- Jul 21, 2005
- 4,488
- 3,896
I get your point but it's not like they were all available at the same time. Eze/Bowen went the year after and Olise, the year after that. But if you're alluding to that perceived readiness to contribute, i think you're right - poor recruitment.another total failure of recruitment, among Eze, Olise, Bowen etc. we signed Clarke...
Clarke hasn't stepped up/made it. Bit of a strange deal in the end? Absolutely, paid a bit too much for a player who whilst promising, wasn't physically ready to make the grade.
Now were the others ready when they were signed for PL football? The stats imply they broadly were. Bowen had a slow first year but then played 30+ games the next year. The others jumped straight in at a youth-oriented Palace. So regardless of teams/levels, if you're signing a prospect (i.e. not a class star, starter) we absolutely could've done better it seems here.