The shenanigans on the Golden Mile have offered a salutary reminder of just how badly, and quickly, things can go wrong when a football club is mis-managed at the very top.
Blackpool’s playing squad currently consists of eight professionals and in yesterday’s friendly with Penrith their starting line-up was reported thus:
Team: Trialist, Waddington, Trialist, Perkins, McMahon, Dunne, Zenjov, Trialist, Trialist, Grant, Trialist.
How would we be feeling if Neil Adams’ first friendly line-up of the summer included five trialists? As things stand they don’t have a goalkeeper on the books.
The root of their current malaise – aside from reportedly having an owner who appears more intent on taking money out of the club than putting it in – is that last season’s squad was largely a hybrid of loanees and players on the final year of their contract. What is known in the latest Oxford English dictionary as a ‘Roeder’.
And it never ends well.
Yet, even in our darkest days, we were at least safe(ish) in the knowledge that our club was being governed by folk who genuinely cared about it. Some of the decision-making appeared illogical but still the intention was honourable. As it is to this day.
Which brings us on to Team Adams, who currently are preparing the squad for their third pre-season friendly at the St Vincent training camp in Italy – against a Serie D team called S.C. Vallée d’Aoste. Bizarrely, at the eleventh hour the scheduled opposition – Novara – appear unable to fulfil the fixture.
Their problem – other than a chaotic schedule – is rather different to that of Blackpool manager Jose Riga. Currently they have a squad of around 30 players from which to fashion a team that will mount a Championship challenge. And that’s too many.
We understand from Adams himself that another central-defender is on the shopping list. In order to accommodate any news faces, and thin out a squad that is in danger of taking on QPR proportions, there will be some departures in the next few weeks.
In conversation with the EDP, Adams confirmed as much but is wary of losing players late in the window: “What we don’t want to do is get to the end of the window and see players potentially go and leave the squad in a weaker position and we are not able to replace them.”
I would suggest that as a club with ‘no need to sell’, that particular scenario is one over which they have – or at least should have – complete control.
After last weekend’s fairly gentle run-out at Dereham, things looked to have been stepped up a gear at Braintree with those Canary fans present being treated to the oddity of an avalanche of goals.
Again the purpose of the exercise was fitness and experimentation but, as mentioned in my last column, the need to rediscover that winning feeling remains an important one. With Braintree now a Conference Premier outfit I suspect Adams was quietly pleased with a job well done.
That Kyle Lafferty and Ricky van Wolfswinkel have since picked up injuries in training (an indication of the intensity of training perhaps?) is disappointing, although the former’s only appears to be a niggle.
Ricky, on the other hand, could be out for up to two weeks. At a time when he’s clearly eager to put right some of the wrongs of 2013/14, that is something he and we could well do without.
Equally, for those willing him to stay, it could just be that the injury takes him out of the shop window for a while, ensuring he remains a City player on Tuesday, 2 September.
The Dutchman though is clearly a man on a mission and whatever the private thoughts of Adams, by scoring goals he could force his way into the manager’s thoughts.
RvW’s biggest problem however is one that is out of his hands.
While we were told all players’ contracts include a commensurate pay decrease upon relegation, he’ll still be one of the big earners. Those in power may simply decide that a number ’20’ who spends some of the time on the bench isn’t good value for money.
For what it’s worth, I’m with the majority who hope he stays and scores – regularly.
While Ricky’s absence in Italy is due to his injured knee, there were no such excuses for Messrs Bassong, Becchio and Bunn. All three missed the trip and look to be surplus to requirements, Bunn looking likely to be usurped for the ‘deputy keeper’ role by the returning Declan Rudd.
All of which assumes John Ruddy will remain in situ. While the Arsenal thing refuses to go away, the red tops are currently linking Arsene Wenger to a different keeper on an almost daily basis. There appears a long way to go before the Big Man packs his bags for the Emirates. Let’s hope it stays that way.
In terms of the Andrew Surman story, things are ticking along nicely and if the good folk of Carlton Colville spotted a lunatic during cartwheels at around 8:10 on Tuesday evening that was probably me. If Surman’s opener at Braintree – courtesy of an apt assist by one Wes Hoolahan – gave Adams another nudge in the right direction… good.
As things stand it appears the diamond is to be part of the Adams’ armoury – whether it be a plan A, B, C or D – and who better to perform that role on the left tip.
So, the waiting game continues. 21 days and counting.
Anyone else just a little bit excited?
Yeah, we are all getting a bit impatient now. Did you notice Lafferty’s comment yesterday, Gary, that there is a team spirit about the squad which he hasn’t encountered that frequently? That’s a statement of real note, considering that last season there wasn’t any – it also suggests that Adams, working with Martin and other leaders (of whom Surman appears to be one too), have quietly been rebuilding what Lambert had previously built and our dear friend of the last two years threw away. I like the fact that there is real purpose about this preseason, which there wasn’t last.
All this suggests too that Adams is not going to risk his newly rebuilt team spirit being contaminated and Bassong and Becchio will move on, and Bunn too, since Adams will see Rudd (and Matthews) as people for the future he wants to keep. I don’t see Ruddy going at all. I think JR feels he has a point to prove, and just like Rob Green last season, its a much better point to be playing role for a side that gets re-promoted, rather than sitting on a bench.
What I like most is the quiet determination I see Adams rebuilding in the squad to right the wrongs of last season. He knows the first five games are critical for all the messaging they will sent out inside and outside the Canary faithful. All of which means he doesn’t want the group he is rebuilding now disrupted much between now and then, and he will certainly look to prevent movement except that which is on City’s terms. It is all warming up nicely…
Oh, and Fer won’t come back either, though I expect Ricky to stay! Adams will keep people who want to be here and are prepared to fight for their place. It will be interesting to see how much rotation he does with his team early on, and varies the formation both within and between matches.
Very excited indeed! And I’m in 100% agreement that id love to see Surman on the left tip of the diamond. I’m hoping that Wes can come back In from the cold too and supply RVW with a hatful.
Now if we can just keep a strong and stable back line…
Personally think surman will be more beneficial to the team than Snodgrass
You do a fine impression of Andrew Surman’s agent Gary. Can we afford both him and Wes in a starting 11 in the almighty scrap that is to come?
Good to see Ricky bag a couple down the Braintree but quite frankly neither of them required much effort on his part, so the jury on whether he can shine in the 2nd tier is still out.
I’m not too sure that our Grand(ish) pre-sesaon tour of lower foreign leagues is the best way to steel ourselves for the battles to come. I note Ipswich in stark contrast (probably for financial reasons) are doing the English lower leagues finishing at Orient while we are in Spain. I suspect their schedule may stand them in better stead for the start of the season.
The horror show unfolding at Blackpool is a depressing spectacle for any footy fan to witness..and meanwhile the PL spends more than ever.
Gary: I certainly share your excitement, but not quite your confidence that we can control the end of the transfer window. Yes, our financial discipline and wage reductions mean we don’t have to sell – but those same factors create tensions. Our players are human, and if a Premiership team is happy to restore or increase the pay of a Fer, Olsson or Hooper – as well as restoring their Prem place – we may face unpleasant choices between cashing in or forcing them to stay against their will.
Adams at least has the right to insist that choices are made sooner rather later. But I’m afraid the last few days of the window are going to be nerve-wracking ones for Canary fans.
Interesting to see how the different goalscorers react in the 13-1 canter yesterday.
Was it all too easy? Pilks, Whittaker and Hoolahan obviously thought so.
However I’d rather see no reaction to scoring than no goals at all.
Refreshing signs of much more movement up front-long may it continue.
I’m genuinely not one of the pessimists but this jolly round Europe is looking increasingly a poor decision. We must have PL ambitions but this smacks of PL pretensions. They may as well have had a kick-around with my local fire brigade last night.
Not only Ipswich’s schedule looks a far more sensible one but also Wolves fixtures at Peterborough, Crewe and Oxford. Those ‘kind of’ teams will put up a far better challenge in preparation for a new season surely?
At least our boys will have the best tans in the Championship..
I just don’t get this Andrew Surman love-in!! At his best he was very good – the trouble has been that we didn’t see his very best very often (a la Wes). I will be amazed if Surman becomes a match-changer. I think I’d rather see Simon Lappin in the squad given that he is back living in Norfolk and is currently without a club. Now there’s a REAL team player.
Right that does it – I’ve just cancelled my booking at the local Italian restaurant..two can play that game.
I think Mount Etna just erupted or maybe it was Neil letting vent at the organiser of the magical mystery tour.
I live in Boston USA. A couple of years back Oxford United (from where I grew up) did a pre-season tour of New Hampshire. I travelled about 60 miles to go watch them. They played against local sides that looked on-a-par with the team Norwich played. A lot of the Oxford United supporters felt it was a waste of a trip because it just ended up with non-competitive games in sweltering heat.
Oxford were in the conference at the time.
I hope Norwich get some decent competition soon, because so far we haven’t had anything that resembles a pre-season.
I’d like to see a few guys shipped out asap. Lighten the load and get serious shaping the final squad against proper opponents.
This pre-season tour seems to have been a bit last-minute and not as well prepared as one might have hoped. The clubs who pulled out only appear to have accepted the original proposal fairly recently so it doesn’t sound as though any of it was planned far in advance, which normally it would be.
Perhaps that’s partly a consequence of other matters – particularly the various appointments that have been going on – taking longer to get sorted out than anticipated. That included needing to replace Dave Watson. But if in the end the appointments are the right ones and the new structure works fair enough.
I’m glad to see Surnam back. He isn’t Premiership class but in our unexpectedly successful Championship season under Lambert I felt it was no coincidence that our surge up the table in the latter part of the season coincided with his return to full fitness. I think he can play a big part.
Breaking news – Alitalia have cancelled the flight onto France so the boys are getting the train now. If that gets pulled too, then they’re hitch-hiking home. Let’s hope our French hosts treat us with a little more courtesy than the Italians have done.
While I am fully paid up to the theory that sometimes ‘s*** happens’, for a club of our standing/resources, it has been a shocking episode. Penny for Chris Hughton’s thoughts on it.