Jan transfer window

[seventwo]

Who goes and who comes in.
How many midfielders does a club need?
Another 6 months on and we still can't defend.
No more dosh for TM

[robinrover]

This is how I see it.
We need a goalkeeper however we wont go for one unless a decent one with experience becomes available for nowt.
Personally I would show faith in fisher could he seriously be any worse?walton isn't the answer and leutwiller is not trusted by mowbray so why not give the lad fisher a go?
Left back is a huge priority
Bell is inconsistent at best and downing is best served further up.
Start enquiring about a player on loan to at least get us through this campaign.
Right back is also a issue
I like nyambe but as we have found out injuries involve sub standard players coming in.
Bennett is ok for a 20 minute burst further up but right back is a disaster.
Money is tight so utilise Rankin Costello as back up for that role.
Finally centre back
Lenihan and tosin are our first team centre backs but it's in depth we have problems.
Williams is approaching his final few months as a rovers player but he is all we have.
I personally would say to Northampton Wharton can stay but any injuries to lenihan or tosin and we immediately recall.
Outgoings will be mainly youth that wont make it and possibly smallwood.
He would be a great signing at league one level but his career his rotting for us.

[champs95]

Who goes and who comes in.
How many midfielders does a club need?
Another 6 months on and we still can't defend.
No more dosh for TM

Do not give this guy another penny. We cant afford his mistakes. And its risking our future.
We desperately need some new blood, but we need improving. I don't think, players on a free transfer will improve us.
And as he has always said, there is no point bringing anyone in who wont improve us.
Gallagher hasn't, Downing hasn't, Johnson hasn't. Chapman hasn't, Brereton never will as he doesn't get to play football anymore. We have to now work very hard shifting players out of this club, not bringing more pointless deadwood in.
He will have to make do with what he has, and utilise the £8m a year academy.

[champs95]

This is how I see it.
We need a goalkeeper however we wont go for one unless a decent one with experience becomes available for nowt.
Personally I would show faith in fisher could he seriously be any worse?walton isn't the answer and leutwiller is not trusted by mowbray so why not give the lad fisher a go?
Left back is a huge priority
Bell is inconsistent at best and downing is best served further up.
Start enquiring about a player on loan to at least get us through this campaign.
Right back is also a issue
I like nyambe but as we have found out injuries involve sub standard players coming in.
Bennett is ok for a 20 minute burst further up but right back is a disaster.
Money is tight so utilise Rankin Costello as back up for that role.
Finally centre back
Lenihan and tosin are our first team centre backs but it's in depth we have problems.
Williams is approaching his final few months as a rovers player but he is all we have.
I personally would say to Northampton Wharton can stay but any injuries to lenihan or tosin and we immediately recall.
Outgoings will be mainly youth that wont make it and possibly smallwood.
He would be a great signing at league one level but his career his rotting for us.

The trouble with these lads dropping to Div2, the gulf is monumental between that level, and the one we play in.
This isn't Tosin coming from us, to going back to City. The gulf isn't that big. Playing for Northampton is not the same as playing in for us in the Champ. He would get destroyed at this level. Plus, he is weak physically. In such a poor defence that we have, and shocking goalkeeper, he would be badly exposed.
I would suggest guys like Rankin Costello, but he has been left to sit and watch Bennett under-perform massively so aren't improving at all. The Under 23's isn't proper football. And because he has been left out, we are now stuck with Bennett etc and are heading backwards.

[robinrover]

As I put above,fisher and Rankin Costello could solve 2 problems but left back should be our upmost priority.
It will be loan only of course but the remainder of the season with bell or downing at left back spells trouble.

[champs95]

But he is effectively bringing young players out of the cold and throwing them into a poor, unconfident side. Its not fair on them.
He isn't helping young Buckley by playing him in tough away games when we are playing poorly. There is a time and place to blood these young lads, but he chooses to go with the likes of Danny Graham instead. The mis-use of our young players is part of the problem.

[AucklandRover]

Do not give this guy another penny. We cant afford his mistakes. And its risking our future.
We desperately need some new blood, but we need improving. I don't think, players on a free transfer will improve us.
And as he has always said, there is no point bringing anyone in who wont improve us.
Gallagher hasn't, Downing hasn't, Johnson hasn't. Chapman hasn't, Brereton never will as he doesn't get to play football anymore. We have to now work very hard shifting players out of this club, not bringing more pointless deadwood in.
He will have to make do with what he has, and utilise the £8m a year academy.

Champs - it always comes down to personal opinion. On the evidence so far, I would agree with you about Gallagher, Johnson and Brereton. Chapman, I still have some hopes for.
I totally disagree about Downing, though. His set-piece delivery has been disappointing, but he is a class above most of our players. Left-back is not ideal for him, but - even there - he has generally been a steady influence. Overall, his passing success-rate is miles better than anyone else in the team. Do you really believe we have a youngster who could replace him and improve us?
If Dack (or a youngster!) had scored the goal Downing got against Forest, posters would be raving about it, but it hardly got a mention.
Look at it again. Absolutely outstanding technique. Downing is not a showy player, but he has been far more consistent than anyone else in the team.

[AucklandRover]

As I put above,fisher and Rankin Costello could solve 2 problems but left back should be our upmost priority.
It will be loan only of course but the remainder of the season with bell or downing at left back spells trouble.

Robin, the loss of Cunningham was huge. He's not brilliant, but he doesn't make many mistakes. I thought he was very reliable, in the same way Williams was when he won "Player of the Season".
Bell has never convinced me that he has the defensive instincts of a full-back.
I had high hopes for Hart at the start of the season, but he seems to have disappeared!
As you say, a steady, seasoned player in that position is a priority - especially as it means Downing can be used further forward, where he is much more effective.
Walton is an enigma. He has made some great saves, but it strikes me that he is slow off the mark sometimes. Also, his judgement about when to leave the line and when to stay put seems faulty. The thing is with keepers, though, you have to persevere, because it appears to be a position with a bigger learning-curve than most.
To be honest, I never thought Leutwiler did too much wrong when he was given a chance. He looked nervy and rusty, but that was inevitable.
Like you, I am hoping that Fisher might solve the problem in the next year.

[Saxo1man41]

Alan Judge of Ipswich is a potential target to replace Bradley Dack ..

[AucklandRover]

Alan Judge of Ipswich is a potential target to replace Bradley Dack ..

Really? I've always admired Judge. I feel he has been one of those players who has often been in the wrong place at the wrong time.
All the same, he's not a like-for-like Dack replacement, and I'd have thought Rankin-Costello will eventually claim the left-sided midfield position in succession to Downing.
In any case, he's playing regularly for Ipswich and contracted for another year, so I'd be surprised if he left.
Having said all that, I know Ipswich are strapped for cash, so they probably will be selling some players. If Judge is one of them, though, he's unlikely to fetch more than 250,000 or so, which may be irrelevant to their requirements.