The Official Summer Transfer Window 2025/26 Season

[Bruce 3,157 2.5k]

30 minutes ago, Marvanelli said:

Howson isn't good enough to be 3rd choice, even if he is 3rd choice. It's an area of the pitch we are desperate for new recruits, especially if the rumours of Hackney going are to believed.

Agreed. I can just about see a Sol Bamba/Lee Pelletier type of role for him where he's 5th choice in midfield and 5th choice emergency cover centre back.

End of last season, Howson wasn't the problem but he also wasn't the solution. He did remarkably to rise from the Rockliff graveyard and go immediately into playing full games. Not many players can do that at any age. He was probably immediately culpable for 2 goals but to a large extent, the team was such a basket case that most of the problems happened before the ball got near him. 

I could see him being moved onto a coaching contract and maintaining his player registration so he's the 25th member of the registered squad but no more than that. We'll have a successful season if Howson is registered but doesn't need to start any games.

[chickenlunch 417 1.1k]

8 minutes ago, Borodane said:

He wasn't the best defender despite Rav and Fry being injured for half the season. He only played 11 games as a defender. Being the best (he wasn't) of a disappointing bunch doesn't make him good enough. And he is most certainly not good enough to be third choice midfielder. That's absolutely ludicrous. One of the midfielders gets injured for 3 months and you're ready to play Howson all those games? Come on man. He can be 5th choice behind 3 good seniors and a talent. He may have some experience to offer as he genuinely seems like a good guy but I really wouldn't want to rely on him.

you're the expert my good man, I bow down to your opinion sir

[Swifty 641 662]

Evan Ferguson for the season anyone? 

[chickenlunch 417 1.1k]

43 minutes ago, Marvanelli said:

Certainly don't agree he's good enough to be 3rd choice.

He's 3rd choice (if we sign him again) because who else is there after Hackney and Morris. Barlaser and McCabe? 

Howson isn't good enough to be 3rd choice, even if he is 3rd choice. It's an area of the pitch we are desperate for new recruits, especially if the rumours of Hackney going are to believed.

And as for Howson at CB last season, Matt Clarke and Borges performed better at CB than him. Fry did too. Rav is a better CB than Howson as well.

Judging Howson at CB is unfair, as it's clearly not his position and he was filling in, but when he was at CB, at the very back end of the season, we weren't good defensively.

Coventry away Howson was terrible and he was also at fault against Plymouth at home on a few occasions. We were lucky Plymouth couldn't finish their dinner and we got a flukey penalty in stoppage time.

Those are just 2 games of which Howson was terrible, in the run in. There were other examples too.

Matt Clarke was just as abysmal as the others, you're kidding yourself if you think otherwise. Borges did well in the handful of games he played there before getting written off.

Fact is that currently Howson is our best option in terms of '3rd choice CM', not sure why you're so keen on debating it.

[OldManGravz 2,460 6.4k]

6 minutes ago, Swifty said:

Evan Ferguson for the season anyone? 

I would snap your hands off but I assume hed have better teams in for him

[Blanco 5,637 7.2k]

8 minutes ago, Swifty said:

Evan Ferguson for the season anyone? 

No chance do we get him

[Marvanelli 1,301 955]

8 minutes ago, chickenlunch said:

Fact is that currently Howson is our best option in terms of '3rd choice CM', not sure why you're so keen on debating it.

I'm not debating whether Howson is our best option in terms of 3rd choice.

I'm merely stating he shouldn't be given a new contract because he isn't good enough to be our 3rd option at CM.

Being our 3rd best option at CM isn't the same as saying he's good enough to be our 3rd best option at CM.

How can you not understand what I'm saying.

Howson is a better option at CM than Barlaser...but Howson still isn't a good enough option as #3 behind Hackney and Morris....if we are serious about next season.

Howson needs to be let go and we need to move on from him.

[Johnmfc81 950 2.1k]

Is he even any good? 1 goal, no assists in over 20 games according to transfermarket not particularly good stats for a centre forward.

[LinoJo3 5,822 13.6k]

13 minutes ago, OldManGravz said:

I would snap your hands off but I assume hed have better teams in for him

Barely played for West Ham and did nothing in 8 games and hasn’t really done much for Brighton either. I think we’d have a chance if he’s actually any good

[OldManGravz 2,460 6.4k]

12 minutes ago, Johnmfc81 said:

Is he even any good? 1 goal, no assists in over 20 games according to transfermarket not particularly good stats for a centre forward.

Only had 388 mins in total across those 21 appearances, just daft little 6 and 7 min appearances.

Previous season he got 6 goals and 1 assist in about 15 games worth of minutes. At a level above ours.

 

Just because Brighton and West Ham don't think he is ready for them doesn't mean he wouldn't crush it here

[ScarBoro 1,148 1.5k]

30 minutes ago, OldManGravz said:

Only had 388 mins in total across those 21 appearances, just daft little 6 and 7 min appearances.

Previous season he got 6 goals and 1 assist in about 15 games worth of minutes. At a level above ours.

 

Just because Brighton and West Ham don't think he is ready for them doesn't mean he wouldn't crush it here

In fact they may think it better he comes to a team like ours, if we can “guarantee” playing time -  or where he has chance to play a lot if he plays well enough. No good going somewhere  else where he is 4th or 5th choice and gets hardly any time

[LinoJo3 5,822 13.6k]

8 minutes ago, ScarBoro said:

In fact they may think it better he comes to a team like ours, if we can “guarantee” playing time -  or where he has chance to play a lot if he plays well enough. No good going somewhere  else where he is 4th or 5th choice and gets hardly any time

The problem is unless we’re going 2 up front he’d likely be a main option for the CF spot with Conway, if he doesn’t get going that would mean a season without any real competition at CF, we’d have Conway and Coburn, Coburn may actually be a better option tbf.

[ScarBoro 1,148 1.5k]

25 minutes ago, LinoJo3 said:

The problem is unless we’re going 2 up front he’d likely be a main option for the CF spot with Conway, if he doesn’t get going that would mean a season without any real competition at CF, we’d have Conway and Coburn, Coburn may actually be a better option tbf.

There’s some posters saying Edwards prefers 2 strikers. I don’t know, but that’s what I was basing it on.

[chickenlunch 417 1.1k]

1 hour ago, Marvanelli said:

I'm not debating whether Howson is our best option in terms of 3rd choice.

I'm merely stating he shouldn't be given a new contract because he isn't good enough to be our 3rd option at CM.

Being our 3rd best option at CM isn't the same as saying he's good enough to be our 3rd best option at CM.

How can you not understand what I'm saying.

Howson is a better option at CM than Barlaser...but Howson still isn't a good enough option as #3 behind Hackney and Morris....if we are serious about next season.

Howson needs to be let go and we need to move on from him.

my dude, we are in agreement on this. But unlike you I have a foot in reality, and it's simply very likely that your good man Jonny is gonna be getting a new contract cos he's actually still a useful member of the squad - despite what you might think. But in an ideal world we'd have his replacements lined up and ready to go, but the fact is we have Dan Barlaser.

Hopefully he doesn't and it's cos we've sorted the squad out

[mendieta420 1,250 2.6k]

2 minutes ago, chickenlunch said:

 we'd have his replacements lined up and ready to go, but the fact is we have Dan Barlaser.

how exactly do you know what the recruitment team does and doesn't have lined up?