£75m for 4 useless lumps. Do we just write it off?

[Red Wing Blade]

I've never been Mcburnie's biggest fan but in fairness to him he's looked pretty good coming off the bench and has created a couple of chances, including one of Osborn's goals against Peterborough. He's contributed positively more already this season in his cameos than he did in most of last season.

I'd like to see what he can do starting in a match, but right now Billy is in form and we don't have the luxury to experiment unless we draw lower league opponents in a cup match.

 

[Black Cloud]

The squad needs to be used as the manager requires. Whether a player cost £10m or £10 is no longer relevant when selecting a squad for each match.
If in a transfer window there are some who are not needed then they can be sold or released.

Of course it’s relevant...look at Derby...spent big bucks on shite that has and is draining the life out of the club.
With regards to writing them off then they aren’t cars, they are highly paid individuals on handsome contracts...
If Slav dumps them into the reserves then you can be sure that PA will be giving him a nudge...
Sander has the potential to be quality
MC B would be okay if we had paid £2 million for him
Moose is simply never going to be fit
Brewster is the write off and will end up in the lower leagues. If I’m proved wrong then great..
Burke - see Brewster except there will be no proving wrong

 

[Snowflake]

Of course it’s relevant...look at Derby...spent big bucks on shite that has and is draining the life out of the club.
With regards to writing them off then they aren’t cars, they are highly paid individuals on handsome contracts...
If Slav dumps them into the reserves then you can be sure that PA will be giving him a nudge...
Sander has the potential to be quality
MC B would be okay if we had paid £2 million for him
Moose is simply never going to be fit
Brewster is the write off and will end up in the lower leagues. If I’m proved wrong then great..
Burke - see Brewster except there will be no proving wrong

What we paid is not relevant to who the manager picks to play unless there is interference from above.
It was relevant 12/18 months ago, but it is history, unlike their current wages which are relevant in deciding whether to sell.

 

[Nagima]

What we paid is not relevant to who the manager picks to play unless there is interference from above.
It was relevant 12/18 months ago, but it is history, unlike their current wages which are relevant in deciding whether to sell.

Of course it is relevant. Unless you think it's ok to just write off £75M. The manager should be allowed to pick who he wants but he will also know that in order to prosper in the long term he needs to figure out which of the bunch he can salvage so that if or when they are sold he can redeem enough money to spend on who he wants. So whether we like it or not Berge Brewster and McBurnie should be included in the squad in the best case that they discover some form and help us get promoted or in worst case that they get enough game time so that some club may give us just enough money for us to yeah let's get rid and buy someone els

 

[FallowfieldBlade]

Berge, Brewster, Mcburnie, Mousset. Is it time to just throw in the towel, admit they're completely shite, hope that Stocksbridge Park Steels are in the market for some subs, and write the whole £75m off? The odd big money signing doesn't always work. But all 4 of ours are shite.
How do we move them on? Please discuss......

I think the worst thing we could do is not play them and just put them on the bench but call me a maniac

 

[SB_90]

Berge & Brewster are great players. Brewster been unlucky getting in great positions, but defenders just get their at last second

Mousset its hard to tell as we haven't seen enough of him

Mcburnie was a big mistake

 

[blade too long]

all 3 forwards were starved of service last season
they look to be shite when playing against the best defences in europe
but ronaldo wouldnt have scored more than 3 all season with service they got

as this season goes on i expect all 3 to score goals as they did with other clubs in the championship

 

[Sheff de party]

Berge, Brewster, Mcburnie, Mousset. Is it time to just throw in the towel, admit they're completely shite, hope that Stocksbridge Park Steels are in the market for some subs, and write the whole £75m off? The odd big money signing doesn't always work. But all 4 of ours are shite.
How do we move them on? Please discuss......

We don’t move them. We accept that Berge and Brewster are 23 and 21 and will need time to find their feet.

Mousset has already repaid his fee and McBurnie is proven at this level.

Billy can’t play 90 minutes up top on his every week. We are going to need Brewster, McBurnie and probably Mousset, all of whom can score at this level.

 

[Eyeball]

Berge, Brewster, Mcburnie, Mousset. Is it time to just throw in the towel, admit they're completely shite, hope that Stocksbridge Park Steels are in the market for some subs, and write the whole £75m off? The odd big money signing doesn't always work. But all 4 of ours are shite.
How do we move them on? Please discuss......

Idiot

 

[Snowflake]

Of course it is relevant. Unless you think it's ok to just write off £75M. The manager should be allowed to pick who he wants but he will also know that in order to prosper in the long term he needs to figure out which of the bunch he can salvage so that if or when they are sold he can redeem enough money to spend on who he wants. So whether we like it or not Berge Brewster and McBurnie should be included in the squad in the best case that they discover some form and help us get promoted or in worst case that they get enough game time so that some club may give us just enough money for us to yeah let's get rid and buy someone els

Would the situation be different in your view if we had paid say £5m less for each of them ?
If so at what point does the price paid cease to be relevant ?

 

[Nagima]

Would the situation be different in your view if we had paid say £5m less for each of them ?
If so at what point does the price paid cease to be relevant ?

Well it would be roughly £20M less money spent overall so that should have a more positive impact on transfer budget for the current manager which cuts him and the board slack in their transfer dealings. So taking a £5m loss on a player rather than a £10m loss enters into the decision on selling someone.

That depends on each players circumstance and the manager's and boards. Also to the club's overall debt.
Mousset to me is just a write off.
Same with Burke.
Same with Robinson.
Too far gone and not worth the hassle. Get what you can for them.


McBurnie Brewster and Berge are real difficult ones to decide. If we were Man City we can afford to let them rot in the reserves, sell them cheaply or play them.

But for us what we paid for them ceases to be an issue when we are financially able to cope with selling them for half the price we paid for them considering we paid big money for young talent with potential.

Do I think they will come good and be outstanding for us this season. No I dont think so.I am not optimistic.
Do I think that we cut our losses now and get them gone. No I am not that pessimistic.

Do I think we need to work with them, keep them someway competitive and hopefully spark some outside interest. Yes I do. I just think that is being realistic.

 

[FTPE]

Yes.

 

[Sullyinwagga]

Nor have i given up on Brewster yet, learning the game a different way under Slav?

I feel a bit sorry for Brewster, he has played in a team that has created nothing, he is a goal poacher brought up in the Liverpool system that produced Fowler, Owen I'd stick him in at bog liner give him some ammo and watch him fire, he is not an inside right he's a pure shitliner.

 

[Millhousesblade1889]

Before Brewster signed for us he was full of confidence, great goal ratio for Swansea & had a decent pre season for Liverpool too albeit he missed a penalty in the community shield.

The lack of goals is effecting him more than anything but he needs to work on his positional play. With Gibbs-White & Osborn they will create chances for him.

 

[Prem owner needed]

Another quality “supporter” requiring moving on….how do we get rid of them??

I personally believe that the following will happen in Jan: -

Berge - Loaned abroad, covering his wages and an incoming loan fee. This could also lead to a perm deal.
McBurnie - Will be here until end of the season, then the situation will be reassessed.
Moose - The club will try and find a deal for him, could be loan or perm?
Brewster - I wouldn't rule out the Berge scenario with him, especially a loan to somewhere like Turkey?

The club will be likely focussing on desperately trying to move out Robinson, Burke & Freeman first though, in order to get some loan replacements in. Don't also rule out a sale (Baldock/Bogle, one of the kids if the right price comes in)?

 

[Prem owner needed]

I personally believe that the following will happen in Jan: -

Berge - Loaned abroad, covering his wages and an incoming loan fee. This could also lead to a perm deal.
McBurnie - Will be here until end of the season, then the situation will be reassessed.
Moose - The club will try and find a deal for him, could be loan or perm?
Brewster - I wouldn't rule out the Berge scenario with him, especially a loan to somewhere like Turkey?

The club will be likely focussing on desperately trying to move out Robinson, Burke & Freeman first though, in order to get some loan replacements in. Don't also rule out a sale (Baldock/Bogle, one of the kids if the right price comes in)?

Also, don't rule out perm deals for Davis (currently not having the start to the season that Liverpool will have wanted and may cut a cheap deal in
Jan to get rid of the wages) and Olsen (who's fee will be spread over a number of seasons to make this more affordable).

This will free up further loan spaces.

 

[stringer]

Berge & Brewster are great players. Brewster been unlucky getting in great positions, but defenders just get their at last second

Mousset its hard to tell as we haven't seen enough of him

Mcburnie was a big mistake

We’ve seen a lot more from Mousset than Brewster, at half the price and in a higher league - one a ‘great player’ and the other ‘hard to tell’?

 

[Deadly_D'Jaffo]

As much of a critic I am of Brewster, McBurnie & Berge we have to make peace with the fact they are Sheffield United players, on long term contracts and in all probability are going nowhere until their contracts expire.

That being the case, it's better to reduce our expectations of them all and hope that Slav can get them firing. But he can't do that if his own fans are abusing them on social media.

 

[HVR]

Don't know if anyone else noticed on Saturday but Billy was walking off the pitch with brewster and mcburnie pointing and gesticulating with his hands as though he was going through some of the movements from the game with them, still think there's a striker in both of them I just think they are both short on confidence

Perhaps he was saying something along the lines of "Forget how much you cost, you don't need to do fancy flicks or anything special - just stand here, there or over there. Then pass here and run there."
Hopefully Slav is drilling into Brewster the basics. Start from scratch and learn our game plan - then let your creativity come out after that. From the last few games he's been involved in Brewster definitely seems to be following the flow much better. He's been on the end of a few through balls and has been a bit unlucky not to score.

 

[Black Cloud]

Perhaps he was saying something along the lines of "Forget how much you cost, you don't need to do fancy flicks or anything special - just stand here, there or over there. Then pass here and run there."
Hopefully Slav is drilling into Brewster the basics. Start from scratch and learn our game plan - then let your creativity come out after that. From the last few games he's been involved in Brewster definitely seems to be following the flow much better. He's been on the end of a few through balls and has been a bit unlucky not to score.

And that’s where it is all wrong on every front, record signing, huge wages for someone who basically doesn’t know what to do. Brewster not a fault for that though, Chris to blame closely followed by PA and the board for sanctioning it....
Embarrassing, wonder if we could loan swap RB for Jebbo?

 

[SB_90]

We’ve seen a lot more from Mousset than Brewster, at half the price and in a higher league - one a ‘great player’ and the other ‘hard to tell’?

yes that right but that purple patch of 6 weeks/2 months. was nearly 2 years ago now he was fantastic then i said he could easily play in europa league but how long do we talk his talent from 2019 instead of 2021. he's only played 12 games in 2 years because of his injuries.

Brewster he was very inexpierenced when we bought him of course we didnt know it at the time but i think he made his full professional debut for us. for me watching him in person the last few games. he's a good player & is getting into good positions. just got horrendous luck currently

 

[broomhillblade]

yes that right but that purple patch of 6 weeks/2 months. was nearly 2 years ago now he was fantastic then i said he could easily play in europa league but how long do we talk his talent from 2019 instead of 2021. he's only played 12 games in 2 years because of his injuries.

Brewster he was very inexpierenced when we bought him of course we didnt know it at the time but i think he made his full professional debut for us. for me watching him in person the last few games. he's a good player & is getting into good positions. just got horrendous luck currently

Brewster had already scored 10 goals in 19 appearances for Swansea when we bought him.
McBurnie has scored 46 goals in the league.
Clearly there's some talent there which SUFC has managed to stifle.

 

[ancientblade]

Brewster had already scored 10 goals in 19 appearances for Swansea when we bought him.
McBurnie has scored 46 goals in the league.
Clearly there's some talent there which SUFC has managed to stifle.

43 million down the drain both these lads should be hitting 15/20 goals in the championship we will be lucky if we get 10 goals between em this season

 

[Stu_Blade]

I have watched back McBurnie's goal against Southampton a few times now as well as being there live, admittedly I didn't see it live with being at the back of the South Stand closer to the Bramall Lane end however on the half volley it was some finish against a keeper the size of Forster with him being 6 ft 7 and a big frame from that range you need composure . You do wonder why he hasn't done it in the league is it because of game time or other players not picking him out /creating enough chances is difficult to say or is it in the Championship being the ex Premiership club we have higher expectations and clubs play up to beating us it didn't help being under the spotlight on Sky at the start of the season it's added pressure we didn't need.

 

[ancientblade]

I have watched back McBurnie's goal against Southampton a few times now as well as being there live, admittedly I didn't see it live with being at the back of the South Stand closer to the Bramall Lane end however on the half volley it was some finish against a keeper the size of Forster with him being 6 ft 7 and a big frame from that range you need composure . You do wonder why he hasn't done it in the league is it because of game time or other players not picking him out /creating enough chances is difficult to say or is it in the Championship being the ex Premiership club we have higher expectations and clubs play up to beating us it didn't help being under the spotlight on Sky at the start of the season it's added pressure we didn't need.

because he spends too much time throwing himself to the floor picking fights with opposition players and continually moaning to the ref

 

[nopigfansintown]

The strongest area of our squad is attack and we play with one striker. Don't give me x, y and z are crap -almost every (if not every) manager in this league would take our forward line. All of our defenders (including the wing backs) perform better when playing three at the back yet we play with a back four?! Our midfielders can't run but we play with only two in the middle. Somebody is getting off lightly at Bramall Lane. Very few questions have been asked thus far....

 

[Stu_Blade]

because he spends too much time throwing himself to the floor picking fights with opposition players and continually moaning to the ref

But apart from than that and lack of goals he is all good Even in the Southampton fixture he was at it to be fair. I would be happy with a few tap ins and save the Am Dram to the big buck boys.

 

[Revolution]

The strongest area of our squad is attack and we play with one striker. Don't give me x, y and z are crap -almost every (if not every) manager in this league would take our forward line. All of our defenders (including the wing backs) perform better when playing three at the back yet we play with a back four?! Our midfielders can't run but we play with only two in the middle. Somebody is getting off lightly at Bramall Lane. Very few questions have been asked thus far....

The counterpoint to this is the team was hopeless and winless until:

1. we started playing with players the manager has actually signed and played in a formation he likes.

2. We left x, y and z out of the starting line up and went with the only in form striker we have.

If we offered our forwards, minus Sharp, to the rest of the championship we wouldn’t get as many takers as you think. None of them can score goals to save their lives and they are far too expensive in terms of wages.

I do not give the manager a pass. He made a number of selection errors imho pre international break, but things have improved and part of that is down to him.

 

[nopigfansintown]

The counterpoint to this is the team was hopeless and winless until:

1. we started playing with players the manager has actually signed and played in a formation he likes.

2. We left x, y and z out of the starting line up and went with the only in form striker we have.

If we offered our forwards, minus Sharp, to the rest of the championship we wouldn’t get as many takers as you think. None of them can score goals to save their lives and they are far too expensive in terms of wages.

We knew what was missing to play 3-5-2 or 3-4-1-2 successfully. A ball playing left footed centre back which we've now recruited. A number ten and legs in the middle of the park. We have the number ten(s) but maybe not the legs. If this is the system he's welded too, I'd suggest whoever is responsible for recruitment has made a big mistake there as the legs are need even more for 4-2-3--1. The last two games are looking like we've been found out after a bit of post window optimism against two poor teams.

I take your point on wages. If you offer our personnel over there's they'll take ours. They are players with excellent Championship pedigree that a good manager should get firing again in this league. It strikes me as a bit of desperation to be flogging Sharp two or three times a week.

 

[Revolution]

I do have a lot of time for your theory on 3 at the back. It is clear that recruitment did not go as well as it should have done. Although of course it is nigh on impossible to replace an entire midfield which is arguably what was needed.

Re the forwards, it would be a perfect storm, and unlikely, but the following may prove to be the case:

• Burke is not a striker and has so many technical deficiencies he will never help us
• Mousset will never be fit enough to do anything meaningful whilst still under contract
• Brewster’s Swansea form was a small sample size fluke
• McBurnie has essentially been regressing from summer 2019 onwards

The first 2 are likely to be right, the second 2 not likely, but the longer things go on you have to wonder about Brewster and McBurnie. Strikers do have purple patches and do nothing else notable for years afterwards (Littlejohn, Cadamarteri) and McBurnies decline is unusual but not unprecedented.

3 different managers have tried Brewster and McBurnie at the Lane. There have been different roles and formations. Save for some half decent games 2 years ago and one good game (Leicester) last season McBurnie has done little. Brewster has been a disaster. Neither of them have hit a shot like the one Daniel Jebbison hit the other night. At some point we might have to accept that it’s the players.

As for Sharp - correct. It is desperation. There is no other striker on the books who can do that job in that formation. Sharp has done a decent job at it in every game bar Tuesday. It is an indictment on recruitment and the players that we have 4 young strikers and 3 of them are not up to that role in the opinion of the manager (and, FWIW, that’s also my view) with Mousset’s fitness ruling him out of trying thus far.