In the calm, light of day 24 hours later, is it really...

[Guest alex]

Aye, but you're fucking clueless.

[Barney 0]

Are any clubs run at a profit/breaking even?

 

I think someone mentioned WBA being the only one?

 

 

'The West Brom template'. Fuck off.

Edited May 12, 2010 by Barney

[Guest Barrack Road]

Pipe down.

[Kevin Carr's Gloves 3284]

Well my guess is that we will sell Guti after the World Cup. Possibly even Enrique and Colo if the money is right. Then replace them with loanees, freebees or acadamees. Next season is just going to be the absolute best ever.

[acrossthepond 720]

Teams are actually starting to catch up with the so called big 4 {big 3 now that Liverpool are goosed}, and the likes of Wigan, Wolves, Bolton, Birmingham, Blackburn, Sunderland, West Ham, Stoke, and Fulham are a lot stronger and better quality than many on here and other message boards are saying.

 

B'ham, Blackburn, Stoke and Fulham are a lot stronger than they used to be? Great! Now instead of only having 8 hidings a year off the big four, we get to have 16! Then there's Villa, City, Everton and Spurs....

[Holden McGroin 5075]

Aye, but you're fucking clueless.

 

True.

 

He is an optimist though. I'll give him that.

[peasepud 59]

While in an ideal world we would spend a minimum of 15mil on new players we un fortunatly dont have that luxury.

Yes we do, its called spending to accumulate, the better a team you have the higher up the league you should get. Higher up the league means more money and puts you in a better position to attract players the next season.

 

Its is frustrating that there will be "no new financial outlay" but i have said all along the squad we have now could and should keep us up.

Based on what? blind optimisim thats what. This is the same squad that got us relegated minus Martins, Owen, Viduka, Duff, Beye, Bassong but plus the likes of Best, Routledge, Williams and Simpson.

 

A few bosmans from that list and a couple of youngsters on loan ( lansbury, wilshire of arsenal and naughton of spurs) and we will be ok.

Why would you even contemplate building a Premiership squad around loan players? one of the things people keep spouting about as a reason not to sell is to not break up a tight knit squad. How do you think that will survive if we keep dipping into loans and then handing them back? If someone does well on loan for us from the likes of Arsenal and Spurs then all that happens is their value increases and we couldnt afford to buy them if we wanted to so off they go back. How depressing is that going to be?

 

That said lets not hide from the fact it is going to be a tense hard faught battle to stay up but that tenecious never say die attitude within the squad now will serve us well.

fuck off man, a never say die attitude is a piece of piss to have when you've got 90 points and are leading the league. Do you honestly think that will exist when Stoke comprehensively beat us at SJP to leave us floundering at the bottom?

 

For all i hate FMA and cuntlips Llambias i can however understand that what he is tryin to do for our finances will benefit the club in the long run as well as the fat man himself.....So long as we stay up.

for fucks sake how do you think that breaking even in 5 seasons will be a benefit if we're in the 1st division pulling in 10k crowds against Darlo?

 

I do think however that that statement, as vague as it is and as potentially misleading as other statements in the past does not totally confirm we wont spend anything.

 

I think it was to mislead the media really but also doesnt fill us fans with a great deal of optimism.

 

I think come January if we are struggling then we will see a small amount invested in the squad.

You think too much, its not healthy for you.

 

Im not worried......yet.

You should be, by rights we should all be shitting bricks at the prospect of whats to come. Wide scale sales of players because "once theyve had their heads turned by things such as ambition or competing then theres nothing you can do to keep hold of them" ©Llambias 2009.

 

This squad will be decimated from the already fragile one it is, I do believe that the likes of Colo, Enrique, Jonas and Nolan will not hang around to become the scapegoats for another relegation. Thats on the back of the almost certain departure of Taylor. Once we get to December and hes seen Liverpool stick 8 past us then history will repeat itself and Harper will also bugger off.

 

A few cheeky bids for Carroll (if hes not helping her Majesty out) and Lovenkrands could see them waving goodbye too.

 

What will we replace them with? loan players from Birmingham and Wolves?

[LeazesMag 0]

that depressing a picture ?

 

IT IS NOT GREAT, that is for sure, but loan signings are available, as well as free transfers although many of those posted about may be beyond the budget.

 

I do not share the view that the Premiership is as weak as it has ever been - I actually take the opposite view.

 

Teams are actually starting to catch up with the so called big 4 {big 3 now that Liverpool are goosed}, and the likes of Wigan, Wolves, Bolton, Birmingham, Blackburn, Sunderland, West Ham, Stoke, and Fulham are a lot stronger and better quality than many on here and other message boards are saying.

 

With the release of the 3 players recently, the squad is again wafer thin, but it will be boosted and there will be some quality players out there available on loan to add to those that are good enough currently at SJP.

 

A spine of Harper - S. Taylor - Smith - Carroll is not a bad start - ok, not anything special, but something to work around.

Enrique may prove to be good enough {I personally think he will be}, as possibly will Colo but I am far from convinced about him. Williamson is a good CCC defender but he wasn't started at Pompey - why ?? Simpson or Ryan Taylor are definitely not good enough to play regular right back, so that position is a definite priority.

 

Routledge is light weight and has failed previously - he will produce some good moments, but I dont think he will deliver consistently against PL fullbacks, many of whom are internationals. Barton was quality at Man City and can come good again as I think he will. Nolan's experience may get him through games, but he won't be anywhere near as prolific. Gutierrez is another on whom the jury is out at PL level - his delivery in to the box is mediocre at best most of the time, but maybe he will come good. It's a decent bet he will. Guthrie will be a decent squad player as he is versatile and mobile.

 

A top notch partner for Carroll is vital - Danny Webber is getting lots of mentions, and would be preferable to Ameobi who should be sold to raise funds as should Best who is not PL standard, whilst Lovenkrands is another lightweight who will struggle on a regular basis. Ranger is going to come good and is definitely worth keeping as a sub - no loaning out to get him experience !

 

Having had 24 hours to digest and sleep on the news, it as not as bleak as it seemed. Hughton is well liked and respected in the game and will have little trouble in bringing in good loan signings in my opinion.

 

No doubt I will be slaughtered for my optimism as I was last season, but look what happened. Life is so much brighter when viewed with a bit of optimism as long as it is not blind optimism and I don't think this is.

 

how much did we rake in for Given, Milner, Zoggy, Beye, Bassong.......these ALL need replaced. NONE of their replacements are better........the ONLY purchases anywhere near the quality of these players is Guttierez on a man for man basis. Therefore to regain the strength of the team as it was under Keegan, he needs these players replaced, without even mentining Owen, Martins and someone to replace Viduka [possibly Carroll].

 

Add it up, then come back and tell us how it will be done and where it will come from, now he has cleared the "debt".

[LeazesMag 0]

Simple fact is: fat barrowboy is supposed to have cleared the debt, but to have half a decent team again - ie like the one Keegan could have taken further - he is going to have to go into debt.

 

Oh well. Some people still think football is like a high street business........ho hum.....dee dee dee dee dee

Edited May 12, 2010 by LeazesMag

[ewerk 26853]

While in an ideal world we would spend a minimum of 15mil on new players we un fortunatly dont have that luxury.

Yes we do, its called spending to accumulate, the better a team you have the higher up the league you should get. Higher up the league means more money and puts you in a better position to attract players the next season.

 

 

The thing is there's barely a £15m difference in the prize money between the Champions and the bottom club. As long as we retain our PL status Ashley will be happy enough, whether we retain that status is still very much in doubt, but Ashley is a gambling man.

[Park Life 71]

Right back, midfielder and forward of much higher quality than we have would turn us into a decent team imo. Cant see the quality we need coming in though and some bad injuries would see us fucked.

 

I agree Chez. This is the frustrating thing - for a comparatively modest outlay we could be something. As it is we'll just have to hope that Haris Vukcic is new Pele and the next Torres is lurking in that Academy 'brimming with talent'.

 

We didn't even manage to beat the 2nd worse PL side this season. It will be a feeding frenzy if we don't sign at least 3 proven PL players - bare minimum.

[OTF 6397]

The money earnt from the sales of Milner, N'Zogbia, Duff, Bassong and Martins absolutely can not be forgotten. At the very least half of that should be used in strengthening the squad. In the end if you don't spend money you'll be left behind. We're already left behind more than half the teams in the league, not trying to improve the squads puts us in a very real danger of being left behind those in the bottom echelons of the league, and that does not make business sense.

[Kitman 2188]

The money earnt from the sales of Milner, N'Zogbia, Duff, Bassong and Martins absolutely can not be forgotten. At the very least half of that should be used in strengthening the squad. In the end if you don't spend money you'll be left behind. We're already left behind more than half the teams in the league, not trying to improve the squads puts us in a very real danger of being left behind those in the bottom echelons of the league, and that does not make business sense.

 

That money's long gone.

[The Fish 9245]

Right back, midfielder and forward of much higher quality than we have would turn us into a decent team imo. Cant see the quality we need coming in though and some bad injuries would see us fucked.

 

I agree Chez. This is the frustrating thing - for a comparatively modest outlay we could be something. As it is we'll just have to hope that Haris Vukcic is new Pele and the next Torres is lurking in that Academy 'brimming with talent'.

 

We didn't even manage to beat the 2nd worse PL side this season. It will be a feeding frenzy if we don't sign at least 3 proven PL players - bare minimum.

 

When did we play Hull?

[khay 8]

Right back, midfielder and forward of much higher quality than we have would turn us into a decent team imo. Cant see the quality we need coming in though and some bad injuries would see us fucked.

 

I agree Chez. This is the frustrating thing - for a comparatively modest outlay we could be something. As it is we'll just have to hope that Haris Vukcic is new Pele and the next Torres is lurking in that Academy 'brimming with talent'.

 

We didn't even manage to beat the 2nd worse PL side this season. It will be a feeding frenzy if we don't sign at least 3 proven PL players - bare minimum.

 

When did we play Hull?

 

 

I think he means West Brom from last season.

[Geordieracer 0]

Fuck me I was in a decent mood until I read this.

 

After the brief highs of promotion and the championship trophy we we've been brought crashing back to earth by "the statement" (not sure if you can call it that as it's mainly conjecture, lies, and a childish swipe at the press).

 

At best it's a poor attempt at managing expectations and possibly a message to agents that we'll no longer be paying silly money for mercenaries and bench warmers (not a bad thing).

 

At the end of the day none of us knows what really goes on in the mind of the fat shitehawk and what he says often bears no relation to what he actually does.

 

What we do know is the fucker likes a gamble and I'd be willing to bet he's banking on keeping us up with the current squad plus a few loanees/bosmans, all the while paying down what the club owes him.

 

In short we're cattled.