Sander Berge

[Chabuddy G]

I admire the positivity, it's a refreshing change to some who are way too negative in here.


But Champions League/Europa League football will have little to no impact on yourselves as a club, if it's simply just for one season.
There needs to be the intention/ambition to get European football over a number of seasons to be able to make the extra financial income account for anything.

It was not that long ago Burnley had a great season which resulted in European qualification, but their transfer policy remained the same, simply for two reasons.

1 - The financial rewards for European Football are really not that significant for English clubs compared to foreign sides, simply because of the huge financial rewards we get from being in the Premier League.

2 - There's no proof to players that you're trying to beat the likes of West Ham/Everton too, that you're actually a better proposition over a 3/4/5 year contract.


In short, this season has been terrific.
But after that 38th game is played, the hard work of the next stage begins, and is why the 'second season syndrome' phrase exists. Next season Sheffield United are no longer the disregarded, disrespected and overlooked side that they were this. There is also an increased expectation for yourselves, especially compared to the 3 promoted sides....But also in contrast with this season, there is much less momentum than these newly promoted sides.

That is why in this league Recruitment is vital, it's the way you retain/gain momentum from season to season. Signings that make a positive impact are the only way to progress.
(Of course promoting good youth players fits into this 'new signing' category....But obviously the pool of players around the world is far greater than those in a youth system).

Please tell that to the sides who fight tooth and nail for 4th place every season
Also for sides like us you're disregarding the experience for the fans. I'd give away my first born for a European night following United in a competitive game, the pre-season trips are good enough, even the Europa would be different class

 

[Chabuddy G]

Second season syndrome kicks in when sides do not adapt, after a successful first season and believe that just 'doing what we're doing' which has brought you success so far, is the answer to everything.
6th in the Premier League during your first season is great......
But didn't Reading get 8th and were relegated the following season?

This 'fantastic' transfer policy....I'm not convinced i'm afraid, has recruitment alone really been anymore successful than Villa's?

I'd argue you're significantly above Villa in the table because you have a far better manager, with a far better understanding of what he wants from his team, how he wants to setup and how to maximize what he has from the players available.
E.g. Wesley has been considered a poor signing....But still has as many goals in a poor Villa side as the Blades top scorer.

If you believe this season to be your peak, then the attitude you have is probably correct.
But only signing 'home grown British players' will simply make you the next Burnley, rather than Leicester/Wolves.

• It works for Burnley, it works for Wolves. They're only doing what they did when they first came up
• Villa had to buy a brand new team just about so by the law of averages they were bound to have as many successes in the market as us
• Our strikers don't get that many chances because of how we set up. They haven't exactly missed shedloads of chances (McGoldrick's missed a few sitters)

 

[CentralQuay]

Chabuddy G

European nights are class, there's no doubts about that.

Hearing that Champions League anthem belt out around your ground is something else, i'm not embarrassed to say I had a tear in my eye and the hairs on the back of my neck feeling like they were trying to jump off it......
I've never celebrated a goal in an inevitable defeat like I did away at Sevilla when 2-0 down, knowing just how crucial that away goal was, something else i'd never experienced before, also with a loss, feeling like a good result.


Your argument was that Champions League qualification would change the club forever.....It doesn't work like that.
Get recruitment wrong, and you're talking about a relegation battle within 6 months. (Just like we were, even after winning the league).

Recruiting only British players does work for Burnley....But like I said before, do you not want more ambition than to be Burnley?
Of course, right now, you're not as established in this division as them.....But you should still be aiming higher.

Wolves are a poor example, they're actually the complete opposite. Their best players are all from abroad.
In fact, key players like Neves/Jota were signed in the Championship.

 

[Chabuddy G]

Chabuddy G

European nights are class, there's no doubts about that.

Hearing that Champions League anthem belt out around your ground is something else, i'm not embarrassed to say I had a tear in my eye and the hairs on the back of my neck feeling like they were trying to jump off it......
I've never celebrated a goal in an inevitable defeat like I did away at Sevilla when 2-0 down, knowing just how crucial that away goal was, something else i'd never experienced before, also with a loss, feeling like a good result.


Your argument was that Champions League qualification would change the club forever.....It doesn't work like that.
Get recruitment wrong, and you're talking about a relegation battle within 6 months. (Just like we were, even after winning the league).

Recruiting only British players does work for Burnley....But like I said before, do you not want more ambition than to be Burnley?
Of course, right now, you're not as established in this division as them.....But you should still be aiming higher.

Wolves are a poor example, they're actually the complete opposite. Their best players are all from abroad.
In fact, key players like Neves/Jota were signed in the Championship.

Exactly my point

There's no proof that getting recruitment wrong + qualifying for Europe = a relegation scrap

And my point wasn't about signing British players, it was about keeping the same recruitment strategy. Which Burnley and Wolves have done. For now, fyi, I'd be quite content to be a Burnley for a few years and consolidate ourselves.

 

[CentralQuay]

Exactly my point

There's no proof that getting recruitment wrong + qualifying for Europe = a relegation scrap

And my point wasn't about signing British players, it was about keeping the same recruitment strategy. Which Burnley and Wolves have done. For now, fyi, I'd be quite content to be a Burnley for a few years and consolidate ourselves.

I've not stated that 'recruitment wrong + qualifying for Europe = a relegation scrap'.....
I was simply pointing out that European qualification does not 'change the club forever'.

For the club, the benefit is insignificant in comparison to your recruitment process.
Which, imo, needs to improve in the summer.

 

[Rodley]

I've not stated that 'recruitment wrong + qualifying for Europe = a relegation scrap'.....
I was simply pointing out that European qualification does not 'change the club forever'.

For the club, the benefit is insignificant in comparison to your recruitment process.
Which, imo, needs to improve in the summer.

I think to a degree the recruitment has been a result of our status. We saw a step change in January where it looked like we had the potential to stay up and thrive this year.

The key thing is continuing to pick up the best young British and Irish players along with international recruitment. And investing heavily in getting a top academy. It’s not binary, we can have both.

 

[CentralQuay]

I think to a degree the recruitment has been a result of our status. We saw a step change in January where it looked like we had the potential to stay up and thrive this year.

The key thing is continuing to pick up the best young British and Irish players along with international recruitment. And investing heavily in getting a top academy. It’s not binary, we can have both.

I've no problem with the recruitment. The reality is, for newly promoted sides, buying players from the league below is always the way sides go, because that is what the club has knowledge of.
When we signed Ulloa after promotion, we did so because Pearson asked our center halves who their toughest opponent was in the championship, and they said him.

The next stage after consolidation though, is to look abroad.
Only buying British players is not sustainable financially, because of the premium you have to pay.....Especially as there's now more money in the championship than ever before. Leeds paid £3.5 million in january to loan a striker until the summer.

I said a while back that your transfer policy in January was looking the right way with Berge/Retsos, Zivkovic I wasn't sure, as i'm always wary of once talented youngsters that have been rejected by multiple clubs.

The key though is to accept that the fee doesn't dictate what is to be expected of a player.
Had Sharp been bought for the same fee in the summer as Mcburnie, lets be honest, the criticism would not be the same.

 

[Yoonited]

Wrong person pal........Have another look.

I do apologise pal, me and technology are not always well suited

 

[CentralQuay]

I do apologise pal, me and technology are not always well suited

Are you a referee?

 

[Yoonited]

Are you a referee?

I ought to be with my non-skills

 

[Gimli]

Second season syndrome kicks in when sides do not adapt, after a successful first season and believe that just 'doing what we're doing' which has brought you success so far, is the answer to everything.
6th in the Premier League during your first season is great......
But didn't Reading get 8th and were relegated the following season?

This 'fantastic' transfer policy....I'm not convinced i'm afraid, has recruitment alone really been anymore successful than Villa's?

I'd argue you're significantly above Villa in the table because you have a far better manager, with a far better understanding of what he wants from his team, how he wants to setup and how to maximize what he has from the players available.
E.g. Wesley has been considered a poor signing....But still has as many goals in a poor Villa side as the Blades top scorer.

If you believe this season to be your peak, then the attitude you have is probably correct.
But only signing 'home grown British players' will simply make you the next Burnley, rather than Leicester/Wolves.

With Wilder, we have progressed season on season -

Does second season syndrome exist? Possibly.

Do I think that we have a manager who will make sure that we are aiming to not only avoid ‘SSS’ but to actually do better than this season.

You bet I do. 10000% Wilder will be thinking of how we can get better and looking up the table not down.

 

[CentralQuay]

With Wilder, we have progressed season on season -

Does second season syndrome exist? Possibly.

Do I think that we have a manager who will make sure that we are aiming to not only avoid ‘SSS’ but to actually do better than this season.

You bet I do. 10000% Wilder will be thinking of how we can get better and looking up the table not down.

I personally think 'taking the next step' does not necessarily involve 'looking up the table'.
Progression, as a Premier League Club, is not purely linked to your position in the league table, for just one season.

A dull mid-table season next year, but with an obvious improvement from Berge, and 2-3 signings that actually add quality to the first 11, would be better than having the same side and finishing 6th.

 

[Torrix1889]

Jury is out for me on Sander.....I saw a player in Coutts and Lunny whilst a lot were writing them off but I just don't see it in Sander.....for a big lad he looks incredibly weak, positionally he gets in the way and often gets bypassed by team mates.

He is no doubt talented but like Coutts and Lunny, he needs to find his niche in our system.

 

[Ecco1889]

look at the video that went round before we bought him,and the champions league v Liverpool,looked confident and created space by taking players on,takes the safe/easier option at the moment.
Up to the manager/coaching staff to get him to be more positive...he’s a very good player tho and maybe we all need a bit of patience

 

[Luke1993]

I think the fact that our left and right cms are asked to play like wide midfielders rather than central is the big problem for him in the Rcm role. You can't go from playing as a cdm to basically a Rm. Now if we played a more conventional midfield I'm sure he would be fine to play as a central Rcm rather than a wide one/Rm. The roles are completely different and he doesn't have the physical or technical characteristics to play as a wide midfielder. That's not his role, for example you wouldn't ask a veira, yaya toure or a busquets to play as a Rm.

 

[Balham]

I agree with what many are saying that Berge has real quality and he will be excellent for us, but he’s been pretty average so far. He looks a bit overawed.

I don’t really understand why people like McBurnie so much though. £20m looks very expensive. He hardly ever scores anyway so why is he starting ahead of McGoldrick, who is the much more intelligent, creative and better hold up player.

£17m (plus a relatively low £20k/week in wages - taken from FM20) buys you Oli McBurnie. Last summer, these moved for a similar amount:

Oli McBurnie (£17m; 4 goals in 16+11 apps; £17m fee; £20k/week)

Comparisons:
Ché Adams (£14m; 0 goals in 8+14; £40k/week)
Patrick Cutrone (£16m; 2 goals in 4+3 apps; £65k/week; now on loan at Fiorentina)
Neal Maupay (£20m; 8 goals in 20+8 app; £35k/week)
Moise Kean (£27m; 1 goal in 5+17 apps; £50k/week)
Ayoze Pérez (£30m; 7 goals in 21+4 apps; £85k/week)
Joelinton (£40m; 1 goal in 27+2 apps; £85k/week)
Sébastian Haller (£45m; 7 goals in 24+3 apps; £75k/week)

Southampton bought Danny Ings for £17m in the summer but he's 27 and is on £80k per week.

McBurnie's doing just fine; only Maupay is outperforming him but he's a very different sort of player.

Berge is a big 6"5 defensive midfielder who's made a decent career so far out of breaking up plays and screening the back line.

He's not fast, mainly due to his size. He's not really that creative either because that simply isn't his game.

He's a player that does the basics well and can cover in CB if needed. Plenty of potential at 22 though.

Berge is deceptively quick in a straight line. He's exceptional at retaining possession and playing the simple ball but - as yet - he's not displayed much movement and particularly not much longitudinal movement - bursting beyond the opposition midfield for a simple pass which is what Lundstram and Fleck have done so well this season.

I wonder whether people's expectations are unrealistically high. We're having 40% of possession on a good day; it's difficult for anyone to shine coming into that.

 

[Large Mendonca]

For someone who is highly rated and supposedly very adept, i just don't understand why he's playing within himself and looking like a rabbit in the headlights. Wish he would give himself a shake and show more belief in his abilities.

 

[Balham]

For someone who is highly rated and supposedly very adept, i just don't understand why he's playing within himself and looking like a rabbit in the headlights. Wish he would give himself a shake and show more belief in his abilities.

He's come into a high functioning team where everyone is drilled to perfection. Give it until the end of the season and he'll be up to speed.

 

[bromtom]

I think Berge will be a success next season in a slightly altered system.

Him and Norwood central, Fleck and Lunny in front and wide, and a striker up top. Or Fleck in front of Norwood and Berge and 2 strikers.

I don't think we need 2 strikers unless one of them is McGoldrick at the moment, because it doesn't make us anymore likely to score.

We'll see who we bring in in the break and how that changes things, but I think a 4 in the middle of Fleck, Norwood, Berge, Lundstram would give us a good mix of defensive strength, drive, and creativity, and with Fleck and Lunny, goals.

With all those players picking passes for a player like Moose, I could see it working.

 

[CarlMcBlade]

I do apologise pal, me and technology are not always well suited

Yeah you, me and few more on here

 

[Sheff de party]

£17m (plus a relatively low £20k/week in wages - taken from FM20) buys you Oli McBurnie. Last summer, these moved for a similar amount:

Oli McBurnie (£17m; 4 goals in 16+11 apps; £17m fee; £20k/week)

Comparisons:
Ché Adams (£14m; 0 goals in 8+14; £40k/week)
Patrick Cutrone (£16m; 2 goals in 4+3 apps; £65k/week; now on loan at Fiorentina)
Neal Maupay (£20m; 8 goals in 20+8 app; £35k/week)
Moise Kean (£27m; 1 goal in 5+17 apps; £50k/week)
Ayoze Pérez (£30m; 7 goals in 21+4 apps; £85k/week)
Joelinton (£40m; 1 goal in 27+2 apps; £85k/week)
Sébastian Haller (£45m; 7 goals in 24+3 apps; £75k/week)

Southampton bought Danny Ings for £17m in the summer but he's 27 and is on £80k per week.

McBurnie's doing just fine; only Maupay is outperforming him but he's a very different sort of player.

Clearly stats wise he’s comparable to or better than those, but that’s all it is. McGoldrick has had a much better season in my view and he hasn’t scored any.

You don’t need to look any further than our squad. Mousset has played 400 minutes fewer, scored one more and been much better having cost half as much.

Fair enough if you think McBurnie is doing well, and I’m not saying he’s never going to be good. He’s been our fourth best striker this season though and that’s about where he is. I can’t believe he cost £20m.

 

[Niceguyeddie]

Lundstram ,mcgoldrick ,mcburnie ,mousset and even.Henderson. have all had threads like this slagging them off with some outrageously hasty opinions before them Stephens ,baldock and even.O'Connell had the same treatment .they all turned out alright in.the end ,its almost as if the manager knows what he's doing

 

[CentralQuay]

£17m (plus a relatively low £20k/week in wages - taken from FM20) buys you Oli McBurnie. Last summer, these moved for a similar amount:

Oli McBurnie (£17m; 4 goals in 16+11 apps; £17m fee; £20k/week)

Comparisons:
Ché Adams (£14m; 0 goals in 8+14; £40k/week)
Patrick Cutrone (£16m; 2 goals in 4+3 apps; £65k/week; now on loan at Fiorentina)
Neal Maupay (£20m; 8 goals in 20+8 app; £35k/week)
Moise Kean (£27m; 1 goal in 5+17 apps; £50k/week)
Ayoze Pérez (£30m; 7 goals in 21+4 apps; £85k/week)
Joelinton (£40m; 1 goal in 27+2 apps; £85k/week)
Sébastian Haller (£45m; 7 goals in 24+3 apps; £75k/week)

Southampton bought Danny Ings for £17m in the summer but he's 27 and is on £80k per week.

McBurnie's doing just fine; only Maupay is outperforming him but he's a very different sort of player.

You can't post figures that mainly agree with your own opinion, and disregard the rest.
Wesley has been considered to be an abysmal signing by Villa fans.....And he's still outscoring Mcburnie.
Perez i'm not sure fits the narrative as he's a winger, not a striker, and his return is much better than Mcburnie's also.


I'm not sure who fans were expecting/wanting to sign though.
I would not be surprised if Maupay would have been preferred over Mcburnie, but he was going to pick Brighton over Blades.
Realistically, given Wilder's insistence on buying British players, who could he really have bought?


Maybe Wilder's January signings were a result of him realising that it's difficult to improve the side just looking at players from the Championship.
But 5-10 goals during the first season in the PL really isn't the end of the world.

 

[Broomhall Blade]

Loads of players who come from another country and League take time to adjust to the Premier League even for the top six sides. You sometimes don't see the best of them until their second season.

 

[itsinyerblood]

Second season syndrome kicks in when sides do not adapt, after a successful first season and believe that just 'doing what we're doing' which has brought you success so far, is the answer to everything.
6th in the Premier League during your first season is great......
But didn't Reading get 8th and were relegated the following season?

This 'fantastic' transfer policy....I'm not convinced i'm afraid, has recruitment alone really been anymore successful than Villa's?

I'd argue you're significantly above Villa in the table because you have a far better manager, with a far better understanding of what he wants from his team, how he wants to setup and how to maximize what he has from the players available.
E.g. Wesley has been considered a poor signing....But still has as many goals in a poor Villa side as the Blades top scorer.

If you believe this season to be your peak, then the attitude you have is probably correct.
But only signing 'home grown British players' will simply make you the next Burnley, rather than Leicester/Wolves.

Your observation about the Blades signing only players from the UK is based on received wisdom, so let me correct this outdated piece of rhetoric. An earlier interview this season had Wilder discussing what he needed to do in order to satisfy our league position, the budgets he had to work with, and that trying to persuade decent foreign players to join the Blades wouldn't have been worth his efforts. It was never a case of Wilder not being interested in players from other continents, but with the money he had in Div 1 and the Championship, he felt it better to pursue players who knew their way around our leagues and could compete at this level. Now that we've achieved Prem status Wilder has begun to make the necessary adjustments to our squad, notably with the signing of a Norwegian player. This won't be the last signing of an international player from abroad that Wilder brings to the club, so the outdated 'Brits only' policy was only relevant in the lower divisions.

You'll notice many changes during the summer, and your points, many of which make sense, are one's that Wilder will already be aware of.

 

[Sportbilly /Detroit Blade]

A bit more time to settle and get him in front of the back four and he will be dynamite.

 

[Balham]

You can't post figures that mainly agree with your own opinion, and disregard the rest.
Wesley has been considered to be an abysmal signing by Villa fans.....And he's still outscoring Mcburnie.
Perez i'm not sure fits the narrative as he's a winger, not a striker, and his return is much better than Mcburnie's also.

Hang on, who have I missed who'd disprove my point?

All I'm saying is that McBurnie is doing OK. Nothing more, nothing less.

Pérez I chose as I was struggling for alternatives to McBurnie given the fees paid for forwards last summer.

I'm not sure who fans were expecting/wanting to sign though.
I would not be surprised if Maupay would have been preferred over Mcburnie, but he was going to pick Brighton over Blades.
Realistically, given Wilder's insistence on buying British players, who could he really have bought?

I don't think Wilder has an insistence on British players but until we disproved the belief that we're a 'Brexit' sideit was always going to be difficult to convince overseas players to join us. Wilder and Berge have both been on record about how he was chased through the summer but that he didn't feel a predicted relegation battle was a good move.

Maybe Wilder's January signings were a result of him realising that it's difficult to improve the side just looking at players from the Championship.
But 5-10 goals during the first season in the PL really isn't the end of the world.

Isn't it more that Wilder's January signings reflected the fact that we were no longer expected to finish rock bottom of the division?

 

[CentralQuay]

Your observation about the Blades signing only players from the UK is based on received wisdom, so let me correct this outdated piece of rhetoric. An earlier interview this season had Wilder discussing what he needed to do in order to satisfy our league position, the budgets he had to work with, and that trying to persuade decent foreign players to join the Blades wouldn't have been worth his efforts. It was never a case of Wilder not being interested in players from other continents, but with the money he had in Div 1 and the Championship, he felt it better to pursue players who knew their way around our leagues and could compete at this level. Now that we've achieved Prem status Wilder has begun to make the necessary adjustments to our squad, notably with the signing of a Norwegian player. This won't be the last signing of an international player from abroad that Wilder brings to the club, so the outdated 'Brits only' policy was only relevant in the lower divisions.

You'll notice many changes during the summer, and your points, many of which make sense, are one's that Wilder will already be aware of.

Of the 10 players brought in during the summer, only 2 were not from clubs in the country, and one of those was an Englishman playing abroad.
This is not 'outdated' it's the most recent summer window that has taken place, Wilder's transfer policy has been to buy home grown players. I'm not sure why you take offence to this, as there's nothing wrong with it, and it's entirely accurate.

Wilder/the club knows it's far more difficult to progress at this level without looking abroad, I said this a while back, that Berge/Retsos were promising signings so again, i'm not really sure what you're taking offence to.

His transfer policy in January is a vast change to the one from the summer. Wilder/the club may have looked at targets from abroad previously, but that's just guesswork.

 

[CentralQuay]

I don't think Wilder has an insistence on British players but until we disproved the belief that we're a 'Brexit' sideit was always going to be difficult to convince overseas players to join us. Wilder and Berge have both been on record about how he was chased through the summer but that he didn't feel a predicted relegation battle was a good move.

Isn't it more that Wilder's January signings reflected the fact that we were no longer expected to finish rock bottom of the division?

I think the signings reflected the fact that you had already guaranteed premier league football for next year, and that Wilder/the club was willing to spend the the money on Berge and have a look at two youngsters.
A relegation battle would have seen a completely different approach no doubt, looking for players who could make an immediate impact rather than the 'take a look' loans.

 

[metalblade]

I think what we might have learned is that Berger is not a right midfielder and Lundstam looked even worse playing in Flecks spot. If Fleck isn't fit for Sunday put L Freeman in his place or Osborn.