ok i finally on my PC and saw the odds and checked out the saints squad
this is my findings
looking at the first team squad currently we have 22 players in the first team squad which seems a fair number maybe 2-3 shy i always think 25 is a healthy number
so lets say saints need 3 players to get squad upto opitmium
but in that squad is 4 players 19 or under
James Ward-Prowse
Calum Chambers
Harrison Reed
Sam Gallagher
players under 20 shouldnt really count in that 25 man squad they are really an addition there wages aer much lower
and they should be used gradually integrating into the team (not all of them are like shaw) so lets take down the squad to 18 meaning ideally we are looking at
getting in 7 new players
but wait in that 18 we have
Pablo Osvaldo
Morgan Schneiderlin
Dejan Lovren
Billy Sharp
all 4 are likely to leave sharp just hasnt the quailty for EPL and if a permanent team cant be found will find himself out on loan again
this take our squad down to 14 players meaning we are very likely going to need to buy in between 7 and 11 players to make a full squad
16-1 is HUGE
i would say its well would putting a small tickle on the saints £5 and would recommend doing it sooner rather than later as once the first purchases start coming in the price is going to crash
as lovern and schnderlin will be allowed to leave once they start getting cover in
if we dont get in atleast 7 players before the first day of season i would say we are going to be fighting the drop
the rules are as follows
"1) All Premier League clubs must submit a squad of up to 25 players, by 5pm on September 1.
2) Each 25-man squad must include at least eight 'home-grown' players.
3) The 'home-grown' players do not have to be English. According to the Premier League: "A home grown player is defined as one who, irrespective of his nationality or age, has been registered with any club affiliated to the Football Association or the Welsh Football Association for a period, continuous or not, of three entire seasons or 36 months prior to his 21st birthday (or the end of the season during which he turns 21)."
4) In addition to the 25-man named squad, clubs can use an unlimited number of players aged 21 or under. According to the Premier League: "An Under 21 player is defined as one who is under the age of 21 on 1st January in the year in which the season commences."
5) Clubs can make changes to their squad but only during transfer windows, so once submitted the clubs will be stuck with that squad until January. Only in exceptional circumstances, such as a goalkeeper crisis, can changes be made outside the window, and then only if the Premier League board approves the changes.
6) Once the transfer window opens again, there are no restrictions on how many changes clubs can make to their squads, so they can replace the entire 25 if they want to.
7) Even if a player is not named in the 25-man squad, they can still play in the FA Cup, League Cup, Champions League or Europa League.
Players from the 25-man squad cannot be replaced if they are loaned to Football League clubs, but can regain their spot in the group if they return to the parent club.
9) Clubs do not have to name a full squad of 25 if they do not have that many contracted players and in this case they can add free agents outside the transfer window. However if they have 25 eligible contracted players, they must be named.
10) Similarly, clubs do not have to name eight 'home-grown' players if they do not have enough, but this would mean submitting a reduced squad. "
don't forget the promoted clubs, QPR will bring in loads, burnley signed 3 today
Burnley in particular operated on a tiny squad in the championship (only used 16 players over 21 in the league last year) and need bodies to get to 25, 12/1 looks interesting
Leicester used 17 over 21 year olds last year. Need numbers, but the price of 8/1 reflects that
southampton have to be a runner of course
http://www.oddschecker.com/football/football-specials/summer-transfer/premier-league-club-to-sign-most-playersjust had another look at this after just 1 signing saints have gone in from 16-1 to 8-1 and 4th favourite now
with the 25 man squads saints have room still for 9 foreign and 2 home grown players thats if the 4 players rumoured to be going go
dont think there is much chance of billy sharp or osvaldo being named in squad even if they dont find someone to buy them
and would love to see schniedlin and lovern stay but unlikely
so if koeman wants to fill out a squad of 25 with players over 25 he can bring in 11 more players plus the one we already have
with a warchest that will be over 110 million if the other 2 sales go through i still think the 8-1 is value but not as much value
as the 16-1 was this time last week
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