@eric_plant bit unfair really, wait and see how it pans out.
We have lost Liburd, Ugwu and Kretzschmar from last season's attacking options.
Replaced with a young, hungry Southwell who has scored plenty at a lower level, Akinfenwa who gives us another dimension, PCH who we know all about and Weston, a left footed winger.
Plenty of scope for 4-4-2 and genuine width (Harriman, Wood, Weston, PCH) supplying crosses for the likes of Akinfenwa with others getting onto his knock downs and plenty of scope for 4-3-3 with PCH/ Weston playing as part of a front 3 and Harriman tucking into a more narrow midfield with O'Nien/ Bean/ Rowe
We already have loads of options and a flexible squad despite it being light on numbers.
We all said we had a solid defensive base (Pierre, Sido, JJ and Stewart) but needed more of an attacking threat. GA has clearly acted accordingly so far this summer.
Another thing others have not alluded to is that Akinfenwa will likely be a dressing room leader and his off field benefits should also not go unmentioned
It may not all work out as rosy as we might hope, but you can see the logic in the way the squad is shaping up
Yep I agree. Think we have been missing a bit of a 'cult hero' since Sergio Torres, possible exception of Tommy Mooney and Gaz when he was playing
As someone said elsewhere the signing will certainly add interest and personality when both our style of play and approach were getting all a bit dull and dried up at the back end of last season
He was a brilliant player, but I never, ever warmed to him. His refusal to ever acknowledge the fans singing his name was hardly the most heinous crime, but still smacked of arrogance and disdain. Not entirely sure what point he was trying to make there. I still maintain that his stupid, needless sending off in the 3-3 draw at Brentford in 2009 cost us a win that would have sent us clear at the top of the table and could have greatly changed how that run-in panned out. Then there is the childish and (IMO) cowardly way he walked out on the club in the middle of a relegation battle when he apparently became the first man in world history not to like his boss very much. Give me a less able but more earnest and likeable Keith Ryan, Luke O'Nien or Matt Bloomfield any day of the week,
Despite his unfortunate attitude to fans, Doherty always appeared to have more time on the ball than anyone else on the pitch - one sure sign of a superior player.
Amazed people hold the Doc as their favourite player. Boring position, holding mid, didn't give a sh!t about the fans. Let us down with a few reckless moments, then rucked off the second Waddock came in, though most probably didn't have the bottle for the fight.
Compare him to any number of true efforts for the cause heroes like your 93 lot, Steve Brown, and countless others he comes up woefully short.
Or even versus your glamour of Currie, Devine types.
I'd pur McGleish in the Doc category.But at least he worked pretty hard for a while, until he threw his toys out
I'm amazed people think gaz is an idiot!!?? 'In gaz we trust' right??!! I suspect the beast is on a fair basic (not breaking the bank) and on a decent goals bonus. Surely not that many beating down the door to sign an aging lump of a forward.... He has his appeal and we know what he is about. Gaz is no mug. He knows what he has signed and what he can expect. He WILL get us goals. Lots??? Maybe not.... But he will be a game winner, in that I have no doubt. Is he Jamie vardey?? Nope... I'm not suggesting he is. Will he get us much needed goals? I can almost guarantee it. With Paris, Weston, beast my and the two oldies.... I honestly believe our goals tally will double.. Be positive ladies and gents!!!!!!!!!!! After all.... We're by far the greatest team.... The world has ever seen!!!!
@Jonny_King@Malone Totally agree with almost everything written about Doherty. Supported him while he was here, as I do every player, but once he left I realised I didn't really like much about him at all. Cheered loudly when he was sent off on his return against Bradford (I think).
Beat on a % of merchandise and image rights featuring him/ his name - out Chaorman understands the value of this from his motor racing experience, good business for club and player
I hope those of you who are welcoming Akinfenwa's arrival for commercial reasons aren't the same ones who are threatening to strike during JPT matches because you don't like the commercial direction it's going in. It's far worse weakening a team to accommodate someone who's passed it but sells shirts than it is opening a nonsense competition to u21 teams, in my opinion.
Fortunately, I don't believe Ainsworth would be prepared to sign a player because he felt it would help sell shirts. It would make this club no better from those in the Premier League and Championship who sign mediocre Asian footballers simply to help them break into that market.
Though whether Akinfenwa can prove himself to be a useful addition to the squad, only time will tell...
He is something different and i recon he will get goals... Forget the "commercial gain"
I know this will be controversial..... I say use Hayes as a Rooney.... Skilled player who used to be a excellent striker but no longer has the legs. Hayes still holds up the ball beautifully and has a killer pass. Let him play central attacking mid with PCH and Weston playing wide feeding suthwell.... Or the beast as an impact sub.
Reading some of the comments on here in April 2017 is quite amusing....'This stupid signing will come back to haunt Ainsworth, thank God it's a 1 year contract only' or 'God I hope not!! Has zero pace or skills....just a 200kg lump!'
To be fair, whoever said zero pace is probably near the mark. A good thing for the opposition as you wouldn't want the Beast coming at you at Usain Bolt's speed!
'I love Gareth Ainsworth, but it would make me seriously question his judgment.'
I suppose it is the fault of the summer devoid of League Two action...when we can play out a new signings' whole season before a ball has been kicked. Football is a funny old game.
@aloysius said:
It had a wearying inevitability about it from the moment Wimbledon went up. Part of me wants to see Ainsworth play a 104yo strike force just for the shits and giggles. But mostly I have a horrible feeling we've just spent a big proportion of our wage budget on a novelty signing we'll never see for more than 15 minutes a game. If he finishes as anything other than the lowest-scoring of our four (five?) strikers I'll be amazed.
Comments
I guess if he scores the winner in the Play-off Final for us you will still see this as a bad signing
@eric_plant bit unfair really, wait and see how it pans out.
We have lost Liburd, Ugwu and Kretzschmar from last season's attacking options.
Replaced with a young, hungry Southwell who has scored plenty at a lower level, Akinfenwa who gives us another dimension, PCH who we know all about and Weston, a left footed winger.
Plenty of scope for 4-4-2 and genuine width (Harriman, Wood, Weston, PCH) supplying crosses for the likes of Akinfenwa with others getting onto his knock downs and plenty of scope for 4-3-3 with PCH/ Weston playing as part of a front 3 and Harriman tucking into a more narrow midfield with O'Nien/ Bean/ Rowe
We already have loads of options and a flexible squad despite it being light on numbers.
We all said we had a solid defensive base (Pierre, Sido, JJ and Stewart) but needed more of an attacking threat. GA has clearly acted accordingly so far this summer.
Another thing others have not alluded to is that Akinfenwa will likely be a dressing room leader and his off field benefits should also not go unmentioned
It may not all work out as rosy as we might hope, but you can see the logic in the way the squad is shaping up
Happy to wait and see how it pans out. I'd be delighted to be proved wrong, and as I said in another thread he seems like a genuinely likeable bloke
Yep I agree. Think we have been missing a bit of a 'cult hero' since Sergio Torres, possible exception of Tommy Mooney and Gaz when he was playing
As someone said elsewhere the signing will certainly add interest and personality when both our style of play and approach were getting all a bit dull and dried up at the back end of last season
Tommy Doherty was, but was also a brilliant footballer
Tommy Doherty a cult hero? You're having a laugh. Good player? Yes.cult hero? No.
My favourite Wycombe player of all time
And mine too.
He was a brilliant player, but I never, ever warmed to him. His refusal to ever acknowledge the fans singing his name was hardly the most heinous crime, but still smacked of arrogance and disdain. Not entirely sure what point he was trying to make there. I still maintain that his stupid, needless sending off in the 3-3 draw at Brentford in 2009 cost us a win that would have sent us clear at the top of the table and could have greatly changed how that run-in panned out. Then there is the childish and (IMO) cowardly way he walked out on the club in the middle of a relegation battle when he apparently became the first man in world history not to like his boss very much. Give me a less able but more earnest and likeable Keith Ryan, Luke O'Nien or Matt Bloomfield any day of the week,
Despite his unfortunate attitude to fans, Doherty always appeared to have more time on the ball than anyone else on the pitch - one sure sign of a superior player.
@Wwfc2015_ No older than Cyrille Regis and Simon Garner and they got us promoted from league two.
With respect, both their careers occupied a different stratosphere to Akinfenwa's
Last thing I heard from 'The Beast' was his plans for a Hollywood career...
Let's hope he's paying us to play, or he's on a £50 appearance fee only.
For me, his only realistic roles are as an impact sub for the last 15 if we need a goal and possibly a bit of motivational speaking.
Hopefully, Gaz knows what he's doing.
Amazed people hold the Doc as their favourite player. Boring position, holding mid, didn't give a sh!t about the fans. Let us down with a few reckless moments, then rucked off the second Waddock came in, though most probably didn't have the bottle for the fight.
Compare him to any number of true efforts for the cause heroes like your 93 lot, Steve Brown, and countless others he comes up woefully short.
Or even versus your glamour of Currie, Devine types.
I'd pur McGleish in the Doc category.But at least he worked pretty hard for a while, until he threw his toys out
I'm amazed people think gaz is an idiot!!?? 'In gaz we trust' right??!! I suspect the beast is on a fair basic (not breaking the bank) and on a decent goals bonus. Surely not that many beating down the door to sign an aging lump of a forward.... He has his appeal and we know what he is about. Gaz is no mug. He knows what he has signed and what he can expect. He WILL get us goals. Lots??? Maybe not.... But he will be a game winner, in that I have no doubt. Is he Jamie vardey?? Nope... I'm not suggesting he is. Will he get us much needed goals? I can almost guarantee it. With Paris, Weston, beast my and the two oldies.... I honestly believe our goals tally will double.. Be positive ladies and gents!!!!!!!!!!! After all.... We're by far the greatest team.... The world has ever seen!!!!
@Jonny_King @Malone Totally agree with almost everything written about Doherty. Supported him while he was here, as I do every player, but once he left I realised I didn't really like much about him at all. Cheered loudly when he was sent off on his return against Bradford (I think).
Beat on a % of merchandise and image rights featuring him/ his name - out Chaorman understands the value of this from his motor racing experience, good business for club and player
Beast not Beat!
I hope those of you who are welcoming Akinfenwa's arrival for commercial reasons aren't the same ones who are threatening to strike during JPT matches because you don't like the commercial direction it's going in. It's far worse weakening a team to accommodate someone who's passed it but sells shirts than it is opening a nonsense competition to u21 teams, in my opinion.
Fortunately, I don't believe Ainsworth would be prepared to sign a player because he felt it would help sell shirts. It would make this club no better from those in the Premier League and Championship who sign mediocre Asian footballers simply to help them break into that market.
Though whether Akinfenwa can prove himself to be a useful addition to the squad, only time will tell...
He is something different and i recon he will get goals... Forget the "commercial gain"
I know this will be controversial..... I say use Hayes as a Rooney.... Skilled player who used to be a excellent striker but no longer has the legs. Hayes still holds up the ball beautifully and has a killer pass. Let him play central attacking mid with PCH and Weston playing wide feeding suthwell.... Or the beast as an impact sub.
Reading some of the comments on here in April 2017 is quite amusing....'This stupid signing will come back to haunt Ainsworth, thank God it's a 1 year contract only' or 'God I hope not!! Has zero pace or skills....just a 200kg lump!'
To be fair, whoever said zero pace is probably near the mark. A good thing for the opposition as you wouldn't want the Beast coming at you at Usain Bolt's speed!
'I love Gareth Ainsworth, but it would make me seriously question his judgment.'
I suppose it is the fault of the summer devoid of League Two action...when we can play out a new signings' whole season before a ball has been kicked. Football is a funny old game.
@Wendoverman 200kg lump? I seriously doubt that, it would make him in excess of 31 stones. I know he's a unit but be fair to the man!
@Wendoverman nicely exhumed posts. Thanks. Nothing like a bit of perspective. I wonder what the WDH debate will look like with a years hindsight
Are you amazed? Our top scoring striker...
@EwanHoosaami that was one of @Wwfc2015_ s insightful posts...I can take no credit.
>
ahem..
@Morris_Ital uncanny premonition.