Transfer News, Gossip & Speculation Transfer Thread - Summer 2025 Edition.

[Grayson]

I don't, for a minute, dispute anyone's comments on here so far. But I'd just like to put this out there:

Without improving the quality of the players on our books we managed to qualify for the 24/25 NL Play-offs, we then managed to see off the 3rd and 5th placed teams in the Play-Off places and were eventually only beaten in the second half of extra time with a goal that could be viewed as extremely flukey.

Just saying. And yes, we would still benefit from some extra recruitment, but don't undersell the players we already have.

Useful if we end up in a short knockout tournament again.

We need to be thinking how to get north of 90 points in a regular season though. This squad got 68. Even extrapolating second half season form, it's still creeping just above 80.

 

[GNH]

Not sure spending anything like £150k on Pepple is anything other than a huge gamble.

He was good for us in short spells but I'd have doubts that he's a striker to build a promotion challenge on.

With the way the finances are I can see some sort of loan deal for a promising PL/Championship striker being a realistic solution. as long as we tie up the loose ends so they don't suddenly get recalled if they start setting the world on fire.

As far as Bonne goes, I like him and what he brings to the team in awareness, hard work and pure ****housery, but he MUST score more goals in his position. Perhaps try to secure an extension that is heavily weighted on his scoring results rather than basic wage, that way there is an incentive for all parties?

 

[BEERMONSTER]

Useful if we end up in a short knockout tournament again.

We need to be thinking how to get north of 90 points in a regular season though. This squad got 68. Even extrapolating second half season form, it's still creeping just above 80.

Easy! A keeper and defence that guarantees you around 20 clean sheets though out the season with a goal against total of less than 35. A 25 plus goal scoring forward backed up by 3 other strikers who average between 15 each over the season, a midfield contribtion of between 10/15 and ideally a CB that's going to get you about 10 from set pieces!
Simple really

 

[PIERS]

I have a feeling Innis will end up with us next season

 

[James peeee]

How long before our first signing of the summer? I’d probably have a guess of the first week in July

 

[Southend Elvis]

I can't understand how we think by keeping the same side we'll automatically improve next season.
We have to let those go who are out of contract, with only Ralph given a new deal. We have to replace those players with better ones, who score goals.
I could see the argument for giving all the out of contract players an extra year, if we won at Wembley, but unfortunately we didn't, so we have to improve to get out of this crappy league, not cross our fingers and hope all goes well!

 

[londonblue]

I don't, for a minute, dispute anyone's comments on here so far. But I'd just like to put this out there:

Without improving the quality of the players on our books we managed to qualify for the 24/25 NL Play-offs, we then managed to see off the 3rd and 5th placed teams in the Play-Off places and were eventually only beaten in the second half of extra time with a goal that could be viewed as extremely flukey.

Just saying. And yes, we would still benefit from some extra recruitment, but don't undersell the players we already have.

Or the management's ability to get the best out of and improve them.

 

[londonblue]

Useful if we end up in a short knockout tournament again.

We need to be thinking how to get north of 90 points in a regular season though. This squad got 68. Even extrapolating second half season form, it's still creeping just above 80.

The 2nd half of the season wasn't a short knockout tournament.

 

[Grayson]

The 2nd half of the season wasn't a short knockout tournament.

My final sentence accounts for that. Our current squad is the foundation of a solid NL team but we need to get the additions right to get the points levels required to challenge the top.

 

[londonblue]

My final sentence accounts for that. Our current squad is the foundation of a solid NL team but we need to get the additions right to get the points levels required to challenge the top.

Agreed. It's the argument that we need to be making wholesale changes to the squad that I find baffling.

 

[ForeverBlue]

I think our first job should be to ensure we try and hang onto GSM and Ralph, I fear we’ll lose both this summer.

 

[leeblue]

6 first teamers signed please.
Minimum.

 

[onceknownasrab]

Agreed. It's the argument that we need to be making wholesale changes to the squad that I find baffling.

It's not really wholesale changes. I would, ideally, like to see six new, better players and release four. That retains the majority of the squad. We would be very fortunate to see the six new players on the pitch at the same time due to fitness, injury, form or suspension. Thus the majority of players in the game will be from the current squad and the unity/cohesion continues.

 

[ColinMorrisWalksOnWater]

Kallum Cesay, 22 year old RB from Wealdstone and product of Spurs youth team joins Salford.

I would hope we have some incomings ourselves in the next 2 weeks.

 

[Fozzie]

Jimi Gower? Just left Arsenal and was a Southend Youth academy player. Might be good as a long term development midfielder.

Not to mention that his dad might just be mates with Kev.

 

[Thundersley Blue]

Not sure spending anything like £150k on Pepple is anything other than a huge gamble.

He was good for us in short spells but I'd have doubts that he's a striker to build a promotion challenge on.

With the way the finances are I can see some sort of loan deal for a promising PL/Championship striker being a realistic solution. as long as we tie up the loose ends so they don't suddenly get recalled if they start setting the world on fire.

As far as Bonne goes, I like him and what he brings to the team in awareness, hard work and pure ****housery, but he MUST score more goals in his position. Perhaps try to secure an extension that is heavily weighted on his scoring results rather than basic wage, that way there is an incentive for all parties?

I agree with you on Pebble I really don't believe he is a natural goal scorer. I like his attitude, his willingness to work hard, but he has an awful lot to learn. Despite his height he missed quite a few headed chances and tap ins. £150,000 is a gamble and might be better spent elsewhere.

 

[RHB]

I think I need to clarify my earlier post. I'm not saying that we don't need some extra players that will improve our current squad, we actually do. But I thought it was worth mentioning what an achievement the current squad achieved. For some, it seems, they are now old news and need swopping out. As to what we actually need, I'll leave that in the very capable hands of Kevin Maher, Darren Currie and Mark Bentley underpinned by Justin Rees and COSU.

 

[Thundersley Blue]

Think and this dosent affect myself as i live in the Philippines but will affect all you living within the Southend Area a lot will depend on STS as that goes a long way to paying players wages during the off season i do believe, Yes i agree Bim would be a decent signing and im sure if he has a 150k price put on him then many other teams in the EFL will be sniffing around ,I still wonder about that lad from Brentwood and why no mention of him .

If COSU had needed season ticket money to get through the close season they would have been on sale a while back. Clearly, they don't and there is no need for an early bird offer either. That's not to say there won't be one though.

 

[The Dirty One]

Sorry if this is off topic, but I think the bold sentence needs to be addressed, because promotion isn't the only way Southend United can become sustainable. Although it's absolutely right that there would be an increase in television revenue, as well as Premier League solidarity payments, Academy funding and prize money in the EFL, costs would also rise for player salaries, transfer fees, signing-on fees, agent fees for example, and therefore it's not the panacea to financial problems, although it would absolutely be of assistance.

It's often said that clubs should speculate to accumulate. In football, speculation simply leads to further speculation. Once the club was in League Two, the clamour would soon be to get back to League One, because there are bigger clubs in that division and therefore more away fans, and we've played there reasonably recently. Then it would be that we should speculate to get into the Championship, because we've played in the second tier before. Then, after a while, it would be: why can't we reach the Premier League, because if AFC Bournemouth/Brighton & Hove Albion/Fulham can play at level, and before them Luton Town/Swansea City, and we've competed at a similar level to them recently, so why can't we do the same?

COSU have made some incremental improvements in the ten months they've had custody of the club; getting more of the ground open to increase capacity, improving the food and drink provision, opening up areas of the ground on a non-matchday (e.g. big screens for the play-offs, St Patrick's Day), and potentially something like the membership scheme advertised at Wembley.

But the club is losing £2m+ a year, and promotion to the EFL won't solve that (we were losing a comparable amount when we were last in the EFL, albeit under the previous owner). That's why COSU are looking at ground redevelopment, especially in relation to the East Stand, to bring in money 365 days a year, rather than just on the limited number of matchdays we have each season; that's what they've identified as the real route to sustainability for Southend United.

Wise words.

 

[TrevorFitzpatrickHattrick]

I have a feeling Innis will end up with us next season

I don't see this as being probable in the slightest, but Inniss would be an unreal signing. I can't find the duration of his FGR contract anywhere (signed in 2023), but it wouldn't surprise me if he did depart New Lawn; his post-match interview against us seemed to leave all options open...