It's almost as if

[jono_t2000]

People have forgotten the awful financial position we've only just come out of.

Despite the majority acknowledging we're almost certainties to get relegated especially after losing Ndiaye who no matter who we get in isn't replaceable... People now demanding we go out and spend big.

We had a whole clutch of players in last year of contract which we've sold some for ok'ish money and replaced them with younger players on 4 to 5 year contracts alot of whom we would have no chance of signing if we were still in the championship and putting us in a strong position to bounce back up.

Yet some of us are willing to throw that all away just to increase our chances of staying up by a very small percentage.

It's 38 free hits, we hope to stay up but plan for the worst case and most likely scenario which is relegation.

 

[jono_t2000]

Oops Foxy Linz posted in wrong forum.

Please move to general blades chat

 

[Disco_Blade]

I’d prefer us to buy a striker and at least make the season mildly entertaining and give us some hope of survival. Than hoist a white flag up on top of the Arnold Laver stand in August and await our demise.

This notion of bouncing back, why plan to bounce back to the place you're already in? We’re here and we might as well bloody enjoy it and make ourselves a smidge competitive.

Plus, I don’t think spending on a few more positions is throwing money away, it’s essential maintenance on a team that’s needed it for a while now. There’s only so long that you can cover up the cracks.

 

[wizadry]

If we get relegated and don’t bounce back then we’re basically fucked, the gamble you’re taking by preparing yourselves for relegation, for only then to mount a promotion charge next season is not a very good gamble to make.

The Championship is a very tough league to get out of as we’ve seen in previous years, it’s why we’ve spent a long time in that division over the past fuck knows how many years.

We haven’t spent a penny yet, we’ve had money to spend before we even sold anyone, we get money for promotion through TV rights etc etc, we’ve still got money to spend, we have yet to gamble anything money wise, we’re getting players in that we’ve needed for a few years and players that need replacing from last season, I don’t think it’s hard to say we still need players whether we want to stay up or not, whether we get them or not is up to the incumbents that run our club and transfer negotiators. Feel sorry for Hecky in this regard.

I know every transfer is a gamble to a degree but as far as I can tell the only gambles we might be taking are hopeful punts on players that haven’t proved they can play in England let alone the best league in the world.

 

[Slim Man]

We could do with having something to show for promotion.

Upgraded training facilities?
Upgraded (not painted) stadium facilities?
Upgraded academy?
Players held down on long term contracts?
A number of development talents purchased for the next few years.

I’ll take anything. At the moment the PL money is just going into plugging gaps created by poor financial planning and a board that don’t know how to run a football club. It’s pathetic.

No one expects us to ‘spend big’ but as it stands we’re still in net profit and we’re 2 games into the season. Oh and the Prince has declared we apparently have plenty of budget to spend and we can even pay someone 100k if we see fit from that budget.

 

[Berkshire Blade]

The position we found ourselves at the start of the summer is all down to not selling post the play off loss and rebuilding/refreshing slightly. Instead we went all in and risked it all. We got away with it and got promotion. If we didn't the state we would be in would have been terrible!

We may turn out to be stronger in the championship next season but it's hardly anything worth getting excited about in August 2023

 

[3Cheers4Ramirez]

People have forgotten the awful financial position we've only just come out of.

Despite the majority acknowledging we're almost certainties to get relegated especially after losing Ndiaye who no matter who we get in isn't replaceable... People now demanding we go out and spend big.

We had a whole clutch of players in last year of contract which we've sold some for ok'ish money and replaced them with younger players on 4 to 5 year contracts alot of whom we would have no chance of signing if we were still in the championship and putting us in a strong position to bounce back up.

Yet some of us are willing to throw that all away just to increase our chances of staying up by a very small percentage.

It's 38 free hits, we hope to stay up but plan for the worst case and most likely scenario which is relegation.

What kind of net spend is 'spending big' ?

 

[Snowflake]

People have forgotten the awful financial position we've only just come out of.

Despite the majority acknowledging we're almost certainties to get relegated especially after losing Ndiaye who no matter who we get in isn't replaceable... People now demanding we go out and spend big.

We had a whole clutch of players in last year of contract which we've sold some for ok'ish money and replaced them with younger players on 4 to 5 year contracts alot of whom we would have no chance of signing if we were still in the championship and putting us in a strong position to bounce back up.

Yet some of us are willing to throw that all away just to increase our chances of staying up by a very small percentage.

It's 38 free hits, we hope to stay up but plan for the worst case and most likely scenario which is relegation.

Very true.
I suspect whatever plan the club is pursuing will not sit well with those who think we are playing a video game.

 

[badgeblade]

I’d prefer us to buy a striker and at least make the season mildly entertaining and give us some hope of survival. Than hoist a white flag up on top of the Arnold Laver stand in August and await our demise.

This notion of bouncing back, why plan to bounce back to the place you're already in? We’re here and we might as well bloody enjoy it and make ourselves a smidge competitive.

Plus, I don’t think spending on a few more positions is throwing money away, it’s essential maintenance on a team that’s needed it for a while now. There’s only so long that you can cover up the cracks.

 

[DeanLearner'sCat]

I don't think people are demanding big spending. Just that we spend the £20m we started with plus the money we got for Ndiaye and Berge (£30-35m?). And that we might have done some of this sooner and not write off the first month of the season. I don't think these are unreasonable things to ask.

 

[BigBed]

From a business point of view, with the club, not players!, its understandable that the Prince has used the cash to pay debts and make the club as a whole more attractive to new buyers, obviously the playing staff could be better, but new owners may have their own ideas as to who that/they should be???

 

[CPB]

I think most fans are not expecting us to spend loads actually.
Most fans are understanding of the financial position, and aren't expecting us to spend 100m.

But I think it's more so the way its unravelled and planned. We started last week with a severely decimated squad and line up regards our midfield and striking options.
We want the best signings possible but feels like we just haven't quite planned for eventualities of losing Sander and N'Diaye and haven't acted swift enough in the market.
We've signed alot it seems that are potential gambles rather than definite improvements on the squad. Traore seems useful already but is a gamble, Souza I would think once fit is a 1st teamer but that will be a while. But Slimane and Larouchi are gambles. Hamer I wouldn't be surprised if it's the best signing we make.
Davies has experience in the PL, bit of reservation on what he will bring but he could be useful!

I am expecting that by end of window we will have a stronger squad of course than what we had on the 1st of August but we will be 3 games in having played 2 matches that ideally we should be looking at getting some pointage out of. Hecky's even alluding that the way we play is likely to change because of the personnel changes.
That's fine but normally you do this in June/July not after the season started.

 

[loveWalrusDaveTheBlade]

People have forgotten the awful financial position we've only just come out of.

Despite the majority acknowledging we're almost certainties to get relegated especially after losing Ndiaye who no matter who we get in isn't replaceable... People now demanding we go out and spend big.

We had a whole clutch of players in last year of contract which we've sold some for ok'ish money and replaced them with younger players on 4 to 5 year contracts alot of whom we would have no chance of signing if we were still in the championship and putting us in a strong position to bounce back up.

Yet some of us are willing to throw that all away just to increase our chances of staying up by a very small percentage.

It's 38 free hits, we hope to stay up but plan for the worst case and most likely scenario which is relegation.

Thanks for this. A very good summary of where I’m at.

Failing to gain promotion last season would have resulted in unmitigated financial disaster, which was plain to see for all of us. I think back to those games in the final third of last season when Boro were closing the gap on us week on week, and well remember the sense of dread, given the financial stakes for which we were playing. I wasn’t alone - I’d never been in the Lane when it was nearly full, and yet so quiet. I thought at the time - just get over the line, put the books straight with the Premier League money, and then never repeat the mistakes that have got us into this mess.

Of course, now that the Blades have held their nerve better than the crowd, pulled through and secured promotion, thoughts rightly move towards higher ambition. We can’t afford, however, to forget the lesson that the experience taught us.
Building a squad for Premier League survival vs. a squad to bounce back after relegation isn’t an either / or. I personally think that the players we’ve brought in so far significantly improve our chances of staying up, and I think this will be further bolstered by two quality loan signings alongside further permanent signings. As importantly, we seem to be cutting our cloth accordingly this time around, and recognising that there is a significant risk of relegation, which I applaud.

I don’t think we can gamble on spending beyond our means, and then hoping for new ownership to bale us out later. I hope I’m wrong, but I have doubts as to whether the Prince is wholehearted in his efforts to sell us... asking price, timewasting with probable non-starter candidates, trailing his coat about retaining a stake....all of these give me cause for doubt. I think that this one could run for a while yet.

 

[wizadry]

I think most fans are not expecting us to spend loads actually.
Most fans are understanding of the financial position, and aren't expecting us to spend 100m.

But I think it's more so the way its unravelled and planned. We started last week with a severely decimated squad and line up regards our midfield and striking options.
We want the best signings possible but feels like we just haven't quite planned for eventualities of losing Sander and N'Diaye and haven't acted swift enough in the market.
We've signed alot it seems that are potential gambles rather than definite improvements on the squad. Traore seems useful already but is a gamble, Souza I would think once fit is a 1st teamer but that will be a while. But Slimane and Larouchi are gambles. Hamer I wouldn't be surprised if it's the best signing we make.
Davies has experience in the PL, bit of reservation on what he will bring but he could be useful!

I am expecting that by end of window we will have a stronger squad of course than what we had on the 1st of August but we will be 3 games in having played 2 matches that ideally we should be looking at getting some pointage out of. Hecky's even alluding that the way we play is likely to change because of the personnel changes.
That's fine but normally you do this in June/July not after the season started.

Great post and I hope you’re right regards the end of the window, even though as you quite rightly pointed out should’ve been sorted already, especially considering they’ve apparently been actively looking to sell Berge for some time.

 

[HarryHaslam]

I’d be happy if we didn’t spend big now but loaned big, either Doyle/McAtee and then a quality striker in on loan perhaps with a loan to buy if we stay up.

Doyle though seems to be a no go now according to DS.

 

[Flippity Gibbert]

Very true.
I suspect whatever plan the club is pursuing will not sit well with those who think we are playing a video game.

Perhaps we should ask Chancers lad to help out then

 

[Iffy Onuora's Shiny Head]

The fact we are in this 'position' is what frustrates people most.

We constatnly joke about 'wages tho' as reasons for not getting people when we were last Promoted, yet for some reason we seem in as bad a position as those that did spend big on wages and get relegated still.

Something somewhere just doesn't add up for me - perhaps its the saddling of debt to fund the purchase of the club or whatever. But there is no way we should be in such a frugal position.

 

[s20Blade]

Why has everyone jumped on this we're skint bandwagon all of a sudden? We're in the richest league in the world with the highest tv revenue and probably reward money. We didn't overspend last time when you consider we got 2 years prem money, Parachute payments and ended up making money on ramsdale and got a decent chunk back from Berge!

Do other prem clubs rely on free transfers and we're here throwing away money ???

 

[Snowflake]

I’d prefer us to buy a striker and at least make the season mildly entertaining and give us some hope of survival. Than hoist a white flag up on top of the Arnold Laver stand in August and await our demise.

This notion of bouncing back, why plan to bounce back to the place you're already in? We’re here and we might as well bloody enjoy it and make ourselves a smidge competitive.

Plus, I don’t think spending on a few more positions is throwing money away, it’s essential maintenance on a team that’s needed it for a while now. There’s only so long that you can cover up the cracks.

True, but maybe the next 10 days or so will gift you what you are hoping for.

 

[raimond]

People have forgotten the awful financial position we've only just come out of.

Despite the majority acknowledging we're almost certainties to get relegated especially after losing Ndiaye who no matter who we get in isn't replaceable... People now demanding we go out and spend big.

We had a whole clutch of players in last year of contract which we've sold some for ok'ish money and replaced them with younger players on 4 to 5 year contracts alot of whom we would have no chance of signing if we were still in the championship and putting us in a strong position to bounce back up.

Yet some of us are willing to throw that all away just to increase our chances of staying up by a very small percentage.

It's 38 free hits, we hope to stay up but plan for the worst case and most likely scenario which is relegation.

All very fair and I've wondered the same. Fair enough we're all frustrated but some folk are choosing to forget the shit we were/are in- we took a massive gamble on getting up and God knows the state we'd be in right now if we hadn't. But in administration and watching a team of kids at the bottom of the Championship is probably not far from the truth.

All I would say is (and fair play for the Hamer signing) if we're up for signing someone for £15m and look like not getting them, but £18m would, and would give us our best chance of sneaking survival and bagsying another £120m, surely that's worth a sniff? Not doing owt crazy, but just having a little gamble? But if it's not there, it's not there.

 

[loveWalrusDaveTheBlade]

Why has everyone jumped on this we're skint bandwagon all of a sudden? We're in the richest league in the world with the highest tv revenue and probably reward money. We didn't overspend last time when you consider we got 2 years prem money, Parachute payments and ended up making money on ramsdale and got a decent chunk back from Berge!

Do other prem clubs rely on free transfers and we're here throwing away money ???

It’s surely been clear for a while that the Prince hasn’t got the necessary funds to run the club? The fact that we were in a transfer embargo for part of last season, and rumoured to be having problems in paying suppliers, adds weight to this view.
For what it’s worth, I don’t think we are skint. I think we have some systemic debts, eg from the ownership struggle, and need to spend some of our new-found riches on stabilising the ship financially. Beyond that, I think we have enough cash to be competitive, we just need to spend it wisely and not overstretch ourselves.
As usual, I think the answer lies between the two extremes.

 

[Revolution]

Why has everyone jumped on this we're skint bandwagon all of a sudden? We're in the richest league in the world with the highest tv revenue and probably reward money. We didn't overspend last time when you consider we got 2 years prem money, Parachute payments and ended up making money on ramsdale and got a decent chunk back from Berge!

Do other prem clubs rely on free transfers and we're here throwing away money ???

Indeed. People keep going on about the mistakes we made last time as if we'd spent like Todd Boehly.

This is not true. For us, we spent a hell of a lot. But our wage bill and transfer fees combined were well below what other clubs were spending, save I think Norwich. We made the biggest profit of any team in Europe in the year to June 2020.

Where we were unlucky, as the Prince rightly tells us, is that we lost 25 to 30 million due to Covid.
'
We could spend more this year without bankrupting ourselves. We can factor this year's TV income, or borrow on the security of it, as we have done in the past. We have chosen not to.

I think the Prince's reluctance to do more is coloured by his attempts to sell the club and the poor return he has had from the 3 20 million plus signings, to varying degrees.

The biggest error this summer is not the purchasing strategy. it was selling Ndiaye, which will kill us as sure as selling Deano did in 1993.

 

[vegleeds]

The biggest error this summer is not the purchasing strategy. it was selling Ndiaye, which will kill us as sure as selling Deano did in 1993.

How could we not have sold him? He told us very late in the day that he wanted to go after taking part in a Blades promotional video for the new season. Under these circumstances, if we'd refused his leaving request, could we really have expected him to give his all for the Blades when his heart was 100% wanting to play at his boyhood favourite club? Even a bidding war with another more prosperous club seemed out of the question.

 

[Revolution]

How could we not have sold him? He told us very late in the day that he wanted to go after taking part in a Blades promotional video for the new season. Under these circumstances, if we'd refused his leaving request, could we really have expected him to give his all for the Blades when his heart was 100% wanting to play at his boyhood favourite club?

Yes we could.

He played in a pre season friendly the day before. He always tried his best and they would have continued.

United could also have told Marseille to do one. They did a number of things in the run up to the deal that was tapping up.

 

[Sean Thornton]

Indeed. People keep going on about the mistakes we made last time as if we'd spent like Todd Boehly.

This is not true. For us, we spent a hell of a lot. But our wage bill and transfer fees combined were well below what other clubs were spending, save I think Norwich. We made the biggest profit of any team in Europe in the year to June 2020.

Where we were unlucky, as the Prince rightly tells us, is that we lost 25 to 30 million due to Covid.
'
We could spend more this year without bankrupting ourselves. We can factor this year's TV income, or borrow on the security of it, as we have done in the past. We have chosen not to.

I think the Prince's reluctance to do more is coloured by his attempts to sell the club and the poor return he has had from the 3 20 million plus signings, to varying degrees.

The biggest error this summer is not the purchasing strategy. it was selling Ndiaye, which will kill us as sure as selling Deano did in 1993.

We haven’t used Macquarie to fund cash flow this season?

 

[Revolution]

We haven’t used Macquarie to fund cash flow this season?

You tell me.

 

[Sean Thornton]

You tell me.

You said we hadn’t.

“We could spend more this year without bankrupting ourselves. We can factor this year's TV income, or borrow on the security of it, as we have done in the past. We have chosen not to.”

I wonder what the new charges registered at CH were for?

 

[Shakespeare blade]

I just want us to have a plan in place and stop bending over for anyone who show the slightest interest in our players, so many on last year contracts means any of them could go same as illi or Berge, reinvest the money but get it done, it’s disgraceful we find ourselves still well short for our next match still needing 5-6 players, which we know in reality will only be 2-3 players signed on the last day.
We have missed an opportunity to get our season off to a flyer against two teams who will undoubtedly be close to relegation as will we, giving both a 3 point head start potentially is unforgivable.
The senior management at this club is a disgrace, slow and painfully inept.
I’m happy not to be splashing the cash risking our future but feel doing nothing leaves us in the same boat regarding our future.
I’m not signing up to this bollocks the players wanted to go, fine so what, they signed a contract, they go when we’re in a position to replace them end of, grow a set and hold out, have a plan ffs.
Now by all accounts trying to cheap ball our way through replacing said players, I have no idea what’s the real story but we can only go on our previous reputation for doing the same.
I feel for hecky who has been shit on from a great height and even made his feelings known during interviews and yet he’s got one player through the door who’s not match fit.
I’m sure the club are working on potential players but give hecky and players a chance

 

[vegleeds]

He played in a pre season friendly the day before. He always tried his best and they would have continued.

And he helped make a video indicating that he was staying with the Blades. Once he'd done that, "trying his best" off the pitch would surely have meant him staying with the blades and not letting them down? Not easy for me to retain exactly the same confidence in him as before but others such as you apparently can. All a matter of opinion though isn't it and now we'll never know for sure.

 

[Revolution]

You said we hadn’t.

“We could spend more this year without bankrupting ourselves. We can factor this year's TV income, or borrow on the security of it, as we have done in the past. We have chosen not to.”

I wonder what the new charges registered at CH were for?

I meant we have chosen not to spend more. Sorry, not worded very well.