These thick as shit players ?

[blue'n'white]

I'm wondering - despite his claims that he had wanted to leave 5 weeks ago - if he was more pushed into the transfer request by his agent who could see the pound signs vanishing if he didn't arrange the transfer. I feel no sympathy either for the player or the agent but unfortunately with all the riches available in the Premier League it is inevitable that the more mercenary will see sitting on a bench and playing the odd few minutes here and there to be more financially beneficial than playing week in week out at a Championship club. I don't, of course, know what he gets paid at the Albion or what he would have got paid playing for Burnley but I'm willing to bet that it is far more than any of us get paid (or have ever got paid). Plus, of course, that it's going to be a lot cheaper to find a house that you think fits your new found status in Burnley than it is in the South of England. Hopefully he'll knuckle down now and help us get to the "promised land" and he won't then want to jump ship.

 

[smeg]

No one can be thicker than Harry Kane, he actually asked if England were out off the Euros if they got beaten by Iceland as he came out for the second half.

 

[Easy 10]

I think everyone will be pissed off if he sulks, and rightly so, but let's give him a fair chance first.

I think we will, I intend to.

But his absence has already cost us points IMO. We're not the same team without that Stephens / Kayal axis.

 

[Eric Youngs Contact Lense]

My whole beef with this affair is just the timing of actions.. I think DS has been one of the most influential players for us in many a year..very much in my mind like Brian Horton. I love him in an Albion shirt. What I don't like is his sudden need to take to twitter, in the name of honesty about an affair he has, and rightly so in my opinion, kept quiet about all this time. He told the Club he wanted to leave 5 weeks ago, he would also have had an inkling that the Club were not keen to sell him and that therefore it may not happen. Maybe the Club told him privately they would sell him IF certain other things came about such as certain valuation, certain replacement. Maybe the Club have lied to his face.. My point is that he had been doing the decent thing.. If leaving was his priority, put the transfer request in weeks ago.. Why is the moment the window has shut, he hasn't got what he wanted to the time to take to twitter, to give us "honesty" about his actions? I have no problem with players wanting to leave, aspiring to leave.. ever has it been so with our Club. Sending out bitter tweets to put the matter "straight" smacks of petulance, opportunism, and that s what annoys me.. CH has done his level best publicly to keep him in a good place with the fans..DS had done that as well until this childish outburst. I will shout and support him as much as ever, but don't have to agree with his actions..

 

[B.W.]

I think we will, I intend to.

But his absence has already cost us points IMO. We're not the same team without that Stephens / Kayal axis.

Seconded.

 

[marshy68]

What Kaz did is probably worse than what DS did, especially considering he didn't even have the balls to stand by his attention-seeking, shit-stirring tweet and deleted it in minutes. At least this means he will still get chances to retweet all the 'u iz a baller Kaz u shudve bin playin 2day m8' tweets when we don't win a game.

Obviously has no intention of working hard to win a place. May as well tear up his contract and let him go to Crawley or wherever he was so 'disappointed' not to go to.

Agreed. KLL got away with that tweet. He can thank DS as I am sure it would have got a lot more negative exposure if the DS tweet hadn't existed.

 

[GT49er]

It is normal, market forces set the wage level as they do in every industry.

Exactly. A totally different 'normal' world to the one most of us inhabit. Most industry's 'market forces' don't set the wage level at about £10K a week.

 

[El Presidente]

I think we will, I intend to.

But his absence has already cost us points IMO. We're not the same team without that Stephens / Kayal axis.

Agree with you totally.

Part of the reason that axis has been missing is due to the Mike Dean and Gaston Ramirez love in last May though.

He's an excellent player, and it's in everyone's interests that he does well this season.

As for the Twitter behaviour, I was more hacked off with the '.......' adjustment he made earlier in the window than his comments on Wednesday night.

He's kept his gob shut all summer, when he could have mouthed off about leaving far earlier, so don't have a problem with him saying what he said. Prior to that we heard one side of the story, as Andy Naylor was clearly getting his information from a source from one of the clubs.

He had a chance to play in the Prem a few years ago, as [MENTION=6886]Bozza[/MENTION] has indicated, and that fell through. Derby came in with an offer of £2.5 million for him a year ago, which was rejected. He didn't throw his toys out of the pram then, no reason to suggest he would do so now.

In many ways he will be in a stronger negotiating position in 12 months, as being out of contract, he will be able to command a very decent signing on fee from the buying club.

 

[El Presidente]

Exactly. A totally different 'normal' world to the one most of us inhabit. Most industry's 'market forces' don't set the wage level at about £10K a week.

Indeed, and in League 1 and League 2 the wage levels are far lower.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

My human nature tells me that when you are being paid more in a month than most people earn in a year to play a game, you should get your head down and bloody well get on with it. These footballers live in such a bubble, their poor cossetted minds apparently can't cope with kicking a ball around effectively for their employer if all they're thinking about is their "dream move". That might be all fine and dandy in your book, indulge him all you like, but it macks me RIGHT off.

I didn't realise money was the cure for stress and mental health problems. Strange that a lot of footballers have mental breakdowns.

 

[GT49er]

Indeed, and in League 1 and League 2 the wage levels are far lower.

Agreed, but that isn't relevant to this discussion. Stephens doesn't play in those divisions, and neither does he want to. To quote Dazzer6666's earlier post:

There is an obvious sense of entitlement running through the veins of some fans at the moment, but that's nothing compared to some of the players.....

That pretty much sums it up - there's been some over-vitriolic attacks on the player on here, but equally some over critical rebuttals of those views. The players are living in a different world than most of the fans - at times both they - and the fans - need to remember this.

 

[Easy 10]

I didn't realise money was the cure for stress and mental health problems. Strange that a lot of footballers have mental breakdowns.

Stressing about wanting to move to Burnley this month ? Poor lamb.

He's a free agent next summer, its not like he won't be able to fix himself up with a new club (along with a WALLETBUSTING signing on fee). If he gets his head down now and continues to put the kind of performances in that have attracted the likes of Burnley in the first place, he'll be laughing all the way to the bank. Be it January or June, he'll get his move once way or the other. Whats another few months at his current employers ?

I'd love to have to deal with that amount of stress.

 

[drew]

I think the money he gets paid at this level he would be able to kick a ball about for 90 minutes a week without letting future employment upset his concentration!

Lucky our troops/nurses don't get so easily distracted(He kicks a football about FFS! Not the hardest job)

I take it you speak from experience of playing a sport at the top level then.

As for your poor reference to nurses and troops, it's inaccurate and below the belt. They have different stresses to deal with, some cope, some don't.


You stick to your non league football.

 

[Moshe Gariani]

The wisest words come from Sir Bob of Z

View attachment 77610

I like this. Would be happy with a loud chant of "There's only one Dale Stephens" (and a wave/thumbs up to the crowd from Dale) at the Brentford game.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

He's a free agent next summer, its not like he won't be able to fix himself up with a new club (along with a WALLETBUSTING signing on fee). If he gets his head down now and continues to put the kind of performances in that have attracted the likes of Burnley in the first place, he'll be laughing all the way to the bank. Be it January or June, he'll get his move once way or the other. Whats another few months at his current employers ?
.

It's like being gutted because you've just lost out on this week's lottery jackpot, when you've got the guarantee winning numbers for the lottery a few months down the line.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

Stressing about wanting to move to Burnley this month ? Poor lamb.

He's a free agent next summer, its not like he won't be able to fix himself up with a new club (along with a WALLETBUSTING signing on fee). If he gets his head down now and continues to put the kind of performances in that have attracted the likes of Burnley in the first place, he'll be laughing all the way to the bank. Be it January or June, he'll get his move once way or the other. Whats another few months at his current employers ?

I'd love to have to deal with that amount of stress.

I doubt he cares about Burnley. I also doubt you've had to think about a decision which could cost a million or so for your family.
I believe Hughton wouldn't lie when he said Dale didn't refuse to play. I think he was left out for his own good. Different people handle situations differently

All this fuss over a tweet he made on the spur of the moment due to frustration. Talk about making a mountain out of a molehill.

 

[Thunder Bolt]

It's like being gutted because you've just lost out on this week's lottery jackpot, when you've got the guarantee winning numbers for the lottery a few months down the line.

Dale has already had one major injury. There are no guarantees in life except death and taxes.

 

[Paul Reids Sock]

Stephens put CH in a position where he had to make a decision on it. Had he said "I'm fine boss, I'll give it 100% until this is sorted one way or the other", then as a vital 1st choice midfielder I'm sure he would have played. But as we all saw from his tweet, all he seems prepared to do is to "see out my contract". Nothing whatsoever about giving his all.

I think its pretty clear CH felt he had no choice but to leave him out because of his attitude while this was going on.

Kayal also said 'honour my contract' in the summer. We didn't give him the grief even though to me it screamed get up or I'm off

 

[GT49er]

I also doubt you've had to think about a decision which could cost a million or so for your family.

True, but not really relevant - many, maybe most, of us will never see a million quid in our lifetime. That's a whole different ball game to having to think about a decision which could cost ANOTHER million or so for your family. After all, £10K a week is a million every couple of years, which in itself is a pretty life-changing amount!

 

[drew]

True, but not really relevant - many, maybe most, of us will never see a million quid in our lifetime. That's a whole different ball game to having to think about a decision which could cost ANOTHER million or so for your family. After all, £10K a week is a million every couple of years, which in itself is a pretty life-changing amount!

Are you suggesting you wouldn't consider that kicking a ball in one part of the country for £1m is much different from kicking a ball in another part of the country for £2m?