Spend Spend Spend

[Chelmofox]

5 minutes ago, MonkeyTennis? said:

It's great to be going back up, but the club has completely ballsed up its finances, and it needs to be sorted out. Spend, spend, spend, and the casual approach we have taken to financial management has jeopardised anything that might be achieved on the pitch for years to come. It meant we went down (so it didn't even work), it also meant we are looking at repeated points deductions for the next few years, and it makes anything you accomplish look suspect. 

 

So I guess I'm in the 'be more cautious' camp.

Spend spend spend well then?

 

I too don't want to see 100k a week contracts on the table for Harrison, and i don't want to see us paying top dollar for average like Nacho and Preat.  

[iancognito]

Tough one because of the players running down contracts. You need Prem experience (Ndidi, Vesty etc) but they're big earners so do you get 250-300k off the wage bill and find more Fatawu's and Mavididi's? Or keep them and sell others like KDH and Daka that will get fees. Even McAteer would interest a lot of Championship clubs and be pure profit.

 

We can't just keep spending because they will impose sanctions and embargoes on us and then we're properly screwed.

[sylofox]

1 hour ago, Bazly said:

According to press pundits, the EPL has yet to rule on whether to lift or uphold the contracts embargo.

If the embargo holds then no new contracts can be entered into, including for those players like Vardy and Ndidi and Lurch whose contracts are ending. Then, to help lessen the financial breaches which will bring their own sanctions then money is needed from player sales.

If the EPL enforce the transfer embargo (EFL) punishment and pts deduction they are making the prem a joke.

 

I would also expect we then go to court with them.

 

Average age of a city player next season would be at best about 22 if the prem enforce the embargo.

[volpeazzurro]

1 hour ago, Bazly said:

Maybe you haven't heard but there is a ban on recruitment. Not from the board but the football league. Unless this is ignored or removed then its sell sell sell.

I thought this was just the Championship and a bit toothless anyway because it resets at the end of the season? 

[Foxin_Mad]

We don't even know our figures for this year yet. We've obviously cut the wage bill a fair bit since last year, sold Barnes and Timmy, plus 15 mill naming rights on the training ground. Then presumably there is some money for going up. It cost 30 mill to ditch bodgers which was a one off. I'm not sure this year will be anywhere near as bad. We simply hadn't accounted for such a crap season last year. Its was purely Rodgers **** up and we should have ditched him sooner we could have had our deduction this season with the shower of shite currently in the prem and got away with it like Everton and the Red dogs 

Edited 27 April by Foxin_Mad

[Wasyls Pec Deck]

The rules are based on the assumption that ‘excessive’ spend equals sporting advantage. We bucked that trend in spectacular fashion. So if we gained no sporting advantage, and had the spend of a team that matched our previous league position (ie 7th or 8th, which we did), why should we be punished? 

[MGLCFC]

What I have seen this year are players up for the fight. I'd like us to sign players with that attitude, players with something to prove. We don't have to spend stupid money and wages on prima donna's. There are plenty of players out there that with the right coaching can be bought relatively cheaply or are out of contract. With the right application and that team ethic that won us the Premier League, I'm hopeful of a season where we can compete with two thirds of the teams in the League.

[Dahnsouff]

13 minutes ago, Foxin_Mad said:

End of the day if we fully comply with this bullshit FFP bollocks we are going down, look at the teams this year, not even close to staying up with deductions for Forest and Everton, so I'd just tell them get ****ed. Sheffield Utd sold their best to comply with FFP and they are relegated because of it. 

How do you explain Brighton and Brentford?

[Raj]

Who else sang the thread title to "come on let's do the Conga"!!!🤣🤣🤣🙄

[Chelmofox]

Just now, iancognito said:

Tough one because of the players running down contracts. You need Prem experience (Ndidi, Vesty etc) but they're big earners so do you get 250-300k off the wage bill and find more Fatawu's and Mavididi's? Or keep them and sell others like KDH and Daka that will get fees. Even McAteer would interest a lot of Championship clubs and be pure profit.

 

We can't just keep spending because they will impose sanctions and embargoes on us and then we're properly screwed.

I think

• You let all the big earner final year contract players go (Ndidi, Nacho, Vesty, Preat, Sharky).
• Let Yunus go but buy Fatawu, assuming we probably won't hang onto for more than 1 year.
• Sell or Loan the older fringe academy players (Kasey, Brunt,  Marcal etc). Don't leave any hanging around that we know aren't going to make PL standard next year.
• Spend between now and preseason getting Alves, Braybrooke and Nelson ready. And i mean READY. They are key to the next stage and if they are not ready they have to go on loan, but they must be ready. Back 3 needs to be Coady, Faes and Nelson. Braybrooke needs to be rotating with Winks and maybe playing the Ndidi role.
• Sell KDH and Daka.
• Keep Vardy

Dunno what happens with Soumare and Viktor. Sounds like Vik is going to be bought but imagine Soumare will be grinning from ear to ear in a photo on the LCFC site 1st day of pre season. Can Soumare be an Enzo redemption project ()

 

From there on you raid the free xfer market, top tier championship players or relegated players (Hamer, McAtee). Hope there are also some loan options on the table too from Man City relationships and the amazing place Fatawu came from. Gotta get the like of Tielemans and Maddisons out of our heads now.

 

Losing KDH is fine as long as we have someone creative in there to replace. The engine room will come from the wings and the youth players.

 

[Bourbon Fox]

1 hour ago, Mike1983 said:

Fok all this fight for survival, I want us to have the mentality that we're fighting for the title. SPEND.

Isn't that exactly what is blowing up in our faces right now?

Edited 27 April by Bourbon Fox

[Bourbon Fox]

1 minute ago, Chelmofox said:

I think

• You let all the big earner final year contract players go
• Let Yunus go but buy Fatawu
• Sell or Loan the older fringe academy players
• Spend between now and preseason getting Alves, Braybrooke and Nelson ready. 
•  Back 3 needs to be Coady, Faes and Nelson
• Sell KDH and Daka.
• Keep Vardy
• Can Soumare be an Enzo redemption projectm
• Losing KDH is fine

 

I couldn't agree more, this is exactly my thought process except maybe giving Kasey a shot.

 

KDH's value will never be higher, if we can get good money for him now I think we should take it. Centre of midfield needs an overhaul.

[Dahnsouff]

Depends what are aims are next season, as I view two pragmatic options and one less desirable

1. Recruit to stay up
   1. Some sensible seniors, some prospects
   2. Aim to overhaul the inevitable points deduction and make a fist of staying up
2. Recruit to secure our financial future
   1. Mostly prospects but develop to sell
   2. Obviously try to stay up, but accept it’s unlikely 
3. Spend like a nutter in the assumption we can sign players to help us do something inexplicable 
   1. No, don’t be a muppet, this isn’t football manager and lack of sensible care at this point will set us back years

[Chelmofox]

3 minutes ago, Bourbon Fox said:

I couldn't agree more, this is exactly my thought process except maybe giving Kasey a shot.

 

KDH's value will never be higher, if we can get good money for him now I think we should take it. Centre of midfield needs an overhaul.

A season struggling in the PL will drop 5-10 mil from his value, and then you run the risk of injury.

 

If we want to revert to the model that worked you have to sell him in the summer.

 

I'm really not sure about Kasey. Even when he was scoring i wasn't convinced he was much good. Be interesting to know what Enzo really thinks here.

[Paninistickers]

Sign Mikey Johnston. Dunno about anything else tho. 

[Haywood_6]

This is our chance to try and approach things the right way. 

 

1) Find new clubs for the big earners or players who aren't needed such as Thomas, Soumare, Kristiansen, Souttar, Ward, Iversen.  

 

2) Identify players from across the globe who are available at a low cost, who can be coached and developed, who could a high resale value.

 

3) Try and take advantage of free agents and loan players like we did in 14/15 transfer window.

 

That's the only way we get back to being a well run club.

Edited 27 April by Haywood_6

[Clever Fox]

1 hour ago, Bazly said:

According to press pundits, the EPL has yet to rule on whether to lift or uphold the contracts embargo.

If the embargo holds then no new contracts can be entered into, including for those players like Vardy and Ndidi and Lurch whose contracts are ending. Then, to help lessen the financial breaches which will bring their own sanctions then money is needed from player sales.

I doubt very much that it's enforceable in Law. Some of the legal eagles on here can explain more than me.

The ban is against the Club from signing new players.

The players already with the club have a right to negotiate new deals each season otherwise it can be seen as a restraint of trade which is illegal in Law.

[sm1]

I think plenty of clubs, us included for a while, have shown that you dont need to spend big to be competitive. Get rid of the high earners, get a few freebies in Sensi and O'hare. Add a few loan players. The biggest expense will be Fatawu and another left sided player in defence and attack.

[Leeds Fox]

28 minutes ago, Clever Fox said:

I doubt very much that it's enforceable in Law. Some of the legal eagles on here can explain more than me.

The ban is against the Club from signing new players.

The players already with the club have a right to negotiate new deals each season otherwise it can be seen as a restraint of trade which is illegal in Law.

I hope you’re right. Surely a transfer embargo means you can’t sign a player who’s under contract. 
 

You then look at free agent. Anyone currently at the club, who’s contract is due to expire, is essentially a free agent, meaning they’re fair game for us to negotiate with.

[Foxin_Mad]

22 minutes ago, Dahnsouff said:

How do you explain Brighton and Brentford?

Wouldn't surprise me if Brighton struggle next year, they have dropped off a cliff. Brentford have got a good manager on Toney. 

[Claridge]

All we need to do is sign a Mahrez, Kante and Vardy type players, maybe even a little better. We would be fine then. Can't be that difficult surely?

[kingfox]

If the ability is there to sign 2-3-4 players in the £15-20 million bracket like Burnley & Sheffield United did last summer, then that kind of fee needs to go on a LCB, RCM, ST & Fatawu permanently. 
 

Then dip into the free transfer, loan & £5-10 million market to add depth to the squad, especially in the central midfield and wing areas 👍🏻

[Pliskin]

Thing is, you don’t need to spend big. I think we’ve done reasonably well this season, yes EFL standards we’ve over spent, but the prices we’ve paid for most of the players I wouldn’t say is outrageous. 
 

Hermansen was a bargain I’d say. Mavididi too I think is good value for money. Winks again, bargain. We need to shop clever, it’s likely to be a gamble because you’re taking a risk on prospects, but we’ve done it before and generated some good money off it.

[egg_fried_rice]

Big changes are needed to bring us in line with PSR, or we’ll be facing penalties season after season.

[DJ Barry Hammond]

We need to get wages in or around 70/80% of turnover.

 

With the players out of contract - if we can keep some of them, that will not only give us more transfer money to spend against PSR (which at present, we have to assume is in place) it also means we don’t have to actively replace those players - so I expect contracts to be offered to Vardy and Vesty. 
 

IF we could get Ndidi to sign an extension that would be huge.

 

Seems likely Nacho, Albrighton and Praet will be released. Wouldn’t be surprised if we do the same with Ward via a mutual agreement.

 

Of course ideally we’d also like to make some sales - with the likes of Soumare, Christiensen, Thomas and Souttar being prime candidates and maybe Daka.

 

There are also possibly undesired sales to consider - KDH, maybe Mads, possibly Pereira, Justin (2yrs left on contract for those final two).

 

What we can get for those players overall and when will play a big part in what we do the other way.
 

Signing Fawatu is obviously a significant initial transfer outlay. Akgun is potentially another one and who knows about Doyle - and that’s just money to stand still in squad terms.

 

Looking at the potential outs, we’re going to need what - definitely a couple of first team quality midfielders, a left full back/centre back, an inverty fullback, a striker, depth for the wings and a third choice goalkeeper if Ward goes.

 

There’s also an argument that we lack overall quality across the squad so would be on the lookout for direct upgrades on covered squad positions too.

 

But that is a lot of positions to cover.

 

Do we have any youth team players that could make the step up to the first team?
 

Personally I don’t know, but it is a double jump in standard for those players given our promotion.

 

So I think based on this we’ll be trying to deal in the lower end of the transfer fee market, out of contracts and loans this year - not “spend, spend, spending.”

Edited 27 April by DJ Barry Hammond