Kevin Thelwell - New Director of Football

[cronullasharks]

He needs to explain his window strategy and why he ignored the glaring need for goalscorers. If I can see the problems 5 weeks ago then why can he not see them.

Why was no Richarlison replacement lined up alongside the sale?

Why was the manager forced to start 5 premier league games without a centre forward?

We ignored buying a right fullback for about 4 seasons so I'm not surprised

 

[ToffeeTim]

We ignored buying a right fullback for about 4 seasons so I'm not surprised

Ignoring the most glaring issue with the squad

Its what we do

 

[davek]

Useless turd, just like his predecessor.

 

[Eggsyblueskin]

He hasn't been able to put any games together since August of last year. Thats about 53 weeks ago. Its not overstated. Its a massive concern.

He sustained a bad injury last season and seems to have been unfortunate in being injured at the start of this one. I have seen nothing to suggest either injury is linked and he is now back in training.
In all honesty if they expected him to struggle to play this season they would have signed cover and would have made someone like Diaz a priority over Garner.
Perhaps they have got it wrong but they are far better informed than the pessimists on here.

 

[APN_EFC]

Those goal tallies almost certainly are not happening. The plan appears to have been to tighten up at the back, because 40 in/50 conceded is very consistently lower mid-table over the years. The closest anyone's ever flirted with disaster on those kind of numbers was Sunderland in 12/13, finishing 17th and staying up by three points and goal differential while scoring 41 and conceding 54. That's a huge outlier.

If you look at the historical tables, it's when a club scores 35 or fewer or leaks 60+ that they can get shipped down. Whether or not that happens depends on just how pants the remaining teams at the foot of the table are. You can go down scoring around 45 if you're leaky enough (rare), or stay up on 28 (Huddersfield) if you're stingy and the rest of the league is dire.

Either way, the best thing to do is take the guesswork out of it, which is what it looks like Lampard and Thelwell are trying to do by stitching together an attack and tightening up at the back.

It's definitely not happening, but the point is for each individual or group, it's not THAT many, and yet if we make it, scoring 60 will be a sudden and big improvement. 50 will be a great start, though even that season we finished 8th we only scored 40 something.

 

[4737carlin]

Go check our odds to be relegated at the bookies and tell me Kev is doing a good job

You don’t score enough goals, you go down. Hoping we have just enough

Haha yeah because it's his fault for years before he arrives Moshiri was running the club like a joke shop

 

[Martin Alvito]

It's definitely not happening, but the point is for each individual or group, it's not THAT many, and yet if we make it, scoring 60 will be a sudden and big improvement. 50 will be a great start, though even that season we finished 8th we only scored 40 something.

44/59. Three things happened - we were all kinds of lucky, the league was utter dross (49 points is 8th?!? A team that went 28/58 stayed up?!?), and we had just enough to win matches against dross playing Allardyce-ball.

As GOT points out, we were last in the league in chances created last season. The goal is just to grind out 40 or more goals with this squad. Anything more is a bonus.

 

[Verbal Kint]

Good window much better than I expected. Aim is too be better after than before

We have got leaders and Experience in Coady/Tarks and Gana.

Youth,Potential and more importantly athletic ability in Onana and Garner. I also think McNeill won't be as bad as people are making out.

Another striker option in Maupay.

Some deadwood gone, Gomes Gbamin,Siggy and Delph... I'm sure I'm forgetting someone here.

We have gone from Gomes,Allan,Davies, Delph and Doucoure

To Onana,Garner, Gana,Iwobi and Doucoure (Davies)

Much much better


Negatives
Having to sell Richarlison, not getting a forward in earlier. I fell Mina,Holgate or Keane would have been sold if injuries hadn't happened. That money could have been used on a forward much earlier in the window.

8 out of 10 for me all things considered.

 

[MACCA75]

How has he not got Allan - a Brazilian international and actually fairly decent Prem performer - out of the door is beyond me.

 

[Nymzee]

How has he not got Allan - a Brazilian international and actually fairly decent Prem performer - out of the door is beyond me.

No one bid for him.

 

[ToffeeTim]

He's left the manager with forward options that are absolutely nowhere near good enough for a team of our stature. These options are not acceptable. There are no excuses.

The goals are not magically going to appear. This window has been a total mess and the proof is in the pudding on the pitch.

 

[ToffeeTim]

How has he not got Allan - a Brazilian international and actually fairly decent Prem performer - out of the door is beyond me.

His legs have gone

 

[obn00b]

How has he not got Allan - a Brazilian international and actually fairly decent Prem performer - out of the door is beyond me.

Cos he’s crap and slow. Let’s everyone dribble past him. My nan could dribble past Allan.

 

[john jako]

No one bid for him.

It’s this simple.

 

[MikeH72]

I would love him to come out and explain the McNeil signing at some point.