Have Charlton harmed their chances of promotion with these recent sales?

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Things at Charlton have been looking good as of late, with the start of pre-season coinciding with three new promising signings that made it seem as the Addicks target of automatic promotion back to the Championship would be inevitable – if not at least achievable – this season.

Now though, the mood has changed with the recent sale of one of their most promising midfielders and several more who soon could follow. Russell Slade has shown he can make good signings with acquisitions of Nicky Ajose, Ricky Holmes and Lee Novak, but after selling some of the players considered to be the ‘backbone’ to the Reds squad, can Slade bring in suitable replacements that can match the quality that the departures had?

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Could this also effect Charlton chances of promotion in the forthcoming season? The players involved could well leave a sizable hole behind them, and one that will be a challenge to repair.

Firstly, the first confirmed signing. Jordan Cousins has moved to fellow London club Queens Park Rangers with a fee around £1.25 million. For a key player in the Charlton midfield, who was a promising English talent at just 22 years old and voted fans player of the season twice in a row, the price agreed really does not seem to match the value Cousins had at the Valley throughout his time there. This is especially true when you consider the money going round in other divisions for players of Cousins’ ability.

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It appears suspicious that Charlton also knew he was undervalued at the price sold for saying on their website it was for an undisclosed fee. Maybe this was to try and avoid the bombardment of angry supporters, down-heartened at a fan favourite leaving the club on the cheap.

Whether there was a disagreement backstage is unknown but Cousins spot needs to be filled with a signing who is as confident in the middle of the park as Cousins was – whether from another club or by promoting an academy player, which is how Cousins first appeared breaking through during the 2013/2014 season.

Next is a player who only left recently. Johann Berg Gudmundsson has moved to newly promoted Premier League side Burnley for a fee around £2.5 million. The price is a bit low for him too, for he has ability in abundance as he proved in a struggling club last season. Once Charlton’s relegation was confirmed, fans thought he would be the first to leave with such fine performances last term.

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Gudmundsson distanced himself from any transfer talks with clubs and this got fans thinking he might just stay. As it turned out, it was solely to concentrate on his Euro 2016 campaign with Iceland, in fact appearing in every match. His impressive performances included an assist against the future winners Portugal for their infamous 1-1 draw.

Proving himself on the international stage gathered him more attention and Burnley are waiting for him to come back from his extended break to reveal him. After joining Charlton back in July 2014, he will be missed as his creativity and skill is not something Charlton have in reserve.

As a replacement, Louis-Michel Yamfam can perhaps be trained to take his place, as he is already at the club and possesses similar traits to Gudmundson. Personally, I hope Slade makes a new signing with more experience now the Icelandic has departed.

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Finally, both Charlton ‘keepers Nick Pope and Stephen Henderson are under the magnifying glass. Nick Pope is closing in on a deal to Lancashire club Burnley. According to the Lancashire Telegraph, the Clarets have already had a fee of £900,00 rejected from Charlton but now apparently have ‘struck a deal’ over the 24 year old Englishman.

This was indeed true, as the next day, Pope completed his move to Burnley for a fee believed to be £1.1 million, although declared undisclosed again by Charlton. Pope was not a stranger to receiving stick during his time at Charlton, making simple errors, but really showed his best in the second half of the season with some world class saves that could not prevent the Addicks from the ignominy of relegation. Burnley a promising keeper with limitless potential.

Nottingham Forest have made a move for other Addicks shot stopper Stephen Henderson according to South London Press. No further details have been released yet in terms of a price, but Henderson was in contention to represent Republic of Ireland at the Euros. However, he was hit with an injury that ruled him out of that spot as well as the second half of last season which led to Pope’s meteoric rise.

If Hendo ends up going as well, then at least one keeper needs to be signed and maybe have youngster Dillon Phillips as back-up, but that could be a risk with most fans never seeing Phillips play.

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So, that concludes all the players who have left or are potentially on the move. Cousins is a big loss to the team and to the club, but the undersized price tag could be viewed as an expensive replacement now unlikely to come in. With this in mind, I feel it will take a while for the Reds midfield to evolve to cope with his loss.

Gudmundson’s potential move will bring the harsh reality back to the fans who thought he might stay when he did not leave right away. The two goalkeepers may well end up remaining at the club, as both Pope and Henderson both seem to love it in London, but at the end of the day, if the club sold Cousins for a low price, then I suppose Pope and Henderson are susceptible to those low values as well. They could be pushed out the door, in which case a couple of new keepers need to be brought in. Hopefully, if the worst happens, Russell Slade will make the correct signings where necessary as he has done so far.

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