How's the squad shaping up?

[Miles Away]

Yep. Hopefully they change their minds again.

Agreed. The only players from last season I care to keep are Kdh and Ricardo.

 

[TommyK]

Yeah, not sure I see that as massively good news. I'm slightly concerned that they've looked at the wages they could get elsewhere and know they won't be as good as they're on.

But hopefully it's because Enzo is a world class manager and they know it - which I think is the subtext he's trying to get across.

Players on big contracts who checked out last season can't find new clubs, so want to stay...more than likely it's less about the manager and more about them.

 

[pork pie fox]

Players on big contracts who checked out last season can't find new clubs, so want to stay...more than likely it's less about the manager and more about them.

And a few of them know they’ll be free agents in a year’s time, so will gain then anyway.

 

[camberwell fox]

Well, let’s hope Enzo drops ANY and EVERY player this season who doesn’t pull their weight.

After all it was in BR’s interest to allow this situation to develop, it certainly isn’t in Enzo’s interest.

 

[Brown Nose]

On the condition that EM is happy to keep them, I don't really have an issue with any player who is contracted beyond 2025 wanting to stay.

Our problem remains players that have too little time on their contracts to give us control of their transfer destiny. We effectively have a team's worth of players out of contract inside the next two years.

2024 - Vestergaard, Ndidi, Vardy, Albrighton, Praet, Choudhury, Thomas, Iheanacho
2025 - Ward, Iversen, Castagne

We should be actively trying to move all these players on if we can. There are obviously special circumstances with Vardy and Albrighton but I'd still rather save their salaries for a year. I don't see either contributing anything to justify their cost to us.

We have to the contractual situation at the club back under control. For example, if someone like Iheanacho decides he'd now rather stay here than leave this summer, we either sign him onto a new contract or ignore his wishes and do whatever we can to move him on.

 

[fox58]

No doubt some on here will be along to say ‘I told so‘, we’ve dropped into the bottom half of the Championship and are only out of the relegation zone on goal difference

 

[fitz]

No doubt some on here will be along to say ‘I told so‘, we’ve dropped into the bottom half of the Championship and are only out of the relegation zone on goal difference

Just goes to show how hard the championship is. Anyone can beat anyone else. Currently only 3 points separate 1st and 24th!!!

 

[Payne74]

We should be actively trying to move all these players on if we can. There are obviously special circumstances with Vardy and Albrighton but I'd still rather save their salaries for a year. I don't see either contributing anything to justify their cost to us..

I think Vardy will play a big part this season, Albrighton needs to be moved on but I very much doubt anyone else can afford his wages so he will run his contract down and leave on a free.

Leicester have to many players they can't shift that are on big wages it's why I've said we need at least another year to sort the mess out

 

[M17TT C]

Only goal difference keeping us off the bottom of the league - Maresca out!

 

[bocadillo]

Just goes to show how hard the championship is. Anyone can beat anyone else. Currently only 3 points separate 1st and 24th!!!

Thank goodness we've got a game in hand.

 

[fitz]

Thank goodness we've got a game in hand.

Currently level on points with Cov so it's a real 6 pointer this one.

 

[bocadillo]

Currently level on points with Cov so it's a real 6 pointer this one.

We could be 1st or 24th or anywhere in-between by this time tomorrow.

 

[Brown Nose]

GK - Hermansen, Iversen, Ward, Stolarczyk, Smithies, Young

DEF - Justin, Ricardo, Castagne, Brunt, Kristiansen, Thomas, Spencer-Adams, Faes, Coady, Souttar, Doyle, Vestergaard, Flynn, Nelson

MID - Dewsbury-Hall, Winks, Soumare, Choudhury, Albrighton, Ndidi, Praet, McAteer, Marcal-Madivadua, Mavididi

FOR - Daka, Iheanacho, Vardy

In the three weeks since I posted this list of our players, we've added one more (Mavididi) and none have gone. Total now 33.

Young starts for the U21s this evening. I've still not heard a word about Brunt, Spencer-Adams or Flynn.

As it stands, I think that we have 31 players that would need to be registered to play in our 25 man squad (Nelson and Marcal are U21). So we can't really afford to sign a player over the age of 21 unless at least 7 go. Casadei is 20 so will be okay (but becomes player number 34).

Outside of easy sales (Maddison and Barnes) and out of contract departures, we've only sold Hirst and moved Opoku on loan. We need to move a lot of players out over the next couple of weeks.

 

[H T B]

I was hoping Alves and Braybrooke would also be part of the first team squad, but not sure what their injury latest update is.
Maybe save them for January?

 

[Miles Away]

We definitely aren’t getting enough players out.

 

[TommyK]

It's a terrible situation, but I'm not sure we're helping ourselves by asking too much for players well above what teams are willing to pay.

 

[SJN-Fox]

Or the players won’t take a cut in their wages.

 

[Miles Away]

Or the players won’t take a cut in their wages.

You have to assume no player will take a wage cut. Why the **** should they? Perhaps the odd one might move because they want to play football, but even then, they’ll want a similar compensation package.

Whatever deals you cut have to include making the player “whole” via wage subsidies, etc.

 

[Brown Nose]

It's a terrible situation, but I'm not sure we're helping ourselves by asking too much for players well above what teams are willing to pay.

Rudkin clearly overestimated our ability to move on players last year. He stalled and stalled with deals expecting clubs to buckle and pay up and they just didn't.

So there were clear lessons to be learnt.

Or, we could decide that our approach last summer has just strengthened our hand by making us seem tougher so if we wait it out again this time they will end up paying.

Covid crippled the market for the sort of players we want to move on and we are just refusing to accept that reality.

We'll just end up loaning out players and paying their wages anyway because Rudkin is incompetent.

 

[Brown Nose]

I was hoping Alves and Braybrooke would also be part of the first team squad, but not sure what their injury latest update is.
Maybe save them for January?

I agree that both will be part of the first team when fit. I've not seen any sign of either on the training pitch as yet though so have to assume it will be at least another three months before they are first team ready.