Up the Us
Up the Us Promoted to the football league in 1950, Colchester United have spent all but two seasons in the bottom two divisions, bouncing between the third and fourth tiers on a regular basis. Howe...
Forum Discussion
Fans Unimpressed with the Squad
The Colchester United squad for 2023-24 is currently largely unchanged from last season's relegation battle. Apart from the two new signings announced, only Bradley Ihionvien, a striker from the academy, has been added to the permanent team this season so far. There are some promising loanees, including Owen Goodman from Crystal Palace and Jayden Richardson from Aberdeen, but the fans mostly expressed disappointment at the news.
"The owner really needs to get his hands in his pockets and find that dusty chequebook," said one. "All we ever get are freebies and promoted kids. How does he expect a different outcome this season, when the manager has the same failures to manage?"
"It's going to be another battle against relegation. We can't keep doing this, or else we'll finally drop through the trapdoor." Said another.
Manager Danny Cowley was more relaxed. "We have a good squad here. They just need some different systems to work with; that's all.
"I think we'll be fine. We might have scope for a couple more arrivals before the end of August. People need to have patience."
The Us Win the European International Cup
Amazingly, the Us won a trophy this July, when they finished top of the table in the European International Cup, hosted by Germany. The Us were surprised to be invited to the tournament, which Manager Danny Cowley was not going to turn down.
“It was a good way of getting minutes into the players’ legs, and to try out a number of formations and lineups. Winning the tournament too was just a bonus.
“It was great for the fans that made the trip, too. It’s not often that fans of this club get to see us play against European opposition.
Good wins against Exeter City and FC Koln showed how the team has developed in the weeks since Cowley arrived, but the defeat to Heidenheim brought the club back down to Earth.
“It’s good that we encountered some adversity, because that’s how you find out about the players’ character. Now it’s on to the season proper.” Said Cowley.
Encouraging Start for U’s
Unlike the last few years, which have been a struggle to stay in the Football League, Colchester United have got off to a good start in the league, with wins against what would normally be described as ‘better’ sides.
An opening day home win against Crewe Alexandra, in which Conor Wilkinson scored twice, set the tone and was followed up by an away win at Meadow Lane, home of the oldest professional club in the world – Notts County. Samson Tovide scored in both matches, underlining his importance to this side in the coming season. In both league matches, the U’s had less possession but did more with the ball, especially in the Notts County game.
What really caught the eye, though, was a 2-0 Carabao Cup win against League 1 mid-table side, Bristol Rovers. Goals from Arthur Read and Samson Tovide (that man again!) saw off the higher-status team, with Tovide delivering a man-of-the match performance for his goal and the hold-up play when the team counter-attacked, which was exceptional.
In the Goals: Samson Tovide
“It’s a good start, but that’s all it is,” said manager Danny Cowley. “We don’t get ahead of ourselves at this club.”
U’s fans will be forgiven for pinching themselves, though.
Can't believe your fans being unimpressed, when you've actually signed a Croatian national team goalkeeper to your League Two side.
I'm curious about the Swede though. Where did he come from?
@JustinCase0110
According to Wikipedia, he's played 4 internationals in 3 years, so he's clearly a backup. It's unlikely that the average U's fan would know who he is; they would just see another free transfer coming in. Interestingly, he's a free agent and he never gets picked up during a transfer window, which I find bizarre.
The "Swede" is actually labelled as being from Iceland; my mistake.
But he's fictional, from the look of it. I can't find any reference to him at all as a real person.
I only signed these two because I had to meet a critical objective. I'm determined not to get fired after the end of the first season, after the game deleted my ASSE career.
