....and until the various back and forth regarding any takeover get sorted too. That for me is the critical part. Clinging on by our fingernails up until that point.
On the one hand it’s such a shame we have such a good manager with nothing to work with, on the other hand maybe without him we’d already be down. It does feel like we’re just treading water waiting for a takeover, but that’s already been dragging on for years. Can’t imagine COVID has helped in that regard either.
Serious question- do people really believe that a new owner will be willing to pump money into the club in the hope that a few large transfer gambles will pay off and miraculously propel us into the Champions League?
Yes. If we look at the latter half of last season and witnessing the fragility of our team, soon possibly to be without Vesty, Bertie gone and Ings either gone or riding out his contract, this will have huge negative impact on the team. Ralph has one game plan in his locker and nearly every team worked out how to beat his game plan, not forgetting he often struggled to adapt in second halves when the opposition made tactical changes. Add to all the above, that we are trying to buy our squad through the £1 Shop. So we will be relying on three teams with worse squads, poorer morale and clueless managers and are as debt ridden as we are - then we will be alright... until the next season... l am reminded of Groundhog Day.
No but a new owner will have to put SOME funds into the club or find some other way to make monies available for signings or they risk losing the EPL status and all the riches that come with it. That's what owning a EPL club is, europe is just the icing on the cake.
I think there will be more players coming in. What has happened this summer has been totally necessary and this is effectively a new broom sweeping clean where circumstances prevented this happening last season. As far as Ralph is concerned, I think the jury is still out on him. My opinion is that he has the potential to transform the club and that he has been frustrated from making the changes he has sought because if the combined effect or Cvoid and a lack of funs hampered by an unnecessarily high wage bill. With fans back in the grounds from August if everything goes to plan (still not convinced it will!), I feel that this is the season where we can see just how good Ralph is. The opening matches are difficult and I have a feeling that if we don't hit the ground running, the directors might be looking for changes before Christmas. However, I am hoping that we will see some transformation and that Ralph reaches his potential. That might be difficult without Ings, though. I am not negative about the season and think it will the one where the changes sought by fans will probably materialise. I am expecting a solid, mid-table season.
No - didn’t they spend close to that last season on someone who isn’t good enough to be a regular starter? Rodrigo? Or did he end up playing more in the end / have injuries ? I didn’t follow them closely Put it this way - he was signed as an attacker and didn’t pull up any trees for something like 27m
I don’t think we are going down purely because it’s not in my DNA. I’m not thinking about the worst only to be miserable all year and then go “ah I told you so!” I’d much rather look forward to the season with excitement and hope, as football is a funny old game and you never really know what will happen. Unless a game goes to penalties. And the team then is England.
Another thing is big £££ don’t guarantee success. I’ll give an analogy. My hot tub pump packed up. “Man City replacement” new pump £500 “Spurs replacement “ second hand as good as new £350 “Saints replacement “ open it up take a look around, work out what needs doing. Clean a few things up, order a new £12 part, spend a few more hours putting it back together and it is arguably better than new as the part is metal rather than plastic. Replace what we need with good raw ingredients and let the skill of the coach put it together and get it working as a unit. One thing about us is that the sum of all parts is greater than the individual.
If I were Daniel Levy I’d be trying to butter up Blackburn somehow with loans or something (I doubt Spurs have a young striker but they might). Get them happier about accepting a lower price Because if we are forced to pay 15m for Armstrong then there is zero chance of Levy getting Ings for what he is prepared to actually pay And of course - I am aware things don’t actually work like that
Yes relative to other clubs in the same league as us. We have stated that £10m is about our budget per player, which is nothing compared to most teams in the PL Covid has probably helped us in that regard as teams abroad who rely much more on ticket sales than PL teams do will be skint so might have to accept lower fees for players, but the knock on effect is still there. A player who might have cost £50m pre Covid is now going for £30m which we still can’t afford but teams like Leeds can
Indeed, though I wonder are Leeds getting their cash from? They don't have a PL mega-rich owner, no significant sales and they've only been up one - covid19 blighted - season?
Issa Diop issa good signing? https://insidefutbol.com/2021/07/16...alace-wolves-and-southampton-interest/518398/
