Is it to much to hope that this coming week proves to be more interesting, for Luton Town supporters, than last week?
With the new season a matter of weeks away I’ve never known things to be so quiet.
The only hint of any excitement has come from a trip to Dundee to take on Dundee United, a fixture that was far from being a piece of cake.
What I’m actually bemoaning is the lack of activity on the transfer front.
When you realise that, since the last game of our inaugural Premier League season, we’ve seen so many players depart / probably departing, with the list including:
Krul
Kabore
Potts
Osho
Giles
Lockyer
Onyedimya
Berry
Campbell
Barkley
Lokongo
and have only signed:
Baptiste
Walters
a strange situation considering our numbers were stretched considerably courtesy of injuries last sesason.
Of course there are rumblings about this being a breakthrough season for a couple of our youngsters and there a also mutterings about, possibly, 1 or 2 signings this week.
But to me, we still look woefully short when it comes to squad depth.
The summer transfer window may still be a way off, with deals being able to be done right through until the end of August, but if an immediate return to the Premier League is our aim, my belief is that it is essential we have a cohesive squad from Day 1, we need to get off to a good start.
The EFL Championship is a strong league, we cannot afford to be playing catch up from an early stage, if our ambitions are to be realised.
What are your feelings on the above subject matter?
Please feel free to air your views in the comment facility below this article.
COYH
Luton Town - Are You Concerned About Our Squad Size Ahead Of The New Season?
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Morning MH, after my post yesterday I took a look at the division and frankly it seems every team has done little business but have retained many players and still in good shape.where as we have a humungas injury list compared to others and this is our problem that and so many released players.
Also it seems that teams are waiting on premier clubs to preseason and sort out squad before going for loans . Also there’s a rumour going around that 1 player is coming in from abroad.
If Luton sell Joe Taylor they must be barmy because he is the hottest property at the moment. He needs to be in the first team every game.
Let’s be honest. Of the list of players mentioned,we have lost 5 first team regulars. Osho,Lockyer(probably),Kabore,Barkley and Lakonga. We have brought in 2 so far in Baptiste and Walters. We have Hashi to replace Kabore,with Joe Johnson and Walters as backup. Tom Holmes and Mads Anderson are like 2 new signings at Centre half. We also have Joe Taylor and Mcatee back to add more depth in attack. Also we have Zak Nelson coming through. Although Edwards states there will be one or two more, I think we will be looking at maybe 3-4. I am not concerned at all. By the end of August we will be much stronger than last season. We have cleared out a lot of “deadwood”
I agree he must be in the first team squad.but I would expect him to start as an impact sub first before Woodrow then if he’s scoring goals promoted to starts Paul.
maybe this is the year of young players getting there chance. sorry just dreaming again. the one player i would love to see do well ,is hashioka. he shows a lot of potential,and should do well in the championship. don’t expect an easy ride this year, this league is the toughest. COYH.
I do agree but your list includes 6 or 7 players who had little or no part in last season. We also have Tom Holmes in, and about 6 players returning from injury several of whom missed most of last season. Then there’s Taylor and John McAteer ( not sure of his surname spelling). Kind of hoped these 2 would have a big impact this season for Luton but I keep reading stuff that suggests not.
The problem is many of those on the injury list will still be missing for the start of the season and it could be October before they are fit to start. You can’t risk them breaking down again by starting them to soon maybe Holmes and Johnson can step up let’s see but if they are injured early we are struggling in defence yet again.
I do not buy the ‘dead wood’ argument. First, Barkley, Lockyer, Kabore, Osho and Lokonga were not dead wood, they are significant losses to us. Second, Onyedinma and Berry had to be resorted to because we didn’t have the depth of squad with such a catalogue of injuries and, indeed, we will now probably start the season with the majority of Nakamba, Brown, Chong, Hashioka, Anderson and Burke injured. Third, Campbell was proved that he has enough calibre for the Championship and he’s a good fit for us. Krul and Giles were signings that didn’t work out; Giles may have talent but he’s got no mental fortitude against tougher opposition, frightened to have position, scared to take players on and reticent to cross despite being a winger/wing back and Krul is less mobile than my elderly father with his Zimmerframe. I do not believe that any small budget main squad losing a minimum net nine players while having several players injured will not be seriously hampered. It should be noted that Muskwe, Thorpe and Watson are gone/going. There were players out there for free or for modest amounts who could’ve done us a good job for a season or so: Paddy McNair, Chris Willock, Matt Godden, Cody Drameh, Calum Chambers, Matt Crooks, Andreas Weimann, Callum O’Hare, Matt Ingram, Japhet Tanganga. Reportedly, the aggregate received for Barkley and Giles is c.£11m; this, plus savings in their packages along with those of around fifteen others, should have enabled some cautious investment yet Edwards has opted for just Baptiste and Walters. I hope I’m wrong but I think we’ll struggle to get in the play offs.
Recruitment team always prove me wrong so not even going to bite this year… sure it is all covered.
I’m just as concerned with the opposite effect of extra signings, think we have 7-8 defenders out at minute injured… when they are all fit again and we have replacements playing already and then new signings, how do you keep a squad of professionals happy when not even getting time on bench, difficult job for Mr Edwards but have confidence in the team to pull through tough situations as they always have.
Still, not expecting play-offs a given right for us this season, we will need some craft and guile against the perennial Championship teams at the tip.
For me the injuries are a bit of a worry, but I don’t think we are too bad for numbers. A lot has been made of needing a defender but we have Mengi, Anderson, Walters, Holmes, Bell and Burke, thats six not counting JJ so I think were are well covered especially if we play 4 at the back which I suspect we will this season. We have plenty of attacking options so no problems there. Its the midfield where we need to strengthen as in my opinion its the weak point of the team at present. In my opinion if we can’t control the centre of the pitch then we can’t control anything. We need cover/competition for Nakamba and a quality playmaker. Maybe also a fullback depending if JJ gets a go or not. This of course is as it stands, and if players leave we will need to replace those also. I hope Chong stays and I hope Taylor Johnson and Nelson get a go…..bloody can of worms isn’t it??
We’ve added Holmes too