Is Solly March the answer
Nathan Jones does love an experienced free agent that he has a relationship with.
Solly March has been training with Charlton and word is that he will be offered a short term pay as you play contract. The question is – is he what we need?
Well, we need something and with Apter injured and Ouma AWOL, and our ability to create a meaningful chance currently at zip, then a player of March’s ability has to be a zero-sum-game.
I’ll go into the 32-year old’s injuries below. If you don’t want to read that far, then I’ll summarize – they are bad.
But he is now fit, not match fit obviously. Question is for how long and is it a gamble worth taking? Are there others out there. Joe Aribo, Jamie Allen, Tom Davies, Nathan Redmond. There’s not many, and none with March’s pedigree.
We need a midfielder who can pass forwards too, but Chalobah has to be back soon, but suddenly a winger and an assist maker is imperative.
Grant is wasted on the right wing, Alli has not shown any impact in games, Nkeng is not ready and Apter is out.
Brighton manager Fabian Hurzeler said on March’s return to his side in March: “I think before his injury he was one of the best players in the Premier League, and that’s the goal, to get him back into this place.”
Jones was as always silent on the possibility of signing him and the club have to work around the squad limit following Apter’s injury and whatever ends up happening with Ouma, for whom we don’t know the future.
March had been at Brighton man and boy, 15 years. He played for his boyhood club 300 times, 9 seasons in the Premier League after helping them to promotion 10 years ago by scoring the winning goal against Wigan in April, 2017.
Just 32 years old, March was a very popular figure at Brighton but in February 2021 he suffered the first of a cruel succession of serious knee injuries.
However he bounced back and was in the form of his life under Roberto De Zerbi. After six goals and seven assists in 33 league outings in 2022-23, March remained in top form in the early stages of the following campaign until misfortune struck again in the October when he suffered a ruptured anterior cruciate ligament.
Two operations later and March was out for over a year. Then his comeback was short-lived. 10 appearances later, at home to West Ham United in the April, the same knee became swollen. Further surgery was needed and March spent another 11 months on the sidelines.
March’s Brighton career finished with a few sub appearances at the end of last season. He has played just over 1,000 minutes in three seasons of football. 4 goals, and 2 assists in that 1,000 minutes though.
A summer move to Crystal Palace fell through and he continued training with Brighton and for the last couple of weeks he has been at Sparrows Lane.
He’s local, he’s hungry to play, he is a winner, and an experienced head, and he and Jones know each other pretty well. Is that enough?
At the moment we are in free-fall. I don’t think March would solve all of our problems,but he has bags of experience of playing at a higher level for many seasons, with a decent goals and assists record. Yes, he is not match fit, and it would take a few weeks to get him there, but on a pay for play basis, I would give him a crack.
If its pay for play then what’s the harm if it goes pear shaped then both parties can walk away 🙂
It’s worth a punt given the squad space we have – if only as a mentor to others like Alli & Nkeng he has value. We need to change something and some crosses into the box would be welcome. We lack threat and seem to have lost our solidity which isn’t ideal given the next 6 games (Norwich, Bolton, Boro (A), Sheff Utd, Wolves (A), Lincoln) We need 7 -12 points from those as the December games are far tougher.
We need somebody and quick if we don’t sort it out we will be back in league 1 I m not so sure personally but there’s no harm in giving him try what could possibly go wrong Kinsella is a free man if not our tea lady is up for it she can do mean cross do I m told
Craig
I think Betty in the laundry would be better she will know how to wring out a result !!!
If we need to take a punt , if we need a midfielder who can pass the ball forward , if we need someone who is available , if we need someone who will give 100% then we have someone …… Mwamba .
That’s a lot to ask of a 19-year old.
It was a freezing cold day , the game was about to kick off and on the centre spot was a small 16 year old kid with his long sleeved shirt arms wrapped around his hands.
It was Paul Walsh playing his first game.
In my opinion if they are good enough then they are old enough.
I’m at the age where the same 11 or 12 played the whole season.
I would give him a run of 4 or 5 games and see what happens.
I know, Les. Agree with you on that.
I remember a young Lee Bowyer wearing a shirt two sizes too big for him.
Yes he would be a good addition to our team and we need to improve asap.
Our form is very worrying and Nathan needs to lock himself away in a dark room and work on a positive plan to win games asap.
I’m not part of the sack Nathan brigade and I think we can turn things around.
Time to cheer up and it could be a lot worse !!!
Would love to be a fly on the wall in that dark room. Hope it’s padded 😀
Could it be a good addition, possibly. Is it more likely to be , play 2 games and then out injured for 10 whilst taking up a squad place ? Definitely. Theres a reason Brighton let him go, Palace pulled out and realistically the only reason he wants to sign for Charlton. Another Chalobah, whilst excellent on their day expect them to constantly with the physio. Terrible summer recruitment campaign has been our downfall this season. I mean honestly who scouted Ouma for god sake . Never seen a worse signing. Although he has become southeast London hide and seek champion just recently and not one word about it from the club or the boss . Time for a shake up at management level I think .
I’d say the recruitment has been mixed. Koumetio, Mesik, Akonkwo are in the plus column for me.
And yet after said defensive additions , we’re on -5 goal difference compared to plus 4 at the same point last season. Hardly set the world alight defensively so far . All 3 played Saturday and we were comfortably battered 2 nil . Plus we’ve had drubbings at Stoke and Cardiff. Not exactly the progress we were told about . That’s on Jones .
WE START EVERY MATCH WITH ONE POINT. DON`T LOSE IT. PERHAPS THREE AT THE BACK WHEN AWAY AND A BACK FOUR AT HOME. MILES WITH HIS BACK TO GOAL TURNING TO PASS INSIDE THE FULL BACK WITH GODDERS OR T .C. TO COME AND MEET THE FORTH COMING CROSS. CORNERS PRACTICE A DECOY PACKED BACK POST TO CREATE A SHERINGHAM STYLE CORNER. STRIKER RACING INTO THE AREA WITH A DEFENDER, A LATE FADE AND DRIFT OFF THE BACK . WATCH VIDEO OF A LORIMER SHOT, STANDING FOOT ALONGSIDE THE BALL THEN HE DROPS HIS SHOULDER TO PUT HIS HEAD OVER THE BALL, RESULT A LOW LEVEL SCREAMER. HEY BOYS HAVE GOOD FISIONS IN YOUR HEAD WHEN NOT PLAYING.
A lot of shouting on here at the moment.
NOCAPS 😱
Will the signing of solly march change the way NJ sets up every game lately I don’t think so , quality player to come for nothing to sit on the bench along with Carey knibbs kelman and jrc coyr
Can we actually sign anyone until January, with a full squad? I despair of change management posts!
Only I think if Apter and/or Ouma are taken off the squad quota.
He may be ok but what we really need is a midfielder that is not defensive!!! We do have a few but they are lacking at this level
We should play Leaburn on the right wing. In both the Bristol City and Watford games he’s put in goal scoring crosses but has achieved little playing as a number 9. He has good speed and the ability to go past a defender.
On a pay-as-you-play deal, then yes, Solly March is worth a go. I believe that he has played predominantly as a right winger/midfielder, which is what we need.
I said on a previous post that a 4-2-3-1 still represents, I think, our best way forward. So far, we have tried to implement it with players out of their natural position, which has left us looking unbalanced. Once the injuries started to pile up, It has pretty much been a disaster. I think that NJ has to be brave and revert back to this, rather than the five at the back, which I understood the reasoning for, but does not embody an evolution or progression that we were promised.
My concern with Skipp is that we know NJ doesn’t like to be wrong, and therefore he will stick with him, and whilst we wait for Chalobah to get fit, we are very short on options in that role. I would love Mwamba to be the answer, but I would also be very weary of not wanting to throw him in and ruin him, especially whilst we are in a tough period.
Solly March been injured for two years…….sounds perfect for Charlton.
If it’s anything other than pay when you play deal, we’ll get tugged off again.
Mind you, if Solly saw our performance at Watford. He may well run (limp) a mile.
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