How do we spend our budget?

[Howaythelads]

10m on two fullbacks. Forget about the strikers for now man, we're not going to do much in the league anyways. We have to stay lucky with injuries (which probably won't happen) if we're to have any chance of making a big run and move up the table. I say just let's start over and consider this season a one of transition, one that we can use to sort out the defence for the next few years. Then the summer will arrive where we can evaluate Shola's and Owen's respective physical conditions, then proceed on from there knowing we'll still have Martins who is quality. Much better than spending 5m+ on someone who'll have to sit on the bench when Mickey comes back. Our potential striking partnership has costed us 27m to assemble, no need to spend more money. Just start over. Obviously some people might point out the fact that we're one injury away from being plunged into the relegation dogfight, well, you know what, buying a shit striker for 2m isn't the answer. We need to spend big on a striker if we're to spend because we need goals, and I don't think it's a good idea to spend 10m on a striker who'll have to sit on the bench.

 

PS. 'You can't lose if you don't concede' 'Defence wins championships' etc. etc. Defenders people, defenders!

 

You can't win if you don't score, and it's better to win 1 game and lose 2 than draw 2 games and lose only 1. Plus we're a long way off needing a good defence to win the league! The defence we have may not be great but it is easily good enough for a European place finish. Even this season where the defence has been absolutely decimated by injury, the reason we're in the lowly position we are now is because at the start of the season we weren't even looking like scoring in some games, much more than because of defensive frailties. Before December we only scored more than 1 goal in the league twice in 14 games.

 

A number of our injured defenders are close to regaining fitness, but we only have 2 fit forwards for the next 3 months minimum (I'm not counting Luque, and Dyer is no more a forward than Nicky Butt is a central defender). Our priority has to be to get at least 1 more forward in (if only to give us an option on the bench to change a game). Personally I don't mind if it's only a loan, but we need someone.

 

PS Where's the "We can't afford to spend anything, the club's hemorrhaging money, we're doomed" option for Macbeth and everyone who usually agrees with him?

 

All of it.

 

I've been wondering about Macbeth and those who back him up as well. He (and his puppet mainly) should have been on here shooting people down for wanting the club to spend any money at all, given the debt the club is in and how poorly it's being run. No doubt they're waiting to see which way it falls so they can adjust their criticism of the club accordingly.  :winking:

[Guest teepee]

same as the rest of you - 2-4m striker and then defence.

 

my priorities are:

 

left back - preferably bridge

striker - i like the davies idea, or maybe beattie

centre back - i'm thinking upson

 

alternatively i'd spend the lot on a left back and a striker - the rest can wait!

 

 

[Northern Monkey]

The answer will probably be "badly".

[Montey]

We need to focus on defenders.  There are three primary reasons for this:

 

1)

Defenders stop you loosing games, where as attackers can only give you a chance of winning.  I say this based on the fact that if the opposition can't score then they can't win (the worst result being a draw), but if our attackers score the opposition can always score the same or more.

 

2)

NUFC has concentrated on "sexy", "exciting", "attacking" football for almost as long as living memory.  Yet, it has been 30 years since we last won a league cup.  30 years of little/no success says we have been doing something fundamentally wrong, and I think this is the blind focus on the teams attacking strength.

 

3)

Based on data from the nufc.com site our squad breakdown is like this (in my opinion):

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

Midfielders: 12 players, 3 Injured, 9 Available, 8 or 9 genuine quality.

Defenders: 11 Players, 7 Injured, 4 available, 0 genuine quality, but a few squad acceptable.

 

So essentially, we have some squad forwards and a couple of genuine quality guys to score goals.  But we only just have enough defenders to put on the field, and those that are coming back from injury are at best squad players for a Premier League side who has ambitions for European qualification.

 

Based on these 3 points I believe we -must- concentrate on getting in genuine quality defenders.  From this we can stop the opposition getting goals, hence meaning we won't loose matches, which after all is the problem, the opposition is getting more past our defence on average than we're getting past theirs and that by-and-large is because our defence is worse than their defence, not because our attack is worse than their attack.

 

[Unbelievable]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

[La Parka]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

[Montey]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Albert Luque Martos

Obafemi Akinwunmi Martins

Andrew Carroll

Carl John Finnigan

James Troisi

 

Now, note, I only said 2 of the 7 were of a suitable standard.  Of the 5 available, only 1 of them would be up to EPL standards at the moment.  But that's more than we have in Defenders, even if we had a fully fit defensive squad.

[Lloydie]

Don't believe we've got £10m, or at any rate don't believe we can afford it. Will probably also have to offload players to cut the wage bill before we can take on any expensive players.

 

Would spend whatever peanuts we've got on a left back. I Expect to see some more cut price last minute buys of the kind that brought in Sibierski, Bernard and Rossi.

 

So I guess that makes me a doom monger then...

[Northern Monkey]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

[Guest shaun11177]

Do we have 10m? more like FF borrowing 10m then if someone wants to buy the club they can pick up the tab.

If Dyer cant be classified as a striker then what is he because he certainly has and never will be a winger.

Spend any money on fullbacks.

[Northern Monkey]

10m on two fullbacks. Forget about the strikers for now man, we're not going to do much in the league anyways. We have to stay lucky with injuries (which probably won't happen) if we're to have any chance of making a big run and move up the table. I say just let's start over and consider this season a one of transition, one that we can use to sort out the defence for the next few years. Then the summer will arrive where we can evaluate Shola's and Owen's respective physical conditions, then proceed on from there knowing we'll still have Martins who is quality. Much better than spending 5m+ on someone who'll have to sit on the bench when Mickey comes back. Our potential striking partnership has costed us 27m to assemble, no need to spend more money. Just start over. Obviously some people might point out the fact that we're one injury away from being plunged into the relegation dogfight, well, you know what, buying a shit striker for 2m isn't the answer. We need to spend big on a striker if we're to spend because we need goals, and I don't think it's a good idea to spend 10m on a striker who'll have to sit on the bench.

 

PS. 'You can't lose if you don't concede' 'Defence wins championships' etc. etc. Defenders people, defenders!

 

You can't win if you don't score, and it's better to win 1 game and lose 2 than draw 2 games and lose only 1. Plus we're a long way off needing a good defence to win the league! The defence we have may not be great but it is easily good enough for a European place finish. Even this season where the defence has been absolutely decimated by injury, the reason we're in the lowly position we are now is because at the start of the season we weren't even looking like scoring in some games, much more than because of defensive frailties. Before December we only scored more than 1 goal in the league twice in 14 games.

 

A number of our injured defenders are close to regaining fitness, but we only have 2 fit forwards for the next 3 months minimum (I'm not counting Luque, and Dyer is no more a forward than Nicky Butt is a central defender). Our priority has to be to get at least 1 more forward in (if only to give us an option on the bench to change a game). Personally I don't mind if it's only a loan, but we need someone.

 

PS Where's the "We can't afford to spend anything, the club's hemorrhaging money, we're doomed" option for Macbeth and everyone who usually agrees with him?

 

wrong.

[Yorkie]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

 

There's a difference between a forward and a striker imo.

[Cajun]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

 

There's a difference between a forward and a striker imo.

 

Yep, the way he is obviously looking at it then 3 of them arent strikers.

[Northern Monkey]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

 

There's a difference between a forward and a striker imo.

 

Really? Possibly there is, but I wouldn't say they are both forwards, either.

[Yorkie]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

 

There's a difference between a forward and a striker imo.

 

Really? Possibly there is, but I wouldn't say they are both forwards, either.

 

They're hardly defensive are they?

 

They're predominantly attacking players, only Milner has a slight bit of defensive duty. And both him and Dyer can play off the striker or in a 4-3-3. They're forwards, no doubt about it. And if they're not - i've no idea what the hell they are.

[madras]

Forwards: 7 players, 2 injured, 5 available, 2 genuine quality.

 

Who are these?

 

Dyer, Milner, Martins, uh.. Carrol, Sibierski

 

2 of them aren't strikers.

 

There's a difference between a forward and a striker imo.

 

Really? Possibly there is, but I wouldn't say they are both forwards, either.

 

They're hardly defensive are they?

 

They're predominantly attacking players, only Milner has a slight bit of defensive duty. And both him and Dyer can play off the striker or in a 4-3-3. They're forwards, no doubt about it. And if they're not - i've no idea what the hell they are.

attacking midfielders and that would also make butt a defensive midfielder into a defender.....no midfield...are you adie boothroyd in disguise ?

[Guest Moe-Ali]

FUCK NO TO BEN HAIM.

HES SUCKSSSSS

[UV]

wrong.

Interesting hypothesis. A big fan of Elliott and Boumsong were you?

[Baggio]

F*** NO TO BEN HAIM.

HES SUCKSSSSS

 

Better than anything we've currently got.

[Raconteur]

Don't believe we've got £10m, or at any rate don't believe we can afford it. Will probably also have to offload players to cut the wage bill before we can take on any expensive players.

 

Would spend whatever peanuts we've got on a left back. I Expect to see some more cut price last minute buys of the kind that brought in Sibierski, Bernard and Rossi.

 

So I guess that makes me a doom monger then...

 

This

 

BTW - Moe-Ali, I'm curious to know why you're so much against Ben-Haim? Was suggested as an excellent option in the summer - and rumoured to be on Mourinho's shopping list: http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=398649&cc=3436

[toontownman]

Would spend whatever peanuts we've got on a left back. I Expect to see some more cut price last minute buys of the kind that brought in Sibierski, Bernard and Rossi.

 

To be fair if we managed to buy a LB and a couple of cut price loans/buys i would be more than happy. I dont even expect us to manage more than one or two signings probably in the wrong places aswell.