Are We Happy With Our Transfer Dealings ?

[sinkov]

Stop worrying about centre backs, we have Mee and Tarkowski with Kev Long to walk straight in if needed. If Long is then injured Wardy can move across and in comes Taylor at left back - simples!

We did however, manage to make one marquee signing...

Attachment 6341

Ward at CB, Taylor at LB is certainly an option BT, but I don't think it's Dyche's chosen one. Pre-season, of the two, only Taylor has been played at CB by Dyche. If he had the intention of playing Ward in the centre and Taylor at left back, I think we'd have seen it in a game by now, but as far as I'm aware it hasn't happened. Anyway, I hope we never find out which way round it would be, Mee and Tarko are fine, I'd get a bit jittery with any other combination.

And that photo epitomises our problem, it's not a marquee, it's a bloody beer tent.

[ClaretinBudapest]

Not impressed to be honest.Cork is a good signing and the rest are either past their sell by date or unproven in the PL so only time will tell.
No pacy wide man again so it looks like hoofball for another 3 months.CB should have been sorted once we knew Keane was going.Our recruitment is and always has been our weak link but considering the wage restraints it is hardly surprising.I will be surprised if we are above the relegation zone at Christmas.

[thedonz]

Given a fair rub of the green , I would be surprised if that was the case

[barrie_burn]

As I live in Cardiff I cannot attend regularly,only when visiting my mother.However,I follow everything including this board keenly.What I can say is that I'm glad Dyche takes no notice of this board.Take a deep breath,look how far we have come since he arrived,look at our Bank balance and look at our squad.To say you'll be surprised if we are above the relegation zone at Christmas is very negative.We are not going to be in the top half because the teams up there seem to have absurd amounts of money to spend on transfers and wages but we are making fantastic progress gradually and I think our signings are excellent and shrewd.

[Norder]

Given a fair rub of the green , I would be surprised if that was the case

saw your comment before the edit Donz.....you deleted "and the opposition", I thought it was a good point.
Am (as others) underwhelmed with the level of change, I feel it hasn't made the expected jump....that it's still missing the spark of difference needed to lift us up and move us forward - that we're still held back by a fragile that'll sap the power and lessen the durability elsewhere...putting us on the back foot and relying on the hopeful...quick bursts to steal the day....where we can only gain through the oppositions weakness - not our strengths.

[CaspertheClaret]

Pretty happy all in all.

Obviously it would have been nice to have had a Prem ready combative central defensive leader for when we get a dark day or two but overall I think we have so much more quality and depth to the squad than we had a year ago. I was worried that lots of new signing would break up the cohesion but I think the players that have been brought in (and I include last seasons in this) have either slotted straight in to the ethos or have now acclimatised.

Last season I felt we were going to struggle but was pleasantly surprised at how well we did. I think we are so much more than that now and where other teams seem to be unravelling before your eyes our unit seems have added lacquer.

Re Wells - it's not often I get a gut feeling and often it turns out just to be flatulence but I really feel this lad is going to find his place where he shines and we will have ourselves a real player and a bargain.

[1972Claret]

Mixed.
Happy with midfield. Cork is excellent and seems to produce his best at Burnley. Cork and Defour seem to be on a wavelength and compliment each other. We are playing much better football as a result.
Tarks is better than Keane as a footballer, although I think Keane had it overall because he was so solid defensively. But Tarks footballing helps Cork and Defour. However, we are seriously short of cover at centre back.
Forwards are good. Wood is better than Gray from what I have seen. I have always liked Wells and think we could have a real gem if he adapts to tge Premiership.
Wingers have always been a weak point under Shaun and now our cover has gone and Gudmundsson seems off form. All 4 of our fullbacks are good and can go someway to providing cover for our weakness on the wings but we really fid need a winger that can pit the ball on Sam's and Wood's heads.

[thedonz]

Does anyone know how many central defenders usually make the bench? I think it's one , and that would be Long. A player Dyche rates.

So any new centre half would have to better than Long to even make the bench. And even then , how many times does a central defender come on as a sub.

Two things I think are affecting many fans thoughts:
1) Their belief that Long is not good enough;
2) Their concern that either Mee or Tarkowski suffer a long term injury.

If you think Long is good enough for the PL I don't think you would be worried. Unless you though we would suffer 2 long term injuries in that position.

I wanted another central defender but not a youngster prepared to bide his time with the development side .

To get an established centre half willing to start of as 4th choice would be very difficult.

To get a centre half ready to challenge immediately for a first team place would have been very costly. For me the club feel they are not yet there financially to pay the wages such a player would demand.

[afloatinclaret]

None of us are going to be 'happy', but we have the advantage over the Board/Club Management that we're not the ones who'll get pilloried should we fail AND screw-up financially. I think there's general agreement that another proven centre-back would've been nice, but as Hall of Fame noted an established PL CB would've cost a bundle, screwed up the wage structure and might've given us no more depth anyway, insofar as Mee, or Long would've perhaps been looking for a move elsewhere rather than drop down the likely pecking order?

As I've said before and clearly others agree on this thread, I think that Wells could prove to be worth the punt, Dedour staying and looking happy again's a real bonus and I'm glad that we didn't get that striker from Forest; one goal doesn't make a season, but I'd much rather see £15 million invested in Wood than on that kid.

By far my biggest disappointment hasbeen the departure of Boyd; he's a player who I took a long while to appreciate, but I think he gave us better service last year than in the Championship and word was that he left because we'd only offered him a one rather than two year deal? That lad is fit, it wouldn't surprise me at all if he's not still playing at least Championship level in another four or five years time, but we let him go, only to bring in (and laid out transfer fees for them!) replacements who're probably costing us more in wages and likely to reach their sell-by-date long before Boyd does. He might not have been the world's, or indeed even Burnley's greatest player, but he was a grafter who more than earned his wages and in the absence of a genuinely good/much younger replacement, we'd have been better served (if that's all it would've taken to keep him) adding another year to his contract.

[blueheeler1]

None of us are going to be 'happy', but we have the advantage over the Board/Club Management that we're not the ones who'll get pilloried should we fail AND screw-up financially. I think there's general agreement that another proven centre-back would've been nice, but as Hall of Fame noted an established PL CB would've cost a bundle, screwed up the wage structure and might've given us no more depth anyway, insofar as Mee, or Long would've perhaps been looking for a move elsewhere rather than drop down the likely pecking order?

As I've said before and clearly others agree on this thread, I think that Wells could prove to be worth the punt, Dedour staying and looking happy again's a real bonus and I'm glad that we didn't get that striker from Forest; one goal doesn't make a season, but I'd much rather see £15 million invested in Wood than on that kid.

By far my biggest disappointment hasbeen the departure of Boyd; he's a player who I took a long while to appreciate, but I think he gave us better service last year than in the Championship and word was that he left because we'd only offered him a one rather than two year deal? That lad is fit, it wouldn't surprise me at all if he's not still playing at least Championship level in another four or five years time, but we let him go, only to bring in (and laid out transfer fees for them!) replacements who're probably costing us more in wages and likely to reach their sell-by-date long before Boyd does. He might not have been the world's, or indeed even Burnley's greatest player, but he was a grafter who more than earned his wages and in the absence of a genuinely good/much younger replacement, we'd have been better served (if that's all it would've taken to keep him) adding another year to his contract.

My son would agree with you.

But I see the "contain at all costs" philosophy that helped us to stay in the Prem is now being subtley changed to "contain, but let them also fear us".

Boyd was a fantastic servant of the club and ran himself ragged for the cause.

If we assume the new philosophy it needs midfielders who could take on the opposition, create chances for others and score more regularly than Boyd.

His role was much more defensive than attacking. maybe he was better than that but fatigue would limit his opportunities gong forward.

As good a role as he played more of Boyd would not advance us and surely that's the objective?