Confirmed released list

[Silent Blade]

I also quoted multiple news reports which backed the up the 2 year contract.

It doesnt look like the club took the 1 year option unless Wallace had a miracle cure. Even Foxy isnt sure if it was 2 year with 1 year option. I quoted a link about pre-contracts in response to your post. There are numerous players who have signed pre contracts as early as in January. My friend's son signed a pre contract for Rangers last January

 

[Patrick Suffaux]

Let's hope Adkins gets a job soon and signs Hammond.

 

[Esablade]

How can you blame the board?

They are ambitious and support their manager to bring the top targets to the club.

We took ages negotiated with Hammond joining the club. I remember many Blades saying "pay him what he wants" and "and there's no way well but a PL player because we're not ambitious enough".

Similar situation with McDonald. His demands were unreasonable but most Blades said "give him what he wants we must keep him", so he signs for us as long as we accept a £30K bid from another club.

I keep saying it over and over. We have the most ambitious board in league 1 and pay the highest wages and rightly so but many ages take the pi$$.

This explains why the board expect quick results from the manager and explains why Adkins was sacked.

...in addition to this I believe our 'highly ambitious' board bought just one player last season...how do you square that up?

 

[Therusstler]

It's business, Bert would like to see the back of him but not for one minute does Bert blame him for what he's done. The money is on offer so he's taken it.

Mate, I'll post you a hundred quid if you please stop talking in third person.

 

[LoughboroBlade]

If you were Wallace wouldn't you activate the clause?

No, I'd hope I was good enough to warrant a longer deal elsewhere, so I'd decline it and trust that as a free agent I could make that happen. It appears he isn't confident that others value his unseen work...

 

[Therusstler]

It's business, Bert would like to see the back of him but not for one minute does Bert blame him for what he's done. The money is on offer so he's taken it.

Actually forget the hundred, I've sorted it.

I've made a browser extension that changes your username to "Bert's medium" that way I can imagine you're 'channelling' Bert's thoughts and the tense makes sense.

 

[northsomersetblade]

s

Actually forget the hundred, I've sorted it.

I've made a browser extension that changes your username to "Bert's medium" that way I can imagine you're 'channelling' Bert's thoughts and the tense makes sense.

It wants to steal the precious

 

[FatLadFromSheffield]

Let's face it he doesn't give a fuck about this club.

Why should he? I don't give a fuck for the company I work for, I'm just there for the money and once I find a better offer I'll be gone.

Hammond won't get a better offer elsewhere so it makes sense for him to take the money whilst his agent looks for another club. It's the clubs fault for putting such clause in place for him to activate.

Going off the Hammond topic, this summer will be very interesting I think.

 

[Revolution]

Why sign on somewhere you are so universally, dare I say unanimously disliked??

Money.

 

[Goodpinchofclough]

Has Baxter been mentioned at all?

 

[Silent Blade]

Has Baxter been mentioned at all?

Yes, he is named as one of the ten that are released

 

[LoughboroBlade]

Ok, let's move way from the Hammond clusterfuck and look at the announcements as a whole:

Released:
Mark Howard – good decision, inconsistent and whilst he started well Long has arguably passed him in current usefulness
Bob Harris – good decision, had some good moments but was defensively dodgy in his first full season and injury prone last season as his nonentity of a loan spell showed
Callum McFadzean – good decision, zero progression following initial promise
Terry Kennedy – sadly a very correct decision, as fitness-wise he's no use
Harrison McGahey – unable to warrant a run in the side when we've had poor centre-half options for two seasons.
Jay McEveley – not as appalling as many though, but I think the time is right to move on
Florent Cuvelier – we'll always have the memories of that League Cup game...
Ryan Flynn – might have warranted a squad role, but ultimately unable to deliver consistency
Jose Baxter – a non-descript end to a huge disappointment. Let the club down massively after we supported him a year ago
Jamal Campbell-Ryce – some good moments, but too inconsistent


Transfer listed:
Kieron Freeman – yep
Kieran Wallace – surprising, as till the recent injury rumours most had expected him to be back involved
James Wallace – urgh
Dean Hammond – understandable position for Hammond to insert this option as part of an agreement to drop down two divisions, but a horrendous scenario for Wilder
Paul Coutts – yep
Martyn Woolford – yep
Diego De Girolamo – the fact the man who has had first hand experience of giving him a first team run has immediately listed should be a wake up call for both the player and the fans that cry for his inclusion

I'd have potentially added Scougs and McNulty to the listed group, but perhaps he thinks he can get something out of them – I'm willing to see him try. The other thing to note is that listing players may be giving them a massive kick up the arse rather than necessarily wanting rid – see O'Toole from last season.

Overall, bravo Wilder – a list that is probably much longer than what Adkins would have come up with. No wonder this has taken a while, and despite the suggestions of others this absolutely shouldn't have been done without Wilder's involvement.

 

[SB_90]

We all knew clearout was coming more drastic than I expected with 10 released & 7 transfer listed but this clearout is 12 mths late because shouldve been done last may. Not many surprises in either list. It's shame but needed to say goodbye to Kennedy, culivier, diego & baxter as had such high hopes for them but recurring injuries, mystery & drugs meant luck has intervened & it hasnt worked out, Jose baxter is the biggest disappointment because on his day he has the best ability in squad. Im still in awe of that 60yd amazing pass to sharp v Bradford, where it would've been lauded if in Premier league & I believe he has potential to play in championship or even premier league like a Bournemouth or Swansea. but 2nd drugs offence has rightfully forced clubs hand

Hammond is stupid, deluded or both what's not in doubt. he's a joke activating his permanent contract option only to be rightfully immediately transfer listed. He's needs to be put in whatever player version of gardening leave. & either sell him or force him to leave. But all in all cant remember the last time a utd manager had a greater 1St week

 

[LoughboroBlade]

this clearout is 12 mths late because shouldve been done last may

Somewhat tough given most were still in contract. Wilder had the chance of the sort of clean sweep not easily offered to Adkins, given most moves would have required selling the players.

 

[sheffielder]

Ok, let's move way from the Hammond clusterfuck and look at the announcements as a whole:

Released:
Mark Howard – good decision, inconsistent and whilst he started well Long has arguably passed him in current usefulness
Bob Harris – good decision, had some good moments but was defensively dodgy in his first full season and injury prone last season as his nonentity of a loan spell showed
Callum McFadzean – good decision, zero progression following initial promise
Terry Kennedy – sadly a very correct decision, as fitness-wise he's no use
Harrison McGahey – unable to warrant a run in the side when we've had poor centre-half options for two seasons.
Jay McEveley – not as appalling as many though, but I think the time is right to move on
Florent Cuvelier – we'll always have the memories of that League Cup game...
Ryan Flynn – might have warranted a squad role, but ultimately unable to deliver consistency
Jose Baxter – a non-descript end to a huge disappointment. Let the club down massively after we supported him a year ago
Jamal Campbell-Ryce – some good moments, but too inconsistent


Transfer listed:
Kieron Freeman – yep
Kieran Wallace – surprising, as till the recent injury rumours most had expected him to be back involved
James Wallace – urgh
Dean Hammond – understandable position for Hammond to insert this option as part of an agreement to drop down two divisions, but a horrendous scenario for Wilder
Paul Coutts – yep
Martyn Woolford – yep
Diego De Girolamo – the fact the man who has had first hand experience of giving him a first team run has immediately listed should be a wake up call for both the player and the fans that cry for his inclusion

I'd have potentially added Scougs and McNulty to the listed group, but perhaps he thinks he can get something out of them – I'm willing to see him try. The other thing to note is that listing players may be giving them a massive kick up the arse rather than necessarily wanting rid – see O'Toole from last season.

Overall, bravo Wilder – a list that is probably much longer than what Adkins would have come up with. No wonder this has taken a while, and despite the suggestions of others this absolutely shouldn't have been done without Wilder's involvement.

Agree with every word of that

 

[LoughboroBlade]

As per Foxy's updated squad list pinned, this this the current squad contacted for next year that has first team experience in the league.

Goalkeepers

None

Defenders

John Brayford
Kieron Freeman (transfer listed)
Keiron Wallace (transfer listed)

Midfield

Che Adams
Chris Basham
Dom Calvert-Lewin
Paul Coutts (transfer listed)
Dean Hammond (transfer listed)
Louis Reed
Stefan Scougall
James Wallace (transfer listed)
Ben Whiteman
Martyn Woolford (transfer listed)


Strikers:

Diego DeGirolamo (transfer listed)
Matt Done
Marc McNulty
Billy Sharp

We currently have 10 first team squad players contracted for next season with any league experience with a further 7 transfer listed. Never known anything like this – and as it stands, delighted by the potential for a substantial change.

 

[Hague Blade]

It's one thing noting "one year option to extend" but the more relevant point is who has the right to exercise the option: the club or the player. In any sane world, the option would rest with the club, but this is Sheffield United we're talking about - I've got a horrible feeling we might have given the option to a player or two in the past.

LoughboroBlade Do you know whose options they are in your list?

I posted this a week ago. Given what's transpired with Hammond and J Wallace, can I now claim to be ITK? And for what it's worth, while I know football and the commercial world are different, as someone who negotiates and drafts contracts for a living, I'd have to say Utd do a bloody awful job of it at times.

 

[Tezza1889]

Let's forget the Hammond thing, it is what it is, and confirms Nigel Adkins to the managerial wilderness because word will be around now big time about the kind of stupid deals financially and from a football point he does...chairmen be warned..


However...look at the space for new players we've just created.. I'll have some of that.. Roll on next season..

 

[Delboyscap]

Wow, that is some list, this is going to be a really interesting summer. Well done (so far) Chris Wilder, talk about no-nonsense!

As I mentioned the other day, this is exactly what Wilder did on taking over at Northampton. Seems him and Knill know exactly the players from the pretenders. May be a bit harder shifting some of your players than it was at Northampton due to you guys being one of the biggest in the division, but looking good so far. Big window coming up for you guys, just hope history repeats itself!!

 

[diplomat]

Similar situation with McDonald. His demands were unreasonable but most Blades said "give him what he wants we must keep him", so he signs for us as long as we accept a £30K bid from another club.

£30k ? Really?
That's the worst clause ever. Probably not even covering his wage from signing to playing the solitary game for us.

 

[diplomat]

Overall I'm happy with the cull. Some of them weren't bad on paper but have failed to deliver, McGahey being one who sounded like quite a coup at the time for example.

Whilst the Hammond situation sounds bad, do you think the wording of the player "taking up the option" might be the club deflecting back on to the player. I wouldn't be surprised if the "option" was just part of the contract at the time the loan was signed and it's not an option but just a contract that said we signed him at the end regardless. I also don't believe that it went under the radar unless we are the most incompetent business in Sheffield as such a contract has a knock on to the following year's budget.

So put the pitchforks and burning torches away, it's embarrassing.

 

[Pollingtonblade]

As per Foxy's updated squad list pinned, this this the current squad contacted for next year that has first team experience in the league.

Goalkeepers

None

Defenders

John Brayford
Kieron Freeman (transfer listed)
Keiron Wallace (transfer listed)

Midfield

Che Adams
Chris Basham
Dom Calvert-Lewin
Paul Coutts (transfer listed)
Dean Hammond (transfer listed)
Louis Reed
Stefan Scougall
James Wallace (transfer listed)
Ben Whiteman
Martyn Woolford (transfer listed)


Strikers:

Diego DeGirolamo (transfer listed)
Matt Done
Marc McNulty
Billy Sharp

We currently have 10 first team squad players contracted for next season with any league experience with a further 7 transfer listed. Never known anything like this – and as it stands, delighted by the potential for a substantial change.

Think we'll still have one of the biggest budgets but instead of paying 5k plus per week for shit players on the way down (see the released list) we can now buy upcoming players for half the wage, supplement with good young loans from the Prem.

 

[GRUMPY BLADE]

I posted this a week ago. Given what's transpired with Hammond and J Wallace, can I now claim to be ITK? And for what it's worth, while I know football and the commercial world are different, as someone who negotiates and drafts contracts for a living, I'd have to say Utd do a bloody awful job of it at times.

If you're ITK how about naming which twat has fucked up on Hammonds contract?

 

[Woodwardfan]

Hammond wasn't as bad as people are making out, not that he was good. He was appalling in the last match against Scunthorpe, but that match bore out the frustrations of the pathetiic nature of the whole season. We could take no more. He typifies the average ability in an average squad (middle of the league 11th), but he should not be singled out for sacrificial lamb status.

Just been talking to my wife about Hammond who I thought was awful in the context of a 'signature signing' and basically 'over the hill' to play in the first team; slow, immobile and doesn't look as though he could ever pass a ball well.

My wife said " we've had worse" which is faint praise but got me thinking whether Wilder will in due course find a role for him in the team seeing as he will be our top earner and we are stuck with him. Personally I always said it wasn't so much Hammond or Coutts who were so pathetic, it was playing them together and indeed with such as Woolford too.

Best solution, Adkins get a job, take him off our hands even if we have to help the transaction along a bit by paying some of his wages ( can't picture Adkins getting a job at a club which can afford the wages he'll be on with us.

If Wilder's playing 4-4-2 Hammond will be out of it completely. With 4-5-1 or 3-5-2 he might sneak into the team, if only to get some sort of value from him.

 

[Silent Blade]

I also quoted multiple news reports which backed the up the 2 year contract.

Now please think carefully.... If Wallace was on 2 year contract with one year option then why would we take up the one year option and then transfer list him immediately?? It is highly likely he signed a 3 year contract when he came to us and that your multiple news reports are wrong!

 

[Woodwardfan]

The scale of this clear-out is unprecedented for our club if not any club, who knows.

Fact is we are left with only a handful of players who are on contract and not transfer listed thereby knowing they wanted, all the others know they're not wanted.

Of those retained and not listed, maybe one or two will leave for other pastures, who knows? For example our apparently complete strike force of Sharp, Done, Adams and McNulty doesn't have enough pace or height in it. Calvert-Lewin will add a bit while he develops but for the start of the season we need pace. In the short term a loanee will be needed but that means strikers 4 and 5 and Lewin struggle to get game time of any sort.

Could Burton persuade us to sell Brayford cut price and pay some of his wages? What a mess he has been.

Of the transfer listed players one or two will step up to the challenge and want a bit of what is going on at Bramall Lane. I hope K.Wallace does and I hope Flynn can ( he's honest and can play full back as well as any midfield role). I definitely think we need at least a couple to step up because the numbers of new signings we need is frightening and any who can provide a bit of continuity will help things. Freeman could just about do it too, still think he would be a good wing back..

All well and good saying it's a great opportunity to set new standards and instill a new culture, which it is, but it just is not possible to integrate so many players all at once and win games regularly; each player has his own challenge to settle into a new club, probably bigger crowds than he is used to, settle into a new city, new team, new way of playing, get to know his colleagues etc. Not possible? Well Leicester won the Prem so I suppose everything is possible and it can come together straight away, but the odds are substantially against I'd say.

A couple of weeks ago I said Wilder has a 2 year challenge to turn us around and that he can't do it in one season. Having seen the retained list I am even more certain it will take most of next season to develop team patterns and consistency.

 

[LoughboroBlade]

Now please think carefully.... If Wallace was on 2 year contract with one year option then why would we take up the one year option and then transfer list him immediately?? It is highly likely he signed a 3 year contract when he came to us and that your multiple news reports are wrong!

As I've said more than once, it was Clough's interview on Radio Sheffield at the time he signed where he said "two years with an option", but clearly that has turned out to be wrong. Had there been a player-activated option we'd have mentioned it in yesterday's press release I assume.

 

[More Bladier than thou]

Happy with the list, looks like wilder knows exactly what he is doing. we now have a good foundation to build on, you should always build around your best players. Defence looks like it needs the most work, we need somebody to command and organise the defence and 2 more who can play from the back. We need 2 natural wingers who are fast, creative and who can actually cross, as long as we can feed sharp and and adams, the goals will come. My only concern is that will Wilder get the financial backing he needs ? If he doesnt then we are going nowhere. I hope and expect to see at least 4 good enough players signed before august. UTB

 

[Pollingtonblade]

The scale of this clear-out is unprecedented for our club if not any club, who knows.

Fact is we are left with only a handful of players who are on contract and not transfer listed thereby knowing they wanted, all the others know they're not wanted.

Of those retained and not listed, maybe one or two will leave for other pastures, who knows? For example our apparently complete strike force of Sharp, Done, Adams and McNulty doesn't have enough pace or height in it. Calvert-Lewin will add a bit while he develops but for the start of the season we need pace. In the short term a loanee will be needed but that means strikers 4 and 5 and Lewin struggle to get game time of any sort.

Could Burton persuade us to sell Brayford cut price and pay some of his wages? What a mess he has been.

Of the transfer listed players one or two will step up to the challenge and want a bit of what is going on at Bramall Lane. I hope K.Wallace does and I hope Flynn can ( he's honest and can play full back as well as any midfield role). I definitely think we need at least a couple to step up because the numbers of new signings we need is frightening and any who can provide a bit of continuity will help things. Freeman could just about do it too, still think he would be a good wing back..

All well and good saying it's a great opportunity to set new standards and instill a new culture, which it is, but it just is not possible to integrate so many players all at once and win games regularly; each player has his own challenge to settle into a new club, probably bigger crowds than he is used to, settle into a new city, new team, new way of playing, get to know his colleagues etc. Not possible? Well Leicester won the Prem so I suppose everything is possible and it can come together straight away, but the odds are substantially against I'd say.

A couple of weeks ago I said Wilder has a 2 year challenge to turn us around and that he can't do it in one season. Having seen the retained list I am even more certain it will take most of next season to develop team patterns and consistency.

A- Flynn has been fucked off
B- why can't we start again from scratch, Bassett did in 88 and more recently Charlton did

 

[spongebobblade]

You aware of the laws on constructive dismissal?

As I said, within the boundaries of his contract