Our permanent signings this calendar year

[AnstonBlade1]

At the time we weren’t playing badly, then when he signed, because of the amount we paid for him the pressure was on to fit him in somehow.
Wilder probably gave himself a headache he probably at the time didn’t need to

 

[steve26272]

£18m for a young English prospect from 1 EPL to another isn’t a ludicrous amount

Personally I would have sucked up the wages and got Martinez

One had Ben instrumental in winning the FA cup and had rave reviews for 6 months
The other had just been relegated

 

[BettingBlade]

Since Berge was signed we have been rubbish , it’s not Berge’s fault he is a good player but it’s just not a match , we’ve cocked up big style as a football club , the policy of selling our best players like we always have done in the past has hit us hard .
Brooks should never have left the club , a club the size of Bournemouth should not be taking our youngest star who since joining Bournemouth had been there player of the season twice .
Ramsdale , wether you think he was a good buy or not , the act of letting him go for peanuts and then buying him back for 18 mill is beyond me , why the fuck sell a player that was ours and spunk millions on him getting him back .
We have always sold our best players since I have supported the club going all the way back to Currie , Deane and Agana they all left , the only outstanding player we ever kept was Woodward RIP .
The signings we have made have been questionable at the moment, it’s not looking good to say the least but we’re still in with a shout of 17th , we need to win our next 2 matches , we haven’t got the usual excuse of “we were playing world class players“ in the next 2 matches , I personally think we will go down because we can’t score .

I don’t think selling our best players was the problem. At the time we didn’t really have much choice and Wilder did well to assemble a squad of hungry players with something to prove. We came up and that togetherness and momentum saw us through to a top half finish last season, albeit we stuttered over the line.

We had a system and a way of playing that we should have built on with Premier League quality. I’d have much rather us have signed quality over quantity in the summer window. The goalkeeper situation obviously needed sorting, I understand the reason for going for someone like Ramsdale but at 18.5 million, it was way over the top, we’d have paid more too if it wasn’t for the sell-on clause.

I think where we’ve gone wrong is not getting value for money. As I say, I don’t think selling players in the past was our issue, we had a decent squad to build on, we just haven’t done it very well. Other than Berge, who was an absolute bargain, we’ve paid a premium for players that haven’t really improved the team.

 

[CaptainMorgans]

I think the problem is not so much the money we have spent but rather how we are spending it and my point here is fees vs wages.

We are paying top dollar or at least a decent wedge on players who have potential to become good players. The advantage here is that they are not excellent yet and as such do not command a salary that reflects this.

Maybe we should have a look at the way Bolton survived under Big Sam. Perhaps we do have to bite the bullet and bring in one or two older players who have the relevant experience and command high wage but low fee.

Hindsight here, not trying to be a smart arse.

Instead of spending 23m on Brewster with the possibility his value might double, if we'd reached out to Watford and signed Deeney on loan for a year, absorbing his wages and a modest loan fee, then we'd have an understanding of what we can expect.

Even now, in January, depending on how the next games pan out, you could do worse than loan Brewster to Watford, a level where he'd retain his confidence and us loan Deeney and work out some compromise on wages or loan fee (fitness permitting). It might do both of them good. One gets games and a chance to build their value and experience, the other adds a know-how, experience and resilience to a difficult situation.

Just an example, but we didn't really add any experience or know-how, it was just more potential. We aren't at a stage where we are building a team for a couple of year's time. For us, the here and now is the important thing.

I think this is a recruitment we have to consider.

I think you're right. I think there's been a gross miscalculation regarding where we were at as a club after last season.

I think Wilder thought the "old guard" would be solid enough to have us nowhere near the drop zone & that we could afford to sprinkle the squad with young signings, lots of potential, re-sale value, in order to protect the future of the club. However, he greatly underestimated how precarious our present was...
A major downgrade at goalkeeper with Henderson going back, two significant injuries down our left hand side & all of the sudden our entire system is on its knees.

We're now relying on players with very little positive Premier League experience; Ramsdale, J Robinson, Max Lowe, Ampadu, B Osborn, Berge, Burke, Brewster etc... to get us out of a major crisis. I'm not sure I see the credentials in that lot.

The other thing that concerns me is that our transfer policy of signing young players may have shifted the culture of the club behind the scenes. I always felt we had grown ups in our dressing room who had worked bloody hard to get to the Premier League, usually through years of toil in the Football League.

We've now signed a load of talented youngsters; McBurnie, Mousset, Brewster, Bogle, Lowe, Ramsdale etc... & I'm not sure that same drive is instilled within them. It's all headphones and smiles.

Everything that made us so good last season seems to have evaporated.

 

[BobblesBlade]

I read the report on Eze at Palace. It’s a real shame we couldn’t of got someone like him. I mentioned delefou from Watford last season as we really need someone who is comfortable with the ball and create havoc.
We just don’t have anyone like that and that why we can’t Score.
it’s like McBurnie ever since he has got regular football we seem to go high in the air yet it never works. With Moose you had someone who give a chance on the floor he takes it.
Freeman I just don’t get. He would have been ideal to cover Flecks absence but Wilder just didn’t like him.

 

[essexblade73]

To add another extreme example and I may be pushing my luck here, but we probably never considered asking about Ozil.

He's on 350k per week. But he's not even in their 25 man squad and can only play U23 matches until January. 35-70k per week Arsenal's way is far better than nothing for them especially if we came in during the last week. He's a player of obvious quality, something we are lacking. I'd imagine we were scared off by his wages.

But did we ever ask? Even if we paid 10-20% only, it would have saved them some money and put him in the shop window for January. Plus you're not telling me he'd rather have a kick around with the kids than play top flight football if only until Jan.

Not trying to be funny here but you've mentioned 2 players who I wouldn't want anywhere near my team. Deeney is over 30 and now just a lump. After 2 games he'd be getting dogs abuse cos 'he's fckin shite, he dunt run, gerrim owt'. You then suggest Ozil who always looks like the world is against him, goes missing when he's needed and is not the type of character to bring into a struggling team when they need a lift, and those wages...I think some of us need a dose of reality. I saw someone else mention we should be pushing for europe. Really, I mean, fckin really? Mental.

 

[BettingBlade]

I read the report on Eze at Palace. It’s a real shame we couldn’t of got someone like him. I mentioned delefou from Watford last season as we really need someone who is comfortable with the ball and create havoc.
We just don’t have anyone like that and that why we can’t Score.
it’s like McBurnie ever since he has got regular football we seem to go high in the air yet it never works. With Moose you had someone who give a chance on the floor he takes it.
Freeman I just don’t get. He would have been ideal to cover Flecks absence but Wilder just didn’t like him.

Agree on Freeman, even if Wilder does want to stick to the flat three, keeping Freeman at least gives him the option of a creative player.

I actually think the L Freeman business is probably the strangest and most baffling decision Wilder has made at United. People say that he wasn’t good enough but the only time he got in the side at the start of last season there was talk of Fleck having to win his place back. A player we’ve chased for years, not just under Wilder, we finally get him and just don’t use him.

Wilder has set a real precedent by sending him out on loan. I had an idea from that moment that our fast-flowing, balls out of the bath pressing would be replaced by a more conservative keep it tight kind of style. He’s really backed himself into a corner by freezing Freeman out. We’re crying out for a creative player and we just don’t have one. Berge maybe but he’s more deep-lying, we have no one at the top of the pitch who can create something/anything.

 

[DeanLearner'sCat]

Berge is our best player, the jury is out on Ramsdale, Bogle, Lowe and Brewster (who are all young and have high potential) and the others are back up players. And none of them are on such massive wages that we'll be in the shit if we get relegated.

It's amazing how often our fans write off players based on 5-10 games. Go back and look at how people on here talked initially about Egan being a waste of money and how we should cut our losses on Berge at the nearest opportunity.

 

[ChipButtyBlade]

Wilder has made his bed with those signings,he will i'm afraid have to lay in that bed,he will know quite quickly has he has done in the past if he has dropped a gooly with signing a player,but the regret will hit home when he reflects on those signings after we are relegated.

 

[William]

Overseas signings
Berge: 20m very good

British Signings
McBurnie: Average/Good 20m
Mousset: Never fit 11m (signed from Bournemouth)
Ramsdale: 20m not exactly good value
Brewster: 20m early days but 7 touches in 60 mins doesn't bode well
Osborn: 6m good addition
Lowe: 2m??? Not sure on fee, but thrown in when probably wouldn't have been ready yet. Not great so far.
C Robinson: 10 mill
J Robinson: 1 mil

The list goes on, but the trend I see is our current recruitment system is great at spending money on unearthing low risk hidden gems, but not so great at spending big money on key signings.

The Berge signing, I'm sure was from the Prince's network with him signing from Belgium. I suspect, going forward, there will be pressure to sign more players recommended by Van Winkle & co than putting pure faith in Wilder. I don't think anyone can blame the Prince for that really as it's his money, but not sure Wilder will see it that way.

 

[Guesty]

Berge is our best player, the jury is out on Ramsdale, Bogle, Lowe and Brewster (who are all young and have high potential) and the others are back up players. And none of them are on such massive wages that we'll be in the shit if we get relegated.

It's amazing how often our fans write off players based on 5-10 games. Go back and look at how people on here talked initially about Egan being a waste of money and how we should cut our losses on Berge at the nearest opportunity.

I still think we should cash in on Berge. 'Best player on the pitch' he may be but it's doing the team absolutely no good whatsoever.

 

[BobblesBlade]

Berge is our best player, the jury is out on Ramsdale, Bogle, Lowe and Brewster (who are all young and have high potential) and the others are back up players. And none of them are on such massive wages that we'll be in the shit if we get relegated.

It's amazing how often our fans write off players based on 5-10 games. Go back and look at how people on here talked initially about Egan being a waste of money and how we should cut our losses on Berge at the nearest opportunity.

Bogle and Lowe has a bit of Walker and Naughton about it. You never know.

 

[Kevincarterversion2.0]

The post-lockdown transfer window over the summer was poor and could turn out to have been a bit of a disaster.

-We needed 2/3 quality players to come in to improve the first 11. Wilder instead prioritised the wrong postions (IMO) and of those postions he prioritised, he did not bring in any players that are better than what we have. Lowe is out of his depth, Bogle isnt good enough to have ever started a game, Brewster is young and learning his trade.
-Because Wilder didnt prioritise the central midfield, he is now forced to pick a player who wants to leave (as he has very little alternative).
- He let creativity go out of the door, and didnt bring any in (bar Burke who shows flashes).
-The final and most difficult one to swallow is not finding a better alternative to JOC. Wilder knew JOC was injured and struggling during the first lockdown but gambled instead of addressing. It's costing us every game now.

I do think players like Brewster will come good. But you dont have much time in the PL to blood young talent. Mouss and Berge are successful signinigs (IMO) but they were made last season.

And also, we wont maintain our PL status if we continue to not pay the going rate for talent.

 

[alcoblade]

I think the problem is not so much the money we have spent but rather how we are spending it and my point here is fees vs wages.

We are paying top dollar or at least a decent wedge on players who have potential to become good players. The advantage here is that they are not excellent yet and as such do not command a salary that reflects this.

Maybe we should have a look at the way Bolton survived under Big Sam. Perhaps we do have to bite the bullet and bring in one or two older players who have the relevant experience and command high wage but low fee.

Hindsight here, not trying to be a smart arse.

Instead of spending 23m on Brewster with the possibility his value might double, if we'd reached out to Watford and signed Deeney on loan for a year, absorbing his wages and a modest loan fee, then we'd have an understanding of what we can expect.

Even now, in January, depending on how the next games pan out, you could do worse than loan Brewster to Watford, a level where he'd retain his confidence and us loan Deeney and work out some compromise on wages or loan fee (fitness permitting). It might do both of them good. One gets games and a chance to build their value and experience, the other adds a know-how, experience and resilience to a difficult situation.

Just an example, but we didn't really add any experience or know-how, it was just more potential. We aren't at a stage where we are building a team for a couple of year's time. For us, the here and now is the important thing.

I think this is a recruitment we have to consider.

Good post. However, we must also remember Bolton ran up a gigantic debt, and despite huge write offs, are now in the fourth division.

Our current recruitment policy appears to be failing though.

 

[Silent Blade]

Berge
Robinson
Bogle
Lowe
Ramsdale
Brewster
Burke
Foderingham

I’m not sure that lot would help get you in the Championship playoffs.

All that money, wasted.

“If you can’t support us when we lose or draw, don’t support us when we win.”​

— Bill Shankly

 

[A Storm of Blades]

I completely agree.

We have to be significantly more sophisticated in our approach to how we spend the pot of money available to us, and the question of fees versus wages is central to this. In truth, it always has been at the Lane.

Paying the going rate on wages remains an anathema at Bramall Lane. It always has been. Even when we have raised the overall spend to levels never seen before, we have paid it on a rash of reasonably substantial transfer fees with relatively modest wages for the level and performance-related bonuses, rather than pay it on Premier League contract packages.

I said in the Summer that my preference in goal was to bring in Foster from Watford. He would have commanded a pretty decent wage but the fee would have been negligibl, if any. Even on a hefty contract, it would have cost us substantially less in total than it's going to cost bringing Ramsdale back and paying a lesser wage over 5 years. And we would have had an experienced keeper who to my viewing was arguably one of the best around last season.

Similarly, last Summer, Rodriguez was snapped up by Burnley for just £5m because WBA needed someone to take his contract on whilst they were stuck in the Championship. That was surely a better use of resources than throwing a big fee at unproven Championship strikers who would accept a smaller contract.

Other clubs have cottoned on to this and do it effectively. Even at the very top, the likes of Liverpool get players in from Champions League rivals for essentially nominal fees and pay the money on the contract package.

We need to get away from the 'cloth cap' Sheffield attitude of being uncomfortable with paying individuals the salaries that are going rate at the top level. The reality is that we could have spent less money had we gone for 2 or 3 top-flight level performers who could go straight into the first XI, than we have spent in getting half a dozen squad fillers who can't dislodge the old guard.

Most could see from a country mile away that Brewster wasn’t what we needed. No offence to him and I pray it clicks for us. However, what are any of our front players supposed to do when the only service they’re getting is a ball coming down with snow on it? We needed creativity, desperately. I only hope we have the funds to do something in January and it isn’t too late by then. Hopefully West Ham and West Brom hit the woodwork 20 times and we get a couple of 1-0s (unless Wilder tosses the hoof and shackles in the bin of course)

 

[A Storm of Blades]

I agree, I’m not saying Berge is a bad player, I just think at the time did we need to spend that sort of money on a central midfielder?

Imagine how bad our midfield is without him?!

 

[PeterNdlovu081]

Remember last season when Berge was a massive waste of money and written off as being shite?

He was even the number one scapegoat before he scored against Tottenham in July.

Now he's the best thing since sliced bread.

Let's keep our powder dry on Brewster, Bogle, Lowe and Burke eh lads?

 

[Revolution]

“If you can’t support us when we lose or draw, don’t support us when we win.”​

— Bill Shankly

I’ll try to remember that when we next win a game.

do you actually have anything positive to add or are you all about sniping at other posters whose views you don’t agree with these days?