I think they may get less than Derby. They must feel like we did at this stage, knowing you are going down, just trying to get another 10 points over the line
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I think they may get less than Derby. They must feel like we did at this stage, knowing you are going down, just trying to get another 10 points over the line
It was always built on sand. It was the Mendes link and it always seemed like he potentially talked his clients into taking reduced terms so they would have a platform for a bigger move later. Because their wage bill when they had the likes of Neves in the championship didn’t make sense. So there was also some potentially shenanigans going on there with potentially more fees going to Mendes one way or another
The klaxon was that massive money bid for the teenage Portuguese striker who’d scored something like one goal ever. Seemed like a higher level Bebe like transfer where it was effectively a big financial transfer at massively over market rate with a large chunk pocketed by agents
Neves rather oddly stayed in the shop window at Wolves for six seasons; maybe he’s doing something similar now in Saudi; acting as a beacon to an unfashionable footballing project. His eventual sale felt like the beginning of the end of the Gestifute-era Wolves model.
The following season, Wolves were compelled to buy Matheus Cunha for around £50m after the appearance clause kicked in, despite him managing just 17 games and 2 goals during the loan. At Atlético he’d scored 6 in 40, yet somehow his value had risen from the £35m they’d paid Hertha. Still, once the purchase went through, his sudden transformation turned out to be an unexpected boon for Wolves.
The £100m generated from Cunha and the eventual sale of Gestifute-pipeline signing Rayan Aït-Nouri, with no following notable re-investment, it really feels like the last echoes of that whole project may have finally played out for Mendes/Fosun. The Chinese company now managing finances increasingly stringently due to the subsequent tightening of domestic regulations and its own debt-reduction strategy. History will see it as a unique strategic partnership which briefly elevated Wolves above their modern mean of mid-table Champ.
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Perhaps that is why Neves ended up in Saudi - the wages bridge the gap from a blocking of a move to someone like City far earlier so he could still be this strange “beacon”. It sounds nonsensical but lots of those wolves transfers did. It never made sense that he didn’t move to a top premier league side in a position that is often hard to fill - albeit not glamorous.
And if Cunha really was purchased for £50m then they didn’t make much out of him at all in the grand scheme of things. Not enough to justify the project aside from
I guess the keeping them up part ?
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It been reported at £44 too. It's more of question of Wolves not getting their fingers incinerate after seemingly greatly overpaying (Cunha had 6 goals in the two previous season, no injuries), they actually ended up making a +£25m profit!
Just seen that Sunderland have more points now than any of the bottom 3 finished with last season.
Basically proving the only way to stay up is ditching basically everyone who helps get you promoted.
Xhaka particularly is some signing for a promoted side. Fair play to whoever pulled that off.
We wouldn't have even attempted a signing like that. Not enough 'resale value'.
Only two of their starting XI today were with them last season (and one of them was only a loanee last season).
Whereas when you look at the 11 players who started the most league games for us last season, only three of them were new recruits (Ramsdale, Matty and Les).
Whereas when you look at the 11 players who started the most league games for us last season, only three of them were new recruits (Ramsdale, Matty and Les).
Be interesting to see if they have any FFP issues like Forest did.
Their recruitment has been good as us, Leeds and Ipswich all brought in a load of players for bigish money as well which didn’t work for us or Ipswich (and likely not Leeds either). Sunderland still out spent all three of us though and as you say basically replaced their entire starting 11.
If we do go up this year then you’d think that Sunderland/Forest is the blue print you have to look at. There is nobody in our squad now who we should be thinking is a starter next year if we do go up
I do also think that the biggest factor for the promoted sides this year is the weakening of some of the other established sides. Multiple sides are significantly weaker than they were last year
Fellows and Scienza can play PL. As can THB if he sorts his head out a bit.
That’s the first thing I said to my Sunderland mate. Do a Forest then worry about a few points deduction later. If you are successful it won’t matter and if you are not, it won’t matter.