Rating Crewe Alex's Transfer Window

Phew. The summer transfer window has now closed and it feels like they get busier and busier every season, with more and more transfers taking place. For Crewe Alex, it was a packed window, with 7 players leaving the club either permanently or on season long loans. Coming the other way were 5 permanent signings and 6 loans. So, what to make of this version of the squad, now that it's set until January at least. Well, let's look at the various comings and goings and assess how they did:

Outgoings

Permanent

Chris Long - Brisbane Roar

The time was right to move on from him, but I didn't expect him to pitch up in Australia of all places. He's honestly cashed in there and I can't fault him for this move. Living in a lovely Australian city and being a short drive from some beautiful coast lines is a great choice from him. It'll be interesting to see how the last few peak years of his career go.

Kane Hemmings - Barrow

Hemmings took a while to get fixed up, but eventually after a number of weeks training with the PFA Free Agents squad, he found a new home in Barrow on a 1 year deal. It's been a tough opening few weeks for him though, having played just 42 minutes of league football through 6 games so far. But with Barrow having firepower issues, he might get his chance to impress.

Ryan Cooney - Glentoran

Another surprising move was seeing Cooney not return to Morecambe but instead head across the Irish sea to sign for Northern Ireland side Glentoran. He's had a solid start to the season, with The Glens sitting top of the NIFL Premiership after 5 games and him playing an important part in that.

Nathan Robinson - Eastern Florida State College

Another surprise move was to see the highly thought of Robinson, who moved to Eastern Florida State College in America, just down the road from Florida. Like Long, he trades the UK in for warmer and sunnier climates and you can't blame him for taking what looks to be a really good opportunity for him.

Lucas Sant - Without Club

I couldn't see any information to say Sant had found employment in football since leaving the Alex. Perhaps he's left the game and moved into a non-sport related profession, but best of luck to him wherever he ends up.

Season Long Loan

Fin Roberts - Chester

Roberts unfortunately had a poor pre-season, which cost him any shot at making the squad for the opening few weeks of the season. The management clearly didn't see any real path to the first team squad for him, hence his loan back to the Seals for the whole season. Hopefully he can find some form, kick on and give them food for thought with his contract due to expire next summer.

Zac Williams - Kilmarnock

The long running contract dispute saga with Williams finally came to a close 2 weeks into the season when he signed a new deal of undisclosed length, but then departed for Kilmarnock on a full season loan. I do think all it did was kick the can down the road and that he will likely be back in 12 months time with no long term clarity on his future forthcoming, but it got rid of the issue in the short term at least.

Incomings

Permanent

Josh March(2 year deal)

The first signing of the window was the 28 year old. Fresh off his best season in the EFL with Harrogate, where he put up 9 goals and 3 assists, he looked to be a solid if unspectacular addition to a front line. Well, so far he's certainly exceeded those expectations, with him putting up 1 goal and 4 assists in 6 games. He's had chances to score in every game he's played and if he continues at this current rate, he'll end up with 20+ goal contributions come the end of the season.

Phil Croker(2 year deal)

A surprising addition at the time but one that made more sense once we found out about Nathan Robinson's departure. He looked decent in the pre-season and made his pro debut against Stockport in the League Cup. He'll likely play in the EFL Trophy, play most of the U21 games and maybe spend a spell out on loan if needed. He looks a bright prospect, so fingers crossed it works out.

Reece Hutchinson(2 year deal)

Replacing another departing loanee is the permanent signing of Reece Hutchinson at LB. He gained some experience in the EFL with Burton and Cheltenham before heading over the Irish Sea to join Sligo Rovers. After 2 full seasons there, the Alex brought him back to the UK and so far, he's been excellent, scoring 2 goals in 6 games. He looks a top addition and has made a strong impact so far.

Louis Moult(1 year deal)

The Alex needed attacking depth, so took experienced striker on trial for several weeks before adding him on a 1 year deal. He's not had much impact so far, being used entirely as a sub. But as with a few others who have yet to really get going, the hope is that in a gruelling campaign, he'll get his chances and he'll hopefully take them.

Dion Rankine(2 year deal)

He might not be the last on this list, but Rankine was their final signing of the window from Wigan. After being heavily linked a number of weeks ago with a loan move, his contract at Wigan was cancelled in order to allow him to join the Alex on a free transfer. My expectations are low given he's 22 and he's coming off 2 not so good spells with Exeter and Wigan. But a drop in league might be just what he needs to find his feet and kick on. He should add pace and tricks, something the squad badly needs.

Loans

Sam Waller(Season long loan from Burnley)

They needed a keeper after the departure of Filip Marschall, so they once again dipped into the loan market and brought in Waller, who had a little bit of a track record, having done well in the National League with Rochdale. He's only played once so far in the League Cup but after wobbles with Tom Booth recently, calls for him to start a league game are growing. He might get his chance to impress soon enough.

Tommi O'Reilly(Season long loan from Aston Villa)

O'Reilly might not have joined the club had Joel Tabiner not gone down with his ACL injury. But he did, so the Alex moved quickly to bring in the lively Aston Villa man and so far, he's had a good start to the season. He scored in the 3rd game against Crawley and he's looked lively in every game so far, mostly playing off the RW.

Emre Tezgel(Season long loan from Stoke City)

After apparently chasing the young Stoke striker for several windows, the Alex finally got their man and brought him in. Unfortunately his impact has been limited, as have his minutes. His only meaningful contribution through 7 games was a consolation goal against Stockport. I don't doubt though that in a long season, he'll have more chances to impress and show why he's so highly rated.

James Golding(Season long loan from Oxford United)

To address the hole in the defence left by Connor O'Riordan and Jamie Knight-Lebel, the Alex signed the giant defender from Oxford United. As with a few other signings, he's had a mixed impact, mostly off the bench, so far, with some good and some not so good moments. But again, the message is the same. He'll get his chance to impress soon enough I'm sure.

Jay Mingi(Season long loan from Stockport County)

As the window drew to a close, the Alex still needed a right sided defender to compete with Lewis Billington and after seemingly striking out on other rumoured targets, they eventually snagged a player who not so long ago was on an upward trajectory through the leagues. Having broken through at Colchester, he moved to Stockport, but found game time limited.

He's now dropped down to the Alex in the hopes of reigniting his career. He'll definitely get chances to impress and looks a perfect compliment to start depending on what kind of game plan is required.

Harvey Griffiths(Development Loan from Wolves)

This one is a puzzling one, I can't lie. He's signed a development loan deal, which implies he will spend most of his time with the Alex's U21 squad and maybe get called up to the first team on occasions. However, with all of their main 5 loan slots used, he will only be able to do so should 1 of those players not make the squad. I'm not sure what the benefit of this is, but it could be as a form of extended trial, to view him up close for the rest of the season before maybe looking to sign him permanently next summer should he impress.

How Does the Squad look?

I won't go deep into every position, but looking at the graphic, they seem well stocked in almost every position. They have 32 players contracted to them, although that number does drop once you remove the loans of Roberts and Williams, plus the long term injuries to Shilow Tracey and Joel Tabiner.

But that still leaves them currently with 26 players they either have available right now or will be available to them shortly.

The biggest strength to the squad is it looks packed with depth now. Yes, some of that depth is questionable, but find me a L2 squad that has 25 viable starters. They should, touch wood, be able to cope with any injury crisis and have the options to rotate, which ideally means they can return to the high intensity pressing style which brought them success through the first 4 games of the season.

There are concerns however. First, is their a concern they have gone with quantity over quality? Second, their defence for the 2nd season running contains just one player over the age of 25 in Demetriou. They are one injury to him away from big problems potentially. They also seem too thin at CB to play 3 at the back consistently, given the current CBs they have are him, Connolly, Golding and then 2 rookies in Croker and Dancey(if he's even a CB).

The midfield quality and durability is also questionable, with them building around the unreliable fitness of Conor Thomas and the declining quality of Jack Powell. I still wonder about the lack of goals and attacking creativity in there.

And as bizarre as it is to say, they almost have too many options upfront. Even without Tabiner and Tracey, they still have March, Moult, Tezgel, Holicek, Lankester, Rankine, Bogle(for now), Agius, Thibaut, O'Reilly to choose from, all for 4 spots. It's also worth pointing out that whilst they have a lot of choice, only one of these players has double figures for goals in the EFL and it's Bogle. Keeping all of them happy might be a challenge, but finding enough firepower might also be trickier than we might think.

Conclusion

Regardless of any potential up or downsides in any part of this squad, one thing is undeniable: Lee Bell has been backed to the best of the board's ability. They don't have the money either due to spending restrictions or through their own wealth and go and get top end L2 talent. But they have backed Bell with 11 signings and given him the numbers he asked for.

This is very much his squad. He now has no excuses for not delivering a style of football that the fans want to see and bring in consistent results. How high the ceiling and how low the floor is of this group remains to be seen. But the board have done their part. It's not over to the management to do theirs and mould these players into a strong and coherent starting XI. Let's see how they get on.