I think we need one more defender, probably a CB. Nobody other than Hughes & Tuiloma in our squad is a proven performer at A-League level as a CB in a back 4 formation. Maybe LKH, Sheridan & Smith can do a good job in such a system but it's a gamble because we have basically not seen any of them play in a CB pair in the A-League.
Edit: we have lost a senior CB in James, lost a senior RB in Payne, lost our starting LB from the tail end of last season (Edwards), and also lost the player who played LWB for us for most of the season (Armiento), and we have only signed one senior LB in McGarry. I don't trust our kids to replace the rest of what we have lost.
... But having said that, i guess playing a back 4 system rather than 5 does mean less defenders are needed in the squad, so pure ins & outs aren't so relevant. I stand by my initial reasoning above though
Edit: we have lost a senior CB in James, lost a senior RB in Payne, lost our starting LB from the tail end of last season (Edwards), and also lost the player who played LWB for us for most of the season (Armiento), and we have only signed one senior LB in McGarry. I don't trust our kids to replace the rest of what we have lost.
... But having said that, i guess playing a back 4 system rather than 5 does mean less defenders are needed in the squad, so pure ins & outs aren't so relevant. I stand by my initial reasoning above though