Don’t Expect Signings Before January…..At Least!

Despite the obvious need to make additions to a threadbare squad and the obvious need for fresh faces, Forest boss Billy Davies is resigned to waiting until the January transfer window opens, before he can make any improvements to his team.

Davies is already on record as saying he doesn’t favour loan signings, but he rammed the point home further when speaking to Sky Sports News. Doing his best to sound as cryptic as Eric Cantona, Davies explained why he was so averse to loan deals. ‘I am against, as I have said, bringing in loan players. I don’t want to borrow the neighbour’s lawnmower and start to cut my grass, only for him to come and ask for it back before my lawn is finished.’

That was Billy Davies’ way of telling us how he was left short after the club failed to secure the services of Nicky Shorey beyond last January. Davies says permanent signings are required to further develop the squad, which is fine and dandy if you have a squad able to last the distance.

It now seems that the club is failing to sign players on two fronts. The much maligned acquisitions panel can’t sign a player to save their lives and now Davies is compounding the issue by refusing to bring in players on loan. The club has been successful in the past, in making loan deals permanent. Camp, Gunter, Blackstock and Anderson are all members of the current squad who came in originally on loan. That to my mind proves it to be a pretty handy way of strengthening the squad.

The current league position would suggest that with only 3 points separating us from the Playoff spots, there is little wrong with the squad. But any injuries or suspensions will soon see us struggling to keep in touch and even run the risk of dropping down the table. In such a tight division, there’s a very thin line between challenging for the top and struggling down at the bottom. There are 10 games between now and the transfer window opening and alot can happen in that time. Whilst it’s fair to say that Davies’ first choice 11 can give anyone a game on it’s day, it depends how often he can pick it between now and January.

Davies is putting alot of faith in the board if he expects them to bring anyone in during the January window, because past history says they wont. With that in mind, you have to ask yourself why it is that he refuses to bring anyone in on loan, especially when the chairman himself now says that Davies has more of a say in who comes in.