Players we have lost v Today's squad

Demon Barber

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Just a bit of fun, but there is an underlying serious point.

Unlike other clubs, we have lost a hell of a lot of talented players over the past couple of seasons. This is my best shot at a (very attacking) starting XI. Would they beat any combination of our current squad?

Earps

Batlle Thorisdottir Evans

Guerrero Zelem Boa Risa

Parris Thomas Russo Garcia

That's not necessarily my preferred formation, being light on CBs, but how can we be a serious club when we lose so many very good players in such a short space of time?
 
Firstly, I think our forwards and current back line would cut through that defence like butter.

Outside of general squad mis-management, lack of rotation failing to keep bench players happy, the key recent losses are Battle, Russo, Earps and Zelem (and if you go back far enough, Lauren James as well). Honestly, I think there acceptable circumstances across all of those.

Battle went back home, which she was always likely to do (think Gerard Pique for the men) - she essentially had a few years loan with us until she was ready to slot into the Barca team. Fine.

Same for James, particularly as her brother is a Chelsea player as well. She was always going to wind up back there.

Russo stings, largely because of her friendship with Ella. I hoped that might be enough to sway things, but she took is a Londoner and 'went home'. Nice slice of schadenfreude there, as she went to Arsenal to win trophies and missed out on the FA Cup with us... Though would Russo have got that header that won the semi like Williams did? I'm not sure.

Jury is still out on Earps' move, but again she wanted to win things, and at the tail end of her career I can understand that.

Losing Katie Zelem, as club captain, in the manner that we did, is the most painful for me. She embodied Man Utd and deserved a proper send off, a testimonial even. That said, most of us spent all of the last couple of seasons saying something along the lines of "Zelem is not good enough in the position she is asked to play, and not better than those we have in positions further forward". I do feel the time was right to move on.

The bigger issue for me in the line up OP posted is not the stars lost, but the squad. Parris as a backup to Terland would have been a dream, likewise Boa-Riise or Guerrero as rotation options in midfield.
 
Demon Barber said:
Just a bit of fun, but there is an underlying serious point.

Unlike other clubs, we have lost a hell of a lot of talented players over the past couple of seasons. This is my best shot at a (very attacking) starting XI. Would they beat any combination of our current squad?

Earps

Batlle Thorisdottir Evans

Guerrero Zelem Boa Risa

Parris Thomas Russo Garcia

That's not necessarily my preferred formation, being light on CBs, but how can we be a serious club when we lose so many very good players in such a short space of time?
Click to expand...
Go back a bit further and you can add Greenwood, James and Groenen to that list.

It's kind of the opposite problem to the one we complain about with the men's team. There - we worry about not being able to move players out, for the women's team we have no problem doing that.
 
AmarilloMike said:
Firstly, I think our forwards and current back line would cut through that defence like butter.

Outside of general squad mis-management, lack of rotation failing to keep bench players happy, the key recent losses are Battle, Russo, Earps and Zelem (and if you go back far enough, Lauren James as well). Honestly, I think there acceptable circumstances across all of those.

Battle went back home, which she was always likely to do (think Gerard Pique for the men) - she essentially had a few years loan with us until she was ready to slot into the Barca team. Fine.

Same for James, particularly as her brother is a Chelsea player as well. She was always going to wind up back there.

Russo stings, largely because of her friendship with Ella. I hoped that might be enough to sway things, but she took is a Londoner and 'went home'. Nice slice of schadenfreude there, as she went to Arsenal to win trophies and missed out on the FA Cup with us... Though would Russo have got that header that won the semi like Williams did? I'm not sure.

Jury is still out on Earps' move, but again she wanted to win things, and at the tail end of her career I can understand that.

Losing Katie Zelem, as club captain, in the manner that we did, is the most painful for me. She embodied Man Utd and deserved a proper send off, a testimonial even. That said, most of us spent all of the last couple of seasons saying something along the lines of "Zelem is not good enough in the position she is asked to play, and not better than those we have in positions further forward". I do feel the time was right to move on.

The bigger issue for me in the line up OP posted is not the stars lost, but the squad. Parris as a backup to Terland would have been a dream, likewise Boa-Riise or Guerrero as rotation options in midfield.
Click to expand...
You had me until you used the phrase "rotation options." But, you are absolutely right and thank you for your detailed response.

I agree that "my" defence is light, but I was making a point about the number of very good players we have lost and although we have replaced them we have not really strengthened.
 
jojojo said:
Go back a bit further and you can add Greenwood, James and Groenen to that list.

It's kind of the opposite problem to the one we complain about with the men's team. There - we worry about not being able to move players out, for the women's team we have no problem doing that.
Click to expand...
Another three good players. I could have gone back further, and that would have strengthened my defence, but I was trying to keep it in Skinner's era - unless I have made a mistake.
 
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