David Moyes' Claret and Blue Army!

[leyton Hammer]

i have been very happy with the last 2 seasons progress, top 7 finishes and European football with a some what limited squad, although sometimes i thought we were a little too negative in our approach. I was hoping this coming season David Moyes would expand a little on our playing style but, with our showing pre season it looks like we have taken a backward step. Today we played with 3 CD's including Johnson and Rice because Diop and Ogbonna were not available and Dawson is not match fit, so why not try something a little more attacking? Our game plan seemed to be smack it long and hope 1 of Benni, Pablo or Bowen gets on the end of it. I know its pre season, i went to our games at Ipswich and Reading then watched the second half V Rangers, most of Luton and today but we look so slow and devoid of ideas i now dread the seasons start. Does Moyes only use pre season for fitness and not give away any tactical clues or are we in for a turgid season?

[iLoveLasagne]

With regards to pre season, I don't think you can just turn it on and off like a switch. Fitness, sharpness, team patterns, link up play etc... Those need to be practised and built upon. To think we are saving it all up for City is wrong. Whilst pre season results are inconsequential, the style of play, shape and tempo etc are things which should be present and improving on a game by game basis. I haven't watched any of our games but judging by match threads, it is concerning!

[HammerMan2004]

Where has he been after the last two games? Appeared frustrated and angry after Rangers, then McKinlay speaks after Luton and now Nevin spoke after Lens today.

:arry:

[Turns to Stone]

For all his successes on the pitch, his transfer dealings are starting to look very poor.

His last 2 windows were below average or worse. This one looking similar.

[Danny's Dyer Acting]

For all his successes on the pitch, his transfer dealings are starting to look very poor.

His last 2 windows were below average or worse. This one looking similar.

Odd take on this window. He's signed two definite starters (three in my opinion) and still has a month of the window left to go.

[Turns to Stone]

Odd take on this window. He's signed two definite starters (three in my opinion) and still has a month of the window left to go.

We we short last year, we’ve lost players since then. Once again, we won’t have the squad we want when the season starts. Other teams will know we’re desperate and will charge us a premium. Moyes won’t pay it. That’s been the story of the the last few years. I’d love to be surprised.

[Pob!]

For all his successes on the pitch, his transfer dealings are starting to look very poor.

His last 2 windows were below average or worse. This one looking similar.

Harsh!

[Danny's Dyer Acting]

We we short last year, we’ve lost players since then. Once again, we won’t have the squad we want when the season starts. Other teams will know we’re desperate and will charge us a premium. Moyes won’t pay it. That’s been the story of the the last few years. I’d love to be surprised.

Areola/Fab
Coufal/Johnson
Zouma/Dawson Aguerd/Ogbonna
Cresswell/Masuaku
Rice/Soucek/Downes/Coventry
Bowen/Fornals/Lanzini/Benrahma/Vlasic
Antonio/Scamacca

2 signings (left back and for the wide attacking areas) completely transform people's views on this window. It's really frustrating that they've not happened yet and I agree that the board will have failed yet again if we can't get them in.

People were relatively positive yesterday about the season and the last couple of deals that might happen. Surely we're not all going to let pre-season performances dictate the mood in the stadium next week?

[Turns to Stone]

Harsh!

Probably. But he has created a high bar for himself. How would you grade our last few transfer windows?

Last year we got fewer points than the year before so we went backwards. I’d like us to be getting better each year. At this stage, I don’t expect us to be better next year than we were last year. I have great respect for Moyes and have loved what he’s done, but our transfer record in the last 3 windows imo has been below average.

[Turns to Stone]

Areola/Fab
Coufal/Johnson
Zouma/Dawson Aguerd/Ogbonna
Cresswell/Masuaku
Rice/Soucek/Downes/Coventry
Bowen/Fornals/Lanzini/Benrahma/Vlasic
Antonio/Scamacca

2 signings (left back and for the wide attacking areas) completely transform people's views on this window. It's really frustrating that they've not happened yet and I agree that the board will have failed yet again if we can't get them in.

People were relatively positive yesterday about the season and the last couple of deals that might happen. Surely we're not all going to let pre-season performances dictate the mood in the stadium next week?

It’s not negativity - I’m trying to be objective. We weren’t great on the second half of last season. The players look flat. I’d love that not to be the case, but it’s what I’ve seen so far.

[hammers92]

Moyes won’t pay it. That’s been the story of the the last few years. I’d love to be surprised.

I 100% believe we needed more considering the season starts next week but this statement simply isn’t true.

Moyes doesn’t do the bidding or the negotiating. It’s up to the owners and Newman to go and get the targets Moyes has identified.

[Collison Theory]

We we short last year, we’ve lost players since then. Once again, we won’t have the squad we want when the season starts. Other teams will know we’re desperate and will charge us a premium. Moyes won’t pay it. That’s been the story of the the last few years. I’d love to be surprised.

None of the players we've lost were starting eleven quality, if their replacements are we've significantly improved.

[-DL-]

We've not necessarily improved just because one is better than Yarmolenko etc. It could be argued that in the 2nd half of the season, quite a few of our starting players were not starting quality either - so it doesn't really matter if players we've lost were not starting quality - our left back isn't really starting quality anymore either - but that's not his fault age and injuries are catching up with him.

Moyes needs to address that, and if he doesn't, when even a layperson such as me can see that's our weakest link, then it's criminal.

[Turns to Stone]

None of the players we've lost were starting eleven quality, if their replacements are we've significantly improved.

But that implies that all of our first 11 have either improved or stayed the same.

We got worse last year than the year before, and performances dropped further in the second half of the season.

We need quality competition for Cresswell, Soucek/Rice, Bowen, Lanzini/Benrahma. Aside from Bowen (and Rice) which other first team player we improved last year?

Soucek didn’t, Coufal didn’t, Ogbonna and Dawson were worse than the previous year. I would say Fornals was good but slightly plateaud. I think we needed an injection this summer. I think that they thought Lingard was done and it wasn’t.

I still think we are at least 3 short and I would want all of them to be challenging for the first team. I don’t see us getting them.

[Essexmaniac]

Where has he been after the last two games? Appeared frustrated and angry after Rangers, then McKinlay speaks after Luton and now Nevin spoke after Lens today.

:arry:

May be simply that during the actual season managers are contractually obliged to do all the main interviews. Moyes probably just letting his coaching team take some of the workload when they can and also have a chance in the spotlight too.

[funky chicken]

The jury’s still out of course on Scamacca and Aguerd as they’ve not really played many minutes yet. In Scamacca’s case none whatsoever. But the problem this window isn’t necessarily what we’ve signed so far, it’s what we haven’t signed.

Holding onto too many of the older players and especially not having a good enough successor waiting in the wings in certain positions is starting to come home to roost. This should’ve started in the last 2 windows really. And because we left ourselves so short of quality in certain positions it leaves Moyes a lot to do this window. We may even end up going backwards in the League because of it, before we can go forwards again. Moyes knows it too. You only have to look at his demeanour in recent windows and the comments he’s been making. His interview on that Premier League preview springs to mind, if anyone can find a link.

We’re possibly at the period Everton were under Moyes when they had the honeymoon period of finishing 4th, before then fighting relegation and finishing 11th, before finally becoming a stable top 7-8 team. I really don’t think we’d drop down as low as fighting relegation. But if we don’t seriously start to strengthen the squad with 3-4 top 6 quality players I can see us being more mid table this season. It’s exactly what we’ve become since November. The Europa League run papered over a lot of the cracks.

Moyes is 100% the man for the job. And I have every faith he’ll stabilise us in the coming seasons. But he’s got an awful lot of work to do still this transfer window. And we can’t afford to get anymore signings wrong.

[bubbles1966]

Odd take on this window. He's signed two definite starters (three in my opinion) and still has a month of the window left to go.

I wouldn't bet on Aguerd starting ahead of a fit Ogbonna. Spending £20m-£30m doesn't necessarily mean that Moyes is going to pick them.

Scamacca will play but Moyes long and futile pursuit of Lingard tells us all we need to know about his view on his current attacking midfield. It also tells the current players as well. He is constantly signalling with his decisions and transfer wishes that he thinks Vlasic, Benrahma etc are not good enough.

The age of the defence has not been addressed, the lack of depth in midfield has barely been touched and the lack of pace and final ball quality in the front line remains an issue.

Improvement all seems to rest of Scamacca being a success as things stand halfway through the window. Remember, our form from mid/late November onwards was bottom half. It's been a long while since we played well.

[Gazmundo]

Where has he been after the last two games? Appeared frustrated and angry after Rangers, then McKinlay speaks after Luton and now Nevin spoke after Lens today.

:arry:

Moyes will do the interviews from City onwards. So what if he wants to let his coaches practice interviews with the media after pre season games - maybe they asked if they could do it to aid their development during a coaches team meeting. What if Moyes gets COVID again and his assistants have to step in - Personally I think it's a good thing for these pre season games.

[El brooko79]

I wouldn't bet on Aguerd starting ahead of a fit Ogbonna. Spending £20m-£30m doesn't necessarily mean that Moyes is going to pick them.

I'd bet a fit Aguerd starts over a for Ogbonna tbh.
But competition is important.
Also I'd have expected Moyes to want to use Ogbonna and Dawson in early cup rounds.

[Turns to Stone]

I 100% believe we needed more considering the season starts next week but this statement simply isn’t true.

Moyes doesn’t do the bidding or the negotiating. It’s up to the owners and Newman to go and get the targets Moyes has identified.

When I say Moyes won’t pay it - I mean he won’t pay over the odds for players he doesn’t really want - which is fine. But when our owners fail to sign the players he does want, it means that we fail to progress in any meaningful way.

After January, we had to get this window right. So far I would say it looks very light, and we are getting to the time of year where traditionally Moyes and our owners have always struggled to get deals done.