Not really a thread saying Bruce in or Bruce out but just some thoughts on the Gyan affair (and even Bent). For years all of us on here have been clambering for big name signings along the lines of Gyan, Bent etc. We finally get into a position (thanks to Quinn/Short etc) where we can do this and Bruce IMO does a cracking job signing players of such ilk. However, a year or so into their deals and both start shouting the odds for more money and end up selling out and moving to the highest bidder. Now I dont condone this 1 year into a 4 years or so contract and feel really sorry for Bruce as both were massive players at the time. We can say he never had adequate cover which is a fair point, but these guys were our best players and you are never going to have players of the same ilk just sitting around on the bench. I suppose you could say the club should be paying these lads what they want but do we really want to risk doing a Leeds and plunging into financial freefall if things go badly. I suppose my stance is that we have been shafted by 2 lads who claimed to love the club but ended chasing the dollar. I dont particularly hate them for it as I know it must be very difficult not to, and I also see the point that Bruce is really struggling. I just dont want us to panic 4 games into a season and change managers. Remember Bruce signed a lot of these lads in the summer and to bring a new man in could rock the boat even more. I hope we give him a good few months at least. I am sure we will start picking up wins, if not we re-assess December time with a view to someone coming in for the transfer window.
Bruce shook hands with Gyan 48 hours ago and then the player shafted him good and proper. For that I dont blame Bruce, I blame the player 100%. However, there is a pattern here. Jones, Cana, Bent, Gyan and Henderson have all left since July 2010. 5 big players all gone and only Henderson was without controversy. The other 4 departures were clouded with mystery, intigue and feelings of something just not being right with the deals. On top of that, some big players such as Mensah, Muntari and Zenden have come and gone in an air of discontent. Is Bruce the problem? I dont know. Is it feasible that he is? You would have to conclude he may be. Can he handle these sorts of players in the modern game? The evidence so far would suggest not.
Agree with your points, however Gyan has been unsettled for ages so Bruce should have looked to move him on earlier in the summer and give himself adequate time to get a replacement
I agree now with hindsight that we should be moving anyone on who is unhappy as soon as possible. Sad state of affairs but we keep getting burnt. I was, along with many others though, of the opinion we should tell Gyan to get his head down and graft then we review next summer. But hindsight is a wonderful thing.
If Bruce claims he had no idea Gyan was leaving then that tells you everything you need to know about his management, he clearly doesn't have a grip. I think he knew exactly what was happening and was part of the orchestration of moving gyan out. Ready made excuse for Bruce if things aren't going well. Bruce then said 'if I'm brutally honest he hasn't been happy for weeks, months even" Well then Steve, you. are in charge of the playing staff, YOU should have done something about it, you had all summer. We tried to flog him to Marseille on.deadline day, that says it all. Luckily we have a board that don't interfere with the playing side of things, unfortunately I think.we have a manager who isn't in control of it. Mark my words it'll be Sessegnon next if this continues. Bruce should have had a look at the Spurs/modric situation and took note.
I'm sorry Cest, but if you read the SAFC.com account, Al-Ain tried to buy Gyan early last week and Sunderland wouldn't sell him. Then Al-Ain came back on Friday night with a loan proposal. Negotiations took place - and I quote - "overnight", i.e. presumably when Bruce and Gyan were in bed in preparation for next day's game! It sounds odd, I know, but it would explain Bruce's frustration on Saturday. And Gyan is on ssn right now saying "I had no choice once the club agreed the deal" It sounds very much as though Bruce and Gyan were both told about it on Saturday morning. The negotiation team have clearly shafted Bruce. And the surprising thing about that is that our transfer negotiations are usually led by ... Niall. If Bruce has lost the support of Quinn, he's a dead man walking. I think it's a matter of time now - and not much time. This club is already out of his hands.
Jones and Cana can easily be explained. Jones was sold to buy Gyan (most on here welcomed that decision) Cana left because Bruce was dropping him in favour of Melyer and could not guarentee him first team football. (the right decision as Meyler was playing much better than Cana). The other 2 left for money. No mysteries there. To be fair to Bruce he is not afraid to drop or sub people who don't perform and he is also not scared of giving the youngsters a chance (Hendo, Colback, Meyler). We have all said it, if they don't want to play for SAFC fcuk em. The thing about Gyan is he was spinning Bruce along by saying he wanted to stay, he should have just said he wanted to go at any cost, but I would bet my house on the fact Gyan was stringing us along until he could get the best deal. My bet is we got some offers but non of the clubs would pay Gyan the £200k a week he wanted. Our big problem now is selling him, if he wants 200k a week not many clubs are going to be willing to pay that.
Good post Vegas, just to follow up/ answer Cest's post re Mensah et al. to be fair Mensah wasn't fit would have loved the lad to stay if he had been fit, Muntari just didn't look interested, and I would have loved for Bolo to stay but it was his choice to leave as he wasn't guaranteed games.
Pakersafc read the ****ing statement Bruce was shafted by Gyan good and proper you might not like Bruce and want him out but you can't blame him for every thing.
The Sunderland story just gets more bizarre by the day, just cant get my head round whats happening at our club.
