Gary1906

Like him or loathe him Fane has to play if he’s fit. Believe me I’ve taken some convincing with him, he’s THE most awkward looking player when he’s got the ball that I’ve ever seen! His weight of pass his abysmal at times, but the one thing he can do - and does do - is break up play. He puts in some tremendous tackling with those long legs of his. Sometimes a team needs a lesser talented player to do the dirty work for the flair players. We just don’t seem to have any tacklers in midfield, but Fane certainly is, and he gets through a massive amount of work every game. He might not be pleasing to the eye but I guarantee that the likes of Byrne and Gardner love playing alongside him.

Placide Dummigan Bryan Gerrard Moimbe or Wilson Nepomuceno Fane Byrne Gardner Davies Nazon Subs: Zeus Moimbe or Wilson Edmundson Pringle Benyu Tope Amadi-Holloway Give Fane, Byrne and Gardner an opportunity to get back on track in midfield. Pringle and Byrne seem to be very similar, personally at the moment I’d rather have Byrne. Got to be two up front. Davies and Nazon should have first crack at striking up a partnership.

Just a thought on the Swedish striker Richard Yarsuvat. If he’s a free agent, we can sign him after the deadline can’t we? If that’s the case there’s still a chance for him and others to still be signed.

Yeah I’m sure. ? I wonder how many of his ex clients will be introduced to RW, or already have been?

Thought he was an ex agent??

So the owner of the club keeps bringing 5 or 6 players in for the manager to look at, and the manager doesn’t fancy any of them but probably feels under a little bit of pressure to perhaps keep one, maybe two occasionally. Sorry but that doesn’t sound like a good way of working to me. Very awkward for the manager. We are only guessing anyway of course but I really hope it doesn’t work like that. Much better for the manager, coaching staff and scouts to go and watch players themselves and then see if the owner has got the cash to bring any of them in. At least that way the manager has definitely brought his own man in.

To be fair though, looking back at the video at Christmas, I think Doyle was staying then had he not fallen ill. it will be interesting to see the quality of any foreign signings though, because they haven’t been good enough on the whole so far.

Totally agree with this! ?

I hope so. I hope they are of a sufficient standard as well.

Couldn’t agree more. If the management team were looking at players for the first time yesterday and being expected to make a decision on them then that can’t be good. I would hope that the scouting and recruiting is carried out much more professionally than that but I’m far from convinced. The last lot of foreign imports hardly set the place alight - Omrani, Mouache, Menig, to name but three. I do wonder whether Shez earlier in the season and RW currently are being ‘given’ these players and being told that they are going to be signed. Hope that isn’t the case because apart from it being unfair on the manager, they have been, on the whole, sub-standard. Not being negative just saying it as I see it.

First question: Have we got ANY news on ANY players being signed today? Second question: Will we have heard of any of them?

Thanks for clearing that up. I was trying to remember Ron Atkinson at Sheff Utd. ??

Ron Atkinson??

He was rapid as well! I used to stand in the old Ford Stand paddock with my dad. Mull of Kintyre used to be played before the match. ? Mile Bernard made his debut in the same match. David Irving might have done as well. ️

Steve Taylor, 1978 I think. Scored 2 on his debut against Notts County. Stevie Stevie Taylor!! ️️

Meaning what???

Never heard of him anyway. Just like I’d never heard Omrani, Mouache or Menig, none of which were worth a place in the team. Sign some proven quality like Doyle, at least you know what you are getting - or likely to get. Too many chances being taken on sub-standard foreign players.

Ha Ha I know what you mean, but I’m rarely on for a good round of golf. i usually start off mediocre then fall away a bit. ️?

IMO they should not be thinking of sacking Wellens. When he first took over he got Latics playing some fantastic, entertaining football, something that we as fans have been starved of for years. It wasn’t just down to the ‘new manager’ effect, they were playing a much better, more attacking brand of football. Byrne - and to a lesser extent Gardner - was pulling the strings in midfield and we had a very potent strike force up front with Doyle and Davies. I think the main reason(s) for the drop in form and performance has been the illness to Doyle, coupled with Byrne and Bryan initially going back. For some reason it’s badly affected our fluency and we’ve struggled to get it back especially with only having one striker that actually scores goals now. I think Pringle and Byrne are too similar and both want to do the same thing. Byrne in particular looked stifled in midfield against Plymouth. I would revert to Byrne and Gardner back in the middle again, Fane being the defensive midfielder. Also I think Nepomuceno is wasted at left back. For a start I don’t think he can defend, and he’s much better in a more forward position. The new lad up front looked promising alongside Davies. I couldn’t understand why he didn’t start. One striker up front in “the most important game of the season” didn’t make much sense to me. People knock Davies but he’s the only striker likely to score with anything like any regularity. They criticise him for not holding the ball up well enough but it’s not easy when it’s hoofed up to him and there’s a big centre half clambering all over him. When Holloway plays alongside him, Holloway is able to flick the ball on, but when Davies is on his own up front he’s got no one to flick the ball on to. If Holloway plays up front on his own he will have exactly the same problem. Playing 2 up front seems the obvious answer, the sooner it can be a Doyle/Davies partnership again the better. COYB ️️

So where has the money come from? Not from our £22 a fortnight, or from our £300 season tickets!!

Couldn’t agree more. The Corney haters bandwagon is ridiculous, he was the only one putting any money in and the only one who has somehow not only managed to keep the club afloat but also kept them in the same division despite the pretty pathetic attendances and lack of money coming through the gate. Look at Stockport and Tranmere and where they’ve ended up! A bit of realism required by some on here.

That would be a bad move for us. Must keep Davies, he guarantees goals alongside another good striker. Need to get Doyle back with him as soon as he’s fit and well again. Resume the partnership. No brainer for me. ️️

I agree with all of this. ?

Wouldn’t be surprised if Fane is out, listening to Wellens’ press conference yesterday.

Can’t be doing with pessimists. Or even realists sometimes. I’d rather be a blind optimist. Latics 3 - 1 Plymouth ?️?