I'm confident we will stay in the PL and with a respectable mid-table finish. A huge achievement! (fingers crossed)

My question is...

What changes (stadium, players) would you like to see before our second season in the PL?

(please let's not slag off the current players...they have all earned our respect for another incredible season)

I'm sure Dyche will be looking at improving the squad for the next Premier League season already. You can bet your life he has planned well ahead and the targets - and money - are in place.
UTC

I'd like to see a continuation of the last two windows - bringing in better quality players to go straight into the team, provided we can keep them fit of course. I doubt there will be many signings but they need to be the best quality we can get.

I'd like us to make the away dressing room even smaller

We need to add some real quality in the striker department and bring in a bit more creativity to supplement the likes of Brady and Defour.

A prem quality off the peg centre forward would be something SD would look at,though with no shortage of midfield options and decent back up across the board I'd say signings may be kept to a minimum unless they are real quality.

A few of our current lot will likely slip into " squad" player roles which is a great natural transition as we gradually build up quality assets without breaking the bank.

Keep hold of Keane. Bring in a back up LB, a decent striker to partner Gray and a couple of players with pace/creativity.

I think we'll have a decent chance of comfortable mid table next season barring a disaster of epic proportions this season.

We definitely need more quality. I'd like us to increase our scouting network massively.

With regards to stadium somewhere a nice increase to somewhere in the region of 28-30k would suit us perfectly. Would love a larger version of the cricket field stand.

I would've thought our transfer budget will significantly higher than last summer. I reckon we'll need a striker, a central midfielder, a centre half, and at least one fullback. There should be further investment in the club's infrastructure to continue the legacy of our tremendous successes. Finally Dyche needs rewarding too in contractual terms in our attempts to keep him.

ClaretTony wrote:I'd like to see a continuation of the last two windows - bringing in better quality players to go straight into the team, provided we can keep them fit of course. I doubt there will be many signings but they need to be the best quality we can get.

Completely agree. We we need more quality out wide (Brady aside) and up front, which won't come cheap.

We're OK in central midfield now but probably need two new full backs (assuming Flanagan doesn't stay) to compete with our current first choice pairing and (probably) another centre back (assuming Keane goes).

I'd like to see Sean tell players they walk home when they lose a match or cycle home for a draw. Might improve the away record.

Either tell Gray what he needs to do or by someone that is proven in the prem
Wingers as well as Boyd is out of contract soon and arfield may leave as well
New centre back for when Keane leaves
Not as sure but maybe a keeper for when heaton leaves

Robertson, Stephens and a striker.............another CH if Keane moves on

Bout it really

Arnold Bashley wrote:Either tell Gray what he needs to do or by someone that is proven in the prem
Wingers as well as Boyd is out of contract soon and arfield may leave as well
New centre back for when Keane leaves
Not as sure but maybe a keeper for when heaton leaves

We have pope who hasnt done anything wrong.....

3 or 4 new players to fit straight into the first 11, No faffing around with players to sit on the bench. Use the players being replaced by the incoming's to fill up the bench.
Barnes Boyd Barton OUT (replace with younger better players)
I'd probably let Defour leave (oozes quality but just doesn't fit in unfortunately and he's an ageing asset, doesn't run around enough to play central midfield).

Heaton
Lowton Keane Mee ??????
????? Hendrick ?????? Brady
Gray ????????

LB - Robertson - Offers far more than Ward going forward, we need to improve going forward for next year.
CM - Tielemans - Anderlecht midfielder, 19 year old, looks the next big thing, probably out of our budget.
RM - Helder Costa - Wolves winger, fantastic, I know they just signed him permanently but it doesn't matter.
ST - I'd get that Tammy Abraham fella from Chelsea on a permanent deal, he is currently on loan at Bristol City.

You see the type of players I want, young hungry with very good potential. Freshen the team up, release the shackels a bit, allow the players more freedom and get at teams. Away from home we need to improve or we're screwed because it's highly unlikely we'll keep up the amazing home form throughout next season. We just lack the killing instinct away from home, we don't ever look like we really want to win a game. Yesterday an example, after we equalise, there was only one team ever going to win that game from that point, we had all the momentum, Hull had been crap all afternoon yet we sub on a central defender and take off our biggest goal threat to help us defend set pieces better.

Ageing asset?

Defour is 28 isn't he?

Someone of the ilk of Solomon Rondon would be perfect up top for us

Keeping the back 5 should be priority 1.
More creativity out wide. Brady is a step in the right direction.
A big CF, who scores, to replace Barnes and Vokes. Neither of whom score enough.

I think we need to brin in young,juicy players in Cm like Tielemans if u can sign halilovic do it try to get a forward with pace or offers it a full back (knowing flanigan will go) and a pacey RM.A 3rd or 4th choice CB

minnieclaret wrote:Keeping the back 5 should be priority 1.
More creativity out wide. Brady is a step in the right direction.
A big CF, who scores, to replace Barnes and Vokes. Neither of whom score enough.

Agree on two counts, but re vokes & Barnes, nothing wrong with them as second choice strikers, the thing we need to improve on is at least 1 if not 2 first choice strikers as replacement for gray, he can only score one way imo, which is if the ball is given him in the right hand channel for him to run on to,on the floor of course,and as we saw yesterday and against lincoln even that's gone down the pan atm, he's simply not prepared to put the work in to score in any other way, and if something doesn't work first time he's to eager to throw he's dummy out and put the blame on the provider, he simply needs to give he's head a wobble and get his attitude right imo.

alwaysaclaret wrote:Agree on two counts, but re vokes & Barnes, nothing wrong with them as second choice strikers, the thing we need to improve on is at least 1 if not 2 first choice strikers as replacement for gray, he can only score one way imo, which is if the ball is given him in the right hand channel for him to run on to,on the floor of course,and as we saw yesterday and against lincoln even that's gone down the pan atm, he's simply not prepared to put the work in to score in any other way, and if something doesn't work first time he's to eager to throw he's dummy out and put the blame on the provider, he simply needs to give he's head a wobble and get his attitude right imo.

I think there's still improvement in Gray but he needs a big lad with him.
Barnes and Vokes have given great service but an upgrade, who scores more, would be a bonus

JarrowClaret wrote:I think we need to brin in young,juicy players in Cm like Tielemans if u can sign halilovic do it try to get a forward with pace or offers it a full back (knowing flanigan will go) and a pacey RM.A 3rd or 4th choice CB

JC - shouldn't your lad be asleep by now? School tomorrow!

UTC!

LoveCurryPies wrote:I'm confident we will stay in the PL and with a respectable mid-table finish. A huge achievement! (fingers crossed)

My question is...

What changes (stadium, players) would you like to see before our second season in the PL?

(please let's not slag off the current players...they have all earned our respect for another incredible season)

The key to our success next season will be not throwing out the things - people - who got us here. Therefore i'd hope that the bulk of the team - including the likes of Mee and Arfield and Vokes, who have been on every step of the journey - remains in situ. They have their shortcomings but they are the heart of the team and we should never forget that.

We will have definite vacancies at centre forward, where we only have 3, and at centre half, where we will lose Keane. We also have a probable need for competition at full back for Ward and Lowton (who don't themselves need replacing) and probably in midfield.

But the striker is the only really transformative signing we need. Ideally it is someone who can play behind Gray, acting as a target man where required but also with the ability to play better quality balls through to Gray. Ive said elsewhere that Jay Rodriguez is the perfect target for this role, and I still think that is the case - it is easy to imagine any of our 3 front players playing with him - but certainly he is of the right mould.

Apart from him, there's a case for raiding Hull if they go down. Clucas is tailor made for our midfield, Robertson is already an identified target as an alternative to Ward at left back, and Maguire would be a fine replacement for Keane.

Jay Rodriguez is spare at Southampton. That would be number one. Kieran Trippier for his crosses number 2. That would be it.

However, I suspect we need a centre back and poss a keeper.

We will need (in this order, assuming we lose Keane):

- centre half
- centre mid
- striker
- winger
- fullback

For me, a new strikeforce...and it won't come cheap.

A second tier on the Bob Lord to relocate the nutters, so they wake those below them. Wayne Shaw as backup keeper, and Heskey as a foil for Andre

Failing that, an attacking midfielder with the skill of Robbie Blake to actually take the ball forward, take a couple on, and get a good ball into the box wouldn't go a miss

Left back
Right back
Right wing
Centre Midfield
Striker

DCWat wrote:Left back
Right back
Right wing
Centre Midfield
Striker

Everything but a goalie

I'd like us to keep Defour- hopefully with a full Dyche pre-season under his belt he can improve his fitness massively. A fully fit Defour is our best and most creative player. At 28 he's hardly an ageing asset either. You'd imagine Keane will go for a figure of over £20m which on top of the usual Prem income would give us a slightly larger transfer budget than this season.

- Robertson/Charlie Taylor would be ideal to compete with/start ahead of Ward.
- Centre half as back up to Tark/Mee.
- Dale Stephens on a free would be superb business. Possibly dependant on the length of Barton's ban/if Defour stays.
- Striker to start alongside Gray. Agree with spice, someone who can drop in between the lines and link play, creating space for Gray to run into- Jay Rod would be perfect.

They are the four positions I think we need to strengthen. Possibly another right back and winger but they aren't priority anymore (although depends what happens with Boyd).

Keeping Keane would be a huge statement.