Where's the 15 Million gone?

[Vegas Seagull]

If a windfall 15m went into your bank account you'd be happy wouldn't you?
So why don't we all cheer up, it's wonderful news, just imagine how high the stack would be if it was all pound coins...

 

[Uncle Buck]

I think we are a striker and a left back short of matching last year's squad.

Ideally we will sign two or three strikers as Leo had too much to do last season, Hoskins may have been a sicknote but there's still a gap there, Buckley could play up front by himself and Barnes has effectively been replaced by O'Grady.

As much as it pains me to say it, CMS has been a disappointment.

The positions you are talking about are the ones that will cost money.

 

[BBassic]

That £15m has been used, in one way or another, to help the club I support. That is not a bad thing.

 

[spring hall convert]

I cannot imagine that McCourt is going to be better than Buckley and suggesting he is will be heaping pressure on the lad. However it is a low cost risk with him.

This comment would have some creedence 18 months ago. I could count the number of good games Buckley had in that period on one hand. If anything McCourt might suffer from the perceived brilliance of Buckley but Will's actually achievments on the pitch in the last 18 months were poor.

 

[Greg Bobkin]

Weren't PIG, Upson, Bridcutt, Orlandi, Spanish Dave, Ward, Lingard all frees or loans from the squad of last season?

It's no good, El Pres. I've tried to point this out to him, but he's ignoring it. In fact, I think he's completely disappeared.

Shame

 

[Uncle Buck]

This comment would have some creedence 18 months ago. I could count the number of good games Buckley had in that period on one hand. If anything McCourt might suffer from the perceived brilliance of Buckley but Will's actually achievments on the pitch in the last 18 months were poor.

I do agree that last season with the exception of the 2 Bolton games he was poor.

 

[symyjym]

If a windfall 15m went into your bank account you'd be happy wouldn't you?
So why don't we all cheer up, it's wonderful news, just imagine how high the stack would be if it was all pound coins...

50km high?

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

I think we are a striker and a left back short of matching last year's squad.

Ideally we will sign two or three strikers as Leo had too much to do last season, Hoskins may have been a sicknote but there's still a gap there, Buckley could play up front by himself and Barnes has effectively been replaced by O'Grady.

As much as it pains me to say it, CMS has been a disappointment.

Agree. CMS would benefit from stepping back down a division. He poses little threat to Championship defenders, and runs about far too much all over the place for under-pressure Albion defenders/midfielders to pick him out. Could be anywhere!

IMHO we let Hoskins go far too soon. Before his injury he was just starting to look the part, and after he came back from injury he was more or less straight out the door.

 

[El Presidente]

The positions you are talking about are the ones that will cost money.

Yup, however a season loan long for left back (for the third year in a row) plus £4-5 million for a couple of strikers seems well within our capabilities. Cost and value aren't the same as we both found out watching our front two on Saturday!

 

[El Presidente]

IMHO we let Hoskins go far too soon. Before his injury he was just starting to look the part, and after he came back from injury he was more or less straight out the door.

Yup, in his very brief cameos for the club he looked at ease at this level, what happened to him was a tragedy for both him and the club, as we would probably have been promoted had he not broken his leg

 

[greyseagull]

So last nights result has changed lots of people's opinions, jesus, it's one game!

Nobody is asking for all the budget spent, but you want some quality then you have to pay, quite simple. In my opinion if we think a few free's and loans are the answer then it's going to be a very long season and an away win at Leeds wont change that.

Hope i'm wrong and we bring in lots of free players and it works out great, just cant see it and don't think the clubs policy of ripping the fans off is fair when it comes down to it.

But yet you were quick to jump on the doom and gloom bandwagon after just the first two league games? In which, as we all know, we also lost last season.

You're one of those who hopes we lose so you've got something to moan about, clearly. You literally get moist when we concede, I can tell.

 

[Uncle Buck]

Yup, however a season loan long for left back (for the third year in a row) plus £4-5 million for a couple of strikers seems well within our capabilities. Cost and value aren't the same as we both found out watching our front two on Saturday!

One overseas forward for a fee similar to what we paid for Ulloa.

We might actually sign a left back that we own for once.

Then any other forwards on loan.

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Every club is in debt mate, doesn't mean you sell all the stars and replace them with less quality and therefore set yourselves back 2 years plus, that's bad business.

All teams change and evolve over time, basic fact of supporting any team.

If you are unhappy with the team that has failed to gain promotion and cost us more than we could afford on our budget then maybe you need to look elsewhere. We are trying a change of approach (narrower play with more speed going forward than the previous few seasons) and it will take time to get the right players in to give us the best chance of achieving our goal.

Some on here sound like they would go to an auction and buy the first few lots just so that they have something to show for their visit rather than wait until they see a lot that they actually want and try to secure it. As happens in an auction, sometimes you get outbid and have to reconsider what you then go for (if anything) or whether you save your money until the next one and hope there are better lots on sale but the worst thing to do would be to panic and spend for the sake of it (and with the football club, spend, spend, spend just to answer a few fans who seem to think we have a God given right to be challenging for promotion, even if they are the wrong players and mean we fail anyway, but at least they cost money so they must be good).

This whole start of the season reminds me of Withdean, we overachieved early there and it then became the expectation and when the club couldn't meet that over inflated expectation, then the constant moaning and criticism set in rather than accept our circumstances and enjoy the ride. At the Amex we were hoping for regular Championship football with the slim chance of promotion, now we have been close for 2 seasons in a row it seems to some that we should be there or thereabouts and anything less is a failure, even if the club can't afford to keep competeing at that level in the division against clubs with parachute payments.

(do you know how much of a disadvantage we are at because of the parachute payments to 10 other teams in this division, we may have higher crowds, but their income could and probably will be bigger than ours, even with the biggest crowds in the division. - This makes it even more important to get the right players and not the easiest or most convenient players to sign)

 

[Guy Fawkes]

Agree. CMS would benefit from stepping back down a division. He poses little threat to Championship defenders, and runs about far too much all over the place for under-pressure Albion defenders/midfielders to pick him out. Could be anywhere!

IMHO we let Hoskins go far too soon. Before his injury he was just starting to look the part, and after he came back from injury he was more or less straight out the door.

Lets at least give him a few games in the team with a new style of play under a new manager before deciding he can't play an important part for us this season. Lets not judge him on a couple of seasons ago when we didn't use him properly and therefore failed to get the best from him. Maybe the new system will see him flourish for us.

 

[chaileyjem]

Lopez had been a 6 million Euro player. Orlandi a Premier League player, Buckley was playing in the league above when we signed him. Upson and Bridge both former England internationals, Tomas a Polish international.

At present the new boys do not follow that pedigree, however that is not to say they will be prove to be inspired.

Agreed. Lets wait and see how they do. As for the pedigree of our signings then for the last 18 months they've been to a man either internationals, prem league experience, or extremely promising youngsters. A world away from our signings even a few years ago.
TK by the way never played for Poland whilst at the Albion...

Our main signings/loanees since summer 2013...
Upson - Prem League/ex International
Lopez - Euro, Tier 1.
Walton - Youth, Eng international u19s
Andrews - Prem League/current International
Agustien - Prem League
Ward - Prem League/current International
Conway - Prem League/current International
Hughes - Prem League / current International
Stephens - Champ/Player of the Year
Lingard - Prem League loanee
Stockdale - Prem League
Toko - Tier 1 European League
JCT - Prem League loanee/current u21 international
Holla - Tier 1 European League
McCourt - ex SPL, current international
Bennett - Prem, u21 international
COG - Champ, more goals than Ulloa in 13/14

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Agreed. Lets wait and see how they do. As for the pedigree of our signings then for the last 18 months they've been to a man either internationals, prem league experience, or extremely promising youngsters. A world away from our signings even a few years ago.
TK by the way never played for Poland whilst at the Albion...

Our main signings/loanees since summer 2013...
Upson - Prem League/ex International
Lopez - Euro, Tier 1.
Walton - Youth, Eng international u19s
Andrews - Prem League/current International
Agustien - Prem League
Ward - Prem League/current International
Conway - Prem League/current International
Hughes - Prem League / current International
Stephens - Champ/Player of the Year
Lingard - Prem League loanee
Stockdale - Prem League
Toko - Tier 1 European League
JCT - Prem League loanee/current u21 international
Holla - Tier 1 European League
McCourt - ex SPL, current international
Bennett - Prem, u21 international
COG - Champ, more goals than Ulloa in 13/14

Stockdale has made England squads in the past, and Toko is a full International.

 

[chaileyjem]

Yup, in his very brief cameos for the club he looked at ease at this level, what happened to him was a tragedy for both him and the club, as we would probably have been promoted had he not broken his leg

Is that because *that* swap deal would have gone ahead... ?

 

[Seagull by the Sea]

Buy low - sell High. I would suggest the bulk of our available transfer budget will go on a striker(or two) but supplementing it with free transfers and high quality loans is the way to go. Also in reality there is no such thing as a free transfer what with wages and agent fees and signing on fees.

I don't have a problem with free transfers if they are good players like Holla.

My main concern would be too many loan signings as in the long term we are not progressing. However, if JB comes in for this year and Chicksen carries on his recent improvement than great.

I have been very vocal about my concerns with recruitment and I still stand by my view that we have been too slow and under prepared but I do acknowledge that we do now seem to be bringing in some very good and exciting players so credit where credit is due.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

Lets at least give him a few games in the team with a new style of play under a new manager before deciding he can't play an important part for us this season. Lets not judge him on a couple of seasons ago when we didn't use him properly and therefore failed to get the best from him. Maybe the new system will see him flourish for us.

Sorry, but IMHO we've seen quite enough of CMS at this level to make a value judgement that it's never going to work. Under-pressure ball-suppliers just don't know where to find the bloke. Whereas they always knew where to find Ashley Barnes - lurking in or near the box where a striker should be. CMS at this level reminds me of Holroyd at Withdean. Forever making irrelevant runs while pointing at the ground and being ignored by all and sundry.

 

[Hiney]

I don't have a problem with free transfers if they are good players like Holla.

My main concern would be too many loan signings as in the long term we are not progressing. However, if JB comes in for this year and Chicksen carries on his recent improvement than great.

I have been very vocal about my concerns with recruitment and I still stand by my view that we have been too slow and under prepared but I do acknowledge that we do now seem to be bringing in some very good and exciting players so credit where credit is due.

Is it possible that the players coming in now are the culmination of a lot of negotiating over the past months, rather than us being 'slow and under-prepared'?