Ghost of Clough

If a graph, a pie chart and a venn diagram had a drunken threesome, I think I now know what their illegitimate love-sprog might look like.

Bob Hoskins, the deceased actor? Or Sam Hoskins, the 31 year old attacker who has scored more than 3 goals in a League 1 season only twice in his career?

I'm going to assume promotion for this and we'll go with a 3412/3421...
Loans for: Evans, Rooney, Fornah, Radcliffe, Weston
Extensions for: Forsyth (backup and in-game coaching for U21s), Sibley, Thompson and DRobinson
Meaning we retain the following squad:
GK: Vickers
RCB: Nelson, Nyambe
CB: Bradley, Forsyth
LCB: Cashin
RWB: Ward, Wilson
LWB: Sibley, Elder
DM: -
CM: LThompson, DRobinson
RW: -
LW: Mendez-Laing, Blackett-Taylor
CF: Washington, DBrown
In my squad, that would leave gaps at GK(x2), CB, LWB, DM(x2), CM, RW(x2), CF(x2) - 11 signings
GK, 1st choice - Chris Walton (free, Ipswich)
GK, 3rd choice - John Ruddy (free, Birmingham) May want to go somewhere he will get game time which would rule us out. He's at the age where he should be stepping back, and he wouldn't have to move too far if he were to join us.
CB, 1st choice - Sam Stubbs (free, Bradford). A risky option, but he's still only 25, dominant in the air, and a good defender. He is slow so could struggle with stepping up a couple of divisions. Saying that, I thought he played very well in his game against us in the EFL Trophy.

LWB, rotation - Sam McCallum (free, Norwich)

DM, 1st choice - Ebou Adams (£?). Makes our team click without doing anything fancy. Difficult to say what Cardiff would want for him.

DM, 2nd choice - Nohan Kenneh (£?, Hibs). He would often train with the first team at Leeds under Bielsa, so you know the type of player he is. A 21 year old version of Adams.

CM, 1st choice - Herbie Kane (free, Barnsley). Would take over from Hourihane as the main set-piece taker.

RW, rotation - Tyrhys Dolan (compensation, Blackburn). Versitile, coming through as a winger at Blackburn before moving more central this season. The type of player you need in a squad to give the flexibility between formations depending on opposition and injuries within the squad.

RW, rotation - Femi Azeez (compensation, Reading). One of the best wingers in the league, with a high goal contribution output. Will be in high demand, so an unlikely signing.

CF, 1st choice - Harry Leonard (loan, Blackburn). A good all-round forward who creates as well as scores. We were apparently close to signing him in January, so I can see us going back in for him in the summer.

CF, 2nd choice - John McAtee (loan, Luton). More of a #10, but is another hard worker and one of the more creative CFs in L1.

 
A final squad of:
GK: Walton, Vickers, Ruddy
RCB: Nelson, Nyambe
CB: Stubbs, Bradley, Forsyth
LCB: Cashin
RWB: Ward, Wilson
LWB: McCallum, Sibley, Elder
DM: Adams, Kenneh
CM: Kane, LThompson, DRobinson
RW: Dolan, Azeez
LW: Mendez-Laing, Blackett-Taylor
CF: Leonard, McAtee, Washington, DBrown

If I had to watch Hourihane play left wing I genuinely think I’d remove my eyes. 

Please make it stop 😬

That was because Wildsmith had plenty of time to claim that long ball. His starring position wasn't too far off where it bounced in the box. Instead, he backed off, forcing Cashin to deal woth it instead.

This is quite unbelievable really. We’re a cat 1 academy in League 1. Our youngsters compete against the likes of City, Arsenal etc and yet we can’t give minutes in League 1.
 
I’ve mentally written this season off in terms of academy debuts. Partly because of the immense pressure to get promoted but also because of the fact the club made a lot of comments about needing 18 months/ 2 years to rebuild. 
 
I really like Warne but it’s been my biggest gripe. I loved watching the academy prospects progress during the Rooney and Rosenior years (albeit more because of the other horrific things happening at the club).
I have to say, it will be a much bigger gripe if we do go up and aren’t using the academy. There will be much less pressure as finishing 15th will probably represent a good season on our return to the Championship. Therefore, you would like to think there will be more opportunities for the kids pressure-free. 

Let's pretend we don't have the highest first team wage bill in the league then? Our first team players are collectively on more than the entire wage bill for at least 18 clubs in this division.
Last season, we had a turnover of £20.443m and a SCMP of 42.0%, equating to £8.56m. This figure excludes first teamers such as Knight, Cashin, Sibley, Thompson and Rooney, so the true first team wage bill was higher than this (approx £9.5m?). We're expected to pay out similar (if not more) this season.
Based on the latest released accounts, only Charlton (£10.6m in 21/22), Bolton (10.2m in 21/22) and Barnsley (£9.3m in 22/23) had a total wage bill higher than our SCMP figure, and only 2 of them higher than the approximate first team wage bill. This season, Wigan's and Reading's will be lower than these figures, whilst Reading's is anyone's guess. Either way, there won't be more than 5 team with a total wage bill higher than our first team wage bill. 
Hardly bargain basement in terms of wages.

Have we now got to the stage where we’re worried about potential, hypothetical suspensions for the accumulation of yellow cards next season, which may coincide with important fixtures against unknown teams in a division we may not even be in?

In colour form (red, orange, yellow), something close to this:

Let's pretend we don't have the highest first team wage bill in the league then? Our first team players are collectively on more than the entire wage bill for at least 18 clubs in this division.
Last season, we had a turnover of £20.443m and a SCMP of 42.0%, equating to £8.56m. This figure excludes first teamers such as Knight, Cashin, Sibley, Thompson and Rooney, so the true first team wage bill was higher than this (approx £9.5m?). We're expected to pay out similar (if not more) this season.
Based on the latest released accounts, only Charlton (£10.6m in 21/22), Bolton (10.2m in 21/22) and Barnsley (£9.3m in 22/23) had a total wage bill higher than our SCMP figure, and only 2 of them higher than the approximate first team wage bill. This season, Wigan's and Reading's will be lower than these figures, whilst Reading's is anyone's guess. Either way, there won't be more than 5 team with a total wage bill higher than our first team wage bill. 
Hardly bargain basement in terms of wages.

Our total club wage bill dwarfs everyone else's, so I think it's fair to say we aren't getting the most out of our expenditure. 
I also expect us to have the highest first team wage bill in the league, although it will be close to a couple others (such as Bolton). Top 3 is certainly where we should be IMO.

In colour form (red, orange, yellow), something close to this:

I always said he just needed a run of games to adjust to men's football by gaining that sense of "belonging" in men's football. The minimum he should be playing next season is L1, and depending on his pre-season, could even be with our first team in the Championship. Is it 9 goals and 2 assists in 14 games now (half of the games were 10 mins off the bench)? He would be exactly the type of signing we should be looking at signing if we fail to go up, so has to be in with a serious shout next season.

Our total club wage bill dwarfs everyone else's, so I think it's fair to say we aren't getting the most out of our expenditure. 
I also expect us to have the highest first team wage bill in the league, although it will be close to a couple others (such as Bolton). Top 3 is certainly where we should be IMO.

We're clearly not getting the output we should be for the wages we're paying to some of the older squad members. We know we were in dire straits 2 years ago, so it's no indictment on anyone. However, Hourihane, Smith, Collins and even Barkhuizen are not really living up to the money they must be earning over more productive League One players. I'm sure Nelson must be on a good amount but he's proven worth it... Bradley, not so much.

Let's pretend we don't have the highest first team wage bill in the league then? Our first team players are collectively on more than the entire wage bill for at least 18 clubs in this division.
Last season, we had a turnover of £20.443m and a SCMP of 42.0%, equating to £8.56m. This figure excludes first teamers such as Knight, Cashin, Sibley, Thompson and Rooney, so the true first team wage bill was higher than this (approx £9.5m?). We're expected to pay out similar (if not more) this season.
Based on the latest released accounts, only Charlton (£10.6m in 21/22), Bolton (10.2m in 21/22) and Barnsley (£9.3m in 22/23) had a total wage bill higher than our SCMP figure, and only 2 of them higher than the approximate first team wage bill. This season, Wigan's and Reading's will be lower than these figures, whilst Reading's is anyone's guess. Either way, there won't be more than 5 team with a total wage bill higher than our first team wage bill. 
Hardly bargain basement in terms of wages.

I always said he just needed a run of games to adjust to men's football by gaining that sense of "belonging" in men's football. The minimum he should be playing next season is L1, and depending on his pre-season, could even be with our first team in the Championship. Is it 9 goals and 2 assists in 14 games now (half of the games were 10 mins off the bench)? He would be exactly the type of signing we should be looking at signing if we fail to go up, so has to be in with a serious shout next season.

I always said he just needed a run of games to adjust to men's football by gaining that sense of "belonging" in men's football. The minimum he should be playing next season is L1, and depending on his pre-season, could even be with our first team in the Championship. Is it 9 goals and 2 assists in 14 games now (half of the games were 10 mins off the bench)? He would be exactly the type of signing we should be looking at signing if we fail to go up, so has to be in with a serious shout next season.

A question at the fans forum was raised, asking Buxton and Hale if they think the U18/21 players ahold have been given more of an opportunity this season. The response being "they haven't done enough to convince Warne". They also stated Thomspon not being a top performer in the U21s, but stepping up seamlessly under Rooney.
None have played more than Robinson, who has only got 90 minutes vs a Wolves U21 side and hasn't played in any other game. The only player to feature in the League (Brown) has only got 13 minutes, I would be extremely surprised to see someone getting a chance this season.
Take that Wolves U21 game away, then you really see how willing Warne is to using them: Brown (30 mins), Radcliffe (11 mins) Weston (6 mins) and Fapetu (2 mins). It's pathetic.
They could have had a meaningful amount of minutes earlier in the season, even against the likes of Crewe or Bradford in Cup competitions, or when 2 goals up against Carlisle, Leyton Orient, and Bristol Rovers. If they were, we'd now have a better idea of whether they could step in for a couple of games. Even if they weren't ready, using them in more games would have helped keep our older players fresher, and potentially injury free.

A question at the fans forum was raised, asking Buxton and Hale if they think the U18/21 players ahold have been given more of an opportunity this season. The response being "they haven't done enough to convince Warne". They also stated Thomspon not being a top performer in the U21s, but stepping up seamlessly under Rooney.
None have played more than Robinson, who has only got 90 minutes vs a Wolves U21 side and hasn't played in any other game. The only player to feature in the League (Brown) has only got 13 minutes, I would be extremely surprised to see someone getting a chance this season.
Take that Wolves U21 game away, then you really see how willing Warne is to using them: Brown (30 mins), Radcliffe (11 mins) Weston (6 mins) and Fapetu (2 mins). It's pathetic.
They could have had a meaningful amount of minutes earlier in the season, even against the likes of Crewe or Bradford in Cup competitions, or when 2 goals up against Carlisle, Leyton Orient, and Bristol Rovers. If they were, we'd now have a better idea of whether they could step in for a couple of games. Even if they weren't ready, using them in more games would have helped keep our older players fresher, and potentially injury free.

Had a season at Swindon when Rowett was manager. Spent a bit of time out injured.
Then loaned out to Mansfield for the season when Lampard was manager. The decision was already made at that point that we didn't want him and we tried to sell him. Mansfield didn't want to pay for him (free in the summer) so we recalled him. No one was willing to buy him (due to being out of contract in 6 months) so we loaned him out to the next club who came knocking - Northampton barely played him and he left at the end of the season.
It's a shame he couldn't have stayed for an extra season, as I'm sure Cocu would have used him. Add him to the list of other academy players our decision makers judged incorrectly.