Derby_Ram

The one you've all been waiting for (besides everyone else in a mess) https://www.dcfc.co.uk/news/2024/03/derby-county-football-club-financial-results-year-ending-june-2023

The way he's going I wish you'd have signed him in the summer and loaned him back, we'd be promoted by now

I think the calculation in that fee calculation was flawed as it used a flat compensation rate for each year between 12-21 and didn't consider the lower rate between 12-15. No ITK knowledge behind it but my guesstimate will be around £1.5m based on rationale laid out. Less than £1m and you've had our pants down, much more than £1.5m and I'll be delighted given circumstances. Last time I posted on here I said he'd only go if he said he wouldn't sign a contract and we had a replacement we could bring in - didn't even occur to me Max himself could be the replacement until the end of the season in loan. I get why we've agreed the transfer. One we don't have to worry about the tribunal and more importantly know what we can spend from the deal ahead of the summer. I get why you've made the deal as you lock in an excellent Championship player who should fit Manning's style perfectly. I just don't understand why Max would sign this deal now - even with no intention of signing an extension with us should we go up. Unless you made a financial offer which is so ridiculously high that he and his agent just didn't believe would be there from anyone in the summer - and that feels unlikely - it feels odd. Nothing but best wishes for Max and he certainly has the ability to play in the Premier League; sadly we've not utilised him correctly the last two years with Warne's brand of anti-football.

Knight I think will go. We triggered an extension to keep him under contract but Stephen Kenny has been clear he wants him to step back up. Cracking little player but despite over 100 games still not sure his best position and whether he excels in any. No one will outrun him, he'll be the player that drags the team and crowd up when it's needed through his pressing, but he can't beat a player, passing is reasonable yet not special, not the best in the tackle, and finishing worse than it should be. Centre midfield is probably his position but you could play him as right back, wide midfield, attacking mid and he'd do a job. Warne's favourite, Rooney loved him, fans love him but if you have to pick out his best trait....he runs around a lot! Bird, Sibley and in particular Cashin we'll look to keep but if any of them indicates they want to go and someone stumps up the cash we'll sell. Bird could easily do a job in for a Championship team pushing for promotion, but on the flipside wasn't head and shoulders above league one midfields last year. He needs to impose himself on games more frequently. If he did that consistently you'd be talking Premier League not Championship. Someone like Knight should be in the region of £2m-2.5m but its rare would a L1 player commands that type of fee.

Been a while since I've been round these parts. Just thought I'd stick my head in to say you've got a good one here. Predominantly played LB for us but the left of the centre backs in a back 3 and didn't look out of place in either. Excellent engine, good on the ball, decent pace, can move well with the ball, just his end ball was lacking too frequently when playing out wide. Based on what we saw I think he may struggle at CB in a back 4 but wouldn't put it past him. Probably the biggest compliments are you never thought he was a 20yr old learning the game last season and hard to pinpoint any goals as being obviously down to him. Good player.

For next year at least. The original business plan was built around it being feasible if we bounced straight back up. Be interesting to see if Clowes changes that but his comments so far are that he wants us to remain cat one. Ironically if we'd have sold the likes of Buchanan, Ebosele, Williams and Ebiowei who all left in either Jan or end of season for full value rather than just training compensation we'd have more than covered the costs for 1-2 years and brought the overall debt down.

Just missing Kwaku Oduroh - 19 year old right back from Man City on your players in list. Appears to be Byrne's replacement Loach is a fairly local to Derby and has been brought in as 3rd choice keeper and to kick start his coaching career. Sure he's a lovely bloke but hope I never get to see him play.

Cheers all. Mixed emotions as sounds the type of player we are missing from the current midfielders but we'll now have a surplus and seems certain that at least one but probably two of Bird/Knight/Sibley will leave.

Thoughts on Korey Smith who looks like being next through the door?

where are you seeing this?

A week's a long time in football so heaven knows what you'd call the gap since the last time I was on here - and it wasn't really that long ago. Relief is the overwhelming feeling this end. Despite misgivings about CK's ability to do the deal the whole time I finally became convinced and then his money vanished. Think we dodged a huge bullet. One day - NDAs permitting - everything may come out in the wash. Did CK take Rooney, Cook, Stretford in? Was he the puppet for those/someone else? Did he ever get back the money he tried to transfer or is it lost forever amongst laundering checks and he's turned a spotlight onto himself? Was WRs resignation at all linked? Clowes has come along like the proverbial knight in shining armour. A genuine fan as opposed to MM and someone you'd frequently see at away games acting as a fan. Early words from him are encouraging and I believe he stepped in to save the club and run it sustainably for a period of time and once on an even keel look to sell it on. I only hope he doesn't get seduced by being a fan into chasing a dream. The great unknown now is how much he paid overall, in particular to HMRC. It doesn't make conversations about how we're signing players/what the business plan irrelevant - but it becomes impossible to have anything other than a hypothetical conversation.... if we haven't paid x back is it right - no; but what have we paid back - don't know. No one can say with certainty that we now have a competitive advantage v other clubs regarding tax, equally no one can say we don't. Find it hard to believe we've paid HMRC everything / have a plan to.....but also the business plan has been approved remarkably quickly, not a muttering of dissent from HMRC, and places reporting what Clowes has paid being astronomical if we haven't. Season tickets on sale today and early transfer business encouraging (with the caveat of no one knowing what has/hasn't been repaid). Its nice to have some semblance of normality and typical pre-season hope. Roll of July 30th for that to go flying out the window. Good luck to City for the upcoming season - always keen to see Chrissy Martin do well.

When I said hot I didn't expect this hot! With Nixon he normally posts things which allows him to come back with "aye" no matter the outcome. Derby included in the past. What's inescapable this time round is he's very close to Stretford who happens to be Rooney's agent and linked to Gary Cook and the CK bid. It wouldn't surprise me to see him as a board member should CK get a takeover over the line. When Nixon tweets about Derby at the minute he's being briefed by Stretford. Don't bite the hand that feeds you. What's true/what CK wants us to believe can be two different things. Had to remove myself from the whole situation today. It's all become too much. From the same two sources who indicated Clowes was buying the ground - looks like this deal is in place if needed - they're saying the money laundering checks have finished and the money cleared. Frankly I just want it over. If, and its a huge monumemtal if, the money has cleared and a takeover happens, great, but by god I'll be petrified any other time money needs to leave the club. I'm just drained and sick at the moment.

I'm waiting for this thread to get very hot. Imminently. ?

We're getting there. Slowly bit surely. Interestingly I'm expecting a potential late twist with Pride Park ownership and it wouldn't surprise me to see CK as the owner of this too instead of the local businessman.

I've posted enough to hopefully make you know I've been cynical throughout this. I don't think we'll be pushing the 31st deadline. Dave is. Not seen him at Pride Park but plenty of times away from home. Morris' support seemed to begin when he took a financial stake Possible. He's involved one way or the other.

Let's see how it plays out. I'm still confident ?

Cat out the bag with the Athletic reporting that it's a local property firm - Clowes Development - close to buying the ground and lease to CK. This would genuinely be a stunning result for us if they get it complete.

If the takeover does go through the one thing I will say is its probably the best year for us for a business plan to kick in. So many clubs with financial pressures and so many players out of contract you really don't need to be chucking transfer fees and big wages around to be have a good chance to be competitive next season Also in our favour you have the WR impact. Give a player the choice of 2 clubs in the third tier of football with everything else equal but you can play for manager x or Rooney then it is a pull. Still relies on recruitment being strong which isn't something we've excelled at; but given where we are it's not a bad time to be going through this.

I guess it comes down to how you interpret things. I don't see that sticking to an agreed business plan that keeps your spending at sensible levels as a punishment. Being a sustainable club is something I'd happily aspire to. Some fans would see it as punishment no doubt, I wouldn't.

I know you say this part in jest but DRC was the method for the stadium valuations across the board for the teams selling them, used by both Derby and the EFL valuers, and accepted by the EFL and commissions. Morally bankrupt and caused more problems in the long run; but a genuine loophole spotted and gambled on. If one of the two parties don't get the purchase over the line then I'd be shocked if the council don't re-look at it. However if it gets to that stage there'd be bigger challenges than just questioning the use of the publics money and I'd seriously expect liquidation to be the likely outcome. Cracking post and feels nit-picking to highlight this bit but its a bit that bugs me and a lot of Derby fans - not what you've said specifically but a bit about MM that doesn't get understood fully - and irks me most about his behaviour. Not paying the taxman wasn't to maintain a challenge for promotion. He could (and did) do both previously. It was done when he realised the game was up, the gamble on promotion failed, and the last throw of the dice to escape FFP had been used. He's still not short of cash, could pay all of the debts and still comfortably sit on any rich list, but when the last gamble at promotion failed and he had no other loopholes as he'd already sold the ground he cut funding. I'd still rather not be in the position, but, if he'd used his money to gamble on promotion and then when the last bid before FFP caught up with him he took the points penalty on the chin, still paid his bills, and not put the club in admin I'd still have an element of respect for him. Instead he took the cowards way out and stopped paying bills. An absolute ****. So its not that HMRC weren't paid to fund a promotion bid but instead they weren't paid when he couldn't skirt the rules any further.

Assumption.

Sports Direct Arena could be even more fun. Got a feeling a couple of as yet publically unknown local businessmen will facilitate a deal to take the stadium away from MM. A few of the supporters groups have spoken to them separately and seems to be substance to it. Whether it's someone with no previous association to the club or one who was part of the consortium who clubbed together in the mid 2000s remains to be seen. There's something bubbling away which is giving those the supporters groups privy to those conversations confidence which they've not had the last 9 months.

We should know soon enough but I don't think the council buying the stadium is one of the live options any more.

Got you. And I get the view on sending out messages and not just related to football. Fully. Was just vocalising the opposite, and as said it causes me internal conflict which is why trying hard not to focus on this side too much until everything is clearer. Last point - I don't know. If so, great, all for something following any such process or regulation. Just not a huge fan of trying to create a new process to fix a case if it's not already in place.

Thanks. Confused by this bit... "HMRC will never accept a lower payment than we could reasonably expect to achieve in court. We will only accept the full amount of tax, interest and penalties owed." They'll only accept the full amount...but will not accept lower than what could be achieved in court. Does this mean they reasonably expect they'll receive 100% every time even when it's not there? Maybe misinterpreting it but feels contradictory?