Past mediocre signings / This season

[LERam]

Over the last few years we have (rightly) bemoaned the DCFC scouting office. Looking at some of the average underwhelming signings we made under Mels tenure, would some of these faired better, looked better, etc if they'd been bought into the squad this year? I use the term mediocre based on them not being total out and out fan faves

 

Simon Dawkins

Raul Albentosa 

Nick Blackman

Flo Jozefzoon 

Anya

Cameron Jerome

 

[TomBustler1884]

1 minute ago, LERam said:

Over the last few years we have (rightly) bemoaned the DCFC scouting office. Looking at some of the average underwhelming signings we made under Mels tenure, would some of these faired better, looked better, etc if they'd been bought into the squad this year? I use the term mediocre based on them not being total out and out fan faves

 

Simon Dawkins - YES

Raul Albentosa - NO

Nick Blackman - NO

Flo Jozefzoon - NO

Anya - NO

Cameron Jerome - YES

 

 

[sage]

1 minute ago, LERam said:

Over the last few years we have (rightly) bemoaned the DCFC scouting office. Looking at some of the average underwhelming signings we made under Mels tenure, would some of these faired better, looked better, etc if they'd been bought into the squad this year? I use the term mediocre based on them not being total out and out fan faves

 

Simon Dawkins

Raul Albentosa 

Nick Blackman

Flo Jozefzoon 

Anya

Cameron Jerome

 

Dawkins was decent on a low fee/wage. 

Crazy to put him on a list with Josefzoon, Anya and Blackman. 

 

[Ramrob]

Dawkins was definitely not mediocre. 

And didn’t we get him on a free?

Edited March 22, 2022 by Ramrob

[May Contain Nuts]

With the exception of Jerome perhaps none of those players would really have done anything under Rooney, and maybe nobody else either but that's not the question.

The use of Jozwiak shows why Dawkins wouldn't have fit it.

Edited March 22, 2022 by Coconut's Beard

[duncanjwitham]

I absolutely refuse to accept that Dawkins was a bad signing.  He was very, very good at doing the actual job he was in the team for (keeping the ball, moving it quickly, linking play) while maybe not great at doing the job people in the stands wanted him doing (bombing up the wing and crossing the ball).  He absolutely suited the way we played and he cost us relatively little. He's a textbook good signing.  (And I'm putting aside the fact he wasn't signed while Mel was sole owner...)

Far worse for me are the likes of Malone, Butterfield, Johnson, Vydra, Anya, Blackman, Waghorn, Shackell.  All signed for stupid fees, on stupid wages, and all incapable of doing the job they were signed for.  We got lucky with a few of them (like Vydra), and ended up with them benefitting from completely changing the way we played, but they were all still bad signings IMO.

[angieram]

Cameron Jerome is just what we're missing this season. Thought he did okay for us when he was here anyway. Yes.

Dawkins was always a classy player but in the area of the pitch we are most blessed with talent so unlikely to make a difference. No.

Jozefzoon ended up with slightly better stats than Jozwiak. Neither of them able to overcome the physicality of the Championship or produce enough end product. No.

Albentosa no better than Stearman,  who currently can't get a kick despite Davies looking jaded. No.

Blackman only suits a counter attacking team, would be rubbish with our slow build up. No.

 

[Ram-a-lama fa fa fa]

2 minutes ago, duncanjwitham said:

I absolutely refuse to accept that Dawkins was a bad signing.  He was very, very good at doing the actual job he was in the team for (keeping the ball, moving it quickly, linking play) while maybe not great at doing the job people in the stands wanted him doing (bombing up the wing and crossing the ball).  He absolutely suited the way we played and he cost us relatively little. He's a textbook good signing.  (And I'm putting aside the fact he wasn't signed while Mel was sole owner...)

Far worse for me are the likes of Malone, Butterfield, Johnson, Vydra, Anya, Blackman, Waghorn, Shackell.  All signed for stupid fees, on stupid wages, and all incapable of doing the job they were signed for.  We got lucky with a few of them (like Vydra), and ended up with them benefitting from completely changing the way we played, but they were all still bad signings IMO.

agree. no thought process over what players fitted our system, but its hards to have a system when ur changing managers regularly. to me players were brought hoping theyd come good and do something for us. unfortunately most of them didnt

[May Contain Nuts]

5 minutes ago, angieram said:

Jozefzoon ended up with slightly better stats than Jozwiak. Neither of them able to overcome the physicality of the Championship or produce enough end product. No.

We did sign Jozefzoon off the back of a semi-decent season at Brentford though (7 goals 7 assists) so perhaps more down to the style of play (and surrounding players) than the physical nature of the league?

[LERam]

20 minutes ago, sage said:

Dawkins was decent on a low fee/wage. 

Crazy to put him on a list with Josefzoon, Anya and Blackman. 

 

 

18 minutes ago, Ramrob said:

Dawkins was definitely not mediocre. 

And didn’t we get him on a free?

I realise I'm doing him a deservice 

The idea of the thread really was how would these players have done in today's world, without maybe the same expectation, more chances with less competition. 

In Dawkins case, maybe he was underappreciated and in today's squad would have been given the chance to flourish more?

[simmoram1995]

34 minutes ago, LERam said:

Over the last few years we have (rightly) bemoaned the DCFC scouting office. Looking at some of the average underwhelming signings we made under Mels tenure, would some of these faired better, looked better, etc if they'd been bought into the squad this year? I use the term mediocre based on them not being total out and out fan faves

 

Simon Dawkins

Raul Albentosa 

Nick Blackman

Flo Jozefzoon 

Anya

Cameron Jerome

 

Jerome and Dawkins probably the rest no 

[Ghost of Clough]

Since we're including Dawkins, I'm guessing we're looking at permanent signings since Mac1 came in and judging them at their best versus the squad we had for this season.

Current season squad being: Allsop, Roos, Marshall, Byrne, Ebosele, Jagielka, Davies, Stearman, Cashin, Buchanan, Forsyth, Bielik, Bird, Shinnie, Thompson, Knight, Ravel, Sibley, Jozwiak, Lawrence, Ebiowei, Kazim, Plange, Baldock

Yes: Carson, Christie, Wisdom, Pearce, Evans, Thorne, Huddlestone, Ledley, Butterfield, Johnson, Holmes, Ince, Weimann, Dawkins, Vydra, Jerome, Nugent, Bent, Waghorn, Marriott

No: Weale, Baird, Shotton, te Wierik, Whitbread, Albentosa, Malone, Warnock, Olsson, Camara, Blackman, Anya, Jozefzoon

[Sparkle]

Dawkins did decent for us 

[vonwright]

59 minutes ago, Ghost of Clough said:

Yes: Carson, Christie, Wisdom, Pearce, Evans, Thorne, Huddlestone, Ledley, Butterfield, Johnson, Holmes, Ince, Weimann, Dawkins, Vydra, Jerome, Nugent, Bent, Waghorn, Marriott

No: Weale, Baird, Shotton, te Wierik, Whitbread, Albentosa, Malone, Warnock, Olsson, Camara, Blackman, Anya, Jozefzoon

It's amazing just how few of our signings can be called an unqualified success.

Even some of the better performers - Christie maybe, Wisdom, Ince, Waghorn - weren't exactly great.

Vydra's a stand-out name for me but even he didn't have a great start.

Thorne is the exception (an unqualified success) and it's a huge shame that ended as it did.

We really did waste an awful lot of money.

Edited March 22, 2022 by vonwright

[Ghost of Clough]

1 minute ago, vonwright said:

It's amazing just how few of our signings can be called an unqualified success.

Even some of the better performers - Christie maybe, Wisdom, Ince, Waghorn - weren't exactly great.

Vydra's probably the stand-out name for me but even he didn't have a great start.

Thorne is the exception and it's a huge shame that ended as it did.

We really did waste an awful lot of money.

Definitely disagree on Ince. If you can't call him a success then only freebies can be. Since for a fee worth about £6m in the end, top performer whilst at the club, then sold for a reasonable profit. Yet you want to include Vydra as the "stand-out" signing despite being awful in the first of his two seasons at the club?

The list of players we made a P&S profit on is very sad (excluding academy graduates) : Russell, Dawkins, Albentosa, Christie, Ince, Weimann, Vydra

The list of players we actually made an overall profit on is even more pathetic: Christie, Ince, Vydra

35 players have come and gone, yet we only made a profit on 3 of them!

[vonwright]

Just now, Ghost of Clough said:

Definitely disagree on Ince. If you can't call him a success then only freebies can be. Since for a fee worth about £6m in the end, top performer whilst at the club, then sold for a reasonable profit. Yet you want to include Vydra as the "stand-out" signing despite being awful in the first of his two seasons at the club?

You may be right on both counts. I forget how long Vydra was here!

[tomsdubs]

Remember Dawkins tearing Fulham a new one at PP, for what we paid he was more than decent.

[Yani P]

23 minutes ago, Ghost of Clough said:

Definitely disagree on Ince. If you can't call him a success then only freebies can be. Since for a fee worth about £6m in the end, top performer whilst at the club, then sold for a reasonable profit. Yet you want to include Vydra as the "stand-out" signing despite being awful in the first of his two seasons at the club?

The list of players we made a P&S profit on is very sad (excluding academy graduates) : Russell, Dawkins, Albentosa, Christie, Ince, Weimann, Vydra

The list of players we actually made an overall profit on is even more pathetic: Christie, Ince, Vydra

35 players have come and gone, yet we only made a profit on 3 of them!

Our recruitment team have been totally useless for years...and now we have someone who will have an eye for talented players he has both hands tied behind his back.

[RadioactiveWaste]

I'm still baffled with what went on with Ikechi Anya.

Watford's Ikechi Anya - be useful in most championship squads, quick, versetile, can cover full back, wing back or winger on each side, seemed well liked. Not amazing, but could be useful.

Derby's Ikechi Anya - WFT, how did he become a footballer? One of the worst trasnfers of the whole Mel morris error. sorry era. no, error was better.

[TheresOnlyWanChope]

6 minutes ago, RadioactiveWaste said:

I'm still baffled with what went on with Ikechi Anya.

Watford's Ikechi Anya - be useful in most championship squads, quick, versetile, can cover full back, wing back or winger on each side, seemed well liked. Not amazing, but could be useful.

Derby's Ikechi Anya - WFT, how did he become a footballer? One of the worst trasnfers of the whole Mel morris error. sorry era. no, error was better.

Maybe Anya had some off field issues. I didn't see much of him, he looked pretty good in the matches I saw. He didn't play much though did he for whatever reason.