As I suggested a few days back, maybe this was discussed and both parties agreed to give it another go.
You seem determined to find fault with the board.
Not at all. I'm generally supportive of the board.
But the way the views on here constantly morph in accordance to facts is silly. A few days ago, Koeman was a greedy bastard who only cared about the money.
But honestly, the personal wages Koeman is getting aren't really that big a deal for a PL club. It seems as though Koeman might be making as little as 5m a year at Everton. We were supposedly already paying him 3.5m. So the difference is 30k a week, which is not an unreasonable raise.
Except that now it's NOT the wage. It's that Koeman didn't fit our philosophy of promoting from within the Academy. But if we had meticulously drawn up a five year plan, and the Academy was so integral to our long-term success that was included as one of our main 4 or 5 objectives then that **** should be non-negotiable. If you aren't cool with playing the youth, you don't get the job. Not "well, if you aren't cool with it that's fine but we pay you slightly less."
Everyone now is like "Oh, well Koeman overplayed his hand and good for the board for not be held hostage." But I can guarantee you that if, three weeks ago, we had simultaneously announced that 1) We'd signed Koeman to a 5m a year contract, 2) We were looking to spend 100m plus sales during the summer, and 3) We were planning an expansion of St. Mary's sometime in the not-distant future because we anticipated being a CL club... everyone here would be saying exactly what the Everton supporters are now. That this is a shot across the bow, we are announcing our intentions, our "ambition" is great, etc.
If we were willing to hire Koeman despite the fact that he clashed with our core philosophy, that would be stupid. If we wanted Koeman but didn't even deign it necessary to meet when we knew he had been made an offer, that would be stupid. If we had the opportunity to sign Koeman, and didn't because of a mere 1.5m/year, that might be kind of stupid, too.
If we didn't want to promise Koeman a new stadium or a 100m transfer budget.... that might actually be rather wise. But it would mean acknowledging that maybe we aren't on a level with Everton, or maybe that KL could be criticized for being cheap.
I think that Koeman is probably not quite as greedy/evil as is being made out. I think that there is some truth that there were concerns about him. I think that probably some players and staff did not like him much, but probably some players and staff did. I think that contract negotiations can always turn on a dime, and that you have to look at every contingency/demand/clause/offer/counter-offer/competitor,etc. including many things most of us haven't even thought of yet.
Basically, I think these sorts of decisions are highly complex, and there is great risk involved and you have to just do the best you can. The board could be proven wrong. Like way, way, disastrously wrong. They could also end up looking like geniuses. You just never know, or at least the supporters certainly don't.
