It could be said that over the past three seasons January 31st has become one of the most exciting days in a football fans season. It is of course transfer deadline day! On this day I have caught myself sitting at home watching the sky sports news reporters standing outside wet training grounds or stadium entranceways throughout the country detailing there own transfer stories. It is at this point that I’m hoping my side has made a late swoop for a Bulgarian striker or a bid for a inform lower league player, just something to add a bit of sparkle and intrigue into the remainder of the season.
Whether its the managers who are now under more pressure than ever before who panic that they need to be seen to bring players in or maybe the chairman wants to show off his vast personal wealth, this month and in particular this day has become more and more important in the football calendar.
January will be a big month for all three of the sides that I cover, At S6 its a question as to if they can keep Ben Marshall at the club, Across the city at United its going to be a tough job keeping hold of Stephen Quinn and Ched Evans and in the Championship can Barnsley bring in the players needed to help them cement there place in mid-table.
I have spent more time at Hillsborough than any other club this season and on the whole I have been impressed with how strong they are at home. Team after team have been rolled over coming up against the Owls quick back to front style of play.
In the early part of the season it was all about Gary Madine, his goals won points on there own and the new arrivals of Prutton and Semedo were fast creating a tough tackling midfield partnership. When Madine was injured I thought SWFC would struggle but if anything it has brought the rest of the squad out of their shell and in particular one Ben Marshall. The on loan midfielder has come alive over the past 2 months, His performances have been impressive, he has pace, an eye for goal and can deliver a killer ball into the box. He is now just as important to Wednesday as Madine was in the early part of the season and If the Owls are to challenge for the title then surely Marshall must be kept for the remainder of the season.
On other transfer fronts Miguel Llera is a good signing, he has the build to be a good strong center half but he is also a footballer who likes to spray it about and his ability to hit that long pass can only improve Wednesday.
In my opinion Sheffield Wednesday fans should be imploring Milan Mandaric to go out and bring in two quality players, a striker and a central midfielder along with the re-signing of Ben Marshall, this would surely see the Owls challenging come the business end of the season.
Across the City at Bramall lane Sheffiled United are currently flying, the improvement not only in the results column but also in the manor of their performances is remarkable. When I covered the games against Burton, Huddersfield and Exeter earlier in the season the side looked as if it was struggling to develop a particular footballing style. The arrival of Matt Phillips on loan from Blackpool seemed to kick-start this current run of form and before leaving his goals and performances had brought something special to the Blades season. The much maligned Ched Evans who has never lived up to his extortionate price tag is now finally looking like living up to they hype that surrounded him when he was brought to the club. Just as SWFC need Ben Marshall the Blades really need to keep hold of players like Evans if they want to be challenging come the latter stages of the season.
If I was in Danny Wilsons shoes and looking to strengthen the squad I would be looking at bringing in a centre half, probably a experienced head just to sure up at the back and maybe a winger to fill the gap left by Phillips departure.
Now moving on up into the Championship we come to Barnsley and this season like others before it has started with the simple mission of staying in the Championship. At the turn of the year the reds have amassed more points at this point than in any previous season since returning to the Championship 5 years ago. The new man in charge Keith Hill has done remarkably well and with a few new recruits could end up with a 60+ points total at the end of the season. The reds have been consistently inconsistent this term; great away performances against Peterborough, Leeds and Birmingham City have somewhat been overshadowed with defeats at home to Bristol City and Ipswich Town.
The news that star midfielder Jacob Butterfield is set to sit out the remainder of the season has been a blow for Hill and he will now in my book need two new midfielders to strengthen the weakest area of the side.
Barnsley are still peering over there shoulder at the relegation spots but with the right signings and if the first part of the season is anything to go by they should be more than comfortable between now and May.
On the whole all three clubs have a massive five months ahead of them, both Sheffield clubs are capable of challenging for the League One title where as Barnsley can reach the magic 60 point mark and give Keith Hill a huge platform to build on for 2012/2013.
On May 5th when the final whistle of the season is blown and its either cheers or tears at each of the three clubs I wonder if it could be that the month of January will be seen as a massive turning point.
No comments:
Post a Comment