FFP

[Ian.]

Signing Rashford and Asensio was amazing and boy did we need it last January. If we manage to keep hold of Ollie, Emi and Ramsey that will be a huge positive, so I get what Toronto is saying. However new signings are always exciting and the right ones can just help tip the balance.

I’d still be hopeful something will happen, albeit it’s in the loan market late on.

[pauliewalnuts]

Yeah but he’s saying he’d “rather” we did that. Which I dont believe for a second.

[PeterWithesShin]

I read it as he'd rather keep the core together and then add to it next season rather than sell Emi/JJ/Ollie or whoever to bring in the cash to sign other players. Rather than he'd just prefer we don't do anything full stop.

[Ian.]

Yeah but he’s saying he’d “rather” we did that. Which I dont believe for a second.

No I agree, I get the trying to be positive spin, but no chance is anyone is going to be happy with no signings at all and if we sign someone tomorrow he’d be all over it, like the rest of us….unless it’s DCL.

[tomd2103]

I read it as he'd rather keep the core together and then add to it next season rather than sell Emi/JJ/Ollie or whoever to bring in the cash to sign other players. Rather than he'd just prefer we don't do anything full stop.

I do slightly worry that this might be a season too far for the group of players we have.  Think there were some signs of it last season and this summer just feels like the time when we need to freshen up things up a bit with a few quality additions. 

That said it is still a decent squad of players and if injuries are kind, it could be another strong season.

[andyh]

Every single club has improved or strengthened their squad this summer…..except Fulham.
We seem to have been the only club affected by the ‘rules’ that prevent us signing anyone, who can improve us.
The big 6 have spent money like water, including Chelsea, yet we are left with owners who have bulging wallets but are not permitted to spend any of it.
We seem to be paying the price for the gambles we made over the last few years of breaking the rules. It’s now come back to bite us.
Had we got that point at Man U on the last day, we would be having a very different conversation.

[Smithy]

Every single club has improved or strengthened their squad this summer…..except Fulham.
We seem to have been the only club affected by the ‘rules’ that prevent us signing anyone, who can improve us.
The big 6 have spent money like water, including Chelsea, yet we are left with owners who have bulging wallets but are not permitted to spend any of it.
We seem to be paying the price for the gambles we made over the last few years of breaking the rules. It’s now come back to bite us.
Had we got that point at Man U on the last day, we would be having a very different conversation.

I don't think we're paying for "gambles of the last few years", I think we're paying for the decade or so in which we fell behind them commercially.  The top 6 were growing their commercial operations at over 10% a year while we were struggling in the Premier League and then in the Championship.  THAT's what's costing us now.  In terms of revenue from the playing side (prem earnings, Champions League, player sales), we're up there with the best of them - where we're far behind is on the commercial side, and THAT's why they can spend and we can't.  Until we're regularly making £200m+ a year in commercial revenue (like Spurs do, for example), then the current financial rules are always going to hinder us.

That change isn't going to happen overnight.  It relies on multiple seasons at the top end of the table.  We're already making inroads. But we're still, unfortunately, a decent-sized step behind them (and they're not standing still either, they're all still growing).

I hate that it's the business side that is hampering us on the playing side, but it's the unfortunate reality of the way this sport works at the moment.

[Toronto Villa]

We’ve behind the current financial elite since we missed our chance in 92. And certainly more so once Chelsea and Man City found their pots of gold. We’ve been missing opportunities and playing catch up ever since.

[Somniloquism]

Every single club has improved or strengthened their squad this summer…..except Fulham.

At the moment I would argue only certain clubs have improved or stengthend like Liverpool, Chelsea, Arse, Spurs, etc. Others have had their best players and even their manager taken by the aforementioned clubs and haven't obviously bought players to replace those gone.

[Smithy]

We’ve behind the current financial elite since we missed our chance in 92. And certainly more so once Chelsea and Man City found their pots of gold. We’ve been missing opportunities and playing catch up ever since.

Agree completely.  But it's why I choose Spurs as the comparison.  Man Utd obviously had the Fergie-era success to build their global commmercial behemoth. Liverpool had theirs built before Man Utd, and have been competing at the top end pretty much consistently. Arsenal too had a period of relative on-field success to build that global business.  Chelsea and City both benefitted from billionaires before the rules changed, so they got the head-start that no-one else gets to have these days.  Spurs, meanwhile, hadn't won anything for over a decade, but were relatively successful at staying in the competition for European places, and have built a really strong commercial operation out of that.  That's what we need.  Any commercial operation that RELIES on on-field success, is only ever a couple of bad signings, or an injury crisis, or a poached manager from falling apart.  We need one that delivers season in, season out, even if we don't lift silverware.  We need one that is sustainable, as long as we remain "in the mix" for trophies year-on-year. 

And that only happens when we've done that for a few consecutive years, unfortunately.

[paul_e]

Lets not forget that our problems this summer are caused by us having the most complicated set of regulations of any team in the league.

1. Premier League PSR limiting us to net losses of £105m over 3 years.
2. UEFA FSR limiting us to total cost for wages, transfers and agent fees to 70% of turnover.
3. UEFA restrictions on us specifically that are limiting us to having to make a profit on player changes in our a list squad.

The combination of all 3 has completely fucked us over, with the 2nd one in particular being a problem because the coming season will see a big drop in turnover thanks the ref in the Man U game.

[Mellin]

I wish people would stop alluding to that Rogers goal. Trying to forget it to protect my health.

[Sexual Ealing]

The referee didn't lose that game for us. It was an Aston Villa original production.

[Somniloquism]

Totally agree. My only gripe is promised transparency with reviews of decisions and release of audio seems to stop the moment the whistle blows on the last game of the season.

[andyh]

The referee didn't lose that game for us. It was an Aston Villa original production.

Indeed.
We should own it, not deflect responsibility.