Worst Signings of the 2020/21 Premiership season (part 1)

It's always fun being a critic, and even more so when it comes to Scottish football. In previous years the criticism of these articles has generally been along the lines of "you didn't rank our s*** player high enough". Except for the season I included St. Johnstone's David McMillan...but who was proven right then, I ask you?

So this is the ninth year we've ranked the duds signed by Scottish Premiership clubs. Rory Boulding, Stephane Bahoken, Jim Fenlon, Rodney Sneijder, Joey Barton, Eduardo Herrera, Umar Sadiq, Madis Vihmann...who will be this year's 'winner'?

Well, you won't find out today because the top ten will be published at a later date. But here's the countdown from 25 to 11 to whet your appetite...

25. EDDIE NOLAN (MOTHERWELL)

Does this player actually exist? The 32 year old defender joined Motherwell on loan on the last day of the winter window, but has never actually played a game or even sat on the bench. Maybe he's injured. Or maybe he took one look at Lanarkshire and scarpered back south; Motherwell's squad is currently so huge that it's possible no-one's noticed he's gone.

24. MOHAMED MAOUCHE (ROSS COUNTY)

Does this player actually exist, part two? John Hughes bigged him up when he signed in January as someone who would add flair to the midfield. But Maouche, who had been out of football for six months prior to joining County, was delayed in joining the squad by quarantine rules, then he was given leave for 'personal reasons', but by early February he was apparently ready to roll. We're still waiting. He hasn't even been a sub.

23. DJIBRIL DIANI (LIVINGSTON)

Does this player actually exist, part three? Actually, here the answer is yes; Diani agreed a loan move from Grasshopper Zurich at the start of February but it took nearly two months to sort out a work permit for the French midfielder. So we may actually see him in action after the split.

22. SCOTT FOX (MOTHERWELL)

Four different goalkeepers have started matches for Motherwell this season. That number does not include veteran Fox, who wrecked his knee in preseason training and who has been missing for the entire campaign. He probably should be ranked higher on this list just for having his signing announced with a photo of him in some sort of denim bodywarmer/hoodie combo.

21. ISAAC OLAOFE (ST. JOHNSTONE)

Callum Davidson brought two players in on loan from former club Millwall. Danny McNamara was a huge success. Isaac Olaofe was not. The forward went back to London in early October having made two substitute appearances; Saints had managed only four goals in their opening ten matches by that point, but Olaofe still couldn't get a look in.

20. ISAK THORVALDSSON (ST. MIRREN)

If you think Olaofe's stay in Perth was brief, it was nothing on Thorvaldsson's spell at St. Mirren which lasted just thirty-eight days and two cameos off the bench. Manager Jim Goodwin suggested afterward that homesickness was a big factor, and that Paisley was "a hell of a long way away" from his parent club Norwich. Maybe it just felt like that...

19. TUNDE OWOLABI (HAMILTON ACCIES)

Owolabi can probably be classed as a low-risk signing, but he did score 35 goals for FC United of Manchester last season. That's 35 more than he scored for Accies, for whom he started only twice - one of which was a League Cup humiliation at Annan - before being released at the start of February. He is now at Irish club Finn Harps.

18. JAKE EASTWOOD (KILMARNOCK)

Goalkeeper Eastwood signed on loan from Sheffield United, and started on opening day against Hibs. Five minutes into his league debut he had a rush of blood to the head and raced out of his box, gifting Martin Boyle a goal in the process. At half-time he was subbed with a thigh injury. He never played again, returning south in January. That forty-five minute long Killie career will go down in infamy. 

17. MARC MCNULTY (DUNDEE UNITED)

United fans are actually largely sympathetic towards McNulty, given Micky Mellon's tactical system means his forwards seem to spend bugger all time in the box. But just two years on from winning two international caps, McNulty has managed all of two goals this season - and one of those was a consolation goal at Ibrox. That's a dreadful return.

16. RYAN EDMONDSON (ABERDEEN)

Edmondson did score twice in one game against Hamilton, but those were his only goals for Aberdeen. Having been signed on loan after Sam Cosgrove got injured, Edmondson himself got crocked quickly and on returning to fitness discovered Derek McInnes had recruited Marley Watkins. Ultimately he became an impact sub making minimal impact. After going back to Leeds he went on loan to Northampton Town where he's played regularly but only scored once.

15. JUSTIN JOHNSON (HAMILTON ACCIES)

Dutch winger Johnson made a handful of appearances for Dundee United five or so years ago, and returned to Scotland after a couple of seasons in the Cypriot Second Division. Now, I know the Scottish Premiership isn't an elite league, but I'd like to think it's a few steps - perhaps an entire flight of stairs - above the Cypriot Second Division. Johnson made seven appearances for Accies, and they never scored a goal whilst he was on the pitch. He left at the end of January and signed for Morton; given he's managed only a couple of sub appearances there (they haven't scored during those either) perhaps the Championship is a bit better than that Cypriot league too?

14. LARS LOKOTSCH (LIVINGSTON)

Livingston's approach to strikers this season is similar to mine when playing Football Manager - always looking for a better one and willing to discard even the most recent signings for a guy whose rating is a fraction of a star greater. Lokotsch was plucked from the German fourth tier on a two year deal with an option of a third. He did start a couple of league games but was quickly sidelined as the club brought in upgrades. Lokotsch was loaned to Raith Rovers within a few months, where he mostly sat on the bench, before returning to Germany in January.

13. NATHAN SHERON (ST. MIRREN)

The most damning thing one can say about Sheron was that by the autumn he struggled to make the Buddies' bench even when they were naming kids on it. His last appearance for the club was in mid-October; before then he had been a regular in the starting XI but as soon as he was dropped results started to improve. St. Mirren's win percentage in seven league games with him - zero. Their win percentage in league games without him - 38%. If Jim Goodwin had dropped Sheron sooner, they'd have probably made the top six with a bit to spare. Sheron returned to parent club Fleetwood in January, but he's been so inconsquential there that no-one's even updated his Wikipedia bio to say he's gone back.

12. DIEGO LAXALT (CELTIC)

At least Laxalt is on loan, which means he will return to Milan this summer and Celtic fans will not have to endure him further. Laxalt was signed to play wing-back, only for Neil Lennon to ditch 3-5-2 within days and leave the Uruguayan playing as a more orthodox left-back, where his defensive frailties were frequently exposed. And I can't look at him, with his ultra-thick spectacles and braided hair, without thinking of his resemblance to Lisa Loeb of early nineties hit 'Stay (I Missed You) fame.

11. ALBIAN AJETI (CELTIC)

Celtic weren't short of strikers when they paid a whopping £5m for Ajeti, and after a reasonable start he unsurprisingly became a multi-million pound backup for Odsonne Edouard. If he was brought in to be the Frenchman's successor, the plan has certainly hit the skids. He's scored once since the end of September and John Kennedy even left him out of the matchday squad for the most recent game against Rangers. 

Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

Caley Thistle are collapsing towards relegation

Legend has it that Harold MacMillan, Prime Minister in the late nineteen-fifties, was once asked what is most likely to blow a government off course and replied "events, dear boy, events!"

As in politics, so in life. And so in football, at least in Inverness. Make no mistake: Caley Thistle, their players and those who run the club have significant responsibility for their current plight too, but it has taken a perfect storm of factors, many of which are out of anyone's control, to leave them where they are - in extreme danger of plummeting into League One.

At first, it looked like lockdown might be a boon for the Highlanders.

ICT were second in the Championship when play stopped in March 2020, albeit miles adrift of Dundee United. Whilst holding onto that second spot was hardly a given in a very close division there were grounds to expect a top four finish and another shot at the promotion playoffs. But when the season was called early talk turned to 'reconstruction' and the possibility of expanding the Premiership to fourteen clubs and keeping Hearts in the top tier. Inverness would have been the beneficiaries of the need for an even number of participants.

So how do you get from there to freefall in such a short space of time?

Last summer was always going to require a rebuild - Shaun Rooney, Carl Tremarco, Charlie Trafford, Tom Walsh and Jordan White left, following Coll Donaldson and Jamie McCart last January - and recruitment was going to be tough anyway given the club's tight finances. Add in the money lost because of Covid, and travel restrictions - try selling the prospect of not seeing friends and family for months to potential new signings - and in hindsight John Robertson did remarkably well to tempt Robbie Deas, Scott Allardice and Wallace Duffy north. It also explains why the team are rather more reliant on Shane Sutherland (who returned to full-time football after years at Elgin and Peterhead) and Daniel Devine (whose partner is from Aviemore) than a club with promotion aspirations should be.

The coup de grace was the arrival on loan of winger Kai Kennedy from Rangers. Kennedy had good and bad days - as all young wide players do - but he particularly shone in a 3-0 win in Dumfries live on TV on a Friday night. By January, he was gone; the reason - homesickness - a stark example of the difficulties that people face in these trying times. In a division where the majority of clubs have four or more loan players boosting squad depth, Caley Thistle are unique in currently having none.

But in that victory away to Queen of the South and another at home to Raith Rovers the week before, ICT were impressive and dominant, looking every inch like a side who would be in the promotion playoff mix. Since then they have won just one of twelve matches.

Kennedy's departure was supposed to be compensated for by the arrival of former Hearts youth Anthony McDonald but he picked up an injury before even playing a game and had surgery last week. A thin squad - even more so because Kevin McHattie, Lewis Toshney and Aaron Doran were frequently in the treatment room - has been stretched further after a run of postponements has left them with a hectic two-games-a-week schedule for February and March. Those matches were supposed to produce momentum for a surge up the table but the opposite has been true, with tired players low on confidence struggling against fresher, buoyed opposition. Nine midweek matches have been played this season in all competitions, the opposition (Cowdenbeath, Raith, Dunfermline, Morton twice, Arbroath, Alloa, Queen of the South and Dundee) hardly overwhelming. Inverness have not won any of them. They are in action on the next two Tuesdays.

Then there's the problems in the dugout, with the double blow of first losing assistant manager Scott Kellacher to serious illness and then the need for manager Robertson to take compassionate leave following a bereavement with no return date timetabled. Only a fortnight in, all but the first twenty minutes of interim replacement Neil McCann's tenure has been horrendous, with a promising draw with Hearts followed up by limp defeat at Dundee, a rather undeserved draw at bottom-of-the-table Alloa and then another loss at home to Morton (who had been winless in ten!).

McCann has come into a rough situation, but as many feared he has insisted on using the blueprint that didn't work especially well for him when he was in charge at Dens Park. Playing out from the back is a risky strategy with elite players. With Championship players on Championship pitches it becomes especially dicey. To insist on it in driving wind and rain, as was the case in the Morton match, is insane. There are already worrying parallels to be drawn with John Hughes' infamous spell in charge of Raith a few years back where his insistence on a similar style with a struggling side led to disaster.

There is an awful lot for the supporters to be frustrated with - and that's before we even get to the lousy online streams they've had to pay for this season, including the national embarrassment of the Pixellot camera system which couldn't tell the difference between a football and a linesman's head. It is hard to make watching Caley Thistle more painful just now is having to view it through Pixellot just about manages to do so.

The last two seasons have seen two full-time clubs - Falkirk and Partick Thistle - suffer an almighty collapse and drop into League One. Don't bet against Caley Thistle following them there.

Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.

Premiership out of contract players: who will stay and who will go?

We have only a couple of months of the season left, and by my count there are - at the time of writing - 141 Premiership players whose contracts are up in the summer. With Covid having impacted finances there are going to be some big budgetary decisions at some clubs to come. And there are many well-known names - often club stalwarts - who may be at risk of the axe. Here's my take on who will stay and who will go...(as ever, I look forward to being proven completely and utterly wrong) 

ABERDEEN

Out of contract (9): Bruce Anderson, Michael Devlin, Tommie Hoban, Greig Leigh, Shay Logan, Niall McGinn, Ethan Ross, Ash Taylor, Miko Virtanen

Loans ending (4): Callum Hendry, Fraser Hornby, Florian Kamberi, Gary Woods

There are some significant decisions ahead for Derek McInnes. Are long-time club servants McGinn and Logan (both mostly substitutes this season) finished at this level? Are injury-prone defenders Devlin, Hoban and Leigh worth persisting with? Both Hoban and Taylor have played plenty this season. Ross and Virtanen have recently been recalled from loan spells to sit on the bench, while Anderson seems unlikely to get a new deal given that he has been loaned out to Hamilton.

It's certainly possible that some or all of the Dons' loan signings could extend their stay; Woods would be a good veteran backup for Joe Lewis, while Hendry, Hornby and Kamberi all have the chance to impress.

CELTIC

Out of contract (3): Scott Brown, Karamoko Dembele, Armstrong Okoflex

Loans ending (4): Shane Duffy, Mohamed Elyounoussi, Jonjoe Kenny, Diego Laxalt

Brown will be 36 in the summer and it's hard to see a scenario in which he's a regular contributor next season. If his leadership will be badly missed, it's because Celtic have totally failed to prepare for a future without him. But the player himself has claimed he has been told "it is completely and utterly up to myself  whether I want to stay"...isn't that a decision that needs to be made by an incoming DoF and Head Coach?

Dembele and Okoflex were once considered wonderkids and their failure to fulfil their potential so far does not reflect well on anyone.

The supporters would probably like to forget as soon as possible that Duffy and Laxalt ever played for them. Surely Elyounoussi will not remain for a third year on loan at a club where he is in and out of the team. And surely Kenny, only a year removed from impressing in the Bundesliga, will set his sights higher than staying at Celtic for the long term.

I imagine most Celtic fans will look at the list of names above and think to themselves "I wish this list was longer"...

DUNDEE UNITED

Out of contract (2): Peter Pawlett, Dillon Powers

Loans ending (2): Luke Bolton, Marc McNulty

United have remarkably few players not under contract beyond the summer, so there's not much to say here. Neither Pawlett nor Powers has impressed enough to earn a new deal. McNulty has been a disappointment during his loan spell, while Bolton has been in and out of the side.

HAMILTON ACCIES

Out of contract (9): Brian Easton, Kyle Gourlay, Aaron Martin, Reegan Mimnaugh, Kyle Munro, Hakeem Odoffin, Marios Ogkmpoe, George Stanger, Nathan Thomas

Loans ending (2): Bruce Anderson, Lee Hodson

Obviously Hamilton's actions will heavily depend on whether they stay up, but regardless they will struggle to hold onto Odoffin, who has been so impressive in recent months in midfield. Ogkmpoe continues to be a first choice up front and one assumes there will be a new deal for him if he wants it. Easton has largely stayed fit this season and would certainly be a sentimental choice for a new contract. Martin has been a first choice since signing. Munro and Mimnaugh are on the fringes of the starting lineup and are more likely to be extended than fellow youngster Stanger. Gourlay would probably be a cheap backup keeper. Thomas has rarely played due to injuries.

Regarding the loan players, Hodson may fancy finally putting down some roots after a string of loan moves. Anderson has found a better fit here than at Aberdeen and I bet Brian Rice would love to keep him.

HIBERNIAN

Out of contract (5): Kevin Dabrowski, Jackson Irvine, Matt Macey, Ofir Marciano, Stephen McGinn

Loans ending:

Three of these players are the club's three goalkeepers. Marciano has been offered a new deal but is wanted by clubs in his native Israel. Macey has played understudy to since arriving in January, while Dabrowski impressed on loan at Dumbarton earlier in the season but its unclear if Hibs consider him to be a potential number one going forward.

As for the outfielders, Irvine may fancy he could get better wages if he returned south, while McGinn was signed only as a depth piece and its hard to see him making many first team appearances going forward.

KILMARNOCK

Out of contract (25): Tomas Brindley, Kirk Broadfoot, Chris Burke, Innes Cameron, Kyle Connell, Diaguely Dabo, Euan Deveney, Gary Dicker, Clevid Dikamona, Nicke Kabamba, Greg Kiltie, Kyle Lafferty, Ross Millen, Youssouf Mulumbu, George Oakley, Mitch Pinnock, Josh Rennie, Danny Rogers, Craig Ross, Keir Russell, Ally Taylor, Aaron Tshibola, Steven Warnock, Calum Waters, Danny Whitehall

Loans ending (4): Colin Doyle, Zech Medley, Brandon Pierrick, Zeno Rossi

This Killie list is bloated by the number of youngsters who made first team appearances in the League Cup due to a Covid outbreak - it also means that it's possible I'm wrong about their contract status.

Looking at the more established players, it will be interesting to see how Tommy Wright feels about veterans like Broadfoot, Burke, Dicker and Mulumbu. Lafferty may see this short-term contract as putting himself in the shop window, but his arrival has limited minutes for Kabamba, Oakley and Whitehall. It would be a surprise if first choice keeper Rogers left. Tshibola has been reliable enough too, while the jury is out on Dabo, Alex Dyer's last signing. Dikamona has been a disappointment and may not be as cheap to resign as fellow defenders Millen and Waters, though whether the latter two are up to standard is another matter. Kiltie has shown flashes but might benefit from a change of scenery. Pinnock hasn't really shown any flashes at all.

One suspects that if Brindley, Cameron, Connell and Taylor haven't broken into the lineup by now they probably never will.

It's unlikely any of the loan players remain after May. Doyle was a convenient backup keeper while Medley, Rossi and Pierrick are clearly here with a view to development.

LIVINGSTON

Out of contract (14): Efe Ambrose, Raffaele De Vita, Nicky Devlin, Jay Emmanuel-Thomas, Jon Guthrie, Steve Lawson, Alan Lithgow, Gary Maley, Josh Mullen, Carlo Pignatiello, Scott Robinson, Ross Stewart, Aaron Taylor-Sinclair, Scott Tiffoney

Loans ending (3): Djibril Diani, Robby McCrorie, Julien Serrano

It's safe to assume Livi will want to hold onto Devlin, Guthrie, Mullen and Robinson, all of whom have been significant contributors this season. Ambrose's age may work against him a bit, while Lawson has looked good when playing but hasn't played that much. Lithgow's future may be up in the air due to long-term injury, while De Vita and Stewart have been out on loan this season and shouldn't be expected back. Emmanuel-Thomas, Taylor-Sinclair and Tiffoney have failed to establish themselves and are likely to go too. If Maley gets a new deal, this year it probably won't be put to an internet vote...

Serrano has made himself the first choice left-back and you could see a permanent deal being worked out there. McCrorie hasn't had a great season though while Diani hasn't played yet and so is a complete unknown.

MOTHERWELL

Out of contract (18): Allan Campbell, Aaron Chapman, Robbie Crawford, Devante Cole, Dean Cornelius, David Devine, Charles Dunne, Sam Foley, Scott Fox, Declan Gallagher, Christopher Long, Ross Maciver, Bevis Mugabi, Stephen O'Donnell, Liam Polworth, Harry Robinson, Sherwin Seedorf, Jamie Semple

Loans ending (6): Jake Hastie, Liam Kelly, Tyler Magloire, Eddie Nolan, Jordan Roberts, Harry Smith

This is a long list, so - assuming Well don't go down - there's certainly going to be an opportunity for Graham Alexander to revamp this squad if he so wishes. It would seem unlikely that Campbell, Gallagher or O'Donnell will remain; Gallagher has supposedly triggered an extension in his contract but the club have been coy about that and he has a lot of suitors. Meanwhile don't expect to see Chapman, Foley, Robinson or Seedorf retained, and long-term absentees Fox and Dunne will find it hard to justify new deals. Alexander will probably want to keep first team regulars Cole, Crawford and Mugabi, but Polworth is out of favour just now and Long only came back to the club last summer after not finding a better offer elsewhere.

Goalkeeper Kelly and centre-back Magloire have impressed on loan so far, while Roberts has already shown more than he did for Hearts. They're more likely to stay for the long-term than Hastie (who has been a non-factor), Smith (who has been mostly injured) and Nolan (who may not even exist).

RANGERS

Out of contract (9):  Leon Balogun, Jamie Barjonas, Steven Davis, Jermain Defoe, Daniel Finlayson, Andy Firth, Allan McGregor, Dapo Mebude, Greg Stewart

Loans ending (1): Bongani Zungu

It's already safe to say that there will be no new deal for 38 year old Defoe, now fourth choice striker despite being on £30,000/week, but 36 year old Davis is still highly thought of and Steven Gerrard wants him to stay. Stewart will be away, and Barjonas, Finlayson and Mebude will need to try their luck elsewhere after failing to make the step up from the academy. Firth is probably an inexpensive third choice keeper.

The main questions are whether 39 year old McGregor hangs up his gloves, whether Balogun has done enough as a useful backup to justify a new deal and whether the recent Covid embarrassment scuppers Zungu's chances of signing permanently.

ROSS COUNTY

Out of contract (20): Tony Andreu, Josh Black, Ross Draper, Michael Gardyne, Jermaine Hylton, Ross Laidlaw, Mohamed Maouche, Billy Mckay, Callum Morris, Ross Munro, Jason Naismith, Connor Randall, Blair Spittal, Jordan Tillson, Carl Tremarco, Iain Vigurs, Keith Watson, Jordan White, Ben Williamson, Matthew Wright

Loans ending (4): Joe Hilton, Leo Hjelde, Stephen Kelly, Charlie Lakin

The future of a lot of these players will be dependent on what division County play in next year, not least because John Hughes is unlikely to stay on if they go down. The club tend to look after players who have had long tenures, so Gardyne and Vigurs may be kept on with a view to joining the coaching staff further down the line. Also likely to stay regardless are first choice keeper Laidlaw and striker White, who previously spent two years in the Highlands with Inverness. Likely to leave are Draper - whose injury history will make it hard to justify retaining him.- Tremarco, who is well past his best, and Maouche who hasn't even played for the club due to a mixture of injury and personal issues. As for the rest, only Naismith is likely to have Premiership suitors.

None of the loanees are likely to stay, with the parent clubs of all four likely to see this as a step in their development.

ST. JOHNSTONE

Out of contract (15): Callum Booth, Craig Bryson, Craig Conway, Liam Craig, Murray Davidson, Charlie Gilmour, Olly Hamilton, Chris Kane, Stevie May, Guy Melamed, Jordan Northcott, Michael O'Halloran, Elliot Parish, John Robertson, Scott Tanser

Loans ending (2): James Brown, Glenn Middleton

Callum Davidson has to decide whether his four veteran midfielders - Bryson (34), Conway (36 in May), Craig (34) and Murray Davidson (33) - are worth extensions. Up front, there are also decisions to be made on Kane and Melamed, who have played well for the last few months, and May and O'Halloran, who have not. You'd imagine one or both left-backs, Booth and Tanser, will be kept on, while Parish is a satisfactory backup keeper. Winter signing Gilmour hasn't had a chance to impress yet while academy products Hamilton, Northcott and Robertson are not really in first team contention.

Neither of the loan players have forced their way into the first XI so far and there's no sign that either of them have been brought in with a view to remaining long term.

ST. MIRREN

Out of contract (12): Cameron Breadner, Dylan Connelly, Jake Doyle-Hayes, Ilkay Durmus, Ryan Flynn, Marcus Fraser, Lewis Jamieson, Nicholas McAllister, Junior Morias, Jonathan Obika, Collin Quaner, Peter Urminsky

Loans ending (2): Daniel Finlayson, Brandon Mason

The Buddies will make Eamonn Brophy's loan move permanent in the summer. Jim Goodwin's priority will be retaining Fraser, who has had the best season of his career, and Doyle-Hayes. Connelly and Durmus have also seen plenty of action this season and Obika remains a fan favourite. 

In contrast, Morias, who is out on loan, will surely be away and Urminsky has failed to rise beyond third choice keeper. Quaner has barely played since arriving in February and so is hard to assess. Finlayson hasn't played at all since joining on loan from Rangers last autumn and Mason has only featured intermittently so don't expect them to stay on.

Lawrie Spence has whinged about Scottish football on Narey's Toepoker since September 2007. He has a life outside this blog. Honestly.