Örebro SK has finally won a football game. After I wrote the post "Crul summer", anticipating an overly tough schedule on the squad, we lined up the following results (Örebro's result first).
Halmstad (away) 0-0
Djurgården (home) 1-2
Mjällby (away) 1-2
Elfsborg (home) 0-3
Elfsborg (away 0-3
Sarajevo (home) 0-0
Gais (away) 1-4
Sarajevo (away) 0-2 (thus we're kicked out of EL)
Norrköping (home) 2-0. Finally.
Apart from Elfsborg, all these games were played against teams we should normally beat. Really.
Hopefully things will go in the right directions from now onwards. Players aer coming back from injury. We can still end in the top 4. We can still win the cup. The cup here becomes more and more important this year. We need a title to remedy the disastrous season so far. And get another shot at Europa League. And get a reason to attract good players. Which brings me to the next topic.
The Örebro SK way of dealing with contracting is not to keep players on a tight leash. Cut some slack and you will be more likely to convince players to play with us for less money than you would get elsewhere. We keep costs down but get very little from selling on the transfer market. Play it safe. Something like that.
Gotta say I like it. But it does make you very nervous every time a transfer window is about to open. Now we had the strange situation that the European transfer window has been opened for a while (thus foreign clubs can sign our players) whereas our own transfer window is mid-season and only opens on Monday.
We have two things to deal with.
Immediate band aid
Not sure how we ended up with one central defender in the entire squad (who is currently injured). Or, I do, actually. The last few seasons we have decided not to extend the contracts of players like Bertin Ze and Holgersson. This season, we shipped away Lumbana on loan to Iceland before the seaon started, and in June almost simultaneously sold Almebäck and ended the contract with Oskar Johansson. Suddenly we have Wikström as the only natural choice. Haginge is the obvious cover for Almebäck with his speed - and this was something the club had in mind although he prefers to full back role. But it happens, dear ÖSK, that a central defender gets injured or suspended. It happended now and so midfielder Nordback had to fall back and start as a central defender against both Sarajevo and against Norrköping. And he has not impressed anyone.
Now the club has laid eyes on Icelander Eid Aaron Sigurbjörnsson from IBV Vestmannaeyjar. Hard to find solid information on him on the internet. That in itself is rather worrying these days. But a new defender, possibly with language problems, needs time to fit into a new club. And coach Sixten has usually been careful in that regard. So it may take a while before Eid is functional, even if we sign him. I would think we need one more central defender. Christoffer Wiktorson from local rival Degerfors seems a good alternative as he would be more likely to find his way into the Örebro way of playing quickly. Although the Degerfors web site markets him as very short, very light and extremly old, he is rumoured to be a very talented player. We missed Mellberg in the 90s. Let's not miss this one.
The club is also looking for a centre forward. Here ÖSK has been a bit but just a bit more unlucky. We have three for one position, but all of them are prone to injuries (and we knew that). First choice Haddad has played only five games this season (we won four of them and he scored in three). Second choice Atashkadeh has picked up a few minor injuries, and has rarely been in shape to act as the Haddad back-up he was intended to be.
Third choice Staaf is not a very good footballer, but holds an ok goal scoring average. He is starting right now but Sixten tried not only Haddad and Atashkadeh but also Lushtaku, Rama, Paulinho and (in pre-season) Bedoya in this position before giving Staaf a chance. So if we find a striker it better be one that is made of steel.
Rebuilding for the future - extend contracts or look for replacements
Here is the contract status of the players with highest average ratings so far this season (Rank, Player, Rating, Status)
1. Bedoya (2.85): Signed for Glasgow Rangers. May leave as free agent in October or for a negligible fee any day now.
2. Almebäck (2.58): Already gone, to Brugge.
3. Alvbåge (2.56): Expiring contract, has declared that he intends to leave as free agent after the season. The club has stated they are looking for a replacement.
4. Rama (2.40): Is contracted also for 2012 and 2013.
5. Gerzic (2.36): Expiring contract, may well leave as he has not yet accepted the offers for a contract extension.
Get on it!
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