I realise that the worst of the storm has blown over, but I still think a few people are overreacting. Don't get me wrong, I was as surprised as anyone that Holty handed in a transfer request, but I don't understand what any of the panic or confusion is about.
Re. confusion:
- Norwich are going through the end of year player reviews. Each player will be given a good idea of where there future lies with respect to the club. That's why Whitbread and Wilbraham got released two days ago. A couple of others the negotiations will take longer, which is why we haven't heard about Fox, Ward etc whose contracts also soon run out.
- Part of the player reviews involves giving players new contracts even where they've got loads of time left. That's why we saw Hoolahan, Holt etc. get refreshed contracts last year.
- When you consider how fast the club has risen and how low some of the wages are, at Norwich this will be a longer, harder task than, say, Arsenal, who won't necessarily be refreshing ALL players contracts, they'll just have one difficult big one.
- Holt had his player review yesterday EDIT McNally says this hasn't actually happened yet . This WILL have involved offering him a pay rise. It is quite clear that he will either (a) requested more money or (b) request a longer contract. Both of these are perfectly reasonable given that he sees himself as a valuable asset, but wants to be set up nicely for the future while he can still make the cash. There may have been inquiries from other clubs about him, but this will have nothing to do with that. Like any person in a job, Holt doesn't care who he plays for, as long as he's paid his due.
- Submitting a transfer request is now the way players/agents act to increase their income. This is a perfectly normal action from Holt, considering that with Norwich having him tied down to two more years, he hasn't got any other way to bargain. If he does get transferred away, it will be for bigger wages, so it's win-win for him. He's seen he can compete at this level and knows he will be in demand. This is his job, his livelihood. If you were such an integral part of your work, say, in a factory, you would also request a pay increase, or you'll get a job at your rival's factory.
Re. panic:
- If the board do offer him a bigger contract, this is not going to make him a worse player. Holt's style is Holt's style, he will always play his heart out, whether it's with us or anywhere else next season.
- He is not a "Judas" or a traitor. He is being selfish, but you have to be in the football world. People may say he owes Norwich a lot, which is true, but equally Norwich owes him a lot. The club has had a cash windfall running into the hundreds of millions, a large chunk of it down to Grant Holt. It's no surprise that he feels he deserves a chunk of that.
- If he does go, it will not be the end of the world. Yes, in terms of his personality he is irreplaceable. But I have absolute faith in the board that the sum of money we will get for his sale will eventually outweigh the loss, possibly quite substantially. Say we get £6m for him, that will already be a huge bonus. Say we buy two players for £3m and one of them ends up being incredible. It will have been Holt's transfer funds that will have made the difference. I see Holt's potential departure as much, much less worrying than the loss of Lambert. Even the loss of Lambert would not be an absolute disaster.
- More to the point- if we're not offering him the contract he wants, that's probably because the club can't "afford" it. Now I don't know what they've offered him or what he's asked for, but the domino effect of increasing players' wages is always a risk. In McNally I Trust. He won't be offering dangerous length/size contracts to anyone.
- We have been remarkably lucky considering how well we've done that we're not fighting off more bids for our players. This is only the start of it. It is the normal football merry-go-round. And as McNally said the other day, if other clubs are wanting your players and your manager, you're obviously doing something right.
- In order to compete at this level in the long term, we will have to increase the wage cap. More to the point, we will be able to because the cash windfall is huge. But this needs to be done slowly and carefully.
So everyone. Keep calm, and carry on. I know McNally will be as cool-headed as ever. I am positive Lambert will be. And I'm pretty certain Holt knows what he's doing too
Re. confusion:
- Norwich are going through the end of year player reviews. Each player will be given a good idea of where there future lies with respect to the club. That's why Whitbread and Wilbraham got released two days ago. A couple of others the negotiations will take longer, which is why we haven't heard about Fox, Ward etc whose contracts also soon run out.
- Part of the player reviews involves giving players new contracts even where they've got loads of time left. That's why we saw Hoolahan, Holt etc. get refreshed contracts last year.
- When you consider how fast the club has risen and how low some of the wages are, at Norwich this will be a longer, harder task than, say, Arsenal, who won't necessarily be refreshing ALL players contracts, they'll just have one difficult big one.
- Holt had his player review yesterday EDIT McNally says this hasn't actually happened yet . This WILL have involved offering him a pay rise. It is quite clear that he will either (a) requested more money or (b) request a longer contract. Both of these are perfectly reasonable given that he sees himself as a valuable asset, but wants to be set up nicely for the future while he can still make the cash. There may have been inquiries from other clubs about him, but this will have nothing to do with that. Like any person in a job, Holt doesn't care who he plays for, as long as he's paid his due.
- Submitting a transfer request is now the way players/agents act to increase their income. This is a perfectly normal action from Holt, considering that with Norwich having him tied down to two more years, he hasn't got any other way to bargain. If he does get transferred away, it will be for bigger wages, so it's win-win for him. He's seen he can compete at this level and knows he will be in demand. This is his job, his livelihood. If you were such an integral part of your work, say, in a factory, you would also request a pay increase, or you'll get a job at your rival's factory.
Re. panic:
- If the board do offer him a bigger contract, this is not going to make him a worse player. Holt's style is Holt's style, he will always play his heart out, whether it's with us or anywhere else next season.
- He is not a "Judas" or a traitor. He is being selfish, but you have to be in the football world. People may say he owes Norwich a lot, which is true, but equally Norwich owes him a lot. The club has had a cash windfall running into the hundreds of millions, a large chunk of it down to Grant Holt. It's no surprise that he feels he deserves a chunk of that.
- If he does go, it will not be the end of the world. Yes, in terms of his personality he is irreplaceable. But I have absolute faith in the board that the sum of money we will get for his sale will eventually outweigh the loss, possibly quite substantially. Say we get £6m for him, that will already be a huge bonus. Say we buy two players for £3m and one of them ends up being incredible. It will have been Holt's transfer funds that will have made the difference. I see Holt's potential departure as much, much less worrying than the loss of Lambert. Even the loss of Lambert would not be an absolute disaster.
- More to the point- if we're not offering him the contract he wants, that's probably because the club can't "afford" it. Now I don't know what they've offered him or what he's asked for, but the domino effect of increasing players' wages is always a risk. In McNally I Trust. He won't be offering dangerous length/size contracts to anyone.
- We have been remarkably lucky considering how well we've done that we're not fighting off more bids for our players. This is only the start of it. It is the normal football merry-go-round. And as McNally said the other day, if other clubs are wanting your players and your manager, you're obviously doing something right.
- In order to compete at this level in the long term, we will have to increase the wage cap. More to the point, we will be able to because the cash windfall is huge. But this needs to be done slowly and carefully.
So everyone. Keep calm, and carry on. I know McNally will be as cool-headed as ever. I am positive Lambert will be. And I'm pretty certain Holt knows what he's doing too
