If Ranieri is appointed he might be able to bolster the team by convincing a DECENT free agent or two that Watford is the place to end their playing careers.
Can we still sign free agents? I swear the free agent window closes not too long after the main window shuts
I’m not really sure there are that many around to be honest. Not many who would obviously make us better anyway.
Former Spurs midfielder Paulinho? Recently 33, but that's still younger than Kucka and could rotate while Etebo is injured. Could do a Carlos Sanchez type job. Work permit could be an issue perhaps: https://www.transfermarkt.com/paulinho/profil/spieler/57229 This guy Clement Grenier supposedly wasn't too bad at Rennes. 30 and looking for a move abroad. CM with "strong defensive contribution" according to whoscored's summary: https://www.transfermarkt.com/clement-grenier/profil/spieler/72479 Nabil Bentaleb still hasn't found a new club yet, though was supposedly in talks with Angers last week and they might be more willing to offer a long-term deal. Defensive Midfield is certainly where we urgently need more cover at least with Etebo out injured and creaking Kucka in the starting lineup.
Someone on Twitter said Wes Morgan presumably as a joke but I honestly wouldn't be surprised if he comes out of retirement to link up with Ranieri again. It would be ******* hilarious as well so I'm all for it.
Joris Gnagnon, given his potential and previous valuation. I know he has on/off the field issues… which hasn’t stopped us before.
with Sieralta out until new year - a couple of names on here?? https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/spi...klasse=&wettbewerb_id=alle&seit=alle&yt0=Show
There are about 6 defenders on that list that are probably better than all of our current centre-backs on our books! Come on Gino!
Marc Navarro sounds pretty good... On a serious note, I said before, I'm amazed no one has picked up N'Koulou or Musacchio. Both of them are far, far better than Cathcart, Kabasele and Troost.
Wouldn't be at all surprised if Gastón Ramírez turns up. As @RoyalPip quoted Joris Gnagnon has had a massive fall from grace in Spain.
Think it has to be a player who became a free agent during a transfer window to enable us to sign them outside of a window.
Not that I know much of N'Koulou, although he's getting old and wasn't a regular in a quite leaky Torino team last season, Musacchio hasn't played much in the last year. I'd definitely have them over Cathcart at this stage, although probably not Kabasele and definitely not WTE who has started off the season fairly well despite all the chaos around him
In fairness, Musacchio had an ankle injury that seems to have essentially put him out of the entire second half of the season in 19/20, before which he had played 18 times (15 for a full 90) That also then stretched into the entire first third of the next season - by which point, the team, had presumably moved on without him, knowing that he was out of contract at its conclusion. He spent the second half of it on loan, but at fairly similar level of club in Lazio, which is also not necessarily a situation that's amazingly conducive for a centre back to get minutes. It could be that the ankle injury has cost him something at his age that means he isn't quite up to it (it, of course, primarily being starting for a resurgent AC Milan who managed to qualify for the Champions League this season) but it's also very possible that his lack of playing time recently is quite understandable and primarily an unfortunate collision of factors.
Especially not for gross negligence. Adrian Mutu situations normally. We even kept Troy here after his "time". We could have sacked so many players...
GT sacked those twins (midfielders, forget their names) for bad behaviour. One made his debut in the 3rd tier, the other scored v Man Utd in the FA Youth Cup.
If true, this will be the second transfer window in a row that has resulted in us having to sign free transfers when the window has shut (Sanchez and Lazaar last window). Doesn't say much for our organisation and structure.