Transfer rumours

Point proven

 

Bear in mind we’re a drop in their investment ocean. High ish risk, but they’ll be into everything; investing in massive commercial property where the sums are hundreds of millions. Football gets an unfair image for the figures but if you’re an investment bank it’s not really on the radar. Take oil and gas; that’s created two individuals from Russia and the UAE so wealthy they can buy a club each and fritter over a billion on it and not worry a jot they aren’t making a profit.

 

Shame he tried to leave last summer in my eyes he's worth alot more than that (and was our best player) and was a future Town captain, he was the one town youngster from the past few years who I felt really established himself as a first team player. Shame think he could have fitted well into this team but seems like once he said he wants to leave there's no turning back.

Fair play we have managed to get most of the players who Cook hasn't wanted out of the club and alot with a fee. How the transfer dealings have been dealt with have been night and day in comparison to the past 15 or so years!! And we haven't even got a recruitment team yet (I'm guessing a good scout network).

 

I'm not sure I'd invest in a football club to make money....does anyone make money out of buying a football club?

 

We've done excellently in the market and I put it all down to Ashton.

Somebody was smart enough to activate year options on want away players just so we'd get a fee for them. Under Evans they would have been released with no financial gain to us.

Ashton is a shrewd operator and plays the market well, I'd say we may actually be in profit given the amount of wages saved and fees brought in measured against our outlay so far.

 

Completely the ins and outs that have taken place the past month, I'm not sure we were that successfully over MEs entire tenure let alone a month.

It shows you the club had no hope, despite having some previously successful and experienced managers at the club we just kept getting worse and worse.

I don't necessarily think that our on field budget will have changed that much due to the number of players who were probably decent money have left and some of the transfer fees recieved, I just shows you these days you need to have a structure behind the manager to support him. Our managers in the past have been managing with 2 hands behind their backs.

I would add fair play to Cook aswell he seems to have been clear in who he's wanted without having a scouting network and he's done this at alot of his previous clubs

 

Nah sorry ptc, Downes is a liability, a red card waiting to happen every game and he seems to have also lost his way. I would say we are lucky to receive a million for him on his current form and in the current climate!

 

Totally agree. Maybe there was a case for retaining half a dozen first team players so we didn’t have the wholesale changes this summer but no player was worthy of the shirt. If they go on to do better things at other clubs, which I’m sure some of them will, it doesn’t mean they would have got any better at Town.

 

I think the criticism of Downes is harsh. He was arguably one of our better performers over the last few years and looks like he has the ability to become a success. You don't get signed by Swansea these days without being a talented player. I don't think he was used that well under Lambert (when he was available) and I initially don't blame him for wanting to get away from Portman Road before the takeover. A shame he wasn't willing to buy into the 'project' that the new owners have set up.

While it's very early days, I don't think Downes is quite at the standard that Raheem Harper and Lee Evans (to a lesser extent) are at. I do think we'd struggle to recruit a box-to-box midfielder, which he could've been in this new-look team. £1.5 million is a steal for Swansea, although I personally believe we did well to get that much considering Downes' earlier transfer request and the very public demotion he's had from the first team.

 

Christ, if you rate Downes, then we really have sunk to the depths!! He would have got nowhere near the first team pre year 2000. It's only the fact that over the last ten years we have been piss poor, that he has stood out to you. A bang average, hot headed player in a **** team!!
Have to say also nuggets, i personally rated Evans more than Harper.

 

He was not as poor as Dozzell but has given us very little and there are dozens of players in League One and League Two at his level. Sticks to safe short passing. Doesn’t defend well. Doesn’t contribute goals. Doesn’t contribute assists. I think they’ve taken a punt on him and we’ve mugged them off.

 

Don't get me wrong, Downes didn't blow me away. I agree that goal-scoring and creativity were not his strengths at all. I don't think those abilities were really key components in his game. I think he's a very tidy, composed presence in midfield, a decent passer of the ball, and - when he wasn't getting angry - a good tackler. Championship standard, bit of a push for anything more than that, but with better coaching - who knows? Haha! Jesus Christ, Spanish, I don't think we've had many players over the last decade fit the tie the laces of those late 90s, Burley Premier League sides. Either way, Swansea recruit well and have seen something in him, I won't be surprised if he becomes a good player for them.

Fair enough on preferring Evans over Harper. There wasn't much between the two against Morecambe - as they both had good games. I think Harper was better, purely because he was quicker and more accurate getting the ball forwards, dropped back to help the defence out (always giving them options), and he wasn't as wasteful on the ball (quite a few of Evans' passes went out of touch, not many admittedly).

 

I think the answer has to be; 'yes' because otherwise why has an investment department of the Arizona state pension fund been even the green light & bought us? they're not here to piss their hard earned money up the wall. BUT, it's a bloody hard way to earn money, however substantial the gains. From a commercial POV, they haven't spanked that much (40m) plus some paint and posters so if they get us up we'll be worth considerably more and they can always cash out and, worst case scenario, break even but more likely bank a few million. I just hope they are in it for the longer haul because they've all been great so far and there a lot of ****ty football club owners out there...

 

Accrington agree fee with town for cb Cameron Burgess, what will Yorkie find wrong with this....other than the fact it's not Jon Stones or Harry McGuire

 

How do you get this info so fast Spanish?!?

is he any good?

 

Lots of grape Vines in Spain mate!

 

.. and it helps that the EADT published the story before the game yesterday

With Nsiala out this is a critical signing.

 

Few sour grape vines about too it seems….

 

Burgess confirmed. Don’t know much about him but we needed a centre back so welcome

 

Apparently he is very commanding in the air, something i think we needed, sounds pretty decent, time will tell.