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Strengthening the Squad


hearts_crazy

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hearts_crazy

Was thinking about our current squad and how we would get on in the SPFL.  Personally I think our current squad is strong enough to be playing in the SPFL, but is it strong enough right now to be challenging in the right half of the SPFL or do we need to get the chequebook out?

 

On current form, and obviously being a season ticket holder I have seen a lot of Hearts this season, it looks like we are already strong enough in all areas of the park.  

 

We may be a wee bit light in defence right enough.  No real viable alternatives to Ozturk and Wilson.  And I would like to see someone competing with Calum Paterson at RB (especially given his form of late).  Apart from that I don't see us having to spend big bucks to get to where we want to be.

 

Thoughts?

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Scott_HMFC1874

CB like Robbie has already mentioned, RB too.

 

Also depending on how El Hass and Anderson turn out, maybe an attacking midfielder of sorts.

 

We NEED to keep Pallardo as well. The man is class

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Keeper, centre half, right back, attacking central midfielder, striker.

Hard to tell if we need a keeper or not. Alexander is more than capable of still performing at the top level. We've not seen Gallacher enough to judge same applies really with Hamilton so we'd need to rely on coaches with that one.

 

Personally I don't think we need an attacking midfielder or a striker. We've got Anderson, Buaben and El Hass for the midfield.

 

Up front we've got more than enough quality and if we sign Zeefuik permanently then we don't need anyone else.

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We_are_the_Hearts

We will be looking at EVERY position. If someone comes up that is the same or cheaper than the players currently here in that position and the management think they are better then we will go for them. Need to be constantly trying to improve and not stand still. Priority will be a Centre Half, a right back and a winger that can play in the number 10 role. 

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maroonshrew

Was thinking about our current squad and how we would get on in the SPFL.  Personally I think our current squad is strong enough to be playing in the SPFL, but is it strong enough right now to be challenging in the right half of the SPFL or do we need to get the chequebook out?

 

On current form, and obviously being a season ticket holder I have seen a lot of Hearts this season, it looks like we are already strong enough in all areas of the park.  

 

We may be a wee bit light in defence right enough.  No real viable alternatives to Ozturk and Wilson.  And I would like to see someone competing with Calum Paterson at RB (especially given his form of late).  Apart from that I don't see us having to spend big bucks to get to where we want to be.

 

Thoughts?

Well there's a chance we go into next season without Eckersley, Pallardo and Zeefuik as well as losing Robinson and McKay obviously. 

 

Zeefuik came in and scored a lot of goals in a short space of time. Had he not been brought in, who else was going to do that? 

 

Pallardo has been sensational, and allowed Gomis and Buaben to peak and trough in form, we can't rely on just those two. 

 

and like you say the back four needs strengthening. 

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Hard to tell if we need a keeper or not. Alexander is more than capable of still performing at the top level. We've not seen Gallacher enough to judge same applies really with Hamilton so we'd need to rely on coaches with that one.

 

Personally I don't think we need an attacking midfielder or a striker. We've got Anderson, Buaben and El Hass for the midfield.

 

Up front we've got more than enough quality and if we sign Zeefuik permanently then we don't need anyone else.

I'd forgotten about Anderson to be honest. Sow's fitness is a worry and I'm not sure if Keatings is good enough to be a regular in the premiership. Don't think Carrick or Oliver will be here.

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Clerry Jambo

As a club we really have the perfect platform to grow and strengthen without any overspend nonsense.

 

Players will come and go like any club, but with Levein's obvious contacts, 3/4 shrewd signings and we're ready to go.

 

It's going to be very interesting how we stand up to the top sides, we have only played Celtic from the top league and got turned over, but they're probably not the best side to try and surmise how we'll cope.

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If we keep all players like King and Pallardo (I'd love to keep him but I think Zeefuik will be away) and don't lose contracted players like Wilson and Walker I'd sign a replacement for Zeefuik, a centre back and a right back.

 

Anybody that leaves will need a direct replacement.

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What people need to do is adjust to our new position. We have a clean slate and finances to rival anyone below celtic. The quality of player we are now able to attract will be higher than it has been in years and our ability to spot a player of a high standard is much improved.

 

We are on course to challenge at the top of the league maybe not next year but it is coming.

 

As long as we stick by our club and keep the pledges strong we are going to go a long way.

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We_are_the_Hearts

If we keep all players like King and Pallardo (I'd love to keep him but I think Zeefuik will be away) and don't lose contracted players like Wilson and Walker I'd sign a replacement for Zeefuik, a centre back and a right back.

 

Anybody that leaves will need a direct replacement.

Should we not be looking strengthen all positions instead of waiting on players leaving? There might be a total gem within our budget but could slip under the radar if we focus solely on certain positions......

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The Treasurer

I noted RN's comments on TV last night stating we will not be paying transfer fees.

This would suggest that Zeefuik will not be with us next season.

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Should we not be looking strengthen all positions instead of waiting on players leaving? There might be a total gem within our budget but could slip under the radar if we focus solely on certain positions......

As a broad brush statement, that's alright, but in our case which position do you mean?

 

Bring in a keeper? Lose Hamilton as he won't wait forever.

Left back? We marginalise Eckersley and McHattie, ensuring we lose out on his optimum value.

Central midfield? Marginalise any of Buaben/Gomis/Pallardo? Waste the "nominal" fee we spent on Anderson by eventually letting him leave.

Wing? Marginalise King/Walker/Nicholson.

 

Also, it's worth noting if we bring in additional players as opposed to replacements we push our academy kids further down the pecking order.

 

What I will say is that if a "gem" is suggested to our coaches we will do all we can to get them irrespective of his position.

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We_are_the_Hearts

As a broad brush statement, that's alright, but in our case which position do you mean?

 

Bring in a keeper? Lose Hamilton as he won't wait forever.

Left back? We marginalise Eckersley and McHattie, ensuring we lose out on his optimum value.

Central midfield? Marginalise any of Buaben/Gomis/Pallardo? Waste the "nominal" fee we spent on Anderson by eventually letting him leave.

Wing? Marginalise King/Walker/Nicholson.

 

Also, it's worth noting if we bring in additional players as opposed to replacements we push our academy kids further down the pecking order.

 

What I will say is that if a "gem" is suggested to our coaches we will do all we can to get them irrespective of his position.

Totally agree with that, hopefully bringing in players for the sake of it are behind us.............

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Totally agree with that, hopefully bringing in players for the sake of it are behind us.............

I'd agree. However is be careful to make sure we have cover for all positions. A year ago I was adamant we needed a second left back but many on here disagreed, Wilson/McGhee would cover, they said. Look at the number of games we've needed Eckersley, we will need to be sure we've got similar cover next year.

 

I'm very confident the club can correctly identify who they are, we've an excellent hit ratio under this regime.

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I'd forgotten about Anderson to be honest. Sow's fitness is a worry and I'm not sure if Keatings is good enough to be a regular in the premiership. Don't think Carrick or Oliver will be here.

I'm hoping that we just rule Carrick out of any action this season and that come August he will be fully rejuvenated. I hope Sow can shrug off any injuries.

 

For Sow, his pre season will be a lot different as in summer just past, he was essentially proving himself to fans and coaches to earn a good deal. This year, the pressures off so he can just focus solely on his fitness rather than his fitness.

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What people need to do is adjust to our new position. We have a clean slate and finances to rival anyone below celtic. The quality of player we are now able to attract will be higher than it has been in years and our ability to spot a player of a high standard is much improved.

 

We are on course to challenge at the top of the league maybe not next year but it is coming.

 

As long as we stick by our club and keep the pledges strong we are going to go a long way.

Bang on the money.

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Hard to tell just now because we don't know who's staying or going.

 

But basing it on keeping who we have l think we are pretty strong. It'll still be about nurturing the likes of Walker, King and Nicholson to perform in the SPL and become stronger players.

 

I'm personally happy with the frontline and they deserve a shot at the Spl. The midfield will need another addition and a centre half to compete with Ozturk and Wilson.

 

Versatility will be a factor as we won't look to build a squad with big numbers for the sake of it.

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Keeper - maybe Zaluska from Celtic, he's out of contract and I'm sure it was Levein that signed him for United. I think one of our 2 back up keepers will leave in the summer.

Centre half and a right back are definates, hopefully can convince Eckersley to sign as I think he is one of our top 3 performers this season.

Think we need another winger as well to cover for injuries, suspensions and loss of form.

Centre midfield is fine in my opinion, we have four if not 5 depending on Ell Hass and Pallardo.

Finally we will prob need one more striker as I cant see us keeping hold of Zeefuik

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WorldChampions1902

What people need to do is adjust to our new position. We have a clean slate and finances to rival anyone below celtic. The quality of player we are now able to attract will be higher than it has been in years and our ability to spot a player of a high standard is much improved.

We are on course to challenge at the top of the league maybe not next year but it is coming.

As long as we stick by our club and keep the pledges strong we are going to go a long way.

I agree wholeheartedly.

 

I think many of us are still in a mindset of we are lucky to have survived and we are slowly pulling ourselves out of a deep financial mire. In reality, our financial situation is, I believe, much much stronger than we could have imagined at this stage of our recovery. There are plenty of snippets of info that would indicate so and the club are rightly IMHO playing down the extent to which our finances are on the up. For example, what effect would such a message send to some DD contributors who might decide that it's job done and cancel their monthly payments?

 

Robbie and Craig will already have drawn up a comprehensive list of signing targets based on who we sign if we stay down and who our targets are if we go up. I honestly think we will be pleasantly surprised by the calibre of players we will sign no matter how we finish the season.

 

Happy days!

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I noted RN's comments on TV last night stating we will not be paying transfer fees.

This would suggest that Zeefuik will not be with us next season.

 

I agree I don't think he is worth paying anything for. He had a great impact when he first arrived but has proved that if he is not scoring goals then he offers very little to the team.

 

I think next year we will need front men who will work hard to press defences and you just don't get that from Zeefuik.

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This has been an interesting thread talking about who we bring in and for what positions.

If we pursue even half of these suggestions it would exclude promotion from our youth squad.  Might as well close down the academy if we're going down that route.

I'd hope that at least a couple of youths would become squad members.  Maybe FF or JiG could say if that's realistic.

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A_A wehatethehibs

Everyone was impressed by the quality we managed to bring in last summer, so I expect we'll do even better this summer considering we'll be in the top league. Wouldn't be surprised to see a glut of departures too, I said in another thread, RN will have had conversations with Paul Hartley at Dundee who shipped out something like 15 and brought in a similar number. Dundee are in with a good chance of achieving the stated Hearts target of top 6 football next season.

 

We'll sign 8 players:

 

LB

CB

CB

RB

CM

AM

ST

ST

 

I expect Eck, Pallardo, Zeefuik, either Carrick/Oliver (or both), and Anderson (maybe) wont be here next season, as well as McKay, Robinson and Holt who are already out.

 

That'll be 8 players out 8 in. Possibly 9 if we get a good offer for a top asset like King/Nicholson/Walker/Ozturk/Paterson (in the 1-1.5million region for any of them wouldn't surprise me - the club will have to make a lot of investments over the next few years so player sales will still be vital to build large cash reserves), and possibly 10 if Wilson goes although I think Celtic would be more interested in Ozturk than Wilson as he is the superior defender by a distance.

 

Keepers will stay the same next season. Alexander will be the starter unless we decide to bin him (don't see any reason why we'd do that) and we have Gallacher for next season too so unless somebody makes an offer for him he'll be here as #2. Jack Hamilton is here until 2017 but a loan move may not be out of the question.

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I agree I don't think he is worth paying anything for. He had a great impact when he first arrived but has proved that if he is not scoring goals then he offers very little to the team.

 

I think next year we will need front men who will work hard to press defences and you just don't get that from Zeefuik.

He scores goals and holds the ball and is a general threat, which are the main things you look for in a striker. I've spent too many years watching Hearts strikers chase lost causes and "graft" and "harry" defenders while looking like they could play for a month without scoring. I understand we don't want to pay out huge fees but Zeefuik could be worth a punt if he's up for it, imagine if he screwed the nut and lost a couple of kilos he could be some player.

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Guest oldcastlerock2012

A right sided defender who can cover RB and CB like Mackay did and replacements for Zeefuik and Pallardo as the most likely to leave, although I still think we can get Pallardo on a contract and extend Zeefuik's loan. Possibly look at other attacking and defensive midfield options too.

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Dalstonjambo

This has been an interesting thread talking about who we bring in and for what positions.

If we pursue even half of these suggestions it would exclude promotion from our youth squad.  Might as well close down the academy if we're going down that route.

I'd hope that at least a couple of youths would become squad members.  Maybe FF or JiG could say if that's realistic.

Whilst i agree in principle what you need to remember is we had to accelerate promoting youth players last season, so you have 

 

Hamilton

Paterson

McHattie

McGhee

McKay (I know he is leaving)

King

Nicholson

Walker

Carrick

Oliver

 

(have i forgotten anyone there? probably)

 

Who are all still (or just about) eligible for the academy team but are in the first team due to our need for players and cutting costs last year. So there will probably be a couple of years where we only see one or two coming through, which is fair enough.

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Pretty sure Anderson will be here next year its only a few months ago we paid a nominal fee?

 

This! We would not have paid a fee and brought him in if he wasn't going to be part of the plans for next season. No way would CL have wasted money like this. I think we will see more of Anderson in the remaining games and he will play a big part in our team next year.

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A centre back and possibly a striker is all we need.

 

We have 3 good keepers in Alexander, Gallacher and Hamilton.

 

Wilson, Ozturk, McGhee and a replacement for Brad McKay.

 

Full backs are looking good, with McHattie and Eckersley on the left. Paterson first choice right back, with Liam Smith coming back from his loan and McGhee being very capable of playing there.

 

The midfield shouldn't be touched imo. Pallardo, Gomis, Buaben and Anderson in the middle. Walker, King, Nicholson and the likes of Buchanan and Flannagan fighting it out for the wings.

 

With Zeefuik likely going back, another centre forward to go alongside Sow, Keatings, El Hass and possibly Carrick and Oliver. Got a feeling one out of those young boys might move on.

 

And is anyone really telling me that team isn't good enough to go for Europe? Next year we'll realise our potential, we're as good as anyone in Scotland, except Celtic, on our day.

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