valefan79

No Loft fan and he has been an awful signing so far but in the last 2 games, he has been far better than Wilson who does not seem interested.

Utter joke if this goes ahead, stop messing with the game, it's not rugby.

Will applaud any new manager when they step out at Vale for the first but if Bonner, for me will be a very cheap uninspiring choice and looks like the kind of bloke who is made to get us back up if we went down. He just about kept Cambridge up last year by virtue of MK Dons not winning at Burton on the last day and then this year they were falling like anything before they got rid and ever since improved a lot. Not sure what kind of style of play he is known for but looking at stats from last only bottom 2 scored less, they scored 41 in 46 games and this season 14 goals in 18 games, not sure it would be a good watch. I have no idea about finances and how bad they are but for me the manager is the most important person at the club and a decent manager helps to attract a better standard of player.

Waited as long as possible before posting to give time to see if we get anyone else in but if this is our transfer dealings done, I am disgusted and fuming. It was clear to everyone before the day we needed a LWB and 2 strikers. We have signed a centre-half and a winger, I have always liked Mighten but unless Crosby does something that we have not done all season and go 4 at the back, that is a pointless signing, he is a winger and not a wing-back or a number 10. This is a shocking window for me if completed, we are a Wilson injury away from having Loft on his own up front, that is shameful and an insult to us Vale fans. We took a gamble last January when well clear of the drop zone and nearly paid for it, this time we are 3 points above the drop zone and we have done the same again. If we lose at Fleetwood, I will be calling for Flitcroft's head. I am Crosby's biggest critic but he has been dealt a shocking hand.

How is it post of the day , just because you agree with it. I am getting tired of the injury situation and that being our excuse for being rubbish since September and outside the drop zone because of Reading's point deduction. We like many other teams in our league and throughout football are dealing with injuries because football is different than years ago, more games, less recovery time, players not playing through the pain barrier, scientists telling managers when and when they can't play and many more issues. This is why it was criminal to go into a season with one recognised LWB in grant who missed virtually the whole of last season. After the window shut, we had a forward line of Wilson who we know from the past has never been able to stay fit regular, 5th choice striker from Bristol Rovers and Thomas who had never kicked a ball in the football league, we then a month later sign a player who has not played for 6 months who took 3 months to get anywhere near fit. We choose to give Jones a 2 year deal who we know has spent more time injured than fit. I keep hearing all these injuries but the nucleus of that team Ripley, Smith, Ojo, Arblaster, Devine Ojo, Garrity, Chislett were all fit for that awful run from September to December, they may have missed the odd game but other than Clarke I fail to see who we have missed as Wilson despite being quality, we should have been expecting him to miss and plans should have been in place for this. I just fail to see how without 2 forwards one of which needs to know where the back of the net is how we are going to go on a run that will see us comfortable in mid-table, the defence is leaking goals and can't keep clean sheets and we need 2 or 3 goals to get a result.

4 massive days to bring in a LWB and 2 strikers, 2 players have to be experienced or we are in massive trouble. If we bring in more inexperienced players, it will be like the relegated season whereby we are experimenting with bringing in unproven players in the hope that we stay up.

Bit harsh, did a great job at West Brom, took over when 10 points adrift in April and nearly took them to safety then got sacked when 4th in the championship. He did a really good job at Doncaster, then Sheffield came in for him, got a record number of points not to go up automatic but went up in the play-offs, got sacked because like at West Brom crazy owners. At Huddersfield, no matter who they appointed would be struggling, they have a bottom 3 budget along with Rotherham and for them to stay up they would be doing really well.

Looking at the Cheltenham report, they were apparently much the better team again today losing at Derby just as they were at Bolton in the week, they are certainly having a go unlike ourselves. I still see them getting out of this, looking at their next 3 games, Wycombe, Burton and Cambridge, can see a few wins for them, massive game next week for us.

We needed a striker before today, we now need 2, one of which has to be someone with experience and not a kid and not someone who is 5th choice at a midtable league 1 side.

4 points above the drop zone as things stands, yes we have a number of games in hand over the bottom sides but we have to be really careful and for me we need more players than just the loan signings we have made. Williams, Weir and Gore look good but all very young players and for me I feel we need a couple of experienced heads as well. Reading and in particular Cheltenham look like they are picking up form, Cheltenham tonight despite getting beat at Bolton much the better team and I still expect them to get out of it, big result for Exeter tonight winning at Bristol Rovers,

Don't disagree about being a good foil for Alfie May but seems strange on their part to try and go and get an out finisher and then having that fall through to go for the exact opposite.

Strange transfer business by Charlton if they want to sign Uche, they gone from wanting guaranteed goals in Clarke-Harris rejecting them, someone who will get you 20 - 25 goals a season to going for Uche, a player who will be lucky to get you 5. Whilst not been a massive Uche fan, he has improved of late but one goal which was a mistake by the Charlton keeper is a poor return for a striker, regardless of his other strengths. For me if you are a striker, the minimum I would expect would be double figures. If he is to go however, we have to go out and get 2 strikers.

If people want more permanent signings than loan signings then you need to accept that you will have a drop off in quality with a lot more average players, we are not going be able to sign players with the quality of Ollie or Alfie. We are in league 1 and most teams outside of the premier league rely on loan players now. Plymouth last year relied massively on the loan market with Azaz and Rogers, great players at that level. Bolton had probably the best 2 players in the league in Trafford and Bradley, great premier league talents and again you could only get players like that on loan. You have only got to look at Hull in the championship, in the top 6 made up of half of their side being loan players, they could not afford quality like this and would be bottom 6 probably if not for the loan market.

Absoutely gutted by Alfie going back, for me he is quality and with a better forward line, he would have looked even better. I really can't understand that we have had a top 6 league 1 midfield however have played most of the season with a league 2 standard forward line, Wilson apart our strikers are not good enough. We have to replace him, I know people saying we have lots of options but these are no where near the standard of Alfie or Ollie, coupled with Ojo and Garrity out, we are short of quality there, this has to be addressed for me or we will get dragged into trouble. Sang for me has always looked better in a wing-back role which he has grown into and for me Lowe should not be played in midfield, whenever been there, the game has completely passed him by and like playing with 10 men.

Would be delighted if the rumours are true about Williams from Liverpool, as someone who watches a lot of Liverpool including their youth games, always thought he had a chance of making it at premier league level, not necessarily Liverpool standard but a bottom half club. He has played 20+ games in the championship and 3 years ago partnered Nat Phillips at the heart of Liverpool's defence for the final 5 games of the season. At the time they were out of the top 4 and managed to win all 5 games with Williams in the team and finished 3rd.

Are we really above average with the number of injuries compared to the rest of the teams, as I mentioned on an earlier thread, this is the normal now and we need to get on with it. It would be interesting to see someone post our injury record compared to other teams, I might be wrong but every team i see team news I hear lots of teams without 6 and 7 players every single week. Tonight was watching Middlesbrough and they had 14 out, don't know what it is, if the number of games, the boots players wear but it is getting beyond a joke all over the country. You say we can use the excuse for our performances, if we go on another winless run whilst Garrity is out, will that be the excuse.

Gone are the days of teams having fully fit squads to choose from, it never happens anywhere, every club up and down has 6 and 7 injuries most of the time. This makes the decision to sign Grant as the only recognised left wing back and to give Jones a 2 year contract when he has missed 60% since being at the club absoutely baffling. You can also add in Wilson although we know why due to his great ability, the other 2 made no sense to me.

Joe Taylor been recalled by Luton, presume want to send him to a league 1 team, 12 goals in 25 games in a side in the bottom 3 of league 2. After speaking to a Colchester friend recently, said one of their best forwards they had in 20+ years, would not mind a chance on someone like this, very similar to Thomas in being Welsh under 21, small and quick but clearly has something about him.

Probably in the minority but I get why we signed both, for me both will have very good careers and within a year or two they will be playing regularly at Championship level I have no doubt. When you play the system we do, which is 3 centre backs and Ojo sitting in front, for me you need to 2 players like Arblaster and Devine who will create and get forward. I only saw positive comments on here earlier in the season when Devine joined, never saw anyone post why have we signed him. For me the problems rests with the negative tactics been deployed and awful recruitment or lack of it of a centre forward in the summer. I feel with a decent forward Devine and Arblaster would look even better than they do. I feel like a broken record with Sang but I maintain that after a shaky start, we have a decent player who when played on the right will get assists on a regular basis if we have a forward. Uche and Loft are not good enough and don't want to get on the end of some good balls into the box.

What I can't believe Is that we have into this season with a squad of 23/24 players and we have literally 3 players with a left foot which include Dan Jones who has spent over 50% of his time injured, Connor Grant who was out for virtually the whole of last season and Lacovitti, fair enough we are unfortunate with the Yak but the chances of Jones and Grant staying fit were small. We have no one that can on the outside on the left and put some telling balls, we have stop and come back and so easy to defend against down that side. It is criminal to think that was ever going to be enough.