Ok, here's a mildly provocative poll for you, simply driven by my own belief that losing Dale Stephens would be a mild inconvenience but losing Chris Solly would be a major disaster. In keeping with the title, the poll is only going to be up for a couple of days.
If either of them left, would be distraught if Solly left but still pretty gutted if Dale went, however if we get a decent fee for Stephens (and seeing we've supposdily turned down 1.5million amount I would have accepted) I'd be more accepting. My Solly value though is much higher then I think we could realistically say
I would be distraught if Solly left, mostly because he's a home-grown player come good, and because I feel it would be better for his career if he stayed with us and had a full season at this level. Plus, from the little I've seen of Wilson (so perhaps it's unfair to judge) I'm not too confident in him. Stephens doesn't hold the same emotional attachment for me, talented player though he undoubtedly is. Plus, even if we don't sign a replacement for him, I wouldn't be too upset to see Pritchard move into the centre, with Waggy or Green on the right. Of course I don't want him to go, but if the fee is right then so be it.
This is a rigged poll. There is no option for "I would not be gutted, etc, etc" if they both left. First Stephens, as that is easier. As I twice posted, I had a hunch he wouldn't be sticking around long with us and would be heading north. If we got over one million for him I wouldn't be gutted. If we got over 1.5 million I would say it was a good piece of business. PROVIDED CP got two-thirds of the money to spend. Now for Solly. He and Kermorgant are the favourite players of 95% of us. He is "all our own work" in the mould of Rufus and Lee. We would miss him emotionally and the team would miss one its fundamental building blocks, which Stephens definitely is not, despite his natural talent and great promise. However, when Wilson arrived I posted that he hadn't come just to sit in the reserves as Solly's deputy and rarely getting a game because of Solly's consistency. The writing was already on the wall. The thing is, this is these guys' profession and they don't get too long at it. If you get the reputation of blocking a young player's chance to move to a higher level and earn a lot more money, you will find it much harder to recruit the best junior talent. Slater and Co. couldn't have made it plainer when they arrived that we will be a selling club. No great shock there as perhaps all but the top half dozen are selling clubs. Many consider Arsenal a selling club these days. The knack is to get the best possible price in relation to the player's salary scale. If we wouldn't sell Solly for less than 5 million, then we ought to be paying him a lot more at present. If several clubs are interested in him now, that is the best chance to get the top price for him. If we get 3 million for him, that is as good as we can expect. I suspect he will go for somewhat less. Youga could have developed into an equally valuable fullback. Instead the poor guy got an injury and was never the same again. Lucky to get a pay-per-game contract. That could be Solly and he and the club know it. That is why you cannot blame them for cashing in. But again, to retain the fans' faith, the bulk of the money (say two-thirds) must be made available to CP to strengthen. (We could sign Luke Young for a start). If Solly does go, I hope the fans will give Wilson every support. He is a good player and seems a solid citizen. It is not his fault if Solly is sold and it will do Charlton no good if he is unreasonably criticised every time he falls below the high standard Solly has set.
I would be gutted if either left. As much as I love Solly, Stephens is my favourite player. We were screaming out for a ball playing midfielder before we signed DS, and in his first few months you could really see what we had missed since Andy Reid. His passing was pin point accurate, he moved around the midfield easily and would find pockets of space to receive passes, and also looked to make runs from the deep looking to pick up any loose balls on the edge of the area. That DS was too good for League One. Unfortunately we then know he suffered an injury and spent a few months out, and when he returned CP saw him more as a deep lying playmaker. I think he is coming in to that position more with every game he plays, but if we gave him more of a free reign in the middle then we would see the best of him once again. He should be encouraged to use his attacking instinct, rather than to curb it. Basically- my point is that we aren't getting the best out of him, and I believe the best of him will result in him being a Premiership footballer.
We'll always be a club that has to sell players either due to money issues or simply as we can't stand in the way of a player who gets an offer from a Premier club (within reason of course) I am getting a bit concerned that if we do sell any of Hamer, Stephens or Solly then we will need to bring in a replacement very quickly within less than 36 hours .. possibly longer if it's a loan deal I believe. We can't let ourselves be stung again where no adequate replacement is bought - when Andy Reid left we were left with a huge (not intended as a dig at his bulging waistline) gap in our midfield. Hope that Powell is doing everything in his normal hushed tones behind the scenes.
I'd be more worried if people were sniffing around wiggins! Would probably damage faith once agin in valley fold though if solly goes
Hello, old mucker. I hope all is good for you. The Duck is doing very well. He still sits a few rows back from me in the West Upper. Our kids get on really well and they meet up before the football for a play in the park etc. He was touring North Africa throughout the summer, but returned in time for the Brum trip. We had a bit of a dispute recently regarding the influence of Lollardy during the Peasants' Revolt - but we quickly resolved our differences when I forced a copy of the De Heretico Comburendo into his hands. Checkmate, I am sure you will agree. I shall pass on your salutations.
I am surprised Wiggins has not been the first name to be mentioned as vulnerable. Good left-backs are always in short supply. He might not be experienced and proven enough yet for a top six club, but Sunderland and West Brom (among others) are looking for left-backs and they could probably afford to offer a price (maybe including players in exchange) which Charlton wouldn't refuse. But who knows what is going on behind the scenes? Many transfers that go through are never mentioned in the press beforehand. I have a sneaking suspicion that Solly might turn out to be "faery gold" (no reflection on his manhood). Like the gold that turns to dead leaves in the wrong hands, he might be a player who is only at his best at Charlton and will be a relative failure elsewhere. If you analyse his assets, they are nothing special. But somehow he always plays better than the sum of his abilities. That may not happen elsewhere. We might sell him for 3 million and buy him back for half the price a year later. Not sure if there is any sense in that, but it is a good story to spread around and deter possible buyers!
Completely agree Eddie (how many times do I say that on here....sycophant that I am) about Solly. As for Wiggns, I actualy think pound for pound he's our most accomplished player and I was utterly convinced that there was a Baines to ManU, Wiggins to Everton chain waiting to happen (so did my Everton supporting mate!). I just have a funny feeling that it is all going to go bonkers ten minutes from the end of the window tomorrow and we may end up with some surprise departures. Hope I'm wrong but I do worry about a mass exodus.
I remember 5 games in last year and wiggins was our weak link apparently! Good news he appears to have gone unnoticed. Solly is loved by the fans and that is worth something, francis was by no means a bad right back but as the fans disliked him he was on edge made mistakes and the cycle goes on
God forbid solly is sold- but whoever his replacement is doesn't stand a chance. It will be Francis all over again.
