crazylegsjoe_mfc

Credit where credit is due, he did make an impact, but one swallow doesn't make a summer. Not enough to forget countless performances last season where he wasn't up to it. He was so ineffectual at Rugby Park a few days before Christmas, it was almost like we'd had a man sent off rather than made a sub.

Can't add much to what's already been said, but what I will say is I'm pretty bemused at Robinson sticking square pegs in round holes. There's been so many times over the years where we've had to play a right-footed player at left wing, a centre-forward out wide, a winger on the wrong side, a centre-midfielder wide, but this season there is no excuse. Unless Campbell was carrying a knock or we are keeping him fit to be sold, Robinson needs his head checking for leaving him off the full 90. The keeper and back four were all fine, but we have five central midfielders and suitable candidates for each of the three usual forward roles. We also are in a rare situation where we have two left-footed wingers, two right-footed wingers, three out and out centre forwards and a guy who can play "all across the front three". I'm always wary of us carrying a big squad and I think having nine players listed as "forward" on the website is massively bloated anyway, but to then play a central midfielder in a forward role makes that worse. I think we have the luxury of suitable candidates in the side for not only every position, but every role. So surely we should pick the most suitable player for each role and have the balls to drop someone if they're not the most suitable for any role, regardless of who they are or how good they are. That way, you might get a good performance out of either Turnbull or Polworth, rather than a substandard performance from both, for example.

For me, the fact that we have used Donnelly there so frequently in pre-season was what suggested Mugabi's cards were marked and without being massively harsh, I'd like to think if we were that bad at the back for injuries, we'd give Devine or Hussein a go. I still think Hylton did have something to offer last season without being spectacular, if he's going to be the level of our backup this season then I'm very much good with that. Seedorf was ineffectual apart from his two screamers in August. Trying to gauge favour from pre-season can sometimes be tough, but it looks like even Robinson his ahead of him now. As for MacIver and Semple, I'd sooner see them develop out somewhere else until Christmas, rather than them taking two empty seats on a bench they're unlikely to get on from.

When Robinson gets a signing wrong, he's usually very good at realising the error of his ways and punting them sharpish, even if they are under contract. I'm guessing in a summer of budget cuts, wage deferrals etc, that might be a bit harder, but I would think given our depth both at centre-back and in the front three, given how little they have seemed to feature during pre-season, he must be trying to work an exit for Seedorf and Mugabi. If it was up to me, I'd be trying to get MacIver and Semple out on loan so they don't stagnate with lack of gametime. Not quite sure where Barry Maguire will get any game time this season. You'd think O'Hara and Donnelly would both need to be out for him to get a sniff in the DM role.

How do we think we will line up against Ross County? Less than a week to go and normally at this stage, I could just about predict our starting XI for the first league game, but this year it seems a lot harder. GK - Carson RB - Grimshaw RCB - Gallagher LCB - Donnelly or Lamie - hard to tell with this one, given Gallagher's pre season injury has seen them both start a lot at centre back. I wonder if Donnelly will play there as Robinson tries to fit as many of the central midfielders in as he can. LB - McGinley - has started all the pre-season games at LB as far as I'm aware, so I'd be surprised for it not to be him. DM - O'Hara or Donnelly - obviously slightly depends on the CB situation but I'm not sure which of the two will get the nod if Lamie plays CM - Campbell - has the box to box role nailed on as his CM - Turnbull or Polworth - obviously Turnbull is a genius but it would seem harsh to see Polworth start the season on the bench, given how important his assists/set pieces are to us. I'm not sure if he might start the season in the team as we might allow Turnbull to gradually get back up to speed. Front three - I think this depends on whether we go for 1 winger/2 forwards or 1 forward/2 wingers. I suspect it will be three from Hylton, Hastie, Long and Watt.

Allegedly codes for MFC TV are being sent out to season ticket holders tonight, according to a tweet from Grant Russell yesterday. Classic Motherwell giving ourselves a big window to sort teething problems out. I understand that it's probably supplier-driven, but it wouldn't have hurt to send an e-mail out or a statement on the website, rather than people being in the dark with 24 hours to go.

Returning to work after a week off and finding out the CL99 news was not what my blood pressure needed today.

Is Ryan Christie ruled out based on the fact that he's probably more famous already than Charlie ever was?

Notice a guy behind Watt in the gym, wearing the unassigned number 13, who I don't recognise. Any of our ITK types have any ideas?

I agree that no one should get carried away. I think Aberdeen should fancy themselves as a decent shout for third as they haven't lost anyone of note and have signed Jonny Hayes as well as only recently having brought in Dylan McGeouch and Matty Kennedy in January. For us it's obviously a lot more of the unknown, with new signings and guys like Turnbull and Carson returning after being out injured long-term, but given we proactively seem to be going out and getting targets, when you have even the likes of Hibs talking about wage deferrals etc, it does make you think we must be in a decent position for the season ahead and there's reason for cautious optimism.

We are a little short of cover at right-back, although touch wood Grimshaw isn't one to suffer from many niggles, so that should be fine and I guess Donnelly, O'Hara and Gallagher have all played there in the past. Scott Fox is obviously a downgrade on Carson as number two, but the goalkeeper situation last season was quite exceptional circumstances. Other than those two caveats, I think our squad is in a healthier place than last season. McGinley seems to have been much sought after and I'd call that a definite upgrade on Hartley. Good also to have a versatile backup in Lamie who knows the league. We've never had so many good central midfielders at once and despite anyone's pre-conceived opinions of Hastie's ability/personality/character, I don't think anyone would argue against him being an upgrade on Ilic. Perhaps there's still a debate to be had between the trio of Watt/White/Lang (if he signs) being as good as Long/Cole/Scott, but time will tell with that. Very pleased with how our squad seems to be forming given the circumstances.

It was, believe he only started as Paul Slane got injured in the warm up. Jim O’Brien was initially meant to start at right back.

This is exactly why I find him leaving an almost blameless situation. He came back from two loan spells where it's safe to say he done reasonably well without setting the heather on fire and the club made a call to give him a make or break six months. I don't think anyone, Stephen Robinson and Jake Hastie included, thought he would come in and do quite as well as he did. I don't blame the club for not having a player they weren't quite sure about tied down on a Jim McLean-esque contract and similarly I don't blame someone who had an individual championship goal by Christmas for Alloa signing a contract worth probably close to a million in May.

At the end of the 2018/19 season, I bet no one thought we would be starting the 2020/21 season with the prospect of Hastie, Turnbull and Campbell in the same team. Don't get me wrong, it's taken a hand from a global pandemic and a failed medical, but still.

I can't see them recalling him to use him in their first team. Last season, he got recalled from Rotherham due to him falling out of the team, so it may be that if six months down the line we're not using him often, they recall him based on that.

I'm fine with him being back, provided he does it on the park. As I said a couple of days ago on this thread, I don't have any qualms with him looking after himself financially by signing that contract with Rangers and looking back I don't think you can apportion too much blame to Motherwell for not having him tied down, I don't think anyone could have foreseen him scoring 1 in 19 in the championship then 6 in 14 in the Premiership. I think it could go either way in terms of him hitting the ground running and finishing the season with a good amount of goals or he could end up just being a rotation wide option like all of them were at some point last season. Regardless of who he is, or what he's done, I'd be happier seeing his name in the lineup than Seedorfs. Naturally there will be more pressure with him coming back, but if Robinson thinks he's the best available to us in his position, then it would be stupid not to go for him.

I wonder if this will affect our pursuit of Lang on loan as well as any issue with Kipre's installments/sell-on fee. If Hastie came back and done us a turn then I'd be all for it, although I was slightly in the "one trick pony" camp towards the end myself, although admittedly I may have been a bit fickle with his impending move to Rangers. The problem is that since he's left, he's had a few months at Rotherham where he played on the left (thus eliminating the cut inside move) and after a promising start dipped in and out the side, then went back and played in the reserves/Irn Bru cup for Rangers. It's hardly like we're getting him back in "good condition" so to speak. There's also the pressure element. When he came back from Alloa, he was expected to be Elliott Frear's understudy after Frear worked his way back into the side. He then came into the team due to Frear's injury and started scoring belters. We have several fans who will be questioning the clubs' decision to bring him back if he comes in and goes, say, 5 or 6 matches without a belter or similar moment of magic. One thing that goes in his favour is that he may get his "settling in" period behind closed doors. I actually don't at any point blame him for joining Rangers. I think the stats were something like 4 goals in 60 games between Airdrie and Alloa, so you really can't blame someone who hasn't particularly been a standout at lower levels cashing in on a purple patch. I think you'd struggle to find many who'd have acted differently in his shoes. I think the difference between him and Turnbull was that Turnbull had faith he wasn't just a flash in the pan, purple patch, one trick pony type of player (delete as applicable) and he had faith there would be interest beyond last summer and people would be willing to pay a fee for him (obviously that didn't work out exactly to plan but the general point stands)

I suppose Casper Sloth got number 8 last season and we all know how that went! I like O'Hara and I'm definitely pleased he has signed, but I reckon the signing has been made with a view to a midfielder not being here until the window is shut. I imagine things will be quiet for the next while as most clubs in pursuit of either Campbell or Turnbull will be English-based and currently completing their lopsided season. Our midfield three is generally made up of an anchor, a box to box midfielder and a creative midfielder and Donnelly, Campbell, Polworth and Turnbull all seem to have a clear preferred role in that. One thing O'Hara has going for him is that he seems like he could move between those roles more easily, depending on who was available. If we end up with an out-and-out winger and a "player who can play across the front three", I would say that we're only actually cover at right-back short of having a leaner, more quality side than last season now, despite the reduced budget.

To be fair, the footnote of the BBC article did say no one at Motherwell was available for comment. I think it's a wee bit daft that he's come out and said that, if he had no ill feeling about the club I wonder why he'd have felt the need. When it got announced last week, I think it's one of very few times that I've seen our support fully unite both on a player's contribution to the club and wishing him well for the future and he might just have compromised it with these remarks. Especially when the club's statement says that he wasn't getting a paycut, just not getting a payrise and being bluntly honest, I wouldn't want a player, regardless of who he is, getting a payrise when he only started 12 out of 30 league games in the previous season. That said, I won't lose any sleep over his comments and certainly will remember him more for his immense contribution on the pitch than a throwaway comment in an interview.

I wonder if #7, #9 and #11 being free means we can expect three more outfield signings. As the #numberpolis, it annoys me that Turnbull didn't keep 7 and allow Donnelly or Polworth into the first eleven.

I would have said it's a cracking signing for you. Although he's a right back by trade, he spent most of his time with us playing left-back due to our inability to find a left-back post Stevie Hammell. Everyone thought when we signed Jake Carroll this summer we'd finally see him on the right, but Grimshaw who had been filling in there made the spot his own, which was very unfortunate for Tait. A great pro and a very likeable chap into the bargain. Without delving too much into cliches, I hope he does well, except against us.

I hadn't heard of him myself, but had a quick scan at his transfermarkt page. He came through Wigan's academy and has hit double figures on loan to Morecambe and Oldham on season long loans in League Two and a slightly more modest 3 goals in 16 games at Shrewsbury in League One that season there. It also has him down as playing a fair few games on either wing and as a number 10 as well as centre-forward.

I also noticed Seedorf is #17 now as well, perhaps indicative of his place for next season too. Was talking to a couple of mates last night and wondered if a back three might be a possibility next season? Obviously we've made 4-3-3 our identity the last eighteen months, but looking at our personnel for next season, Donnelly looked decent as the "sweeper" a couple of times in a back three last season and it might be a way to get him, Polworth, Campbell and Turnbull all in the one side. You also have a potential front-two in White and Watt and not much out wide other than Seedorf and Hylton.

That's as good an assessment as Polworth as I have seen. 15 assists in all competitions is fantastic and to go a bit deeper than that, there were a lot of times where he had what you might call secondary assists, where Gallagher would head his corners or free-kicks onto the eventual scorers. His weight of pass in open play is fantastic too and even though he doesn't charge about like Campbell or Grimshaw, I think his work-rate is actually very good. Agreed regarding his finishing - I can't remember the particular chance you are talking about - but I do remember him going one-on-one at Rugby Park a few days before Christmas and wondering how he managed to not score.

I remember the last-time we signed a goalkeeper who seemed to be maligned by the supporters of the clubs he had played for, I remember thinking "he's played 300 odd top flight games, can he really be that bad?" and that goalkeeper turned out to be no other than..... Craig Samson. Theoretically though, it makes sense that when Trevor Carson hasn't played since November 2018, it would be a big risk not to have experienced backup. I know Morrison has experience from Cowdenbeath and Albion Rovers, but it's a tricky one to rely on him as number two. Hopefully, Carson stays fit and Fox is on buttons that doesn't affect our pursuit of a winger or two much. The BBC gossip column has Killie after Richard Tait. Makes sense, with O'Donnell leaving and Hamailen's loan spell coming to an end.