It’s been a complete clusterfuck of a summer - that’s impossible to argue against. I mean, we parted ways with our manager on the eve of a new season, having signed Matt Doherty & a third choice goalkeeper on free, ffs.
However, I also think it’s a fluid situation, and I’m pleased to acknowledge that we’ve got some bodies over the line in the final few days. It’s difficult to assess with too much accuracy right now whether it’s been a “good” or “bad” window, because none of us really know how good the players we’ve signed are. The Nunes/Neves sales have weakened our starting 11, but I think with the return of players like Sasa, Fabio & players like Gomes coming through, the overall balance of the squad looks fine on paper, and it seems capable of competing in/around mid-table if they’re managed properly. We seem to have 2 (and in some cases 3) options for most positions, and a number of our players are capable of playing in more than one role without too much of a drop off in quality, which looks like it’s been a tactic of ours for a while.
We definitely wanted (and probably needed) a new striker. I think, despite the criticism on here, even someone like Che Adams would have helped, as he has the ability to come on and keep up the aggressive press that it looks like GoN wants us to play. So to miss out on a forward is an obvious failure from the club.
Overall, I’m on the fence. I’m not happy with Fosun & Jeff Shi is still a clown. I’m not as bent out of shape as others that we didn’t spend millions & millions of £, as there’s always the opportunity to spend again in January if need be, and I think the players here deserve to show us what they can do - but I am disappointed we didn’t get a striker over the line.
I guess we need to all collectively take a deep breath and now get behind the players that are here (and the manager), to try and get us in to a reasonable position this side of Christmas/the new year when the transfer shenanigans start again.
