Stephen Bettis speaks to local Media

[FATTYFOULKE]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

Forest aren’t worrying about the sustainability of the club though,

”Oh that’s more than we thought. Here you are, thank you very much”

 

[8lade]

“Staton asking the difficult questions that less established mediums have been unable to ask. Quality stuff. Should have happened weeks ago.”

I get the feeling Bettis was busy a few weeks ago.

 

[8lade]

ATM Forest to me look like Wednesday when Chansiri came in the only difference is they won the play offs and have massively benefitted from what was an extraordinary relegation battle in the EPL last season when 2 established teams (and Leeds) were relegated.
There owner is not a billionaire and this will bite them.

 

[Gin&Juice]

ATM Forest to me look like Wednesday when Chansiri came in the only difference is they won the play offs and have massively benefitted from what was an extraordinary relegation battle in the EPL last season when 2 established teams (and Leeds) were relegated.
There owner is not a billionaire and this will bite them.

I feel their owner might get pulled up. Some interesting rumours that have been mentioned.

Fuck knows what happens if they go down.

 

[Silent Blade]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

I have just come to the conclusion that you are a Prince hating troll rather than a genuine Blade!

 

[Moan? Nope-I saw Longhorn]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

Aye
Because you were multi tasking - greeting about SUFC’s ‘inactivity’ whilst simultaneously keeping a ‘weather eye’ on Forest’s transfer gossip / dealings for the preceding month or so & there was no inkling of any (potential) purchases until the ‘shock’ announcements on ‘deadline’ day ?

 

[Maidenhead]

Extremely worrying to have a CEO incapable of taking any responsibility or admitting fault with anything.

• He doesn't think we started the season underprepared.
• He says we did everything we could to keep Iliman.
• He doesn't regret selling Iliman because we made a big profit on him.
• He says we did everything we could to keep Berge.
• He thinks we moved as quickly as we could in the transfer market.

If you just listened to Bettis, you would think the club haven't made a single mistake this summer and everything was perfect. They did all they could and regret nothing.

What an embarrassing interview from a CEO not fit for purpose.

So exactly what mistakes have they made in matters that were completely under their control?

 

[BalticBlade]

I have just come to the conclusion that you are a Prince hating troll rather than a genuine Blade!

I don't hate the prince, I don't love the prince.

 

[The Crab]

Ollie’s emotional investment in Sheffield United is greater than Ndiaye’s in OM. He’s going nowhere any time soon.

That’s apart from the fact that you have no idea about talks between Ollie, his agent & the club.

The wider football world already knows all about Ollie, that hasn’t suddenly happened because he’s gone to Vale.

So you are talking uninformed bollocks, I’m afraid.

Don’t disagree, but Ollie’s performances are sure to raise his profile in my view.

I have no doubt of his emotional investment, but sadly that is a commodity that can be bought if the money is right.

 

[Maidenhead]

At the end of the day, we've got promoted and improved ONE position in the starting lineup (Berge for Hamer), and for the first 4 very important games we've been weaker in several positions because of how slow we've been. Anyone calling that a success is either deluded or incompetent.

I would be interested to see the fully costed details and implementation schedule for your much better plan B

 

[ekke287]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

Forests approach to recruitment seems to be to ask the agent what the player wants and then write up a contract.

It’s already rumoured to be causing them issues.

I like how we’re being run currently, yes we can’t compete with the established Prem teams on new signings but we’re also not having our pants down by players / agents.

Look at the mess Wendy are in, paying Smith and Bannan nearly £50k per WEEK combined. He’s trying to get every penny he can from the fans and the club is only going one way.

If Ndiaye and Berge wouldn’t sign contracts then there’s LITERALLY nothing more we could do. At that point it becomes a different scenario of considering the clubs finances / future as opposed to the fans thinking we’ve not done enough to retain talent.

 

[Rodley]

I get the feeling Bettis was busy a few weeks ago.

We’re all busy mate.

 

[Frank the tank]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

Real Madrid built a new stadium too and the Saudi league just seems to be able to attract and sign players easily

I don't get it

 

[Stretch]

I'll listen later. The one thing I am struggling to understand with Iliman is at a point in time, when all parties had agreed to sign, why he wasn't held to signing there and then to remove any doubt, especially with Marseilles being so dogmatic.

The video stuff should have only been green lighted after this was already wrapped up.

Most salesman will tell you to get the contract signed before celebrating.

Not sure if this makes us naive (if being unkind) or too trusting (if being sympathetic). Seems to be a lesson learned in not counting your chickens.

Going on what he said, they were literally drafting the contracts overnight to be signed the next morning, by which point (in the morning) Ndiaye had a sudden change of heart. Bettis didn't mention this, but it does seem to chime with the story that Ndiaye was all set when the OM president made the infamous "it's now or never" phone call to him, obviously knowing that first thing the next morning, he would have committed to a new contract here. Clearly his Dad or agent (who were feeding the info to OM) went into panic mode and told OM to put the squeeze in him,

Bettis also said they offered to increase his wages again, on what had already been agreed, but Ndiaye made it clear that money was not the issue. He wanted to go.

Twats, the lot of em (OM that is) and as I have said numerous times, but will repeat again for the avoidance of any doubt, I hope OM sinks into the fucking sea.

 

[Ndiayewillalwaysloveyou]

Bettis has actually done a remarkable job recently. He has got the maximum fee for outgoing players, he has landed both number 1 & 2 of our transfers in Mcatee and Archer, kept the players whose contracts nearly ran out and they are still here and balanced the books. So to sum that up, what more could he have done? Iam glad he is at our club.

Just because you've now joined the WhatsApp group with your missus and the blades staff no need to lick ass GHLF

 

[FATTYFOULKE]

Seemed to me that Betis was asked some good questions and answered them as honestly as he could. There didn’t seem to be anything off the table as regards the questions either.

I’m pleased we have him in charge of the finances as opposed to a clueless owner who runs the shop making all the decisions himself. We could do a lot worse than Betis, think how we’ve been run under past regimes and look across the city for evidence on how not to run a football club.

The Prince obviously trusts his expertise while he has the final say over when we sell or buy. The timing of Berge and Ndiaye leaving were down to the players themselves letting the club down.

Ndiaye messed us around to the last minute and then went back on his word.

I’ll never understand the Berge move. To hold out from signing a new contract all that time only to end up going to Burnley of all places. I can only think his agent wanted his 20% cut or something.

I loved Ndiaye but never rated Berge. I’m now glad both are gone and wish neither well in their careers at OM and Burnley.

Going back to Betis, I feel he gets the best deals he can for the club and has turned around what was looking a terrible transfer window into one most of us are happy with. On a limited budget as well.

I hope whoever takes over has the sense to retain his services.

 

[Berkshire Blade]

Don’t disagree, but Ollie’s performances are sure to raise his profile in my view.

I have no doubt of his emotional investment, but sadly that is a commodity that can be bought if the money is right.

Would many other clubs either in the premier league or tipped to go up in the championship be after him after a loan spell at port vale and also have the hometown pull?!

 

[Spot the Vas]

The club gets things wrong because “the club” is a collection of human beings. I also get things wrong for the same reason.

Are you saying that you are a collection of human beings? like three short people standing on each others shoulders, covered in a trench coat?
I'm sorry. That's just where my immature mind went to and it tickled me.

 

[BiggerBladeThanThou]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

 

[Norwood's 6 iron]

Ndiaye messed us around to the last minute and then went back on his word.

I’ll never understand the Berge move. To hold out from signing a new contract all that time only to end up going to Burnley of all places. I can only think his agent wanted his 20% cut or something.

I loved Ndiaye but never rated Berge. I’m now glad both are gone and wish neither well in their careers at OM and Burnley.

It's strange how a player can get convinced by his agent that a move to a particular club at a point in time is a good move for the players career.
I wonder if Mrs Berge is speaking to Sander yet? You can imagine her reaction when he came home and said 'pack your stuff we're moving to Burnley'.
Think Iliman is a slightly different case, but you're right he screwed us over good and proper.
But we shouldn't be surprised, loyalty between employer and employee disappeared sometime ago.

 

[MagnifiqueShorehamStreet]

Bettis has actually done a remarkable job recently. He has got the maximum fee for outgoing players, he has landed both number 1 & 2 of our transfers in Mcatee and Archer, kept the players whose contracts nearly ran out and they are still here and balanced the books. So to sum that up, what more could he have done? Iam glad he is at our club.

If that doesn’t get your Missus a Christmas bonus, I don’t know what will!

 

[Fatlad666]

Having listened to the interview, I thought it was good. Answers giving directly no waffling, straight talking. I am now more clear how we lost illy and sander, and think we got the best money we could. Biggest thing I took from it, was I trust bettis with our money, Unlike the other side of town we are in a positive place.

 

[alcoblade]

This is true but the abortive sale of the club to comedians played into it too. And I also worry about how big a gamble we took. I’m only going to applaud a gamble if the owner can cover its failure.

It wouldn't have been different though. The comedians haven't displaced other interested parties, as far as we can tell.

 

[JohnDenver]

It wouldn't have been different though. The comedians haven't displaced other interested parties, as far as we can tell.

You don’t think the embargo and the stasis with contracts had anything to do with waiting on the sale to Dozy to complete?

 

[alcoblade]

You don’t think the embargo and the stasis with contracts had anything to do with waiting on the sale to Dozy to complete?

I don't know, but definitely not necessarily. The Prince / club was skint. In actual fact, the money Dozy paid (for exclusivity) actual helped, rather than hindered. There was nobody else waiting to come in and pay the bills.

 

[I should coco]

You don’t think the embargo and the stasis with contracts had anything to do with waiting on the sale to Dozy to complete?

No.

The bloke never really had the money. He had 6 months exclusivity and still couldn't scrape it together.
Furthermore, the EFL struggled to approve him as a 'fit and proper person'.
We've all seen the bollock about airlines with no planes and a business empire of straw.

The embargo was a restriction on the club, not on the buyer.
Contracts are a red herring and a new owner could sort them on Day1, if they wanted.

 

[Berkshire Blade]

You don’t think the embargo and the stasis with contracts had anything to do with waiting on the sale to Dozy to complete?

According to the Prince there was over 2 million missing from Dozy's down payment he paid 9 of the 11 million promised apparently. The Prince has already said the embargo itself was over a couple of million.

 

[Zipwire]

How long has Bettis been here. 6/7 years and look at where we are.

Just have a look at some of the people we’ve had in charge of the club at boardroom. Terry Robinson, Julian Winter, Mal Brannigan and another numpty whose name escapes me. We ended up stuck in League One for years.

It‘s obvious how matters are run at the Lane. The Prince gives Bettis a budget for the season, and Bettis manages that budget accordingly, and given the last couple of seasons has managed it well enough and got enough of the right people in to deliver promotion.

We drove a hard bargain for Berge and N’Diaye and used the money to replace them with either like for like players or improved players. Under previous MD’s we wouldn’t have driven the deals like we have or got the replacements we have.

As far as I can see the appointment of Heckingbottom was down to Bettis, he was the eyes and ears on the ground, and if it had been down to the Prince we would have ended up with someone from the Belgian Pro-League.

Some of the decisions he has made might not have been popular, but we have got the 19th biggest budget in a billionaires league, and we are more than punching our weight

 

[shorehamview]

Didn't Forest manage to sign seven players in one day? Not that complex for them

When you go fishing do you use a rod, line and hook, or a case of dynamite? Both get you a fish. One gets you one fish, the other gets you a load of fish, most of which are dead. That’s the Forest approach. Lots of dynamite, fuck the future, get ‘em landed.

 

[Nick Jansky]

To be fair you don’t get many accountants continually using the phrase ‘we wasn’t’. He may be our CEO but he sounds thick

You haven’t worked with some of the accountants I have