Walsall comment: Saddlers need to up their transfer game

But it’s a funny old game that throws up surprises.

Losing streaks are often replaced with a purple patch, and vice versa.

The same has happened for Walsall, in the negative sense, and it’ll come around again.

For now, however, the Saddlers can’t rely on luck or fate, they need results.

It’s hard to focus on the positives at a time like this, but fans can take comfort in a few things at least.

The dreaded word ‘relegation’ is something supporters shouldn’t have to worry about.

Football fans are a passionate bunch and during a run of defeats they have begun to consider Walsall dropping out of the Football League.

The Saddlers may have their problems, but several teams in League Two are worse off.

Add that in with the fact that only one team is being relegated this season, due to the Bury situation, and Walsall should be fine.

It’s a building job. This is where the club are at.

Supporters may not like hearing the board or Darrell Clarke consistently saying it, but it’s true, they need time.

Walsall aren’t blessed with Premier League riches, but they have a manager with a track record of success who is looking to reconstruct a football club.

Mistakes have been made, but fans need to trust in the process – remember the bad times to make the good times even sweeter.

One of those mistakes, is the summer recruitment.

Clarke has said as much – he isn’t happy with certain players, including some signings that haven’t worked.

Walsall saw the biggest turnover in the EFL in the summer with 22 players leaving the club and 16 joining.

Of those 16, it’s easier to name the ones that have worked.

Defender James Clarke and midfielder Stuart Sinclair, both players that Clarke knew from his time at Bristol Rovers, have been stand-out performers for the Saddlers.

Clarke offers a commanding presence at the back, with real leadership, pace and strength. While Sinclair is a terrier in midfield, constantly harassing the opposition with energetic performances.

Zak Jules and Wes McDonald have, arguably, also been positive signings.

But to name four players, from 16 newcomers, that have had an impact is not good enough.

The club need to take action in the January transfer window, with a winger, striker and midfielder surely the priorities.

To compound this, the squad has been hit with a spate of injuries to Clarke, Jules and Cameron Pring, alongside Caolan Lavery and Danny Guthrie, who were already on the treatment table.

A side that was described earlier this season as ‘solid’ in defence, is now short on defenders.

But if you take away the individual errors that have plagued performances in recent weeks, the picture looks rather different.

And, with a bit of luck, the tide will turn in Walsall’s favour again.