Should we sell Billy?

[snootyfenooty]

At the moment, a big no. There's plenty of life and goals left in him yet. The real issue is going to arise a couple of years down the road when we have a clutch of overpaid 34-35 year olds padding out the squad and everyone is asking what the fuck is going on. We should keep renewing his contract on a yearly basis (as we should have done with the others) and take the necessary action based on current performance.

 

[FTPE]

I wouldn't.
Whether he's a starter or not he encapsulates everything that is good about us at the moment. Even as a squad player he brings more to the group than the 500k we would get for him.
Unlike Wilder I'm both loyal AND sentimental though too.

 

[Davalon]

Ignoring whether you think he should be a prominent squad member, bearing in mind he signed a contract extension on what I imagine could be anything like 10k a week, who realistically will match that anyway.

If he wanted yo leave I can't see him doing anything other than taking a hit.

All hypothetical anyway I'd guess.

 

[HighfieldBlade]

Paper lace.....Nottingham band,although one of the members was Sheffield born..

Who sang that Aga-do-do-do song then?

 

[DronnieBlade]

Now Brayford has gone, I’d suggest Sharp is the highest paid player at the club. Circa £13 k per week. Perhaps £15k with bonuses etc.

Does this become a factor given the managers stated requirement to manage the budget ??

Could finance a big un with the proceeds !

UTB

 

[BushBlade]

Who sang that Aga-do-do-do song then?

Black Lace

 

[HighfieldBlade]

Black Lace

FFS, all these laces have got me tied up in knots. Cheers

 

[Mesut Özil's Lawnmower]

Of course we should sell him.

Now he is 31 he is physically incapable of scoring another goal for us. The one on Saturday obviously didn't count. as it was a penalty.

We should also think about selling Leon as he hasn't scored since 1/1/18 which is four weeks ago.

I'd also sell Ched as some very knowlegable people on here say he won't do it at this level.

Donaldson is far too old so he has to go and that useless kid Brooks can't even be bothered to turn out for training at the moment.

What are Diego and Connor Sammon doing these days?

Well now you mention it...

 

[Blend-it-like-Harris]

Losing Coutts has had an enormous knock-on effect on the rest of the team, and Billy's game is probably the one that's suffered most. With our midfield buzzing and our wing-backs and flank centre backs bombing forward all over the opposition like SAS commandos it made so much space for Billy to wander any which-way & loose in order to terrorise defenders and get his goals. Adapting to the loss of Coutts has been difficult and Wilder has had to change the way we play; going more direct with less close support from the midfield and attacking defenders. This requires Clarke and Donaldson as our front two - Billy's game isn't about facing lofted balls from the back with his back up against 6 foot+ centre-backs and facing his own goal.
We'll see him back to his best again once the new signings bed-in and we get back to where we were before the Burton game.
As for the original post "Should we sell Billy" - YOU CANNOT BE SERIOUS!!!!

 

[chipsncake]

Last Saturday, once again, he was very poor. It wouldn't be the end of the world if he moved on.

 

[DronnieBlade]

Last Saturday, once again, he was very poor. It wouldn't be the end of the world if he moved on.

Agree.

Not tall enough.

UTB

 

[5tannington Blade]

How fickle are some of our fans, he was god's gift less than a year ago and was a big part of our success at the start of this season. He can still do a job even if it is more off the bench in the future. We owe it to him to be at least with us til the end of next season.

We would still be in league one if it wasn't for the lad and he still has an influence in the dressing room. I agree there's no room for sentiment but Billy can still do a job for us.

 

[5tannington Blade]

Let's not forget what he's great at, latching on to bits in the box and putting them away.

Has everyone forgotten Elland road already?!

 

[8lade]

FFS, all these laces have got me tied up in knots. Cheers

Terrible joke but you get a 'like' for the excellent set-up.

 

[Liverpool blade]

Selling billy is just pure nonsense. He's vital to the first team as he's a predator in the penalty area( Elland road is a classic example). Wilder knows how to utilise billy in games!. In wilder we trust. Utb

 

[Bayingblade]

How fickle are some of our fans, he was god's gift less than a year ago and was a big part of our success at the start of this season. He can still do a job even if it is more off the bench in the future. We owe it to him to be at least with us til the end of next season.

It's not a case of the fans being fickle at all, it's a case of them commenting on what they see. Yes, Billy led us to the title last season and he is to be appreciated for that But we are no longer in league 1 and sadly, Billy has never really done it t this level and he is not going to improve. People state that his game is based around picking up chances in the box but unfortunately, the championship doesn't allow for that much these days. Strikers have to offer much more than just picking up scraps around the 6 yard box. And sadly, this is where Billy falls down, literally in many cases. He is not quick, he is not mobile and for a well built lad, often goes to ground easily. Consequently, he has become less and less effective as the weeks have gone by and is falling down the pecking order. Should we sell? Tough one as it's very difficult to put a value on him. At 32, he would really only go to league 1 and I can't see many paying more than what £200k? Then there's his wages. Having said that, the last thing I want to see is Billy slowly getting worse and worse at SUFC and becoming a forlorn figure. I would certainly keep him until the end of this season and then probably look to move on as he will be way down the pecking order come the summer, regardless of what division we are in (providing we don't go down). He will still have something to offer, but not at this level.

We would still be in league one if it wasn't for the lad and he still has an influence in the dressing room. I agree there's no room for sentiment but Billy can still do a job for us.

You sentimental old booby!

If the rumours of his wages (£10k+ pw) are true, it's a very expensive motivator we have. I would suggest that could be better utilised. I would be more than happy to see Billy as part of the coaching staff come next season but I am not sure he will feel he is ready for that. Maybe a swansong at somewhere like Scunny or Donny before he returns to the coaching setup.

 

[cahill]

Keep’him, rather see him,stuffed on a wall than banging em in for another club lower down the pyramid

 

[Kevincarterversion2.0]

Last Saturday, once again, he was very poor. It wouldn't be the end of the world if he moved on.

Apart from winning the penalty, scoring the penalty, ensuring we won the game to get a PL team in the next round. ;o)

 

[ljk]

Shame he didn’t come on in the second half.

Today was the kind of game that Billy Sharp has made a career on ‘finding a way to win’, to use Wilder’s own phrase.

Anybody who wants him shipped out should bear that in mind.

 

[bakeblade]

Shame he didn’t come on in the second half.

Today was the kind of game that Billy Sharp has made a career on ‘finding a way to win’, to use Wilder’s own phrase.

Anybody who wants him shipped out should bear that in mind.

Agree and i'd have brought him on against Wednesday. He might have made the difference.

 

[DronnieBlade]

It’s beginning to look rather like young William might have a bit of soul searching to do in the next 24 hours.

It won’t have gone unnoticed by any interested parties he got 0 minutes. Again !

UTB

 

[Smirth]

Don’t really think he would have got anything tonight against a very well marshalled villa defence. There were very few loose balls in the box which he could have latched on to, and he wouldn’t have had the pace to draw players out of position.

Wilson did well tonight for me. He was energetic, quick, and always on the move. A few things didn’t come off for him but he will contribute a lot I think. This makes Sharp 4th choice now, and with the clamour for Evans to get more game time and be given an opportunity he could very soon be 5th choice.

He won’t go anywhere tomorrow but I envisage him having to make a decision in the summer.

 

[speedymcgeady]

Who sang that Aga-do-do-do song then?

Black lace

 

[I should coco]

It won’t have gone unnoticed by any interested parties he got 0 minutes. Again !

Yeah bloody waster!

What did he do with those 0 minutes? He never even looked like scoring in the time he wasn't on the pitch.

Get rid now!

 

[mosbolad]

What did Billy ever do for us?.........

 

[Blend-it-like-Harris]

It's not a case of the fans being fickle at all, it's a case of them commenting on what they see. Yes, Billy led us to the title last season and he is to be appreciated for that But we are no longer in league 1 and sadly, Billy has never really done it t this level and he is not going to improve. People state that his game is based around picking up chances in the box but unfortunately, the championship doesn't allow for that much these days. Strikers have to offer much more than just picking up scraps around the 6 yard box. And sadly, this is where Billy falls down, literally in many cases. He is not quick, he is not mobile and for a well built lad, often goes to ground easily. Consequently, he has become less and less effective as the weeks have gone by and is falling down the pecking order. Should we sell? Tough one as it's very difficult to put a value on him. At 32, he would really only go to league 1 and I can't see many paying more than what £200k? Then there's his wages. Having said that, the last thing I want to see is Billy slowly getting worse and worse at SUFC and becoming a forlorn figure. I would certainly keep him until the end of this season and then probably look to move on as he will be way down the pecking order come the summer, regardless of what division we are in (providing we don't go down). He will still have something to offer, but not at this level. You sentimental old booby!

If the rumours of his wages (£10k+ pw) are true, it's a very expensive motivator we have. I would suggest that could be better utilised. I would be more than happy to see Billy as part of the coaching staff come next season but I am not sure he will feel he is ready for that. Maybe a swansong at somewhere like Scunny or Donny before he returns to the coaching setup.

It's appropriate I think after Billy's performance yesterday, to remind ourselves how daft and totally riduculous some fans views are!

 

[Weasel]

If Utd got rid of Billy now or in the pre season, I would think that CW had lost the plot.

Luckily CW knows what he's doing.

 

[Blend-it-like-Harris]

It's incomprehensible to me that fans can't see what is so blindingly obvious. With the return to basics yesterday - a team that was exactly the same as on the opening day of the season, apart from Evans for Coutts of course, we saw Billy back at his best. We were back on the front foot, with players having the confidence to get forward in numbers from both midfield and also from defenders who knew they had cover when they did, and creative outlets that could get us behind the opposition and get the ball into key areas. Billy had the freedom again to drop back into space, move towards the flanks and pull central defenders out of their comfort zones. After the Burton game we have been in a transition period and tactics changed to try and mitigate the circumstances of dealing with the loss of one of our best players. The arrival of Evans shows promise; we may now have someone who can plug the hole that Coutts left. Expect Billy and his side-kick little magician to help us get our Mojo back so we get back in the play-offs. Then it's all to play for folks!

 

[Bayingblade]

It's appropriate I think after Billy's performance yesterday, to remind ourselves how daft and totally riduculous some fans views are!

Billy had his best game of the season yesterday and was definitely a horse for that course. But he’s struggled on other courses this season. Not all fans are blinkered by bladey bladeness.

 

[super_pig]

'football manager' and games of that ilk have a lot to answer for i reckon