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Butterfingers

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Everything posted by Butterfingers

  1. Exactly this Seconded-I just wonder whether Tonev would/could work his way into the starting line up in a kind of N'zog role. I actually prefer a Sylla type player in there as we become a little too overloaded with attack minded players, Nothing that's come in so far will automaticaly dislodge Gabby or Weiman.
  2. Money is only good if it is reinvested in the team.£20mil straight into Lerners bank account makes no difference to us as fans or the club as a whole.
  3. Theres a good 10 weeks to go until the window closes.The fact that theres been nothing of substance from foreign clubs yet has been encouraging.In England,a team will attempt to make the transfer as drawn out & as protracted as possible in order to unsettle things & drive the price down. I'm sure Benteke will have had tentative enquiries through his agent and is just waiting to see how serious the interest is.Its disappointing that he won't commit himself publicly for another season after the faith & platform that we've given him.That said,I can't say I blame him-I'd do the same in his shoes.Loyalty works both ways,just ask Brett Holman. I'm always a glass half full kind of person & I keep reminding myself of all the poor performances Benteke put in for us-But if he stays,I will only dwell on the positives of last season. I'd love him to stay,even just for 1 more season,giving us time to develop the Danish striker.I've reached the point though where I wouldn't be as upset by him leaving as I would have been immediately after the Wigan game.What would hurt more is if the money wasn't re-invested (which I'm sure it wouldn't be)
  4. I get the impression from the way that we are conducting our business is that we are looking to tie deals up at the earliest possible opportunity. It could well be that Villa (be it Falkner/Lambert or both) have submitted a final offer and told the club that it was final hence them announcing that the deal is dead in the water.Villa look to have moved on and signed the Gronnigan lad instead. Pity-I would have really liked to have this lad playing for us next season.
  5. According to almost all Danish media Okore was sold slightly over £4m (Dynamo Kiev, Dnipro, Fulham, Chelsea have been reported to have offered 4,2 mio but have been turned Down by Okore) and at 15k per week. Are you saying £4m (English pounds,not Euros)? Thanks
  6. Well, I remember a certain England international saying once that HE missed a lot more than he could have scored, despite scoring some of the most explosive long range goals in memory.....its just no-one remembers the misses. Or words to that effect. & it should be remembered that amongst all the euphoria that Benteke missed plenty this season,including some sitters
  7. Very tough call. Obviously we are bringing in players & re-signing players in & around the 20-30K bracket.Given that we have players such as Bent & Ireland on circa £60k,that is around the ,aximum that I would pay him.Ideally,I would look at round £50k given that the liklehood is that he will leave after 1 year. How about a contract with an incentive? Rising every year for 4 years?
  8. I am a firm believer that you should have experience across the back 4.I think Lowton made his fair share of mistakes last season,just as Walker did on his loan spell here.Both seemed to get away with it because of their excellent play going forward.Lowton will hopefully be even better next season given his 12 months experience last year.I am no fan of Baker,Vlaar or Clarke in the centre of defence andwould welcome 2 new central defenders. A 20 year old central defender would inevitably cost us goals at some point but based on the Chelsea video alone,I would be delighted if we signed him.
  9. How much do you think we would have got for Weimann with one year left on his contract? Do you really think we could have purchased a player, guaranteed to settle in, perform at the same ability or better, give the same high work rate (especially important during the times of weak form) and easily young enough to improve his game further, for the same value another club would value a young Andi available on 'a free' in 12 months time? Correct-To suggest he would easily be replaced by a better player is ridiculous-Especially bearing in mind we're shopping in the bargain basement.
  10. My twopennys worth; I can't comment either way or any other player from that league. We know the market that we will be doing business in so should accept it at present rather than shout from the rooftops every time we're linked to an "unknown" Lambert has proven that he can pluck these "unknowns" and turn them into established PL players-Not my ideal choice of signings but we've so often complained in the past that these gems that other teams have been unearthing were continually been missed/overlooked by ourselves. I personally trust Lambert 100% in the transfer market.I doubt he'll get everyone right but he'll get more right than he will wrong.
  11. I wonder if all those people who were talking about selling him for less than £20mil pre-Sunderland at home still think the same? It seems £20mil is derogatory now.
  12. I would imagine there will be incentives/clauses so that if his progress continues (which I'm convinced it will) then there will be options for increases or re-negotiations along the way I'm pretty sure we will fend off interest from the likes of the teams mentioned.
  13. What use would £8million be? We'd have to spend more than that on a replacement. The 4-3-3 system is working really well for us.The 3 front lads fit into the system perfectly.Weiman is going to be better next season than he was this season-If its not broke,don't fix it. I still don't see anyone coming up with a replacement for Weiman for around the same money.
  14. That side also had 3 LC semi finals & 3 finals which took its toll.I'm loathe to chose between them as they are both legendary.
  15. That's fine-Don't moan about continuing relegation battles,poor defensive performances & poor quality of football then. We got away with it by the skin of our teeth this year-We won't always have 19 goal a season strikers on £20K a week to rely on & sooner or later,our luck will run out playing this game. Lerner took over promising investment,5 year plans & a bright future-I see little of that at present & there will be no chance whatsoever of getting anywhere if we can't compete with bottom half of the table sides in terms of salaries.
  16. Benteke has also had one decent season yet people are spouting £30 mill+ transfer fees & £80k a week wages. The point is we either lose him for nothing on a free or negotiate a new contract now.If for example he has been on a £15k a week wage as an up & coming kid then it is reasonable to assume that he can command a lot more as a striker who has just scored 12 PL goals from a wide position & who is going to get better. We need to decide if we are going to build something,in which case we need to improve wages as players develop or whether we are just looking to survive in the division in which case £20K a week is tops & if players can get more elsewhere then they can go & we'll replace them with another un heard of gamble. It is Weimans turn to negotiate now.2 years down the line,it will be that of Lowton,Westwood etc.As players prove themselves at this level,it is natural they will expect improved contracts when renewal time approaches.Its all down to ambition & commitment from our chairman as to where we are going.
  17. Strikers always earn more money than midfielders & defenders
  18. & this is the worry.We should not be concerned about loosing our best players to the likes of West Ham or Fulham.
  19. Why? He'll be saying that staying up this season has held us back next.
  20. I was there-I remember stopping at a mates house on the Sunday night,getting up at the crack of dawn & getting the night service into town for a train to Euston,then across London to Liverpool St for a train to Harwich.from there,a ferry across to theHook of Holland which took about 8 hours.We stayed in Amsterdam for 2 nights and onto Rotterdam on the day of the match.There was a big pub not far from the station with "Double Diamond" adverts blazoned over the outside that was used as base for the day. I can hardly remember anything about the game other than I didn't enjoy it because I was so nervous but remember the unbelievable feeling when the whistle blew at the end. Rotterdam seemed on lockdown but we eventually found a bar to celebrate in but unfortunately,my money had run out & I only had 1 pint all night.We had to sleep outside the station ready for a early train the next morning.There were 100's of Villa fans roughing it all the way along the road back towards the Double Diamomd pub.The 8 hour ferry was a killer with no money & we got back into London just as the FA Cup final replay between Man City & Spurs was kicking off. I've done a lot of trips since in far more style but none come anywhere near the emotions of that ight in Rotterdam.
  21. I agree-I think next season will be even better than this season for him & if we were to let his contract run down,we would be kicking ourselves over arguing about half a million a year in wages-This equates to £2 million over 4 years-Nowhere near enough to buy a replacement. Weiman is as proven in the Premiership as Benteke is & given minutes on the pitch,I doubt the goal ratio between the two is very different. The one saving grace of our season just gone was the form of our front 3-If people think Weiman is realisticly & easily replaceable,I'd like to know who they have in mind.
  22. That's interesting-I wasn't aware of "caps" on players,either for PL or MON.Salaries yes but not on actual transfer fees. If the worst happened and Benteke was to be sold,I think it would be essential for us to spend big to replace him-As we did by spending the Milner money on Bent (not like for like but the money was reinvested on 1 player) Another interesting factor in all of this is would we be prepared to let Bent go before Benteke is tied down?I think we could do a lot worse than Bent if we looked elsewhere.Other than the Swansea lad whose name escape me & would not come cheap,I'd struggle to think of a realistic replacement. How about a cheeky bid for Lakuku?He can play wide-To pitch him with CB would be interesting.
  23. The kid is a top,top quality finisher-The best we have at the club.He has just completed his first season in the toughest league in the world.Next season he will be better & the season after that,better still. He is not,nor does he play as a winger.He is one of a 3 pronged attack.Most teams only play with one out & out striker & given his size,Weiman will not usually be asked to play there.To suggest he is a "half decent winger" is way off the mark. Weiman is only 21-His goals & performances have been crucial for us this season.15-20K a week is cheap for a player who will be way into double figures in next seasons goal charts. Darren Bent is the best finisher we have at the Club not Weimann.................Bent's overall Premier League Goalscoring record Proves it. Plus, although Bent is the best finisher, Benteke the best overall striker & Weimann currently is potentially both of these things in my humble opinion so we will see how it develops. And in my humble opinion,Weiman is twice the finisher that Bent is.I believe that Bent himself has commented that Weiman is the best finisher that we have. The front 3 have been superb for us this season-When 2 have an off day,the other one has delivered on many occasions.Having a player with Weimans willingness to work back and also the ability to score & to create is rare.He's only 21 & I can't think of many,if any realistic targets we could replace him with if he left. To compare Bents "overall goalscoring record" to that of a 21 year old is ridiculous-Especially as a good portion of Bents goals have come from penalties.
  24. The kid is a top,top quality finisher-The best we have at the club.He has just completed his first season in the toughest league in the world.Next season he will be better & the season after that,better still. He is not,nor does he play as a winger.He is one of a 3 pronged attack.Most teams only play with one out & out striker & given his size,Weiman will not usually be asked to play there.To suggest he is a "half decent winger" is way off the mark. Weiman is only 21-His goals & performances have been crucial for us this season.15-20K a week is cheap for a player who will be way into double figures in next seasons goal charts.
  25. I don't think any of what you have said can be substantiated by looking at history or fact. Like him or not, Randy has spent a good deal more on the club than he's ever got back. Family trust fund? What nonsense. We've sold our players only when they have wanted to leave, and we've got good prices for them. I'll criticise Lerner for poor decision making but he's certainly not skimming off the club and he's not selling our assets on the cheap either. yes I totally agree with you Patrick. He just wanted to cut the wage bill because it was unsustainable. I really don't think he will see Benteke for 25mil I believe he gambled & he lost-Is only motive now is to recoup as much of his outlay as possible.The wage bill has been cut to ridiculous proportions in no time whatsoever.We got away with it this season but if we carry on with this policy,it will catch us out eventualy-Just ask Wigan.
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