Summer transfer thread | Page 27 | Vital Football

Summer transfer thread

To anyone worrying about the lack of transfer activity, i just had a quick look and it seems:

Cardiff have signed 8 (nearly all frees)

Bristol have signed 3 (all frees)

Huddersfield, QPR, Rotherham, Stoke, West Brom and Swansea have all signed 1 (all frees except Swansea).

The other 16 teams haven't signed anyone.

Only 17 transfers have been completed so far.

No one has spent a major fee yet.

This happens most seasons where we worry about a lack of activity earlier in the window but by the time the window shuts we've done quite a lot of signings. It's just the nature of things - nothing out of the ordinary yet.

A few years ago it was looking like we were very quiet but later in the window we spent 7m+ of on Robinson, Williams, Lowe and Moore which was quite a suprise. So us not moving yet isn't necesarilly a sign things are going wrong or that we haven't got any money.
 
king_dezeeuw06 said:
To anyone worrying about the lack of transfer activity, i just had a quick look and it seems:

Cardiff have signed 8 (nearly all frees)

Bristol have signed 3 (all frees)

Huddersfield, QPR, Rotherham, Stoke, West Brom and Swansea have all signed 1 (all frees except Swansea).

The other 16 teams haven't signed anyone.

Only 17 transfers have been completed so far.

No one has spent a major fee yet.

This happens most seasons where we worry about a lack of activity earlier in the window but by the time the window shuts we've done quite a lot of signings. It's just the nature of things - nothing out of the ordinary yet.

A few years ago it was looking like we were very quiet but later in the window we spent 7m+ of on Robinson, Williams, Lowe and Moore which was quite a suprise. So us not moving yet isn't necesarilly a sign things are going wrong or that we haven't got any money.
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I've a feeling we will all be pleasantly surprised come the next two weeks. 😉
 
Dudestalker said:
I've a feeling we will all be pleasantly surprised come the next two weeks. 😉
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I don't. i have a feeling the club is right at the point of FFP and a club which is historically a loss making club i'd say it's unlikely a transfer fee or big agent fee will be paid. So that will leave run of the mill Championship standard players and out and out gambles on lower league players. Being 1 year ahead of schedule maybe a bad thing. Throwing it all at promotion last season leaves the side looking very unprepared for a go at the Championship. Wigan, Rotherham and Blackpool are very much up against it. Be an interesting season none the less.
 
Frankel Bucks said:
I don't. i have a feeling the club is right at the point of FFP and a club which is historically a loss making club i'd say it's unlikely a transfer fee or big agent fee will be paid. So that will leave run of the mill Championship standard players and out and out gambles on lower league players. Being 1 year ahead of schedule maybe a bad thing. Throwing it all at promotion last season leaves the side looking very unprepared for a go at the Championship. Wigan, Rotherham and Blackpool are very much up against it. Be an interesting season none the less.
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Bloody hell FB, let's see how the first month or so of the season to get underway before we start all the doom & gloom. Do you really think we were 'throwing it all at promotion last season'.....bearing in mind that we only had a handful of players to start with & had to build a squad. I'm not sure what the new season has for us but I think I'll reserve judgement till were at least a few games in. 🤔😉🍻
 
jocklatic said:
Bloody hell FB, let's see how the first month or so of the season to get underway before we start all the doom & gloom. Do you really think we were 'throwing it all at promotion last season'.....bearing in mind that we only had a handful of players to start with & had to build a squad. I'm not sure what the new season has for us but I think I'll reserve judgement till were at least a few games in. 🤔😉🍻
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It's just my take on it. I could be way off but FFP has really strangled the smaller clubs. There are some huge clubs (attendances and resources wise) in the championship. Even Sunderland who scraped up from league 1 have the potential now to do great things in the championship. FFP is a bit like the Tory party. Keep the rich, rich and the poor, poor. It just expands the gulf. I do think they went all in for promotion. When Cousins was signed i had a bet with a chap from work that Latics were going up. £100 and he has paid up. He is a massive Latics fan, Not quite Darren Orme territory but he goes home and away without fail. He was the pessimist last year and me the optimist. Roles reversed this season though and the ante has been upped. The same £100 bet applies that Latics stay up or go down. He has gone for staying up and gets an additional £100 if they finish above 21st. I have them for going down with an additional £100 if they finish bottom. I do feel as though it was a build last season for promotion and did it very well to be fair and i take your point about it being a brand new squad which makes it even more spectacular. Hindsight is wonderful obviously but i think staying down for 1 more season would have been better for planning. It probably doesn't make any sense to you reading it in cold text like that but.................. championship is now where it's at and have to compete. There are some good players in that squad but i would say 5 starters short of it being what i'd say comfortable and i just don't think the funds are there to make the said signings. Obviously i'd love to say 'Play offs and then premier league the season after' but wise head on says it's going to be tough. Just based on level of sides in the league and even Hull are making big noises.
 
Frankel Bucks said:
I don't. i have a feeling the club is right at the point of FFP and a club which is historically a loss making club i'd say it's unlikely a transfer fee or big agent fee will be paid. So that will leave run of the mill Championship standard players and out and out gambles on lower league players. Being 1 year ahead of schedule maybe a bad thing. Throwing it all at promotion last season leaves the side looking very unprepared for a go at the Championship. Wigan, Rotherham and Blackpool are very much up against it. Be an interesting season none the less.
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FFP caps wont be an issue to us at the moment as you can lose 39m over a rolling 3 year period, which averages at a 13m loss a season assuming the owners inject the cash.

Last season our wage bill would've been one of the biggest in L1, but we had money coming in from players that left including things like sell ons and trigger clauses that will have brought in a few million that helped to cover a lot of that. Plus promotion is going to see an additional 6m+ in revenue.

So financially we are going to be very healthy as it stands, i have no doubts the budget is going to increase and we will spend, it's just a case of how much the ownership is willing to spend as you have to balance the need to speculate to acumilate and the risk.
 
It's the wages which are an absolute killer for a club like us. The average in this league is supposed to be somewhere between 10-15k a week (it may be more by now due the continued inflation caused by parachute payment clubs) and we just can't afford a squad of players on those wages. One player on 12k a week costs £216k per year. So if we had say a starting XI averaging 12k a week per player, we'd be forking out 2.6m per season. That's not including the rest of the squad's wages, any transfer fees paid, bonuses, appearance fees, etc etc.

Then you've got the wages for the academy/coaching/football staff and every staff member within the club itself. So that six million we get every season is swallowed up in no time. We've also currently got no big outside sponsor paying the club a large chunk of money every year to boost the coffers. Instead, we're being propped up by the shell company (EPIC) of our owner through the shirt sponsor (soon to be stadium sponsor).

The only way we can survive in this league in a sustainable way without being propped up through the ownership are player sales.

Take a look at this, all for the sake of consistent bottom-half finishes. The Championship is the footballing equivalent of Coral Island.

https://www.stokesentinel.co.uk/sport/football/transfer-news/stoke-city-financial-fair-play-7230553
 
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It gives me confidence seeing how Luton did last season with the money they had at their disposal (less than £5m). Invest in the right players and we will be fine. However I have no doubt there will be teams throwing big money at the wrong players who will get found out.

As KDZ says it is a balancing act and FFP shouldn't really worry us if the owners are switched on. I would also add that there must be teams in the league right now who are worried about FFP (Boro, Stoke and Bristol City are some that I have seen under scrutiny). Also the add ons from Gelhardt, Devine, McGurk etc. are still trickling through, apparently.

All in all, invest correctly (target certain positions and don't overspend) and we should be okay. Then, from there we can see where we are if we stay up, which I am confident we will.
 
Just seen on twitter now that Cauley Woodrow is on his way to Luton, again that is someone i would have had a look at signing. Think his contract was up at Barnsley and would have been someone well within our price range.

Also talk of Will Vaulks going to Sheff Wed too after his release from Cardiff, some speculating as a Massimo Luongo replacement.

Normally in last week before pre season training starts we start to see player movement (that week is this week) so fingers crossed we see a few stories in next few days regarding us. If there isnt anything by the end of the week (cause i suspect there will be news pouring out of other clubs), then i will start to be a little concerned
 
Actually just had a look on the twitter thread that was reporting the Woodrow to Luton story, talk of Luton paying a fee so i guess he wasnt out of contract.
 
king_dezeeuw06 said:
FFP caps wont be an issue to us at the moment as you can lose 39m over a rolling 3 year period, which averages at a 13m loss a season assuming the owners inject the cash.

Last season our wage bill would've been one of the biggest in L1, but we had money coming in from players that left including things like sell ons and trigger clauses that will have brought in a few million that helped to cover a lot of that. Plus promotion is going to see an additional 6m+ in revenue.

So financially we are going to be very healthy as it stands, i have no doubts the budget is going to increase and we will spend, it's just a case of how much the ownership is willing to spend as you have to balance the need to speculate to acumilate and the risk.
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James Beattie has been saying to Kendo that the wages that we are paying are not as high as has been quoted on social media and everyone at the club is on the same page
 
Can’t be 100% sure but outside looking in, it feels like something turned us away from Fossey. Alternatively our early interest could have well been us seeing how the land lies. Can imagine we are after players who other teams also want so it’s always going to be slow going. Holidays, new managers wanting to see players in training first, players holding out for the best deals. Wouldn’t read to much into it at this stage

Personally I would like to see Cody Drameh if it was a deal we could do. Immense at Cardiff on loan last year and tipped by Bielsa to have a big future. Comfortable in both a 4 and a back 5, Leeds already have two senior right backs so can’t see him getting too many chances at this stage. Would remind me of the situation Antonee Robinson was in when we got him from Everton.
 
C_McNamara said:
Can’t be 100% sure but outside looking in, it feels like something turned us away from Fossey. Alternatively our early interest could have well been us seeing how the land lies. Can imagine we are after players who other teams also want so it’s always going to be slow going. Holidays, new managers wanting to see players in training first, players holding out for the best deals. Wouldn’t read to much into it at this stage

Personally I would like to see Cody Drameh if it was a deal we could do. Immense at Cardiff on loan last year and tipped by Bielsa to have a big future. Comfortable in both a 4 and a back 5, Leeds already have two senior right backs so can’t see him getting too many chances at this stage. Would remind me of the situation Antonee Robinson was in when we got him from Everton.
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I think you're probably right on Fossey, we probably enquired about loads right backs to get idea of wages, fees, players interest, etc and check on our options. Then after we get the initial info, work out who we think is the best business. It's probably not a case we couldn't afford to do the deal just we think there is overall another deal we think is better.

I like the look of Fossey, but there is no denying he's never played a Championship game, he's not got a good injury record and he's played very few senior games despite being 24. On top of that there will be a transfer fee too - none of that is to say he wont turn out to be a good player at this level but it is a gamble. All of the pros and cons have to be weighed up and it seems in this instance we felt it wasn't our best option.
 
king_dezeeuw06 said:
I think you're probably right on Fossey, we probably enquired about loads right backs to get idea of wages, fees, players interest, etc and check on our options. Then after we get the initial info, work out who we think is the best business. It's probably not a case we couldn't afford to do the deal just we think there is overall another deal we think is better.

I like the look of Fossey, but there is no denying he's never played a Championship game, he's not got a good injury record and he's played very few senior games despite being 24. On top of that there will be a transfer fee too - none of that is to say he wont turn out to be a good player at this level but it is a gamble. All of the pros and cons have to be weighed up and it seems in this instance we felt it wasn't our best option.
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Never really know mate, just speculation on my part but could of been 1 of 100 reasons. Either way the club has to make decisions quickly in these situations.
Can’t doubt Fossey has quality and looked a real talent but if it’s not to be then so be it. There are other fantastic players out there. Fingers crossed we can get one or two through the door
 
I did read somewhere that we were apprehensive about Fossey because of his injury history, so that could explain pulling out of a potential deal with Fulham upon further inspection..
 
richymac said:
It gives me confidence seeing how Luton did last season with the money they had at their disposal (less than £5m). Invest in the right players and we will be fine. However I have no doubt there will be teams throwing big money at the wrong players who will get found out.

As KDZ says it is a balancing act and FFP shouldn't really worry us if the owners are switched on. I would also add that there must be teams in the league right now who are worried about FFP (Boro, Stoke and Bristol City are some that I have seen under scrutiny). Also the add ons from Gelhardt, Devine, McGurk etc. are still trickling through, apparently.

All in all, invest correctly (target certain positions and don't overspend) and we should be okay. Then, from there we can see where we are if we stay up, which I am confident we will.
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I think Luton are a good example of how you don't need to spend much money if you recruit well.

They have rarely paid a transfer fee, don't pay big wages and most of their players come in on frees. They've signed lots players who were formally highly regarded but had fallen out of favour and got them back on form.

It's a bit like 'rehabilitating' players and i think currently that is a market that a lot of clubs don't exploit as they are focused on looking for the next big thing or who is currently playing well.

Luton take the 'rehabilitation' route out of financial necessity but i think they have made it work for them better than many clubs who've got far larger budgets. It's not to say it's easy to take that route but it shows that money isn't the only way to compete at this level.
 
king_dezeeuw06 said:
I think Luton are a good example of how you don't need to spend much money if you recruit well.

They have rarely paid a transfer fee, don't pay big wages and most of their players come in on frees. They've signed lots players who were formally highly regarded but had fallen out of favour and got them back on form.

It's a bit like 'rehabilitating' players and i think currently that is a market that a lot of clubs don't exploit as they are focused on looking for the next big thing or who is currently playing well.

Luton take the 'rehabilitation' route out of financial necessity but i think they have made it work for them better than many clubs who've got far larger budgets. It's not to say it's easy to take that route but it shows that money isn't the only way to compete at this level.
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I'd agree with that KDZ.
 
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