KentExile

The first he mentioned Mafoumbi a few weeks ago was after Mafoumbi' s esc slot was mentioned in discussion on here Also, it would be remiss of him not not at least have a scan of this forum on a semi to fairly regular basis

You can tell him reads this forum can't you 😉 Hi Elliott

Or out on loan at a decent enough level. If we can get him a National League loan (or below), then there are no restrictions with recalling him (in case of injuries/suspension to Toth) even outside of the transfer window

I would suspect there will be an initial agreement for him to join in January once Toth/Kargbo work permit status can be changed, with an option to push it forwards if Rovers can offload Mafoumbi (seeing as he will apparently be unavailable anyway after a foot operation) https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/25363304.blackburn-rovers-transfer-latest-three-deals-close/ Blackburn Rovers transfer latest with three deals close Blackburn Rovers are finalising deals for Lewis Miller and Axel Henriksson, with both players set to join Valerien Ismael’s squad. Rovers fans have been eagerly awaiting official announcements over the weekend, with Callum Brittain joining Middlesbrough and Miller lined up to replace him. The Lancashire Telegraph understands that Brittain’s deal should be officially confirmed on Monday afternoon. Likewise, the majority of Miller’s move from Hibernian has been finalised. However, there is still a small club-to-club agreement that hasn’t yet been reached and that is delaying an official announcement. It’s plausible that Brittain’s move may not be confirmed until Rovers have finalised the last parts of Miller’s deal but it is just a matter of time. Miller has passed his medical and once that agreement in full is secure, he will be a Rovers player, joining from Hibernian for a fee of around £1million, all-in. The Australian defender will be joined by Swedish midfielder Herinksson, who was the mystery player alluded to by Ismael when speaking to The LT on Saturday. The 23-year-old is in Lancashire putting the final touches to his move to Rovers too and will further bolster their options in the middle. Herinksson will be Rovers’ sixth summer signing, assuming he’s confirmed after Miller, joining from Swedish top-flight club GAIS. It gives Ismael a wealth of midfield choice with Lewis Travis, Sondre Tronstad, Sidnei Tavares, Adam Forshaw and John Buckley already in the building. A deal for Moussa Baradji is also still on the table with negotiations ongoing. Buckley is expected to leave Rovers this window after a spate of new arrivals in his position. He was left out of the squad against NEC Nijmegen and needs to restart his career with a new club. Similarly, Aynsley Pears could move on too after he wasn’t selected. Balazs Toth will be the number one goalkeeper for the upcoming season with Nick Michalski currently ahead of Pears in the pecking order. Share

terminating his contract would also involve paying it up (or at least coming to a financial agreement on it), but he probably isn't on huge money, so is a possibility

with an extra years option too! https://www.rovers.co.uk/news/2024/july/31/rovers-swoop-for-flying-frenchman/

The only way to remove him from the esc calculation is is he is no longer on the books (as in either sold or released, he would still be on the books if loaned too)

No, the issue with Mafoumbi is his work permit status (with him requiring an esc slot), not his squad registration (he doesn't need to be included in the 25 man squad because of his age)

You removed 2 players who I had not already removed from the calculation myself (Forshaw & Hedges) Both of who essentially had their contracts extended during the summer, which shows that they are going nowhere, no matter what we think However, there could be a strong argument made that Leonard should be loaned out, which would free up space for a 5th signing

Following the arrivals of Miller & Henriksson, we will actually have 26 players who would need to be registered if Ismael was planning to use them this season K - Toth, Pears, Barrett, Michalski, Goddard CB - Hyam, McLoughlin, Carter, Wharton, Pratt LB - Ribeiro, Pickering RB - Miller, Alebiosu M - Travis, Tronstad, Tavares, Forshaw, Buckley, Garrett, Montgomery W/AM - Cantwell, Henriksson, De Neve, Kargbo, Hedges, Tyjon S - Ohashi, Gueye, Leonard, Mafoumbi Montgomery, Tyjon, Mafoumbi, Goddard & Michalski (and indeed any current player from the U21s not mentioned above) do not need to be registered in the 25 man squad due to their age It would seem from Ismael's comments that Pears & Buckley are on their way out, Garrett is injured in the medium to long term so probably won't be registered for the first half of the season (and will probably be loaned out in January anyway), it is unlikely that Pratt will be registered (I think he will be loaned out), which brings us down to 22. With Pears on his way, Barrett may possibly be included (as 3rd choice keeper) to allow Michaleski & Goddard to get loan moves, so we are on either 21 or 22 Takeaways & Assumptions So assuming no more players leave, we could technically bring in anything up to either 3 or 4 more in (including loans) I assume one of those potential 3/4 will be another goalkeeper to sit on the bench Personally I see Henriksson as taking up the "right wing" position (but narrower), & also covering Cantwell in the 10 role, rather than as one of the 2 at the base of midfield, Obviously any further outgoings from the above 25 (Travis? maybe due to his "contract situation") each free up a further space in the squad. It would probably be beneficial for Leonard to be loaned out when fit, which would free up an extra space in the 25. I suppose this would hinge on bringing in another striker first ESC Slots Henriksson takes up our 4th & final esc slot (the other being Toth, Kargbo & Mafoumbi, - Ohashi was switched to a standard work permit over the summer) Offloading Mafoumbi would free up an esc slot for another esc signing this summer (Baradji?) (no idea if this is the plan, just a possibility) In January, Toth & Kargbo should have played enough games to convert them to standard work permits which would free up 2 more esc slots In order to maintain 4 esc slots after this season, English qualifying players would need to play in at least 35% of minutes in the Championship for Rovers this season. 2024/25 onwards Criteria However, from this season onwards clubs will be able to plan for the number of ESC slots that they have, with the possibility that they could only have one if the number of minutes for EQP is lower than 20%. Number of available ESC places Weighted EQP minutes % Premier League Championship League One League Two >= 35% 4 4 2 2 >= 30% 3 3 1 1 >= 25% 2 2 – – >= 20% 1 1 – –

Nope, they did some more at the end of 2023, see below. Since the 3 that you mentioned above, Pears, JRC & Leonard (if you count him as first team) also signed contracts in the summer of 2023 For any faults he may have had, Broughton did the job with contracts

We cant be, sales/income do not impact the budget 😉

If he ever gets his career back on track, then I will concede that he may have figured out the do's & don'ts Until then.....

I cannot possibly see that social media rule being used in an attempt ro strong arm anyone into silence

Maybe they just meant close (in proximity) to a new contract, as Pasha had sneaked one under his mattress

I know I wonder how long it will be before Rovers renew the contracts of 3 first team players contracts in under a month again? Even 3 in a season seems fanciful

Wharton December 2023 - https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/67665036 The last one who is still here (aside from Ribiero) was Pickering, the same week - https://www.rovers.co.uk/news/2023/december/07/pickering-pens-new-deal-/ And Szmodics was the week before Then they sidelined & sacked Broughton, presumably for being proactive wasting money

He possibly/probably isn't, it is (an was) likely probably Pasha who has the ultimate say so However, if that is the case then Gestede is still culpable, as he has in effect, just provided a human shield for Pasha to hide behind

"Sales do not affect the budget" - Rudy Gestede April 2025

Former PNE manager John Beck, long ball merchant, grass long in the corners so the ball didn't run out of play after it was hoofed forwards https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Beck_(footballer)#Managerial_career

I didn't see the Stockport v Bolton game but this sounds familiar I might add ACD into that. I imagine people will be saying how good he was but he cost us the first goal and didn’t do the defensive work needed generally. Stockport targeted that side. And they also worked out that we are vulnerable on the transition when he cuts inside and loses it with JDC on the overlap. This is the thing - things can look brilliant pre season but look decidedly less so when under the scrutiny of proper football. https://the-wanderer.co.uk/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=27882&sid=31e3981ecaee6d011972e04223feb43e&start=240

ahem 😉

did Man Utd ever sign a 3rd/4th/5th choice keeper? 😉

I'm not endorsing it, just offering a viable explanation judging by the tight fistedness of our ownership

Maybe the rationale is better quality for bargain prices? Risky though