The defence is solid and we can afford to lose one from our senior defensive players as I think there is enough cover there. If we have to, I would be happy to see Felliani go if it meant we could keep the rest of our quality players.I would then buy a creative midfielder and a striker. We need goals more than anything else. Pienaar and Osman are getting on and that leaves Mirallas as our only recognised in his prime creative midfielder.

I think if we pick up Honda on a free, Fer using the Felli money and then sign a striker most of our problems will be solved. We'll probably sign Alcaraz on a free too.

Players out:
Fellaini £25m
Heitinger £4m

Players in:
Honda Free
Alcaraz Free
Fer £8m
Mcmanaman £6m
Jelle Van Vossen £5m
Nacer Chadli £6m
Guidetti £1m loan with option to buy for £6 million at end of season

For me:

In:

Honda ( Free)
Alcaraz (Free)
Fer (£8-10m)
Bony
Zaha (Loan)
Redmond (£2.5m)

Out

Felli (£25m)
Heitinga (£5m)

If we don't sell, then I am afraid Osman is the only signature we are likely to see this summer. I never get into the name game as it always ends in tears. Sit back, relax, and watch the fun unfold... That's all we can do.

Personally I don't think the striker issue is a massive worry, because Jelly didn't miss as many sitters as people make out and neither did Big Vic. We need 10 goals from Pienaar, 10 from Mirallas, 10 from the creating midfielder, 10 from the central pairing, 15 from the striker, and at least 10 from the back 4.

Our problem is goals are not spread through the team and I blame Moyes for this due to the setup of the team which was setup around Fellaini. If we are to play this swift attacking footie, we need goals from everywhere, not just the frontman.

I believe (with Martinez's regular use of 3 at the back) it could be more cost efficient to get the best out of Heitinga in a back 3 and let him go for a free next summer. You have to remember it's a pre-World Cup season and I'm sure Heitinga would step up his game to levels he set in the 2011-12 season.

Another centre half does need to come in as cover though. It seems likely Alcaraz on a free. Free transfers are a no-risk gamble.

So, in respect to the main point of the article, I think a striker to come in the absolute priority. I would love Negredo but I think that's probably a pipe dream. Same applies to Honda. I hope we don't go for Kone as I see him as another Anichebe.

With our board we have to go for numbers in the hope of finding a "Michu" or 2 to sell on. We are in the 2nd tier of the 3 tier Premier League... sheer madness to gamble on one or two players who might end up like Bily or Yak with the only realistic ambition being the snaffling of a cup,

The price of the present ownership is not £120 million – it is the grim knowledge that any genuinely successful player Martinez (or any manager) develops who may threaten the teams above will be taken by the first tier teams.

Hideous but true.

I really don't think Kone is the right fit but would be happy with a good link up forward and goalscoring MF players.

As I've said till I'm blue in my face, Fellaini is a costly risky liability, as well known for his elbows and head butts last season than his sometimes sublime performances.

Honda? Ha, absolutely no way at all - get off that cloud, we are not anywhere on his radar.

More realistically, so long as Felli goes would be: Alcaraz - Fer - Mcmanaman/Chadi - McCarthy - Jelle Van Vossen - Wanyama

No-one has mentioned a goalie, unless I missed something. We MUST get a new goalie good enough to step in Timmy's boots at a moment's notice. I rather like Ali Al-Habsi, though I suppose injury prone. But Howard's almost imperious position under Ginger was one of our biggest fault-lines.

Raid the Belgian 2nd Division, that Tahitan goalie looks half-decent, there are better goalies than Timmy out there who would not make the biggest dent in the Felli money.

Goalie - central defence - centre-mid - winger - striker

Ah, if only Teary Billy - goalie - Wanyama can play centre back/defensive mid - Fer - Mcmanaman/Chadi - Jelle Van Vossen

Ideally the team could do with:

A goalkeeper - competition for Howard not just one to be rolled out for the Worthless Cup
Central Midfielder - if Fellaini goes then Fer is an ideal replacement for a lot less money
Striker - would love to see Mirallas given a shout at a position he looks more natural in but that would leave a gap on the right,

Already in house we have Barkley and Vellios and McAleny who should ideally be given some game time

Fellaini is gone, nothing we can do to stop it. I can't see Heitinga staying either. That's £24 mil plus £1-2mil plus the TV money.

In I'd go for the Columbian striker Bacca from Brugge, going for £5mil apparently. Redmond from Birmingham - reportedly desperate to sell for £3mil. The Columbian midfielder Torres for £2 mil. £8mil for Fer. Alcaraz for free as cover at the back. One more out there suggestion, I'd try for Fraser Forster at Celtic as competition for Howard. I reckon we'd have a chance at £6mil. That'd come in at about the price of Fellaini.

I love this time of season, I can still dream that we'll actually sign a few players.

Hoping there will be a handful of your lads in the line-up.

Let's not forget, Jay is spot on to think about incoming and outgoing, but one of my big hopes for the next one or two years is that Bobby sticks to his spoken commitment to the value of the Academy.

Mind you, I suppose that Ginger said that from time to time.

Top-drawer shout Jon, though I might sub replacement for competition

I'd rather us concentrate on players further forward for the time being, because it's more of an urgent matter in my opinion.

Sorry given the brou-hou-ha on another thread
about 'our club', I meant, I hope you all realized,
'our lads'

It's always more exciting I agree when a name midfielder or striker walks in through the door. Puts a spring in our step.

I suspect you're right and that we will bring in three or four from old team 80's numbers 5-11, with an aging goalie - or Al-Habsi - as a cheapish third or fourth priority.

Celtic's Forster has been on my mind for a while now and he's a good old Northerner. I think with each passing year that the case for a new top-flight goalie is becoming more pressing mate.

Can't wait MK

If we sell Fellaini and buy four players not as good as him, the starting 11 will get weaker. I'd rather not sign Fer if meant Fellaini left.

A quality striker and winger is needed for the first team. And two free transfers for a backup goalie and centre half.

Heitinga, Vellios, Ggueye, Hitzlesperger, Mucha, Neville, Moyes —is a lot of wages gone and then there's extra TV money. I'd rather spend that than sell our best player!

Fellaini should play CM with Barkley. Pienaar or Osman behind Negrado with Mirallas and a top international winger. Obviously Gibson would come in for Barkley quite regulary to protect him a bit. But that would be our most mobile, physical and tecnically gifted midfield we could play IMO.

We need a striker and I would like us to go for Mcmanaman.

Honda would be a terrific signing, but apparently AC Milan have been sniffing around recently and I would imagine his wage demands would be very high.

Mirallas will probably be one of the first names on the team sheet but some may feel he is better pushed further forward. Fellaini in the holding role would be nice but I can't see him being here after 11:59 on the last day of the transfer window (giving us no time to get a replacement in, after the big lad was in Billy's office begging him to let him go!).

What we need is someone who can run past our forwards and create space for them to get a shot or creative pass off. We haven't had this (Mirallas apart) since probably Kanchelskis left, though Arteta in his prime came close.

I hope we see more of our youngsters and I have a feeling Martinez's signings will have a bit more flair than Moyes's did. With this also comes more of a risk of failure but exciting times lie ahead.

Ever heard of irony Ray? It's one thing that we from Liverpool are quite noted for; or maybe you were not lucky enough to be born and raised in the imperial city?

Antonin Alcaraz (Free)

An unglamourous first name but it makes sense. He is by all accounts a very decent defender with experience of both the Premier League and working with Martinez. He will likely only be backup for Jags and Distin anyway.

Keisuke Honda (Free)

As far as I know, he has a great engine (chortle), technique and hits a mean free kick. He would possibly also help with off-the-field marketing in the Far East and on a free looks like great business so long as his wage demands are not extortionate.

Lerory Fer (£8M)

Wanyama is another option but we definitely need a physical presence in the middle. I mainly like Fer because of the pony to the girlfriend in the block of flats story. He also looks useful on the pitch.

Wilfried Bony (£12M)

A striker is needed and this guy looks like knows where the back of the net is. Strong fast and powerful, he could be well suited to the Premier League. Negredo could be another option but it looks like he might be going at a higher price.

Nacer Chadli (£6M)

Nathan Redmond could be another option but i think Chadli is closer to being the finished option and brings a bit more height to the team as well as pace, creativity and goals. A similar player to Mirallas and potentially able to play wide or centrally.

Another thought would be that we need to buy a top class CB to replace Distin but for me the guy was quality last year and showed absolutely no sign of ageing legs and until he does I'm happy for him to stay a first choice pick.

And by the way, I was born and bred in Liverpool and fully understand scouse wit, even though I now live in Warrington. Just failed to recognise the irony this time. Maybe I'm turning into a woollyback?

http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11827/8790844/Transfer-news-English-clubs-interested-in-Abel-Aguilar-says-representative

Abel Aguilar, a player of the Spanish League, captain of a top international side, good all round midfielder and available for a low fee. Does anyone not think this deal is made for Martinez?

God, I hope not and in any case I'm not
sure that you can become a 'woollyback;.

That Tahitan goalie was better than Bobby Mimms, to be fair.

I honestly do think that Al-Habsi would be a decent option in light of what we have, although I do agree about the cock-up proneness, he's up
there with Joe Hart.

Fraser Forster would be my preference at this point, but I stand to be corrected once the good folks/internet warriors on here trawl through cyberspace to find me the next great Spanish or Belgian goalie

It doesn't matter which city we are from, we just have to have a sense of humour that exceeds that of a 5 year old boy . Ray Robinson seems to fall short in that respect

As it stands now, our weakest link is the goalie. Howard was crap last season, maybe Ali Al-Habsi can come in, he has experience but I do not know if he is too old by now. I have always noticed him playing very good against us. I just do not know if there are any top goalkeepers out there who we can afford.

Negredo sounds very good, but a little expensive as he would cost at least £16 million or more.

In the past we sold rooney and lescott and replaced them with inferior players, but with that money we also got a few players who were better than the other players we had in the squad, and the squad got better as a result.

Ultimately we can have the best defensive central midfielder in the league, but if we have to play him alongside phil neville or Leon Osman, we'd be better off having 2 darron gibson's.

I'd like to see Martinez use a few of the academy players to replace the departures. I don't want to see him go down the route of buying established players for £10M+. I'd rather him do what Barry Rathbone suggested and get in a few young players in the sub £5M bracket and hope a few of them come good.

Our problem has been finishing off our creative play with more goals.

Our main source of goals has been Fellaini.

Now while I think 24 million would not be bad for Fellaini it would only be good for the club if we can replace his contribution with similar quality and goals.

The problem I have is our players are limited and we don't have any top quality all rounders which is why our 5 man midfield is important for balance.

We don't have many goalscorers in MF and we don't have a prolific striker say while they are creative they don't have the ability to finish with the exception of Fellaini and Mirallas.

Imagine becoming a Woolie!

It's hard to visualise Jelavic and Anichebe fitting into the Martinez football system of quick, neat inter-passing, ball retension and lethal shooting. For me, they should either be dumped or gradually phased out.Jelavic has terrific anticipation and a big heart but his ponderous leg speed is costing us dearly. Vic is Vic.

We badly need a strong tackling, mobile midfielder to support Gibson and Barkley because neither of them do much without the ball. Heitinga managed to do it once or twice towards the end of the season but he's not the quickest. Fer or Vadis would be preferable. They also score goals.

Don't know much about this Bony guy. Must look him up.
Like Fellaini, certain players will have been on our radar for two years or more. Long term investment types. Real hush-hush with a last minute swoop. Let's hope we unearth a gem.

A black cloud on the horizon is the age of some of the regular squad:- Distin 36, Hibbert & Osmond 32, Pienaar & Jagielka 31,
also Howards 34 which is not too bad for a keeper so were told!

The only way were going to challenge for a top 4 spot in the future is if a ultra rich megalomaniac buys the club or Martinez makes the club No.1 at developing top young players.

We def. want a decent goalkeeper to keep Howard on his toes.
A quality striker -hard to find?,
Midfielder- I think Roberto will go for McCarthy,
Alcaraz to give some competition at the back.
There will prob. also be a few others in the £3m-£5m range who we've never heard of.