Where are the signings??!!

[king canary 7,599]

21 minutes ago, FatCanary said:

I think it was more true of their experience at the time that they were too sentimental and naive to the fact that they weren't ready.

The point is this time I think they are ready, hence why we will focus only on tweaks and a small handful of signings that will really improve us.

 

It will probably be very busy in terms of outgoings (and incomings to the development squad) / loans, however.

I think if we're busy in outgoings we'll need to be busy in incomings too. I don't think the squad is huge at this point.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

I would say 4 (CB, 2x CMs, wide player) players for the first team and then replacements of anyone who is sold (likely to be 2 or 3) then that would constitute a busy summer.

There will also be the flurry of players for the development squad (although likely to be less of those this summer due to work permit stuff) and maybe a few punts a al Sinani/Soto.

Burnley's tight knit, core squad is a theme that keeps coming up - it suggests that Norwich are looking for a bit of squad reduction, especially as there is unlikely to be 9 subs on the bench next season.

[FatCanary 249]

2 hours ago, king canary said:

I think if we're busy in outgoings we'll need to be busy in incomings too. I don't think the squad is huge at this point.

See what Bethnal said, really. It will be getting smaller

[TheGunnShow 5,937]

2 minutes ago, FatCanary said:

See what Bethnal said, really. It will be getting smaller

Would question that a little. I accept Webber said he wants quality and not quantity with the signings, but we have a fairly large squad yet were at its limits, particularly earlier on in the season when we had quite the injury crisis.

[FatCanary 249]

I challenge any squad to not be at its limits in this ludicrous condensed and pandemic affected schedule. A relatively normal prem season next time around does not need a squad of this size. In fact, not distilling it down right will probably do for us.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

2 minutes ago, TheGunnShow said:

Would question that a little. I accept Webber said he wants quality and not quantity with the signings, but we have a fairly large squad yet were at its limits, particularly earlier on in the season when we had quite the injury crisis.

Webber‘s quotes suggest they are going to look at how they can change the training and sport science side of things to reduce injuries. They are building recovery pools at Conley at the moment I believe to help with this. 

Norwich aren’t going to survive if they spread their already small budget thinly across a large amount of players, many of which never get minutes on the pitch. Better to reduce the amount and intensity of training. 

 

[TheGunnShow 5,937]

1 minute ago, Bethnal Yellow and Green said:

Webber‘s quotes suggest they are going to look at how they can change the training and sport science side of things to reduce injuries. They are building recovery pools at Conley at the moment I believe to help with this. 

Norwich aren’t going to survive if they spread their already small budget thinly across a large amount of players, many of which never get minutes on the pitch. Better to reduce the amount and intensity of training. 

 

That's definitely worth a look, especially as we had an injury crisis at centre-half during our last season in the Premiership. This time around it was across the whole damn squad.

[Big O 225]

I think there may be a few opportunities in this market to pick up some useful players at a reduced cost due to the COVID impacts to championship clubs finances.

Norwich do need quite a few players to get a squad that is competitive. Also, whilst I’m not advocating a complete change from Farke ball, I think we do need to be a bit more pragmatic this time - especially away from home. Last time we got bullied at places like Burnley, that can’t happen again. With that in mind you can see a situation where we might play 3CB’s away with wingbacks or maybe 3 centre midfielders with a bit more pace on one of the flanks. For that the squad is going to have to be a little bit more flexible and have some options in it 

[Indy 3,297]

Unfortunately Brexit has hit our recruiting hard, there’s a lot of really good young players around who just won’t get a permit in the uk!

Interesting to see just where our signings will come from this year, given the prices quoted for decent champions players being touted.

[TeemuVanBasten 3,327]

20 hours ago, Kenny Foggo said:

Its May!!!!

Reeeeaaaally?

Edited May 18, 2021 by TeemuVanBasten

[TeemuVanBasten 3,327]

14 hours ago, FatCanary said:

See what Bethnal said, really. It will be getting smaller

Burnley can call on Wood, Vydra, Barnes up front, and Rodriguez can play there.

We've got Pukki, Hugill and Idah.

Clearly there is room to shed a bit of deadwood (the existing bomb squad + Heise) and loan a few out (Martin?)

But Burnley are packed full of seasoned pros. 

Also, thought Dyche almost walked because they didn't spend, and didn't they really suffer at the back due to injuries early in the season, at which point they were in the relegation zone?

[FatCanary 249]

You can't have a big squad in case of injuries and expect to have enough overall quality to survive as a promoted squad. Burnley's strategy is one of risk versus reward. You speak as though we have no 'seasoned pros', which is a bit odd. Also why are you talking about strikers? We'll buy one for sure. Having a smaller squad doesn't mean every single position needs to be downsized you have to be cleverer than that and more surgical in the right areas.

I would put together exactly what I would do but not enough people would care and too many people don't buy into the fact that this is what is happening. I don't know if its that they still don't trust Webber or something but it certainly strikes me as very strange given that Norwich have never ever been this good.

[FatCanary 249]

I think its fairly obvious that having a bigger squad won't help you in an injury crisis if what you buy is not of sufficient quality for the Prem due to spreading itself too thinly. Almost doesnt matter if you are playing the U23s at that point as you either have a squad of elite talent or you don't, irrespective of its size. I would rather we have 18 to 20 very good players than 30 alright ones. Surely it isn't hard to see how that is likely to serve us better. Am i going mad? Have I not read enough football books?

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

2 minutes ago, TeemuVanBasten said:

Burnley can call on Wood, Vydra, Barnes up front, and Rodriguez can play there.

We've got Pukki, Hugill and Idah.

Clearly there is room to shed a bit of deadwood (the existing bomb squad + Heise) and loan a few out (Martin?)

But Burnley are packed full of seasoned pros. 

Also, thought Dyche almost walked because they didn't spend, and didn't they really suffer at the back due to injuries early in the season, at which point they were in the relegation zone?

They are seasoned pros now, but most gained their first Premier League experience playing for Burnley. 

I think the idea of a tight squad is that when there is adversity, no one panics and they work through it - Webber directly referenced Burnley's poor start but cited the tight squad as a reason they could recover. Farke has always stated he wants to work with a small squad (which is why players he doesn't fancy find themselves completely frozen out). 

Ultimately Norwich can't afford a big squad of Premier League experienced players. Is it better to have a large(ish) squad with resources spread thinly, or focus the money on a small, key squad and hope that back-ups aren't needed for significant amount of games? Both are risky, but the option of having good quality backups in every position is probably not available on Norwich's budget. (Unless Aarons, Emi and Cantwell are all sold)

[FatCanary 249]

3 minutes ago, Bethnal Yellow and Green said:

They are seasoned pros now, but most gained their first Premier League experience playing for Burnley. 

I think the idea of a tight squad is that when there is adversity, no one panics and they work through it - Webber directly referenced Burnley's poor start but cited the tight squad as a reason they could recover. Farke has always stated he wants to work with a small squad (which is why players he doesn't fancy find themselves completely frozen out). 

Ultimately Norwich can't afford a big squad of Premier League experienced players. Is it better to have a large(ish) squad with resources spread thinly, or focus the money on a small, key squad and hope that back-ups aren't needed for significant amount of games? Both are risky, but the option of having good quality backups in every position is probably not available on Norwich's budget. (Unless Aarons, Emi and Cantwell are all sold)

And then the quality of the first team is massively diluted and we get relegated anyway.

I really feel for Webber...for me it isn't hard to see that a small but talented squad is the right way forward, but I can't even convince the Pinkun. Thank Christ it isn't my job.

[king canary 7,599]

So how big is the squad right now?

GK- Krul, McGovern, Barden, Oxborough

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele, Famewo, Klose

LB- Giannoulis, McCallum, Heise

CM- Sorenson, Rupp, Leitner, McLean, Trybull, Sitti, Thompson

AM- Dowell, Steiperman, Sinani

RW- Buendia, Placheta

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez, Martin

ST- Pukki, Idah, Hugill, Drmic

This based on the squad list on the official site but not including players whos contracts or loans are ending.

On the face of it, this looks like a big squad- 35 players listed in total. 

However it is pretty clear that there is no future here for Leitner, Trybull, Heise or Drmic so thats 31.

Also I'd be surprised if we see Klose or Thompson in a Norwich shirt again, so 29. 

Then you've got the group of players who went out on loan last season- Sinani, Sitti, Thompson, Oxborough, Famewo- do we expect any of those to be in the squad this season? If not its down to 24.

Then you've got Martin who broke through but then dropped out and seems a prime candidate for a loan. Barden may be in a similar situation. 

So after that its 22 without any major departures and looks more like...

GK- Krul, McGovern

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele 

LB- Giannoulis, Mccallum

CM- McLean, Rupp, Sorenson

RW- Buendia, Placheta

AM- Dowell, Stiepermann

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez

ST- Pukki, Idah Hugill

Out of those I'd suggest there are questions over McCallum, Placheta and Stiepermann in terms of how much they will be involved this season, so that is 19 before we even think about an Aarons or Buendia type leaving. Not exactly deep. 

[FatCanary 249]

1 hour ago, king canary said:

So how big is the squad right now?

GK- Krul, McGovern, Barden, Oxborough

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele, Famewo, Klose

LB- Giannoulis, McCallum, Heise

CM- Sorenson, Rupp, Leitner, McLean, Trybull, Sitti, Thompson

AM- Dowell, Steiperman, Sinani

RW- Buendia, Placheta

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez, Martin

ST- Pukki, Idah, Hugill, Drmic

This based on the squad list on the official site but not including players whos contracts or loans are ending.

On the face of it, this looks like a big squad- 35 players listed in total. 

However it is pretty clear that there is no future here for Leitner, Trybull, Heise or Drmic so thats 31.

Also I'd be surprised if we see Klose or Thompson in a Norwich shirt again, so 29. 

Then you've got the group of players who went out on loan last season- Sinani, Sitti, Thompson, Oxborough, Famewo- do we expect any of those to be in the squad this season? If not its down to 24.

Then you've got Martin who broke through but then dropped out and seems a prime candidate for a loan. Barden may be in a similar situation. 

So after that its 22 without any major departures and looks more like...

GK- Krul, McGovern

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele 

LB- Giannoulis, Mccallum

CM- McLean, Rupp, Sorenson

RW- Buendia, Placheta

AM- Dowell, Stiepermann

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez

ST- Pukki, Idah Hugill

Out of those I'd suggest there are questions over McCallum, Placheta and Stiepermann in terms of how much they will be involved this season, so that is 19 before we even think about an Aarons or Buendia type leaving. Not exactly deep. 

I would expect it will be those 19 plus four or five more, with the three you mentioned likely to be loaned out or sold. 

[king canary 7,599]

3 minutes ago, FatCanary said:

I would expect it will be those 19 plus four or five more, with the three you mentioned likely to be loaned out or sold. 

Fair, I guess we maybe have differing definitions of a small squad. For me, 24 is a fairly standard squad.

[Petriix 2,834]

What happened to Sebastian Soto? Wasn't he the next promising youngster to come in? Maybe he's the striker we're all waiting for?

But, yes, we need to sign some players to seriously improve the overall quality and depth of that squad.

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

6 minutes ago, Petriix said:

What happened to Sebastian Soto? Wasn't he the next promising youngster to come in? Maybe he's the striker we're all waiting for?

But, yes, we need to sign some players to seriously improve the overall quality and depth of that squad.

He was training with the U23s but not making the bench for their games, even when there were open spots on the bench. I imagine he won't be at Norwich much longer.

[king canary 7,599]

8 minutes ago, Bethnal Yellow and Green said:

He was training with the U23s but not making the bench for their games, even when there were open spots on the bench. I imagine he won't be at Norwich much longer.

Wow, that feels like a swift fall from grace. I know some of our fans overhyped him but he was scoring goals in Holland before we recalled him. Makes you wonder if he's had an attitude problem since he returned?

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

4 minutes ago, king canary said:

Wow, that feels like a swift fall from grace. I know some of our fans overhyped him but he was scoring goals in Holland before we recalled him. Makes you wonder if he's had an attitude problem since he returned?

It is weird - it seems he was only recalled as the only way to get him a work permit was to do it in January. He looked good in Holland, definitely was head and shoulders above most other players there - but Dutch 2nd Division is not great so hard to judge his actual quality.  I wonder if something has happened behind the scenes, it may be they are just going to wait until pre-season and give him a clean slate and see how it goes. 

[king canary 7,599]

2 minutes ago, Bethnal Yellow and Green said:

It is weird - it seems he was only recalled as the only way to get him a work permit was to do it in January. He looked good in Holland, definitely was head and shoulders above most other players there - but Dutch 2nd Division is not great so hard to judge his actual quality.  I wonder if something has happened behind the scenes, it may be they are just going to wait until pre-season and give him a clean slate and see how it goes. 

Maybe- pure speculation of course but I wonder if he expected to come back and get a first team chance at some point but we'll see. 

[Wrathofthefarkely 54]

2 hours ago, king canary said:

So how big is the squad right now?

GK- Krul, McGovern, Barden, Oxborough

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele, Famewo, Klose

LB- Giannoulis, McCallum, Heise

CM- Sorenson, Rupp, Leitner, McLean, Trybull, Sitti, Thompson

AM- Dowell, Steiperman, Sinani

RW- Buendia, Placheta

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez, Martin

ST- Pukki, Idah, Hugill, Drmic

This based on the squad list on the official site but not including players whos contracts or loans are ending.

On the face of it, this looks like a big squad- 35 players listed in total. 

However it is pretty clear that there is no future here for Leitner, Trybull, Heise or Drmic so thats 31.

Also I'd be surprised if we see Klose or Thompson in a Norwich shirt again, so 29. 

Then you've got the group of players who went out on loan last season- Sinani, Sitti, Thompson, Oxborough, Famewo- do we expect any of those to be in the squad this season? If not its down to 24.

Then you've got Martin who broke through but then dropped out and seems a prime candidate for a loan. Barden may be in a similar situation. 

So after that its 22 without any major departures and looks more like...

GK- Krul, McGovern

RB- Aarons, Byram, Mumba

CB- Hanley, Zimmerman, Gibson, Omobamidele 

LB- Giannoulis, Mccallum

CM- McLean, Rupp, Sorenson

RW- Buendia, Placheta

AM- Dowell, Stiepermann

LW- Cantwell, Hernandez

ST- Pukki, Idah Hugill

Out of those I'd suggest there are questions over McCallum, Placheta and Stiepermann in terms of how much they will be involved this season, so that is 19 before we even think about an Aarons or Buendia type leaving. Not exactly deep. 

This. 

Its blindingly obvious. 

We need far more players than most seem to be saying. 

A good goalie challenging Krul.

First choice Centre back competition. 

A decent back-up left back. 

Two DMs, one of whom needs to be at least lower Premier league quality. 

An attacking midfielder who can play across the line and is pushing our best three. 

A striker pushing for a start. 

Thats all just if none of our best eleven leave, and that's tens of millions spent. 

 

Edited May 18, 2021 by Wrathofthefarkely

[Bethnal Yellow and Green 1,557]

27 minutes ago, Wrathofthefarkely said:

Thats all just if none of our best eleven leave, and that's tens of millions spent. 

But Norwich don't have tens of millions to spend - so do you buy cheaper versions of all those players you mentioned, or do you prioritise a few positions and bring in higher quality players? That is the dilemma. Everyone wants a squad of 23 Premier League quality players, but that isn't feasible for Norwich to achieve in this window.

[Uncle Fred 526]

27 minutes ago, Bethnal Yellow and Green said:

But Norwich don't have tens of millions to spend - so do you buy cheaper versions of all those players you mentioned, or do you prioritise a few positions and bring in higher quality players? That is the dilemma. Everyone wants a squad of 23 Premier League quality players, but that isn't feasible for Norwich to achieve in this window.

And there is the fatal flaw in the self financing club nonsense 

[curious yellow 184]

Would players like Martin, Mumba Idah etc. be extra to the 25 because of their age? 

[wcorkcanary 4,334]

12 minutes ago, Uncle Fred said:

And there is the fatal flaw in the self financing club nonsense 

Good to hear that someone knows how to run a Club....Cretin. 

[Indy 3,297]

I was under the impression Soto had been recovering from injury and that’s why he’s not been playing much since his return?

As for the squad Kingo is bang on that 22, and Beth covers our shortfall.

We need at least one more CB who’s going to push for a starting place, maybe one who can move into DM if required. (Ajer)

We need a proven striker, one who can cut it at this level and push Pukki (King)

We need a defensive midfielder who can battle and win the ball (Skipp on loan)

We need cover for McClean position, someone who can help connect midfield to attack (Gilmour on loan)

I think those I’ve listed would just about improve our squad to the point of challenging the 17th spot and in budget.

Edited May 18, 2021 by Indy

[kirku 1,332]

Gilmour doesn't seem to fit the profile of what Farke looks for in either of the CM positions.

I don't follow the logic of that link at all.