Villa Signings and General Rumours Thread

Villain

Problem Mr Alan is PHB's opinion on Randy seems to be based on his expierence of other owners rather than knowledge of Randy and the actually situation at Villa.

Mr Alan

no Villian, problem seems to be that you dont like PHBs opinion, which is in fact based on his knowledge of billionaire businessmen, whereby, usually, they have a ruthless business streak as a nescessity, and also do expect a return (albeit longterm) from their investment.

people instead want to believe that RL has given O'Neill a blank cheque and has no intention of ever making any money from Villa.

Bounty Hunter

Mr Alan wrote: »

people instead want to believe that RL has given O'Neill a blank cheque and has no intention of ever making any money from Villa.

from a page back

Bounty Hunter wrote: »

no blank cheque but full support in all his endevours. NO Drogbas but player tha would fit into the owners 5year progression plan i.e now players that could help us get into Europe but not be surpless to requirements in the future, hense all the good U-21 types.

PHB

So we have two different situations, lets imagine which is more likely:

A. Lerder has told MON he can go nuts with transfer spending. 50-100 million availible to spend on players right now. MON aware of the fact that Villas squad is very light, has decided not to spend money. Why? Because he does not want to pay over the odds.

B. Lerder has told MON he can have funds in the transfer window, but they are limited. He may have 50 million to spend if its on top young players that will last, or he may just have 20 million to spend in general, not sure obviously. MON is therefore not wasting money and wants to use it properly. Since nobody was availible that MON thought was good enough for the right price, he said he'd wait till summer when prices are always cheaper.

Problems with A.

Lerder is a business man. Even if he was willing to just break even, transfer spending would still be limited to no more than 30 million a season at most, and thats the absolute max.

MON appears to be an utter idiot. He has money to spend, yet doesn't seem to want to spend it. Why? The best reason we've had put forth is that he doesnt want to pay over the odds. Why the hell this would matter to him seems to be an utter mystery, one that nobody has tried to explain, or could even begin to explain.
Rafa is reported to have done a similar thing at Liverpool, but the logic there is simple, future fees won't be inflated (as has happened at United) However is money isn't such a big issue, this wouldn't make sense

Problems with B?
Lerder's special, not just a regular great owner, he is infact super human

I think Lerders a great owner, seems willing to invest, and might even not be out to make a significantly large profit. It is ludicrous to suggest he is willing to make a loss. I think hes better than most of the foreign owners, but he is still an owner, somebody who has spent 64 million on the club. I think B is a much more likely situation.

Bounty Hunter

there is always an option C

C) There was no limit set for the season but we are not spending 50+mil, we are instead spending the amount that MON (who learner has full faith in and leaves in charge of the situation) decides is needed to get us to our end of season goal. This year top half, European qualification hopeful.

Helix

Mr Alan wrote: »

no Villian, problem seems to be that you dont like PHBs opinion, which is in fact based on his knowledge of billionaire businessmen, whereby, usually, they have a ruthless business streak as a nescessity, and also do expect a return (albeit longterm) from their investment.

people instead want to believe that RL has given O'Neill a blank cheque and has no intention of ever making any money from Villa.

but hes already proven hes not in the sport end of things for that reason with the browns

Mr Alan

Not familiar with the Browns situation.

And Bounty Hunter, it wasnt you who suggested that RL was willing to spend spend spend and not make any return, so quoting yourself doesnt really clear anything up!;)

Villain

PHB wrote: »

So we have two different situations, lets imagine which is more likely:

A. Lerder has told MON he can go nuts with transfer spending. 50-100 million availible to spend on players right now. MON aware of the fact that Villas squad is very light, has decided not to spend money. Why? Because he does not want to pay over the odds.

B. Lerder has told MON he can have funds in the transfer window, but they are limited. He may have 50 million to spend if its on top young players that will last, or he may just have 20 million to spend in general, not sure obviously. MON is therefore not wasting money and wants to use it properly. Since nobody was availible that MON thought was good enough for the right price, he said he'd wait till summer when prices are always cheaper.

Problems with A.

Lerder is a business man. Even if he was willing to just break even, transfer spending would still be limited to no more than 30 million a season at most, and thats the absolute max.

MON appears to be an utter idiot. He has money to spend, yet doesn't seem to want to spend it. Why? The best reason we've had put forth is that he doesnt want to pay over the odds. Why the hell this would matter to him seems to be an utter mystery, one that nobody has tried to explain, or could even begin to explain.
Rafa is reported to have done a similar thing at Liverpool, but the logic there is simple, future fees won't be inflated (as has happened at United) However is money isn't such a big issue, this wouldn't make sense

Problems with B?
Lerder's special, not just a regular great owner, he is infact super human

I think Lerders a great owner, seems willing to invest, and might even not be out to make a significantly large profit. It is ludicrous to suggest he is willing to make a loss. I think hes better than most of the foreign owners, but he is still an owner, somebody who has spent 64 million on the club. I think B is a much more likely situation.

Sorry I don't mean to be a dick but the fact that you don't even know our owner's name shows how little you know about Randy Lerner.

Your opinion may well be right about many many businessmen, but not Randy Lerner imo.

Savman

These last few pages have really shown how little the footballing world in general knows about Randy Lerner. If his own fans don't know him, I don't see any ManU or Pool fans possibly could. You just cant lump into an "A or B" category because it suits your limited understanding of the man. How many times do we have to reiterate the point that your opinions, while well written and welcomed, have no foundation. We've already painstakingly shown how Lerner is not the ruthless investor you make out, yet you still persist with that tarnishing despite not coming up with a single piece of evidence to back it up. Believe what you want lads, but you're woefully wrong on this issue.

MON was the topic of the week, of course some of our views on him could be open to cross examination but our points about Lerner are water tight, trust us

Bounty Hunter

Mr Alan wrote: »

Not familiar with the Browns situation.

And Bounty Hunter, it wasnt you who suggested that RL was willing to spend spend spend and not make any return, so quoting yourself doesnt really clear anything up!;)

i know, and just like yourself i wanted to establish the fact that we dont have a blank cheque book or Mr Lerner's (not Lerder:D) to spend but again suggest that there isnt neccesarily a cap on spending instead we have a target to achieve and MON is allowed spend what is neccesary in his opinion to achieve that.

and the Browns situation is actually quite like Villa though i dont think they were in as good a position to start with & it doesent mean hes willing to make a loss or isnt a business man but it does suggest that he isnt the typical investor as most people say.

Savman

Listen, if the guy was a ruthless businessman there are a million easier and faster ways to make money than running a football club. Most football clubs are rife with problems right across the board, so I could understand why someone looking for a quick buck wouldn't touch it with a barge pole. The only logical explanation that seems to fit, call this Option D if you must, is that RL wants to do something special at Villa using the fortune passed down to him by his father.

PHB

Villain wrote: »

Sorry I don't mean to be a dick but the fact that you don't even know our owner's name shows how little you know about Randy Lerner.

Your opinion may well be right about many many businessmen, but not Randy Lerner imo.

Way to pick up the important part of the argument

I'm not saying he's not a good guy, you guys think this is some sort of personal attack on the owner, it's not.

There are two options here though.

Either MON is absolutely stupid in the transfer market, makes absolutely no sense and seems to be making absolutely terrible decesions.
Considering his general track record, this seems unlikely, and when you include the fact it makes no sense with the scenario you are painting in terms of Lerner and the resources he is committing.
OR
The owner is restricting him and he wants to use his resources the best he can. This might not be a restriction in terms of keeping him to a net spend of 5 million, but a reasonable restriction like 20 million, and MON doesnt want to waste it.

There is option C as Bounty Hunter pointed out, which seems somewhat plausible, but why would MON not take the best shot he's gona get at getting into the CL for quite some time.

Savman

PHB wrote: »

There are two options here though.

Says who exactly? You think RL or MON are the type of men to be dictated by your bottom line? The situation is fairly clear, MON identifies his targets and how much he thinks they are worth on the market. Randy backs him. There's nothing else to it.

Incidentally, before you embarrass yourself any further, this has been explained to us time and time again by General Krulak (RL's right hand man) who talks to the fans directly on Villa forums. So if it's ok with you, we'll take his word for it.

Helix

PHB wrote: »

Either MON is absolutely stupid in the transfer market, makes absolutely no sense and seems to be making absolutely terrible decesions.
Considering his general track record, this seems unlikely

it doesnt actually, he was quite similar at celtic in that he left everything until the last minute

unfortunately i think hes finding that he cant really afford to do that at villa

Tomthepost

Villain wrote: »

Yea Nathan seems to be very much regarded as one of our best youth players, I think he got a hat trick for the England u17's in his first game with them.

A Derby mate of mine sent me the below link. Maybe we don't need to buy that many afterall
http://www.therams.co.uk/details.asp?back=true&key=1D29|0|2185366269754|R|536|1255827522008239193732&parentkey=1D29|0|2185366269754|p|536|0

Bounty Hunter

yes pointing out your spelling error is trival and ignoring the issue (i did it too) however i said there is always an option C and outlined the way I think it is as did Savo with maybe option D cos you cant just lump Lerner & MON into those two catogaries. Villa fans havent been happy (relativley speaking) since the window closed cos it seems MON is how you have described in in the first option but prehaps he thinks we have enough to achieve our objectives for this season now and then we will recruit the players he says he wants that arent available or value for money in the summer

Mr Alan

Savman wrote: »

You think RL or MON are the type of men to be dictated by your bottom line? The situation is fairly clear, MON identifies his targets and how much he thinks they are worth on the market. Randy backs him. There's nothing else to it.

Incidentally, before you embarrass yourself any further, this has been explained to us time and time again by General Krulak (RL's right hand man) who talks to the fans directly on Villa forums. So if it's ok with you, we'll take his word for it.

Well if that is the case, does that just not mean O'Neill is terrible in the transfer market?

Savman

Mr Alan wrote: »

Well if that is the case, does that just not mean O'Neill is terrible in the transfer market?

No, just this transfer window.

Mr Alan

I seem to remember Celtic fans giving him a bit of guff for years about it, and ye lot here giving him stick in the summer about it too......no?

think it might just be a flaw he has, and something he will have to remedy if he ever fancies a pop at the Utd/Liverpool jobs.

Bounty Hunter

Villa have given Salifou a 1year contract extension (maybe we will see more of him in the full team now)

Savman

I think what's happened here is that some outsiders came by and saw us criticising MON, a manager very well respected in many circles, and thought "these Villa fans sure are getting ahead of themselves". Now, in the discussion that followed, some felt it necessary to back up their respective points by claiming the blame should be shared with the owner of the club, a man who has not put a foot wrong. Only those who haven't a clue about RL could possibly suggest all is not what it seems with the man. Terms like "sugar daddy" and "ruthless" got mentioned, which just shows a complete lack of respect.

General Krulak wrote:

Randy is a very busy man...aside from owning the Browns and Villa, he runs a company in NYC, and other projects around the country. He is very active in National Security activities, supports the young men and women who serve in the military by providing transition education for them He is active in the arts...music/art/writing as well as education. Bottom Line: Randy is involved in many, many things beyond just sports. He is a very caring individual who is selfless in the way he deals with the world outside of football.

Martin O'Neill is a great manager, but makes some questionable decisions. Randy Lerner is a great chairman, not a single questionable decision so far.

It makes no sense that the club would tell the world that MON has complete control over transfers, then for the chairman to give a list of terms he has to meet. MON would never work under those conditions.

Savman

Mr Alan wrote: »

think it might just be a flaw he has

Getting the jist of it now are we?:D

That's all it is, a flaw, one of his few. He's given us some great results this season but right now the fans a pissed off he didnt add a couple of names to the team sheet. They didn't have to be world class names, nor did they have to be fillers to keep the fans happy, but jaysis, something. I think Villa fans can smell Europe and the thought of missing out after being as close as we've been in years is something we just cannot handle.

In fairness, nobody was really on MON's back up until last week. Before that the focus was on the players because MON was getting the best out of most of them considering the Villa side doesn't contain all that much real quality. "Wait til January", we were told. Last year we were told "expect top class signings in the summer" by our recently resigned CEO. There's a bit of deja vu to all this. Last season, after a great start and being the last unbeaten side in the division, we went on our worst ever run in the Premiership, could not buy a win for love nor money. "The squad needs strengthening" we were told. Fast forward 12 months, transfer window has elapsed and the squad, according to the man himself, still "needs strengthening".

Yup, must be Randy Lerner's fault alright.:rolleyes:

Raekwon

Savman wrote: »

Getting the jist of it now are we?:D

That's all it is, a flaw, one of his few. He's given us some great results this season but right now the fans a pissed off he didnt add a couple of names to the team sheet. They didn't have to be world class names, nor did they have to be fillers to keep the fans happy, but jaysis, something. I think Villa fans can smell Europe and the thought of missing out after being as close as we've been in years is something we just cannot handle.

In fairness, nobody was really on MON's back up until last week. Before that the focus was on the players because MON was getting the best out of most of them considering the Villa side doesn't contain all that much real quality. "Wait til January", we were told. Last year we were told "expect top class signings in the summer" by our recently resigned CEO. There's a bit of deja vu to all this. Last season, after a great start and being the last unbeaten side in the division, we went on our worst ever run in the Premiership, could not buy a win for love nor money. "The squad needs strengthening" we were told. Fast forward 12 months, transfer window has elapsed and the squad, according to the man himself, still "needs strengthening".

Yup, must be Randy Lerner's fault alright.:rolleyes:

Yeah that's it in a nut shell really, I basically said the same thing a few pages back. Hopefully the penny has dropped now

Savman

Raekwon wrote: »

Yeah that's it in a nut shell really, I basically said the same thing a few pages back. Hopefully the penny has dropped now

Well seriously, I think MON hasn't given himself much breathing space with the fans on this. Let's say we fail to make the UEFA, fans will be calling for the blood of his young. And if we do make Europe? Immense pressure to get players in, the kind of pressure that will be new to MON at VP. If (when) we do qualify, we will be demanding a damn sight more than your Marlon freakin' Harewoods on deadline day.

So he hasn't exactly done himself any favours here.

Raekwon

Savman wrote: »

Well seriously, I think MON hasn't given himself much breathing space with the fans on this. Let's say we fail to make the UEFA, fans will be calling for the blood of his young. And if we do make Europe? Immense pressure to get players in, the kind of pressure that will be new to MON at VP. If (when) we do qualify, we will be demanding a damn sight more than your Marlon freakin' Harewoods on deadline day.

So he hasn't exactly done himself any favours here.

I think MON has his own set of morals and standards and it seems obvious that he is stubbornly sticking to them. He clearly will only work with a certain type of player (ie: no egos or attitude problems) and that is probably why he is so fickle in the transfer market.

I agree that he has backed himself into a corner at this stage because of his constent hypocritical ramblings about small squads then lack of action in the transfer window. I seriously doubt that he thought that he would guide Villa so close to a CL place this season and therefore he is unprepared or slightly ahead of plan. But even if that was true, he has no excuse for not signing a rightback espeically after off-loading a defender who could have been used as stand in if we were hit by injuries.

It will be interesting to see what happens this summer if Villa have qualified for the UEFA Cup. The fans are going to be expecting big things in the transfer window and if MON dilly-dally's around waiting for bargains and last minute deals then alot of people's patients will have run out. I'm not saying he should be shown the door, fair from it actually, I just think that he needs to reassess what is needed for an assault on 4 competitions and act accordingly. If we don't qualify.......well you know what will happen.

Savman

Raekwon wrote: »

I think MON has his own set of morals and standards and it seems obvious that he is stubbornly sticking to them. He clearly will only work with a certain type of player (ie: no egos or attitude problems) and that is probably why he is so fickle in the transfer market.

Dunno if I buy that anymore. It can't be the case that any player we don't sign is due to them having some kinda attitude problem. Besides, if MON thinks he can get the best of the best to come to VP without some kind of give and take then he's got another thing coming. I guarantee Carew would never have signed had he thought for one second he'd not get a game. Same with Ashley Young.

All I'm saying is at some stage, for us to progress, MON will have to sit down and negotiate with a really top quality player and give him some indication that he'll be his first choice for a given position. You think Alves would've signed up for Southgate's reserves? Nope, too good for that. You have to push the boat out sometimes and unfortunately in the modern game its all about player power, so no amount of Cloughie-inspired fundamentals will matter if you're too stubborn to go out on a limb.

Raekwon

Savman wrote: »

Dunno if I buy that anymore. It can't be the case that any player we don't sign is due to them having some kinda attitude problem. Besides, if MON thinks he can get the best of the best to come to VP without some kind of give and take then he's got another thing coming. I guarantee Carew would never have signed had he thought for one second he'd not get a game. Same with Ashley Young.

That's the only explanation that I can come up with at moment TBH, I am really wracking my brain trying to come up with a more feasible one. If you think about it though, throughout the years MON hasn't really worked with that many big stars of the game, the biggest name that comes to mind is probably Henrik Larsson, but he is a model professional anyway. The only player with a real ego problem that MON has worked with was when he took Stan Collymore on loan at Leicester.

There is no doubt that he is a great man-manager and motivator, but when we are trying to get into into Europe on a regular basis he would really need to be abit more adventurous in the transfer market. But then again, if he limits himself to players that he knows (ie: SPL & EPL players) then he would really need to get his scouting system sorted out because he could be (& probably is) missing out on some really exciting foreign talent.

Savman

Raekwon wrote: »

he would really need to get his scouting system sorted out because he could be (& probably is) missing out on some really exciting foreign talent.

To their credit, the scouts seem to be doing the business finding young foreign talent. Seems like they're under instruction to find future stars rather than experienced pros, in fact I'd say the Villa side of 3-4 years would be quite formidable providing we held onto Gabby, Young, Davies & Co.

In other news, MON indicating he might go back for Guzan in the Summer. Not sure what that means for Scotty but if Guzan has what at takes then he represents great value at £2m or whatever it was. Fairly young too AFAIK.

I'm beginning to think it could be a case where MON hands over the team to someone else to win things whilst we forever give him credit for the rebuilding process and finding the younglings. All his signings point towards a team that still has to mature and realise it's potential, problem is we've had to wait fooking years and its inevitable impatience gets the better of us. The General had a quote a good while back saying they took over a club with a "dying infrastructure" and that the fans wanted everything "yesterday", without getting away from MON's dealings it is kinda a valid point when you think about it.

Helix

Mr Alan wrote: »

Well if that is the case, does that just not mean O'Neill is terrible in the transfer market?

yes

hes ****ing awful in it

Helix

Savman wrote: »

Let's say we fail to make the UEFA, fans will be calling for the blood of his young.

tbh i dont think too many will be on his back if we fail to make the uefa on the condition that he delivers in the transfer market in the summer, if however we fail to make europe AND he continues in the transfer market as he has been going, then you can be damn well sure the fans will turn

Savman

Anyway let's put this on ice for the mo, with any luck MON has himself premium seats at Croker and is eyeing up one o' those boys in yellow :eek::D:D

Mr Alan

more likely to be eyeing up Kilbane

Helix

sadly true

Savman

Villain

Just for the record I wasn't trying to slag PHB off about his spelling, god knows I have made enough typo's on here, I was simply pointing out that he didn't even know Lerner's name but made posts which suggested he knew what type of person he was and how he was running the club.

Raekwon

I think yesterday's discussion has been put on ice for the time being Villain

What are your predictions for Saturday's game vs. Newcastle? I'd say 2-1 to Villa, Carew & Laursen to score. We badly need the 3 points after dropping so many points recently, hopefully we won't put in another Fulham performance.

Btw I was suppose to be heading over of this match by my plans got scrapped unfortunatly, I'll probably go over for the Sunderland game instead.

Villain

Well looks like Gabby won't be fit but Davies will be, hard to know what team he will go for without having Gabby fit.

We need an attacking team against newcastle as their defence is pi*s poor, I can't see Routledge starting so I'd say it will be:

---

Scotty

---

Mellberg

---

Davies

---

Laursen

---

Bouma
Petrov

---

NRC

---

Barry

---

Young

---

Maloney

---

---

Carew

---

Which isn't bad but I'd prefer:

---

Scotty

---

Mellberg

---

Davies

---

Laursen

---

Bouma
Maloney

---

NRC

---

Barry

---

Young

---

Carew----Harewood

---

I reckon 3-1 to Villa

Tomthepost

Villain wrote: »

Well looks like Gabby won't be fit but Davies will be, hard to know what team he will go for without having Gabby fit.

We need an attacking team against newcastle as their defence is pi*s poor, I can't see Routledge starting so I'd say it will be:

---

Scotty

---

Mellberg

---

Davies

---

Laursen

---

Bouma
Petrov

---

NRC

---

Barry

---

Young

---

Maloney

---

---

Carew

---

Which isn't bad but I'd prefer:

---

Scotty

---

Mellberg

---

Davies

---

Laursen

---

Bouma
Maloney

---

NRC

---

Barry

---

Young

---

Carew----Harewood

---

I reckon 3-1 to Villa

Agree completely with your choice of team. Time for Petrov to take a forced rest again. Crosses coming in from both wings and two big men to capitalise

Savman

Has to Maloney, but can't see the gyaffa going with 2 big men up top. I half expect to see Carew & Moore on there even if a part of me would like to see Scarewood given a start as a reward for his attitude.

Fairly important game in the grand scheme of things, gonna be close.

Neil3030

Draw or win for Newcastle. Actually scrap that - 1-0 to toon, probably with a late goal from a corner after Villa missing a plethora of sitters.

Villain

Jesus if we can't score against the Newcastle defence we may give up on any top half finish.

Tomthepost

Had a bad feeling before the Fulham game and unfortunately got a bad feeling again.
A win is vital to get back on track. Otherwise methinks goodbye europe

Neil3030

Villain wrote: »

Jesus if we can't score against the Newcastle defence we may give up on any top half finish.

Where did I say anything about a top-half finish?

Villain

You didn't I did!

Bounty Hunter

Newcastle have scored 1 goal since "king Kev" returned. yes they played Arsenal twice but they are in a run of bad form and have a very bad defense. We screwed up against Fulham without Young who is argueably our best player (not that we should rely on him)but apart from that our bad run is ony a draw against a european contender (Blackburn) and another against a CL contender (Liverpool). We can beat Newcastle and although I fear they might get a draw against us at VP I dont think Villa will lose. maybe im being overly optimistic but...

Villa 2 Newcastle 1
Young, Carew & N'Zogbia

Raekwon

Bounty Hunter wrote:

Villa 2 Newcastle 1
Young, Carew & N'Zogbia

You usually predict the right score Bounty Hunter but if you noticed I said 2-1 also and I never get these right. I think I might have just jinxed you

I seriously cannot see Newcastle winning this game, they have some good players like James Milner, Damien Duff & Michael Owen but they always seem to give away sloppy goals. It will be interesting to see how they deal with our set pieces. I think if Ashely Young has a good game and delivers some decent balls into the box then we shouldn't have too many problems.

Bounty Hunter

Raekwon wrote: »

You usually predict the right score Bounty Hunter but if you noticed I said 2-1 also and I never get these right. I think I might have just jinxed you

hopefully you havent jinxed me alright, lets hope I help end your prediction streak esp considering its usually when i predict goalscorers that i get the score right...but not the scorers.

but temporarily back on the MON's transfer dealings topic

---

O’Neill set for hectic summer
Martin O’Neill today revealed he expects a big summer in the transfer market as he bids to turn Villa into regular European challengers.

Boss O’Neill was criticised by fans frustrated at his lack of signings in the January window, with only £1.25m Wayne Routledge coming in while £5m Gary Cahill joined Bolton.

O’Neill accepts he will have to vastly increase the size of his squad if Villa are to compete.

“If we want to try to compete properly, then you really do need a squad,” he says. “Big summer? I think we’d definitely be looking to enhance the squad – now’s the time.

“We’ve put in a bedrock, but now this club should be looking in that direction and keeping going in that direction, not stuttering and standing.

“You look at Everton now and they have a squad. They’ve got lads at the African Nations Cup but they’re still able to compete.

“Everton have had all those games in the UEFA Cup and then the league format and you have to field a side to play in all those games and then you have to come back the following Saturday and play in the League.

“I had that at Celtic for five years – we had Champions League games and then we were playing Dunfermline with the same side the following Saturday.

“You do need to carry a big squad. Everton have just got knocked out of two-legged semi-finals of the Carling Cup, so they’ve had to play those games to get there.

“We couldn’t have done that this season with the squad we have. But next season if we can manage it, then definitely.”

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Helix

heard it all before

Raekwon

Bounty Hunter wrote: »

hopefully you havent jinxed me alright, lets hope I help end your prediction streak esp considering its usually when i predict goalscorers that i get the score right...but not the scorers.

Yeah hopefully youn can do me the favor.

Why oh why does MON insist on coming out after the transfer window has closed to comment on signings? He really has put his head on the chopping block now because he would need to sign close to 10 players and hope nobody leaves in the summer and the chances of that happening are slim to none.

Bounty Hunter

especially when you consider it will be 7 on the subs bench next season. if that was the case now it would be almost our entire squad needed each match day.