Time to take a gamble getting to the prem??

[Pavilionaire]

This is my accountancy brain working, but if we've lost £8 million for the past 2 seasons and are likely to lose money this season (albeit less) then cash in on some of the assets you have that can be replaced. In this case Bridcutt can be replaced by Ince - even if Ince were to regress (which is unlikely) we still have Agustien and Andrews.

For me, this has got to the stage when I almost WANT Bridcutt to leave. I love the guy, he's been brilliant for us, I wish him all the best etc, but selling for £3-4 million would be better for the club going forward.

 

[B.W.]

Our defence is so poor that this is an immediate priority



But you can learn lessons from history.
We were one game from going out of the league...now look at the likes of Portsmouth; Sheffield Utd; Wolves.. .....


sometimes a long memory pays.......

But... you don't have to go from one extreme (spending wildly) to another (purse strings so tight that your team becomes uncompetitive, you lose fans et al). That's my point.

 

[Hillian1]

Yes.

I think Tony should dig a bit deeper and buy us more players, I don't care how much they cost or how much they will want to earn per week, just GET THEM IN.

p.s. As long as the ticket prices and beer prices stay the same that is.

 

[grummitts gloves]

Yes.

I think Tony should dig a bit deeper and buy us more players, I don't care how much they cost or how much they will want to earn per week, just GET THEM IN.

p.s. As long as the ticket prices and beer prices stay the same that is.

Problem is QPR & Reading will just offer more for any player we are interested in.

 

[Kinky Gerbil]

Zamora and Johnson are out of the picture completely at QPR, The Genius Redknapp played Niko kranjcar up front ahead of those two yesterday.

 

[Pavilionaire]

What I miss is a bit of flair and class. I enjoyed watching Vicente and Bridge, it would be nice to bring in a player or two who will get the fans excited. We have a solid side, with a fair wind we'll make the play-offs but we're not going to create enough chances for automatic promotion.

 

[B.W.]

What I miss is a bit of flair and class. I enjoyed watching Vicente and Bridge, it would be nice to bring in a player or two who will get the fans excited. We have a solid side, with a fair wind we'll make the play-offs but we're not going to create enough chances for automatic promotion.

That seems about right to me.

 

[ali jenkins]

Why do we need to gamble? We are quite comfortably one of the top 8 teams in this league. We just need to add one or two players to take the next step but they will be Conway and possibly one other.

We don't need to spend large amounts of money to go up. What we do need is a formation and tactics that take the game to the opposition and not sit back on a one goal lead... Which we are now doing.

I liked yesterday that even in the last couple of minutes we were still trying for the second goal and not settling for what we had.

 

[Finchley Seagull]

If income from selling a player goes into next year's balance sheet then by logical extension so does expenditure?
Neither of which makes any sense......

Not sure if I'm confused with what you're saying or you with my comment. The OP suggested buying players on the basis that Bridcutt will be gone in the summer, e.g. spending it before we get it. My logic was that would mean the expenditure comes under this year's budget (as we made signings in January) and the income under next year's (as Bridcutt would be sold in the summer). As a result, we might not meet FFP requirements this season.

My follow up point was that selling Bridcutt now, if we got a good offer, and then using the money could strengthen us as a squad. Sorry, don't think I made that very clear first time.

 

[Finchley Seagull]

Why do we need to gamble? We are quite comfortably one of the top 8 teams in this league. We just need to add one or two players to take the next step but they will be Conway and possibly one other.

We don't need to spend large amounts of money to go up. What we do need is a formation and tactics that take the game to the opposition and not sit back on a one goal lead... Which we are now doing.

I liked yesterday that even in the last couple of minutes we were still trying for the second goal and not settling for what we had.

Absolutely agree with this. We are currently 8th best and have a lot of our squad out for large parts of the season so far. If we can get/keep the likes of Orlandi, LuaLua, Buckley, Ulloa and CMS fit, we will have effectively strengthened in January without signing anyone. If we can get Conway and keep all our current squad, I think we have a great chance. If we sold anyone, I would hope that money would be invested back in the team.

 

[BHseagull]

Would personally say, we need:

Conway (loan)
A pacey striker/winger (£1.5m)
A young up and coming centre back (£1m)

Other than that I think we are sorted and can compete. The centre back is a "nice to have" and not essential this season.

Take the risk, like others have said, we'll lose Bridcutt and probably others (PIG, Upson, Ulloa to name a few) so it's well worth gambling £2-3m.

 

[severnside gull]

Not sure if I'm confused with what you're saying or you with my comment. The OP suggested buying players on the basis that Bridcutt will be gone in the summer, e.g. spending it before we get it. My logic was that would mean the expenditure comes under this year's budget (as we made signings in January) and the income under next year's (as Bridcutt would be sold in the summer). As a result, we might not meet FFP requirements this season.

My follow up point was that selling Bridcutt now, if we got a good offer, and then using the money could strengthen us as a squad. Sorry, don't think I made that very clear first time.

Take no notice. I'm a klutz..... . Missed the (wholly valid) point completely

 

[British Bulldog]

We need a signature signing to get the fans excited with all of our flair players spending most of the season injured or out of form, He doesn't have to be for a big fee just somebody who will create a buzz.

 

[TSB]

We need a central defender

Any particular reason, or do you just like amassing centre backs?

 

[TSB]

We need a signature signing to get the fans excited with all of our flair players spending most of the season injured or out of form, He doesn't have to be for a big fee just somebody who will create a buzz.

I sort of get it, but: anyone who's not excited by being goal-difference away from the play-offs, with Leo leading the line, Matt Upson & PIG at the back and Rohan Ince & Liam in Midfield does not need to be humoured IMO.

 

[stss30]

Not worth it whatsoever. Look what happened to Pompey when they overspent, I'm more than happy being a well run club in the Championship thank you very much. If some money becomes available from players on their way out I'd like to see it reinvested on other areas of the squad, but there's no point whatsoever in 'gambling' with our future just for a shot at the Premiership. If we don't get enough from player sales we'll have to deal with what we've got.

 

[Rambo]

We need a central defender

THIS.

We need someone who can play the ball from centre back, Upson cannot do it all on his own.

 

[Creaky]

Not worth it whatsoever. Look what happened to Pompey when they overspent, I'm more than happy being a well run club in the Championship thank you very much. If some money becomes available from players on their way out I'd like to see it reinvested on other areas of the squad, but there's no point whatsoever in 'gambling' with our future just for a shot at the Premiership. If we don't get enough from player sales we'll have to deal with what we've got.

What you are forgetting is that TB is already gambling £5M upwards this season on top of the £100+ million he has already gambled. Hardly the credentials of a well run club.

In financial terms we are only viable because TB has guaranteed that he will cover any losses made this season - had he not done so we would be facing real financial problems. The same guarantees will no doubt be required at the end of this season to cover next year's losses.

This image that many try to put forward of a club working on a sound financial basis is all smoke and mirrors and depends entirely on the continuing benevolence and financial capability of one individual.

 

[stss30]

What you are forgetting is that TB is already gambling £5M upwards this season on top of the £100+ million he has already gambled. Hardly the credentials of a well run club.

In financial terms we are only viable because TB has guaranteed that he will cover any losses made this season - had he not done so we would be facing real financial problems. The same guarantees will no doubt be required at the end of this season to cover next year's losses.

This image that many try to put forward of a club working on a sound financial basis is all smoke and mirrors and depends entirely on the continuing benevolence and financial capability of one individual.

The way I see it is that all clubs are in this position at some point in their history. It just so happens that we have recently invested in our facilities, we are not however spending millions on players and wages hoping to get into the Premiership, we are spending for things that will help us for a long time in the future. Once all the start up costs have been overcome I feel as though, based on sales etc we'll be a very well run club in comparison to most others in the top 2 divisions. Of course we're reliant on TB at the moment but that's what is essential to progress in modern day football.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Our defence is so poor that this is an immediate priority



But you can learn lessons from history.
We were one game from going out of the league...now look at the likes of Portsmouth; Sheffield Utd; Wolves.. .....


sometimes a long memory pays.......

For those with a shorter memory... we used to recently regularly beat the likes of West Ham, Reading, Stoke, Cardiff, Southampton etc. They're not all that. Hard to even think of them as Premier League clubs, apart from maybe West Ham, It's a level playing field now and our millionaire owner is every bit as good as their millionaire owner. And a fan to boot. Soon come.