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The morning after, Happy or Dissapointed?

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Underwhelmed but not disappointed.

 

I don’t buy into some peoples conspiracy theories (Wiz) but I do see where he is coming from and on past season I can sort of understand his point of view.

 

In reality we bid for Graham who wanted to leave Swansea to move back up north, so little chance of really signing Graham.

 

RVW was a can of worms and in all reality Norwich never officially made a firm bid, they enquired and the Portugese press made the rest a story, nothing official from the club.

 

Hooper was a saga from start to finish and seeing it from Wiz’s point of view, Celtic said from the start that he was going nowhere this January and if he did it would take a big offer, so again you could argue it was only ever going to end one way.

 

So Wiz was right saying that we were deluded if we thought we would get that marquee signing and we did end up with a total unknown and two championship journeyman pro’s this window.

 

But I for one am overjoyed we didn’t spend more than 5 million on Hooper, he might look fantastic in Scotland and does a job in the Champions League, but still no guarantee to score more goals than Kamara or Becchio.

 

You can argue we have done things on the cheap and yes we have, you can argue that we have only slightly improved the squad and not the starting 11, again yes that’s true.

 

BUT we are sitting on 27 points, 7 points clear of the bottom 4, Villa, Wigan & Reading have not improved their squad in my opinion more than us.

 

WE have changed out a misfiring striker for one who is on form, if Becchio had been 24 and scored 19 goals this season for a championship side we would have been happy, so why the concern that he’s 29?

 

We have a great mix of midfield players and Tettey & Johnson have done a magnificent job this year, we look solid, Bassong and Snodders have been a fantastic addition to this team.

 

This season is all about consolidation, the improvement will come with the reward of staying up, patience my city fans the really good time are just around the corner.

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I agree. I''m glad we were at least in the mix for hooper and graham, but our priority this window was to strengthen our forward line. Kamara looks powerful, and Becchio will be great in the air so hopefully between them they will get us a few vital match winning goals. By all accounts we have paid very little this window, so in the summer we will be officially external debt free and have the largest transfer pot ever.

I thought we were back on form against spurs, so lets hope we can take advantage of the qpr soap opera tomorrow and get ourselves 3pts closer to safety.

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I''d say reasonably content this morning. To my mind Becchio & Kamara are an improvement on Lappin & Morison so the squad has been improved. Plenty of people on here seem certain its hasn''t been improved enough, but Wednesday evening''s performance coupled with the lack of strengthening by anyone below us other than Toon & QPR shows that we should have more than enough in the tank to stay up.

I''m glad we didn''t shell out the reported £10m ish on Hooper, for me his value is significantly less. I can understand why he wanted to stay there and why Celtic wanted to keep him. A little disappointed that Davies didn''t come but I''m not convinced that Hughton really, really wanted him if I''m honest. If we have issues at centre half between now and may I''d like to see Martin get a game there I think he is currently a better option than Bennett.

Looking forward to seeing the new lads in the yellow shirt.

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As I stated before the start of the window I felt we had three objectives,   improve our striking options,  improve the defensive midfield options and get cover for our over reliance on Bassong.

 

We have no change to defence or defensive midfield.    Kamara is a winger (good low risk option to see if he can have an impact) so we have enhanced our wide options (not something I saw as a priority) and a like for like signing in Becchio.

 

Not happy and only slightly disappointed.    Just praying that we dont get an injury to Bassong or Tettey and that Tettey and BJs fitness and energy levels remain high enough to play as they did against spurs, rather than the games before.

 

However I do think we will be safe from relegation - so time to plot getting better strikers,  defenders and midfielders now. 

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Agree with OP, it would have been nice to see Hooper come and even nicer to see RVW, but as I said on another site I wonder how many goals Becchio would score in those respective leagues....

All we have to do is make it to the end, even if its by a point on the last day, then the club will be in the realms of fantasy football with the finances at our disposal.

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What disappoints me is when it was obvious that we were not getting hooper we should have went all out for Davies. If bassong gets a season long injury we are in trouble big style

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Despite Wiz''s claims to the contrary and renewed claims to be the Nostradamus of the board, I feel neither disillusioned or deluded!

 

The two main points of enquiry were Graham and Hooper.

 

We probably learnt very early on that Graham was only interested in returning to the North East, as has happened. Aside from a few rumours surrounding Newcastle coming in for him, the bid from Middlesbrough and his eventual signing for Sunderland, no other clubs were mentioned as possible destinations for him apart from us-and, with his quoted desire to "go home", we could have bid £10 Million for him and Swansea would have accepted-but he wouldn''t have come or even spoken to us. So any huff and puff about not making an effort with Graham was and is, just that, as it was never going to happen.

 

Celtic were not interested in selling Hooper. They made that clear right at the start of the month and stuck to it throughout. Not only did they not want to sell him, they didn''t need to sell him, and, as far as we know, he wasn''t interested in leaving-and why should he, we can knock the SPL all we like, but he''s got a likely medal at the end of the season, maybe two, as well as a CL Quarter Final to play in-so they might get knocked out? Well, why bother in the first place. In his place, I know what my preference would be-stay put and have all of that. He can still move in the Summer, and have a few clubs to pick from as well. Maybe we didn''t walk away quickly enough, however, on the other hand, maybe it was good to stick with the main target and keep at it-despite what happened. £9 Million for him? No thanks. Even if he had been a success with us at that price, scored 8-10 goals by May and got 15-20 next season, had he then wanted to move, what chance would we have of really, really making some money on him, good money-especially if he had really pushed for one. Yes, not pushing the boat out might be a risk-but spending all of that and committing to the huge wage quoted was far more of one. And is he a "marquee" signing? I don''t think so. Lets not raise just any old player with a big fee attached to the marquee, Samba cost that plus £4 million, is he a marquee player? No.

 

Curtis Davies would have been a decent signing but Birmingham were asking for £4 million up front-is he a better played than Bassong who cost less? Would he come straight into the team ahead of Bassong or Turner? Martin can play at centre back if needed and do a good job there, we also have Whitaker to come back who can play right across the back line.

 

Becchio will arrive fit and full of confidence, he''ll settle quickly as well. Holty will, no doubt, start on Satuyrday, but he now knows he''s got a very motivated, very capable player able to fill in for him and almost certain to get a run out at some point against QPR. Evolution now, more revolution in the Summer. We should just about have enough now to keep us up and thats all that matters. Next season is a biggie and, if and when we confirm our Prem status for 13/14, I think we''ll see some real quality arriving here in the Summer. As for Hooper though? No, move on completely, lets let that one go now.

 

And thank God January is behind us. Transfer window hysteria. Quite why it can''t be a free market all year round I don''t know.

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Two things1.  If we stay up McNally is a hero, 10 million quid saved for the summer.2. If everything goes tits up it will be the biggest missed opportunity in NCFC history.That is the gamble and in 3 months time we will know the answer.

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[quote user="ricardo"]Two things1.  If we stay up McNally is a hero, 10 million quid saved for the summer.2. If everything goes tits up it will be the biggest missed opportunity in NCFC history.That is the gamble and in 3 months time we will know the answer.[/quote]

Bang on the mark in my opinion

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[quote user="ron obvious"]Pleased with what we did (& didn''t) do, but disappointed we didn''t get back-up for Bassong. And a DM really.[/quote]

Well if we are to believe all what is said on Sky our bid for Davis was turned down some say £4mil and Bennet on loan till may, Some say £4mil was the asking price so where did we go wrong, Hooper''s bids were a complete waste of time, The tight fisted Paddy was never going to agree, He will now offer him more money and a better deal, then try to sell him for £15mil in the summer, No player in what ever Scottish league is worth more than a couple of million, Lets face it, the poor quality of Scottish makes Hooper look good, And with average attendance''s around 4to6 thousand, Yes I''m one thats glad we didn''t waste money, We have better quality for less in our own leagues.   

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Alternatively, Ricardo, the gamble is we spend upwards of £10m, Hooper turns out to be Simeon Mk II & we get relegated.

Life''s always a gamble, it''s the risk assessment that matters.

I''d say we''ve got about a 5% chance of relegation. Hooper might have changed that to 2-3%. Not good value I feel.

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Neither happy or disappointed. Wednesday''s game confirmed that we have the first 11 to match any team, on our day, but not an inspiring bench. We have added a decent goalkeeping cover, and a couple of forward players, who will at the least add to the strength of the bench; I think Becchio could walk into the first team; he''s certainly match fit.

Massively pleased that all the speculation is over, and we can now assess through action on the pitch.

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[quote user="ricardo"]Two things

1.  If we stay up McNally is a hero, 10 million quid saved for the summer.

2. If everything goes tits up it will be the biggest missed opportunity in NCFC history.

That is the gamble and in 3 months time we will know the answer.
[/quote]

 

Succinctly and accurately put. What''s happened is an enormous gamble. In the past, with Windass and Ashton, for example, it was not at all clear the money was there to be spent. This time it obviously was.

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A little bit like the "morning after" - the club obviously made great efforts, although had probably misread Celtic, and we had posted and read so much.

 

So where do we stand? I think a little improved, and probably with an additional striker we can call on if needed. If I am honest it is only a little bit improved. We didn''t manage to sign anyone who could make much use of the few scraps our defensive set-up provides.

I think that Becchio could well position himself better than Holt, although consequently will not do so much supplying. He ought to be confident in his ability after notching up so many this season for Leeds.

Kamara could become a minor sensation, if he manages the step up. He has pace and muscle, and unlike Vaughan has not had a terrible injury record and vulnerability. It remains to be seen how good he is technically, but as we tend to attack down the wings and he is 6 feet 3  inches, powerful, and a good header of the ball, he could be useful.

 

Has it improved our chances of staying in the Premiership? Only marginally. They may contribute to the score sheets, but their main contribution is to be available as a spur to Holt and a substitute for him.

 

To be sure of survival we need to have a first choice defence, not reduced by injury, and a greater emphasis on attack, perhaps with two strikers?

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[quote user="ricardo"]Two things1.  If we stay up McNally is a hero, 10 million quid saved for the summer.2. If everything goes tits up it will be the biggest missed opportunity in NCFC history.That is the gamble and in 3 months time we will know the answer.[/quote][Y] [Y]It''s a risk v''s reward strategy. £5-6M was deeemed a good investment to help reduce the risk.£9M was not.Others will argue with the logic. I can''t. I think it''s good management. However as ricardo quite rightly points out above, we''ll know if it was correct in 14 games time.As for those conspiracy theorests claiming we were never going to buy anyone, that''s a lot of work and effort just to try and keep people happy. If you genuinely think that, you''re overestimating how much the club actually cares about your opinion.

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[quote user="ron obvious"]Alternatively, Ricardo, the gamble is we spend upwards of £10m, Hooper turns out to be Simeon Mk II & we get relegated.

Life''s always a gamble, it''s the risk assessment that matters.

I''d say we''ve got about a 5% chance of relegation. Hooper might have changed that to 2-3%. Not good value I feel.[/quote]Exactly what I tried to say above, but much better put.

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I''m pleased. I''m a fan of Becchio and from talking to some MLS watching friends I think Kamara could surprise a few people if deployed on the wing, he will certainly give us something different in the wide positions.I think many of the drama queens have unrealistic expectations, perhaps raised by the relatively open way we went out our business this window compared to Lambert''s era. Its important to remember that we''ve only been in this division for one season and we have been hamstrung by debt repayments. If we don''t spend big in the summer when we are debt free, and have increased TV money, then will be the time to have tantrums.The only thing I am a little disappointed about is not getting Davies, we''ll just have to hope Bassong doesn''t get injured.

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Disappointed, I think it''s a big gamble, but we are in a good position and it will be our own fault if we can''t stay up. Perhaps we are saving our money for a Championship bounce back.
I wouldn''t mind too much, back to winning lots of game, another trophy for the cabinet, and 6 points from Ipswich again [:)]

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"Martin can play at centre back if needed and do a good job there, we also have Whitaker to come back who can play right across the back line."

 

Whittaker is the key back-up at CB we have missed through injury.

 

Keeping him fit for the rest of the season will be very important.

 

I''d certainly far prefer to see him at CB ahead of Barnett and Bennett.

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Ricardo - agree with both points but feel we have gone backwards from last season. If we stay up or go down it will be a bumpy ride til the end of the season either way whereas last season we were home and dry with a bit of time to spare.

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Disappointed to be honest and a bit worried. i think we will probably have just about enough to get home but we have made it harder for ourselves than we needed to and if we do go down the Mcnally and Hughton will have some serious questions to answer.

Who knows what ultimately went on with the Hooper transfer but my own view is that did ourselves no favours with the nature of our initial bids and leaving it all so late in the day. We should have put a more significant bid in earlier and then moved on if it was clear that the deal could not be done.

I am also concerned about our failure to get Davies or another CB in given our obvious failings every time Bassong is unfit.

I hope Becchio and Kamara are both successes and give us the fire power we need to stay up but obviously both are unproven at this level and are a gamble. Admittedly Hooper would also have been a gamble but less so in my opinion.

In general though i just feel a bit let down that we have once again been hot with season ticket price rises, are being asked to renew 3 months before the end of the season and told all available monies go into the football team yet in a season where survival in the prem is absolutely crucial, and where we are crying out for a bit of extra quality, we have basically spent nothing in January. That is rather disappointing.

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Pleased with Kamara - I think he could well be a big success here, score plenty of goals and become our next Hucks/Iwan-style cult hero.

Pleased with Becchio for Morison - Moro wasn''t good enough for the Premiership and hasn''t posed a real threat to opposing teams for about 12 months now. Becchio may or may not thrive in the top flight, but certainly won''t be any worse I feel.

Ambivalent about Camp - Honestly couldn''t care less, I think he''s weaker than either Rudd or Bunn, and hopefully we''ll never have to see him in the first team; but his arrival cost us nothing and has allowed Rudd to get a solid 15-20 games of first team football for PNE which will only help him.

Not disappointed by the failure to sign Davies to be honest - I think he''s over-rated by many on here and would have been a disappointment for that kind of money.

Not disappointed by lack of Hooper - would have loved him at £7m, £10m is way too much and Celtic are taking the p*ss. Saying that, had McNally offered a sensible bid in the first place instead of trying to get him on the cheap, they might have agreed and not kept raising the price as Lawell was clearly offended by the way negotiations were handled.

Very disappointed by RVW not coming. We had a chance to sign a genuinely top-class player for a reasonable amount of money, but again by trying to do deals on the cheap, we succeeded only in putting the selling club''s backs up and making us look foolish. They wanted 13m euros? We should have gone in with a bid of 10m and negotiated from there, the 5m+3m thing was just insulting and did us no favours. Sadly I very much doubt we''ll get him in the summer as there will be much bigger clubs sniffing around at that price.

Overall - Do we have a stronger squad than we did on Jan 1st? Yes. Could it have been even stronger? Probably.

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andyc24_uk

If McNally is to be believed, Sporting wanted 20m euros, not 13m.

I''d have liked him too, but not at that price (yet).

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I''m satisfied with out business.

I am a believer that the squad we had would keep us up anyway, but I think the additions are helpful in the quest for 40 points! (I think 36/37 will keep you up personally)

Becchio for Morison is a good deal for us. Morison just wasn''t doing it for us anymore, and Becchio comes in with something to prove and on form.

Kamara is a wildcard and Camp is just to get the youngsters out on loan rather than rot on the bench!

Personally I would have liked Hooper but it was never going to happen late. If it was going to happen, it would have happened early so Celtic could get a replacement in. I''m also not a gambler, so spending that much money wouldn''t have sat well with me!

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