Saddlers Social: Frustrating sales but Walsall's future comes first

Ian Newbold

February, and Darrell Clarke’s squad is now four transfer windows old. Has this latest month of comings and going been a good one? Time will tell I suppose.

I know some fans will be gutted to lose Elijah Adebayo, and to a lesser extent, Zak Jules this January, but I think I’d have authorised their sales given the circumstances. And bringing in replacements on the same day at least demonstrates a level of calm competence I’m not sure we always enjoyed in the pre-Pomlett era.

What Clarke failed to do during the previous three windows was to bring in a player happy to play on the right wing. We’ve seen numerous square pegs in that position – Josh Gordon, Rory Holden, Caolan Lavery et al. And Clarke himself repeatedly admitted we really needed someone in that role to balance the squad. So maybe, just maybe, Tyreik Wright could be the most important bit of business done this January.

With a distinct lack of games since their arrival we don’t know a lot about the new loan players. However more time on the training ground together means there are fewer excuses if they don’t hit the ground running. Also with all these postponements there’s more time for Holden to get back and involved in games he might otherwise have missed.

Rob Harvey

The January transfer window is always a time of fear for Walsall fans, and this year was no different. Shades of 2008 when Scott Dann and Danny Fox left for Coventry, and in 2020 we saw Elijah Adebayo leave for Luton Town and Zak Jules leave for Milton Keynes.

The big difference this time is that we are in the midst of a global pandemic which is affecting the income the club have massively, and the fact that both players only had six months left on their deals. You would expect that we had been trying to tie both down to new deals with us for a while with no agreement forthcoming, hence why selling the pair of them was good business sense as we have received sums of money for players that would inevitably left for nothing in the summer. I know everyone will have their own view on whether they should have been sold, but for me money is key at the moment in order to help Walsall Football Club stay afloat.

In terms of incomings we’ve made five loan signings in Frank Vincent, Jayden Reid, Tyreik Wright, Derek Osei Yaw, and Max Melbourne. First thoughts on this were ‘not another load of loans’, but having heard Leigh Pomlett say that we could look to make some permanent if they perform well then that is a bit more encouraging.

Max Melbourne is a solid player and is well thought of at Lincoln City, and I feel he will slot straight in at left-back for us with ease.

Tyreik Wright had an encouraging debut against Port Vale, and hopefully we see more of the same from him going forward. I think he’s got a lot of potential.

Frank Vincent, unsure. Reading comments from Scunthorpe fans he doesn’t seem to be much to write home about, and I believe he was injured for weeks meaning he’s only just got back to fitness. He didn’t make many appearances for Scunthorpe.

Jayden Reid – I don’t know a lot about him, but I expect to see him stake his claim over the remainder of the season.

Derek Osei Yaw – other than a great strike against us for Oxford in the Papa John’s Trophy I know nothing of him. However, to play for France’s youth teams you must have something about you. I also work with a couple of Oxford fans and one said he was surprised that Karl Robinson let him go. He thinks he will do well and score goals for us. I hope he’s right.

For now the transfers are done, however the summer transfer window awaits and it is going to be a long summer for us I feel, especially as I’m pretty sure the vast majority of our squad are out of contract.

Roberto Petrucco

It was not the transfer window we wanted. Elijah Adebayo and Zak Jules leaving does weaken the side, especially as both players have been key players. Adebayo has led the line well, and we did not lose a game with Jules at left-back. We won’t really know how good or bad the window has been until we have seen the new signings play.

The other big news was Jake Scrimshaw leaving, only to move to Newport, and it seems a very long time ago that he left. I have to say, I think him leaving is not a bad thing. He played well in one game, but other than that, he did not set the world alight. I think that Tyriek Wright is a better player, in a position we need more. He offers a lot more out wide, and will allow Josh Gordon to play up top.

I do feel that the club have been smart with the recruitment, and that is a big statement. Max Melbourne admitting that he has been told that he has a contract for him come the end of the season if he impresses is a good sign. It shows there is some forward thinking from the club, and it also means that the loanees have a drive and desire to perform. They know that they can settle, and find a home here, rather than just a short few months before leaving again.

Like I said before, we will need to wait before we see how good or bad the window was, but I cannot blame the club for allowing two players to move up the pyramid, and get some much-needed money into the club too.

Nick Etheridge

After the initial disappointment of another game being called off, it might not be such a bad thing. It’s given Darrell Clarke an extra few days to assess the squad following the closure of the transfer window, and given the new boys extra time to bed in with the rest of the group.

Looking back a week or so the bigger headlines were always going to be the outgoings rather than the incomings, and that proved to be the case. If what has been rumoured is true then the club have done brilliantly to secure six figure fees for two players who were out of contract in the summer. Ideally Zak Jules and Elijah Adebayo would have signed new contracts, but when clubs in a higher division come sniffing, in our position we really haven’t got a chance.

More so with the departure of Adebayo, the fans wanted a replacement who is proven at this level. The reality that we’ve signed someone of the ilk of Adebayo when he first arrived here is somewhat disappointing but when you look at the bigger picture, the club would be silly if they were to fork out big wages on someone who wouldn’t have been scouted thoroughly enough. It really is a tricky situation but the long term future of the club is far more important one half of a season, play-off push or not.

Chris Saunders

The transfer window has shut and losing two of our better players was not an ideal place to be, however I back Leigh Pomlett that it was the right thing to do to ensure much needed funds came into the club.

George Nurse being recalled was also not great for us, however he did seem to be unlucky with injuries. As much as the loss of Elijah Adebayo and Zak Jules will impact us for sure the recruitment has been interesting.

I know loans are not the most popular but realistically they were probably the best option in the current climate. Early signs from Tyreik Wright and Frank Vincent looked ok at Port Vale. Time will tell how all five incoming players settle.

On that note I hope the comment that players recruited on loan are, where possible, with a view to making it permanent. This could prove useful in helping with a big summer turnover if at least some of the loan players do well and return next season.

James Kenealey

We’ve come a long way since the infamous ‘shutters down’ tweet of 2016. A long way in the wrong direction, that much is clear.

While as Walsall fans we’re always haunted by the events of deadline day 2008, I think context is important to consider before drawing any comparisons to that day and the deadline day sale of Elijah Adebeyo last week.

It’s frustrating. Really frustrating. But it seems we had to do it. As much as it hurts our chances this campaign (not that I think we’d have gone up anyway, and besides, who wants promotion when we can’t even go to the games?), the long-term survival of the club is the number one priority. I applaud Leigh Pomlett for stepping out and doing that interview last week to lay it all bare to us. It can’t have been easy to do and it’s not something our previous owner would have done.

In some ways it seems like history is repeating itself, in this case from the early 1990s, that long stint in the basement division. The surge of optimism of Pomlett taking over from Bonser (see: the move to Bescot being sold as the answers to all our prayers), only to find ourselves having to sell our prized assets not long after just to keep the club going (selling Stuart Rimmer and almost going out of business).

Those dark years of the early 1990s were a little before my time as a fan, but I think they’re important to remember. The reasons behind it are different and not under the clubs control, but I feel like we’re in a similar place right now.

Let’s hope we still have a Walsall FC to follow after all this is done.

Stuart Cox

The January transfer window is usually one that never ends up featuring good news for Walsall fans, but there are two ways you can look at our transfer dealings last week.

Fact: Elijah Adebayo and Zak Jules are a big loss to the team, no question. I still find it bizarre that Jules didn’t get more minutes earlier in the season when he seemed to be behind in the pecking order, but he has certainly shown his quality of late. Adebayo has been a revelation this season and looks a completely different player to when he started with us. Both deserve their shot at a higher level and I wish them both the best.

Should we have let them go? In my opinion, yes, no question. We appear (if rumours are correct) to have received decent sums for both and in the current climate the club needs all the money it can get. The amount of money we lose each week during this pandemic must be taking its toll in the financial state of the club, so to receive something for two players who could have gone for free ion the Summer is good business in my opinion. Yes, the replacements we have brought in are unproven, but Adebayo and Jules hadn’t really set anywhere alight when when they first started with us. Max Melbourne has featured a fair bit in a team who are second in League One and all the talk from Oxford fans is that Osei Yaw is a real talent who needs some game time.

I’ve not given up hope on a top seven finish year. Some recent results have gone our way while we haven’t been playing so who knows? The next few games are crucial though if we are to stay in touch.