Posted June 03, 2021 20:43
· last edited June 03, 2021 20:43
So with the 2020/21 season officially over I suppose it’s time to wildly speculate about how we’ll line up for 2021/22. This is what I’d like to see in the squad position by position and my preferred starting XI.
Goalkeeper:
Marinovic is confirmed to be gone, so Sail retains his starting spot and Handy Prem MVP Paulsen gets the call up as number 2.
Defence:
Injury woes and the emergence of CB Tim Payne see Luke DeVere leave us whilst TAHW, McGing and Laws keep their spots on the bench. Right back needs bolstering, and with a number of capable kiwis available I’d bring in either a returning Callan Elliot, Jack-Henry Sinclair or recently relegated Niko Kirwan. Personally reckon any of these three could start over Louis, but we only need one of them so I’d keep Louis around as solid competition.
Midfield:
Lewis keeps his starting spot with Devlin, but if Devlin goes then I’d love to bring back Steinmann. Ridenton can go and I’d bring in either James Musa (hopeful) or Trevor Zwetsloot (more realistic) to take his spot. Ollie Whyte possibly worth a punt as well as competition for Lewis and Rufer in that DM/CM spot. Up in the AM spots Reno and Jaushy keep their roles as starting and bench on the left, whilst on the right either a new import or Arzani would be needed to take Uli’s place. Ben Old gets the right AM bench spot at the expense of Muratovic, who despite scoring twice has been underwhelming and hasn’t seen game time in a fair while.
Forwards:
Up top I’d ideally have Waine and Hemed still starting together, with Bally unfortunately providing back-up and versatility on the bench. If Hemed goes then Krishna is the first man I’d call, otherwise a new import is needed. Lokoli-Ngoy says goodbye and the new spot on the bench can go to either Watson (3rd time’s the charm?), Oskar Van Hattum provided he’s physically recovered and ready to step up, or alternatively a different local player, be it kiwi or aussie.
If Devlin goes and is replaced with Steinmann, Hemed stays and we bring in an import Uli replacement then that’s all 5 import spots taken (Import AM, Steinmann, Hemed, Ball, Taylor), but if we were to hang on to Devlin and bring in Krishna and Arzani for Hemed and Uli then we’d still have 3 spots to play with. At the end of the day I imagine what will happen will be completely different to what I’ve envisioned, but damn is it nice to be feeling positive going into a new season.Screen Shot 2021-06-04 at 8.33.11 AM.png666.85 KB(Also credit to coochiee for the Zwetsloot and Whyte picks, both great shouts)
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Unknown editoredited June 03, 2021 20:43
So with the 2020/21 season officially over I suppose it’s time to wildly speculate about how we’ll line up for 2021/22. This is what I’d like to see in the squad position by position and my preferred starting XI.
Goalkeeper:
Marinovic is confirmed to be gone, so Sail retains his starting spot and Handy Prem MVP Paulsen gets the call up as number 2.
Defence:
Injury woes and the emergence of CB Tim Payne see Luke DeVere leave us whilst TAHW, McGing and Laws keep their spots on the bench. Right back needs bolstering, and with a number of capable kiwis available I’d bring in either a returning Callan Elliot, Jack-Henry Sinclair or recently relegated Niko Kirwan. Personally reckon any of these three could start over Louis, but we only need one of them so I’d keep Louis around as solid competition.
Midfield:
Lewis keeps his starting spot with Devlin, but if Devlin goes then I’d love to bring back Steinmann. Ridenton can go and I’d bring in either James Musa (hopeful) or Trevor Zwetsloot (more realistic) to take his spot. Ollie Whyte possibly worth a punt as well as competition for Lewis and Rufer in that DM/CM spot. Up in the AM spots Reno and Jaushy keep their roles as starting and bench on the left, whilst on the right either a new import or Arzani would be needed to take Uli’s place. Ben Old gets the right AM bench spot at the expense of Muratovic, who despite scoring twice has been underwhelming and hasn’t seen game time in a fair while.
Forwards:
Up top I’d ideally have Waine and Hemed still starting together, with Bally unfortunately providing back-up and versatility on the bench. If Hemed goes then Krishna is the first man I’d call, otherwise a new import is needed. Lokoli-Ngoy says goodbye and the new spot on the bench can go to either Watson (3rd time’s the charm?), Oskar Van Hattum provided he’s physically recovered and ready to step up, or alternatively a different local player, be it kiwi or aussie.
If Devlin goes and is replaced with Steinmann, Hemed stays and we bring in an import Uli replacement then that’s all 5 import spots taken (Import AM, Steinmann, Hemed, Ball, Taylor), but if we were to hang on to Devlin and bring in Krishna and Arzani for Hemed and Uli then we’d still have 3 spots to play with. At the end of the day I imagine what will happen will be completely different to what I’ve envisioned, but damn is it nice to be feeling positive going into a new season.Screen Shot 2021-06-04 at 8.33.11 AM.png666.85 KB(Also credit to coochiee for the Zwetsloot and Whyte picks, both great shouts)
