GrahamC

@ExiledAjax points out we had 14 fewer professionals on the books last year compared to the one before. The 2023 departures of Kalas, Dasilva, Bentley, Martin, Klose, Baker plus the likes of Semenyo, Scott, Kane Wilson, Low, Taylor Moore & Owura Edwards & only 5 arrivals this summer suggests that we have to have significantly reduced our wage bill further since the period covered by these accounts.

Doesn’t the fact that we appear to have doubled the number of employees in the hospitality part suggest this might be a significant factor? No way is our current squad on a top 10 budget, there are 5 parachute payment sides, then West Brom, Stoke, Cardiff, Boro, Sunderland, Birmingham, even last nights opponents Hull spent big this summer, so did Coventry- just can’t see it.

3 midfielders absent for them at Fulham today, Ramsey, Cork & Gudmundsson. Still doesn’t even make the bench, absolutely pointless him being there.

Also he was “running” slower than Joe Biden in that game & appeared only to be on the pitch to take a penalty. He made Steve Torpey look like Bobby Reid or Andi Weimann.

My hunch is it’s probably worse than that. He hasn’t played now since April 2022, since when he’s had 2 ACL injuries & subsequently two hamstring ones. Next season is the last year of his contract, I think you would have to be a real optimist now to think he’s coming back from this.

I am not the financial expert others on here clearly are, but presumably some of this cost was incurred around us settling up the contracts of Martin, Klose & possibly Bentley? I assume we just paid Baker monthly whilst he was absent up until his contract expired, too. Certainly no one on a senior wage is left now who doesn’t at the very least contribute. Expect a significant cull of the first & second year professionals next summer but the likes of Idehen, Kadji, Pearson & their like won’t be on much.

Chapman is good. In an industry with more than its share of bluffers & total idiots he’s quality.

I thought the chairman didn’t know when the accounts were coming out? Two days after he was asked, clearly. Doesn’t include the Scott sale.

Me too but I’m sure if you asked them in August would they settle for a single 4-0 defeat & being 7 points clear of third at the halfway point, they have snatched your hand off. Because of Ashton I’d love them to fail but they have been relentless against the non parachute payment sides.

Aaron Connolly appears to be a bit of a *****. Had a reputation at Brighton for loads of off field nonsense & noticed a few altercations with one or two of ours last night. Tosser.

Absolutely nothing wrong with that..

Issue for us has been the number of injuries. You expect 2 or 3 to be missing but even excluding Benarous, we have often had 5 or 6 out. We are by no means unique here this season in the Prem there have been more than ever. Getting Atkinson back & McCrorie available certainly will be good news but we have to expect the excellent availability of those 15 players who have slogged through the first half of the season won’t necessarily be as good as it’s been so far. To me we need another midfielder & a 10, defensively if those two return (& in time Roberts & Naismith too) then we have enough but the injury record of Kal in particular is really starting to concern me.

Can’t see him mentioning that his team were given the softest of penalties yet still lost. Plum.

We’ll see.

Our recent record at Birmingham is truly abysmal (back to back 3-0 defeats) & Watford are in excellent form. Be amazed if we won either, let alone both. Snap your hand off for a couple of draws.

Both true. Certainly niggles the opposition & it gave TC a break but WTF was that bit around our box all about? Anyway good to see him back.

Fair play to Manning but despite what the odd nutter on here might say, they are a good group. Not the most gifted but never going to shortchange the supporters or whoever is in charge for effort. Having just one extra senior pro to pick from in Nakhi definitely helps too, able to rotate & rest a few going into a hectic period.

I rate Dickie (though not at his best tonight) but him & Naismith lack pace & can’t be a pair. Remember the goal at Swansea when the guy got the wrong side of Kal, he was never catching him, in the same position Zak would have.

Mystic Meg!

Every time we lose someone posts on here that he’s back to his old form but he’s essential to us, his pace bails out his colleagues time after time. Good player.

Excellent win. For those who slag off Max, Hull had 2 keepers tonight & both were shite. Terrible goalkeeping for Mehmeti’s goal & the sub keeper looked absolutely shocking.

We only signed one of those in the summer, smart arse. Our summer signings were Dickie, TGH, McCrorie & Knight. I thought we were ok up until we scored but Hull by far the better side since. Penalty was a shocker of a decision ref looked desperate to even it up.

You should be very proud. People like your daughter deserve so much more in terms of money for such important work & are inspirational.

Plus that run by Aaron Brown, along with an equally memorable one at West Brom (might have been on his debut?) when he hit the post, his finest moment in a City shirt.

It gets better… City Cat to running Project Whitebeam. Bit like some bloke dressing up as Ronald MacDonald then becoming their Head of Sustainability. We are a total circus.