What are everyone's thoughts about our budget this summer? I'm sure this question has already been asked but I'm just curious to hear how people feel the budget will/has been affected by the loss of St Markus. I guess I'm being greedy here but I have my fingers tightly crossed that the Liebherr family will fund Markus' project as enthusiastically and heavily as we know he would have done. I'm all for SFC remaining sustainable, and I think we're already adopting a framework to adopt this attitude. I mean we must surely be one of the best placed clubs in terms of the upcoming restrictions on foreign born players. However, I just feel that a bit of serious investment this summer could give us that springboard to give it all we've got and aim for promotion this coming season. I don't buy the concerns that we could go up to soon. We were in the top flight for 27 years! Yes our squad isn't a prem squad but that is what the summer prior to playing in the prem and all the riches that promotion to the prem brings is for. So what do people think in the long run? That the budget available to NA will be the same regardless of Markus' passing or do you foresee it having a negative effect? COYR
I imagine it will be the same as when ML was alive. It is HIS money afterall that has been left to his daughter, would be very disrespectful if she didn't invest it in what Markus wanted.
Nicola has clarified that the family are fully behind us and our aim of getting back to the Premier League. On a similar note - does anybody near the directors box on Saturday know if any of the Liebherrs were there?
There was a lot of investment in players early on to get us up and running, more recently it seems Cortese has been focussing on background expenditure such as the training ground and academy facilities. I don't expect many, if any, big money signings this close season, The real need for that is when we reach the Premier league in a year or two. The five year plan presumably will include financing the playing staff at that higher level, and we have been informed by our esteemed chairman that the five year plan has not been affected by the passing of Marcus.
Think a suitable (?) sum was set in place to fund us for the near future. Whether fans think it's enough is another matter. NC said that the price of players can go up if Saints become involved, especially after all that speculation about AOC. We are not going to do a Chelsea. I think the development of the club as a whole is what interests Nicola with money spent on players as the manager ses fit, but it all has to be done within a budget. What we have lost (apart from his support) is the chance that Markus would get so excited and throw some more in the pot because he sensed we were near promotion to the Premiership. Markus's will is still in probate, but knowing Swiss secrecy we may never be the wiser.
I sit just in front of the directors box and there was a chap in a Swiss type hat who I saw quite frequently last season sat near NC and I assume he is a friend or a member of the family. I haven't seen him most of the season but he was there on Saturday.
The funds to cover operating costs and transfers for the whole 5 year plan were put aside on day 1 by Liebherr/Cortese. So I was led to believe anyway.
CBK......... that was my understanding too. They actually announced that "the funding was in place" did they not. Also didn't one of the reporters actually ask after it was announced that we had re applied for world cup status last year, did they not say that (NC on behalf of ML) they would possibly extend or even a new ground was not out of the question. I believe that is how it was put. If some funds were genuinly put aside as I believe. The family would be silly to change that as the tax implications would be enormous.
Some very good reasons for not splashing too heavily on players: 1) Clubs and agents will know we're rich. Its pretty common knowledge already, but lots of big signings will only reinforce it and we could end up being held to ransom when we want to sign players. Lots of Premier League clubs get caught up with spiralling costs. If that Alan Sugar program told me anything, its that West Ham are ****ed when they go down. 2) Teams that overhaul their squads never achieve their aims in their first season. We didn't last season. Good and sustainable development takes stability - evolution not revolution. 3) Presuming he stays for next season, AOC will move on to bigger things at the end of it if he keeps on improving whether we go straight up or not. 4) we have a great team spirit. If we start indescriminately replacing players who haven't done a lot wrong and quite reasonably feel they deserve a crack at the next level, we put that spirit in serious jeopardy.
As already mentioned by several people my understanding was that there was a "fund" put by to finance the 5 year plan. I would suspect that Cortese will be careful to contain spending within his plans so as to not run the pot dry. I suspect the upcoming season to be one of consolidation with prudent expenditure, retaining enough funds not only to mount a push the season after, but also help build a Prem team if we were to get further promotion. I cant see NC gambling too heavily by borrowing against future income streams as that was a major contributor to what got us in a mess last time round, he will want to fund as much as possible from the pot so will try to hold on to as much as possible in order to make the jump to the premier. I have no evidence it just seems to fit with the way NC does things.
In all fairness , we finished 2nd in League one ..So I wouldnt expect too many new players coming to SMS this summer as why would Cortese change a winning side Think some Saints Fans expect too much too soon! Remember Rome wasn't built in a day!
KingslandSFC: "Remember Rome wasn't built in a day! " No, but apparantly it will be destroyed today by a giant earthquake (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13354988)...Does that mean Saints could be destroyed in a day?
Sell Puncheon for ã1m and get an experienced striker in. See how the rest of the current squad do in the championship until January and then (if things are not looking up) invest ready for the season after. That's how I would do it. No rush this season - remember that.
Sell Puncheon for whatever we can get. The guy is a disruptive influence who quite clearly doesn't want to be here.
Big rumours that Rangers want Puncheon, so we could try and squeeze a million quid out of them, their new owner seems prepared to spend.
Interesting one that with hearing some rumours James Beattie wants to move back down here. Swap deal? Beattie over Puncheon every day of the week.
I also recall when Marcus was still alive that it was said we need to be self financing, what that means is anyone’s guess but once I heard that I hoped we would be as its the sensible way to run a football club, but also hoped that Marcus would gift us the odd player now and then, I hope that still stands for the Liebherr family now
Surely he is an old man now Beattie .......would you really want him rather than a real goal scoring striker maybe ten years younger.
