The Summer Transfer Window (Press Submit)

[47er]

37 minutes ago, moerpho said:

So it is the day after, and I’m still feeling slightly optimistic. Not in the sense of going up or reach the play-offs, but I’m no longer dead certain we will be in a relegation battle all season. Somewhere in the middle will do. Kudos to the recruitment team for a job well done. Now it’s up to those on the field to keep us in this division (oh how we have fallen…)

 

That's exactly how I feel. I thought that we would be relegated, now I think we won't.

But I don't expect anymore than that.

 

[Forever Blue]

10 minutes ago, Mercer said:

Disagree with your forecast.

Have to be shooting for top 10 as a minimum.

Haha, we were going down the other day

[tomphil]

1 hour ago, rigger said:

You can also end up with the likes of Brereton and Gallagher. Neither, in my eyes, were worth the money that was spent on them.

We got 5 years service from Gallagher at least but on the face of it it's 12 million down the drain.

All for 2 good half seasons and 1.5 million back at very best.

Venky Rovers logic.

[joey_big_nose]

1 hour ago, Rochdale_rover said:

Feel like we a still short but time will tell 

fast winger

Fast striker 

Left sided cb

Think anything above 15th will be a success given this squad . Think the above would have got us near top 6 even if they were loan signings . Seems a waste to have 2 spots left unused 

Ah well guess we must be saving the war chest for January

Would guess around 5 million banked this summer plus raya money 

Just no real assets left to sell 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Attacking wise based on the squad I would say we really should be looking for 8th to 12th, maybe better than that if Cantwell and Duberry turnout to be as good as hoped.

But defensively we look very fragile. We are so dependent on two things really in my opinion -

1) Is Toth a good Championship keeper 

2) Can Carter and Hyam stay fit and Hyam recover his form from the season before last

Those two things feel quite tenuous...

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

1 minute ago, joey_big_nose said:

Attacking wise based on the squad I would say we really should be looking for 8th to 12th, maybe better than that if Cantwell and Duberry turnout to be as good as hoped.

But defensively we look very fragile. We are so dependent on two things really in my opinion -

1) Is Toth a good Championship keeper 

2) Can Carter and Hyam stay fit and Hyam recover his form from the season before last

Those two things feel quite tenuous...

Imagine worrying whether your centre halves can stay fit. Did we worry about Hendry or Kevin Moran ? Something has changed in the game for sure. Maybe all the triangular passing between each other and the keeper has worn them out.

[jim mk2]

3 minutes ago, Tyrone Shoelaces said:

Imagine worrying whether your centre halves can stay fit. Did we worry about Hendry or Kevin Moran ? Something has changed in the game for sure. Maybe all the triangular passing between each other and the keeper has worn them out.

 

Hendry and Moran were brought up on porridge and tatties; modern players on muesli and latte

[K-Hod]

I’ve only skim read the forum so far this morning and I’ve already seen two people giving credit to the recruitment team and the board for this window.

This is despite posters saying this would definitely not be the case.

So, please can we aim not to score points by trying to provoke the above?

Window is now shut, we’ve got a match on at 1230 that your focus would be better served on, just saying….

[Dreams of 1995]

Overall I think it is has been a good window

I do understand what people mean when they say, considering the money brought in, the outlay looks poor. There’s a lot more to consider than just the transfer fee though. Our salary costs must have increased and that is owed to being able to put some of that transfer pot back into the player budget

Not all of the £40m will be made available. Unfortunately, this is a fact we just have to accept

Generally, we addressed the right areas. From what I believe we would have liked another winger but that budget was stretched. The choice was Cantwell or two loans and the club took the right option for me. It looks as though Hedges and Siggy would need to be managed carefully. Without them pair, our natural width is limited

Cantwell could become a real top player here. Let’s not forget that we have a history for taking on players who have fallen out with previous clubs and giving them a new lease of life. Rovers is a very forgiving place and I don’t think our fans care what happens off the pitch, so long as your performances are good when you are on it

In an ideal world we could have added another centre half. It is a tricky one - we have Hyam and Carter as first choice with McFadz and Barth second choice and Pickering can cover as the worst case. You may have been hard pressed to find a centre half to come into that set up that made financial sense given what we required up top

I am happy with the window. I wish we had signed Cantwell earlier and managed to get him into the Burnley match squad. For me, a good performance by any of the new players in this game will cement their standing with the fans. I have to give credit to Gestede and Park for a well managed window and for some outside of the box thinking. It has to be said, Eustace stuck to his guns over players like Ryo Germain and if that is what allowed us to land Cantwell in the end then he played a blinder too

We are going up 

[Rochdale_rover]

38 minutes ago, magicalmortensleftpeg said:

Dread to think where you thought we’d finish before we made any signings..

Same as last season  best case

[philipl]

1 hour ago, Rochdale_rover said:

Gk - toth / Pears / hilton

Lb - pickering /beck

rb - brittain / duru

cb - hyam / carter / batth /mcfazdean / wharton 

Cm - travis / tronstad / Baker/ Buckley

Am - cantwell / dolan /gilsennan

Lw - hedges / sigurdsson 

Rw - crozier-dubarry / jrc / weimann

Striker - guaye / ohashi / Leonard/ tyjon

 

If my maths are right we will only register a 23 man squad - presuming wharton won't be registered 

 

 

 

Don't forget the home grown and under 21 rules. By my reckoning we are ok

[aletheia]

Incoming
•    Gueye (26) 1.25 mill (Belgian reporter) or 1m (Jackson) or 1.8m (transfermarket)
•    Ohashi (28) 1.25m? (small 6 figure fee Jackson)  or 150k or free (Japanese journalist
•    Balazs Toth (26) 1.2m??
•    Todd Cantwell (26) 600k??
•    Batth (33) free
•    Barrett (22) free
•    Weimann (32) free
•    Doherty (18)
•    Owen beck (22) Loan
•    Lewis Baker (29) Loan
•    Amario Cozier-Duberry  (19) Loan
•    Travis (return from loan)
•    Buckley (return from loan)
Approx £4.3 mill

Outgoing
•    Sammie Smodics (28) 10.6m
•    Sam Gallagher (28) 1.8m
•    Leopald Wahlstedt (24) 1m
•    Telalovic (24)
•    Jake Garrett  (22) end of loan
•    Connor O’Riordan (21) end of loan
•    Dilan Markandy (23) end of loan
•    John Fleck (32) without club at present
•    Georgie Gent 200k
•    Jack Vale (loan)
Approx 13.6

Other outgoing
•    Wharton (19) 21.1m
•    Kaminski 2.9m
•    Ash Philipps 2.3m
•    Niall Ennis 585k
•    Yasin Ayari End of loan
•    Andrew Moran End of loan
•    Ben Chrisene End of loan
•    Billy Koumetio End of loan
•    James Hill End of loan
Approx £28.5

Total outgoing Approx £42.1

So on the face of it, credit where it’s due, a good window by the recruitment team given the minimal budget - although it is greater than JDT had at his disposal-3 times as much so 3 times as much success? 😉  
At least we have a little bit of uplift in spirit, a little more cover in positions (defence though?)
Should be enough to achieve the mediocre objective of remaining in the division.

An interesting comparison may be with the 23/24 season that JDT had to deal with. Incomings that involved money were Wahlstedt (1m) and O’Riordan (550k).

Numpties still in charge at the very top but seems our recruitment team’s contact list is more imaginative and funds a little more liquid. Remains to be seen how they all turn out, not to mention other underlying shenanigans. But reasons to be cheerful re recruitment given constraints.

 

[aletheia]

So looks like normal SWAG/Pasha MO resumed:

•    Troublesome manager removed and blamed for a poor season
•    More pliant manager installed
•    Fan base still reasonably compliant and docile –Rao tenure regarded as necessary evil; that without them we would have no money at all; that the stadium is clean; we have a new bus
•    Our positive narrative intact: stay positive and 'trust the process', the owners are committed, the owners never refuse to sign a cheque, the owners want promotion, they have been good generous owners and the fans should be grateful and get behind the team.
•    A new ‘project’ underway-optimism the order of the day
•    New scapegoats/patsies in place should things go pear shaped
•    Players exited for significant sums to enable running costs for this season
•    Incoming players for pennies
•    Overall budget reduced
•    Our bonuses safe for the moment
•    Local media base compliant and willing
•    National media base uninterested
•    EFL and other authorities still looking the other way
•    Championship midtable likely despite cutbacks
•    My exit route in place should things go really pear shaped (Waggot)
•    Most fans no idea who I am (Pasha)

 

Edited August 31 by aletheia

[Rochdale_rover]

17 minutes ago, philipl said:

Don't forget the home grown and under 21 rules. By my reckoning we are ok

Yes

 

that's what I'm saying.

We had space for 2 more over 21s or loans. Which seems a waste

[BRFC4EVA]

11 minutes ago, aletheia said:

Incoming
•    Gueye (26) 1.25 mill (Belgian reporter) or 1m (Jackson) or 1.8m (transfermarket)
•    Ohashi (28) 1.25m? (small 6 figure fee Jackson)  or 150k or free (Japanese journalist
•    Balazs Toth (26) 1.2m??
•    Todd Cantwell (26) 600k??
•    Batth (33) free
•    Barrett (22) free
•    Weimann (32) free
•    Doherty (18)
•    Owen beck (22) Loan
•    Lewis Baker (29) Loan
•    Amario Cozier-Duberry  (19) Loan
•    Travis (return from loan)
•    Buckley (return from loan)
Approx £4.3 mill

Outgoing
•    Sammie Smodics (28) 10.6m
•    Sam Gallagher (28) 1.8m
•    Leopald Wahlstedt (24) 1m
•    Telalovic (24)
•    Jake Garrett  (22) end of loan
•    Connor O’Riordan (21) end of loan
•    Dilan Markandy (23) end of loan
•    John Fleck (32) without club at present
•    Georgie Gent 200k
•    Jack Vale (loan)
Approx 13.6

Other outgoing
•    Wharton (19) 21.1m
•    Kaminski 2.9m
•    Ash Philipps 2.3m
•    Niall Ennis 585k
•    Yasin Ayari End of loan
•    Andrew Moran End of loan
•    Ben Chrisene End of loan
•    Billy Koumetio End of loan
•    James Hill End of loan
Approx £28.5

Total outgoing Approx £42.1

So on the face of it, credit where it’s due, a good window by the recruitment team given the minimal budget - although it is greater than JDT had at his disposal-3 times as much so 3 times as much success? 😉  
At least we have a little bit of uplift in spirit, a little more cover in positions (defence though?)
Should be enough to achieve the mediocre objective of remaining in the division.

An interesting comparison may be with the 23/24 season that JDT had to deal with. Incomings that involved money were Wahlstedt (1m) and O’Riordan (550k).

Numpties still in charge at the very top but seems our recruitment team’s contact list is more imaginative and funds a little more liquid. Remains to be seen how they all turn out, not to mention other underlying shenanigans. But reasons to be cheerful re recruitment given constraints.

 

Your fees look a little inflated, but that's the ball park figures! Don't forget £5m for raya!

[Darwen Rover 007]

Great interview from TC on YouTube..  came across very well, refreshingly open! 

Also high praise for the manager, he chose us over others! 

Ps one observation from reading many posts over the last few days is how many players have been labelled to have an 'attitude problem'... without any hard evidence.. I find that a little strange, seems like many just jump on the band wagon! 

[Tyrone Shoelaces]

54 minutes ago, jim mk2 said:

 

Hendry and Moran were brought up on porridge and tatties; modern players on muesli and latte

The centre halves I played with and against - if you kicked them hard you’d hurt your foot. I think they were cast not born.

[Gav]

16 minutes ago, Darwen Rover 007 said:

Great interview from TC on YouTube..  came across very well, refreshingly open! 

Also high praise for the manager, he chose us over others! 

Ps one observation from reading many posts over the last few days is how many players have been labelled to have an 'attitude problem'... without any hard evidence.. I find that a little strange, seems like many just jump on the band wagon! 

Your final paragraph above is spot on Darwen Rover, I read several comments yesterday about Cantwell from some seasoned posters who probably had never heard of the lad until he was linked on this site. Cantwell doesn't have an attitude problem, he wanted to leave Rangers and move back down South, it happens in football all the time, it doesn't mean he's a bad egg.

As someone who watches Rangers regularly, he's lost his way in the Glasgow goldfish bowl and he isn't the first and won't be the last. He hasn't fulfilled his potential hence the knock down price we've got him for. It wasn't that long ago he was touted as a £30/£40m pound player if he progressed as expected.

We have a player who doesn't have an attitude problem, a player with bags of potential and despite my distain for these abhorrent owners, I'm excited at the prospect of him playing for Blackburn Rovers.

Edited August 31 by Gav

[DE.]

The main concern as last season ended was whether we'd be able to cobble together a squad that could survive the 24/25 campaign. With Wharton having departed, Szmods almost certainly leaving, the court case in India and an inexperienced former player brought in as head of football operations, I was certainly worried that we would go into this season without much hope. Especially factoring in the past four dismal windows.

However, overall I would say I'm confident the squad assembled along with the manager in situ give us enough to continue treading water in the division. I don't like that this is my main expectation, but realistically under these owners it is what it is. Park, Gestede and Eustace have, imo anyway, done a good job in the circumstances to give us a solid chance of staying clear of another relegation scrap.

I think our weakest area continues to be the goalkeeping and CB positions. We're in a similar position to last season in hoping an obscure foreign recruit can make the position between the sticks his own. Just have to hope Toth fares better than Leo, as another season with Pears in nets is a depressing prospect. At CB we're a couple of injuries away from a really scary scenario. In fact, I'd say so for most of the defensive line. We'll need a bit of luck there.

I don't see our defensive record getting massively better (although I expect an improvement on last season, where midway through we had, from memory, leaked the most goals in the division), but hopefully our frontline will balance this out and the manager will find a way to make us more solid at the back without sacrificing our goal threat.

It's difficult to say that I'm 'pleased' considering what Venky's have done and continue to do to our club, but I do think the manager and recruitment team have done the best they could with what they have available. Fingers crossed it's enough to give us a relatively pain free season.

[Wing Wizard Windy Miller]

In isolation not a bad window at all.  

The squad was in such a state that it really needed 12-13 players. Which was always going to be a tough ask. 

Got a mixture of experience, proven champ level players, a couple of wild cards and a promising loan. 

Just hope the keeper is better than Pears. 

Still think we are a left winger,  forward and cb light.  

From where we were though,  to get to only 3 signings away without a significant kitty is better than I expected. 

Hopefully those positions get addressed in Jan. Even better if someone like Tyjon or Gilsenan can step up. 

 

[Bohinen1983]

The past 10-15 years has either made me an objective-realist or a tremendous pessimist..

I can't help but think of the underinvestment. The club's made a relative fortune in player sales over the past couple of years, yet here we are.  How much have we re-invested this summer in transfer fee's?  

The players we've brought in are reflective of our budget, and, as a general rule of thumb, we all know you finish where you spend..

I obviously love Rovers and cling to the hope these new lads fire us up the table but I am doubtful.

The squad of a few years ago has been absolutely dimantled.

The Japanese lad, fair play, scored a couple, yet it's very early doors.. 

Gueye, whilst he does appear to have some good attributes, as a striker, it does help to be able to finish too..

Midfield, I still think we're woefully short.  Trondstadt is great,  Travis too, but we don't have any GOOD ball carrying midfielders.

We're massively short on pace and creativity and have a dodgy defence.

I know footy is very subjective, hope I'm wrong and we dick Bunleh today and rampage the league but I just think we lack any real quality..

Hope to be proven wrong.

[superniko]

4 hours ago, Herbie6590 said:

The rules are different in League One BTW. 

Yeah I know that - though I believe it comes into affect if they get promoted. 
It’s moot point though as we’ve recouped £40m so it’s not a lack of spending because of FFP on our part, it’s a lack of spending through negligence. 

[chaddyrovers]

The morning after thought, I am very happy we got the Cantwell deal and refreshing to he hear he picked us over others cos of our head coach John Eustace. 

Overall pleased in terms of players we signed but would have like us to sign a Liam Millar or Sikiri Dembele for the left winger position. 

Still think we are short at centre back in terms of numbers. 

4 hours ago, BankEnd Rover said:

Sounds like Godo hasn’t gone anywhere, which is Strange…Maybe we’re working on a deal to get him permanently in January…I like the look of him and unlike Duberry, He’s got plenty of first team football under his belt.

Maybe its something might look at hopefully in January

4 hours ago, arbitro said:

Incredible to think that Birmingham paid £5m more for Stansfield than Liverpool did for a 26 year old with 51 full caps for Italy.

It's going to end in tears at St Andrews.

Massive fan of Stansfield, but the fees for young players are crazy these days. 

2 hours ago, Mercer said:

Disagree with your forecast.

Have to be shooting for top 10 as a minimum.

top half finish, pushing for playoffs this season. 

[RoverCanada]

As many are saying, it's with an asterisk, but hard to be too upset with that window in the circumstances.

I wasn't expecting us to spend £30m+, but it would've been nice if there was one young 'statement' signing. Stansfield was a good example as, even if that wasn't realistic in the end (especially given what Birimingham paid for him, yowza), we should have had the money for a Brereton-like £5-6m signing.

I don't have specific issue with the Weimann, Baker, Batth, McFadz signings, but imagine replacing one of those pricey-ish one-year deals with a ~22 year-old capable of starting today and grow in value? I don't have anyone specific in mind, but surely the scouts could've dug up something if given the green light for a ~£5m signing? That has financial risk, but given how much we've netted in the last 1-2 years...

I suppose you could argue Cantwell fits that bill, but, even trying to be a bit aggressive about his wage costs below (I might not be aggressive enough!), it's not that much of a financial outlay (hence a good bet by the recruitment team!), and his chunky wage is spread over three years.

I've updated my estimate of wages + transfer incomings/outgoings below. Going back to Jan 2024 given Wharton's sale is the biggest factor, the budget restrictions seemed to really hit mid-summer 2023, and going further back makes accounting for wage impacts trickier...

Tried estimating 'wages+' (various bonuses, NI, etc) by multiplying the implied annual wage by 1.3, which will obviously have error bars. Didn't apply that uplift to loans. Nitpicks welcome! (except for the youth loans I probably shouldn't have bothered with haha)

Also tallied the 'wages+' impact by year, showing that we have added maybe a few million to the wage bill compared to last year, but that reverts to a minimal net impact for 2025-26 once loans/one-year deals expire. It's a trickier sum to interpret, and perhaps there were additional costs to offloading the likes of Ennis/Wahlstedt, but thought I'd try to estimate the dynamic of all these one-year deals.

Edited August 31 by RoverCanada

[Norbert Rassragr]

Any veteran strikers on a free worth looking at?

[miqaayil]

i've always been critical of V's but credit where its due recruitment team pulled off a good window not because of Vs but despite the Vs..... we'll be top 4 in december if no major injuries ...but hope some help in jan then we can push playoffs