David

100%. Bair should see a fair amount of success against Morton. Let's hope he can convert some of the chances.

That was the main criticism of him when he arrived, and it was my primary concern. Up until this season, he didn't look like a striker. His xG and so on suggested that he simply did not get into the positions that strikers need to get into. All credit goes to Kettlewell and the coaching team, who have given him simple instructions to follow, which are proving effective. You'll notice that his chances all kind of look similar, which is why he's scoring. He's still incredibly limited but has the sheer athleticism and size to allow him to take advantage of those limited abilities. Basically, focus on what you can do, make sure you do it very well, and forget what you can't because at the age he's at now, he's likely not going to develop those skills anyway. An example would be his running in behind the defence. We saw him do that multiple times last night. It's a simple enough instruction, but it takes someone with size and speed to carry it out. It also requires a level of defensive intelligence and physical ability to stop, and we don't see that much in the Scottish league. I'm sure Bair would run into issues at a higher level, but that doesn't matter to us.

It also means that if Obika can stay fit (a huge if), then we're well served in that area. Plus, Kettlewell's plan at the start of the season of getting goals from midfield is working just fine. 9 goals from Spittal, 3 from Slattery, 2 from Miller and 1 from Paton. Slattery is gone, but we've now got Halliday and Nicholson, plus Davor is getting a run in the team. Add in the fact that the likes of Mugabi are always good for a goal or three, and we're okay in that area, I think. Most teams that run into proper relegation problems are the sides that find it difficult to score goals. With that said, the statistics show that we've scored double the number of goals that Livingston and St Johnstone have, and scored more goals than Aberdeen, Ross County, Hibs, Dundee, St Mirren, and Killie. On goals conceded, it's a different matter, but as I said, you generally find that the teams who run into relegation issues are the ones who can't score.

At this stage it's clear that Bair is the first choice (and rightfully so), with Vale pushing for that position as well. Having Shaw back as an extra body? I wouldn't be against it. He'd be the third choice for sure unless he proved us wrong.

Not quite.

Nah, he knew exactly where he was coming to. He didn't leave us because he arrived at Fir Park to be dismayed at how we were playing. He left because he got a chance to test himself and get some more experience at a higher level.

True, he was likely under the impression that he was coming to Fir Park to play total football, with a wee bit of tika taka on the side, right? Sold a bill of goods for sure.

Bang on. A win provides some breathing room. A defeat would drag us right into the play-off battle. Neither result would define our season as yet, but it's pretty clear which option we'd all prefer.

Your post was fine, there was no personal attack. You posted your opinion, which is perfectly acceptable. Not everyone is going to agree with each other, but as long as it's kept within a certain level of respect and decent discussion then there isn't a problem. This is a football forum. It's going to get heated, and there will be a robust exchange of views. The admin and moderators keep an eye on what's being said, and if it crosses the line we deal with it.

Because the people in charge of the club don't think Van Veen was worth the outlay. We offered what we deemed to be what he's worth. Other clubs decided to offer more.

The same mob who are taking back Montgomery and have seemingly agreed to waive our obligation to pay a percentage of his wages until he's fully fit again? I mean, I know they're the nasty enemy, but I don't think they're at the level where they'd try to do us out of what we're legally owed.

I don't think it was as bad as some do, but I don't see much rhyme or reason to our signings. I'm sure the manager was keen on bringing players in, but beyond handing the recruitment team his requirements, I don't know if there's much more he can do. It's not his job to sift through the available players on the market and ring their agent or parent club. It's his job to identify where we need players and then coach the team he's given.

If you see something that you feel oversteps the line, report it. We don't always catch everything.

I seriously doubt it. I've worked with marketing firms in London for public transport campaigns that didn't cost that much. After the transfer window we've had, I can't really blame them. I doubt we're the only club whose fans will be pissed off, though. A certain team from the east end of Glasgow springs to mind. To each their own I guess. I've posted a few times over there, but a forum with only one thread on Motherwell doesn't hold much appeal for me. I actually prefer it here. And even our regular moaners tend to at least have a coherent reason for their thinking, even if I don't agree with them often.

We didn't spend a "fortune" on that video.

A few points there worth addressing: 1. I don't think we're "financially flagging" at all. In fact, we seem to be in a relatively good space financially. Now, that doesn't mean we can sustain ourselves as a top-flight club. It could become the case that we can't do that with the financial restrictions we're working under. But that doesn't mean we're "financially flagging". It just means we're not as financially well-off as those around us. 2. As someone else has said, we don't know if we couldn't match what Killie and St Mirren were offering or if we just didn't see the value in it. The whole thing had a bit of a bidding war about it, and I definitely believe that Killie paid over the odds if the numbers being bandied about are true. 3. I don't know if we look "poorly coached" either. We're certainly not at our best this season, but we're 9th in the league. I could understand the crying and panic if we were in the position Livi are in, but we're not.

No they won't. He'll maybe get a wee round of applause when he warms up, but he'll certainly not get cheered if he scores against us, for example.

Far be it for me to defend or champion the cause of the people you're talking about, but the world would be boring if we all agreed. Or, it would be like a Twitter feed—an echo chamber. Most people here bring something to the discussion, and everyone adds value in their own way. But the call is yours to make. Hopefully, we'll see you back at some point.

Jim Gannon, Stuart McCall, Mark McGhee (1st spell) and Craig Brown were all pre-fan ownership when the club was different. We've really only had Robinson, Alexander, Hammell and Kettlewell in the current era.

so you believe the entire recruitment process sits squarely with the club manager? Interesting.

In most cases, yes, that's how it works. The question most would have is did Kettlewell specifically ask Nick Daws for players in the positions we signed this window? If so, it may raise some questions as to why the manager has seen those particular positions as a requirement. However, and I believe this to be the most likely scenario, the manager has asked for players in a number of positions, and the recruitment team wasn't able to identify suitable targets in those areas, or they managed to and the club couldn't get the deals over the line. The question then has to be, is whoever is negotiating the deals on behalf of the club up to the task? Or has the recruitment department not been aligned on what we can afford as a club regarding playing targets? A lot of variables, and without being inside the club, there's little way of knowing which it actually is. All I can tell from the outside looking in is that there's no distinct pattern or trend in the signings we make, which is why I question how analytics are being used. They are more than likely being utilised in some way, but how that is, I don't know.

The thing is, he's shown that he's got something about him as a coach. He's certainly done more with the likes of Bair than I ever thought possible, and when an individual (or coaching team) can coach a player to the point where he's defying the analytics and numbers, he's definitely got something about him.

As I said, I'm fairly sure they're using analytics to some degree. I certainly don't believe they're still operating like they were in the 90's. But I just can't see a way in which they're being used correctly. Or to its potential. When it comes to analytics, you can usually tell if they're being used due to patterns and trends that are visible in the actions of the companies using them after a period of time. I've looked long and hard, and for the life of me, I can't see anything from our transfer business that would suggest they're implementing them. This is why I've long believed that any issues we have at the moment most likely sit with the recruitment department more than anything else. As you say, the people running the club aren't idiots. They're certainly not amateurs. And the club is in a reasonably healthy position financially. Kettlewell has proven that he's got something about him as a coach as well. Which leaves one particular area. In my opinion anyway.

The only fear I have is that we get rid of said millstone only to continue with our haphazard approach to transfers, except with more money to burn.

Don't mention Brighton 😂 I did that and was quickly told that they have a billion dollars to spend on analytics so it doesn't compare. You're right, though. There's a lot we can take from their approach that can be adjusted to fit with what we're capable of doing. Our approach at the moment seems so far off the mark that it's not even funny.