2026/27 Ins & Outs Discussion

[joewarkfanclub]

Listening to Jens dressing room speech last night, he didnt sound like a guy preparing to move on.

Ive thought for a while now he comes across as having a 2 year plan in his head and is committed to it.

Clearly, if an offer comes in thats impossible for him to ignore, then things could change very quickly, but I dont think we are there yet.

Re players, we know Slattery, Gordon, Balmer, Halliday and possibly Hendry are away. Nicholson, Robinson and Stama are also likely to move on.

JT is probably a certainty to move on and I would imagine Eli Just already has many suitors and a good World Cup probably makes it very difficult to hold on to him.

Beyond that, the manager and chairman have both said we will manage squad turnover carefully and incrementally, so I wouldn't expect too many other outgoings. 

Welsh is an interesting one. He still has a year on his Celtic contract to go. Would Celtic let us buy it out? If rumours of his wage are true, £500k is a fairly big fee for us to pay, and he would need to take a pretty big pay cut to sign a new contract with us. Seems a bit of a stretch, but he has clearly loved being part of this team. Would another season long loan be possible?

The single biggest thing we could do close season is hold onto the manager. If we can do that, I have every confidence that this is just the start of something. Not the end!

[purestate]

Most of the media speculation has been on Just and Watt however I reckon real scouts will also be very interested in Fadinger and the role he can play.   
however instead of speculating who may be away I’m happier to wish for another year of Jens which persuades all of our midfield to hang about to see where they can take us in both Europe, league, and cups. 
 

[Ya Bezzer!]

We pretty much need a new back four.

O'Donnell is 33, McGinn is 35 and Welsh won't be here.

I think Longelo has to be a guy on other clubs radar as well.

[dennyc]

On the way up Leith Walk I was chatting to a couple of Coventry fans who had come up for the game. For the oldies out there, one was the son of Coventry legend Keith Houchen who also played for Hibs.  They were impressed by what they saw of Motherwell and thought we were streets ahead of Hibs.  They told me Slattery had already agreed terms with Oxford? Having watched him they were convinced he was far better than that and could easily walk into a Championship club. They were also shocked by how poor the referee was. More so when I told them Walsh was FIFA qualified. 

Gordon is a strange one. He was a certainty to move on as he had become a fringe player at best. But his last few appearances suggest there is a lot more to him and he appears to have suddenly developed skills and patience I doubted he had. Fitted in seamlessly to the style of football we now play. Also came across as heavily committed to the group. That dressing room coverage was quite an insight into how well the players have bonded. Never thought I would want Gordon to stay, but if Welsh is unsignable for next season we could do worse. Chat locally is that along with a good few others we are interested in a Dunfermline centre back who can also play as a left wing back.

I think Just is likely to be on his way no matter what. Especially as New Zealand have a World Cup Group in which he should shine. Maswanhise might not bring in the cash we hoped for but I think we will certainly receive offers. Hopefully the sale of those two would enable us to retain others for a wee bit longer. 

Without doubt some first team starters will move on. That's a fact and the Club have been open about that. Needs must  Whether or not it becomes the challenge it could be may depend on whether Askou agrees to stay for one more year. He will have options and will have some serious thinking to do. If we can hold on to him I would not be surprised if some of those players we expect to leave have second thoughts. I'm hoping Slattery is one of those players.... unlikely as it seems. (See above)

Two players I have no clue about are Watt and Robinson. For different reasons.

I was told by folk not connected in any way to Motherwell that Watt's agent was in discussion with Hearts and Rangers in January and that a deal was imminent with Watt preferring Rangers. Then injury intervened. But now again I am told there is interest. Time will tell.

Crazy as it seems I wonder if Robinson is seen as a possible replacement for Maswanhise. Robinson comes across as well regarded by Askou and integrated into the squad. Just a feeling but I suspect Askou thinks Robinson might be a player he can develop to the level he requires.

I imagine we will very soon see a list of those released so that will clarify things to a degree. And tell us which youngsters are considered good enough to step up.  But for sure it is going to be an interesting, frustrating, exciting summer.

What a season that was! Thanks to Jens, staff, players and fans for giving me my Saturday back. 

[grizzlyg]

14 minutes ago, dennyc said:

On the way up Leith Walk I was chatting to a couple of Coventry fans who had come up for the game. For the oldies out there, one was the son of Coventry legend Keith Houchen who also played for Hibs.  They were impressed by what they saw of Motherwell and thought we were streets ahead of Hibs.  They told me Slattery had already agreed terms with Oxford? Having watched him they were convinced he was far better than that and could easily walk into a Championship club. They were also shocked by how poor the referee was. More so when I told them Walsh was FIFA qualified. 

Gordon is a strange one. He was a certainty to move on as he had become a fringe player at best. But his last few appearances suggest there is a lot more to him and he appears to have suddenly developed skills and patience I doubted he had. Fitted in seamlessly to the style of football we now play. Also came across as heavily committed to the group. That dressing room coverage was quite an insight into how well the players have bonded. Never thought I would want Gordon to stay, but if Welsh is unsignable for next season we could do worse. Chat locally is that along with a good few others we are interested in a Dunfermline centre back who can also play as a left wing back.

I think Just is likely to be on his way no matter what. Especially as New Zealand have a World Cup Group in which he should shine. Maswanhise might not bring in the cash we hoped for but I think we will certainly receive offers. Hopefully the sale of those two would enable us to retain others for a wee bit longer. 

Without doubt some first team starters will move on. That's a fact and the Club have been open about that. Needs must  Whether or not it becomes the challenge it could be may depend on whether Askou agrees to stay for one more year. He will have options and will have some serious thinking to do. If we can hold on to him I would not be surprised if some of those players we expect to leave have second thoughts. I'm hoping Slattery is one of those players.... unlikely as it seems. (See above)

Two players I have no clue about are Watt and Robinson. For different reasons.

I was told by folk not connected in any way to Motherwell that Watt's agent was in discussion with Hearts and Rangers in January and that a deal was imminent with Watt preferring Rangers. Then injury intervened. But now again I am told there is interest. Time will tell.

Crazy as it seems I wonder if Robinson is seen as a possible replacement for Maswanhise. Robinson comes across as well regarded by Askou and integrated into the squad. Just a feeling but I suspect Askou thinks Robinson might be a player he can develop to the level he requires.

I imagine we will very soon see a list of those released so that will clarify things to a degree. And tell us which youngsters are considered good enough to step up.  But for sure it is going to be an interesting, frustrating, exciting summer.

What a season that was! Thanks to Jens, staff, players and fans for giving me my Saturday back. 

First of all.....Keith houchen scored one of my all time favourite cup final goals.

With squad I think Maswanhise and Just will be off and possibly Watt but I think a lot depends on Askou. If he stays i think players could be persuaded plus I think we are an attractive option for potential signings.

I never rated Robinson when he arrived but when you look at transformation of SOD it shows you what a difference a manager makes.  Robinson was playing under SK tactics so we maybe didn't see his full potential. 

[bobbybingo]

Nicholson's signed for Livi.