The Un-mention able one !

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

If you think we should sign him in January.
What's the length of contract we should offer?

Same as Chesterfield?
Forget the wage for now.

Or would you prefer SUFC to pursue EEL on a full-time deal?

I want what's best for Sheffield United, NOT The Welshman, nor any other player we sign.

 

[LJBlade]

If you think we should sign him in January.
What's the length of contract we should offer?

Same as Chesterfield?
Forget the wage for now.

Or would you prefer SUFC to pursue EEL on a full-time deal?

I want what's best for Sheffield United, NOT The Welshman, nor any other player we sign.

Does it have to be one or the other?

We offer him a similar length of contract to what we would offer any other player on a wage that fits within our wage structure.

I also want what's best for United and on Sunday I saw a very good player who was making a big difference to a very poor team. I saw a player who could offer us something that non of our other strikers can offer. I also think he could step up an do it in the Championship which is what we need to be considering.

If Wilder wants to sign him and can get him for a price that he is happy with then I trust Wilder's judgement. If we don't end up signing him though I won't be losing any sleep.

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

on Sunday I saw a very good player who was making a big difference to a very poor team

If Chesterfield had beaten us 4-1 and The Welshman had ran our defence ragged, I'd begin to thaink he might be worth looking at.
He didn't.

He hasn't done anything of any note so far this season.
His club are BOTTOM of the League.

Said it before, Blades supporters are only interested in him because he's got a link to us. That was five years ago.
The Welshman of five years ago is long gone, Beattie Mk.2 wasn't the same as Beattie Mk.1...

On another slight, would his father-in-law still be paying his wage should SUFC take a risk and sign him?

If we don't end up signing him though I won't be losing any sleep.

Me too. Though i'm not losing any now.

 

[Sheffsteel]

Lydon,

Blades are only interested because we've seen with our own eyes that he was high Championship/ lower PL standard ( agree, he only reached those heights for 6 months). He's been out of football for 4 years but is still relatively young.

Basically the question is how much are we prepared to risk on potential?

I don't think this is a question for Wilder.
I'm certain almost every manager in league 1 would say yes, to including Ched in their squad.
Wilder is a professional, he'd take Ched but only play him on merit.
It's no big deal to him. If Ched isn't up to standard he'll struggle to get a game.

The big decision lies with the board and Ched himself.

What valuation do our board put on Ched?
What valuation would Chesterfield FC put on Ched?

Regards Ched you're talking about someone who's currently decent, but only worth £3K a week
But we know he has the potential to be good Championship standard worth £10K a week.
Our board are no longer desperate and I expect we'll offer £3K with big incentive bonuses.

However I've no doubt Ched and Chesterfield will get bigger bids from other clubs.
These days clubs gamble and pay over the odds for potential.
So expect a club like Wigan or Rotherham to offer £6 or £7K a week.

And finally it's up to Ched.
Does he chase the money and go to the highest bidder
Or does he have a sense of unfinished business and loyalty to SU and accept a modest basic salary with us?

I think his agent will want Ched to pick the best contract and he'll join a lower end Championship club or even a rival league 1 club like Bradford or Bolton.

 

[WestwoodBlade]

Personally feel he would be worth a gamble. We could do with another striker I feel in January in case of injury. Warnock always liked a strong pool of strikers. He definitely caused us problems, with the chances we create I feel he would be far more prolific in our team than a piss poor chezzy one. He owes us one and he may see us as unfinished business, providing we give him a smart wage and contract length, he'd be worth a punt

 

[FlamingLip]

He's showing some potential, nothing more. but he cometh with sizeable risk (fitness as well as associated off-field shit storms).

At present, United have transformed in to the most non-notorious team I can remember, showing apparent universal hard earned admiration for how we're going about this season. It's beyond refreshing and I feel both renewed passion and pride. We're a bellend and mercenary free team with a spirit Wilder would make millions from if able to bottle and sell (...put that jam jar down Kevin). So i'm reluctant to want to dip my toe in to any Evans anointed past.

But, I trust Wilder to do what's best. He'll be weighing up all possibilities and whatever his judgement, it's fine by me.

 

[Sheffsteel]

He hasn't done anything of any note so far this season.
His club are BOTTOM of the League.

On another slight, would his father-in-law still be paying his wage should SUFC take a risk and sign him?

Me too. Though i'm not losing any now.

1: Many experts say that any player that hasn't played for 4 years will take at least a year (maybe more) to get up to speed. So what we are seeing now at CFC is a Ched at 70% although it's possible that might be it and he may never regain his 100% form.

Hence why most clubs will make appropriate bids.
However the desperate club (which we're not) will overpay and gamble on his potential.

2: When CFC signed him he was still officially guilty pending an appeal.
So of course hardly any club was willing to employ him hence why the father in law agreed to subsidise his wage.
Now everything has changed, he's won his appeal and no longer guilty of any crime.
There will be plenty of clubs keeping tabs on Ched willing to offer a decently contract, so his father no longer need to subsidise the wage.

3: Agree, thankfully we're no longer desperate to sign him so it's no longer such a big deal what happens
I'd want us to keep it business like, show interest but make an appropriate offer and not gamble too much.

We might even come up with a creative Kevin Mcdonald style contract package like if we fail to get promoted then he can leave on the cheap enabling him to earn a massive salary at his next club.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

If you think we should sign him in January.
What's the length of contract we should offer?

Same as Chesterfield?
Forget the wage for now.

Or would you prefer SUFC to pursue EEL on a full-time deal?

I want what's best for Sheffield United, NOT The Welshman, nor any other player we sign.

If it comes down to one or the other, I too would make EEL the priority but I don't think January will only be about one player. If we sign a striker, Evans would be near the top of my list (along with Akinde and Bogle but I think despite being a league lower, they might cost more). I'd say either a 1.5 or 2.5 year deal would be sensible as that would take him to 30 at the oldest. But it also comes down to what terms players are willing to accept. I'm sure we'd have preferred Clarke's deal to be 2 years but the 3rd year gives him the security and makes him more likely to accept. I would hope given Chesterfield's plight that if we offer them say McNulty and Reed on loan (with us paying their wages) they would let Evans go for next to nowt as for them, it's all about being able to field a competitive team and getting people off the wage bill. We could even loan them a few players like we did Rotherham when they were on the edge of extinction (Brooks, Whiteman, Kelly, Slater, Wright etc.).

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

He's been out of football for 4 years but is still relatively young.

28 next month.

Would you say Andy Carroll is 'realtively young' too? As a player.

Basically the question is how much are we prepared to risk on potential?

28 next month. Clubs don't buy players at that age on potential. Or do they? Are we struggling scoring goals with the current forwards we have?
If i'm the manager and I have to look at signing player(s) with potential, i'm looking at late teens/early twenties.

I think his agent will want Ched to pick the best contract and he'll join a lower end Championship club or even a rival league 1 club like Bradford or Bolton.

Agree. If in January, there's clubs in the League and maybe above who are struggling to score, then I can imagine someone taking the risk on signing him and hoping he'll score enough to help them a) achieve promotion : b) keep them from being relegated.

It's a no-go for me as regards signing him on the current situation.

As an afterthought. If it's true that his father-in-law his paying his wages at Chesterfield FC, only thru' stories circulating in the hushed corridors of various football clubs, who actually 'owns' the player? Are we looking at a 'third-party player' similar to another club who has history as regards Sheffield United?

 

[1danewhitehouse]

1:

2: When CFC signed him he was still officially guilty pending an appeal.
.

Agree with the majority of your post but that bit's not true. His conviction had been quashed but a re-trial ordered meaning at that point, he was back to being innocent until proven guilty. However, he had the risk and the doubt of the re-trial hanging over him meaning he was less attractive to potential employers so the overall gist of your point remains.

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

Let's see who's the new owner at Chesterfield FC before any further thought is taken on The Welshman!

They might also have a new manager/assistant in charge very soon too.
Were Wilson/Morgan a major reason why he signed for them? How many at SUFC are still here from his spell at BDTBL?

Too many questions with answers that not many on here can answer, with 100% conviction? Excuse the unintentional pun.

 

[1danewhitehouse]

28 next month.

Would you say Andy Carroll is 'realtively young' too? As a player.



28 next month. Clubs don't buy players at that age on potential. Or do they? Are we struggling scoring goals with the current forwards we have?
If i'm the manager and I have to look at signing player(s) with potential, i'm looking at late teens/early twenties.



Agree. If in January, there's clubs in the League and maybe above who are struggling to score, then I can imagine someone taking the risk on signing him and hoping he'll score enough to help them a) achieve promotion : b) keep them from being relegated.

It's a no-go for me as regards signing him on the current situation.

As an afterthought. If it's true that his father-in-law his paying his wages at Chesterfield FC, only thru' stories circulating in the hushed corridors of various football clubs, who actually 'owns' the player? Are we looking at a 'third-party player' similar to another club who has history as regards Sheffield United?

I don't believe the stuff about the father in law subsidising wages. It makes no sense. I suspect the reality is that he can afford to play for a small wage because his father in law and in turn his Mrs are minted. No direct subsidy would be required.

 

[Sheffsteel]

Another point... I predict that our negotiations with Ched will be done in secret and SU will refuse to comment about any speculation. Wilder himself recently refused to rule him in or rule him out.

Imagine the scenario, we want Ched but want to be sensible and offer £3K a week with massive incentive bonuses and promotion bonuses built in.

Then Bradford or Bolton offer a straight £5K over 4 years and he joins them.
McCabe would get hammered for lacking ambition and morale within the club would take a knock.

It wouldn't surprise me if SU have already approached CFC and Ched but as I said whilst we're in league 1 we don't have the finances to compete with Championship clubs. Also the board have admitted that they won't be wasteful and make reckless gambles.

 

[Iffy Onuora's Shiny Head]

I think we forget that Ched played for us in a season where we were absolutely shocking at Championship level, under two of the most anti-football managers I've ever seen.

Look at Leon Britton - he did nothing in that team yet went on to play Premier League football for several years.

I also believe that all things being equal, he will go on to have a marginally longer career than average player due to 2.5 years of no wear and tear on the body.

 

[LJBlade]

If Chesterfield had beaten us 4-1 and The Welshman had ran our defence ragged, I'd begin to thaink he might be worth looking at.
He didn't.

He hasn't done anything of any note so far this season.
His club are BOTTOM of the League.

Said it before, Blades supporters are only interested in him because he's got a link to us. That was five years ago.
The Welshman of five years ago is long gone, Beattie Mk.2 wasn't the same as Beattie Mk.1...

On another slight, would his father-in-law still be paying his wage should SUFC take a risk and sign him?



Me too. Though i'm not losing any now.

He certainly had the beating of Basham for the first 20 minutes (until he started playing more centrally)

I think it's easy to say 'his team are bottom of the league' as a reason for not signing him. Is he the only player in that team? Despite having 'bottom of the league' team mates he still set up one goal and created a couple of chances for himself.

He hasn't done anything of note so far this season? His 5 goals would make him our second leading goalscorer. And that's 5 goals for a team who are struggling and therefore create very few chances.

Again, I think it's easy to say that Blades fans are only interested in him because of his links to us, though that certainly isn't the case for me. It's just as easy to say that because of his links to us we've seen what he can do.

I'm not sure of what relevance it is to the conversation but is his father in law currently paying his wages?

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

due to 2.5 years of no wear and tear on the body.

Good looking youth, in the prison system?

Meet 'Raymond The Bastard'.

 

[Ricky]

From his point of view I think he'd want to come back due to unfinished business, help us get promoted and then think about money afterwards. If he could get much more elsewhere, leave, if not, then stay.

We'd need to give him a competitive deal but without over exposing ourselves - and by that I'm only referring to potential fitness issues. But I don't think he'll have many, he was never injury prone before. It might just take him this season to get over the niggles.

So probably something like this...

Two and a half years with the option to extend for another year.

3.5k p/w. 1.5k appearance fee. Small promotion bonus.

Rising to 7.5k p/w after promotion, 2.5k appearance fee.

10k p/w after 10 league goals in a Championship season. 12.5k p/w after 15 goals. 15k+ p/w after 20 goals.

The goal based wage increases replacing goal bonuses, giving a longer term incentive.


I don't think that would be high risk for us at all. If it just didn't work out for whatever reason, we'd probably be able to move him on because 7.5k p/w in the Championship isn't very much at all to a lot of clubs up there these days. Even if we couldn't move him on it would hardly cripple us. If we stayed in L1 the 3.5k p/w is hardly substantial either, in any circumstances.

 

[davidblade]

For what it's worth, I thought he performed well. He's unbelievably strong.

In a team like ours that's creating chances he would score a hatful.

What in the Premier Inn sorry league I meant

 

[Darthblade]

He had one exceptional season which was his only one at this level. He showed that he was far too good for this level and significantly eclipsed any season Clarke has had at this or any level. Don’t get me wrong, I think Clarke’s a useful player for this league but if Evans gets anywhere close to that level, he is significantly better. He’s also a different type of player and would give us a different option to mix things up. He’s got 5 goals in the first less than half of the season playing in an awful team and having missed about 5 games or so through injury. If he’s fit for most of the remainder of the season he’s on course to score about 12-14 goals even in awful side. Put him in a decent side and that’s likely to translate into being a 20+ goal striker who has a good combination of pace, power and technique. If we can get that on the cheap then it would be foolish not to take it.


If he wants too much, fair enough, let’s not break the bank as we’re not desperate. Maybe look at Bogle or Akinde instead. But if the price is right……

It shouldn't be overlooked that Sharp and Clarke are no spring chickens, and IF we got promoted we have to consider that one or both may be needing replacement before too long. Same applies to Wright at the back ......

It therefore makes sense that Tufty would be considering his "options" in January, assuming that the Board will give him some money ( which is by no means a certainty)

UTB & FTP

 

[Finn Keane o' Balmaqueen]

He certainly had the beating of Basham for the first 20 minutes (until he started playing more centrally)

20 minutes?
I want a player that will have the beating of any defence for 90 minutes. Every game of the season.
20 minutes. Then what?

I think it's easy to say 'his team are bottom of the league' as a reason for not signing him. Is he the only player in that team? Despite having 'bottom of the league' team mates he still set up one goal and created a couple of chances for himself.

20 minutes. Did he score? Were we looking vulnerable at the back whenever he got the ball? We saw him for an hour on Sunday, how many on here have seen him throughout the season on a regular basis (not just Ch5 highlights) ?

Folks are going to have to come up with some valid reasons for why we should even contemplate signing someone who's been out of the game for years, is at a club who are bottom of the league, not yet sunk, but sinking fast. Five goals, played an hour against us, troubled Basham for 20 minutes? Is that the finest argument we have for re-signing him? Potential? Cheap signing? Cheap wages? Short term deal?

I'm struggling to be convinced, after all, if he hadn't got previous, on those attributes, would we even be talking about the player?

 

[Darthblade]

think youll find Ched scored 13 in 67 games over 2 championship seasons
nowhere near good enough

if we were mid table and had scored as many as last season it might be an option
but hes not really needed

But bear in mind that was mostly whilst we were being "managed" by that buffoon hoofy Blackwell and Evans probably spent most of the week having physio on his aching neck waiting for the ball to come down with snow on it !!

UTB & FTP

 

[1danewhitehouse]

20 minutes?
I want a player that will have the beating of any defence for 90 minutes. Every game of the season.
20 minutes. Then what?



20 minutes. Did he score? Were we looking vulnerable at the back whenever he got the ball? We saw him for an hour on Sunday, how many on here have seen him throughout the season on a regular basis (not just Ch5 highlights) ?

Folks are going to have to come up with some valid reasons for why we should even contemplate signing someone who's been out of the game for years, is at a club who are bottom of the league, not yet sunk, but sinking fast. Five goals, played an hour against us, troubled Basham for 20 minutes? Is that the finest argument we have for re-signing him? Potential? Cheap signing? Cheap wages? Short term deal?

I'm struggling to be convinced, after all, if he hadn't got previous, on those attributes, would we even be talking about the player?

OK here goes.

1. 5 goals so far in an awful team.

2. We've seen first hand that at his best, he is far too good for this league.

3. Chesterfield fans I work with say he looks a cut above in every game but they are so bad he's starved of the ball but whenever he does get it, he looks a threat bullying defenders.

4. A first hand look on sunday shows he still has a good touch, movement and strength. His effort on the angle that Moore saved shows he can still strike a ball very well with very little backlit.

5. Chesterfield's financial situation and his affinity for the club MIGHT mean we can get him a lot cheaper than a player of his calibre would normally be.

6. If we don't sign him, there's a good chance a promotion rival will. Then if he gets back to something like his old form in a decent team, he could be the difference.

 

[Ricky]

5 in 13 games in a very poor team would probably equate to at least 7 in 13 in a good team. More if he took penalties. Add on the 3/4 league games he's missed and that could be 10 or more in 17 games - similar to Sharp. I don't think that's any stretch whatsoever.

All the views coming out from the Chesterfield fans suggest he's their best player - that's saying something because they do have other decent ones like Ariyibi and Nolan.

He's clearly very strong. He's still got a powerful shot. His touch is still there. His movement is good. He works hard.

His mentality will be very good. He'll be more determined and motivated than ever. Wouldn't you be if you were him?

The only issue is his fitness. If he can stay fit he'll get better and better for at least the next two years.

 

[Bladey McBladeface]

What in the Premier Inn sorry league I meant

Crass joke and unnecessary.

 

[LJBlade]

20 minutes?
I want a player that will have the beating of any defence for 90 minutes. Every game of the season.
20 minutes. Then what?



20 minutes. Did he score? Were we looking vulnerable at the back whenever he got the ball? We saw him for an hour on Sunday, how many on here have seen him throughout the season on a regular basis (not just Ch5 highlights) ?

Folks are going to have to come up with some valid reasons for why we should even contemplate signing someone who's been out of the game for years, is at a club who are bottom of the league, not yet sunk, but sinking fast. Five goals, played an hour against us, troubled Basham for 20 minutes? Is that the finest argument we have for re-signing him? Potential? Cheap signing? Cheap wages? Short term deal?

I'm struggling to be convinced, after all, if he hadn't got previous, on those attributes, would we even be talking about the player?

Yes 20 minutes. Then Evans started playing more centrally and Chesterfield as a team sat back a lot more and left Evans isolated up front. It's very simplistic to just say 'he didn't do anything' without considering the bigger picture. You want a player who can beat a defence for the whole 90 minutes. Can you name even one player that manages that, at any level?

Did we look vulnerable? Seeing as he got an assist and we had to clear a shot of his off the line I'd say there was a couple of occasions when we did. He also got the better of EEL on one occasion which resulted in a good shot from a very tight angle.

How many have seen him on a regular basis? I'm guessing very few. Have you? Or are you writing him off after an hour in which he looked good, in a very poor team. As said before, his 5 goals in a poor team would make him our 2nd leading goalscorer. Are you saying he wouldn't have got at least that many playing in a team who would provide much better service?

 

[LJBlade]

Yes 20 minutes. Then Evans started playing more centrally and Chesterfield as a team sat back a lot more and left Evans isolated up front. It's very simplistic to just say 'he didn't do anything' without considering the bigger picture. You want a player who can beat a defence for the whole 90 minutes. Can you name even one player that manages that, at any level?

Did we look vulnerable? Seeing as he got an assist and we had to clear a shot of his off the line I'd say there was a couple of occasions when we did. He also got the better of EEL on one occasion which resulted in a good shot from a very tight angle.

How many have seen him on a regular basis? I'm guessing very few. Have you? Or are you writing him off after an hour in which he looked good, in a very poor team. As said before, his 5 goals in a poor team would make him our 2nd leading goalscorer. Are you saying he wouldn't have got at least that many playing in a team who would provide much better service?

 

[davidblade]

Crass joke and unnecessary.

Sorry couldn't resist it.