Summer Transfer Window 2019

[DE.]

Pretty disappointing if we sign Downing, but I suppose if he does end up here at least we're signing a wide player to play in a wide position, rather than the usual bringing in a striker to shoehorn onto the flank for reasons only known to the manager.

If Downing was on £35k p/w at Boro then I wonder how much we're offering him? Would he really drop all the way down to £10-15k p/w? You'd think he'd weigh up his options over the course of the summer before coming here, unless we're offering him a very good deal for a player of his age.  

[roversfan99]

Very much a no from me to the Downing signing. Unimaginative deal for a player well past his best.

[Admiral Nelsen]

Can't say for a minute that the Downing link fills me with excitement. Some of the above comments are making me a little more optimistic that this could work out though, sensible wages permitting. 

Links with previous ageing flops are natural, but I think a big difference with Downing is that he won't be expected to be the main man. Murphy and Whittingham were both seen as a class above the leagues they found themselves in, and should dominate at that level, but clearly weren't up to it physically. This becomes all the worse when it turns out  that the rest of the team aren't up to playing the sort of possession based football that they we're brought in for. 

Not saying for a minute that this is going to be a roaring success, but if Downing is brought in for one the three behind the striker, then you'd expect that defenders will be concerned enough about shutting down Dack & Rothwell that Downing would have a bit of room to work with. Might end up being a shrewd move as a Conway replacement with an eye on playing the ball on the deck a lot more. 

Ultimately, we'll be judging the success of the window on getting our defensive issues solved, getting good back up for DG, and probably getting a Reed replacement. So long as we get those bases covered, won't be losing too much sleep over Downing.

[tomphil]

Since his name first cropped up I've thought Downing is pretty much a done deal and we are probably the only club who'll go and pay the wages he's after.  Also when we get linked with these types the deals tend to go through whereas the more exciting ones turn out to be hot air.

As for the stories we heard all similar in regards to Whittingham although Downing does have good pedigree but do we really want whatever room is in the budget being swallowed up 'flex' style on him and Rodwell maybe leaving very little to pay any fees ?

Believe me TM will dress this one up as a marquee signing, i'd much prefer youth investment as frustrating as it can be at times. Downing to me is the type you add to a good squad as the missing piece of the jigsaw maybe, we really aren't at that point. Key areas need the funds pooling for key investment.  This is Mowbray going down easy street again to me.

Edited June 3, 2019 by tomphil

[K-Hod]

I wouldn’t be too against the signing of Downing. I doubt he’d be like the Murphy signing for two reasons:

1) He’ll be on a lot less money.

2) I doubt he will be the main man.

That being said, I completely understand why people would have reservations about the signing. We have been burnt with signings of older players that haven’t worked out.

Edited June 3, 2019 by K-Hod

[Admiral Nelsen]

Just now, Bigdoggsteel said:

I haven't seen it mentioned , but it seems Downing played centre midfield last season for a good few games  

Can't speak about last year, but he played centre mid most weeks when he was at West Ham under Big Sam. Not sure how this would work in our system, he's not going to be number 10 so can he play as deep as he would need to play centrally? Probably not, but he's certainly more versatile than an out-and-out winger. I'm thinking Big Sam era Pedersen.

 

Just now, DE. said:

Pretty disappointing if we sign Downing, but I suppose if he does end up here at least we're signing a wide player to play in a wide position, rather than the usual bringing in a striker to shoehorn onto the flank for reasons only known to the manager.

If Downing was on £35k p/w at Boro then I wonder how much we're offering him? Would he really drop all the way down to £10-15k p/w? You'd think he'd weigh up his options over the course of the summer before coming here, unless we're offering him a very good deal for a player of his age.  

This is the crux of it for me. If he's a Conway replacement, I'm completely okay with it, even pleased with it. If his wages are as high as 15k a week, suddenly that would put him amongst our higher earners and that would definitely be too much of an outlay for me.

Waggott seems to be putting quite a lot of emphasis on the Mowbray and Venus links, so hopefully that would be more about convincing him with what we have on the football side rather than offering the biggest contract. 

 

Just now, K-Hod said:

I wouldn’t be too against the signing of Downing. I doubt he’d be like the Murphy signing for two reasons:

1) He’ll be on a lot less money.

2) I doubt he will be the main man.

That being said, I completely understand why people would have reservations about the signing.

 

My view in a nutshell 

[Mike E]

I just hope this is one signing that we may come to know as a backup signing, after signing another 3-4 quality first-trainers.

It seems Downing no long plays wide, but in a more central playmaking role.

I sort of wonder if he’s coming in as backup, and as a better quality mentor than Conway to our wingers/wide midfielders?

I’m not against replacing Conway with Downing, but I hope it’s not with a view to starting often (unless he turns out to be good enough).

Edited June 3, 2019 by Mike E

[Bigdoggsteel]

Boro fans said he played well last season, but our fans ignore that. Now imagine the Boro fans said he played badly, it would be quoted ad nauseum. 

At the end of the day, if he is good enough to start, so be it, but even if he isn't he brings great experience and can only be a good role model for the young wingers currently here. He's a big upgrade on Conway and I like Conway. He's also an upgrade on Murphy and Whittingham. 

 

Edited June 3, 2019 by Bigdoggsteel

[davulsukur]

Just now, Bigdoggsteel said:

Boro fans said he played well last season, but our fans ignore that. Now imagine the Boro fans said he played badly, it would be quoted ad nauseum. 

At the end of the day, if he is good enough to start, so be it, but even if he isn't he brings great experience and can only be a good role model for the young wingers currently here. He's a big upgrade on Conway and I like Conway. He's also an upgrade on Murphy and Whittingham. 

 

I'm fairly certain that's what Cardiff and Fulham fans said about Whittingham and Murphy.

He could turn out as a decent enough signing but we are right to be skeptical based on past signings. 

[K-Hod]

11 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Boro fans said he played well last season, but our fans ignore that. Now imagine the Boro fans said he played badly, it would be quoted ad nauseum. 

At the end of the day, if he is good enough to start, so be it, but even if he isn't he brings great experience and can only be a good role model for the young wingers currently here. He's a big upgrade on Conway and I like Conway. He's also an upgrade on Murphy and Whittingham. 

 

Let’s be fair now, I’ll bet most people have no idea what Boro fans thought of him last season. Though granted, it wouldn’t be too difficult to find out.

Can’t say I know any of their fans to ask, I’ve not bothered looking on any of their forums yet and I don’t have  Twitter account.

People rightly have concerns as we have been burned by older players in the past. 

Edited June 3, 2019 by K-Hod

[rovers11]

TM wants some more technically gifted players and more experienced pros to complement the youngsters, so I imagine that's the reason he's keen on Downing. Would he be someone that would start week in, week out? No. Could he be someone that we could bring on as a sub and produce a little bit of quality to open teams up? Quite possibly. 

If he's our main summer signing then it would be disappointing. If, however, he's brought in to strengthen the squad then he's a decent addition (if he signs). 

[tomphil]

57 minutes ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Boro fans said he played well last season, but our fans ignore that. Now imagine the Boro fans said he played badly, it would be quoted ad nauseum. 

At the end of the day, if he is good enough to start, so be it, but even if he isn't he brings great experience and can only be a good role model for the young wingers currently here. He's a big upgrade on Conway and I like Conway. He's also an upgrade on Murphy and Whittingham. 

 

Young wingers currently here ?

Trouble is with these types of older signings it doesn't really matter what they did the season before because they can suddenly 'go' overnight. New club, new manager, area, training, way of doing things can either prove a shot in the arm or the straw that breaks the old back (legs) we've seen it countless times.

It's a shoe in signing as far as I reckon unless some other club offers him silly wages and it's a typical Mowbray type signing and as we've seen heart rules head for Tony too often that's what worries me.

A cheap short term signing on Conways wages it's a no brainer but anything else i'd leave well alone this has white elephant written all over it.

 

 

[Maji]

Downing is getting on a bit for me and I'd rather focus our meagre wages on players who we can flog in the future. 

Mowbray needs to sort out the defence for me we need CB's that know the role. I think lenihan and raya would both benefit from having an accomplished man alongside them. 

I'd be selling Dack if someone is really willing to stump up 15m and spending it on a new spine, minus attack. A CB and a CM of quality would be good. 

We need to play Brereton more in his role CF, he's not the same as DG, but we spent 7m on him so need to get the best out of him. A few more ball players and less emphasis on lumping forward and he'll do alright. 

Get in some defensive players who can win the ball back and retain possession and then a midfielder who can find space for them to pass too, and we could actually start playing a bit more. 

[wanderingrover]

The Downing interest might be a smoke-screen for lack of progress with other targets, but I see it as an upgrade on Conway for very similar wages. Not a signing I expected or hoped for, but he's definitely an upgrade in terms of class, technical ability and flexibility on positions.

Removing experience from a dressing room is risky business, especially as Conway seemed to be Mowbray's dressing room lieutenant (often acknowledged by Mowbray). Downing fits the bill perfectly for that role - from LT:

Quote

Downing would bring a wealth of experience to the Rovers squad, something Mowbray is keen to add, with 400 appearances for Middlesbrough, as well as 35 England caps and spells with Aston Villa and Liverpool.

I'm not going to argue with Mowbray's logic here. It would be a positive first signing for me. 

[AllRoverAsia]

Just now, wanderingrover said:

The Downing interest might be a smoke-screen for lack of progress with other targets, but I see it as an upgrade on Conway for very similar wages. Not a signing I expected or hoped for, but he's definitely an upgrade in terms of class, technical ability and flexibility on positions.

Removing experience from a dressing room is risky business, especially as Conway seemed to be Mowbray's dressing room lieutenant (often acknowledged by Mowbray). Downing fits the bill perfectly for that role - from LT:

I'm not going to argue with Mowbray's logic here. It would be a positive first signing for me. 

I have come around to a similar point of view.

Not playing related but I liked the way he reported concerns about his previous Agent to the Police back in 2008, showed character and bottle.

[Ewood Ace]

I would be content with Downing being signed to play a central role as we could do with a bit more quality on the ball in there but it would concern me if he was being signed as a winger.

[darrenrover]

Has Downing played centre half previously?

[AllRoverAsia]

Just now, darrenrover said:

Has Downing played centre half previously?

Don't know but he has played full-back

 

[rickard]

4 minutes ago, Ewood Ace said:

I would be content with Downing being signed to play a central role as we could do with a bit more quality on the ball in there but it would concern me if he was being signed as a winger.

Let's hope it turns out better than Whittingham in that case.

There are a few interesting players without contract at the moment. I saw for example that Yoann Gourcuff has no club. He was thought to be a world-class player back in the days. Not that he would ever come here even today... Just a bit interesting what happens to some players.  

[Hasta]

The issue for me is not Downing as such. I have no doubt that he would be a better option than Conway for the role Conway was performing.

It's just that replacing Conway like for like was well down my priority list. I'm not even sure if he needs replacing.

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

3 hours ago, Bigdoggsteel said:

Boro fans said he played well last season, but our fans ignore that. Now imagine the Boro fans said he played badly, it would be quoted ad nauseum. 

At the end of the day, if he is good enough to start, so be it, but even if he isn't he brings great experience and can only be a good role model for the young wingers currently here. He's a big upgrade on Conway and I like Conway. He's also an upgrade on Murphy and Whittingham. 

 

Cardiff fans liked Whittingham and wanted him to stay. Look how that ended. What I want from our signings this time is some leaders. The sort of players who grab the ball out of the back of the net when we've just conceded a bad goal and rally the troops. We've already got enough players who just stare at the ground and pretend nothing has happened.  Downing doesn't strike me as being a leader.

[Sparks Rover]

I'd have thought we want to compete with Boro,  so why take their cast offs?

[savage90]

Agreed, we shouldn't be touching Downing. He's done.

[Sparks Rover]

1 hour ago, AllRoverAsia said:

Don't know but he has played full-back

 

I think Tony likes 352 if he had the right players.

[Bbrovers2288]

Downing, no thanks. And that’s from somebody who has rated him throughout his career, I just think his position at 35 is a no no. Don’t think he would ever be welcomed as a starter due to his age, Christ we wrote Conway, Graham, mulgrew off due to age and they are all younger than him. Much rather his wages got used on younger and hungrier players. Downing at 32 would be a great signing, at 35 we would be rightly laughed at and beaten by a stick by other fans