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Seagulls set to step it up

10:34pm Friday 3rd July 2009 in


Boss Russell Slade will renew his quest for new talent on Monday after reaching the halfway mark in his summer signings.

Slade has brought in five new players with five more expected to follow as he plots an assault on the League One play-off places.

He will meet another potential recruit on Monday as the preparations for 2009/10 move up a gear.

Asked about signings, Slade said: “We’ve still got work to do in midfield and up front.

“I’m pleased with pre-season training. We’ve made a good start but that’s all it is, a start. Now it steps up.”

Albion have parted company with reserve team striker Jonny Dixon after he failed to impress in his 18 months with the club.

Dixon is free to find new employers after reaching a settlement over the final year of his contract with the Seagulls, who paid Aldershot £55,000 for his services as the January transfer window closed last year.

He made two starts under Dean Wilkins but his only action last season, before going on loan to Grays, was as a substitute in the home defeat to nine-man Walsall.

Dixon’s former Albion colleagues can look forward to two tough training sessions a day when they return to work on Monday.

Striker Nicky Forster is likely to join them at some stage of the week.

Forster is recovering well from surgery to torn cartilage and did some jogging yesterday.

Comments(9)

Petewizard says...
1:04am Sat 4 Jul 09

Thank god thats one more out.But we still had to pay him off.Now lets all hope Adam El-abd is the next one out.

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Gee Jay says...
6:43am Sat 4 Jul 09

For a professional footballer, fitness is everything, however, for many years a proportion of players believe that they can pay lip service to fitness mixed with alcohol soaked late nights on the town. Let's hope that Russell Slade takes firm control over these matters, and makes sure that the Albion players are the most fit squad in this league.

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Wont be druv says...
7:01am Sat 4 Jul 09

I hope fitness running around allot AKA Micky Adams / G Taylor type teams are not King. I hope RS builds a team that can control and pass the football. Its the ball that has to move fast not the players. See Spain, Barca and in the lower leagues, Swansea. If its clamping down on players that people want, then its got to be massive sanctions for anyone that lumps a 30 yard ball up to nobody in particular. Get them on a five a side pitch in training and get above all footballers not athletes.

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Southstander says...
7:17am Sat 4 Jul 09

Can't believe Saints beat us to Reading's 'released' Graeme Murty - he's getting on a bit, but is still to good for this league and may even have been Captain material!!

Still I'm sure whoever RS adds to the squad will bring that extra bit of quality.

If Lynch wants to go then swapping him for Tyson or Garner at Forest would be a good move?

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smegbuster says...
8:31am Sat 4 Jul 09

Gee Jay wrote:
For a professional footballer, fitness is everything, however, for many years a proportion of players believe that they can pay lip service to fitness mixed with alcohol soaked late nights on the town. Let's hope that Russell Slade takes firm control over these matters, and makes sure that the Albion players are the most fit squad in this league.
Absolutely - look what a difference it's made to Andy Murray this season after he realised he needed to work on matching the fitness of the top players. I'm sure the same would work for most sports.

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farside says...
9:38am Sat 4 Jul 09

Southstander wrote:
Can't believe Saints beat us to Reading's 'released' Graeme Murty - he's getting on a bit, but is still to good for this league and may even have been Captain material!! Still I'm sure whoever RS adds to the squad will bring that extra bit of quality. If Lynch wants to go then swapping him for Tyson or Garner at Forest would be a good move?
Lynch for Garner or Tyson?

Well for starters we need to keep Lynch because he is top quality at this level and McNulty won't be fit to start the season. Maybe at Christmas if he is still unhappy despite a completely different set-up at the Albion, then he will have put himself back in the shopwindow? I understand Forest are interested but want him for less than we are asking. He wasn't greatly loved by their fans for sure.

Tyson? On his way to Reading for £1m. Garner? Cost Forest £1.1m. Both are way more than anyone's valuation of Lynch so a swap is not realistically an option and anyway neither is likely to drop to League 1.

Our best hope for the future lies in keeping Murray and in keeping Lynch.

Hopefully RS can achieve that,

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Big Fan says...
10:23am Sat 4 Jul 09

In a way I feel sorry for Dixon. He came to us with a bit of expectation having paid £55k, and he never looked like he was up to it or even up for it. Its sad for him because he's wasted 2 years of his career and will struggle to find a club. Good luck to him though.

As for the Lynch situation, I'd like him back but categorically not as a left back. He's is a quality centre back but rubbish at left back.

I know I may be pilloried for this opinion because he played here all season for a Championship club but they struggled defensively and my friend who has a season ticket up there says that he was unconvincing at best and his interviews suggested a big-time charlie. Its possibly the reason Forest are splashing the cash everywhere but on him.

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Mark Dixon says...
1:00pm Sat 4 Jul 09

Personally l think Virgo will stay but his temperament has to be addressed, played 36 league games and booked eight times and sent off twice. El-Abd, Hawkins and Livermore might be fringe squad players at best. Now with Dixon gone the striking force to me too weak purely basic on all three being injury prone.

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Southstander says...
2:54pm Sat 4 Jul 09

Forest have a glut of strikers after this week I was suggesting that maybe 400k and Lynch for Tyson or Garner would be good business.

I agree with Farside that Lynch is a good player, but he doesn't want to plat for us - therefore we are better of without him! One volunteer is better than ten pressed men!!!

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