12 May 2024 19:01:35
From our current squad, bearing in mind that we will need to keep hold of some players as squad players, who would you keep, sell and release from them all?
Mine would be:

Jordan Pickford (keep)
Joan Virginia (keep)
Andy Lonergan (contract expire, release)
Billy Crellin (contract expire, release)
Nathan Patterson (keep, loan out)
Michael Keane (sell)
James Tarkowski (keep)
Ashley Young (contract expire, release)
Vitalii Mykolenko (keep)
Ben Godfrey (keep)
Seamus Coleman (contract expire, renew)
Jarrad Branthwaite (keep)
Dwight McNeil (keep)
Amadou Onana (sell)
Abdoulaye Doucoure (keep)
Dele Alli (contract expire, release)
Andre Gomes (contract expire, release)
Idrissa Gana Gueye (contract expire, release)
James Garner (keep)
Dominic Calvert-Lewin (keep)
Beto (sell)
Yourself Chermiti (keep, loan out)
Lewis Dobbin (keep)
Arnaut Danjuma (loan expire)
Jack Harrison (loan expire)

Returning from loan

Mason Holgate (sell)
Really Maupay (sell)
Sean McAllister (contract expiring, renew)
Eli Campbell (keep)
Harry Tyrer (keep)
Stanley Mills (keep, promote)
Zan-Luk Leban (keep)
Reece Welch (contract expiring, release)

I don't know much about the under 21's but players I'd like us to keep and renew contacts would be:

George Pickford (loan out)
Kyle John (renew)
Lewis Warrington (release)
Charlie Whitaker (loan out)
Mackenzie Hunt (renew)
Tyler Onyango (loan out/ promote)
Martin Sherif (loan out)
Roman Dixon (loan out)
Halid Djankpata (loan out)
Isaac Heath (loan out)
Francis Okoronkwo (keep, promote)

1.) 12 May 2024
12 May 2024 22:06:08
I'd be very similar to you, although I'd actually keep Chermiti to be the backup to DCL, coming on for 25 mins gaining experience and developing that way, with Beto being the one to go out on loan. He's very raw, but I don't think you should give up on him after just one season. Allow him a season at a newly promoted club, Ipswich or perhaps a West Brom/ Norwich type club if they win playoffs, where he can play much more regularly. It gives him a year to fully adjust to demands of Premier League and allows us to assess him then - is he showing the necessary quality, can he make an impact moving forward in future etc. It worked an absolute treat when a raw Lukaku took a loan to Brom and developed into a very decent player.

2.) 13 May 2024
13 May 2024 12:36:11
Based on the last 3 seasons (this one when we were on that massive winless run) idk if we can risk loaning Beto to a Newley promoted club WEFC. depending on our sales/ releases and recruitment (which is likely to be very limited) , we could be battling at the bottom again.
I do agree with Optimus on most releases/ sales, except Gana, and I am somewhat resigned to losing Branth, as much as I’d love to keep him. We also definitely can’t go down to 1 senior striker in Dom by selling Beto and loaning Chermiti, we won’t have the funds to replace.
In any case, with that many outgoings we will need a lot of astute recruitment to have a squad for next season!

3.) 13 May 2024
13 May 2024 20:40:40
Tmh, we do have an option to extend Gana's contract by another year but given he is on £130k a week it's a massive wage for someone his age and that sort of money could be spent a lot more wisely hence the reason why I said to release him.