2017/18 Transfer Speculation

No one would come to Wellington for New Years so it's a done deal

Anyone else fear Rossi could move in the January window? 

Rossi regrets leaving Italy. I think he will be gone sooner or later.

Rossi>MacGowan

YES HES FUCKING BACK!

WE'VE WON THE LEAGUE

https://www.wellingtonphoenix.com/news/johnny-warren-medallist-and-fan-favourite-returns-nix

Good signing but not without risks, lots of Phoenix signings look good on paper but don't work out in the pitch. Let's hope he's still got it

While a good marquee signing is obviously a huge bonus, it is the team around him that needs to be good enough for someone like Burns to shine. Who did we have in the team at that time (2014-2015)?

Cheers.  I am going to curb my enthusiasm then somewhat until the next couple of rounds. This is because I don't think our defence is a finished product yet, and once we stop leaking goals against anyone else but Sydney FC I will feel better about our chances of bouncing off the bottom of the ladder.  

Personally I don't think you should ask your front line strikers to score more than three goals in a game against a good side unless you can also ask your defence not to let in three or four goals (as against Brisbane, Victory etc). 

If we're going to play on the cournter then I think Burns could be perfect

Darije's trying to set us us perfectly to be a counter-attacking team.

Defense lays it out to Paracki, who drops deep to collect. McGlinchey is his midfield partner, but he holds a higher position to offload it to the wings/Ljujic. Ljujic can then spray it to any of the front three.

Now all we need is a comfortable, ball-playing defender to compliment Rossi and we're sorted attacking-wise.

Works against training cones, what about when you're facing another team? 

U haven't seen Lugic play yet? 

Also do we know what numbers the new boys will get? I'm assuming Burns 7 and Ljujic 8

Has anyone followed Burns over the last couple of years? Can we expect he will be as good as he was the last time he was with us?

According to Wiki, he played 26 games, scored 3. 26 games over two years which doesn't seem like he played much given there's 18 teams in the J1 League. Bit concerning really.

In saying that, his only notable goal scoring has been for the Nix.

Clearly we need Siggy and Boxall back. They made it possible.

I don't think he'll be scoring like he did last time. That was the result of our tactics at the time and teams not figuring them out until halfway through the season. I'd say he's been signed to play a more conventional winger or attacking mid role in our 4-2-3-1. 

For Sanfrecce Hiroshima last season, he played a grand total of zero games. This comes after a stint at Tokyo FC where he was relegated to the reserves for the second half of his tenure before being released midseason (3 in 26 for the first team). Who knows why he didn't get firing in Japan, but hopefully he can here

Burns has been crap for a while and his only good half a season was with us.

Looks like the Victory will be picking up Antonis on loan for the rest of the season, that is the kinda signing that would have really helped us.

I'd imagine the culture shock of Japan and the language difficulties with team mates wouldn't help. Definitely harder than Europe would be to feel comfortable as a foreign player

Both DJ JJS and CT are right. 

There is also one more issue which may play a role in this lack of success by Burns.  If you are good enough to be picked by J-League from A-League, that means you are really good (due to the higher skill level there). If you are that good in Australian league, then you would tend to be an individual, maybe a bit of a star, maybe a bit of a ego (not meant in a bad way), and possibly believe that hype.  That would see you shot down in flames pretty quickly in Japan, and especially in any team sport, where there is no such thing as an individual brilliance (for example, any individual achievement is only worthy if it is part of an overall team effort).  It would take me a while to put my thoughts into words here, but that it the gist of it.

The Japanese group-think is still somewhat underestimated by Westerners, but we have truly moved on by now from early seventies when this misunderstanding often made intercultural negotiations and business conduct a proverbial nightmare.

Burns struggled in Korea too IIRC. 

The different cultures can be hard to adapt too. 

Wellington is the closest to Newcastle culturally??

I read that as "Saggy Bollocks." Spat my drink out laughing and re-read only to be disappointed. 

Wash your fudgeing mouth out!

The only time you will find culture in Newcastle is in a tub of yoghurt!

Mr Burns only arrived at Hiroshima mid season.  I remember him terrorising the West Ham and German defenders last time here. Remember that West Ham game wow.

He said his fiancée liked him to play in Wellington, he‘ll be playing fine for us.

PS: To Mrs Bonevacia and Mrs Barbarouses, fudge you

Also Ben van den Broek was released on Dec 22, would be be above or below Nix level?