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Transfer News, Gossip & Speculation Transfer Thread - Summer 2025 Edition.

Transfer news
This is a key issue. Since Demi has retired, the possibility of Gus going and Bonne potentially not staying, we have no one in the team that is fighting our corner.

We definitely need at least one player that isn't going to take any nonsense, that will let the opposition know they are in for a battle.
Spot on and that is a major contributory factor as to why we lacked game management at 2-1 in extra time
 
This.

There were rumours that Oxford had already turned down a 6-figure sum for JG, from an EFL club.

We ain’t competing with that.
To me there should be less focus on the fee. Paying 100k for a highly promising twenty year old that you can sell on can be very good business. And fees are normally spread. I would hope we aren’t closed of to meaningful fees for the right player.

The big issue is a high fee is inevitably linked to a high salary. And this is a probalem as there needs to be a wage structure and financial discipline around that.

Would a current squad member have an issue with the club paying 100k for a player who is worth 100k? Doubt it

Would they have a problem with another player being paid twice as much as anyone else? Quite possibly
 
Golding - Pretty sure every blues fan would do anything to see him back as everyone knows what he offers, but its just impossible

Goodliffe - I think he had a poor start for us, but was, yes, a main reason we did so well in the play offs. The assist for our 4th goal against rochdale, and the goal against forest green. We haven't really had a defender that attacks in the box like goodliffe did, in quite some time, just not sure he would be the defender i would personally recruit for that position.

In reality i do not think either of these players will come back to SUFC in this window, perhaps even ever, i think the club will be looking at different options for the CB role and hopefully we can hear something very soon...ISH.

A comment on Francillette aswell, i know we have no idea whether we are in for him or whether we aren't. Surely though for someone who has yet to sign a new deal with Eastleigh, i would be surprised if there wasn't some sort of interest there from us as well as quite a few other clubs, he fits the bill of pretty much what we are looking for and would be strange if we haven't at least had a look.
 
This is a key issue. Since Demi has retired, the possibility of Gus going and Bonne potentially not staying, we have no one in the team that is fighting our corner.

I do get that Maher wants a team that is respected and isn't known for dark arts, but that means nothing when you're losing away to Borehamwood and we can't get back into the game because they are trying every trick in the book.

We definitely need at least one player that isn't going to take any nonsense, that will let the opposition know they are in for a battle.
I'm not sure ****housery is the way to beat teams like Borehamwood. We have showed consistently under Maher that when we take the lead we're able to control the game (shhhhh, nobody mention Wembley) so the goal has to be adding players that are going to create more & better chances and get in players that can stick the ball in the back of the net. Ideally someone that can defend high balls into the box to limit chances from set pieces. Maher is a manager the looks to control the game, I don't think signing players that might get themselves sent off factors into that concept.
 
I’m not sure I buy this idea that if only we had a **** houser who doesn’t take any nonsense we’d have held on at Wembley. We had Gus and Bonne on the pitch, we had Goodliffe to match them physically. If Gus and Bonne’s ****-housery wasn’t enough why do we think one more ****-houser would make a difference?

Also here’s a complete list of all the matches after the first month of the season (when they weren’t fully match fit after a disrupted preseason) where we dropped points/playoff leads in the final 20 minutes


Fylde away 17th Sept - caught on counter at 1-1 trying to grab a winner.

Sutton away 5th April - fluke equaliser after keeper pushed shot onto post

Oldham 1st June - lost in extra time after our third consecutive extra time game


That doesn’t seem to suggest to me that this is a wider issue.

To put that into some sort of context in the same period we came from behind in the final 20 minutes in that many matches against Forest Green alone.
 
I'm not sure ****housery is the way to beat teams like Borehamwood. We have showed consistently under Maher that when we take the lead we're able to control the game (shhhhh, nobody mention Wembley) so the goal has to be adding players that are going to create more & better chances and get in players that can stick the ball in the back of the net. Ideally someone that can defend high balls into the box to limit chances from set pieces. Maher is a manager the looks to control the game, I don't think signing players that might get themselves sent off factors into that concept.
In fairness, I wasn't taking about ****housery. I was talking about matching their physicality (no nonsense). We've been found wanting on a number of occasions when it comes to that. That's what I meant by a no nonsense player. A player that is going to let the opposition know that not only are we a really good footballing side, but we can also give you a battle if we need to as well. We always found that hard particularly against those sides near the bottom who only ever want to play that way. This got better when Goodliffe came into the team to be fair.

I do agree with you though, that this wouldn't even be a debate if we actually took our chances. No one would talk about the defense if we were winning games 2-1, opposed to drawing them. That's where we massively need to improve.
 
In fairness, I wasn't taking about ****housery. I was talking about matching their physicality (no nonsense). We've been found wanting on a number of occasions when it comes to that. That's what I meant by a no nonsense player. A player that is going to let the opposition know that not only are we a really good footballing side, but we can also give you a battle if we need to as well. We always found that hard particularly against those sides near the bottom who only ever want to play that way. This got better when Goodliffe came into the team to be fair.
One player isn't going to make a difference though - you need the whole team to have that mindset.

I also don't recall us being bullied much last season. The games we didn't win, were usually down to either us playing rubbish, or the opposition being better.
 
I think the notion of needing a tough-tackler/****houser is a fallacy at best, and a myth at worst.

That's partly due to the game being different to what it was 10+ years ago, and a Gary Deegan-type not having the same effect in our system, or more widely on the way the game is mostly played today.

We didn't lose from a winning position against Oldham because we didn't have a ****house. We lost from a winning position against Oldham because they brought on a piece or two of superior quality which we didn't have (expected when their budget was nigh-on 3x larger than ours); because a chance to go 3-1 up that was easier to score than it was to miss wasn't taken by one of our players; and because our players were visbly out on their feet physically after three lots of 120 minutes through the playoff campaign.

The key to turning us into real promotion challengers is pretty simple.

More quality to make us better at the way we already play. Better quality crosses, passes and shots in the final third. That will do the trick. Not a midfield ****house.
 
I think you just described Ben Goodliffe!
If our recruitment team and Kev are serious (And by all means it looks like they are) we won't be back in for Goodliffe. Came into the side at a time of need after a few injuries and served a purpose well however, was found wanting in the play off ties, even if he did score against FGR. Was turned inside out by Rodney against Dale, lost a marker for FGR's equaliser and was responsible in part for all 3 goals at Wembley. Good player for the level but maybe not at the top of this division. Would rather look elswhere.
 
I think the notion of needing a tough-tackler/****houser is a fallacy at best, and a myth at worst.

That's partly due to the game being different to what it was 10+ years ago, and a Gary Deegan-type not having the same effect in our system, or more widely on the way the game is mostly played today.

We didn't lose from a winning position against Oldham because we didn't have a ****house. We lost from a winning position against Oldham because they brought on a piece or two of superior quality which we didn't have (expected when their budget was nigh-on 3x larger than ours); because a chance to go 3-1 up that was easier to score than it was to miss wasn't taken by one of our players; and because our players were visbly out on their feet physically after three lots of 120 minutes through the playoff campaign.

The key to turning us into real promotion challengers is pretty simple.

More quality to make us better at the way we already play. Better quality crosses, passes and shots in the final third. That will do the trick. Not a midfield ****house.
Completely agree with this sentiment. I'd also put Miley and Noor in the tough tackling category but they are just first and foremost ball playing midfielders. I don't think we need to be nastier or grittier (call it what you will). We just need to manage games better from winning positions, something i'm sure the coaching staff will be aware of.
 
Completely agree with this sentiment. I'd also put Miley and Noor in the tough tackling category but they are just first and foremost ball playing midfielders. I don't think we need to be nastier or grittier (call it what you will). We just need to manage games better from winning positions, something i'm sure the coaching staff will be aware of.
couldn't we throw KAF in the mix as well. He has an uncanny way of tracking a player, diving in and winning the ball and rarely gives a foul away
 
As Bonne hasn't been spotted at training today, you would then assume he hasn't accepted the new terms put to him. Adios?

Which means we definitely need another Striker to come in...I think we did anyway regardless, so maybe even 2 required?
Heard that's been the case for a few weeks now. Didn't a friend of his (Bonne) lash out in the away end to someone, somewhere in the season and say he was off to Qatar or somewhere else in that region ?
 
If our recruitment team and Kev are serious (And by all means it looks like they are) we won't be back in for Goodliffe. Came into the side at a time of need after a few injuries and served a purpose well however, was found wanting in the play off ties, even if he did score against FGR. Was turned inside out by Rodney against Dale, lost a marker for FGR's equaliser and was responsible in part for all 3 goals at Wembley. Good player for the level but maybe not at the top of this division. Would rather look elswhere.
Agree, the arrival of Austin & Boyes (sounds like a title of 70's tv detective series) highlights this Club can and will now attract players who can and have played at a higher level, obviously budget restrictions withstanding. So yes going forward we are able to to land a CB that is a better all round option and hopefully we will and I say that without disrespecting Ben.
 
If our recruitment team and Kev are serious (And by all means it looks like they are) we won't be back in for Goodliffe. Came into the side at a time of need after a few injuries and served a purpose well however, was found wanting in the play off ties, even if he did score against FGR. Was turned inside out by Rodney against Dale, lost a marker for FGR's equaliser and was responsible in part for all 3 goals at Wembley. Good player for the level but maybe not at the top of this division. Would rather look elswhere.
I guess we all see it differently. Many posters have suggested that Goodliffe was one of the main culprits for our Wembley loss. Even if this had not been a winner takes all play off game which could have gone either way this judgement seems harsh.

I think there is a case to be made that without Goodliffe's contribution we would have been unable to produce the results late in the season that saw us scrape into the play offs. In my mind it is indisputable we could have even made Wembley without his efforts against both Rochdale and FGR. He is to blame for us losing a game which we only ever got to play because of his previous contributions in the other play off matches? That makes no sense to me.

If he was to return to us I would see it as a positive but bear in mind JS & co have previously been pretty successful with their loanee CB's. Lopata and Golding spring to mind instantly and I suspect we only went in for the Goodliffe loan because of Golding's injury.

With or without Goodliffe I see us as being in a very good place right now.
 

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