Football Season Guide

Rochdale are coming from a season which saw them win respect of many fans of opposing teams thanks to their attacking brand of football. The manner in which the Dale played their stuff last season was hardly a surprise to anyone familiar with the footballing philosophy of their previous boss Keith Hill, who loves his sides to play open attacking-minded football and counter-attack. The general consensus is that Hill makes Rochdale play above their true level, and the Dale fans will therefore be delighted that the club managed to keep hold of the charismatic manager during the summer. The only important player to have left during the summer is Stephen Dawson, who has been lured away by League One rivals Scunthorpe. The list of arrivals is somewhat underwhelming both due to its size and the relative mediocrity of players who have joined, but Rochdale were never a club that was going to spend big during the summer, as it is well known that they are a club that needs to work with a rather right budget. Their squad seems to be of similar quality as last season, but a lot of their fans will fear the dreaded second season syndrome, as there are no guarantees that they will manage to repeat their last season's performances.