HankMarvin

Hmmmm yet worked for WBA and Blackburn who were both in a worse position than us points wise

It’s not about making out the squad is great, it’s the context of the shit division they are in. You don’t need to a have a great squad with a plethora of cover in each position to be mid table. The reality is despite how shit the form has been with one win in 14 we are 10 points of midtable excluding the deduction. Do you think the 23/24 team pisses the league with Marti and Rowett in charge

I think you’re missing the point hence why I gave two examples of teams that have improved under new managers. Asking what players improve those squads after the back of 1 win in 14 would be a lot different if you asked the question when a semi competent manager was in charge. Not one sacked from a relegation threatened team who after about 400 games in the division was at Oxford in the first place. Prior to that we had a manager that again was mid table last season and was sacked with us in 14th QPR are 6 points better off with 18 more points up for grabs which again highlight the limitations of the previous manager. Would you like me to dig up the posts, when Southampton were struggling and people were saying at least we are not as bad as them, how many people would swapped players with them at that point. What’s changed? A manager that is earning over double the points of the last sacked one

If when they were struggling down the bottom and you asked fans how many players from Wrexham or Millwall would they take the amount would’ve been significant, fast forward to successful periods under new managers and the answer would be a lot different now.

And the same could’ve been said when Southampton were languishing near the bottom or Norwich at the time.

Yet the shit that gets spewed here Klopp and Pep couldn’t do anything with this squad meanwhile you got Millwall in second and Wrexham in 6th

or maybe I wasn’t expecting miracles from a man sacked from his previous job with less points per game than Cifuntes Also the new Oxford manager is also doing better in the role. So it’s hard to tell just how shit the team is when the new manager is statistically worse this season than the man he has replaced. He was the Oxford manager for a reason.

8 points from 24 1ppg 1 win in 8 same sort of points return at Oxford

The EFL is broken - and we've uncovered the scarcely believable proof… The EFL is ‘broken’ - with clubs in the Championship on track to lose an average of £15million per season and those across the competition set to post annual losses of more than £600m, a Daily Mail Sport investigation can reveal. Shock figures highlight the desperate state of play outside the promised land of the Premier League, with the staggering sums being lost each year laid bare. So far, 14 Championship clubs have filed their figures for 2024-25 and they paint a stark picture. Of that group, 13 posted soaring average losses of £14m. That includes league leaders Coventry City (a £21m loss from a profit Oof £8.7m last year), Norwich City (£20.7m) and QPR(£20.1m). Preston North End, who have never played in the Premier League, lost £13.4m. Oxford United lost £17.5m, while Portsmouth lost £4.3m. Plymouth Argyle, relegated to League One, registered a £300,000 profit. Stoke City, owned by the billionaire Coates family, would appear to be an anomaly. The Potteries club posted a ‘profit’ of £64m however, that only came on the back of their owners writing off a vast £90m loan. League insiders believe the difference between revenues of the Premier League and Championship, which now stands at a cavernous £5.3bn, had led to irrational behaviour among some of those in charge who are grossly overspending in an increasingly desperate bid to reach the top flight - and that for the latest financial year, the 72 outside the top flight could record staggering combined losses of around £600m. Today, in English football’s second tier, owners are routinely having to write cheques of around £14m simply to stand still - either loaning their club money or writing off losses altogether. Profit/loss in millions of £ for last financial year 07060504030-3020-2010-10CoventryNorwichQPRBristol CityOxfordWatfordCharltonPrestonMiddlesbroughDerbyHullPortsmouthMillwallStoke63.963.90000000000000000000000000000-0.3-0.3-4.4-4.4-10.2-10.2-11.1-11.1-11.4-11.4-13.4-13.4-15.4-15.4-16.2-16.2-17.5-17.5-18.6-18.6-20.1-20.1-20.7-20.7-21.6-21.6 Sheffield Wednesday have been stuck in administration limbo for five months after Dejphon Chansiri's tortured reign Teams like Sunderland have spent big to escape the EFL - but those who don't get there can end up in serious danger The spectre of parachute payments, which see relegated sides handed around £100m over three years (should they not win promotion), are also playing a key role according to those within the industry. Between 2018-19 and 2024-25, revenue among Championship clubs rose from £21m to £27m. To those with parachute payments that figure went from £57m to £90m. ‘This is just not a level playing field,’ bemoans one exec. The issue is also exacerbated by a difference in player trading, with parachute clubs in 2023-24 having an average profit of £54m in the transfer market as opposed to £8m elsewhere. EFL bosses believe the payments are a ‘trampoline’ and ‘anti-competition’. Wage inflation is also wreaking havoc. Kieran Maguire, the respected football finance expert, believes the average salary in the Championship last season was £14,000 a week, while in Leagues One and Two those numbers were an inflation-busting £3,900 and £2,000 a week. Indeed, between 2018-19 and 2024-25, League One clubs saw revenue rise by just five per cent as wage costs more than tripled. There are now believed to be multiple players in the third tier making five-figure sums each week. The average Championship wage bill for 2023-24 was £37m, although for parachute clubs it was £71m, and non-parachute clubs £28.2m. Other societal costs including rising energy bills and national insurance have also played a role. Daily Mail Sport has spoken to executives across the three divisions to seek their views, with each speaking on the condition of anonymity. ‘The system is broken,’ says one Championship official. ‘My owner asked me what we could do to make our club sustainable. When I’d finished laughing I told them it was simple – we could get relegated and live within our means in League One. It’s like the Wild West out there, and the only people profiting are players and agents.’ University lecturer Maguire, of The Price of Football podcast, believes the logic among those who are grossly overspending is fairly simple. ‘It’s like you and I buying a lottery ticket,’ he explains. ‘But unlike you and I, you have a three in 24 chance of winning. There are wealthy individuals who are willing to pay the sums we are seeing to buy that lottery ticket. ‘Southampton stank the place out last season, finished bottom of the Premier League and pocketed £109m, whereas your average Championship side got around £11m.’ Maguire also believes there is a disparity within the EFL itself. ‘There have always been losses in Leagues One and Two and the TV gap is similar (as that between the Premier League and Championship). The shocking 2023-24 accounts of teams who were then in the Championship Profit/loss by millions of £ 0-70-60-50-40-3020-2010-10LeedsIpswichWest BromStokeLeicesterMillwallHullBirminghamSwanseaHuddersfieldNorwichPrestonQPRMiddlesbroughCardiffSheff WedSunderlandBristol CityPlymouthRotherhamBlackburnCoventryWatfordSouthampton17.317.312.812.88.78.73.33.3000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000-1.7-1.7-2.4-2.4-3.3-3.3-8.6-8.6-10-10-11.7-11.7-12.4-12.4-13.5-13.5-14.3-14.3-14.4-14.4-15-15-15.2-15.2-16.1-16.1-18.8-18.8-19.1-19.1-19.4-19.4-23.8-23.8-37.6-37.6-39.3-39.3-60.8-60.8 'Southampton stank the place out last season, finished bottom of the Premier League and still pocketed £109m (in top-flight prize money, TV money and other commercial revenue)' Championship leaders Coventry City look set for promotion - but it's just as well after they lost £21m last season Norwich City, who have spent 10 seasons in the Premier League, lost £20.7m last season as they try to get back to the riches of the top flight ‘Clubs in the Championship get 70 per cent of the revenue and 17 per cent in League One – so you have a similar position with some of those in League One overspending to get to the Championship.’ Maguire points out that even the fifth-tier National League is not immune, with clubs desperate to punch their ticket to the EFL. ‘Stockport did £5m getting out of it,’ he says. ‘Wrexham won’t have been far off.’ It is a continued, sorry story in the third and fourth tiers. So far nine League One clubs have returned their figures for 2024-25, with losses averaging £8.23m. That is almost double the £4.2m average from the previous year. Relegated Cardiff City lost £35.1m, while Burton Albion posted a deficit of £8.1m and Wycombe lost £9.9m. In League Two, 10 clubs have posted average losses of £2.44m. That is more than double the previous season’s £1.2m. Bristol Rovers' number was £6.8m followed by Gillingham on £5.7m and Cambridge United with £3.7m. When it comes to wages, the average staff costs from the six clubs to have declared is an astounding £13.42m, although that does include Cardiff’s second-tier numbers. In League Two, six clubs have declared their staff costs with a scarcely-believable average so far of £7.08m. With Sheffield Wednesday now in administration and without a buyer after former owner Dejphon Chansiri refused to continue funding heavy losses, there are grave fears others could go the same way when their own owners get fed up with handing out eye-watering sums with little return. Historic clubs, institutions of the game, whose very futures now lie directly in the hands of their owners. The influx of American owners at suddenly big-spending clubs such as Birmingham City and Wrexham may well be welcomed by their own fanbases, but the impact their investments have had on wage-spend is being felt elsewhere as others feel under pressure to keep up and to remain competitive. All of this comes against the backdrop of a continued dispute between the EFL and the Premier League over financial redistribution, which may well see the newly appointed Independent Football Regulator step in. The argument among those in the Premier League is well quoted and fairly simple. Why should they hand over more money to owners who, in some cases, are wealthier than they are so those owners can then use that money to try and take their lucrative places at the top table? The EFL would point to many of the statistics above. Their view is that all of the madness is being caused by a desperation to get to the promised land and that the promised land should do its bit to ensure the rest of football does not eat itself. US ownership is rising in the EFL such as at Wrexham, owned by Hollywood's Rob Mac (left) and Ryan Reynolds, and Birmingham - who count Tom Brady (right) among their investors Clubs such as Luton Town have shot up through the leagues only for the bubble to burst rapidly and dramatically - the Hatters suffered back-to-back relegations after being in the top flight The futures of historic clubs, institutions of the game, now lie directly in the hands of their owners Much will depend on the reading of the situation from IFR chair and former chief Premier League rights negotiator David Kogan. Kogan was at the Premier League shareholder meeting last month, has been visiting clubs and was at the EFL annual summit at the Belfry in March, where clubs unsurprisingly voted to extend the Championship play-offs from four to six. Two more lottery tickets up for grabs. Kogan has commenced work on his State of the Game Report, and the EFL will hope their arguments feature prominently in his final draft. Should an agreement on redistribution remain outstanding, he would have the power to force the issue via a backstop, but clues were thin on the ground according to those who were at the Belfry. That said, a hint at an end to the war arrived at the Churchill Hotel last week where Premier League chief executive Richard Masters suggested to top-flight clubs at the latest shareholder meeting that they should aim to find an agreement in months, albeit without prejudicing their own position and ensuring it could not be used as a starting point ahead of a backstop. Perhaps the view now is that negotiation, rather than a forced deal, may be preferable. For all of the above, the story in the EFL is not all doom and gloom. While financial performance is an indicator which cannot be ignored, other signs point to positivity. Record attendances were posted in 2023-24 and largely maintained last season on the back of a post-Covid boost, with numbers not seen since the post-War boom. The Championship is the second most-watched league in Europe after the Premier League, ahead of the Bundesliga, La Liga and Serie A. The ‘basic award’ handed to clubs by the EFL has never been higher. With almost a third of clubs now owned by Americans, a growing US interest helped drive a broadcast deal with CBS, which airs more than 250 EFL matches across the Atlantic. This week EFL officials are in Florida to see how they can grow further in the US. They will be buoyed by viewing figures attracted here for Hollywood pair Rob McElhenney and Ryan Reynolds’ watchalong on Sky for Wrexham v Swansea City which Daily Mail Sport understands attracted a total audience of 424,000 - a significant increase on average viewers for a Championship match. Regardless, the feeling is that we are hurtling towards a tipping point and the concern is that those who keep paying millions for lottery tickets without tasting success will eventually decide to cut their losses, and take centuries of history with them on their way out of the door. ‘The backstop cannot come quick enough,’ says another exec. ‘It cannot carry on like this.’ In an op-ed published with this report today, EFL CEO Trevor Birch outlines the frightening reality of the situation. ‘The clock is ticking,’ he says. CASE STUDY 1: CHAMPIONSHIP - ARMAGEDDON AT SHEFFIELD WEDNESDAY It may seem odd, given that the aim was to save money, but the first thing administrators did when they arrived at Sheffield Wednesday was order 40 laptops. ‘You can inherit a distressed operation, and quite quickly identify issues that you have to fix,' explains Paul Stanley of Begbies Traynor, the firm handling the sale of this historic club. 'If you were to take over at a factory that was pumping waste into a river – you would be legally responsible if you allowed that to continue.’ Sheffield Wednesday fans endured 10 years of Chansiri in charge and their ownership uncertainty isn't over yet Protests were common before Chansiri finally gave up the club last October - with fans even invading the pitch during a match Of the many issues they found under the bonnet after Dejphon Chansiri had pulled the plug, a ‘complete lack of investment in anything other than the first team’ was one of the more damning. ‘Some of the computer equipment was older than some of the staff,’ Stanley explains. ‘That put the club at risk of breaching various requirements. There was also a lack of traceability in all departments, from the ticket office to accounts, which was needed from a business perspective. It quickly became clear that there had been almost zero spend on infrastructure.’ Stanley is a veteran of a number of administrations in football, most recently at Wigan Athletic. The names of the clubs change, but the story is often the same. ‘Chansiri probably invested around £160m,’ he explains. ‘The club was losing around £10m to £12m and the vast majority of the income was going on player wages. Wigan was similar.’ To Stanley, these are examples of a wider issue: ‘The system is broken. When Wednesday drop into League One the TV money will go from around £11m to £3.5m, but a lot of high-earning players leave. The flip side is if you get promoted all the agents know your financial position and the extra money just goes on wages again.’ Stanley reveals that Wednesday actually lost money for opening the doors for their derby with city rivals United, when season-ticket revenue is put to one side. ‘Season tickets were sold 15 months ago, so you’ve got 17,000 people coming in whose money has already gone. 'Then you’ve got the stewards, the heat and the light to pay for. Then the bill from the police is in the tens of thousands. Then £600 for someone to stand next to the lift in the disabled section just in case it breaks down in and needs a manual override. There are hundreds of things that people tend not to think about.’ Stanley believes those in the industry stopped treating football as a business a long time ago. ‘Very occasionally someone will do well, like a Mike Ashley at Newcastle,’ he explains. ‘But to most owners it’s a hobby and they love the glamour. There’s an Aldi near Hillsborough which probably turns over as much as the club but is there mass media interest every time its manager changes? 'There are people around the world who want a piece of the action and who are prepared to lose fortunes chasing a place in the Premier League. The problem comes when they don’t get there, as they haven’t here, and they get sick of writing cheques.’ CASE STUDY 2: LEAGUE ONE - THE SUCCESS STORY THAT LOSES £3M A YEAR ‘When I arrived nine years ago,' says Liam Scully, chief executive of runaway League One leaders Lincoln City, 'we had modelling that told us on a wage budget of 10th-12th place in League One or League Two, we would keep losses to around £1m-£1.5m before player trading and cup runs. 'Now, with a 17th-18th placed wage budget in League One we’ll lose around £3m. That’s how much it has changed in less than a decade, even after we have grown revenue by over 250 per cent in that period. The whole water line has risen.’ Lincoln City are running away with League One - but are losing £3m a year Just two teams turned a profit in League One in 2023-24 - with more teams' losses hitting double figures Profit/loss by millions of £ 0-10-8-64-42-2-18-16-14-12OxfordReadingDerbyCharltonFleetwoodWiganPortsmouthBristol RoversWycombeBlackpoolPort ValeLeyton OrientLincolnCarlisleBarnsleyCambridgePeterboroughNorthamptonShrewsburyBurtonStevenageCheltenhamExeterBolton2.62.60.20.2000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000-0.03-0.03-0.9-0.9-1.3-1.3-1.6-1.6-2-2-2.3-2.3-2.6-2.6-2.8-2.8-2.8-2.8-3-3-3.7-3.7-3.8-3.8-3.9-3.9-3.9-3.9-5.3-5.3-5.6-5.6-8.2-8.2-9.3-9.3-13.9-13.9-14.2-14.2-15.6-15.6-15.9-15.9 And yet Lincoln continue to rise above it, and, barring disaster, will soon swim to a bigger pond. The Imps, despite that modest budget, could well find themselves at the Tottenham Stadium next season. ‘Everyone tells me it’s success,’ Scully adds. ‘But when you’re losing £3m it sometimes doesn’t feel like it! Fortunately, we have owners who know how much it is going to cost and who will stand it. ‘(PFA chief executive) Maheta Molango said we don’t have to do pay inflated wages. ‘He's right, but then do you want 12,000 people screaming at you for what they would see as a lack of investment? Nobody doesn’t want to be successful, but we're all chasing success in what is now an inflated marketplace.’ Scully believes that spiralling salaries are the key issue. ‘We did a new broadcast deal last season and wages went up 57 per cent,’ he explains. ‘You get the American owners at Wrexham and Birmingham City – and I’m not knocking them for a second because what they are doing is great for those clubs – but not long ago, if a player wanted to earn £10,000-a-week they would have to get to the Championship. Now there are lots in League One on five figures every week and there’s a new baseline. 'It won’t go backwards and the clock will not go back, despite the fact those two clubs have now been promoted.’ So how do Lincoln succeed? ‘From a pure business model you would like to break even but I think there’s a recognition that you just wouldn’t be competitive,’ says Scully. ‘Our challenge if we got promoted would be how are we competitive on revenues of £18m against £30-40m? Lincoln could even end up playing at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium next season - but how on earth are they meant to compete with revenues of £18m? 'We don’t think we have the blueprint for football but we have been working on who and what we want to be for around eight years, gradually building. You bring in good people in each department, and you don’t deviate from the plan over a long-term period. You know who you are and what you are good at. 'Luton were a great example of that when they went up through the divisions. Yes – you’re going to be judged on what happens on Saturday but you have to keep the long-term picture in mind. And you have to recruit well. Make sure you take as many bumps out of the rollercoaster as you can.’ Scully also believes there are huge positives for the game outside the Premier League, despite the financial picture. ‘It’s a paradox in the EFL at the moment,’ he says. ‘On the one hand you can look at the losses and think it’s in a bit of a state. But then on the other, interest and attendances have never been higher. Lots of people want to be on board as fans, partners and sponsors. 'We were openly looking for investment not long ago and there was a hell of a lot of interest in Lincoln City, so if that’s the case for us then think about what it must be in the bigger clubs.' CASE STUDY 3: LEAGUE TWO - THE COST OF GETTING BACK IN When Oldham Athletic faced Southend United at Wembley in the National League play-off final last June to decide which of the two would return to the EFL, Latics chief executive Darren sat next to his father, Joe, two Royles in the Royal Box. ‘Dad got us promoted to the First Division (now Premier League) in 1991,’ Darren explains, ‘but I remember thinking that this almost felt bigger.’ Oldham prevailed 3-2 after extra time - but the return came at a staggering cost. ‘That season we lost around £3.8m and £3.1m of that was player salaries,’ Royle explains. ‘The clubs at the top of the National League have wage bills around 50 per cent higher than many of those in League Two. 'The agents get a feel for a club’s budget and they know how desperate the bigger clubs are to get in. Then there’s a premium to persuade players to drop into the National League and it’s a beast of a competition to get out of.’ Even in League Two, most teams' losses racked up into the millions in 2023-24 Profit/loss by millions of £ 0-8-7-6-5-4-3-21-1StockportColchesterSalfordGillinghamForest GreenMK DonsDoncasterCrawleyWrexhamHarrogateSuttonWalsallGrimsbyTranmereNotts CountySwindonMorecambeBarrowBradfordAccringtonCreweNewportWimbledon0.40.40.030.030000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000-0.8-0.8-0.9-0.9-1-1-1.1-1.1-1.2-1.2-1.3-1.3-1.4-1.4-1.5-1.5-1.7-1.7-1.8-1.8-2-2-2.5-2.5-2.7-2.7-2.8-2.8-3.1-3.1-3.1-3.1-3.3-3.3-4.3-4.3-4.7-4.7-4.9-4.9-7-7 Oldham Athletic celebrate promotion back to the Football League last year - but the return has come at a staggering cost Oldham fans also protested on the pitch during a match in 2022, before they were rescued by the local Rothwell family Oldham, former founder members of the Premier League, are alive again. On Tuesday night more than 9,000 flocked to Boundary Park for their clash with Notts County, with an upturn in form suggesting an outside shot at the play-offs. Had it not been for the intervention of a local family, when the club was in its darkest hour having dropped out of the league under disastrous previous ownership in 2022, it could have been a very different story. Royle explains: ‘If it wasn’t the Rothwells it was either asset strippers, liquidation or National League North under a sustainable fan-owned model.’ The Rothwells – flat-capped patriarch Frank, wife Judith and children Luke and Su – run a well-established Portakabin business whose profits surged on the back of the pandemic and a huge increase in demand. Having bought the stadium and the land and funded close to four seasons they are already in for north of £20m. ‘We’re blessed and lucky to have them,’ says Royle. ‘They are decent people who are loyal to the town and who are loving the journey. They’re also well aware of what the cost is. We’re probably an outlier because we’ve had to reverse 30 years of decline and decay. There’s already been more than £1m spent on the stadium alone to get it to a point where it was safe. The infrastructure was broken. But the wages have been the biggest cost, like they are for everyone.’ Royle believes the role of the Independent Regulator is key. ‘Everyone is waiting with baited breath,’ he says. ‘Will the backstop come in? When will the talks happen? There’s an opportunity here. If there is increased revenue there’s no point just blowing it on wages. It should come along with regulation. We have the most revered pyramid in the world and it needs to be protected.’ We need to work together to save our pyramid, and fast - by EFL chief executive Trevor Birch 'The clock is ticking.' David Kogan, chair of the Independent Football Regulator, has delivered that message repeatedly - most recently at the Financial Times Football Business Summit and again at the EFL’s All Club and Community Meeting a couple of weeks ago. His warning to the Premier League and the EFL is clear: reach agreement on a fairer distribution of football’s revenues, or the Regulator will intervene. The Premier League and the EFL are not rivals; they are parts of the same ecosystem. The strength of the top division depends on the health of the pyramid beneath it. That was understood in 1992, when the two competitions split, backed by the FA on the explicit understanding that the Football League would not be left behind financially. EFL chief executive Trevor Birch writes: 'Owners now underwrite hundreds of millions of pounds each year just to keep clubs afloat. When that dries up, the consequences are severe' Three decades on, the Premier League is a global powerhouse, generating billions in commercial revenue and standing as a world leading product in quality and reach. That success should be celebrated. But it does not exist in isolation. English football is sustained by a pyramid that reaches deep into towns and cities across the country. More than 20 million fans attend EFL matches each season alone. The Premier League’s strength is built on that breadth. One of the Regulator’s core objectives is to address the systemic financial risk created by an increasingly uneven distribution of money across the game. That risk is not abstract. Over the past decade, EFL clubs have lost billions collectively. EFL clubs are routinely loss-making, and owners now underwrite hundreds of millions of pounds each year just to keep clubs afloat. When that funding dries up, the consequences are severe: administration, insolvency and lasting damage to communities - as seen at Wigan, Derby, Bolton, Reading and, most recently, Sheffield Wednesday. When clubs fail, towns lose institutions that have anchored local identity for generations. The familiar response is that clubs should simply spend less. In theory, that sounds reasonable. In practice, it ignores the incentives created by the sport itself. The promise of promotion to the Premier League - the 'holy grail' - drives risk-taking throughout the pyramid. Wages rise accordingly, particularly in the Championship, where ambition collides with reality. That pressure is intensified by parachute payments. Relegated Premier League clubs return to the Championship with resources far beyond those available to their competitors. The results speak for themselves: promotion is increasingly dominated by parachute clubs, while others compete at a structural disadvantage, often absorbing heavy annual losses just to stand still. It is no coincidence that clubs have voted to expand the play-offs; for many, automatic promotion has become an increasingly distant prospect. Solidarity payments, paid by the Premier League to non-parachute clubs, are governed by an agreement last updated in 2019, when EFL clubs had to accept additional obligations - including around youth development - in return for increased distributions. That history matters. Extra funding cannot now be used as leverage to weaken protections or dilute recognition for the role EFL clubs play in developing young players who go on to succeed at the highest level. That value must be properly and fairly rewarded. The Regulator has been clear: he would prefer football to resolve these issues itself. But his 'backstop' powers exist for a reason and parachute payments, once treated as untouchable, are now explicitly within scope of the State of the Game review – a comprehensive, objective and evidence-based assessment of the health, risks and sustainability of English football. The opportunity to reach a negotiated settlement remains - but it is closing fast. When clubs fail, towns lose institutions that have anchored local identity for generations The EFL remains ready to re-open discussions on a long-term settlement that delivers a fairer share of revenues, strengthens the youth development pathway, introduces clearer and more effective cost controls, and supports a healthier pyramid from top to bottom. That includes resolving the issue of promotion and relegation between the National League and League Two alongside the benefits from enhanced redistribution to better support the transition between leagues. It was reported last weekend that Premier League clubs were advised by their executive at their recent meeting to be prepared to agree a financial redistribution settlement later in 2026. Previous discussions have failed to produce an agreement, but we would welcome that engagement and commitment from the Premier League. We stand ready to engage constructively and work towards the solutions required for a sustainable, long-term future for the game. If English football is to remain the envy of the world, we have to move quickly and take this opportunity to protect and promote the financial resilience of the whole pyramid, not just the very top. The clock is ticking.

Total points suggest otherwise

We shouldn’t even be in the bottom 3 anyway, so it’s not exactly a wild take

New best friend but has a lot of good young players on his books, including James and Ramsey plus Lascelles. Also Marti agent. Less bent numbers and more dodgy association of convenience. Who needs scouting anyway

Selling Club Payment: The selling club also frequently pays agent fees (intermediary fees) to agents involved in the sale of a player bbc

There was a article saying Sunderland are interested and the fee is £20m everyone’s favourite person ReluctantNicko

MARC ALBRIGHTON EXCLUSIVE: I'd love to help out Leicester - as would all my title-winning team-mates... but the club have never been in touch Ten-year anniversaries are often cause for celebration and for Leicester City, the one in early May will be just that. A decade ago, the Foxes wrote one of the best football stories when they defied odds of 5,000-1 to win the Premier League title. Leicester fans were not the only ones who loved that season, with supporters of similar clubs cheering them on and wondering if their team could do the same one day. Ten years before that triumph, Leicester had been fighting for survival in the Championship. When Wes Morgan was lifting the Premier League trophy, supporters could never have imagined the wheel might turn full circle. Yet this is exactly the position in which Leicester find themselves. Thanks to a six-point deduction for breaking financial rules, Leicester head into the final seven games of the campaign in the bottom three of the Championship, a point adrift of safety. They have appealed against the penalty. Leicester were confirmed Premier League champions on May 2, 10 years ago. By that date this year, the class of 2026 will know their fate, pending the outcome of the appeal. While nothing should detract from the 10-year celebrations, the mood may be a little more sombre if Leicester have dropped into the third tier. Of those legends, only first-team coach Andy King is involved on the football side, though Robert Huth was loans manager from 2022-24 and other former players retain informal links, though not with the first team. Winger Marc Albrighton made 38 appearances in the title-winning season, scoring twice and providing six assists. He played 313 times for Leicester across 10 years, winning three trophies. Like most of that squad, he remains hugely invested, albeit from afar. ‘We all say that if we could have a job at any of our former clubs, we’d choose Leicester,’ Albrighton tells Daily Mail Sport. ‘We didn’t all grow up supporting Leicester but we are massive fans now and we just want to help as much as possible. For whatever reason, it hasn’t materialised. ‘I’m not saying we’d go in and change the world, change everything that’s wrong with the club. Andy King is there at the moment and he is desperate for it to turn around, as we all are. ‘But people talk about Manchester United and former players at the club who know their DNA, and I feel like there’s something similar at Leicester. There was a culture there that I’d never seen anywhere else. ‘I don’t actually know what the role would be in terms of us going back. But I would have thought there must be some way we could pass on our experience and try to get that culture back. ‘There has never been any contact with me from the club regarding this. When I finished playing, Aston Villa got in touch with me. I’d played for them and grown up a Villa fan, so I was grateful for the opportunity to go and do some coaching. ‘I probably did think "I wish Leicester had done that", even though coaching perhaps isn’t for me. I’d love to be driving into Leicester every day and be in and around that. ‘They’re in a really difficult position at the moment and it seems like nothing they’re trying is working.’ Albrighton retired in 2024 but is staying sharp by competing in Baller League. A six-a-side, 15-minutes-each-way contest featuring numerous former players, Albrighton joined up for the current run and is playing for Deportrio, who are managed by Daniel Sturridge and Micah Richards. ‘It’s perfect for me,’ he says. ‘That’s my fix of football and gives me that buzz.’ Baller League allows Albrighton to scratch the itch to play, though his thoughts are never far from Leicester. As he speaks on Zoom, a framed Leicester shirt and a Premier League winner’s medal are visible on one of the walls. Albrighton regularly cites the influence of former Leicester chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha, who was killed in a helicopter crash in 2018. His son, Aiyawatt, has run the club since but recent years have been very difficult. The club have twice been relegated from the top flight amid supporter protests and growing dissatisfaction. Now 36, Albrighton believes Leicester managed to find a unique spirit during the glory days and urges them to do everything possible to revive it. ‘They were simple things that brought everyone together,’ he explains. ‘There were meals arranged by the owner and the owner would be there. ‘I remember playing one game in London and we lost. Because we’d lost, we assumed we’d be going straight home on the bus but the owner said, "No, we’re going out". ‘He knew we would lose games, but told us he wanted us to try as hard as we could. There was no real pressure applied by him. ‘He would be in the changing room before every home game, just sitting among the lads and having a laugh. He had a very distinctive laugh that everyone recognised and it would create a really relaxed atmosphere. He wanted to see us enjoying ourselves. ‘And it wasn’t just the players invited to these meals. It was everyone who worked at the club – kit men, people in the offices, sports science staff, physios. It was a really good way to connect people. You could see people coming out of their shell.’ It may be easier said than done but Albrighton would like the current players and supporters to follow these principles. Over Easter, Gary Rowett’s team face Preston and Sheffield Wednesday. Win both of those games, and survival will suddenly look far more realistic. The alternative hardly bears thinking about. Albrighton was at King Power Stadium recently when Leicester threw away a 3-0 lead to lose 4-3 to Southampton. ‘I felt there was massive fear both on the pitch and in the crowd,' he recalls. ‘When they were 3-0 up, I wanted them to enjoy themselves. I know it’s difficult and these are nervous times but I’ve noticed it in a quite a few games. 'The word "fearless" is part of the club’s identity and it’s important not to forget that.’

Good luck with the company that person ends up working for

The world of transfer scouting is now so complex and competitive I think it’s probably a fair assessment to say we have peaked, and if we are not careful all the hard work done trying to create an environment where youngsters want to join from a early age and progress within the catchment area will be undone because children of a certain age won’t remember the “glory years” just like clubs before us that have done well and then fallen of a cliff.

The accounts are always for the previous year

No because, KDH was probably used to balance the season before

Edit

Permitted losses have to be factored in no?

Keep Fatawu till July he goes to the World Cup comes on a sub scores a few James Rodriquez type bangers goes for £80m problem solved

I think it’s imperative we stay up, it will be interesting to see what Leeds posted in their second season, they brought in £110m in sales for year 2 but had similar losses for season one. So if they posted substantial losses for season 2 despite bringing in that cash we really are ****ed as this squad has barely any resale value

I’m not sure why he thought we spent very little £80m/£39m out but that probably didn’t include KDH anyway so probably more like about £10m income from fees out

We haven’t even entered the second season yet, that was Leeds losses for year one back in the championship.