swjf50

As far as I can see, the standard is fairly even throughout the squad, meaning it will be hard to pick our best team and the competition for places is very tough. In my opinion there are only 2 or 3 that stand out for me, that will really struggle to make the starting 11. Wilbraham, Lappin and possibly K Smith. This isn''t neccessarily because they are poor but because we have strength in depth. It will be harder for PL to pick the right team, but in Lambert we trust.

Ideally I''d say we need 3 goalies, so if Steer isn''t up to it yet, loan him out and bring in an experienced goalkeeper as back up or competition. McNamee, OTJ and Hughes seem definite surplus players. S.Smith is unlikely to get a game and Oli Johnson has too many players ahead of him in the queue. Wilbraham is another player I have big doubts whether he can step up to Premiership level, so I''d add him to the surplus list. Lappin may be kept for his versatility on the left, but I can''t see him playing many games if any unfortunately.

It depends how well these 4 perform. Four would probably be enough unless any of them get a serious injury. I''m not sure whether we''d be able to buy anyone that would be better than what we have already got, but I guess if we are struggling at the back in the early part of the season, PL will bring in another loan or fork out for another defender. I think we need another right back to compete with Russell Martin personally.