January Transfers and Rumours

[JRC]

1 hour ago, Osh said:

Brian, did I read somewhere that, with Debrah, they knew he'd failed a medical in other clubs but knew what the problem was and thought they could get him fit, so took a gamble on him...??

I don't think we signed him until our physio team had worked on the problem enough so he passed the medical. I don't know the full details but I'd guess there was scar tissue from an old injury. He was doing rehab work with the club in August. I believe he only failed a medical at Barnsley. Walsall were allegedly interested in signing him but that rumour was doing the rounds in late August.

[dishydave]

Reading are still paying to use their under soil heating! If they can’t pay the players but they can stick the under soil on, albeit for a limited period, that’s just dreadful financial management. I have little sympathy for a club that has way overreached itself relying on sugar daddies. 
 

Reading implement drastic cost-cutting measures as financial crisis deepens | Reading | The Guardian

WWW.THEGUARDIAN.COM  

They are paying players so they don't get a points deduction it's the other staff members that haven't been paid.

Sent from my SM-A520F using onevalefan mobile app

[JRC]

21 minutes ago, werstayinup said:

He could be offered one in the summer then?

I believe so.

[JoeB2]

The club is very gradually moving towards a set-up which is commonplace in football but at odds with the fanbase.

We are going to be playing fairly patient, possession football for the forseeable. There might be spells where it's switched off, but that's the overarching idea. It's why they appointed Crosby - he promised he'd play it and fit within this overarching philosophy we're now very committed to.

It allows us to go to the big clubs, who coach their players in a similar style, and take Blaster, Devine, Weir, and Gore on loan. They're not going to let their young talent, coached in a very specific way for 10+ years, go and play Steve Evans hoofball, however successful that may be. You can argue its pros and cons - we'd never afford to permanently sign a player of Blaster's quality, but have to be ready to replace him 6 months after he arrives.

The fans are going to have to get used to it. Bellowing 'FORWARD' every time there's a sideways pass is futile, as the club isn't budging. We've committed to a certain interpretation of how to be successful - DoF-led recruitment, statistical analysis of players, a 'model' for the first-team which doesn't change, a Head Coach which fits a very specific set of requirements, loans from elite Category 1 academies looking to send players to footballing sides, consultancies like MRKT Insights providing advice, risk-averse possession football, academy investment, more interested in the long-term than the here and now, a few seasons of not a lot happenong.

I'm not saying it's right or wrong, it's just what a lot of successful clubs are doing and what Flitcroft has clearly decided we'll be doing as well. Carol openly said in May that we'd emulate Plymouth or something, and since then we've appointed a long-term assistant manager, switch to possession football, worked with MRKT Insights, and have loaned several Cat 1 players - just as Plymouth did before they went up.

It's a gamble - we're not a club used to this, our fanbase aren't bothered with aesthetics and ideology, and its questionable if we have the resources to pull it off. It's just worth recognising what we're trying to do and what the success criteria is - less about next week, and more about the next decade.

Edited January 20 by JoeB2

[Vtid]

3 minutes ago, Oggydoggy said:

His insta

thanks mate is he away with united? 

[Vtid]

5 minutes ago, Warren said:

I learned a lot watching Arsenal v Crystal Palace first half. Arsenal targeting the right sided centre back. Identified him as not good enough. The press is leaving him on the ball. But also both goals have come from corners where he doesn't mark well enough and gets run on by the centre half and beaten in the air. 

So it's not rocket science. We have weaknesses at PV and the opposition will analyse and find them. Where I have a problem is that we had the same single boring failing way of playing pretty much the whole off 2023. And have only recently started to do something about it causing us to start scoring again. 

comparing Arsenal & the premier to Vale when we aren't even ' championship ready ' 😅

Edited January 20 by Vtid

[werstayinup]

24 minutes ago, Jacko51 said:

Where is the evidence that Uche failed the medical??? 

Keep up Jean fans have said on their forum 🙂 but more importantly Osh has also stated this and that will do for me,me owd fruit

Edited January 20 by werstayinup

[werstayinup]

17 minutes ago, Osh said:

It was widley reported; I also stated it (a few pages back - the guy that told me we were signing players earlier this week, and who is close to the club, WA me this morning to tell me.

Has he told you of any strikers we are in for mate 😉 that's the most important one for me

[Guppys left peg]

1 minute ago, werstayinup said:

Keep up Jean fans have said on their forum 🙂 

Yep and if OVF’s very own Fabrizio Romano Osh says it then just take it to the bank it’s correct 🙂

[Warren]

3 minutes ago, JoeB2 said:

The club is very gradually moving towards a set-up which is commonplace in football but at odds with the fanbase.

We are going to be playing fairly patient, possession football for the forseeable. There might be spells where it's switched off, but that's the overarching idea. It's why they appointed Crosby - he promised he'd play it.

It allows us to go to the big clubs, who coach their players in a similar style, and take Blaster, Devine, Weir, and Gore on loan. They're not going to let their young talent, coached in a very specific way for 10+ years, go and play Steve Evans hoofball, however successful that may be. 

The fans are going to have to get used to it. Bellowing 'FORWARD' every time there's a sideways pass is futile, as the club isn't budging. We've committed to a certain interpretation of how to be successful - DoF-led recruitment, statistical analysis of players, a 'model' for the first-team which doesn't change, a Head Coach which fits a very specific set of requirements, loans from elite Category 1 academies looking to send players to footballing sides, consultancies like MRKT Insights providing advice, risk-averse possession football, academy investment, more interested in the long-term than the here and now.

I'm not saying it's right or wront, it's just what a lot of successful clubs are doing and what Flitcroft has clearly decided we'll be doing as well. Carol openly said in May that we'd emulate Plymouth or something, and since then we've appointed a long-term assistant manager, switch to possession football, worked with MRKT Insights, and have loaned several Cat 1 players - just as Plymouth.

It's a gamble - we're not a club used to this and its questionable if we have the resources to pull it off. It's just worth recognising what we're trying to do and what the success criteria is - less about next week, and more about the next decade.

Yes, good points. But to play that way PV must have central defenders who are good enough on the ball. Take it under pressure, don't give it away, pass accurately. 

[JoeB2]

10 minutes ago, JoeB2 said:

The club is very gradually moving towards a set-up which is commonplace in football but at odds with the fanbase.

We are going to be playing fairly patient, possession football for the forseeable. There might be spells where it's switched off, but that's the overarching idea. It's why they appointed Crosby - he promised he'd play it and fit within this overarching philosophy we're now very committed to.

It allows us to go to the big clubs, who coach their players in a similar style, and take Blaster, Devine, Weir, and Gore on loan. They're not going to let their young talent, coached in a very specific way for 10+ years, go and play Steve Evans hoofball, however successful that may be. You can argue its pros and cons - we'd never afford to permanently sign a player of Blaster's quality, but have to be ready to replace him 6 months after he arrives.

The fans are going to have to get used to it. Bellowing 'FORWARD' every time there's a sideways pass is futile, as the club isn't budging. We've committed to a certain interpretation of how to be successful - DoF-led recruitment, statistical analysis of players, a 'model' for the first-team which doesn't change, a Head Coach which fits a very specific set of requirements, loans from elite Category 1 academies looking to send players to footballing sides, consultancies like MRKT Insights providing advice, risk-averse possession football, academy investment, more interested in the long-term than the here and now, a few seasons of not a lot happenong.

I'm not saying it's right or wrong, it's just what a lot of successful clubs are doing and what Flitcroft has clearly decided we'll be doing as well. Carol openly said in May that we'd emulate Plymouth or something, and since then we've appointed a long-term assistant manager, switch to possession football, worked with MRKT Insights, and have loaned several Cat 1 players - just as Plymouth did before they went up.

It's a gamble - we're not a club used to this, our fanbase aren't bothered with aesthetics and ideology, and its questionable if we have the resources to pull it off. It's just worth recognising what we're trying to do and what the success criteria is - less about next week, and more about the next decade.

Flitcroft started to explain this in the summer, but I do think he needs to be extremely explicit and transparent at the next forum.

This is what we're doing. We're not budging because it needs time to work. Here's why we're doing it. Here's the plan. Get on board. It might take 2-3 years, but there is a direction of travel. We aren't judging the success of the plan on the next match, or the next month, but where we are in 2029. Clear, simple language, no business-speak.

It's only going to work if a majority of the fanbase buy into it. The idea that, maybe this season will be boring and frustrating, but that might facilitate better quality loans as we've proven we can play the "right" style of football and develop Blaster and Devine, and next year we can loan 4-5 of a similar quality. 

The idea that, whilst at times its ponderous, its the first time we've tried to play this style after being a bit rough and ready under DC, and we're not quite at the point where agents/players as going to look at us as the right fit for a more technical player. 

There will always be grumbles, and rightly so (as someone has to be the dissenting voice on any new-fangled idea), but it feels now like the top of the club are not quite aligned with a portion of the fanbase. Hope they use a well-attended forum to attempt to put it right.

[Brian]

7 minutes ago, Warren said:

Yes, good points. But to play that way PV must have central defenders who are good enough on the ball. Take it under pressure, don't give it away, pass accurately. 

I think we have still been ‘possession-based’ in the Blackpool and Charlton games. Just been brave enough to mix it up a bit more and get the ball forward quicker. It’s still possession based

[Osh]

21 minutes ago, Jacko51 said:

Has that come from Charlton?

No.  Vale

[Osh]

11 minutes ago, werstayinup said:

Has he told you of any strikers we are in for mate 😉 that's the most important one for me

I only asked him about Taylor and he said he didnt have anything on that

[darren1810]

5 hours ago, MBE said:

Wow, begs the question how did he pass our medical?

Must have same doctor as Dan Jones.