Last time they said we don't need to sell, Lambert went to Liverpool the next day. So i'm expecting we'll sell someone tomorrow.
I don't think Liverpool will be upping their offer for Lallana. The questions on that one are whether he'll put in a transfer request and whether his relationship with the board can and will be repaired.
Agreed Fran. I think it's full of caveats "our preference...." fills me with dread, but I have regenerated a feeling of excitement again for the future, rather than abject fear.
I feel for the board. Players are being offers higher saleries elsewhere, and that means pay day for the blood sucking agents.
I like the idea of two threads. That way I can be positive on one and negative on the other. I keep swinging from one to the other at the moment. So with two threads it will not look like I am contradicting myself!
Thread 1: Club Statement on transfers, barely mentions Lambert. Thread 2: Lambert deal is done, focusing on Lambert. Why the fudge has one been locked?
Ignoring the wages which you could say he has earnt, Saints have made a massive investment in Adam (via the academy) even before he started delivering in the league. And in a sense they also want to recoup money they've spent on other youngsters that didn't make it. The Acedemy has to pay its way and that is by selling players and saving on transfer fees on bringing players in. And the final part of the jigsaw is to get the money to replace Adam. The club has arrived at 30 million to cover all these factors...Adam can have no affect on that apart from a small saving if he puts in a transfer request.
Lallana is desirable, but not an absolute must for a team like Liverpool. We wouldn't accept their final offer, so unlikely (though not totally impossible) that they will raise their offer. If Adam wants them (rather than another team) he will have to make compromises to push it through.
I agree. But it would be foolish of the board to box themselves and the new manager in like that, because you never know. The more likely scenario is that we get in a new manager but Lallana refuses to play anyway and hands in a transfer request. The manager at that point might feel the best thing to do is to move him on. If Liverpool hasn't yet signed someone else, I don't see why they wouldn't take 25m just because some self-imposed deadline they set has passed. But that scenario is much less fun to think about, so I choose to believe in the "offer too good to turn down" scenario. We do have 9 players apparently being targeted so it's not just Liverpool and Lallana they need to think about.
If we don't need 25 million, I am reassured we will resist lower offers for players we want to keep like Lovren and Schneiderlin.
I am hugely reassured by this statement. It isn't as empty as some are making out because this time you can feel a little bit of fighting talk in there. I get the sense the board is starting to get annoyed about all the stick it is getting. I also feel like they've shown us they're not about selling unless there is no choice. Lambert to Liverpool was not an option, it had to happen. The man is a legend and it is his lifelong desire. What have the board really done wrong? *Please don't dredge this back up when we appoint Chris Hughton as our next manager*
I'm still hopeful that a new manager can persuade Adam to give us another season. After all, look what Brendan Rogers has just done for Luis Suarez' career.
