A consortium consisting of Dennis Bergkamp, Henrik Larsson, Dirk Kurt, Ronald Koeman and Phillip Cocu are looking to buy a club in England

[robin_unreliant]

12 hours ago, cidercity1987 said:

Oh my god if my childhood hero bought Bristol City I'd be in absolute dreamland 

Dream on 

[formerly known as ivan]

My money would be on QPR if they get relegated 

[Marina's Rolls Royce]

6 hours ago, Superjack said:

The Lansdowns aren't cooks. 

They couldn't even operate a ****ing microwave.

and yet here we are with one of the best set-ups outside of the Premier League

[frenchred]

8 hours ago, Bedred31 said:

Are they prepared to subsidise losses of £20m pa at a pretty average mid-table Championship club?

 

 

1 hour ago, TedsHeadIs Red said:

Great players like that will find it very difficult working with more ordinary players in the lower leagues.

A disaster waiting to happen. 

More people frightened of change! It's oh so easy to spread fear prior to something happening

Wonder if Wrexham fans felt the same with Hollywood actors taking them over while in the conference league? or Ipswich fans being taken over by the yanks? Lei ester being ran by Thai's plenty more success stories if you delve deeper, there's a ying for every Yang!

[Roadrunner]

Could look up the Gloucester Road. Big city, div 1 that would be a worry. Us dont think they would want Bristol sport, althrough a north American group would.

[RollsRoyce]

38 minutes ago, Marina's Rolls Royce said:

and yet here we are with one of the best set-ups outside of the Premier League

How do you know that? Based on what? What criteria are you using to claim that? So this season, of the 24 teams, where would you place our set-up? 

[A Horse With No Name]

13 hours ago, cidercity1987 said:

Oh my god if my childhood hero bought Bristol City I'd be in absolute dreamland 

Your childhood hero was Dirk Kurt?

[cidercity1987]

3 minutes ago, A Horse With No Name said:

Your childhood hero was Dirk Kurt?

I was waiting for that one 

[Mike Hunt-Hertz]

13 hours ago, exAtyeoMax said:

as long as he doesn't take his shirt off

Total football to tantric football.

[Davefevs]

32 minutes ago, RollsRoyce said:

How do you know that? Based on what? What criteria are you using to claim that? So this season, of the 24 teams, where would you place our set-up? 

“Top-end” mate

[RollsRoyce]

5 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

“Top-end” mate

Perhaps I should have said, what clubs have a worse set up? Name them. 

[exAtyeoMax]

28 minutes ago, Mike Hunt-Hertz said:

Total football to tantric football.

ooh more passing…

[Marina's Rolls Royce]

36 minutes ago, RollsRoyce said:

How do you know that? Based on what? What criteria are you using to claim that? So this season, of the 24 teams, where would you place our set-up? 

I base this on our ground, our facilities including the HPC, our fan base, our academy, our ownership, stability and also the fact that we have one of the highest proportion of home grown first team players in Europe. 

if you ask  our position is then that's different- currently 12th and could go higher or lower.

Results or League position is a different subject to our set up.

[RollsRoyce]

21 minutes ago, Marina's Rolls Royce said:

I base this on our ground, our facilities including the HPC, our fan base, our academy, our ownership, stability and also the fact that we have one of the highest proportion of home grown first team players in Europe. 

if you ask  our position is then that's different- currently 12th and could go higher or lower.

Results or League position is a different subject to our set up.

Well the ground is not within the top 30  capacity ranked  in the England/Wales set-up, so that is hardly "best" is it, it is only 16th in the Championship in terms of capacity. The academy has done very well, with minutes played hugely boosted by Vyner and O'Leary. Our recent sales were for players who did not join as academy products. Still, it is decent, but a long way behind Leeds, Southampton, Boro and a few others. You need to go and visit the set up at Southampton, or Leicester. We were far behind, and yes we have made progress. But only to get to a Championship standard, not Prem. 

"One of the best" suggests we are better set up than others, we are not. We have a good solid Championship set up, but it is certainly not one of the best. It is not the worst either, QPR and Rotherham for example are lagging, but then Derby and Reading have Cat 1 academies and modern grounds in L1. 

We have a good Championship set up in my view. 

 

[reddoc]

1 hour ago, Marina's Rolls Royce said:

and yet here we are with one of the best set-ups outside of the Premier League

And it's likely to remain that way for the foreseeable future. 

[italian dave]

5 minutes ago, RollsRoyce said:

Well the ground is not within the top 30  capacity ranked  in the England/Wales set-up, so that is hardly "best" is it, it is only 16th in the Championship in terms of capacity. The academy has done very well, with minutes played hugely boosted by Vyner and O'Leary. Our recent sales were for players who did not join as academy products. Still, it is decent, but a long way behind Leeds, Southampton, Boro and a few others. You need to go and visit the set up at Southampton, or Leicester. We were far behind, and yes we have made progress. But only to get to a Championship standard, not Prem. 

"One of the best" suggests we are better set up than others, we are not. We have a good solid Championship set up, but it is certainly not one of the best. It is not the worst either, QPR and Rotherham for example are lagging, but then Derby and Reading have Cat 1 academies and modern grounds in L1. 

We have a good Championship set up in my view. 

 

‘Ground’ is about a lot more than just capacity, surely. In my view, we have the best facilities anywhere in the Championship. Our pitch, compared to say Hillsborough on Saturday, is excellent - and Hillsborough doesn’t get half the use ours does. I’ve no idea what the stats are for things like match day hospitality, non matchday income, but I’d bet our is up there.

And, one final thought, ‘good solid Championship set up’ - off and on the pitch - is a better place than we’ve been for 40 years, so that ain’t bad! 

[alexukhc]

Reading

[Davefevs]

3 minutes ago, italian dave said:

And, one final thought, ‘good solid Championship set up’ - off and on the pitch - is a better place than we’ve been for 40 years, so that ain’t bad! 

But, an important but, does that mean that the “club” are paying lip-service to the ambition stated to be in the PL?

Are we really PL ready?

Just imagine we snook into the POs and won promotion this season (yippeeeee).  How geared up do you think we are to “pivot” as a whole club to battling to stay in the PL in 24/25?

Academy prospects - we now need them to be PL players in the making.

Recruitment - can we quickly pull together a list of realistic targets able to compete in the PL.  Who in the club even knows what a PL player looks like (you know what I mean)?

Etc.

Thats not me trying to put a downer on it, I think as fabs we look at our club and think it’s come a long way in recent years, and it has, but it’s where it is, kinda because of where it’s at.

[cidercity1987]

3 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

But, an important but, does that mean that the “club” are paying lip-service to the ambition stated to be in the PL?

Are we really PL ready?

Just imagine we snook into the POs and won promotion this season (yippeeeee).  How geared up do you think we are to “pivot” as a whole club to battling to stay in the PL in 24/25?

Academy prospects - we now need them to be PL players in the making.

Recruitment - can we quickly pull together a list of realistic targets able to compete in the PL.  Who in the club even knows what a PL player looks like (you know what I mean)?

Etc.

Thats not me trying to put a downer on it, I think as fabs we look at our club and think it’s come a long way in recent years, and it has, but it’s where it is, kinda because of where it’s at.

I agree with all this and have often wondered what our recruitment would look like if we ever made it.

Are we really any different whatsoever to our peer clubs though who I perceive to be the likes of Coventry, Stoke, Cardiff, Birmingham, etc. Similar supporter base, similar sized grounds, ok maybe some have recent Prem experience but what would they do that we wouldn't? How are Luton doing it? How did Swansea survive so long? What about Burnley who despite being a smaller club (certainly at the time in 2009 compared to where we are now) are as close a comparison to what we hope to do, midtable Champ for many many many many years then snuck in through the play offs one year and haven't really looked back.

 

 

[bpexile]

15 hours ago, Gert Mare said:

The key words in the statement are “Football Club”, not a mish mash of sports under an umbrella.

Key words are also League one/two, which is where we could well eventually end up under our present regime 

[italian dave]

12 minutes ago, Davefevs said:

But, an important but, does that mean that the “club” are paying lip-service to the ambition stated to be in the PL?

Are we really PL ready?

Just imagine we snook into the POs and won promotion this season (yippeeeee).  How geared up do you think we are to “pivot” as a whole club to battling to stay in the PL in 24/25?

Academy prospects - we now need them to be PL players in the making.

Recruitment - can we quickly pull together a list of realistic targets able to compete in the PL.  Who in the club even knows what a PL player looks like (you know what I mean)?

Etc.

Thats not me trying to put a downer on it, I think as fabs we look at our club and think it’s come a long way in recent years, and it has, but it’s where it is, kinda because of where it’s at.

A different question to the one my post was responding to!

I don’t know: I’m not sure any quite how you define that, and I’m also not sure how realistic it is that you can guarantee that all the ducks are in line at exactly the right time.

Take your academy prospect point as an example: you could argue that we were in the right place on that front 2-3 years ago…..but there were other ducks that most certainly weren’t in the row then.

You can’t plan things down to the nth degree in football like that - and arguably we’ve tried more than others to work to a plan, to make steady sensible progress, and that’s made us the ‘steady eddy’ club that so frustrates people!

I think @cidercity1987 makes some good points above, and I think we’re always going to be at a disadvantage to the likes of Leeds, Leicester, Southampton with their parachute payments and the benefits that gives them - it’s another example of how the current system defends the status qui and makes it difficult for other to break into it.

Having said all that, I do think it would be a really interesting question for a fans forum or a senior reds meeting to put to one of the powers that be at the club. And a lot more worthwhile than most of the comments and questions being directed their way at the moment! 

[Davefevs]

8 minutes ago, italian dave said:

You can’t plan things down to the nth degree in football like that

Hence my “how geared up are we to pivot….” comment.  I don’t know either.  My gut feel is that it would be panic stations!

[italian dave]

1 minute ago, Davefevs said:

Hence my “how geared up are we to pivot….” comment.  I don’t know either.  My gut feel is that it would be panic stations!

And probably no different to others in our position!

Anyway, let’s leave that til next season to worry about

[Davefevs]

3 minutes ago, italian dave said:

And probably no different to others in our position!

Anyway, let’s leave that til next season to worry about

Hehe!

Re last season I sensed Luton were prepared, but Coventry not.

[Ronnie Sinclair]

They should invest in Torquay instead, their need is greater than most

[Superjack]

4 hours ago, Marina's Rolls Royce said:

and yet here we are with one of the best set-ups outside of the Premier League

And always will be under them.

[slartibartfast]

1 hour ago, Davefevs said:

Hence my “how geared up are we to pivot….” comment.  I don’t know either.  My gut feel is that it would be panic stations!

 

2 hours ago, Davefevs said:

But, an important but, does that mean that the “club” are paying lip-service to the ambition stated to be in the PL?

Are we really PL ready?

 

I give you Luton, AFCB and Brentford .

[Marina's Rolls Royce]

2 hours ago, RollsRoyce said:

Well the ground is not within the top 30  capacity ranked  in the England/Wales set-up, so that is hardly "best" is it, it is only 16th in the Championship in terms of capacity. The academy has done very well, with minutes played hugely boosted by Vyner and O'Leary. Our recent sales were for players who did not join as academy products. Still, it is decent, but a long way behind Leeds, Southampton, Boro and a few others. You need to go and visit the set up at Southampton, or Leicester. We were far behind, and yes we have made progress. But only to get to a Championship standard, not Prem. 

"One of the best" suggests we are better set up than others, we are not. We have a good solid Championship set up, but it is certainly not one of the best. It is not the worst either, QPR and Rotherham for example are lagging, but then Derby and Reading have Cat 1 academies and modern grounds in L1. 

We have a good Championship set up in my view. 

 

Even a mention of Reading suggests you may well have missed the point. Reading are missing the points too- best to pay your players and HMRC. Derby entered into administration and are now in League 1 so not a great comparison irrespective of Cat status.

And capacity is not the issue when discussing grounds whereas quality and general facilities are. 

In terms of Academy, well it's pretty much splitting hairs. Alex joined age 16 and "In December 2019, Scott signed a pre-contract agreement with Championship side Bristol City.^[4] Having initially linked up with the club's academy, Scott signed his first professional contract with Bristol City in March 2021"

Semenyo was signed as a 17 yr old from College and developed by BCFC. In our first team we have Pring(from age 17/18), O'Leary,Bell, Conway and Vyner so that's an impressive result from home grown. 

BRISTOL CITY are the leading team in England’s top two divisions this season when it comes to fielding homegrown players.

The CIES has ranked teams in 60 leagues around the world according to the percentage of domestic league minutes played by ‘club-trained’ footballers during the current season (up to November 15th). Leeds are 4th.

Southampton/leeds/Leicester are above us on most levels but there aren't too many other clubs which are better placed in terms of overall set up.

 

[Gol]

17 hours ago, Northern Red said:

Wonder if there's any connection between this and the news that Salford are looking for investment.

if that was the case their owners would be Beckham, Giggs, Gary Neville, Phil Neville, Butt, Scholes, Cocu, Koeman,  Bergkamp, Larson & Kuyt. I think their ownership team would beat their first team in a match!

[Red-Robbo]

Bristol Rovers fans on reading the original Tweet: