Thoughts and perspective

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I'm certain the club personnel were doing their best to sign the right striker - they want to stay up as much as we do, obviously - and it seems clear the funds were there. A principal target, Dwamena - who I know from contacts at Zurich has been in our sights for a while and is hugely rated by fans there - was secured and it is a personal tragedy for a young footballer (our disappointment insignificant in comparison, some perspective is essential here) that he has a condition which our stringent medical assessment deemed to be sufficiently serious to call the transfer off.

From what I have read it seems to be the case that most of our other targets simply turned us down. Clubs agreed terms: players didn't want to play for Brighton. We can't blame the recruitment team for that. Years of global media obsessing with the Premier League to the virtual exclusion of the other 72 clubs has meant that the 'never heard of them factor' must play a big part in the fortunes of promoted clubs in the transfer market, especially in the particularly refined striker market. Promoted clubs who arrive in the PL with a 'brand name' and 'Premier League history' are at a distinct advantage when selling themselves to Mr Celebrity Big Name Striker.

So, you say, what about Huddersfield, in the same position as us? They did brilliantly because it just so happens that Wagner and his advisors had such detailed knowledge of his own and nearby leagues that he could identify and pick players literally no-one else was interested in, completely under the radar. Their recruitment strategy has thus been brilliant, in a league of its own. It is one I am sure we aspire to and I hope are learning from! Well done to them.

Burnley and other clubs who are not 'glamour names?' The PL is blasted everywhere across the world. After one or two seasons their name is familiar to foreign fans and players alike, and a move there seen as a step up in a way that a move to us newbies isn't. I could go on about how our experience in this transfer window is just one more manifestation of the ludicrous imbalance, celebrity obsession and financial insanity which are the principal features of modern corporate football, but I won't.

Fact is there were a whole bunch of players who didn't want to play for us. We have a bloody good squad of ones who do and who are perfectly capable of competing in this league and keeping us up. Let's get behind them. We're good at being underdogs and have a brilliant track record at it in the last 20 years. Let's show the prima donnas who turned us down what we're made of, folks.

Up the Albion!

Any reason, apart from ego, that you didn't just contribute to any of the many existing on-topic threads today?

The clear inference is that your words carry more weight than those of other posters.

They don't.

 

[cjd]

Like Izquidero, Propper, Ryan, several strikers?

I wish you would bother to actually read what I posted.

I said.."after we got promoted"..i.e. in April.

Izquidero, Ryan and Propper were signed long after promotion was achieved and as for your "several strikers"...??

Anyway, carry on. My posting was questions hoping for reasonable responses......I should have realised there was more chance of signing a decent striker.

 

[Ernest]

Any reason, apart from ego, that you didn't just contribute to any of the many existing on-topic threads today?

The clear inference is that your words carry more weight than those of other posters.

They don't.

At least we didn't get any mention of Dick Tight or Gillingham

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

At least we didn't get any mention of Dick Tight or Gillingham

Or how he played The Clash at Withdean. Tho can only be a matter of time.

 

[Beach Hut]

Good thoughts but pretty obvious, not sure why a new thread needed, good news was no new poem

 

[Albumen]

Any reason, apart from ego, that you didn't just contribute to any of the many existing on-topic threads today?

The clear inference is that your words carry more weight than those of other posters.

They don't.

Maybe he looked at the 47 other threads started today and thought **** that I'm not wading through all that shite.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Great post @atilla. I am extremely disappointed that we couldn't get at least one of our striker targets over the line, so much so that after we heard last night that we'd been turned down yet again, I was actually rendered speechless for a while, as I tried to talk to my 14 year old who'd stayed up with me to witness the 'excitement'. Last night hurt, and yes we've been unlucky but as you so rightly say, we are on a learning curve. It is good to exercise some level of composure, your statement exemplifies this, it is heartening that a difficult and disappointing situation can bring the best out of people, team included, just as it tends to highlight all of the moronic knee-jerking elements who tend to inflate this matter above all proportion.

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Any reason, apart from ego, that you didn't just contribute to any of the many existing on-topic threads today?

The clear inference is that your words carry more weight than those of other posters.

They don't.

Did you single out any other poster on all the preceding threads with similar sentiments? If not I would suggest it may be you who is struggling with ego.

 

[Hungry Joe]

Fact is there were a whole bunch of players who didn't want to play for us

!

That's not a fact though is it? Outside of the failed medicals you know no more than anyone else outside the club's inner circle as to the Individual player's motives and reasonings.

 

[dazzer6666]

Whatever we might think, sure there are a lot of players that look at us and, following the vast majority of tipsters, think 'nailed on relegation'. This being the case, they'll look at other clubs - and when our supposed wage cap is also taken into account (and no doubt the relegation clauses we'll have told them will be in their contracts), it's hardly surprising we're finding it difficult to sign established PL talent.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Did you single out any other poster on all the preceding threads with similar sentiments?

Nope, just this one. He's WAY too old to know better. It's all about him. Same as it ever was.

 

[One Teddy Maybank]

The likes of Mounie , Mooy etc should have been well known to any club

Of course they should. I really don't agree with the Wagner knowledge greater than our own in Europe as a whole, Germany of course, but France?
[MENTION=267]TSB[/MENTION] had a list that included Mounie, so why hadn't our team spotted it? If we had and he was on the 'cluster', why didn't the alarm bells ring when he went to Huddersfield?

There is no masking this has been very disappointing and our approach needs to be reviewed.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Green Cross Code Man]

Nope, just this one. He's WAY too old to know better. It's all about him. Same as it ever was.

Hardly fair in this case. I don't know, nor am I interested in any personal gripe you may have with him, but his post was fine, it expresses what so many of us feel and think. Whatever his ego may or may not be, I do not think that discounts him for expressing an opinion as so many others of us, large ego and small, have done in the last couple of days.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Hardly fair in this case. I don't know, nor am I interested in any personal gripe you may have with him, but his post was fine, it expresses what so many of us feel and think. Whatever his ego may or may not be, I do not think that discounts him for expressing an opinion as so many others of us, large ego and small, have done in the last couple of days.

Not like there was a shortage of existing threads for him to express his opinion on tho eh?

 

[7oaksgull]

We have a squad that accumulated 182 points over the last two seasons
A squad that scored 74 goals in the league last year
A squad that finished comfortably above two of the relegated sides from the Premier league and only a point behind the other as we eased off for the last 3 games
A squad that we have added 8 players to, many of whom are internationals
A squad that we have invested in by being the 9th biggest net spenders during the summer transfer window
A squad that we would have spent more on but for various reasons couldn't complete other deals
I'm disappointed that we didn't land a striker, of course, but all this talk that we are doomed to relegation etc and heads must roll is pathetic given the proper context

 

[Martlet]

I can't disagree with much that Attila says - but where this falls flat for me is that if you know you're the newbie, on the back foot, you have to come up with a strategy that counters it.

If you want two players, go heavy early - secure one player with a knockout offer and go on a massive charm offensive with the player and his agent. Then play the field for the other.

Don't wait until deadline day for your A list, get surprised when other deals don't happen, and then in panic put a huge number on the table at 10.59 that the player turns down at 1am having had no prior contact with the club.

You're right Attila that we are disadvantaged - but that's no excuse - we should have known that from May.

 

[Lower West Stander]

All this would hold more water if we hadn't signed anyone at all.

But we have signed wingers, goalkeepers, midfielders and defenders. None of whom seemed to have a problem with either the club's status or wages that were offered.

So sorry. Load of nonsense as far as I'm concerned. We've screwed up big time and not interested in excuses.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[Bwian]

I wish you would bother to actually read what I posted.

I said.."after we got promoted"..i.e. in April.

Izquidero, Ryan and Propper were signed long after promotion was achieved and as for your "several strikers"...??

Anyway, carry on. My posting was questions hoping for reasonable responses......I should have realised there was more chance of signing a decent striker.

I know what you were saying and totally agree with you. We have had since April 17 to bring in 1 or 2 goal scorers-filling up the DS appeared to be the priority.

We are stuck with what we've got so need to be extra supportive until January.

Like many, I think the club got this transfer window wrong. They need to be looking for free agents because our current strike force is Championship quality or injured.. That will not keep us up.

Sent from my SM-G935F using Tapatalk

 

[spence]

I can't disagree with much that Attila says - but where this falls flat for me is that if you know you're the newbie, on the back foot, you have to come up with a strategy that counters it.

If you want two players, go heavy early - secure one player with a knockout offer and go on a massive charm offensive with the player and his agent. Then play the field for the other.

Don't wait until deadline day for your A list, get surprised when other deals don't happen, and then in panic put a huge number on the table at 10.59 that the player turns down at 1am having had no prior contact with the club.

You're right Attila that we are disadvantaged - but that's no excuse - we should have known that from May.

Mr Attila almost praises Huddersfield recruitment as a one off miracle a bit to much.

Paul Winstanley isn't some newbie in this field. He spent 7 years at Derby as head of recruitment. Prior to that he had 5 years at Wigan. He is now into his 3rd year with us.
He also had a head start on Huddersfield too. There really isn't any excuses ,for this fiasco.

 

[Weststander]

... players think they can demand more than £40K a week.

They don't just think it, they demand it and get it, no matter how good at top flight football they are, once their greedy foot is in the door.

Only certain clubs such as a ManU or Liverpool (Oxlade took a much lower wage than Arsenal and Chelsea offered him), are such a draw that wages isn't the main attraction to some new players.

Brighton and the rest, have the choice to bend to the potential players demands, or, let them join a club who will.