Possible rift between Blackwell and Birch?

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Sothall_Blade

Sothall_Blade

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Latest quotes from Blackwell on Sky Sports website “With a frantic summer reshuffle on the cards, Blackwell is desperate for Montgomery to sign a new deal as he feels his presence will give his side some much needed continuity and authority. Blackwell told the club's website: "He has been exemplary for a long time now and that's why I want him to sign, but I need help from those who sort contracts out.”

It seems very strange to me that the manager is appealing via the official website for “help from those who sort contracts out” (i.e. Birch?). Surely the two of them should be working very closely together on contract negotiations? Shouldn’t any disagreements over Monty’s value/wages be kept in-house and resolved behind closed doors?

In an ideal world, the Chairman would set the wages budget. The manager would decide how he wants the budget spent and the Chief Executive would try and make it happen. That doesn’t appear to be happening at United.
 



i have slight sympathies with blackwell on this for a change. if as a club at the very top level we're willing to lose players like Monty for the sake of an extra years contract or a bit more money then i can understand his frustration. However he has wasted so much money on players that are on decent money but don't play that it looks like he doesn't have enough to keep those he sees as core to the team and he has to take responsibility for this too. as a manager he should have a large responsibility for how he spends his budget and has to take this responsibility.

On the other hand he should grow some balls and put up or shut up, this isn't unique and from other recent comments he has made it's clear he is trying to suggest that he hasn't been able to manage the club how he wishes. No point whatsoever talking to the press about this as it makes him look like a whinging and subservient fanny - if it is as bad as he is making out and if as he seems to have recently suggested it is a nonsense to rely so heavily on loan players then he needs to tell them he can't work under these conditions and wants to be backed or he'll leave.

Or perhaps this is all just a ploy to drop in embarrasing and morale breaking media coverage at everyone opportunity until the club pay him off rather than admit he's not up to it and leave of his own accord. I'm genuinely starting to question his mindset and commitment to match my long standing questions over his methods.
 
Well done Blackwell for trying to get on and sign players up I say.

As an aside, what has 'Sir Clevor Trevor' done for us so far?
 
Coily said:
Well done Blackwell for trying to get on and sign players up I say.

As an aside, what has 'Sir Clevor Trevor' done for us so far?
Click to expand...

I hope we're only paying him pro-rata for his three days a week.
 
or the cost cutting he was asked to do is over and he is now asking for the backing promised if put up with a season of shit?

However he has wasted so much money on players that are on decent money but don't play

I think that is a bit harsh cus we have to pay the wages that other clubs have agreed to pay the tripe we have signed.

Even if we are only paying a % it is not our club that has agreed the players wages.

It is our club however that has set Blackies budget so if he needed X No of players then he can only stretch £Y's so far to bring in the No of players we needed.
 
Back on topic, Blackwell is quoted on the BBC complaining about over-reliance on the loan system. He's right in what he says, and I'd be very interested to know how much input he had into the season's policy of loaning players.

Did we really gamble on this summer seeing a collapse in wages and fees? Or did we really think we could achieve something with so thin a squad?

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/teams/s/sheff_utd/8607430.stm
 
"He has been exemplary for a long time now and that's why I want him to sign, but I need help from those who sort contracts out”

Could be his agent/advisors or others outside the club refusing to accept offers from the Blades....
 
Birch doesn't do the contracts. Some board member has replaced Terry Robinson.
 
JohnDenver said:
Cos our offers are all crap?

:)
Click to expand...

Not crap necessarily, but if Monty is looking for a 3-4 year deal at the grand old age of 28 then (barring a spectacular season which sees his value skyrocket) he might be seeing this as his last chance to secure a reasonable rise in the terms he's currently on before he passes the peak age for a midfielder. Given the state of the clubs finances and the fact that a reduction in the wage bill is the main aim at the moment the club may be unwilling to stretch to what he feels he is worth...

All that's pure speculation of course... just a theory. :D
 
have to agree with KB on this one. all the norwich fans are telling me that danger signs are there, they took on a load of johnny loanees and got relegated for that reason, the situ is getting frighteningly similar at BDTBL and we must stop the rot while we can, even if we can't sign many players, start putting some of the youth through, the gamble worked with the 2 kyle's last year, so why not comb through them again?
 
The contract on offer to Monty is for less money than he is on now, that's why he won't signed it.
He is waiting to see what his options are and with QPR no doubt offering to match what he gets or even improve it he would be stupid to re-sign.

Blackwell knows the wage bill, so if he wants Monty that badly he needs to say what he wants to pay him rather than trying to lay all the blame at the boards door and then make cuts elsewhere.
It seems to me that he want to have his cake and eat it and say its everyone else's fault if it doesn't go his way. Which is obviously totally out of character for him.
 
There was a post from someone saying Monty wants a three year deal, but the club has only offered two years so far. Monty relies on superior fitness and attitude as a player, can he keep being fitter and more determined than the others when he's 30+?
 



Although birch isn't in charge of "sorting contract out" I'd imagine he has a very definite input into setting budgets which have been changed on-the-fly several times this season because of injuries and the subsequent need for further loanees. Blackwell's plea highlights a few things for me. Firstly, the communication isn't as fluid as we'd like to think it should be. Secondly, this won't be an isolated case. I get the impression this side of business has been taken out of his hands (some of you will say quite rightly - but it isn't healthy, is it?). And thirdly, I think he's trying to speak to the fans as much as anything. He knows what we all think but knows he can't come out and tell everyone what he's actually being told he can and can't do.
 
Blackwell has had plenty of money & wasted it... Reid & Little are just two signings that spring to mind........
If you were in charge of the purse strings, would YOU give him next seasons budget so easily?
 
Sounds like a little bit of posturing and political movement to me. KB in a subtle way trying to move the heat away from himself and to others. Most supporters were aware that there was a need to cut the wage bill and were informed of target figures for the very same. Now if Monty is wanting a hefty slice of that budget, economies will have to be made if he is to stay. Given that most people realised he was one of the higher earners, there's been an expectation for some time that he would be moving on. I wonder if this is the beginnings of a subtle move by KB to justify a resignation during the summer, with a non-comment backing from the club, given it is on the OS? :rolleyes:
 
SouthEssexBlade said:
S I wonder if this is the beginnings of a subtle move by KB to justify a resignation during the summer, with a non-comment backing from the club, given it is on the OS? :rolleyes:
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I don't know how many heard him interviewed last night on FH but he sounded like a man about to pack it in. It sounds like he knows that times at the Lane are going to get even tougher and players are going to be sold regardless of what he wants. I think that he might well walk because he is not usually so down in interviews.

I think that the only positive is that of the teams coming down there is no Newcastle or WBA and of those coming up at least two will be fighting it out at the bottom end. It will probably be more open than this season and if we can bring in some hungry/exciting/young/talented/cheap newbies it might be an intersesting season. To be honest, just to get a ground with some atmosphere back would be good.
 
Flatulent_Bob said:
The contract on offer to Monty is for less money than he is on now, that's why he won't signed it.
He is waiting to see what his options are and with QPR no doubt offering to match what he gets or even improve it he would be stupid to re-sign.

Blackwell knows the wage bill, so if he wants Monty that badly he needs to say what he wants to pay him rather than trying to lay all the blame at the boards door and then make cuts elsewhere.
It seems to me that he want to have his cake and eat it and say its everyone else's fault if it doesn't go his way. Which is obviously totally out of character for him.
Click to expand...

Surely you are not hinting that Blamewell refuses to accept any blame - ever - are you Bob?
 
> As an aside, what has 'Sir Clevor Trevor' done for us so far
"wise men wonder whether clever trevor's clever"
 
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