i think virtually every club is selling before they can buy (couple of exceptions but not many even in the PL) and we are no different. I like Ekwah and would be a little sad to see him go but if his price could be used to strengthen some key gaps in the squad then so be it. still a bit of time to go but I have to say I’m not feeling confident that they are going to get the necessary players in, hope they do as I feel we are close to having a decent side.
Agree mate. The worry is a sale of someone like Clarke would kill us, especially as got no faith in them replacing him in the time left.
It seems as though the striker situation is the same as the coach situation we had in the spring. On that occasion we wanted Still and hung on and hung on until it finally became clear he was going to Lens. We've repeated this strategy again it seems with Mendy,where we're hanging on and hanging on until it becomes clear that Caen under Mbappe family is where he's going to stay. In both cases,we're left having to approach alternatives late in the day. The difference is that in the striker case,there's a deadline. I think it's admirable that we identify our targets and try to move heaven and earth to get them....but, there's a point at which it becomes foolhardy to remain stubborn and refuse to accept the inevitable, in consequence risking jeopardising our progress.
I've wasted my morning going through tho pages, pointless arguments n name calling I've added 1 to the ignore list now as happening multiple times with 1 poster being distruptive Big 2 weeks ahead, we all know what we need to do now time for speakman n co to get it done
The thing that’s worried me is that Speakman has stated previously that we have a list of players / head coaches which we can refer to when the need arises but each time we’ve needed it, he appears to have misplaced it! If Mendy was the first choice and it’s looking dead in the water we should have moved into the next on the list before the season got underway. If Speakman and co are confident of getting a proper CF in before the deadline and without being held to ransom over fees then fair play to the club and I can take the lack of a CF for a couple of games to get the right deal done in the end. I hear they’ve learned from last season and I really hope that is the case but it’s getting to be squeaky bum time. I like RLB and despite the wait to get it done, he appears to be like a decent appointment. Let’s hope I think the same about our new star CF when he eventually walks through the door.
You can easily flip all that round Bob. Why sell Clarke for less than he's worth and is actually a senior player who's already proven. Other players, like Neil, Hume, etc, have become, or are becoming, senior players and will be better than last season imo, Cirkin, and others, were really missed and will really improve the team. Why buy a Mickey Mouse CF or be bullied by agents as we've been so often in the past. As for Speakman, so he thinks he's right all the time ... ... everyone does, including you. I'm positive about the club because they're looking at the long term unlike previous owners. Selling Clarke and punting that money might get us up but, then again, it might not. It might upset the dressing room at a time when good players, like Ballard, want to be here. Speakman, and the coaches, don't seem to put these players off nor those like Browne who want to come here. Hopefully a CF wil want to come, as well, and not just the kind of mercenaries we've had in the past. The last thing we need is to bring one in, on a 3/4 year contract who eventually leaves for nothing having made himself and his agent wealthy. There's a long list of players who fit that description and I'd rather we didn't add to it.
I’ve had him on ignore from almost as soon as I joined the board. I do struggle with the ignore function on here though as it shows the replies but without any indication that they’re replies to an ignored poster so posts often make no sense as there’s no context.
I am not there yet. Hopefully he comes back into today and sorts his head out. Looked like he had too many Guinness and wanted some agro.
They need to make a decision soon. Contract is running down and this worth, you talk about will dwindle quickly.
Fans are frustrated everywhere but two weeks to go . Let's be positive until it's over. Doing the rounds this morning.. Regis Le Bris on Sunderland's idea amid transfer search | The Northern Echo Barnesy’s Blog: “I admire Régis Le Bris for his stoicism, but I do wonder what he really thinks” - Roker Report (sbnation.com) Here's the list... Rating the 49 incoming transfer deals sanctioned by Kristjaan Speakman at Sunderland - gallery (sunderlandecho.com)
It's all about decisions isn't it, Clarke might not really want to go. We were told, by many who appeared absolutely sure, that Rigg would be away by now. Yet, despite Speakman, Dodds and Proctor he appears fanatically committed to Sunderland. While I'm on, I'll ask you, although it's actually to everyone who says Poveda has a terrible injury and fitness record ... ... is that true, I just remember him having a fracture after a bad tackle and very little else.
He’s started less than 30 games and he’s 24 so must be a reason for that, judging from what people are saying it’s not down to not having the ability so can only really be injuries or fitness surely
I think this is the problem, people look at the stats and make assumptions. Surely he can't have been unfit for the last six years.
I haven’t read the piece yet so I may be doing him a disservice but Nick Barnes can be an awful stirrer mind.
Exactly, what's the point of rating all these players now. For every Doyle, Amad, Broadhead there'll be a Burstow, Alves or Jones ... ... loans are unpredictable which is why I'd rather we persevered with our own players and developed them.
