Motherwell FC - A Thread For All Seasons

[capt_oats]

12 minutes ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

I still have ultimate faith in Ketts but I feel this could be a bit of a ball-ache of a window. We're in the quite unfortunate position where all the players who made the 3-5-2 so effective are leaving but a bunch of #10s and shite centre-backs are staying. 

In a league without Dundee United (lol) we should probably be favourites for 6th but I can see it being an 8th-9th job solely because of the state the squad is in.

Aye.

I see it's been reported that's Furlong signed a new deal with Brighton. I mean, good for him and he's not one I was really expecting back but he's another one of the core who really made the 3412 work. I could see Brighton wanting to loan him out to the Championship next season to see how he gets on.

I still have my reservations about Ketts, which is very much a *me* problem rather than anything he has/hasn't done but he hasn't had a window with us and as you say our squad is in a really fucking weird place in terms of the gaps that need filled and the handful of players who are contracted that have question marks over them.

It'd be quite nice to hear from him and get an idea of what his plans are tbh.

Edited June 18, 2023 by capt_oats

[CoveRangers1922]

2 hours ago, capt_oats said:

@CoveRangers1922 is maybe best placed to say how Johnston got on up there but broadly I think this is the thing that we haven't quite worked out yet tbh, not just with Johnston but generally.

In short, with the way Modern Fitba' has changed I don't think we get the chance to wait until a player at that level of development impresses for the first team because chances are they'll already have been flagged - see McKinstry, McAlear, Rice etc.

Johnston seemed to have been earmarked as the next one off the ML1 conveyer belt, we were doing bits of #content with him before he'd made his debut eg: 'Introducing the Next Talent' (16th January 2021) and you'd like to think that at least a few around Fir Park recognised his potential longer term ceiling.

In terms of an actual plan for him though,  ¯\_(ツ)_/¯? 

Without wanting to labour the timeline point; he made his debut against Accies 13th February 2021 (1-4) and his first start against St Johnstone on 20th February 2021 (0-3). The following season we loaned him to QotS for the season (Alexander), the first link of apparent interest came 9th March 2022 - Luton and Sheffield United (a year after his debut) before Sheffield Wednesday's name appeared on 7th October 2022 after we'd loaned him to Cove Rangers (Hammell).

We eventually recalled him in January 2023 and we know what's happened since then; Scottish Writers Young Player of The Year and apparent interest from Bologna, Torino, Augsburg, Monaco, Sporting Lisbon, Burnley, Brighton and Norwich amongst others.

Turnbull, Scott and Hastie were all offered their extensions at the same time and at the same point in their careers that Johnston is now and it feels like we'd seen a lot more of them at Dev level than we did with Johnston. 2 signed, 1 didn't (Hiya Jake).

Turnbull signed his 2.5 year deal at 19 on 29th January 2019, Scott signed his 3.5 year deal on 15th February 2019. Hastie obviously fucked off to Ibrox.

Clearly I've no idea when we opened discussions with those players - I'd imagine that we'd been looking to sort them out for a while before they were eventually announced and we're at the mercy of the players and their representatives as to when that happens. Either way in the case of both Turnbull and Scott they signed their contracts with less than 6 months on their existing deals.

Again, without actually knowing all the details, from the outside looking in it feels high risk if you're talking about players that you have hopes of actually cementing themselves as first team players.

The exception to that, for whatever reason, seems to have been Allan Campbell who we announced had signed a 4 year deal on 13th October 2017 when he was 19 (having previously been announced as having signed a 3 year deal on 30th March 2017 - when he was 17).

The next one is obviously Lennon Miller who's currently contracted to 2025 and we seem to have been getting in and around the first team at a young age. Youngest ever Motherwell player and all that.

Max oozed quality from day one of joining us on loan . Unreal to think he's just 19. Got a truly fantastic career ahead of him. Will be watching intently as to how it pans out. Good strength, stamina, makes overlapping runs, strong delivery and can chip in with a goal or two. 

Confident lad too, always guiding his winger (Longstaff) and communicating with the defence. 

Can't see him staying in the SPL. One for the Well would be Harry Milne. Poses similar attributes to Max but better aerially and physically stronger and more aggressive in the challenge. Not sure how you're placed at LB but someone in the SPL will undoubtedly take him this summer

 

Edited June 18, 2023 by CoveRangers1922

[Ludo*1]

1 minute ago, CoveRangers1922 said:

Max oozed quality from day one of joining us on loan . Unreal to think he's just 19. Got a truly fantastic career ahead of him. Will be watching intently as to how it pans out. Good strength, stamina, makes overlapping runs, strong delivery and can chip in with a goal or two. 

Confident lad too, always guiding his winger (Longstaff) and communicating with the defence. 

Can't see him staying in the SPL. One for the Well would be Harry Milne. Poses similar attributes to Max but better aerially and physically stronger and more aggressive in the challenge. Not sure how you're placed at LB but someone in the SPL will undoubtedly take him this summer

 

Don't be touting Harry Milne to other clubs - I'm still hopeful we'll swoop. Leave it out.

[capt_oats]

12 minutes ago, CoveRangers1922 said:

Max oozed quality from day one of joining us on loan . Unreal to think he's just 19. Got a truly fantastic career ahead of him. Will be watching intently as to how it pans out. Good strength, stamina, makes overlapping runs, strong delivery and can chip in with a goal or two. 

Confident lad too, always guiding his winger (Longstaff) and communicating with the defence. 

Can't see him staying in the SPL. One for the Well would be Harry Milne. Poses similar attributes to Max but better aerially and physically stronger and more aggressive in the challenge. Not sure how you're placed at LB but someone in the SPL will undoubtedly take him this summer

Cheers. I thought he had a decent turn while he was there.

As far as LB goes as I mentioned in my reply to @YassinMoutaouakil it seems that's Brighton taken up their option on James Furlong who was playing LWB so, as it stands, we have no LB or LWB options (the story is that Ewan Wilson's resigned but that hasn't been announced by the club and it's not clear what the plan would be with him anyway as he was out on loan at Albion Rovers last season).

Tbh, it all depends on what Kettlewell's looking to do - he got a lot of joy out of playing a 3412 with Johnston and Furlong as attacking wing backs but clearly WBs and FBs are different skillsets and we're in the position where most of the players who made that shape work are OOC (Furlong, Johnston, Goss, Obika/Mandron) or probably leaving (KVV).

Is Milne exclusively a full back or does he fit as a wing back - he's one that a few in the thread have touted as someone we'd do well to take a look at before.

Edited June 18, 2023 by capt_oats

[RandomGuy.]

I mentioned Milne one here about 6 months ago, if we're playing top trumps.

[CoveRangers1922]

4 minutes ago, Ludo*1 said:

Don't be touting Harry Milne to other clubs - I'm still hopeful we'll swoop. Leave it out.

I was talking to him in early  March and briefly at half time at the County game. I know he feels settled down in Glasgow but he's got SPL talent and will undoubtedly be attracting a lot of interest from clubs in the top tier. Won't cost too big a fee in the scheme of things. Interesting to see where he ends up. If I were him I wouldn't rule out any top tier offer

[CoveRangers1922]

10 minutes ago, capt_oats said:

Cheers. I thought he had a decent turn while he was there.

As far as LB goes as I mentioned in my reply to @YassinMoutaouakil it seems that's Brighton taken up their option on James Furlong who was playing LWB so, as it stands, we have no LB or LWB options (the story is that Ewan Wilson's resigned but that hasn't been announced by the club and it's not clear what the plan would be with him anyway as he was out on loan at Albion Rovers last season).

Tbh, it all depends on what Kettlewell's looking to do - he got a lot of joy out of playing a 3412 with Johnston and Furlong as attacking wing backs but clearly WBs and FBs are different skillsets and we're in the position where most of the players who made that shape work are OOC (Furlong, Johnston, Goss, Obika/Mandron) or probably leaving (KVV).

Is Milne exclusively a full back or does he fit as a wing back - he's one that a few in the thread have touted as someone we'd do well to take a look at before.

Definitely wing back. Very strong in both directions 

[Desp]

1 hour ago, Gianfranco said:

It would be nice to be linked with someone.

The silence is, you could say, deafening. 

[capt_oats]

5 minutes ago, RandomGuy. said:

I mentioned Milne one here about 6 months ago, if we're playing top trumps.

See if you're still doing radars, I'm curious to know what Sean Goss' looks like for last season? I know he's a favourite of yours.

Kind of feels like he's leaving a pretty massive hole to fill in the midfield now.

Edited June 18, 2023 by capt_oats

[Ludo*1]

6 minutes ago, RandomGuy. said:

I mentioned Milne one here about 6 months ago, if we're playing top trumps.

If we're truly playing top trumps, I was gutted when Partick Thistle signed him!

[CoveRangers1922]

5 minutes ago, capt_oats said:

See if you're still doing radars, I'm curious to know what Sean Goss' looks like for last season? I know he's a favourite or yours.

Kind of feels like he's leaving a pretty massive hole to fill in the midfield now.

Harry was attracting SPL interest when with us towards the middle of the our L1 title winning season. He dominated games and looked superior to any other LB even in the league above. It was a certainty he'd excel at Thistle. McCall wrapped up the PCA super early. He tried to get Harry a year or two before that as well.

Edited June 18, 2023 by CoveRangers1922

[18May1991]

19 hours ago, YassinMoutaouakil said:

I think we should make him one of our highest earners and build the team around him.

Absolutely. Got to be in it to win it. Speculate to accumulate. Etc. 

[YassinMoutaouakil]

I would be willing to give Thistle Connor Shields AND Barry Maguire if this boy is as good as he sounds.

Edited June 18, 2023 by YassinMoutaouakil

[bunglebonce]

56 minutes ago, capt_oats said:

 

It'd be quite nice to hear from him and get an idea of what his plans are tbh.

He’s been on holiday, I’m sure you’ll hear soon enough.

[YassinMoutaouakil]

25 minutes ago, bunglebonce said:

He’s been on holiday, I’m sure you’ll hear soon enough.

Whereabouts?

[capt_oats]

3 hours ago, bunglebonce said:

He’s been on holiday, I’m sure you’ll hear soon enough.

Aye, It wasn't a dig. I figured he'd have been on holiday. I hope he's been somewhere nice.

It's just that there are quite a lot of unknowns around us at the moment, our end of season squad update was announced in a pretty weird way and it's been pretty quiet comms-wise especially with Burrows having moved to Pittodrie. For those of us who still follow him on the socials the job he's doing for Aberdeen is *quite* the reminder of what we're currently not getting from the club at the moment.

As I say, given this is Kettlewell's first window and pre-season with us it'll be genuinely interesting to hear what he's got to say about things.

Edited June 18, 2023 by capt_oats

[rowsdower]

Maybe not having someone entertaining the Twitter roasters will make them go away?

If transfer dealings are going on and no one from the club tweets about it, do they still happen? Do we really need someone stating the obvious to the masses so we can feel better? "Yes, we'll be looking to bring in a few", etc, no shit?

We're rarely the fist choice destination for most players, which makes it difficult for us to get quality in earlier as folk are weighing their options. I'm taking a guess, but with how things went from January onwards, with hammell signing a whole team and then Kettlewell changing the system, I think we missed the opportunity for PCAs. Especially since we had no clarity on our budget until very close to the end of the season. 

We must he very close to the deadlines we set for the likes of Goss and Casey though.

[ropy]

Goss is with the NI set up so hasn’t had his holiday yet, does that delay a decision?

[RandomGuy.]

7 hours ago, capt_oats said:

See if you're still doing radars, I'm curious to know what Sean Goss' looks like for last season? I know he's a favourite of yours.

Kind of feels like he's leaving a pretty massive hole to fill in the midfield now.

Probably makes him average/above average as a deep midfielder (bottom half of chart), and replacing him in possession looks like it could be the hard bit as hes an outlier there.

[crazylegsjoe_mfc]

He definitely got one goal last season - a free kick against Hibs - don't know if that has much effect on the radar