KegCity

Can't complain about that, if Bryan isn't hungry enough then it's best for both parties to both move on.

Seems strange to allegedly agree terms with the club if that was the case though? Hardly a secret we play that way. We'll never really know, but it does seem strange to spend a considerable amount of time in discussion with the club just to move to another championship team.

Think that's wishful thinking although we'll never know.

There shouldn’t be an issue. Birmingham released some really nice retro kits this season with the old sponsors on. We’ve done it in recent years, I own a replica Hirerite shirt. Have said this a few times but it makes much more sense to just sell copies of the retro shirts everyone wants and then focus on making nice, original home and away shirts rather than redoing an old shirt every season.

I asked because you seem to believe that aside from good close control he doesn't have much to his game. That is clearly not the case just from watching him, but he wouldn't have consistently been chased by clubs bigger than us if he wasn't already a good player with potential.

Wonder why clubs higher up the food chain than us are looking at him then?

I assume it was Lee Johnson as he mentions being pulled into his office, and it sounds like the sort of thing he would ask from his players.

Goals is so far down the list though it’s borderline irrelevant. Obviously it would be nice if any player that’s not a forward could score consistently but not scoring often doesn’t detract from a centre midfielder. Matty James has scored once since arriving. Nobody is mentioning this (quite rightly) because it’s not his job.

Why are centre mids judged by the amount of goals they score on here? Gives no indication of the quality of the player whatsoever.

Think we need competition for Max and another player in midfield. If/when Scott goes that would be two in midfield.

Really? What's given you that impression?

On a side note Wales are hilariously awful. You really can’t polish a turd.

We should just be releasing our own copies of popular retro shirts and then having new shirts every season rather than rehashing a different past shirt every year.

Bellingham asked for it.

Instead of rehasing retro kits every season, could we not do what other clubs do and just have standard kits from a reliable bigger supplier and then release our own versions of retro kits? I remember we sold versions of 70s and 80s kits in the club shop (I still own a copy of the Hireite shirt) and other clubs such as Birmingham have done the same. Would allow us to cash in on the nostalgia factor of retro kits whilst not needing someone to let JL play with the crayons.

I’d been told in January West Ham considered themselves out of the race due to bigger clubs being interested. Whether that’s still the case I don’t know.

Don’t think you can struggle as much as Kalas does with crosses and be our best defender. He’s been noticeably below the standard he set during his loan spell since arriving permanently. He rightfully gets plaudits and he’s a solid championship defender but if the higher wages in the thread are accurate I wouldn’t keep him when there’s very little certainty he’d be starting most weeks. If we stick with a back 4 then I think it’s Vyner, Dickie and Kalas fighting to start with Atkinson to come into the mix too.

It's just my opinion. I don't think at the suggested wages mentioned he's worth keeping, especially when we've been good at finding quality players at affordable fees/wages. If he was staying for 10k rather than 15k for example, I'd be more open to it. It's not about trusting their judgement on Kalas, I'm not suggesting it's a big disaster just giving my take on it. If the club want to keep him at those wages then fair enough, it doesn't directly correlate to my opinion on recruitment.

Don't think he'd be good value for that money personally and I'd trust the recruitment team to bring in a suitable replacement. We've seen glimpses of true quality but for me Kalas has struggled to hit the same heights as he did with Webster next to him, I'd happily move on and refresh things at the back now. If he signs I hope he proves me wrong and gets back to his very best but it's too much of a gamble for me. Not worried about injuries though.

More likely to be signing number three than anything cryptic around a former number three. Most likely the club account maintaining interactions during the break.

I assumed that's where he'd be playing, especially if we're sticking with a back 4.

Of course, it's hardly a season ending problem. There aren't many versatile players who've come through our academy with promotion and Premier League experience who are available on a free transfer. It's disappointing if he's chosen to go elsewhere, it's not a big surprise. We may well sign an out and out winger instead, or put those wages towards a number 10 and carry on with Bell and Mehmeti out wide, and be better off.

Interesting reading fans suddenly decide they didn't want Bryan, wouldn't have fit in, too old, not good enough etc. It's a big disappointment to have potentially missed out on a player with Bryan's experience and quality. Based on his past decision making it's not a surprise unfortunately.