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He must be fittest guy at club, never stops. Not sure right back his best position but he is slotting in well

The fact we are this far along and there has been no sign of us getting the top end of the pitch dealt with is somewhat worrying. Would like to see at least 1 AM and 2 striker options minimum.

Look, I'm not saying Wilson is anything special. But he's 21 years old, he's closing in on 50 games for us altogether, and he's played over 100 career games in Scottish football. By my count, we have a decent number of defenders on the books, and throughout the season we'll see varying levels of availability depending on injury and suspension, so someone like Wilson could be useful to plug those gaps while also seemingly willing to not play for longer spells when availability is higher. If we decide tomorrow that he's not progressed enough and we want to move on, who fills that gap? Do we pay money for a player to come in and fill that role? Or, more likely, do we find some random from down south with very similar attributes to Wilson to fill the gap on loan? My guess is that the likes of JGR, JKL, Moormann and Williams aren't on buttons salary-wise, so having someone like Wilson as a somewhat versatile squad player, most likely on budget-friendly wages, isn't the worst thing in the world. My choice on when we'd upgrade from him is when another youngster comes through in that position, and we can then plug them in and see if their potential ceiling is higher. Is there someone in the youth setup who fits that criteria that could replace Wilson? If so, get them up and let's see how they do. Until then, I'd rather we kept Wilson than potentially find ourselves short if the injuries pile up, or go down the route of a loan who comes in and does absolutely nothing. On Luca Ross, I see from socials that he's just turned 20 years old. Are we deciding players are no good before they hit 20 years old now? As a comparison, Maswanhise had not played a single game as a senior pro by that age. Paul McGinn was heading into his first full season for Queens Park in the third division. Again, not saying either will become superstars, but we're getting awfully quick to want to pull the trigger on these kids these days.

We're getting to that age where people start saying "well, he had a good run"

On the other place they are saying a 19 year old called Guy Bainbridge...... Edit: ex Airdrie youth academy apparently. Wiki says he is a "prolific goalscorer"

Mind n put your granpa pampers on your at a bad age now 🙈😜

Wilson is fourth or fifth choice left back at the moment (Longelo, Williams, Johnny K, possible SODs), it is a difficult role to recruit for, but due to injuries to all of these players he has needed to play and he has done fine. I think we should be focussing elsewhere in the team.

Sparrow has been fabulous this season and would be one of the first picks . last season I thought he’d fallen away and appreciate he wasn’t playing his natural position. He’s someone who with game time has just continued to grow

And this shows me you haven't got a clue what I'm saying. I thought I was very clear but my bad if not. Where did I say we should have a squad of 13? Where did I say anyone not up to Turnbull etc standard should be shipped out? Where did I say anyone not first team ready should be moved on? Where did I say players should not be given time to reach a standard? What I did say, and I'll repeat it in the hope you get it, is that we should always be looking to upgrade where possible, from within or by recruitment. And that applies across the board, the entire squad which at last count was way more than 13. As for Wilson, I haven't counted the number of games he has had. But if your figure of 100 is correct then the progress he has made in that time is disappointing. In truth he was a better player when he first broke through. In my opinion he has regressed but you are entitled to disagree as you clearly do.

And if someone of that level is available, happy to play that role at a club like ours, and their salary reflects said role, then fantastic. Until we find someone, though, I wouldn't be moving Wilson out, because we'd only need to scramble to fill that gap and would likely end up with another no-name loanee who passes through Fir Park as so many have in the past. I also think Wilson is pretty much past the stage of "getting a chance" with us. He's played almost 50 games. He's at over 100 professional games. He is what he is. Which, to me, is a decent enough fringe player for a club of our size. He's a fairly versatile left-sided player and can do a job when required. How many managers has he been here under now? He's also had three contract extensions, so the club obviously see something in him. The truth is, we're Motherwell, not Man City. We most likely can't expect to have many players coming here who are happy to sit on the bench and try to force their way into the team. That's why in the past we've gone for late loans along the lines of Osong, Hegyi, Plange, Dickson, Tavares, and Buyabu to fill those fringe player gaps. I'll take someone like Wilson or Ross over those types of signings every day of the week. Ross has played fewer than 50 or so career games as a professional. Most of them came for Annan on loan. This has nothing to do with him being a nice guy (he might be an arsehole for all we know!), and it's more about the idea that we're in a position to give a kid who's just turned 20 years old and has played a small number of games for us the bullet for "failing to convince"? Jesus Christ, I know the standing joke is that we don't give players time to show what they have, but that's harsh in my book! Whyte is a different proposition altogether from what I've heard. There's talk of him being good enough to actually get into the first team and become a regular. That's a bit of an unfair comparison to a few guys who I have said are basically fringe players at this stage. You also mention Miller, Turnbull and Johnston. So that's the bar for a young player being considered worth a contract? You either have to be one of the top youngsters we produce in decades, or you're out the door and deemed not good enough? It seems if you were in charge, we'd have a squad of 13 players, because if someone is basically only good enough to be a backup, they're not good enough to retain. We don't need backups. We need a squad full of top-quality prospects and first-team-ready players, correct? Absolute insanity. Yes, but the question is "good enough" in what way? And for what? If someone isn't good enough to be a first eleven player they should be moved on? Christ. Anyway, I think we've both covered all our points, but I'm glad you're not calling the shots 😂

Haven’t been this nervous/excited about a game in a long time.

If Sparrow is fit he should play. He has the armband and his performances have been great. He seems to have turned from a boy into a man over the summer! Johnny K is great cover to have come off the bench in a number of positions.

Aye, looks like the Hunter is more or less sold out with the Cooper & POD well on the way. I see we have a big chunk for sale in the upper McLean as well.

Ideally at present that’s how I’d go if they are all fit. Keep Vogts away from the first 11. good to see the tickets selling well today, look likes there’s chunks of the ground sold out now. Will be a great atmosphere

£1.2million says its not!

Good lad 🤣🤣

0-2 defeat and an anti-climax. The big game is on Sunday against Stenhousemuir.

It’s the youth GK

I just hope we don't blow it. I am getting flashbacks to the Nancy game back in 2008, place was buzzing, we all had those inflatable bangers, then 15 mins later 2-0 down!! Let's make this a famous glory night for the Well. COYWWWWWWWW

I agree to a degree but to my way of thinking you look at each position, starter and back up, and look to upgrade where possible. From youth teams (ours and elsewhere) if possible for those back ups.. That way you achieve a constant uplift in quality on the pitch and on the bench.. And more likliehood that those bench players will elevate to first team regulars. Regards Wilson, he has been with us for a good number of years and after a very promising start has shown little to no progress. Despite loan placements to address whatever deficiencies our coaches identified. So how long do we wait before looking to upgrade? Ditto Luca Ross I guess. And if we hold on too long, are we effectively missing out on others that might improve us? Not saying it's easy or that some decisions are painful to make but eventually it will be to the benefit of all concerned to part ways. Cue Wilson scoring the winner on Thursday.

That's exactly my thinking, which is why I'm not so quick to dismiss some of the players we have in and around the first team already. I do think we have set a very high bar as fans, where we're looking for Turnbull/Miller/Johnston levels otherwise we shouldn't be looking to retain them. We're going to have fringe players. It's how it works for clubs our size who require a decent-sized squad of players. I'd rather those fringe players were our own youngsters than loans or free signings that aren't all that much better in reality.

You're assuming that our injury list, as it stands, will improve and no one else will get injured and replace those players currently on the sidelines? We'll see injuries and suspensions happen throughout the season, so we will need a squad of players. I'd like to think that any transfer business we're doing involves players who are of a better quality than the ones we already have and could be considered first eleven worthy. I've seen us too often in the past sign players on free transfers (although they aren't really free at all when agent fees etc are taken into consideration) and loans who did absolutely nothing of note except take up a squad number and play the occasional match. Jair Tavares, Luke Plange, Will Dickson, Oli Shaw and others in recent years. We should be looking to bring in players who will make an impact on the first eleven, and then have a squad outside that consisting of a fair amount of younger players who can be drafted in and do a job when needed. Not every player needs to be someone we're priming to sell on for millions. Sometimes it's fine to have a Euan Wilson-type player who can plug gaps and fill in as and when needed. This idea that if someone hits 21 and hasn't become Lennon Miller means they're not up to doing a job is crazy.

Totally agree,says as it is,no dramatics,no blame game,always very balanced and his summary of games is how i see it.

Very well said. Yes I think some fans expect us to carry on where we left off but it takes time. To be fair our part of the hunter stand was very upbeat. It takes time for players to settle also. A few already decided Vogt won't make it but there are definite glimpses there and I am sure he will come good. Moormann looks an absolute find