2024 January transfer window - hopes, needs, expectations and rumours.

[Smoke]

If we bought him back for £25m on presumably a 4 year contract then loan him to another newly promoted team or upper championship team for a season we only need a loan fee of £6.25m to offset his cost for the season. sounds achievable? didn't we pay £8m for barkley for a season on loan?

Why would we want to do that? And why would the player want that?

And paying 8m for a player with a career behind him like Barkley is different to paying almost as much for one who has never proved himself in the PL.

First-team football.

[Gareth]

Of the three that went out I think it's only Philogene that has a realistic chance of coming back and playing for us.

For me, and even given far fewer opportunities, he is the one that has looked like he might make the grade out of the three.

I’d say at Championship level all 3 have shown really good potential, Archer and Ramsey were positive forces in a promotion bid, Philogene has looked good in a side that may make a run at the play offs, will be interesting to see if he can influence that in next 3 months or so.

[LeeB]

Of the three that went out I think it's only Philogene that has a realistic chance of coming back and playing for us.

For me, and even given far fewer opportunities, he is the one that has looked like he might make the grade out of the three.

He looked like he belonged in the summer games and has carried it on at Hull, not just playing well but scoring some ridiculous goals that marked him out as far better than the level he's playing at in the way that reminded me of Grealish or Eze. Shame he got injured.

[Somniloquism]

Not really, we've already had the Archer money.  I'd guess we'd be down on the deal if we have to buy him back and sell on again (unless he has a storming second half of the season which seems unlikely with Wilder).  Do you think we'll get £20m again?

In theory, Archer sold is direct on the books from the start. A purchase back is amortised over the length of any contract so even though we are spending more, we would still be FFP positive. Any direct sale would then have an affect but I think we would still be FFP positive overall.

[Malandro]

I'm not sure many of us would be excited about us signing a 22 y/o striker who has scored 3 goals in 18 games for Sheffield this season.  Cam has great potential, but I doubt we'll see it at Villa.  Personally, I think he probably needs a couple of seasons in the Championship where he would likely excel and then get another chance either after promotion or a move at that point when he's more established and experienced.

I think he’d get as many goals as Watkins, if he’d been first choice. I’m just not sure he’d be able to match what Watkins brings to the team.
He comes back to us if they get relegated doesn’t he? Or was that just speculation.

[pauliewalnuts]

If we bought him back for £25m on presumably a 4 year contract then loan him to another newly promoted team or upper championship team for a season we only need a loan fee of £6.25m to offset his cost for the season. sounds achievable? didn't we pay £8m for barkley for a season on loan?

Why would we want to do that? And why would the player want that?

And paying 8m for a player with a career behind him like Barkley is different to paying almost as much for one who has never proved himself in the PL.

First-team football.

Which he’d get from a permanent move somewhere. Shuttling around between us and whoever for yet more of his career would be pointless. He’s 22 now, he needs to move beyond promising youngster.

[edgysatsuma89]

I think he needs to worry about his game time at Sheffield United with Diaz coming on for him and getting a goal on his debut.

[markeeeebeeee2005]

That's a proper shit deal if we have to sign a relegated player back for more than we sold him for with no consideration as to how he performed or anything.

The clause doesn’t make any sense to me and the more I think it through the less I understand it.

[AV84]

It made sense in my mind from the player's POV, and maybe even from the club buying, but I can't get my head around why we'd agree to it without very specific conditions being met, i.e. 15+ goals scored or something like that.

[edgysatsuma89]

That's a proper shit deal if we have to sign a relegated player back for more than we sold him for with no consideration as to how he performed or anything.

The clause doesn’t make any sense to me and the more I think it through the less I understand it.

I wasn't a fan at the time. The only way it would have been any good would have been if he turned in to a goal scoring demon or Sheffield United stayed up, neither were highly probable. It must have just been a really short term fix to the finances. I don't understand people stating it will good for FFP either, surely we buy him back for 20m then if we sell him straight away then we'll need over that for a net positive? I just don't see it happening. Probably will be a loan job to the Championship and see if he can increase his value. Or he stays and replaces Duran but I doubt it.

[Smoke]

If we bought him back for £25m on presumably a 4 year contract then loan him to another newly promoted team or upper championship team for a season we only need a loan fee of £6.25m to offset his cost for the season. sounds achievable? didn't we pay £8m for barkley for a season on loan?

Why would we want to do that? And why would the player want that?

And paying 8m for a player with a career behind him like Barkley is different to paying almost as much for one who has never proved himself in the PL.

First-team football.

Which he’d get from a permanent move somewhere. Shuttling around between us and whoever for yet more of his career would be pointless. He’s 22 now, he needs to move beyond promising youngster.

Pointless in your eyes, maybe not in Archers?

@ 22
ollie watkins just joined Brentford from Exeter
Mcginn had 1 year at hibs behind him
we took a put on Dougie Luiz as a newly promoted club
Buendia joined Norwich
De Bruyne joined Wolfsberg (and basically started his actual career)

He's got plenty of time to 'become' something should he end up back with us and go out on loan for the season.


if this buy back is true then Cam will have had to agree to it and agree what contract he would be coming back on too.

[Gareth]

It was good for FFP in this accounting period as it was 18m pure profit, the money to buy him back will be out of a different accounting period…it’s not really a huge gamble because even if he fails there he will still have a value that would cover the difference betw 18m and whatever we are obligated to buy him back for say it’s 22m he will be worth more than the 4m difference.  Its just financial…where it might have got interesting if he had lit the league up with a dozen or so goals and Sheff U stay up…presume we’d have a sell on clause as well as buy back

[Somniloquism]

I think he needs to worry about his game time at Sheffield United with Diaz coming on for him and getting a goal on his debut.

Cam was on the bench and came on for Diaz. And Diaz was playing on the wing, not up front. The argument could be more they have too many front men if they are only going to be playing one up front which is how Sheffield started the match.

[Dave]

...he will still have a value that would cover the difference betw 18m and whatever we are obligated to buy him back for say it’s 22m he will be worth more than the 4m difference.

I remember reading something by a Sheffield Utd reporter who seemed to be across the detail of the agreement - I think we'd be buying him back for a bit less than they paid, so from their perspective it would effectively be the equivalent of paying a few million for a season loan.

[Drummond]

If they go down we buy him back at the price they paid.

If they stay up we have an option to buy back but at an inflated fee (circa £25m).

Those clauses suit us for FFP and are fair on Sheffield United with the fees they get.

He's a top finisher and scores goals that Watkins doesn't, i.e. outside the box, but assessing his overall capabilities is tricky in the team he's in. Sheffield United fans I know like him. He works hard and has scored, albeit in a pretty abject team.

He obviously isn't at Watkins' level, but then he's a few years younger.