12 Jun 2014 10:32:31
Currently, the strongest team we could field is probably
Mannone
Jones Brown O'Shea Roberge
Giaccherini Cattermole Gomez Johnson
Wickham Altidore
with Pickford, Diakite, Larsson, Bridcutt and Fletcher on the bench.

That is a side that would struggle even if all remain fit. A couple of injuries to defenders and Wickham will be playing centre-back! Why is it that we are always so slow to address obvious weaknesses and end up paying over the odds for second-rate options every transfer window? What are all these managers and football directors doing?

{Ed024's Note - Patience - its still a long time to the start of the season.}

1.) 12 Jun 2014
Totally agree but Poyet must have agreed with Short a decent transfer budget otherwise Poyet wouldn't have signed a new contract so fingers bloody crossed!

2.) 12 Jun 2014
Its getting frustrating reading people ready to throw in the towel. Its a world cup year which is always the hardest for getting deals done early, the summer is long and there is no chance Poyet would have signed that contract if we didn't have strong plans to improve the team. Just remember last summer, like everyone else I was buzzing at the volume of players coming through the door but it nearly ended in disaster. Have some patience and we'll have the right players in rather than anu Tom, Dick and Harry.

3.) 13 Jun 2014
Next season we need quality NOT quantity!

4.) 13 Jun 2014
I'm very interested to see what SAFC have in mind in terms of transfers this summer; without doubt we need a fair few in through the door again simply to get us back to where our squad numbers were last season.

We've lost all bar Larsson of the Bosman's as well as all of the loan players, so that's put us down by around a dozen. Of our loanees, not sure how many will still be at the club come the end of August; from Graham, Cabral, N'Diaye, Moberg-Karlsson, Whitmore and Diakite I'm guessing only Whitmore (assuming he doesn't go out on loan again).

Add to that the rumours of other out-goings; Johnson, Fletcher, Altidore, Scocco, Giaccerini, Cattermole and Roberge have all been mentioned in despatches.

So what of in-comings? Well, Jones and Gomez arrived with very little fuss and not much rumour and both a decent acquisitions replacing two of the out-going Bosman's. I suspect there will be a few more of these "surprises" before the summer is out.

Those we all thought we might be linked with or have been linked with, all seem to be drifting away, so I wonder how serious those links were; Alonso, Vergini, Borini and Ki are all looking less likely as time goes by. Gomis was a non-starter for me and Banega looks gone now. Williams and Davies are still possible but they've got plenty of choice available to them and finally the likes of Moussa Sow and Raul Mirelles seem unlikely, Mutch and Caulker have gone quiet and I'm not seeing many other stories bubble up.

Like others before me, I suspect Poyet has a plan and the support of Ellis so I'm not panicking but the volume of players we need to get in does trouble me.

Fixtures soon then roll on pre-season!