January 2016 - Transfer Rumours, Speculation & Suggestions

[spangley1812]

My view is that given the choice of being a laughing stock in the Premiership or being a respected, well run, progressive club in the Championship I would choose the latter.

Can you give us an example of a respected, we'll run, progressive club in the Championship?

Brighton. Burnley and Middlesbrough ?

[Ads]

I agree with you Chris. They're banking on a medium term solution, with the chances of us stopping up, reinforcements or not being remote to impossible.

Time will tell in the long run whether this is the best course, but if they feel financially we'd be better off without a forlorn swing at it now, then it must be a collective decision with Garde's involvement.

[VinnieChase84]

Prediction. We will sign no-one but the team will go on a great run for this second half of the season. We will go down on the last day by a point. This will leaving us lamenting this transfer window and thinking "what might have been if we'd invested"
(I don't really believe that but that would typify the shit we've been through)

[saunders_heroes]

My view is that given the choice of being a laughing stock in the Premiership or being a respected, well run, progressive club in the Championship I would choose the latter.

Can you give us an example of a respected, we'll run, progressive club in the Championship?

Brighton. Burnley and Middlesbrough ?

Great. Clubs who have been in the lower leagues for years.

[Ormy Droid]

If the choice is spending what money we have now in a last gasp, shit or bust attempt to avoid relegation...Or, in the summer as a part of the rebuilding of the squad, coaching, infrastructure, etc. as part of a concerted effort to get ourselves promoted at the first attempt, I'll take the latter thanks as at least the odds will be a bit more to our favour.

[brian green]

There is clearly a financial corset in place. An intelligent, calm decision has to be made whether the money available is to be spent on the gamble of buying in players now and hoping for survival or using the money in the summer to support a push for a quick, preferably instant return.  The defeats by Watford, Sunderland and Norwich tipped the scales towards summer buying being the least bad option and the more likely to succeed.

[passitsideways]

There is clearly a financial corset in place. An intelligent, calm decision has to be made whether the money available is to be spent on the gamble of buying in players now and hoping for survival or using the money in the summer to support a push for a quick, preferably instant return.  The defeats by Watford, Sunderland and Norwich tipped the scales towards summer buying being the least bad option and the more likely to succeed.

It's undoubtedly the more sensible option to me - but of course, if that's their path, they sure as fuck better be assembling a list of targets right now for that purpose (or at least from the second the window closes.) Presuming Ayew leaves if we get relegated, it would be comforting if we could get one or two attackers equivalent to how Burnley got Andre Gray or Bournemouth bought Callum Wilson in very early in the summer window to spearhead the promotion challenge.

[VinnieChase84]

Jordan Rhodes move to Boro on hold after a prem club has come in.......

[olaftab]

Oh some hope... Whoever or how good Rhodes is!

[Ads]

Yes it's difficult to attract players when you're bottom of the league but if you offer them the money players WILL come. That's it in a nutshell though, weeve spent the last 5 or so years doing everything on the cheap and we're not gonna break that habit till Lerner final sells up.

I'm not sure your argument about wages stands up though. We have an annual wage bill of 63 million, which when averaged out across a 25 man squad, equates to 48500 per man. That's not peanuts and suggests the problem is more systemic rather than wage based.

[PeterWithesShin]

Won't the wage bill include manager, coaches, U21 players etc, and all other staff employed by the club?

[curiousorange]

Jordan Rhodes move to Boro on hold after a prem club has come in.......

Probably Newcastle. Going down the 'throw enough shit at a wall' route.

[saunders_heroes]

Yes it's difficult to attract players when you're bottom of the league but if you offer them the money players WILL come. That's it in a nutshell though, weeve spent the last 5 or so years doing everything on the cheap and we're not gonna break that habit till Lerner final sells up.

I'm not sure your argument about wages stands up though. We have an annual wage bill of 63 million, which when averaged out across a 25 man squad, equates to 48500 per man. That's not peanuts and suggests the problem is more systemic rather than wage based.

I'd say this season's wage bill is one of the lowest in the league, and anyway, we still have a hangover from the bomb squad, I.e N'Zogbia who contributes nothing while we pay him a fortune. Same with Agbonlahor this season. I'd say most of our squad are on relative peanuts, and when we do finally get rid of Gabby and N'Zogbia I doubt very much we'll be signing players on similar wages. Everything about this club is about reducing the wage bill, and that's what we're finally staring relegation in the face.

[eric woolban woolban]

Rhodes will probably turn us down for Middlesboro and who could blame him?

[john2710]

Practically everything we've done over the last five years has been done from a position of weakness or with a need to fix a problem quickly.

From O'Neil leaving to Sherwood's appointment, everything has always been done as an act of desperation. Throw in the ludicrous McLeish appointment, the naivity of those running the club day to day & an owner who wants out and it's no surprise we are where we are.

The time for panic and the chaos it brings has to stop. I hope that between Fox, Garde & Harris we have the ability to plan a way back.

I have confidence in Garde & I hope we all stick with him. It would be very very wrong for the fans to turn on him over the next few weeks.