Tweet
HUGE NEWS out of the greatest football club in Britain this morning. Japanese international, Kaoru Mitoma, has signed for Barnsley. Fans are delighted. Harris is delighted. Mitoma is delighted.
The Japanese wizard, signs in a stellar deal which sees Mo Salah depart to Blackburn, as well as half of the Barnsley transfer kitty, which puts to end any possible auction bid this season for the Premier League battlers.
We sat down with Harris to ask several pressing questions about this transfer, as well as any other dealings that have been going on at Oakwell Stadium.
Interviewer: Morning, Dr Harris.
Dr Harris: Morning mate.
I: So, what a big signing. Fans have been delighted that Mitoma has signed. How did this transfer come about?
H: I came in, looking to sort out the age of the squad, initially. Salah was in my plans to be club captain and 23 rated, which would have given us a very strong forward line, along with Dia. However, when the opportunity came for Salah to transfer to Blackburn Rovers, we only wanted one player in return, and that was, of course, Kaoru.
I: Will losing Salah's quality shooting be a gamble for you though this season? Goals were hard to come by last year, in comparison to the sheer amount conceded?
H: Look, it is a gamble. We could captain Kaoru, but we are looking at shoring up the other end of the pitch in this regard, to try plug holes in the leaky defence.
I: Have there been signings in other areas of the pitch?
H: Only, a young defensive midfielder who has been promoted from the youth side, and a back up midfielder. We have also sold 3 squad players, and are looking to sell two further midfielders to lower the minutes needed across the middle of the park. The defence is the issue. I am looking to see what we can do here, especially with the age.
I: Back to Mitoma. What does he bring to the side?
H: He brings, class. He brings speed, and he brings the ability to play across the midfield or up front. This is allowing us to possibly sell Delort, who has scored over 50 goals for the club in the past few seasons. This also means we need to sell more midfielders, so potential buyers, come knock on my door, or send me a cheeky email!
I: Will we expect Mitoma to play each week?
H: Ideally, yes. Him and Dia are the stars of the side and will feature as much as possible. It really is exciting times, from an attacking sense, and I can't wipe the smile off my face!
I: Can Mitoma lead you to safety this season, now that the league is possibly even stronger due to some legendary managers joining?
H: No disrespect to those who have moved elsewhere, or retired from the game, but I do believe the likes of Tony at Blackburn, Steve at Chelsea, Livi at Liverpool, for starters...does automatically make it a little more challenging. We will be looking to fight relegation. It's not an optimistic goal, but a reality of the squad and where we are. We are excited by the pospect, and we hope Mitoma is our star that pushes us beyond this goal!
Words; 550
The Japanese wizard, signs in a stellar deal which sees Mo Salah depart to Blackburn, as well as half of the Barnsley transfer kitty, which puts to end any possible auction bid this season for the Premier League battlers.
We sat down with Harris to ask several pressing questions about this transfer, as well as any other dealings that have been going on at Oakwell Stadium.
Interviewer: Morning, Dr Harris.
Dr Harris: Morning mate.
I: So, what a big signing. Fans have been delighted that Mitoma has signed. How did this transfer come about?
H: I came in, looking to sort out the age of the squad, initially. Salah was in my plans to be club captain and 23 rated, which would have given us a very strong forward line, along with Dia. However, when the opportunity came for Salah to transfer to Blackburn Rovers, we only wanted one player in return, and that was, of course, Kaoru.
I: Will losing Salah's quality shooting be a gamble for you though this season? Goals were hard to come by last year, in comparison to the sheer amount conceded?
H: Look, it is a gamble. We could captain Kaoru, but we are looking at shoring up the other end of the pitch in this regard, to try plug holes in the leaky defence.
I: Have there been signings in other areas of the pitch?
H: Only, a young defensive midfielder who has been promoted from the youth side, and a back up midfielder. We have also sold 3 squad players, and are looking to sell two further midfielders to lower the minutes needed across the middle of the park. The defence is the issue. I am looking to see what we can do here, especially with the age.
I: Back to Mitoma. What does he bring to the side?
H: He brings, class. He brings speed, and he brings the ability to play across the midfield or up front. This is allowing us to possibly sell Delort, who has scored over 50 goals for the club in the past few seasons. This also means we need to sell more midfielders, so potential buyers, come knock on my door, or send me a cheeky email!
I: Will we expect Mitoma to play each week?
H: Ideally, yes. Him and Dia are the stars of the side and will feature as much as possible. It really is exciting times, from an attacking sense, and I can't wipe the smile off my face!
I: Can Mitoma lead you to safety this season, now that the league is possibly even stronger due to some legendary managers joining?
H: No disrespect to those who have moved elsewhere, or retired from the game, but I do believe the likes of Tony at Blackburn, Steve at Chelsea, Livi at Liverpool, for starters...does automatically make it a little more challenging. We will be looking to fight relegation. It's not an optimistic goal, but a reality of the squad and where we are. We are excited by the pospect, and we hope Mitoma is our star that pushes us beyond this goal!
Words; 550