Randy Lerner

[django]

To clarify the above post, it can be classed as staggering (13.5 mill) if we have been as mismanaged both on the playing and admin side like we have been , I suppose.

I think we could have survived with spending less than that, if we'd managed to arrest our slide with an inspired managerial appointment (which had the same sort of effect as MON) or if we had a series of exceptional young players coming through, or if despite the changes in management we had a consistent vision of what we wanted from the football side of things.

Even the changes from signing exclusively young players to signing, Senders, Richardson and Cole under the same manager shows we didn't have the consistent vision, our appointments have been pretty bizarre and we seem to have less talent coming through the youth set up over the period we have been struggling. In those circumstances we really needed to buy our way out of trouble.

[aj2k77]

I can't recall bringing through a single decent youth player in the last 4 to 5 years. What have they been doing down there?

[django]

I can't recall bringing through a single decent youth player in the last 4 to 5 years. What have they been doing down there?

Well Grealish isn't bad. Even if things have gone to shit for him lately.

[aj2k77]

I can't recall bringing through a single decent youth player in the last 4 to 5 years. What have they been doing down there?

Well Grealish isn't bad. Even if things have gone to shit for him lately.

Completely forgot about him, that's how much impact he's made.

[PeterWithesShin]

You could probably say the same for a lot of top flight clubs, there seems a lack of youngsters breaking through into PL sides from their academies the last few years.

[OzVilla]

Well for all the platitudes about being great club men, KMac and dare I say it Sid Cowans have produced virtually nothing of real quality over the last 10 years from that academy.  Gabby for a few years yes but his light shone brightly before fading prematurely.

The one truly quality PL player we've produced was the only one they didn't persevere with, Gary Cahill.  That's not to say Cahill wouldn't have eventually moved on but he was he sort of player you could have built a side in the mould of, a classier John Terry. 

Instead we went with Zat Knight.

 If one players situation sums us up for awful decision making from boot room to boardroom it was that one. 
 

[Chico Hamilton III]

How much does it cost a year to run the academy? serious question

[PeterWithesShin]

In a couple of months it will be a decade since Cahill made his league debut for us. Does that make anyone else feel very old?

[Des Little]

How much does it cost a year to run the academy? serious question

...and how long to ruin it?

[aj2k77]

How much does it cost a year to run the academy? serious question

I seem to remember when Lerner took over he put £3m a year in, doubt it's that now. Not sure if that's an accurate amount though to be honest.

[Chico Hamilton III]

How much does it cost a year to run the academy? serious question

I seem to remember when Lerner took over he put £3m a year in, doubt it's that now. Not sure if that's an accurate amount though to be honest.

what a waste of money - we could be paying Nzogbia's wages with that

[cdbearsfan]

I can't recall bringing through a single decent youth player in the last 4 to 5 years. What have they been doing down there?

Well Grealish isn't bad. Even if things have gone to shit for him lately.

He's not as good as Berahino or Sturridge, you could argue he's achieved less than a fair few Small Heath youngsters too.

If we're never going to bother paying for good players again we could at least get good at spotting them.

[ChicagoLion]

It is evidence of the Bigger Fool policy, it works in a lot of business particularly Finance, there is allways a bigger fool out there so hungry for business that they will take on all the problem deals.
The rest of the market just palms off the basket cases. Eventually the bigger fool goes bust.
We have been the bigger fools in the Football world.

[Des Little]

Walk the plank, Yank

[django]

I can't recall bringing through a single decent youth player in the last 4 to 5 years. What have they been doing down there?

Well Grealish isn't bad. Even if things have gone to shit for him lately.

He's not as good as Berahino or Sturridge, you could argue he's achieved less than a fair few Small Heath youngsters too.

If we're never going to bother paying for good players again we could at least get good at spotting them.

It's a bit early to judge Grealish's level yet, at the tail end of last season he looked the real deal, but it was hard to believe he was the same player against Wycombe. Either way he'd have to go some to be as good a player as Sturrridge.

My thoughts generally about the youth set up (from a poorly informed distance) are that its the same as the senior set up. No one seems to really have a killer winners attitude, its all just about coasting, doing enough.

I'm not knocking Sid and KMac, nice guys both. Sids a legend and all that (I missed him the first time round but even SidII was class) and there's bigger problems at the club than them, but I'd be happy to see that setup changed in the summer as well.