Its something we as a club haven't done very well for a long time. In terms of getting the best deal possible for players leaving
He's from Sunderland and has grown up at the academy. Yeah Brighton are a well run club , another manufactured big club cos of the sky money, but where is the romance of playing for a club like them. I just don't get it.
Like I said earlier i do feel we are the best place for his development but Brighton would also be a good move for him If he wants to leave then we maximise our return while hopefully still being in a strong position short and long term As @Prehab26 said we have done so much for him, and if he thinks the best move for his development is to go to Brighton then so be it I obviously don't want him to go and would prefer he stays
Needs to beef up, too easy to push off the ball, which can go one of two ways everything else is top notch. Both feet and can go both ways at pace is huge
Romance is gone from football Brighton are a well run club and an exciting club - Don't blame players for wanting to be part of it If he wants to go then he will be doing what he feels is best for him
Hypothetically, if we got a £12m package for Watson, we could use it to sign Geubbels and make Isidor permanent to free up a loan spot. Get Marcus Edwards on loan (perm if promoted) and Ryan Sessegnon (loan). We'd then have an immediate upgrade on Watson, a permanent addition up front, an upgrade on Roberts, cover at left back and securing Isidor permanently with the big spend being on wages (most of which we're not committed to unless we get promoted). I'll get back to playing Football Manager now!
Would you rather work for a local firm for £20k a year because they’re close to where you grew up or a multi billion pound organisation who offer you £80k a year and a career pathway to progression faster than the local company can? I really want Watson to stay he looks very promising but as I said with Dan Neil, we owe them nothing and they owe us nothing. It’s a business at the end of the day and both club/player will do what they think is right for them. Sometimes it pays off for club, sometimes it pays off for player.
A good season for Brighton and they will 100% sell him to one of the top clubs. They are a stepping stone but they know that and buy into it. It's what makes them so attractive to players.
It's not always about the money. It's being settled and happy with your mates..later on for the "If your good enough". Just ask Jack Clarke
If all that happened, or similar, I'd pretend Watson's injury was permanent ... ... then I'd forget all about him and crack on with who we have, not who we don't. Losing Stewart and Clarke has shown we're building a club that can handle departures instead of being rocked by them. And, as I keep saying, the only way to attract the likes of Ballard, Cirkin, Clarke, etc, is to let them go when the time is right.
If he goes to Brighton, he likely goes on loan to another championship club. If Clarke isn’t good enough to make the step up for Ipswich, there’s no way Watson makes the step up to start for Brighton yet. He’s not ready. Money talks though, and he might be annoyed that Mundle is in his way.
Obviously don't want to see him go but if he has to go anywhere then Brighton is a great opportunity for the lad. Well run with an excellent young manager.
Another downside to selling Watson now is we'll be in a similar position with the LW as we are with the RW. Will need competition for Mundle so that will add another signing needed to the list (unless AA is kept but RLB doesnt fancy him). Id be avoiding bringing in too many this month. Le Fee and two or three others would be about right I think.
Brighton would likely keep him in the U21s and have him training with the 1st team, they seem to like to embed players in before thinking of loan moves for them
