (some would say worse) whereas Sunderland has turned him into a mini Alan Fettis from my impressions.

Giving Whittingham a 3 year contract was the opposite of logical. 

[Vinjay]

Just now, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Giving Whittingham a 3 year contract was the opposite of logical. 

The length maybe.

[Blue blood]

53 minutes ago, DE. said:

With the season basically over I'd say

Dack - 10 - no explanation needed
Smallwood - 7.5 - great first half of the season, not so good second half. Still fantastic value overall considering he was free.
Samuel - 6 - important goals early on but never got going again after his injury around December time
Gladwin - 1 - injured most of the season and didn't do anything in the brief appearances he did have
Bell - 7 - looked decent during his appearances, probably deserved more chances than he got but will hopefully be starting next season at left back/left wing back
Caddis - 1 - when we were struggling for right backs after Nyambe's injury TM preferred to put Bennett there. 2 year contract makes this a DUD for me
Whittingham - 6 - hasn't done anything horrendously wrong, but not had anywhere near the impact I was hoping for
Payne - 6 - as above, was expecting much more. Admittedly he hasn't had a ton of first team opportunities due to Dack's form
Antonsson - 6.5 - scored a few goals and worked hard, even though his talent is very limited. Did a job, wouldn't want him back next season though as L1 is probably about his level
Downing - 7 - solid beside Mulgrew when on loan, not as good after signing but has been dependable enough
Chapman - N/A - can't really grade this one due to the injuries. Huge potential though
Armstrong - 8 - amazing start, tailed off a bit towards the end but mainly because he's being asked to play a position out wide that clearly doesn't suit him
Hart - 1 - not sure why this signing was made, I don't think he has much potential. Hopefully I'm proven wrong
Leutwiler - N/A - hard to grade a backup keeper who has barely made any appearances. 
Harper - 1 - can't remember him doing anything useful
 

Overall a few mishaps but generally a decent enough set of signings. The big ones being Dack, Smallwood and Armstrong. Downing has also played his part and done very well considering where he came from. 

Gladwin is probably the biggest disappointment for me, with Whittingham and Payne also not producing as I thought they would. Never expected anything from the likes of Caddis, Hart or Harper so can't really call them disappointments. 

Good post. Having seen Evans and chums in cm without Smallwood I'd rate him a lot higher than 7.5 - instrumental to our success and team balance even when not standing out.

I'd also rate Whittingham lower as fir expectations and wages he has performed nowhere near the levels required. An ok player on his wages with his pedigree is very disappointing Imo. Likewise Downing would be up Imo as for wages, fee and expectations - in line with being a back up cb - he has exceeded them.

Hopefully Travis will keep Caddis out of the team and a lot of the meh to poor loan signings don't darken our door again meaning there's flexibility to improve the squad.

[Mike E]

22 minutes ago, Blue blood said:

Good post. Having seen Evans and chums in cm without Smallwood I'd rate him a lot higher than 7.5 - instrumental to our success and team balance even when not standing out.

I'd also rate Whittingham lower as fir expectations and wages he has performed nowhere near the levels required. An ok player on his wages with his pedigree is very disappointing Imo. Likewise Downing would be up Imo as for wages, fee and expectations - in line with being a back up cb - he has exceeded them.

Hopefully Travis will keep Caddis out of the team and a lot of the meh to poor loan signings don't darken our door again meaning there's flexibility to improve the squad.

Personally would prefer Travis in midfield (his usual position), with RWB being between Nyambe and Bennett. Would at least give a little more experience to a back 3 (assuming this ofc) that is likely to include someone promoted from the academy.

[Exiled in Toronto]

2 hours ago, blueboy3333 said:

We did and it was £500k. I'm hoping for a lot better this summer. Graham put him to shame with his goal scoring and footballing know-how.

Given Graham is ten years older and played at the top level, I’d have been extremely surprised if Samuel had come anywhere close to him on both counts.

Timing is everything. Samuel seemed a decent buy in Oct when he was joint top scorer. 

[RoverCanada]

1 hour ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Giving Whittingham a 3 year contract was the opposite of logical. 

For the record, it's a 2-year contract

https://www.rovers.co.uk/news/2017/june/rovers-welcome-peter-whittingham/

[47er]

24 minutes ago, Mike E said:

Personally would prefer Travis in midfield (his usual position), with RWB being between Nyambe and Bennett. Would at least give a little more experience to a back 3 (assuming this ofc) that is likely to include someone promoted from the academy.

That bloody back 3 nightmare! I'm sure we will start with it, fare badly and then ditch it. Then try to make up for lost ground.

 

[old darwen blue]

I can remember when we signed Sherwood whilst in the second division and he was pants. What are the chances of Whittingham finding his feet again back in the championship?

 

 

 

or am I just a glass half full chap?