Goats squad analysis thread 2025/6

[Saint Domingo]

It needed culling.

People say it’s a huge challenge but we need a squad of how many players realistically? 23, 24?

That’s 10 players perhaps, 2 of which will be backup goalkeepers that we’ll have no problem replacing.

So we’re looking for 8 players out of new signings or re-signings.

Let’s say we get 2 resignatures (e.g Alcaraz and one of Gueye/Coleman)

We’re looking for 6 or 7 players.

Easily doable especially when you consider we’ll have loans as well.

Getting them right is the difficulty, not the volume. I don’t want to see us re-signing Keane or Harrison just to fill a body.

 

[hallamblue]

Wow that is a relegation battling squad if ever I saw one. We need at least 4 or 5 first team players, and then hope they stay fit.

 

[West Side Charlie]

My concern is bringing in a lot of new players, but we need them.
In an Ideal world I would be happy with two new top drawer players, but reality says we need numbers.
I've seen teams before bring in 6 or 7 players and it never works, but I trust Moyes to dig up a few diamonds from somewhere and bed them in gently
Fingers crossed.

 

[Eggs]

….of the loanees, Harrison hardly gets the juices flowing but I wonder if Moyes will want him as cover and help manage games. Mangala out injured until December surely rules him out, which leaves decisions to be made on Lindstrom and Alcaraz.

 

[W84 Dum Freeze]

….of the loanees, Harrison hardly gets the juices flowing but I wonder if Moyes will want him as cover and help manage games. Mangala out injured until December surely rules him out, which leaves decisions to be made on Lindstrom and Alcaraz.

Loanees are down to four allowed maximum
next season, can't see him being renewed with Leeds promoted. We must use them wisely.

Two less games for his availability for the same money is like renewing a Sly sports subscription.

 

[Marius57]

This isn't true actually, he signed a years extension before going on loan so his deal technically runs until summer 2026.

But he is gone, sold to Marseille as you rightly say.

From what I can see, he would have had to extend if the loan deal was only with an option. But we wanted an obligation (which we got) so can’t see anything confirming we took the option up to extend.

Either way. He is gone and that question mark needs removed.

 

[hallamblue]

….of the loanees, Harrison hardly gets the juices flowing but I wonder if Moyes will want him as cover and help manage games. Mangala out injured until December surely rules him out, which leaves decisions to be made on Lindstrom and Alcaraz.

Harrison was only available on loan because Leeds were in the Championship and he had a clause in his contract. Leeds will be looking to sell him for £15 - £20 million.

 

[Thetigerblue]

Harrison was only available on loan because Leeds were in the Championship and he had a clause in his contract. Leeds will be looking to sell him for £15 - £20 million.

Harrison back at Leeds can only help us. If he plays for them they’re less likely to win. If he’s on their books they have less to spend and less chance of competing with us for other players

 

[W84 Dum Freeze]

Harrison back at Leeds can only help us. If he plays for them they’re less likely to win. If he’s on their books they have less to spend and less chance of competing with us for other players

29 in November, 1 goal and 0 assists in 33 games, admittedly most of it not crossing the half way line in a low block Dycheball system.

His availability to play and attitude are good.

Wages and fee probably above the going rate in the current climate.

 

[John from Bootle]

It's gonna take time, but Moyes is the man to deal with this. He's always preferred working with a small squad anyway, and even Pep is kicking off about his squad being too big. We don't need 25 senior players.

I'm hoping Moyes has got this sort of foundation in mind:

Pickford
New right back Tark Jarrod Myko
New winger Garner Gueye Ndiaye
New number 10
Beto/new striker

Mcneil, Alcaraz, Patterson, O'brien, Keane, Armstrong, Chermiti/new striker, new left back

Add in a few loans, and maybe more signings if the right opportunities present themselves, but it would be sensible to take a slowly slowly approach now imo

Oh, and keepers, obvs.​

 

[Llyrap]

The huge positive is that not a single one of those players won't be useful to us. Gone are the days where we had 4 or 5 players on big contracts who were permanently injured or just not useful to us.

Arguably we are two players short of our strongest team this year. Hopeful Ghana will sign

 

[Azza]

Cull cull cull

 

[John from Bootle]

The huge positive is that not a single one of those players won't be useful to us. Gone are the days where we had 4 or 5 players on big contracts who were permanently injured or just not useful to us.

Arguably we are two players short of our strongest team this year. Hopeful Ghana will sign

The huge -and somewhat forgetten/overlooked on my part- positive I'm taking from this thread is that we're free of Holgate. There's absolutely no way on gods earth that we haven't been paying most of his wages.

 

[Melchizedek]

And here we go, The rebuild starts here.

Manager : David Moyes

Goalkeepers (1)
Jordan Pickford (HG)

Right Backs (1)
Nathan Patterson

Left Backs (1)
Vitaliy Mykolenko

Centre Backs (3)
Jarrad Branthwaite (HG)
James Tarkowski (HG)
Jake O'Brien

Midfield (4)
James Garner (HG)
Tim Iroegbunam (UA)
Iliman Ndiaye (HG)
Harrison Armstrong (UA)

Wide Forwards (1)
Dwight McNeil (HG)

Strikers (2)
Beto
Youssef Chermiti (UA)

Total players: 13

Players purchased so far:

Players culled so far: 15
Virginia(OOC), Begovic(OOC), Coleman(OOC), Young(OOC),Keane(OOC),Gueye(OOC),Doucs(OOC),DCL(OOC),Holgate(OOC), Maupay?,
Alcaraz(LR),Harrison(LR),Lindstrom(LR),Broja(LR),Mangala(LR)


Non-HG players: 3
Home-grown players: 6
Under-age players : 4

Well that's just terrifying really isn't it.

Sell Branthwaite and then go with what we got.

 

[Melchizedek]

It needed culling.

People say it’s a huge challenge but we need a squad of how many players realistically? 23, 24?

That’s 10 players perhaps, 2 of which will be backup goalkeepers that we’ll have no problem replacing.

So we’re looking for 8 players out of new signings or re-signings.

Let’s say we get 2 resignatures (e.g Alcaraz and one of Gueye/Coleman)

We’re looking for 6 or 7 players.

Easily doable especially when you consider we’ll have loans as well.

Getting them right is the difficulty, not the volume. I don’t want to see us re-signing Keane or Harrison just to fill a body.

This is what I've been thinking lately.
I'm glad some of those players turned down out contract offer, and hope a couple more do as well.
Too long have we fallen back on the excuse "too hard to replace all of them" and kept on players who are tragic.

Make the recruitment teamm earn their coin. It's a big world out there and there are plenty of players to choose from. Put the work in the drive us higher rather than saying it's too difficult.