Unfortunately bates has made such a mess of things that it will take some capital to get us back to any decent state. If this takeover had happened in summer 2011, we'd have been perfectly poised to assault the league with very little investment, only the money the club brings in would be needed. Alas, this is not the case. We're now £17 million in debt for building work that was supposed to cost £7 million, is losing money and is the definition of "wrong thing at the wrong time".
Squad wise we don't need a fortune spending. We need 2 defenders, 2 midfielders and a new striker. Won't cost a fortune at all
Just imagine how much it would cost to buy back the players we have let go in the past few years....Johnson, Beckford, Schmeichel, Gradel, Howson, Snodgrass, Clayton and anybody else I've missed. Upwards of 15 mill at least I would think, so where the hell is the money gonna come from to get us back up there? By the looks of it it ain't gonna be GFH.
Absolutely spot on. Head in sand if you believe otherwise I'm afraid and by the way, we wouldn't be guaranteed promotion even if we got all of them back
....Johnson, Beckford, Schmeichel, Gradel, Howson, Snodgrass, Clayton - are the same players you had that got promotion from League 1 by the skin of your teeth - add Delph to that list too
....Johnson, Beckford, Schmeichel, Gradel, Howson, Snodgrass, Clayton - are the same players you had that got promotion from League 1 by the skin of your teeth - add Delph to that list too better get them back for next season,, cant see you getting Grayson back now he is at an ambitious club though!!!
Schmeichael - no Beckford - 9 goals in 43 for Leicester last season so no. Gradel - Scored 22 in 62 for Leeds - scored 1 in 12 this season Delph - How could he improve when he only plays about 5 games a season. Howson and Snodgrass - How much can they have improved after playing a dozen games for their new club?
Johnson, Beckford, Schmeichel, Gradel, Howson, Snodgrass, Clayton, Delph Would they be good enough for promotion though? Or do they just stand out next to the dross we have had to put up with? Lets see. Johnson- Norwich fans seem pleased with him so far. Nothing special but solid and good in the air. Schmeichel- Although Kenny hasnt had the best of seasons by his own standard I think we are stronger with Kenny in the sticks than Schmeichel Gradel- Sorely missed. I would have him back in a flash. Done well at this level and for the Ivory Coast, deserves a shot at the prem IMO Howson- Good end to his first season in the prem so i snapped him up for what i thought was going to be a bargain 1 mill in my sun dream team. Hasnt been worth that so far & still tends to go missing. Great potential there though and he is in a Struggling team. Snoddy- Not getting enough game time which suggests Norwich already have better. Another player that is missed, or at least his style of play is. Clayton- Good start to his life at Hudders and was perhaps a little unfairly ruled not good enough by a manager currently struggling for centre midfielders. Started brightly for us as well last season, so lets see if he boils down before we judge him. Delph- saw him come on for Villa the other day and he did nothing. The lad had so much potential but it doesnt look like he has progressed as much as villa would have expected given the price tag he came with. Did nothing why back on loan here. Thats my assessment anyway. Feel free to comment or disagree. Sadly that bunch are a whole lot better than we have now! Austin is about the only one I have real hope for but even he has been giving the ball away far to cheaply. I know Norris divides opinion but I rate him as well
" Sadly that bunch are a whole lot better than we have now!" Think you hit the nail on the head there. There are tons of players around as good. Point is it will cost a lot of money to get better in and a wage that will keep them. People seem to think waving a couple of million at our current squad will turn us into promotion contenders. Anyone believing that is sadly deluded
'so where the hell is the money gonna come from to get us back up there? By the looks of it it ain't gonna be GFH.' Feel free to explain why it will not BE GFH seing as you're in the know.
At least well know soon enough whether they have spare dish for investment or not. Any less than three class signings in January, and they have no ambition. Hopefully they're minted
How much did they cost? Peanuts. The same can be done again, it just needs the right sourcing of the right players. I sincerely hope they come in, they ask people to agree to a season ticket at 20% less than current prices by January 31 and as long as we get 16,000 ST holders, that price is agreed, and match prices will also be 20% down. If we don't get 16000, then the official prices at the same current price will be sent out for renewal. That will show whether the LUFC fans are really behind the club. That would lead to average crowds of some 28-30,000 - an increase in footfall of some 40%-50% from now. These people would spend money like nobody's business in the shop, the bars, everything. They also tell us they are building the club slowly - we have gone nowhere in the last 7 years with empty year-by-year promises of promotion and glory, now is the time to be realistic and develop the squad wit hthe right type and style of players, youth, speed, stamina and passion. It may take 5 years, but we will stick to this, and we will use the profits from the income to build the squad slowly and develop the club's finance system, aiming to buy TA and ER eventually (or move from both). This would not take much. It takes expectation management and keen focus on a slow and steady upwards direction. Not some stupid blowout on a one-year opportunity or death. The latter being much more likely.
Well, that's the thing isn't it? You have those players, it's cheaper to keep hold of them than to replace them, unless they are asking for silly money. That's why we're where we are now, because bates doesn't understand that because he's a fricking idiot.
