How big do people think a league 1 squad needs to be!!!! (2 Viewers)

agreed but ireland is out of contract but burge will be third choice also willis should be in there

The 25 squad rule doesn't include U21 players I believe, so you can play as many U21 players as you want as a premiership side. If we had a 22 man squad where 18 of the players were over 23 years old and of decent quality and a few younger players i.e Cameron, Clarke, Hussey. The fact that in those 22 players mentioned you have included Daniels, Jeffers, ROD, Platt, Bell, Gael, Thomas, Deegan, Christie, Mcpake shows the weakness of our squad.
10 players above who are one of shit, injury prone or young/inexperienced. Doesn't look like such a strong squad now does it.

Aslong as we keep David Bell and Carl Baker we will be fine. There 2 of the most skillfull wingers i have ever seen.

Same as every league. But it is not just squad size but the quality and readiness of those players. I think we will need 8 signings 4 experienced. 4 loans. Will that happen, no

Well a good starting point would be for all of them 6FT and around 12ST

We need to buy experience but not big names on a free looking for an easy ride and a pay packet on the way down. We want hungry but experienced league one performers who have played in the division for a couple of years and preferably a leader and a midfield general.

minimum squad, in counting our current kids would be 34, that is only my opinion,
PUSB

We need a solid core of league one players, 4 center backs, 4 center mids, 2 forwards, with more money spent on a goal scorer & 3 decent wingers. We need a wheeler dealer to change things, Thorn wont, he'll just moan about how he hasn't got bucket loads of money to spend.

My squad would be:

Goalkeepers (2)
Joe Murphy
Chris Dunn

Defenders (4)
Nathan Cameron
Jordan Clarke
Cyrus Christie
Chris Hussey

Midfielders (2)
Bigi
Conor Thomas

Strikers (1)
Mc Donald

You could always take a look at what the 2 automatically promoted teams had..

Here I'll make it easy..

Charlton
http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=527

Wednesday
http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=2330

seems to be around 30 in squad including loans.. but more like 40 players used over the season.

The thing with league 1 is it is a physical league, yet to compete you need creativity and proven goalscorers, in no way should you expect to breeze this league.
Worst possible thing you can do is sign a bunch of free has-beens like Alan Irvine did for us - Gary Teale, Paul Heffernan, and to a lesser extent Clinton and Chris Sedgwick.

From what I can tell you have a decent team but a fair few young inexperienced players. We've relied on loans and a few players Mandaric has splashed out on, but generally the loan players (Ben Marshall and Michail Antonio) have provided a lot of our attacking threat.

It will come down to the players you sign in the summer in my opinion, don't know much about Thorns track record with signings though?

When I look at that squad in the top post I see some very good players who were relegated thanks to a novice manager and the fact the owners never splashed early enough on a good goal scorer as Cody had been injured for the most part. We went down when we should have easily stayed up.
So Christie, Clarke, Cameron, McPake will be immense in league 1.
Deagan, Sheffers, Baker, Bell and a few others should be good at this level and more consistent.
Add just a few and think we will have a very strong squad more than capable of winning league 1.
I take the view that our players will fly under the radar of other clubs somehow and we will keep most with us.
The exception of maybe Cranie, Keogh and Clingan who's gone anyway.
I won't worry over Keogh...in fact I'd try and sell him for money while he's still a commodity as most believe on here.
Cameron is fit now and two season's ago was first choice CB alongside Turner and was quite brilliant.

Thing is folks before you all come on and start saying we are shit....I really believe that squad if kept mostly intact, is strong for league 1.
If anyone wants to debate the opposite I'm all ears....

remember too these players like Christie, Clarke have been good for their part and praised on many occasions, it was the form of the so called experienced lot such as Clingan that were not so good. Christie, Clarke, Thomas will be strong and full of confidence in league 1. And they are young, hungry and fit!

Lee Hughes that scumbag at Notts County is what 36? He's scored frequently in league 1 but has done so against the back drop of old time CB's for the most part....won't get away with that from an in form Cameron.

I just see us doing well.

The only thing stoping it is if SISU contrived to pull the plug. But I don't see that happening.

I fully agree we have very good players fot Div3 Paxman. Our younger players now have much more experience than they should have and at a higher level. If we don't lose them and sign a few players including a goalscorer we should do well. The younger players will be up against players not as good as last season. I also think Cody could have a big season.
I keep hearing we will struggle next season. If AT don't get shafted closed season again I feel we will be top 6 at least.

I admire the optimism guys but the same things were said when we got relegated from the premiership. Have we learned nothing since then? We all thought we had a top six/league winning squad then and we didn't come close to either in the end, with Sisu at the helm and an uncertain future I don't quite get the reasoning behind such bold predictions of superiority in league one? If the general perspective of our fans is that we'll breeze league 1 with the current squad of players and one or two added then I'm afraid you might be disappointed with the outcome of that expectation. I believe the best thing to do is not expect too much and take each game as it comes in what will, in my opinion, prove to be a difficult and turbulant ride in league one.

Peace out x

Yep. Pretty much agree with all that.

We need a minimum of 8 players coming in and that will just be to make us competitive, let alone have us challenging at the top of the table.

Over to you Sisu. Same budget as last year, which was the same budget as the year before? :thinking about::thinking about:

Remember last year? They said we would have the same budget as the year before, then promptly we lost Marlon King, freeing up more wages and yet brought no-one in!

I'm sure though, once the embargo is lifted we will be leaving no stone unturned in bringing players in. :facepalm:

Paxman II said:

Lee Hughes that scumbag at Notts County is what 36? He's scored frequently in league 1 but has done so against the back drop of old time CB's for the most part....won't get away with that from an in form Cameron.

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I hope he gets a good smacking from Cameron.

Ohh naughty.. advocating violence.. well the f*****r dererves it.

If and it is a big if the budget is the same as last years we really should do fine adding decent players with the wages freed however that would mean trusting sisu to have learnt their lesson. in theory a lot of players could have had wage reductions built in to their contracts and losing fatty and crab should have freed up a fair wadge for some good out of contract l1 players

Jack Griffin said:

You could always take a look at what the 2 automatically promoted teams had..

Here I'll make it easy..

Charlton
http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=527

Wednesday
http://www.soccerbase.com/teams/team.sd?team_id=2330

seems to be around 30 in squad including loans.. but more like 40 players used over the season.

Click to expand...

Have to be honest that looking at the quality of that Charlton squad who got over 100 points, Chris Powell should have been England Manager.

procdoc said:

I admire the optimism guys but the same things were said when we got relegated from the premiership. Have we learned nothing since then? We all thought we had a top six/league winning squad then and we didn't come close to either in the end, with Sisu at the helm and an uncertain future I don't quite get the reasoning behind such bold predictions of superiority in league one? If the general perspective of our fans is that we'll breeze league 1 with the current squad of players and one or two added then I'm afraid you might be disappointed with the outcome of that expectation. I believe the best thing to do is not expect too much and take each game as it comes in what will, in my opinion, prove to be a difficult and turbulant ride in league one.

Peace out x

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Who has said it will be a breeze or we will have superiority?

What I said is the quality of the players will be lower than what we didn't get hammered by last season. I also said if we can keep most of the players and add the ones we need that will be on a much lower wage than the players leaving then we have a decent chance of top 6. I also said look at the opponents teams we will have. Have you looked? How many teams have more than 1 player that would improve our team? Take a look. If SISU rape our squad again then we will struggle. If they have learned their lesson then we will have a better squad for less money. Less outgoings is what they are after. They also know to get the fans back we need a better squad. More fans watching is more income.

Just because it is nearly 50 years since we last had a top 6 finish don't mean we can't do it in the lowest league we have been in for about 50 years.

procdoc said:

I admire the optimism guys but the same things were said when we got relegated from the premiership. Have we learned nothing since then? We all thought we had a top six/league winning squad then and we didn't come close to either in the end, with Sisu at the helm and an uncertain future I don't quite get the reasoning behind such bold predictions of superiority in league one? If the general perspective of our fans is that we'll breeze league 1 with the current squad of players and one or two added then I'm afraid you might be disappointed with the outcome of that expectation. I believe the best thing to do is not expect too much and take each game as it comes in what will, in my opinion, prove to be a difficult and turbulant ride in league one.

Peace out x

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Christ I'm on such a downer after hearing your rousing expectations prodoc. Jeez so glad you're not the manager. You have first and foremost a defeatist attitude with scant regard for the talent pool we have and any sound of reasoning behind what just happened to our squad and why.

So I hear Otis and others say we need 8 more players to presumably replace 8 we have already? Who are you replacing then? Are you going to replace Christie and co with third rate players from the lower leagues? Unless we can suddenly afford players from Championship clubs or premier league clubs we already have better players than most in league 1. You obviously think not then?

I fail to understand the pessimistic attitude here gearing up for the big 'told you so' because you just don't want to think there has to be change eventually and and we will stop the rot eventually. You sound like a bunch of whinging poms.

I would be horrified if we get rid of 8 of our squad and replace with dearth from lower leagues. Keep the core of the squad we have and we will be strong. I just fail to see otherwise.
Like most 'big' teams before us we have hit the lowest point tbf. As with them we will now get a secure anchor to move forward with.
League 1 is full of aging players, journeymen, failed players from higher leagues, and long standing club men half of which are over 35.
Half the teams here have been yo yo-ing between league 1 and 2 for decades and will never be better.

If we don't do well in league 1 it will be a crime. Perhaps we will adjust for the first season but if we are not back up in two then I will concede there is something fundamentally wrong with our football club from the grass roots up. Until then I'm not chucking in the towel already before we kick a ball!

I'd build around this:

GK: Murphy - Dunn
DR: Clarke - Christie
DC: Cameron - (?)
DC: (?) - (?)
DL: Hussey
MR: Baker - (?)
MC: Thomas - Bigi
MC: (?) - Deegan
ML: McSheffrey - (?)
ST: McDonald - (?)
ST: (?) - (?)

Tell the rest to fuck off and bring in 9 new players........ :facepalm:

Funny how all the talk is about new players all the time, what about Thorn as manager? Does he really have anything to offer, that we cant get better any other places?

It's a good point about Thorn but tbh I think with his scouting knowledge of the lower leagues this past few years and having learned so much last year combined with a definite ability to still have the players confidence then I think he may be ideal in league 1.

When Simon Grayson left Leeds last season I touted for him desperately and he is now at Huddersfield. They have under him done very well and will be challenging next season in my opinion. Wish we could have him but we don't. There are not many others I'd choose to replace Thorn at this moment in time.

We need to hit the ground running and see what's happening at Xmas time. Think we will be leading from the front.

Johnrambo said:

Funny how all the talk is about new players all the time, what about Thorn as manager? Does he really have anything to offer, that we cant get better any other places?

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Tbh we discussed Thorn at great lengths. The club have asked him to stay on, only a change in ownership will lead to a change of manager.

I cant name any other clubs, that have the leading scout as manager.

Dont get me wrong, i think Thorn have done ok, i do like the young players get the chance, but still..

stupot07 said:

Tbh we discussed Thorn at great lengths. The club have asked him to stay on, only a change in ownership will lead to a change of manager.

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Sorry then, havent been here so long

Johnrambo said:

Sorry then, havent been here so long

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No worries! It ended in stalemate anyway!