ScottishRed

I don’t know why but I cannot warm to Cooper however, I think he has done a fantastic job in very difficult circumstances. Clearly next season will be just as tricky and recruitment this summer, same as most clubs, will be crucial. That said I am not sure the owner will be quite as benevolent if they have a poor start. And that is the challenge for any club that beats the odds and stays up, the second ‘album’ to use a musical analogy can be equally difficult.

In terms of senior appointments nothing SL does would surprise me. ”It’s my club”. That never to be forgotten quote on RB has always stuck in my mind. Anyone who actually understands football knows that even if you hold all of the shares in a club you don’t own it, you are simply the current custodian. Going back to SL’s senior appointments, should he retain ownership or control, I am completely convinced that LJ will be HC again, probably after Nige retires or quits or is sacked. For that not to happen LJ would need to be in a very high profile role, which is unlikely in my opinion.

And that is exactly what Pep does, he makes good players better players. Sounds obvious, but even at the highest level not every Head Coach / Manager, achieves that. Grealish is a perfect example. I always enjoyed watching him at Villa, he was their star man would run at loads of opponents and get fouls, that was entertaining for a neutral but was about all he did. Look at him now, he does all of the above but with much more purpose and now also tracks back and defends excellently. As I mentioned on the appropriate thread previously I think Man City would be an excellent destination for Scott. He would probably not get much game time in his first season but it would be a superb environment for him to hone his game and work with the best coach in the world.

I think you are spot on regarding Tommy Conway, he looks like the real deal. If we don’t go up next term it’s likely he attract the attention of the EPL.

Unfortunately that is wishful thinking I’m afraid. There are two reasons why, money and ambition. Regarding money, we still run at a huge loss, so any bid for any player that meets the clubs valuation will be seriously considered - the later point is the same the world over, every player has their price. You also have to the financial impact on the player, they are professional sports people, in the main they do not support the club they play for, it’s a job. If they are made aware, usually by their agent, that another club is prepared to pay them multiples of their current wage to move and ply their trade there, it is most likely they will want to leave. The point regarding ambition is a simple one, most, if not all professional sports people are hugely competitive, they are unlikely to be where they are unless they have that characteristic. It is therefore completely understandable for them to test themselves at the highest level possible, this is more pertinent to younger players who want to see how far they can go. For clubs below the EPL, these are the facts unless you have PP’s and can keep players financially content whilst you try for promotion. For clubs like us the secret, and it’s difficult to achieve, is develop talent whether that is by clever recruitment or the academy and hope that the stars align in a particular season. If you take the example of the 4 clubs in the playoffs this year, two are loaded with EPL loan players - expensive and blocks pathways, the other two have done extremely well, but would you bet on them being top six next season should they not be promoted.

Your initial point is spot on, in debates like this we fans always seem to forget that the player has an enormous say on what happens. If, for example, we get a couple of bids this summer that meet our valuation the player may turn them both down for any number of reasons. If, for example, one includes a loan back, again the player may not want to do that, so that offer may have to be re- negotiated or reviewed. As I have said previously I simply do not see any club, despite the vast riches in the EPL, spending the sort of money that we are allegedly asking for then loaning him back to a mid-level Championship club - it is not going to happen.

The point on wages is very valid. Regardless of whether we contribute or not you would have a player in the changing room being paid multiples of the rest of the squad. I thought that was a scenario that Nige was not comfortable with.

On the loan back question, what also needs to be considered is the players view. If he gets his move and is told up front that in his first season his game time could be limited he may except that as he wants to settle into his new surroundings both professionally and personally. I find it hard to believe that a club would pay out the sort of number being spoken about and then loan him back to us without there being a financial impact e.g. size of fee, wage contribution etc. In my view, if the deal is right for the club and the player, it is best to thank him for his contribution, wish him the absolute best of luck and let all parties move on. A loan back is a risk for all involved and for us is purely delaying the inevitable.

Re a very late bid for Alex Scott, it could happen and that could be because club X would not pay what we asked for and moved to other targets, they fall through and they come back in with a premium offer albeit very late. In that scenario my guess is that we would take the money. If the whole thing drags on other the summer we may have a discontented player to re-motivate. Best scenario is that he does well in the U20 WC, which triggers a bidding war that is resolved by mid- July at latest. I really don’t see him here for next season sadly, but the upside is of course we can massively cash in.

I have to agree with you. I always remember when we were chasing a game and LJ would bring him on, and my falsely placed optimism that he would do something to create a golden chance for a striker to equalize or get us the winner. As I said my naive optimism was ill placed. I think that those of my generation tend to get excited when a wide player is introduced in the hope that something could be created against a tiring defense - it was the same scenario with Wes Burns for example. It rarely worked out that way for us.

Agreed. In one of Lee’s infamous ‘ throw a player under the bus episodes’, he stated that he would be a great 7-side player!

In my opinion Man City are by far, the best team in the world with the best manager. Arsenal have had a fantastic season, however I think not having European football has been an assistance. Man City have been there before and that experience has clearly helped them.

That’s the thing with an experienced manager like Nige, not only has he seen it and done so can pass comment based on his experiences. But, maybe more pertinent, he is unlikely to need the money so will tell someone like SL exactly how it is. The last manager we had that was, sort of, in that position was Cottrill. I don’t believe getting Nige out is on the agenda currently but if we start badly next term I would not be totally surprised. One thing we can be certain of is that Nige is no yes man.

I tend to agree, and I suspect if that scenario transpires we will end up with another SL ‘project’. The timing of this just might co-incide with a Scottish SPL side based in Edinburgh deciding to change their manager...........

I have some sympathy with what you are saying but, as has been mentioned on this thread and elsewhere , even if Scott goes for £25m it is not possible to spend a high percentage of that on fees and wages, much as we may want to. The club loses significant sums every single season regardless of transfer revenues and it has been made clear by the CEO and NP not to expect big money to be spent. A lot of the potential cash from Scott’s will be retained to reduce the on-going losses, that has not been hidden from us. We are going to have to rely on good value for money recruitment supplemented by more academy ‘graduates ‘. I am not a fan of FFP as it is biased towards clubs that either generate more revenue than us or have PP’s. There are clubs that have done well without these elements, not least this season, but they are further down the road than us. I know it’s a broken record but the damage that the LJ and MA period did financially has been huge, albeit approved by SL. As an aside, it will be interesting to observe what happens financially regarding transfers at Portman Road this summer.

It’s impossible to predict how we will do until we know who is in the league, and how all of the clubs are affected by player movement both in and out. Even then this league is utterly unpredictable, as we all know. The loss of Scott, yes, I believe he will almost certainly go, will be difficult but, I am certain that Nige and Tins will have been preparing for that. To 6 would be excellent but it’s going to be difficult just like it is every season. I do feel we are making significant progress and will continue to do so. The key to that is keeping Nige which may be harder than we expect, not because he will get other offers but more so that he might decide he has had enough of the whole thing and go off and do other things.

There are of course other issues for them but on the FFP side I would imagine that the sale of Bellingham Jnr and the probable sell-on element from his older brothers move will resolve that. If I were a Brum supporter I would be keeping a keen eye on where those two,not insignificant sums of money go.

I really don’t see Nige switching from what we have used since the start of the calendar year. He will recruit for that formation.

Very true. It does appear that the BBC have gone way over the top this year. Personally, I can’t be doing with it but each to their own.

If there was an offer from Man City and I was Alex I would jump at it. May not get much game time initially as that is how Pep works, but in the medium term it could be a great move for him, surrounded by excellent players and being coached by the best in the business. Nathan Ake is a great example, went there as a thought, a squad filler, took him a year to get the way they play and now starts every game. If Man City is not an option than Brighton would be a good, if different option. My only concern would be whether that can hold on to their coach, lot of management changes predicted in Serie A and I would have thought he would be a target. Equally, as many have said, Dortmund would be a good option for the lad.

Feel for you mate. It’s a very tough thing to do.

He may regret that comment come the weekend. Saw a great tweet from a Leeds fan couple of weeks back predicting results in their remaining games. His comment regarding their game against Man City was ‘ bring lube’.

I haven’t either but, the lad can play and that will not have gone unnoticed. I think he is a key part of the squad now but as always money talks and a good offer for him may, and I mean may, see him move on. I don’t see it this summer but the same will apply next season to Conway if he keeps scoring and we don’t at least make the top 6 .

Swiss Tony was always happy to be in the media when things were rosy, during difficult times he was nowhere to be seen.

Marsch was a huge error. I understand why they sacked Bielsa but I suspect had they stuck with him they would have stayed up. All this proves, yet again, that staying in the EPL is a desperate business as far as owners are concerned. All of which is driven by money and the madness of the sums involved.