It's so illogical isn't it. Yes there are exceptions to the rule but quite obviously a better start will on average lead to a better season overall.

Where is that from?

And the same as everyone elses on this messageboard. Presumably it should be deleted.

A player has either signed or he hasn't.

Thats all I have seen, but against Port Vale.

You've acknowledged disappointment that we don't have the main chunk of our business done before the season starts, and as you want first team quality, presumably you acknowledge that whilst our first 11 may be competitive, it isn't as strong as you'd like it to be in a month, so having a weaker side will give us a lesser chance of winning.

You seem to be working of the assumption that if the manager does or says something, then it must be the correct choice. I don't claim to know more than Tomasson, and accept that he has more information, but that doesn't discredit my right to an opinion. My personal opinion is that considering that no one is yet fully fit, that Dack has been training for a few weeks, he played an hour last weekend and also apparently scored again (see below) in another friendly on Tuesday, that it makes sense to start him and sub him after an hour if need be, rather than having our best player playing catch up from the start. I know he won't start but I stand by my opinion. You must have said 100 times that James Brown should stay here this season and shouldn't be loaned, assuming his loan goes through, do "you still disagree?"

Indeed, aside from the fact that as it stands going into the first game, we have signed one player, Callum Brittain.

https://www.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/20585278.jon-dahl-tomasson-outlines-blackburn-rovers-expectations/ "There is no truth in links of a move being close for Blackpool winger Josh Bowler" Him and Styles seem to be fighting to become this seasons Marcus Maddison.

Why is this argument that people are calling for us to sign inferior players repeated so often? I mean to be fair, the Venkys out call is always true. There are 2 statuses regarding transfers, completed and not completed. In between is irrelevant with games starting in 2 days.

Surely any urgency comes in wanting as strong as squad as possible for as many games as possible?

Nonsense. Rothwell was a key player last season as well as playing pretty much every game the year before. Nyambe has been aside from brief interludes the first choice right back for the last 5 years. Both leave huge gaps, hopefully one has been filled.

Last summer is not directly comparable though, we only did that because we had no transfer funds and we had to beg and borrow at the end of the window. Also most importantly if you tally Armstrong and Brereton off, we have lost much more important players this summer so the urgency is greater. There is also an assumption that Buckley will adapt seamlessly to a deeper role. Suited to it in theory but having only played there in kids football anrd friendlies, we cant be sure as he has made his name further forward, where his energy and pressing has been important. Im sure he played there v Hull away last season and struggled. He has some of the attributes to cope so hopefully he will easily adapt but we wont know until we try.

Surely you appreciate that it would be ideal to at least have most of our business done in advance, if we did we would have an even better chance of winning v QPR and the 6 games that follow, a big chunk of the season? And we are also lucky to as far as we know have no injury worries otherwise we would be even shorter. I don't agree that it is either or and indeed there are a number of signings that I would have had here but it is a weak argument IMO in that obviously I wouldn't be in a position to say whether many potential signings would improve us or not, especially ones from abroad. Ahmedhodzic was incredibly highly rated but ultimately I don't even know if he would have improved us, I have never seen him. I don't think I would be gutted had Brittain signed for another Championship club on the same token.

QPR have not lost as much as us but they have completed a lot of their business. They released Barbet and Clarke-Salter is a very good replacement, they signed a left back from Holland who I can't say that I have seen play like presumably most to replace Mcallum, they have signed Taylor Richards and they have added Tyler Roberts as another forward option. Willock I don't think has featured in pre season so hopefully will at most be a sub.

Hopefully but ultimately there are only 2 options as we approach a competitive game, signed and not signed. What is happening behind the scenes is fairly irrelevant in judging that, and as it is, we go into the first game with one addition. If we look to a fairly threadbare bench at the weekend needing something to change/secure the game, we can't bring on a player who has agreed personal terms but is yet to pass a medical or a player for whom we are £200k away from agreeing a fee! Even if we do sign someone, I suspect they would struggle to be involved at the weekend. I don't get how people are so dismissive of the 7 games to be played between the weekend and the end of the window. I don't think anyone has realistically suggested that we won't sign any more players, of course some IMO justified skepticism as to how much money we will spend on permanent additions, but it is NOT IDEAL to have only filled one of a number of massive holes in the team going into the season. It would be perhaps unrealistic to have expected all of the business to have been done, but equally it is a very realistic expectation to expect much more than one addition to be made, and we now are in a position whereby we need to do somewhat of an overhaul whilst the season is underway. A big problem is that people raising worries are shot down by the argument that we want good players rather than to get players in before the season, as if its either or.

Upset, maybe not albeit I did put that in quotation marks. Frustrated/worried that we are going into the season with only one signing having lost half of our starting 11 before considering other squad members, is that fair? I would say so personally.

Aren't people "upset" because we have only signed one player having seen loads go, rather than because of a lack of gossip about signings?

I think though that it won't be as suited to him as having Conway and Marshall (for some of the season, Bennett after) crossing balls into him. Hopefully you are right though.

I think the key is to separate the two aspects of recruitment and not imply that its one or the other. Quality (the most important) which is obviously impossible to judge yet aside from one signing and timing which 4 days before the season starts we can start to judge which for whatever reason, to which we can only speculate, is a point of understandable frustration. I think to suggest that he rejected players because he was sulking was a totally unfair assumption. He would have had the right to be put out by having his autonomy removed if that was the case, but no I think was just coincidence because our poor run had started and he was getting crabbier because he was seeing his team often lose and then being asked tough questions that he couldn't answer due to those results.

He got 11 in at least two thirds of a season of playing in a front 2 with 2 wingers, in which the brunt of the problem was defensively. Everyone who suggests that he will score loads of goals bases it on seasons in which they feel he was hard done by, he would score loads more if x, y or z changed. He isn't a natural goalscorer as far as I can see and he is soon to be 27 so he is in his supposed prime, I would love him to bang 20 goals but I don't see how people based on anything they have seen can predict it. I prefer 3 subs personally but if it is 5, I am surprised that it isn't 9 like last time we could use 5. 7 makes it very difficult to name a bench with enough variety on the assumption that you may well use all 9 subs. I also think that 9 would allow a bit more room for a youngster or two when it suits.

He wasn't an attacking midfielder, his best season came playing next to Travis.

I agree that maybe it won't be loans but equally you can understand why people may fear that scenario based on previous summers most notably last year. Is it passing off theories as fact? You have made up that the reason for turning down players was "sulking." He said that Premier League loan strikers were turned down because he didn't feel like we needed another central striker, Forss and Connolly were mentioned who were poor elsewhere. Likely a bad decision but lets not add the narrative that it was because he was sulking. Isn't the grievance that he was not again not allowed to sign players with some of the money following a potential sale? Out of interest, considering that you consider a manager who finished 15th, 11th, 15th and 8th on our budget to be "infinitely" worse than ordinary. (I would say ordinary is not far off the truth FWIW) Where is the expectation for this season for Tomasson? I didn't disagree on Brittain, I like you have seemingly not seen him very often and ultimately do not have a firm opinion either way, cautiously optimistic to see how he does, mixed reviews from Barnsley fans but he is at Rovers now. We may well make a couple more cash buys but I would be pleasantly surprised if any are for over £3m and I would be even more pleasantly surprised if we sign Van Hecke permanently as he would be an excellent signing.

What you say tallies up with much of what I said but it is surely logical that the closer we get to the season lacking reinforcements and also in the absence of completed transfers to talk about then that tension will grow. The end of the window is 7 games in, the gap between now and then ideally would be looking for the cherry on top, not most of the cake.

So now we arent going to be like Rovers 94/95 nor are we going to be like Man City. No one has implied either of those comparisons. The majority of clubs will not be able to get under 70% unless the whole league/structure and its economic structure adapts proportionately. If Mowbray was here this season and we finished much further down the league, he would have rightfully been criticised. Most teams have lost players especially widespread loanees but with Brereton set to bring in a second windfall in 2 years we become easily under FFP regulations whilst having the ability to spend a bit to replace those players.