Only a few more days to go until the dreaded transfer window slams shut and my main concern is ensuring that we keep our squad intact. Clutching rosary beads and praying that no desperadoes out there start throwing silly money towards our lovely players at the eleventh hour. In recent years, we’ve been spoilt with a flurry of incomings and the odd angry outgoing (looking at you here – Yanic “the snake” Wildschut!) but all’s fair in love, war and transfer dealings so here’s hoping we have a quiet one.
Signing ten players on transfer deadline day is not a time for great excitement as some of our fans and even the club itself have been known to herald it as. It is a sign that your football club is in a right state and you are just trying to get random bodies in as a last ditch desperate attempt to bolster your squad to get promoted or stave off relegation. This time last year was the most shambolic of the lot as every single player signed has now been booted out 12 months later, what does that say about stability? Yep, it’s fair to say I’m not a fan. With the few signings we have already made, we should have more than enough to continue our first half of the season’s form and for that reason, I’d like to see a deathly quiet deadline day.
So to Saturday and, needless to say, my attitude to the cup has changed a touch now we are a round further and the Happy Hammers will be visiting our fine town on Saturday. After all, we’re only three wins away from Wembley, so who wouldn’t want to take it seriously at this stage? That’s after starting all the way back in the first round as well. This will be our sixth FA Cup game this season, which surely must constitute a serious cup run?
Having said all that, I’d take a win over Rochdale on Tuesday and an entertaining but gallant narrow defeat against West Ham every day of the week though if faced with a hypothetical either/or choice. If we were to win in the cup, it would also mean that our game at Bradford on Feb 17th would also be moved to a midweek fixture towards the end of the season, and it may be that the Bantams have finally sorted out their dreadful home form by then.
These are nice problems to have however, and I suppose winning is a habit and we are having a terrific season, so let’s just enjoy Saturday for what it is, turn out in numbers (as I’m sure West Ham will) and roar the Tics on!
Article first published in the Wigan Evening Post’s 12th Man column on Friday 26th January 2018
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