New Head Coach

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See, I disagree with the bit in bold. The emphasis has been on younger players but signing an older player doesn't indicate that they've deviated from their plan. According to some they've looked at older players but not been able to do the deal. I think the assumption that they won't sign older players is just that, an assumption.
The unspoken understanding is that the club will not sanction transfer fees for players over 25. If you look at the signings since KLD came in:

Winchester (27) - nominal fee
Pritchard (28) - Free Transfer
Evans (30) - Free Transfer
Batth (31) - Free Transfer
Roberts (25) - Free Transfer
Defoe (39) - Free Transfer
Dack (29) - Free Transfer

There's a definite theme there...Other than Winchester, we haven't spent a penny on players over 24
 
I dont know what the model is. I haven't seen much evidence of rigidity in it. No one talks about it other than disgruntled fans so I'm just discounting it for now.

Maybe after a couple more years and with a bigger sample I will have a better idea, but we are so early on in a long term project.

I've learned, over the years, that virtually anything can be explained with clips from either The Simpsons, Pulp Fiction or Seinfeld ...

... if all else fails Ronnie Barker, in Porridge, will be your saviour.

The much imagined, based on very little, rigidity of 'The Model' is laughable imo and perfectly ridiculed in the 'Little Jerry' episode where Kramer blunders into entering his 'pet chicken' into a cock-fighting syndicate ... why would KLD, who wants promotion above all else, deliberately stick to his own policy if it's clearly not achieving what he wants.

I'll allow Marcellino to explain <laugh>

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I dont know what the model is. I haven't seen much evidence of rigidity in it. No one talks about it other than disgruntled fans so I'm just discounting it for now.

Maybe after a couple more years and with a bigger sample I will have a better idea, but we are so early on in a long term project.

It is confusing. I think of it more as two separate,yet related things...a structure and a strategy. The structure is a DoF responsible for all things football,reporting to the owners,employing,amongst lots of other people, a head coach and a player recruitment manager. It's never been quite clear to me how much input into recruitment the head coach has.
The strategy is to win football matches within a sound and acceptable financial framework,which involves primarily,but not exclusively,buying or developing young talented players who will contribute to the desired success on the pitch and also increase in value for some to be sold to provide continuing funding for the ongoing operation. There is a balance to be found between age and youth with regard to squad assembly.I'm quite sure that if it's felt some additional experience is required in order to win matches and fulfil the strategy,it will be forthcoming.
 
BTW, I keep seeing people asking why we're not considering Steve Cooper ...

... some insisting it's a lack of ambition at best, penny pinching at worst.

Surely the question should be why aren't other clubs considering Steve Cooper.

Other managers are being constantly mentioned, even those in work, yet not him.

Perhaps the answer is that he's either unavailable due to his pay-off terms ...

... or carried away with his abilities and after twice what he's worth.
 
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I don't use Twitter so have no idea about the validity of this post, someone sent it last night with no explanation ...

... make of it what you will.

[HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill
Translated from Turkish by
The reason for the extension of the agreement with Will Still is the technical team. He wants to bring along the 3 people he has chosen. The management, on the other hand, wants names like Mike Dodds to stay. If this issue is understood, a 3-year contract is ready! [HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill


https://x.com/merensavasci/status/1795357103147909463?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1795357103147909463|twgr^3f134f647f80a0f09dbe24ff65733c7e22727cdf|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https://www.readytogo.net/smb/threads/will-still-rumours.1632992/page-539
 
I don't use Twitter so have no idea about the validity of this post, someone sent it last night with no explanation ...

... make of it what you will.

[HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill
Translated from Turkish by
The reason for the extension of the agreement with Will Still is the technical team. He wants to bring along the 3 people he has chosen. The management, on the other hand, wants names like Mike Dodds to stay. If this issue is understood, a 3-year contract is ready! [HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill


https://x.com/merensavasci/status/1795357103147909463?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1795357103147909463|twgr^3f134f647f80a0f09dbe24ff65733c7e22727cdf|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https://www.readytogo.net/smb/threads/will-still-rumours.1632992/page-539

looks like somebody has just taken what Pingu has said and repackaged it
 
I don't use Twitter so have no idea about the validity of this post, someone sent it last night with no explanation ...

... make of it what you will.

[HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill
Translated from Turkish by
The reason for the extension of the agreement with Will Still is the technical team. He wants to bring along the 3 people he has chosen. The management, on the other hand, wants names like Mike Dodds to stay. If this issue is understood, a 3-year contract is ready! [HASHTAG]#SAFC[/HASHTAG]#WillStill


https://x.com/merensavasci/status/1795357103147909463?ref_src=twsrc^tfw|twcamp^tweetembed|twterm^1795357103147909463|twgr^3f134f647f80a0f09dbe24ff65733c7e22727cdf|twcon^s1_&ref_url=https://www.readytogo.net/smb/threads/will-still-rumours.1632992/page-539


You mean that Turkish language journalist doesn't have an exclusive scoop from inside the club?

What is the world coming to?
 
Sell Jobe to Madrid, no more living off the “Bellingham mentioned us on his twitter” crack and then let Dodds go because that’s all he’s around for. £15m in the bank and new manager on his way with his preferred team, problem solved :emoticon-0102-bigsm
 
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You mean that Turkish language journalist doesn't have an exclusive scoop from inside the club?

What is the world coming to?

not even a Turkish journalist - they’re a Turkish Sunderland fan site owner person. Will have read Pingu’s tweet and maybe this forum and is repeating it for other Turkish language fans (we’re massive so there probably hundreds of thousands of them :D)
 
not even a Turkish journalist - they’re a Turkish Sunderland fan site owner person. Will have read Pingu’s tweet and maybe this forum and is repeating it for other Turkish language fans (we’re massive so there probably hundreds of thousands of them :D)

A Turkish Sunderland fan site????

My skull just caved in on itself.
 
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Sell Jobe to Madrid, no more living off the “Bellingham mentioned us on his twitter” crack and then let Dodds go because that’s all he’s around for. £15m in the bank and new manager on his way with his preferred team, problem solved :emoticon-0102-bigsm
Or keep a very young promising player and accept his brother his Jude Bellingham
 
Some people seem to find the 'multi-lingual' aspect of Still to be irrelevant as we only have three or four French speakers. That's a bit disingenuous imo. From his background he'll be fluent in English, Flemish, French, Dutch and therefore German.

I know, from my own experience, that if you speak decent French you can communicate in Italian, Spanish and all the 'Latin languages' to a degree although Portuguese had me beat tbh ...

... whatever the case he'll be fluent in English, something I'm not convinced Heckingbottom has yet mastered <laugh>

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