As @Scout73 mentioned if we got a decent fee that was enough to sign Mepham and have plenty of change I think that would be a good deal for all parties. Ballard is a very good defender at this level who certainly has his strengths but I think Mepham is much better, like night and day better. If we could sign him and have £6-7m change for another improvement in the squad that would be hard to turn down.
Dan Ballard
- Thread starter 123Daveyboy
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I doubt there’d be a huge amount left to reinvest, agree that if we could get Mepham and have enough to get another player that would be good business though.
So youre saying sell player A for x.money and buy player Y (who is greatly better ) for less than we sold player A and have money left over,
your glass is well more than half full,
That happens all the time in football though. I remember Brentford selling maupay for a good amount then replaced him with a better (and cheaper) player in watkins
Mepham isn't wanted at Bournemouth, only has 18 months on his contract so would likely be available at a lower price
Teams replace players for better players who come cheaper all the time due to inflated transfer fees. Or players who suit them better at the time to reach their goals. I know I’ve mentioned Brentford signing Pontus Jansen from Leeds before but to do so they sold Konsa to Villa for £13m or so and signed Jansson for £5m plus Pinnock for £3m.. made Jansson captain straight away then went up the following season. Konsa is obviously a very good defender who’s now playing CL football at Villa but Jansson was a huge signing for them, provided some much needed leadership qualities in a young squad. That same window they sold Maupay and replaced him with Mbuemo for half the price. Those 3 players at the time massively improved them but on paper they’d sold two of their better players and replaced them with “cheaper” alternatives.
Mepham has a few years on Ballard and is out of favour at Bournemouth plus doesn’t have long left on his contract. If Ballard makes the move to a PL club it’ll be for a bare minimum of £10m, I’d like to think closer to £15m and I think Mepham would cost around half of that. Cheeky £2m bid for Cissoko from Plymouth who looks a real player but picked an injury that’ll keep him out until Jan. Think Esse at Millwall is a good player too but might cost a bit more. Only issue would be that Mephams wages would probably be a lot higher than Ballard but as we’re starting to establish ourselves as a top championship team our wage structure will start getting bigger.
100% mate
But with him being here and seems to be loving it, we have a cracking chance of signing him
If I'm his agent I'm telling him to wait till the summer tho and then decide on next move then
There are some I would not sell/lose at any price at this point. Mepham and 09 would be two of them, Cirkin Neil Jobe Hume Rigg. Ballard I wouldn’t have on it. Clearly he’s a good player but I’m not sure he’s not too rash and reckless at times. I describe him as over competitive. It’s brave but not always wise and it costs his availability, quite regularly. I’d be surprised if we couldn’t use this money wisely and be more consistently stronger.
100%. there’s no benefit to him in signing for us in January. Whatever we offer now will likely still be on the table in the summer, and he may even be able to negotiate more from us if we get promoted
There’s a wild amount of logic and sense on this topic.
I love big Dan mind, I’d prefer we keep him. Lads only 25.
I love big Dan mind, I’d prefer we keep him. Lads only 25.
Obviously he is a Northern Ireland international, but can't help but wonder if he was still eligible for an England call-up, how far away one would be? Seems like he is being noticed a lot from rival fans since the season started.
26 today
All the best Dan lad
All the best Dan lad
Very pleased he stayed too, that's if there was any prospect of him leaving. Always rated him , and he will get better with these new lads around him.
If Dan Burn can get an England call up anything is possible. I'm still waiting by the phone just in case.
Think the two games against Coventry and the final got everyone noticing who didn't know much about him. He was ridiculously good.
Good News
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It’s fascinating reading this thread back a year or so down the line.
General sentiments were that Mepham was a much better player than Ballard and we’d have been happy to let DB go for £10-15m.
12 months later and Ballard is one of the top performing defenders in the PL and probably now worth about £50m. Mepham looks quite likely to be getting relegated to L1 in a rotten WBA. Funny old game.
General sentiments were that Mepham was a much better player than Ballard and we’d have been happy to let DB go for £10-15m.
12 months later and Ballard is one of the top performing defenders in the PL and probably now worth about £50m. Mepham looks quite likely to be getting relegated to L1 in a rotten WBA. Funny old game.
...Alongside his team-mates, Ballard has played a central role in the Club earning eight clean sheets in 27 PL games, whilst also registering four top-flight goal contributions.
Ballard said: “I’m absolutely delighted to have signed a new contract. From the moment we began talks, it felt like an easy decision, and I’m happy to be extending my time at the Club.
Achieving promotion last season was incredible, and I feel very fortunate to have played a part in some special moments in the Club’s recent history. My aim this season was to stay in the team, compete every day, and keep working hard to contribute. Hopefully, I can continue improving and help drive the Club forward for many years to come.”
Florent Ghisolfi added: “Dan represents both the legacy and the future of Sunderland AFC. He embodies our identity through his professionalism, consistency, and spirit. He has grown into a Premier League defender, but just as importantly, he has become a leader within our dressing room. We are proud that he believes in our purpose and our ambition. His commitment to Sunderland is a powerful message about who we are and what we intend to build.”
Ballard said: “I’m absolutely delighted to have signed a new contract. From the moment we began talks, it felt like an easy decision, and I’m happy to be extending my time at the Club.
Achieving promotion last season was incredible, and I feel very fortunate to have played a part in some special moments in the Club’s recent history. My aim this season was to stay in the team, compete every day, and keep working hard to contribute. Hopefully, I can continue improving and help drive the Club forward for many years to come.”
Florent Ghisolfi added: “Dan represents both the legacy and the future of Sunderland AFC. He embodies our identity through his professionalism, consistency, and spirit. He has grown into a Premier League defender, but just as importantly, he has become a leader within our dressing room. We are proud that he believes in our purpose and our ambition. His commitment to Sunderland is a powerful message about who we are and what we intend to build.”