It looks like we are spending a bit more yet, as we seem to be chasing our tail with the lad from Club Brugge for 30m, so will see what happens by the close of the window. It could be a smokescreen.

As it stands, I don't know much about the new players, Sinistera is supposed to be a very good player.

My biggest worry is the system and if it can work in the Premier League, when you've got the most money and best players (by a massive margin) in the Austrian league, with a team who wins everything, every year, it's easier to implement this kind of style and get away with it.

What I saw last season, is how exposed we are at the back, I don't like this narrow play, we don't have the players for it IMO. Firpo and Ayling didn't thrive, that's for sure.

I could be wrong and maybe he's had the time to change things in training.

I'll go 16th for now and I think we'd all take that.

I think we'll stay up, but good teams will continue to rip us apart as we've not fixed our defence and weakened it by losing Kalvin.

Having said that, it looks like Kristensen is a very good addition to the right of defence. We just need a player of similar level for LB and Llorente still worries me greatly.

If Bamford stays injury-free then we should be OK up top with goals from others around him, but we need proper cover for him.

Quality LB, ST and a poundshop De Bruyne and I think we would be mid-table comfortably.

I think I start with what I know, which is that we escaped by skin of our teeth, have sold 2 players we have all seen and know are quality and have replaced with players we really don't know..

The other thing we know is that apart from Raphinha, very few, if any foreign players come to Leeds and hit ground running in first season.

As it stands I'm worried for us next season and I'm not convinced chasing a player who clearly doesn't want to come to Leeds will be what we need.

Only improvements we've made are depth in DM (When Forshaw is fit) and depth at right back. Centre backs still the same as last season and the front line looks very weak with too few goals in it. Still think we'll make 2 or 3 signings so we'll be ok imo. Think its going to be very tight down the bottom next season with a bottom 8 mini league.

Our priority was a striker ortas been chasing 2 who have made it clear they don't want to come to Leeds hope he's got a plan b or is he going to sign rubbish on 31st August

We have worries at both ends of the pitch. We shipped goals and struggled to score ourselves. Another option up top is vital in my view as Bamford is too injury prone to rely on, Joffy cannot be expected to do it all and as for Rodrigo well, it has al been said already.
If someone said we finish 16th now I would take in gladly

i get a gut feeling we are gonna struggle. I think there is 16 games before start of WC and out of a possible 48 points i reckon we will have about 18 points which is borderline for relegation plus we may have the usual leeds collapse after new year. Fancy us to beat Wolves and get a draw with southampton first couple games but if we dont then looks like real struggle and down and of course we have to factor in our already long injury list but like others have said the right 3 signings and we will be fine but as we are not hopeful

I'll repeat my 2021 pre-season prediction: 17th.

Anything better than that is gravy.

I agree our backline looks shaky still. My hope is
Marsch settles on Kristensen/Koch/Struijk/New LB
(who I hope can defend unlike Firpo).

Wish we'd walk away from this CDK fiasco. Yet
another 'going nowhere' transfer that Orta fixates
upon and we waste time.

If we get a striker, LB, back-up keeper before the
season start of the season I'll feel more optimistic.

We should be going for the likes of Jesper Karlsson from AZ, 21 goals and 17 assists last season from the left and no one is in for him, also Phillip Max, left back with 8 assists last season for PSV.

There is loads of chatter on twitter about us going for Philip max, so much in fact that firpo is trending

Yeah 28 year old German left back. Poisoned chalice of a position for us, overdue a good one.

At this point i'm worried about the manager the most.
not sure Jessie will cut it in the prem.
I like the players we've brought in but its anyone's guess if they will be any good. wait and hope is all we can do but i would feel much better with another 4 or 5 players in. We need depth everywhere as we are made of glass it would seem.

I agree Jonty. I’m sounding like a stuck record but we’re ignoring the fact that we need at least one proven Prem player. Lots of signings for mediocre money but no marquee signings to replace the two big names we’ve sold. As with last year’s fiasco, it looks like Radz and Orta are prepared to gamble on Leeds future in the Prem.

I firmly believe we are bottom third, I’ll say 16th. We sold our 2 marquee players and have Shack and Roberts out on loan…incoming we have 5 players who have never played at this level. We are mentioned regularly as a team that will go down. Hopefully we can count on at least 2 promoted sides going down plus Everton.

Interesting comments.

Agree that on the face it we don’t know what some of the new faces are capable of so hard to call. Only thing is that you look at the teams around us and they haven’t signed anyone of significance either.

Personally think we’ll struggle. Marsch will be gone by November (World Cup) and we’ll scrape it again. Just a feeling.

Criminal that a week from the season starting we still don’t have an additional striker given issues we had with Bamford last season…

Didn’t some blame Bielsa for that?? He didn’t want a replacement striker… Ok then, explain the last few months then.

Don't know where we'll finish in the table but I think we'll stay up.

We always knew there would be major changes this summer. A new coach with a clean slate, bringing his own players and playing style in.

Personally, I expect the stuffings to stop and for the new players, whoever they are, and wherever they're from, to rise to the challenge before them. Most are internationals, so have played at a high level.

The big question is can JM adapt? Does he have a Plan B if he sees Plan A failing? That and a thin squad are what did for Bielsa. JM doesn't have the same excuses, injuries notwithstanding.

As for "proven PL players", the PL market is notoriously expensive. Newcastle paid £25 million for the experienced PL player, 30-year old Chris Wood, who hasn't set the world on fire there.

It doesn't surprise me that we've been scouring the continental market for players. So many have come to the PL from abroad and cut the mustard - I don't see any reason why it shouldn't be the same for us.

I feel more confident of PL football in the long term with the squad we have now than I did on the last day of the season at Brentford.

We also have Cooper, Ayling and Dallas to come back to add to the numbers - proven PL players.

At least we're not playing Liverpool of Man U on the opening day so we have a chance to build a bit of momentum from the get-go but it's a relatively new team so anything is possible.

Patience, time and support is as much as we can give.

As usual, time will tell.

While we will be affected by the loss of KP and Raph, we have to look at the bigger picture here. JM is creating a new identity for LUFC. Unlike Bielsa on his arrival, he has brought in a cohort of young, energetic and feisty players, some of whom are trained in his way of playing. We can see the kind of squad he wants, and our stalwarts from the Bielsa era can see the writing on the wall, sad though it is.
Yes, we need a striker and a left back, but every club in this league has their weaknesses and their worries. We look vulnerable to pace and counter attack, and this is also significant, as there are several teams who can exploit this weakness.
On the plus side, we have more fluidity in the midfield, and I am excited about the development of Joffy and Greenwood. I think this is a squad where younger players will thrive.
I see this as a transitionary season for LUFC, where we get to see what a JM team looks like. We are a couple of players short, but we are not the only club in that position. I think Everton, Brentford, and Southampton will struggle this season, alongside the promoted teams, though Fulham look a lot better and Mitro must surely deliver at this level. Forest have brought in some talent, and showed promise in their win against Hertha Berlin last week. Bournemouth looked less impressive last time out, losing at home to Bristol City.
It’s a brave new world for LUFC but we survived second season syndrome and I think we will have enough to do better in 22/23.

First time I've been in the glass half empty side if the debate but I just cannot see how we just scraped through being relegated, sell our 2 best players, buy untested players and expect to stay up.

Hope to God I'm wrong but Jesse doesn't fill me with confidence

Hopefully there is some sort of contingency plan should this go south, it's been a long, long time since a manager has been given this sort of backing at Leeds. Had we gone down it could have been said that this was Bielsa's team...not now, this is a Jesse Marsch team...MOT!

Not a great sign this:

Striker Option 1 - CDK doesn't want to join us.
Striker Option 2 - Kalimuendo doesn't want to join us.
LB Option 1 - Philipp Max club doesn't want to lose him.

Orta all over again, going after players we seemingly
don't have a prayer in getting. Weird strategy.

Given the gulf in prices between proven Prem players and those in foreign leagues, I can understand why we're mostly shopping from the continent.

The thing I don't get is why we're targeting players in the sub £35m range. Given the 'bargain' prices elsewhere, why aren't we getting a marquee signing?

Haaland was £55m. We just got that for Raph. I know he wanted Champions League and silverware, but there must be other players who would be tempted to try themselves in the Premier League?

Just feels like we have no ambition with the signings made so far. I fear that most are Marsch's buddies just looking for a payday.

Not a lot that can be added to what has already been said. I think we will concede less goals over the season but worry about where the goals are coming from.

I think like most we are in for a scrap amongst Fulham, Brentford, Southampton, Forest, Palace, Everton, Bournemouth. One of these will probably excel for some reason and have a great season but I expect most will fill the bottom 8 places.

It will have a few late winners, a bit more luck this season maybe and some scrapping but i think we can finish 15th!

"The thing I don't get is why we're targeting players in the sub £35m range. Given the 'bargain' prices elsewhere, why aren't we getting a marquee signing?"

^^^^^

I think, Beren Cross or Hay said recently that Orta
and club's strategy is to identify players like CDK who
have big upsides, with an eye on their resell value.

As opposed to splashing on a marquee signing where
the club won't recoup as much by comparison.

Not defending the strategy (as I'm as frustrated by
Orta as anyone). That's what's been reported on why.

The problem with that approach, Batty, is that players of that quality will be looking for CL football. We should aim for a proven striker at this level whose profile is similar to the players JM is bringing in. I think Toney, although expensive, is a good fit for us.