The common consensus based on what I saw from your fans was that Ennis was better than Hardie, would you agree or do you think thats a misconception? He has looked good when he has featured but I suppose thats of limited use when he will spend lots of time on the treatment table. He featured in 38 League games for you last season which caused some questions as to how injury prone he actually was but having only started half of those, it seems like you had the luxury to manage him knowing you had 2 stand out League 1 strikers fighting for one position. I do think there is a big gap between League 1 and the Championship and I am the first to say that the actual quality of this league isnt as good as people like to suggest. I dont see Ipswich as top 6 quality personally, the 2 of you will be very comfortable but you didnt get promoted from League 1, you breezed it with ridiculous points tallies.

Id be amazed if either were involved this weekend. Both were pictured in the training video from the other day but neither in actual full training and Tomasson said pre match before Plymouth that Sigurdsson wasnt ready to play any minutes yet, albeit that was before mentioning 3 or 4 days off after that game.

His previous best goal tally was 11 in a side that finished on over 100 points at a considerably lower standard.

Brereton scored 37 in 2 seasons from a wide position. Hes a very good player at Championship level, albeit I dont think he will do well in La Liga.

4 year deal too.

He started the last 2 games I think prior to moving. Obviously his problem is that he is in the one area of real strength. We do have some areas where the options are nothing like as well stocked, probably part of the reason behind including Phillips, Henderson and Maguire, although still, none should be in there.

Its the owners that are the cause, theyve cut the budget to such a drastic degree that it threatens our competitiveness. Waggott is a popular fall guy, he doesnt add value in general and should have long since been let go but he doesnt warrant the criticism for this, nor does Broughton. The blame lies squarely in India, no ifs or buts.

Ive noticed on social media with the lack of football this week to talk about that Tomasson's post match comments from after the Plymouth game are being regurgitated and theres a growing narrative of "stop moaning" and "what will it do to the confidence of the players."

The timeline makes no sense, nor do Tomasson's surprise that another body didnt come in despite what Broughton had said, which was 3 players in talks. But either way, both of our opinions are seemingly resulting in no scope for any freebies.

Has he been playing football there?

That doesnt make any sense. Otherwise Tomasson would have never been under the impression that we would sign anyone else which Broughton publically expected with 24 hours to go. Moran was the 5th of 7 signings and Buckley left in the last hours.

How can you possibly know his current fitness levels?

Apparently a 46 game season does NOT result in a table showing teams in order of how they have played over a season. This seems to be a weird growing narrative as if results are almost an irrrlevant by product. What does playing well even mean in that case? One for the stat nerds I suppose.

Probably none are realistic, seeing as deals individually need the green light from the owners and Buckley went without bringing someone in so the massive wage budget slashing has left no room for manouevre. Even if we could afford a freebie, it would be difficult to find a good one, free for a reason at this stage and miles away from match fitness. Whilst we do need experience, most on that list are too far gone and havent played much football in years, players like Dann, Grabban, Lyle Taylor, Martin etc, some of whom that have been mentioned who would be beyond desperate. The most obvious gaps in the squad are perhaps left back, central midfield now Buckley has gone and wide right. You are going to struggle to find a freebie to improve the squad especially on that list. Fosu is the most obvious winger but usually plays on the left, wouldnt give us the pace we need and wouldnt really get many goals or assists. Josh Onomah is a decent player and somewhat impressed at PNE (and has had part of a pre season at Stoke) but has had big questions about his attitude and fitness. Bertrand would be ideal but would be unobtainable Id suggest. If there was any worthwhile freebies and in the unlikely scenario that the owners let us have another body on the wage bill. I suspect the value would be on players we have never heard of or at least seen ourselves that have been released by foreign clubs.

It was said before then that we had no money to spend so I do at least know that bidding millions on any player simply didnt happen.

Not that he shouldnt try but as if theyd listen. They are a lost cause.

This summer, we started with no money and somehow ended with less. Not only that, a mid window pulling out of the rug, a lack of communication, individual deals needing signing off and deals of experienced players flatly refused. We had no money to spend. His hands were tied. Regardless of how much Broughton and Waggott are paid, and comparisons to the fan base are totally meaningless. The desperation signings are solely a result of the owners. I think the nonsense about the Adams bid looking post window is proven to be absolute nonsense. We didnt have that sort of money at any point this summer.

You seem to focus the blame all on Broughton and no mention of the owners.

That could potentially explain Wahlstedt if Odd have been in there. But not why Hill has, Moran hasnt and Telalovic has.

If a couple of minutes in the Bundesliga counts, why doesnt Moran playing a similar amount in the Prem count? But Hill does? In reality, their combined top flight game time wouldnt make 90 minutes. And there is a valid question as to whether the Dutch league is stronger than the Championship, never mind the Norweigian league.

Have they played at a higher level? Unless a few minutes counts. Ennis - no. Telalovic - no, unless a couple of minutes counts. Sigurdsson - mixed bag. Tiny bit of game time in Serie A but couldnt make the team of a side that went down in a brief spell. Swedish league, definitely not. Russian league probably lower too albeit occasional Champions League games. Tronstad - unsure how the Dutch league compares. Wahlstedt - no. Hill - a cameo in the Prem, otherwise League 1 and SPL. Moran - barely any senior football.

Pochettino has got a poisoned chalice there, so much money spent on a squad that is no closer to the elite in the league. He has always seemingly had the reputation of one of the very best managers which has always seemed over the top to me.

I think your summary of those positions will be a common one. When you see it like that it really does highlight the neglect. Where we are weak, we are very weak. One left back, an average right winger and one who doesnt look up to it etc. Where we don't look as weak, we are unhealthily reliant on players who have not proven themselves at anything like Championship level. Central midfield, if Wharton can not sustain his levels over a schedule he has never seen before, we look very, very thin. In net, unless the newbie makes the step up instantly, we are stuck with Pears. And its similar relying on a young striker from the German fourth tier and/or a striker from League 1 made of glass. Same with a winger from the Swedish League.

The key issue with direct comparisons to last year is that last seasons squad was the smallest in the league, it wasn't big enough. We slipped away in last couple of months, again.

When you look at the squad listing on the website, you see how light we are. There is now an expectation on players with minimal senior experience (Telalovic, Garrett, Markanday, Leonard, Batty, even Wharton) featuring very regularly which is a huge ask of players who haven't experienced the 2 game a week intense schedule of Championship football.