The clock is ticking down on those pre-season friendlies, and more importantly than that, the new League One season – which is less than a month away today!
We have rid ourselves of the deadwood, along with all the other hangers-on at the club. And, so far at least, we have recruited well. It is, however, not good enough. We badly need a new striker in my view, and they are all out there, and some are available on free transfers!
Take, for example, Joe Pigott from AFC Wimbledon. It is common knowledge that he has rejected a new deal. The 27-year-old has an impressive scoring record, having netted 47 times in 147 appearances in a Dons shirt. He is currently interesting clubs in League One and in the Championship. He was also scoring freely whilst on loan at Maidstone United, where, in just 45 games, he scored 17 times. There were rumours that the Blues were fond of the player but that was some weeks ago and we have heard nothing since.
The ongoing saga that is Matt Crooks continues. Today, we discovered that Rotherham United have turned down another offer but this time it was not from us! In fact, into the race comes a Championship club, and after we made multiple offers for the player that have also been turned down, this really could be the end of the road for us.
Crooks is in high demand and the Millers have upped their original asking price from 700,000 to closer to one million! In truth, it is the worst kept secret in football that they don’t want to sell to one of their rivals. There are at least four clubs in the Championship that are closely monitoring the situation and he will probably sign for someone within the next 7 days.
And what about forward Paul Mullin, who lives with Ipswich striker James Norwood and has rejected a new deal at The Abbey Stadium? The 26-year-old wants to leave Cambridge United, and he would not have to travel far to continue his football career. Mullins netted an impressive 34 goals across all competitions last season, and he would not cost an arm or a leg – just a good salary!
Kyle Vassell is another player that surely has his card marked. He has been released by the Millers and might be a better bet than putting all our eggs in one basket in our quest to get Crooks. The 28-year-old Rotherham striker scored 24 times when the Millers were in League One – although he was far less successful at Championship level, where he could not break his duck. Sometimes it’s a case of horses for courses, and maybe the ruggedness of this league suites him better?
I also quite like Adam Reach and the left winger has been released by Sheffield Wednesday after they were relegated from the Championship. I have always liked him as a player and he’s already been linked to Blackburn, Watford and Cardiff. I think he”ll be moving on shortly so why not to us?
So Mike Ashton and friends, let’s get a move on. If we cannot get our preferred choice then move on further down the list. It is imperative that we start the season with a full quota of players and this is especially apparent in the striking department. Our goalscoring record has been quite frankly pathetic of late, so let’s get someone through the door to truly excite us!
