sharpysharps86

Pretty sure 'thin air' replaced Gallagher, because that's how effective he was last season 😅

Wonder what his style of play is. Saw he was at Man City previously so I'm assuming its Pep style football. Is that what PNE need right now? Genuine question, I don't know anything about there players 😂.

We do, but we also need to prioritise certain positions, and with Ohashi, Gueye and Weimann all coming in, the need for another CF and ST is less compared to the other positions mentioned. A winger for either side would be nice, but I suspect we may need a RW more than LW as Hedges and Siggy can cover that role. JRC at RW isn't convincing and I'd prefer him either in central midfield or at right back.

The thought of Pears being in goal against Burnley is giving me heart palpitations. Needs replacing ASAP.

On paper its a good point on the road, tough place to go given that we don't really know what Norwich will be like this season under a new manager, so previous good form there kind of goes out the window. We can say its a poor result because we were 1-0 up, and we can also say its a good point for coming back from 2-1 down...so all in all I think it's probably a fair result for Rovers. Need to work on this slow start from the 2nd half, its going to cause us problems, but I appreciate an amount of that is down to players like Hedges and Gueye having not had much of a pre-season. Last season, and probably the season before that I'm doubtful that Rovers come back to get something from this game. That's 2 league games where they've shown good character after conceding, hopefully a sign of things to come. A new goalkeeper is an absolute MUST, as we can all pretty much agree. Gueye put in another promising display. Ohashi appears to be a bit of a revelation so far, but definitely needs to be looked after a bit. I think having him as a super sub option makes more sense than to start him at the moment. Going to be an interesting couple of weeks now with just the Oxford game to play before the transfer deadline. GK, LB cover, Winger, and a CM all needed. If I'm being greedy then another striking option too please.

Well this definitely stings a little. It's the hope that kills you and after being fairly acceptant that Sammie was on his way, to then see him come off the bench against Derby and score, and then follow it up with a brace in the cup....yeah, I was a touch naïve and thought that he might well end up staying. Nothing will ever hurt more than Shearer going for me, but then I was just a kid at the time and he was my hero. That being said, this has happened before and it'll happen again, and more often than not in recent years a player steps up out of nowhere just as Sammie did. Let's face it, we were all very much doubtful over him after his first 6 months at the club and look what happened. There's nothing to say that there isn't someone like JRC or Dolan that can't grab the bull by the horns. These are two players that simply HAVE to make more of an impact this season, more so than ever now. As for the money, how it gets reinvested I think we can all agree that we need to spend some money on a goalkeeper. I'd personally like to see cash buys for a GK and a Craig Conway type winger as we need to try and get that Conway / Gestede style connection going to make the most of Gueye's height. I'd be happy with 2-3 prem loans thrown in after that. Will be interesting to see how it all pans out in the next 2 weeks.

Overly harsh take. He's a league one standard player judging by his performances for Rovers in cup competitions. He's always looked comfortable against that level of opposition. Ultimately though, Rovers have better options out wide and in the central number 10 role, so its a moot point.

2-2 draw. Gueye and Szmodics for Rovers. Predicted team: Pears Brittain Carter Hyam Pickering Travis Tronstad JRC Szmodics Dolan Gueye Hedges, Ohashi, Weimann and Buckley all getting minutes off the bench.

He definitely should've scored in the 2nd half against Derby, he practically passed the ball to the keeper. The first half chance in that game was a pretty tight angle, but perhaps should've hit the target as well. His movement for that chance and for the Dolan goal was great though, something we just hadn't seen from Gallagher. As long as he continues to be a handful and other players are chipping in with the goals then its of less concern. The problem last season was that none of the other attackers where helping out enough in that regard. Ohashi and Weimann both look more than capable of getting decent numbers, while its also a huge season for Dolan to make more of an impact. Obviously if Sammie goes then the pressure goes up on Gueye, Ohashi, Weimann, Dolan, etc. to contribute to the goals tally.

Shame for Markanday but based on last night, I suspect we won't miss him if he goes out on loan. He's not a winger, and he's behind Szmodics and Dolan, as well as probably Weimann and Ohashi for the number 10 position. It makes sense for him to go out on loan. A winger, central midfielder, goalkeeper and cover for left back feels essential. Quite happy for a couple of those to be prem loans. Not sure what the situation is with Ayari at Brighton but I'd welcome him back for the CM slot. Goalkeeper and winger positions really could do with being permanent additions.

Can't really judge Rovers on a game against a bunch of academy players, but you can only beat what's in front of you and they did that emphatically. Great to see all o the attackers get on the scoresheet. Ohashi really could have (and probably should have) had a hat-trick, although he was very unlucky to hit the woodwork with the effort in the 2nd half. He's going to be a really interesting player for Rovers, but one that seems to have taken to things well at this early stage in his time in English football. Could become a bit of a cult hero if it works out. Good to see Gueye get on the scoresheet, especially as he was unlucky not to score from the effort that led to the corner he ended up scoring from. Another goal conceded from a set piece though, which is concerning. Onto Norwich!

Knowing Stockport have their own squad issues, I'd definitely be tempted to give the likes of Mafoumbi a go. Pears Duru Carter Batth Batty Buckley Tronstad Weimann Markanday Siggy Mafoumbi Bring Gueye and Ohashi on to play 9 and 10 respectively in the 2nd half, see how they play together.

Luton seem to be really short of numbers, they were absolutely no match for Burnley and if they don't get recruitment right then they'll likely have a season of mid table football ahead of them. Burnley will equally face much tougher sides, but I suspect that they've got a squad more than capable of finishing top 2, and so they should really with the money spent over the last 2 years. Anything less than that for them should be considered a disappointment.

Their end of season form won't have helped, but there is no shame in losing to Sheffield United who are likely to be up there challenging for the automatic spots. Still, sounds like it was a really poor performance on Friday night and he was a very unlikeable figure amongst PNE fans. It was their great start that sustained their top half finish last year, which was unlikely to happen this time round. Wonder who they'll go for. Putting 2+2 together and potentially getting 5, they seem to have a few Scandinavian players on their books now, so maybe someone from that part of the World. From the same old names and faces - Gary Rowett is probably the one who's out of work that could go in there and do an ok job.

Plymouth so, so poor today. Granted it's a tough place to go on the first game when Wednesday are clearly riding the crest of a wave after last season, but bloody hell they've offered absolutely nothing.

Would like to see Duru get a game, and it makes sense for Batth, Buckley, Markanday, Vale and Siggy to all get minutes. I suspect Gueye will play at some point as he needs minutes, perhaps for the last 30. He perhaps needs it more than Ohashi at this moment. Doubt they'll play Szmodics in this one if negotiations with Ipswich are still ongoing, given the lack of importance of the fixture in comparison to the league.

Fantastic to start with a home win. Was really impressed with the debutants and the fact that the substitutions all paid off feels particularly good. Some really good stuff overall but certainly areas to improve on. Seeing Yuki chip the keeper for the 4th brought had me beaming. Szmodics included in the squad was a pleasant surprise, and it felt almost inevitable that he'd come on and make an impact. Thought Dolan was lively and deserved his goal in the 1st half, but wasn't as influential in the 2nd half. Travis probably put in one of his best displays for the club, and hopefully he can build up a solid partnership with Tronstad moving forwards. Liked a lot of what Gueye seems to be about except for the weak finishing. Was perhaps unlucky with the tight angle in the 1st half, but that chance in the 2nd half I really expected him to thunder it past the keeper, instead it was so feeble. I do however think he will be a real character and terrorise defenders, with his link up play and first touch are a massive improvement on Gallagher based on last night. A new number 1 GK, a left winger, cover for left back and central midfield feel essential. If Sammie goes then add another player to the shopping list, even if it is as cover for Dolan, who probably deserves to start there if Sammie does indeed leave. All in all, its a good start and something to build on. Having watched a pretty feeble Norwich side lose to Oxford just now, I see no reason why Rovers can't go to Carrow Road next weekend and get at least a draw.

I think the team now pretty much picks itself for tonight... Pears Brittain Carter Hyam Pickering Travis Tronstad JRC Dolan Hedges Gueye I'm pretty happy with that as a starting 11, goalkeeper aside I think it's an ok Championship XI, but the problems as we know lie with strength in depth and the lack of goals, of which we'll be hoping that Gueye can carry the burden, as well as JRC and Dolan chipping in more often. Obviously would prefer Szmodics starting in place of Dolan. The bench to me looks a bit more reliable on paper than last season with the additions of more experienced heads, but definitely lacking central midfield and wide options. Hilton (you'd hope this will soon be Pears if we can bring in a better keeper) Fadz Batth Wiemann Markanday Duru Siggy Ohashi Buckley Positive pants on, I'm going for a Rovers 2-1 win. Always likely to concede with our calamity keeper, but I think we'll just edge it with goals from JRC and Gueye.

Yeah there's that too 😂

Not overly concerned by Gestede saying 2-3 players. I remember Eustace said in the early close season that we didn't need many new recruits, which had us all up in arms for a little while, he's changed his tune now of course. I suspect he's said 2-3 more players simply because saying 'we want 5 or 6+ more players' increases expectations, which naturally puts us all on a downer if (when) it doesn't happen.

Where is O'Riordan going out on loan too?

Since when is he showing shades of Semir? He's had 45 mins in a friendly and by the sounds of it did well. Granted the proof will be in how he fares against Championship sides, but lets not forget that our current (for now) talisman looked completely out of his depth for half a season after joining from a League One club, and having had plenty of previous Championship experience where he'd also flattered to deceive at Posh and Bristol City. Let's give Ohashi some support instead of bashing him before a league ball has even been kicked.

Hogan scored 1 league goal last season, although he did manage 10 in 21/22 and 22/23. Surely only an option as backup to Gueye and Ohashi. If they're looking to move Vale on then as a replacement for him it's fine.

Is it just me or did Barkhuizen have a habit of scoring against us when he was at Preston. He's nailed on to score I reckon 😂.

Supposedly Ewood is going to be in EAFC25 according to recent leaks of new stadiums added to the game. Hopefully will look a bit cleaner in the game than in reality!