All the players we 'missed out' on...

[Uke]

From Platypus' thread we have all these players who have gone to our rivals to play a major part in securing their survival.

So why don't we track just how marvellous they are and how many actually make first team regulars and have a real effect?

Perhaps that will see whether the RTGs are right or the GTGs (Grey tinted glasses). The losers buy a virtual pint for the winners at the NHA virtual bar.

Here's the list... Any more to add?

1 Feb version:

Wigan 17
Fulham 17
Newcastle 16
Sunderland 16
Middlesbrough 14
Bolton 14
Birmingham 12
Reading 11
Derby 3

1 Jan version

Wigan 23
Sunderland 22
'Boro 19
Bolton 19
Fulham 18
Birmingham 13
Reading 11
Derby 4

Fulham -
IN: Brede Hangeland, Leon Andreasen, Eddie Johnson, Jari Litmanen, Erik Nevland. Toni Kallio, Erik Hagen, Paul Stalteri

Boro -
IN: Afonso Alves

Birmingham -
IN: David Murphy, James McFadden, Mauro Zarate

Sunderland -
IN: Jonny Evans, Jean-Yves Mvoto, Phil Bardesley, Rade Prica, Andy Reid

Wigan -
IN: Wilson Palacios, Maynor Figueroa, Erik Edman, Marlon King.

Bolton -
IN: Gretar Steinsson, Tamir Cohen, Matt Taylor , Gary Cahill, Grzegorz Rasiak.

Derby -
IN: Hossam Ghaly, Danny Mills, Laurent Robert, Robbie Savage, Emanuel Villa, Mile Sterjovski, Roy Carroll, Alan Stubbs

Reading -
OUT: John Halls, Alex Pearce, James Henry, Simon Cox.

[Row Z Royal]

I think Bolton are the real winners there.

Obviously Alves at Boro is a good signing and Palacios at Wigan looks good value.

I can't see the Brum signings really having a major impact unless McFadden starts scoring regularly.

Not much to say about FuLOLham and Derby are gone anyway.

[Royal Fleet]

I don't think Bolton are the big winners here, they have lost one World Class player, with the ability to turn a game, into a load of players who cannot get into teams in the top half of the table.

The only player who went for a price I think it appropriate for the player was Marlon King.

[Hoop Blah]

It's all subjective.

How are you going to say whether a player has made a positive impact on their new side?

Even if they don't play having that player might be pushing the players in the side to perform better.

They might've just been bought to add depth to a squad so that if a player in the side loses form. gets suspended or picks up an injury the team isn't weakened as much. That is possibly just as important to the relegation battle when a point here or there can make a massive difference.

If you look at our squad, how many players are under pressure for their spot in the team? How much cover do we have if someone like Harper or Hunt gets injured?

Are we well equiped to cope with an injury crisis over Easter?

[cmonurz]

1 goal for Prica at Sunderland on debut, and two clean sheets in two games for Bolton defender Steinsson.

[Uke]

It's all subjective.

How are you going to say whether a player has made a positive impact on their new side?

Even if they don't play having that player might be pushing the players in the side to perform better.

They might've just been bought to add depth to a squad so that if a player in the side loses form. gets suspended or picks up an injury the team isn't weakened as much. That is possibly just as important to the relegation battle when a point here or there can make a massive difference.

If you look at our squad, how many players are under pressure for their spot in the team? How much cover do we have if someone like Harper or Hunt gets injured?

Are we well equiped to cope with an injury crisis over Easter?

It'll be clear who makes a contribution from their performances, otherwise they're just makeweights and a burden on the salary.

To paraphrase a "well known manager", the ultimate test will be the table at the end of the season...

Also let's not turn this thread into another slag our squad off - please! Theere are a million and one other threads for that.

[Alan Partridge]

Quite a few there I personally wouldn't have minded! whether all of them would have fit in here is different but solely as players a few of them would have been more than decent.

[Hoop Blah]

It'll be clear who makes a contribution from their performances, otherwise they're just makeweights and a burden on the salary.

To paraphrase a "well known manager", the ultimate test will be the table at the end of the season...

Also let's not turn this thread into another slag our squad off - please! Theere are a million and one other threads for that.

So you don't believe in having a squad to cover for players being unavailable or out of form then?

I'm not slagging anyone off thanks, just offering an opinion on the subject of the thread.

[Uke]

Quite a few there I personally wouldn't have minded! whether all of them would have fit in here is different but solely as players a few of them would have been more than decent.

Past performance is no guarantee of future performance (as with shares) that's why we should watch from now on.

Basically a line is now drawn in the sand (turf?) from which we see how well we have done.

[Archies Volley]

Quite a few there I personally wouldn't have minded! whether all of them would have fit in here is different but solely as players a few of them would have been more than decent.

Past performance is no guarantee of future performance (as with shares) that's why we should watch from now on.

Basically a line is now drawn in the sand (turf?) from which we see how well we have done.

I agree with Uke - I think this could be a very interesting thread if it stays to the question in the original post and is updated over the rest of the season.

Maybe one to add to Fulham will be Daniel Cousin http://www.football365.com/story/0,1703 ... 93,00.html

Another player to watch the performance of may also be Wayne Routledge at Villa (I know they are not in our mini league) but he is a right sided player who would not need to adapt to the British game and who went for the sort of money we could have afforded.

[Spirit of Elm Park]

One thing to say.... Andy Reid £5m .

I rest my case.

Glad to see we haven't been dragged into taking players purely because sections of our fanbase demand it. There is no messiah. We were good enough in August, and we are still good enough now.

Not RTG, just realism.

[g]

One thing you didn't realise is that they all missed out on Jimmy Kebe!!!! Wonderful business!!! CMONNN URRRRRRRRZZZZZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZZ

[BR2]

One thing to say.... Andy Reid £5m .

I rest my case.

Glad to see we haven't been dragged into taking players purely because sections of our fanbase demand it. There is no messiah. We were good enough in August, and we are still good enough now.

Not RTG, just realism.

We are 2 points to the good as of today-so let us keep everything crossed that just about good enough in August becomes just about good enough now and more importantly in May.
God forbid any injuries or suspensions to Marcus,Harper and Kitson.

[Hoop Blah]

It'll be clear who makes a contribution from their performances, otherwise they're just makeweights and a burden on the salary.

To paraphrase a "well known manager", the ultimate test will be the table at the end of the season...

Also let's not turn this thread into another slag our squad off - please! Theere are a million and one other threads for that.

So you don't believe in having a squad to cover for players being unavailable or out of form then?

I'm not slagging anyone off thanks, just offering an opinion on the subject of the thread.

No commet Uke?

I guess then, that you live in a nice little world were everything goes to plan and you don't have to have a plan B incase A falls apart around you...

[phil in cornwall]

I think that we will regret not following up our previous interest in Eddie Johnson.

It will be interesting to see how he gets on at Fulham.

[brendywendy]

routledge is the only one on there in a position we needed to strengthen,that could perhaps have been attracted here, and that i would have wanted-couldnt get in the spurs side though, so jury out on whether he is better/worse than kebe(cahill too-but his record is hardly glowing at villa this season-hence wanting to ship him out.)

when you look at the vast majority on the list most of the teams around us have spent a huge amount of money on championship dross, premiere league reserves, and has beens.
mosty strike me as not more exciting than marek or kebe, but for millions more money
and this backs up all of the clubs commenst over the last few years that are trotted out as nonsense by the doom mongers

also i really wish the RTGB and doom mongers could somehow be united in threads without resorting to slanging matches and writing off the other sides opinions arbitrarily
too many threads nowadays just decend into personal argument, im starting to really hate coming on here, and my usage has really dropped off(a good thing to many i know!)

[brendywendy]

[Spirit of Elm Park]

routledge is the only one on there in a position we needed to strengthen,that could perhaps have been attracted here, and that i would have wanted-couldnt get in the spurs side though, so jury out on whether he is better/worse than kebe

Agreed. Routledge could have worked, I'd have liked to have seen him try. Seeing where he ended up I think gives the buggest clue as to where we may have fallen down, and, why we didn''t go for him. He will be a highly paid squad member at best.

[Smoking Kills Dancing Doe]

The centre half at Fulham does look good.

ROutledge obviously would have done us a job, but the more I think about it the more I realise we didn't have a chance of getting him.

The real question I guess, is there anyone our rivals signed, who we could have actually got? Depressingly the answer could be no.

[Archies Volley]

The centre half at Fulham does look good.

ROutledge obviously would have done us a job, but the more I think about it the more I realise we didn't have a chance of getting him.

The real question I guess, is there anyone our rivals signed, who we could have actually got? Depressingly the answer could be no.

Surely it is not "could we have got them?" but as the first post says "will they be any good?"

I think this could be a very interesting thread by the end of the season.