Transfer Gossip

[masi 51]

Just now, desperado said:

Fair enough a good response to back your claim if you saw Thomason playing the role he’s playing now.

I’d love you to be right about Conway and I’d give you credit if that’s where we end up seeing him, but I just don’t see it myself. 

He is the modern fullback/wing back at the moment but his defending is not good enough to play as a full back

He will have more freedom in midfield, he can run all day, tackle and pass. Jumps out for me. Is he good enough to play now in a SS team i would say no only because we play with only two.

[jmjhb]

4 minutes ago, masi 51 said:

He is the modern fullback/wing back at the moment but his defending is not good enough to play as a full back

He will have more freedom in midfield, he can run all day, tackle and pass. Jumps out for me. Is he good enough to play now in a SS team i would say no only because we play with only two.

Currently we do, but how much of that was out of necessity rather than choice?

[masi 51]

5 minutes ago, gonzo said:

Tbf think GT has played left of a 3 cb and certainly not a wing back.

He was tried there a few times under Evatt.

There's absolutely nothing I've seen of Conway to suggest he can adapt in to a midfield worthy of the championship. 

Our manager picked a CB over him at full back in our most important games and he was hauled off at Wembley after having a nightmare, admittedly with zero cover.

He's a good lad and good player but never in a million years does he start in any position for us next season.

We need miles better.

A few mazy runs a year ago doesn't make up for zero positional sense and getting caught flat footed.

 

Yep and he looked comfortable there, he did not have to run with his head down and he never had to be aware of who was behind him.

I agree with you the best he can hope for next season is the bench. He is opposite to Thomason he needs a man behind him to give him that freedom.

Would be amazed to see him start a league game again at left back.

[TroySwoosh]

12 minutes ago, gonzo said:

Tbf think GT has played left of a 3 cb and certainly not a wing back.

He was tried there a few times under Evatt.

There's absolutely nothing I've seen of Conway to suggest he can adapt in to a midfield worthy of the championship. 

Our manager picked a CB over him at full back in our most important games and he was hauled off at Wembley after having a nightmare, admittedly with zero cover.

He's a good lad and good player but never in a million years does he start in any position for us next season.

We need miles better.

A few mazy runs a year ago doesn't make up for zero positional sense and getting caught flat footed.

 

He was switched to left back at Wrexham towards the end of last season and did well apparently

[masi 51]

1 minute ago, jmjhb said:

Currently we do, but how much of that was out of necessity rather than choice?

Great shout. Like you i think SS will abandon the two wingers next season. He can put his own mark/system this coming season. Hopefully with defenders who defend and a stronger midfield

[gonzo]

2 minutes ago, masi 51 said:

Yep and he looked comfortable there, he did not have to run with his head down and he never had to be aware of who was behind him.

I agree with you the best he can hope for next season is the bench. He is opposite to Thomason he needs a man behind him to give him that freedom.

Would be amazed to see him start a league game again at left back.

Never got the the stick GT got tbf. 

He's a great player. Great vision, loads of work rate and can ping a pass.

 

[masi 51]

2 minutes ago, gonzo said:

Never got the the stick GT got tbf. 

He's a great player. Great vision, loads of work rate and can ping a pass.

 

100% every game, the only fault he had/has was not lifting his head hence the awful tackles he did most weeks 

[frank_spencer]

Both Tutu and Conway are better as wing backs. and would be good in a back 5 if thats how SS wants to go.

Doesnt look like schuey wants to and with ACD (to a lesser extent cissoko and gale) in the team you'd be daft to play that way.

[frank_spencer]

5 minutes ago, masi 51 said:

Great shout. Like you i think SS will abandon the two wingers next season. He can put his own mark/system this coming season. Hopefully with defenders who defend and a stronger midfield

He brought in a bunch of wingers this past season, id say that's very much his own system.

[Whitesince63]

31 minutes ago, gonzo said:

Conway will never play in midfield for Bolton Wanderers in the Championship.

He's just about a good enough LWB for league 1 and certainly not a full back.

 

Utter and complete rubbish. He’s young, he’s still learning just give the lad a chance fir f___ks sake.

[jmjhb]

29 minutes ago, masi 51 said:

Great shout. Like you i think SS will abandon the two wingers next season. He can put his own mark/system this coming season. Hopefully with defenders who defend and a stronger midfield

I don't think he'll abandon it, but there were instances where the 3 at the back might have been preferable.

Need to find centre-halves who are equally comfortable as a left or right centre-back as well as playing in a 2. Not easy. 

Edited Sunday at 20:59 by jmjhb

[gonzo]

5 minutes ago, Whitesince63 said:

Utter and complete rubbish. He’s young, he’s still learning just give the lad a chance fir f___ks sake.

He's had a chance all season and was all over the place at times.

When you're picking GJ at full back over him you know he's not at it.

Good player, great lad, but never a championship player.

I genuinely hope this post haunts me in a season or two but I just don't see it.

 

[Tombwfc]

2 hours ago, boltonboris said:

Bolton fans always wrote off academy players. It happened with Hunt, Vela and even Clough eventually. 
 

We always want “one of our own” but then always crave experienced chest beaters instead. Everyone’s else’s players are always better than our own products. 
 

The writing off of a 22 year local old lad who has just competed his 2nd season in senior football with 30+ appearances in a promoted team is wild. 
 

 

While I understand what you're saying about Conway, the three players you mentioned (Vela, Clough, Hunt) played 400 odd games for us between them. They then left and drifted down the leagues to the point they were barely at League Two standard at 30.

They did get opportunities for us they wouldn't have if they weren't home grown players.

[kent_white]

54 minutes ago, gonzo said:

Quite possibly the maddest thing I've ever read on this forum.

Absolutely mind blowing

 

That's some statement Gonzo 😁 I don't know whether to laugh or cry 

[masi 51]

14 minutes ago, frank_spencer said:

He brought in a bunch of wingers this past season, id say that's very much his own system.

No he only bought one....the rest we loaned to do a job

Do you think we are going to West Ham, boro and Southampton with two wingers??

[Johnnyrotten]

1 hour ago, masi 51 said:

Stevie wonder can see he is a better midfielder than a defender.....Will have a good career primly as a midfielder

He'll have a better career at left back!

Sometimes its not one or the other, I'm still not sure what position Ricky Gardner, Randall Williams or Tutu are/were meant to be and I'm not sure they knew either.  But its not compulsory to have a set position.

The difference between Conway and the other 3 is pace, he isn't blessed with it, so he won't be playing on the wing and maybe not as a LWB either.

[Lt. Aldo Raine]

9 minutes ago, kent_white said:

That's some statement Gonzo 😁 I don't know whether to laugh or cry 

You're absolutely right it is

I remember reading posts on here about a bloke swallowing his own toenails once

[Johnnyrotten]

57 minutes ago, desperado said:

I’m getting used to your categoric definitive claims 😂

You and everybody including blind people (low bar) can see he’s a better midfielder..

…yet to this point Schumacher and his previous two managers haven’t seen this.

Im not saying you’re not allowed to have an opinion and Im not saying that MC hasn’t shown glimpses of midfield qualities.

Maybe you are being contrary for a reaction and including a WB as a midfielder..

But I fail to see how you’re right (he’s a better midfielder) and his previous 3 managers are wrong (playing him as a FB and WB) 

Playing devil's advocate but one explanation would be our lack of LBs, same reason Tutu (a winger) is regarded now as a full back.  Which he isn't.  If we didn't have 9 left wingers Conway could arguably have played left midfield.

[Alf Hartigan]

1 minute ago, Johnnyrotten said:

He'll have a better career at left back!

Sometimes its not one or the other, I'm still not sure what position Ricky Gardner, Randall Williams or Tutu are/were meant to be and I'm not sure they knew either.  But its not compulsory to have a set position.

The difference between Conway and the other 3 is pace, he isn't blessed with it, so he won't be playing on the wing and maybe not as a LWB either.

I've said before that he will end up as a midfielder. It's not vital to have pace as a midfielder. It's what level he can get to though.

[masi 51]

2 minutes ago, Johnnyrotten said:

He'll have a better career at left back!

Sometimes its not one or the other, I'm still not sure what position Ricky Gardner, Randall Williams or Tutu are/were meant to be and I'm not sure they knew either.  But its not compulsory to have a set position.

The difference between Conway and the other 3 is pace, he isn't blessed with it, so he won't be playing on the wing and maybe not as a LWB either.

Agreed not got the pace to be a wing back 

Or the positional nous to defend as a full back

What he can do is run all day,tackle and pick a pass everything you need in a midfielder

[gonzo]

13 minutes ago, kent_white said:

That's some statement Gonzo 😁 I don't know whether to laugh or cry 

I'll bet you 3 blue speckled Mitzubishis that Conway doesnt start more than 5 games for us next season.

 

 

[Sluffy]

 

Moving on for Conway for a moment. here are a few thoughts I have that may or may not be relevant in respect of the expected age profile of our squad for the Championship season ahead of us.

 

My few thoughts for what they are worth.

Obviously we will be constrained to the the finances that may be invested in strengthening the squad and the EFL 'Squad building rules' that will apply to all clubs in the division.

I would suggest that part of FV's model is to 'bring on' players in order to sell them on, and that is why the apparent purchase of Luca Stephenson and Dave Watson will fit that criteria.

FV may well see Kenny and Duberry in a similar way and it certainly wold be a crowd pleaser if we could sign at least one of them to the club or bring them back as a loan.

FV have generally been frequent users of the loan system and I would imagine they will do so again next season.  Of course for every Kenny, Duberry and Bradley we sign on loan we sign we also sign an Etete, Owen Beck and a Shola Shoretire (and plenty others of similar ilk).

Although we do sign the occasional 'older' players on loans (Apter, Blackett-Taylor) most of our loans seem to be youth team players sent out to gain first team experience at a lower tier than their parent club.

It struck me that the reason we probably gave Christie another year with us, was not that he'd be a first team regular, but rather he's an elder experienced player to have around to help and give advice to a young squad.

With releasing Dempsey, Johnston and Tutu, we now seem to be a squad light on players who have 'been there, done that' certainly at Championship level - Bonham and Sheehan being in their early thirties, then Toal, Dalby and McAtee all being around the 26 year old mark.

It seems to me that with our two apparent signings so far, and potential targets of Kenny and Duberry are all in their early twenties - and if we do sign on loan players seeking to be developed by their parent clubs (ie their young players) that FV should also be looking to sign one or two established Championship proven players to add wise heads to what on paper seems to be a very inexperience bunch of players at the level we now are.

Indeed FV might well be doing something like this anyway.

That's my line of thinking anyway.

I'm no football expert, so any thoughts who might fit the bill if we do something like this?

Trippier would I suggest probably have been perfect (if of course he would have come for the money we pay).

[deeane Koontz]

The thing is with Conway on a bunch of occassions last season when he got caught out position he'd just stroll back which isn't a great look, should be busting a lung. Hes at his best when charging foward on the break.

[Eagle85]

23 hours ago, gonzo said:

I'd say more his game changed massively when he had a fully fit Dubbery with him. Absolute dream pair on that side.

 

Probably shouldn't bring this up again as everyone had hopefully forgotten, but in what was comfortably my worst post of a bad bunch this year I predicted back in August for Cogley to get player of the season simply by taking advantage of the ACD factor.

As I'm curious to just how much effect playing with a winger that good has on a fullback i'll be keeping tabs on JOT next year even though I'm not usually arsed about how our former players do.

[Johnnyrotten]

56 minutes ago, masi 51 said:

I also said and you can look it up on here George Thomason will end up as a left back....A good few managers could not see that.

I do not think Conway gets in the midfield if we play two as this season but in a three/ four man midfield he will play most of his career there.

Its nothing but my opinion you can have yours

You certainly do not have to agree with me, not a chance in hell he starts next season left back for us. So he will have to adapt or move on. I think he is good enough to adapt

Tomo has played some games at LB for Wrexham.  Does that mean he has "ended up as a left back"?  GJ became our 1st choice LB when everyone was fit, I don't think it was a career defining change.

Tomo played LB for us once at home in his last season with us and he was MOTM by a mile.  But he also played midfield and was MOTM - he's an adaptable player and when he's LB he loses some of what makes him what he is, that driving forward (eg that goal at Northampton when he was also MOTM in midfield).

Players can't always be categorised in one position, they aren't all Dalby or Forino or Santos.

On Conway, I'd say there's about a 50/50 chance he starts next season at LB.  And if he doesn't, he'll play loads of games for us at LB, maybe from the bench, he's got as much chance as 90% of the current squad anyway.