I’ve been quite impressed with Edun in the friendlies so far. Big difference to league games I know, but I think he’d be a better bet on the left hand side.

We all might have to develop strong addictions to make it through the season if we don’t sign a right back!

If we don’t upgrade significantly on Brown and JRC we will get absolutely ripped apart down that side every single game. I’m still hopeful we move away from that formation, though the friendlies so far would suggest not. I think we will be exposed in the league without strong addictions, and if Brereton goes I worry about our goal threat. It would be interesting to see how Gallagher would adapt to being a focal point of it though, if it wasn’t for the urgency of results.

With Nyambe still not finalised anywhere Broughton should be on the blower to his agent, apologising for Waggott and asking how much he wants again. Right back is the huge problem for us as things stand.

Serious question, is Davies really all that? I can’t say I’ve seen that much of him. Looking at the stats he managed 20 odd games for Sheff Utd last season. Is the fact Liverpool signed him to make up the numbers in training inflating everyone’s opinion of him? I don’t think there’s be so much clamour to pay a sizeable fee and make him our highest paid player and captain if he was coming from PNE.

I’m 99% sure it’s not their fault but ours.

We are in desperate need of a right back. I really dislike this formation. Still waiting for JDT to put his stamp on things… they still seem Mowbrayesque.

He was absolutely horrible tonight.

Pick of the bunch that half for me.

Superfan Tax!

This can’t be true. He must be on 20k per week easy, if not more. Plus a loan fee on top?! If we end up paying ridiculous money like this for loans (and I know it was reported we did this with Poveda last season), yet we can’t find the money to pay academy graduates the going rate, our “structure” needs ripping up. Utter madness. We need to be finding much better deals than this. At the moment, us employing a director of football is like a chippy employing an executive chef.

If this is the case then Waggott should be really worried at the moment. If he has failed to spend money made available and also failed to get us in the playoffs, never mind promoted, you’d expect he’d have been hauled over the coals. On top of the failings last season it looks as though we are going to struggle to field a vaguely competent starting 11 unless there is a massive turnaround pretty quickly. If this is all down to Waggott being useless, and he’s failing to carry out Venky’s wishes, they are being completely negligent by allowing it to continue. But in reality it seems like they are happy with him, and the job he’s doing. My guess is that they are satisfied with the modest reduction in losses he is making and do not care about much else.

Waggott has publicly stated that we won’t entertain gambling companies as sponsors for moral reasons, even though they offer far better financial incentive. So we’ve gone with a vaping company for less money. I know gambling can destroy lives, but it is also enjoyed by millions moderately and recreationally. I use vaping products because I have been addicted to nicotine for over 20 years and it presents a much cheaper alternative to strongly regulated heavily taxed cigarettes. I don’t know anyone who vapes for a bit of recreation. The moral stance is inconsistent at best. The commercial decision is costly.

We’d also be able to offer more if we looked a bit further afield than Stancliffe Street for a sponsor, put some companies other than Venky’s on the electronic advertising hoardings, and utilised the facilities at Ewood better on match days and non-match days. Too easy to blame it all on the fans, despite that being exactly the narrative the club want to push.

This has got “Digital Paul” written all over it

Exactly. The majority enter the football machine at 8 or 9 years old. They often don’t have the fandom of other kids and spend their spare time training and playing in a pretty pressured environment rather than supporting. Obviously all kids are different, but there aren’t many who become fanatical supporters as well as players. Their formative years are very different to those of most of us. It’s a different indoctrination.

Just watched the first game. It’s never the same watching the video back as it is being there, but here goes… You could be forgiven for thinking we still had our old manager. Hopefully JDT can coach the Mowbray out of them quickly. Really pedestrian and we only really looked like doing anything when Brereton got on the ball. Thankless task playing in midfield in that formation. I don’t think Magloire looked any worse than any of the other defenders… but that’s the faintest of faint praise. We were hopeless at the back. I suggest we get on replacing those “easily replaceable” two pretty bloody quickly, or we are in trouble. You can see why Markanday never got a look in at Spurs, he’s doesn’t have the physical attributes to play in the Premier League. Saw a few glimpses though. Pickering was decent in their half but rubbish in ours. Only a friendly, and a first one at that, but lots of work to be done. On the booing, there was one loud individual boo mixed in with the unenthusiastic clapping picked up on the recording. More annoying was the tasteless Jack Walker song being sung by a few presumably of Dingle persuasion.

I’d much rather this than loaning in other teams fringe youngsters. Agree that we need to be spending any money we have on filling the glaring holes in the starting 11, but I’d still like one more midfielder in though… a Bradley Johnson type with a few more years on his side would be good.

I think he had bags of potential playing further up the pitch. Last season was an absolute disaster for the lad and there’s a worry that injuries and being repeatedly shoehorned into a position that doesn’t suit him is ruining him. Big season for him I think, just hope to god he’s not employed in defence.

Being grateful/hopeful that there are three worse squads than ours in the league… is this what we’ve become?

Plus a wage bill cut to the bone since the last accounts were published

There have been more links for outgoings than incomings so far. And the silence from Tomasson and Broughton after their initial interviews is deafening. Apparently only us, Blackpool and Wigan are the Championship clubs yet to make signings. And they haven’t had an exodus to deal with like us. We really need to crack on.

I’ve seen people the last couple of days claiming that without fans like them buying the shirt, regardless of whether they like it or not, we won’t be able to make any signings and may even go to the wall. Lets pretend for a minute that Waggott negotiated us a pretty favourable deal with Macron… well, the club will see about 10% of the £50/60 or however much they are these days. You’d be contributing far more if you bought some of the cheap tat they stick a club crest on or a handful of the player photos they stack up on the till. One kids match day ticket trumps a shirt.

Nyambe might have more joy attacking for a team that have a centre forward in the box rather than by the corner flag.

Some very valid points there. We are completely reliant on Venky’s continued funding to exist in our present state - a state of purgatory of their own making. Everyone is hopeful this is the start of a new era and that we might actually see some improvements on and off the pitch, but I think the pessimism is entirely understandable give the events of the last 12 years. Something has to change. We can’t carry on losing £20 million a year indefinitely. Obviously we all want the team promoted, which immediately solves our financial issues, and gives Venky’s an out. For this to work there’s have to be an element of risk, but an exciting managerial and DOF appointment and restructure aside, all indications are that those in power are happy to continue with a steady process of managed decline and to make modest reductions to the losses here and there. As if that’s any sort of long term answer. This was always going to be a pivotal summer. If Venky’s make a mess of it, surely that has to be the final straw for even their staunchest defenders.