Good morning. Can anyone shed any light on what Mike Ashley is trying to achieve with the on going Mitrovic soap opera? First of all we Fulham supporters would be the first to acknowledge the part that Mitrovic played in our return to the premiership,and without him we would not have made the playoffs. Due to his contribution his transfer value was put at between the 15 and 20 mil parameters- figures that Fulham could work with -yet,here's the thing - after an average world cup some quarters have suggested that his market value has risen by 10 to 15 mil !!. how is this possible? A 30 mil asking price would be a deal breaker for Fulham,and I suspect for any other interested clubs. The other thing to consider are the anti Newcastle comments that have been attributed to Mitrovic. Now, it may well be that they are unfounded,but that is not the point,these comments have reached the public domain and will have been noted in various quarters,not the least by Newcastle and Rafa. The other day I suggested to one of your fellow posters that Ashley was playing a game of 'chicken' with Mitrovic,and if that were the case he [ Ashley] would lose,and although your poster disagreed,historically the advantage has always been with the player and his agent. Even big clubs are powerless if a player is intent on a move. Ronaldo and Bale to Real Madrid. Van Perse to Man. U and Sterling to Man City are some examples,and going back some 50 years Newcastle had a player called George Eastham. Now Eastham was linked with a move to Arsenal. Eastham puts in a transfer request,request denied,Eastham goes on strike,Newcastle cave in and Eastham signs for Arsenal - but here's the kicker - Eastham sues Newcastle in the high court for unpaid wages whilst on strike,and wins his case! Google George Eastham-Wikipedia for the full story. It seems to this outsider looking in that Ashley has a policy that any signings have to be self funding,but how will this be possible if Ashley places unrealistic values on players? I have a great deal of sympathy with Rafa who appears to be operating with one hand tied behind his back. Surely it is time to sell Mitrovic so that the proceeds are handed to Rafa to replenish his stock.
I doubt there's many lists of players that include Ronaldo and Bale with Mitro alongside. Mitro showed us in the World Cup the player he is. He's worth £20m in today's market. It could be though that he goes to the highest bidder /wage payer. I'd be very surprised if he's not sold in the summer.
We got £30mil for Sissoko and £35m for Carrol - you're lucky he's not asking for £40m. Truth be told he's bumping the price so you feel like you get a good deal when he leaves for £25-28m.
Mike 'Big Dog' Ashley, is the the high stakes gambler who likes to prove that he can piss higher than anyone else, vomit in fires longer than anyone else and thoroughly piss off, mess about and alienate a whole football clubs worth of supporters on a daily basis. In his head we now have Lionel Messi on our books and he will want to screw every last cent out of the deal................... even though that will mean that it goes right to the last few minutes of the transfer window and we are then unable to bring in a replacement and the squad will be weaker and our manager will be pissed off and the whole club will be left at a disadvantage and relegation will follow ................. in 'Mikes World' its the only path to follow because in 'Mikes World' common sense and professionalism are trumped by greed and stupidity every time.
I think you need to address this quesion to Ashley’s love child @Free-Dor or his minion @Windy_Mag as they are the only posters who have an inside track on how the Great Man’s mind work.
He is starting it high. I'd imagine they will settle somewhere round the low end though of 18-22m if I was a betting man. Everyone would walk away happy from that.
It will all go through once all parties can get together and after 1 July. You will pay more than you want and we will get less than we want. The funds are needed to strengthen our squad
An Aleksandar Mitrovic transfer to Fulham has now moved 'closer' according to the reliable George Caulkin from The Times. An Aleksandar Mitrovic move to Fulham is now imminent. The always reliable George Caulkin who covers Newcastle United for The Times, says that the West London club have moved ‘closer’ to completing the transfer. Serbia’s early World Cup exit at the first possible opportunity, means that the way is now clear for the deal to happen. After scoring 12 goals in only 18 starts (plus two appearances off the bench), Aleksandar Mitrovic became a massive favourite with the Fulham fans and the player himself has said he would like to return there on a permanent deal. With money from a Mitro sale said to be key towards Rafa Benitez ending up with anything like a realistic chance of signing the level of striker he wants, a sale of the Serbian forward can’t come quick enough. The only obstacle, as usual, could be Mike Ashley. The last line seems to be the most relevant. Fulham want the deal to go through,but we have a CEO who has a figure that he want's to pay and that becomes his default position.Assuming that Newcastle paid 15 mil to Anderlecth that figure should be the starting point in any negotiation. My guess is that our CEO will offer 18mil as a starting point.His default figure is probably 20 mil. If Ashley sees his value at nearer 30 mil,then the deal will not happen. It really depends on who blinks first. Does Ashley really put his ego ahead of what is best for the club?
they'll settle on £25m i reckon. We paid £15m for him, he's proven to be worth more than that in his spell at Fulham. Whether you agree or not, in todays market a proven goalscorer in his age bracket, £25m is a steal in my opinion. Hopefully Ashley will insist on a reasonable sell on clause in the event that he carries on banging the goals in and some big boys come a sniffing
