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Post by aucklandaddick on Aug 15, 2024 11:53:50 GMT
Sam Nombe Aaron Collins Jonson Clarke-Harris Mihaly Kata Anyone can be interested, completing the deal is what matters. Anything else is either just noise which in our case normally sounds like 'We were interested but couldn't quite get it over the line! We've had one of those in every window, why not this one! Kata was named in Hungary's squad for UEFA Euro 2024 so he's be a good acquisition but I can't get my head around sacrificing a CAM for yet another defensive midfielder who if he comes in will be replacing a player who was deemed good enough to keep a CAM out in the first place! I am way too cynical but we have had too many of these for me not to think that these 'leaks' are just PR from the club. Maybe it's to convince other players to sign for us, maybe it's to win favour with the fans and maybe it's to convince fans to buy (season) tickets. Either way, I don't believe that we paid anywhere near £1m for Ahadme, so I think that the excessive use of academy players, and free transfers indicates that the owners are trying to 'win' promotion on the cheap. I'd be surprised if the higher earners in the squad were not signed before the current owners arrived. I don't have a problem with sensible management of the finances, but it is clear that we do not intend to 'buy' success, and all the while there are a handful of clubs in the division that are going to do just that, it is going to be difficult for us to compete. If the 'leaking' of these prestige names continues, with none of them signing, in the end no one will believe them. Another very good post 👍 |
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Post by se17foxy on Aug 15, 2024 11:55:32 GMT
Simplified example why owners need to be very careful with that is because it becomes a recurring thing if the revenue remains more or less the same: Year 1: Your turnover is 100, of which 60 are wages (max allowed). Owners put in 20 (raise capital), turnover is now 120 max allowed wage bill is 72 Year 2: revenue is just like previous year 100, but your wage bill is still 72 and too high, to comply with the rules the owners have to put in again 20 that basically does nothing fans unhappy, and they want to increase the wage bill once more by 20 to sign players now turnover is 140 (100 revenue and 40 coming from owners), max allowed wages are 84 Year 3: revenue is again 100, but you are sitting with 84 wages. Owners now need to put in 40 to comply with the rules. etc Zenga , maybe football works differently and I'm not an expert on football financing but in every other business on the planet, raising capital ( as per your example above ) does not increase turnover. Its investment capital and will go to the balance sheet and cash but it won't increase turnover Slightly different. The EFL recognise ‘Donations & Injection of Equity’ as turnover. |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 12:08:31 GMT
We also have the aneke problem , he was a cheat code 18 months ago . I don’t remember the last time he came on and created chaos. He runs like he doesn’t want to pull a muscle Must admit he doesn’t look particularly mobile at present…… I've seen milk turn quicker! |
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Post by kings hill addick on Aug 15, 2024 12:09:15 GMT
I’m not doubting bexleyboy ‘s numbers but I’m not sure how much they help us to understand what’s going on. They must inevitably contain an element of speculation and heresay while the big picture is actually both much clearer and more significant. In the year to end June 2023 (Sandgaard’s last season in charge) the club had cash losses of £8.9m. In other words, owning the club required Sandgaard to write personal cheques to that value simply to enable it to operate. Perhaps not entirely coincidentally, the notes to those accounts, which were published on 12th April this year, tell us that by that date the new owners had already provided an additional £8.9m of funding. It is reasonable to suppose that this scale of losses is continuing. In other words, in round numbers, the new owners are spending circa £10m p.a. in order to operate, sustain and develop the club. I’m very confident, based on reliable sources, that this level of cash injection is helping to fund a top six wage bill, though it’s very likely that at least one club is spending substantially more. Other clubs may have higher revenues which, in turn, will help them fund a very competitive wage bill without the same need for owner funding. As I see it, these are the facts. We might like the owners to spend (lose) more money or to spend it more wisely (as we might see it anyway), but I don’t believe we can reasonably say they aren’t investing or that they have no ambition. I totally agree with the money they are putting in regarding the operating costs and to fund a top six budget, however, that was pretty much the position they inherited. They knew what they were taking on, nothing has changed apart from us having our worst league position in history. Of course nobody wants to lose money and of course they want to bring the operating costs down and off the pitch things have improved but can you honestly say putting together a team largely by selling the leagues top goal scorer is showing ambition? Yes, our defence looks tighter but that is it. Talking about finishing in the top six doesn't cut it with me, Sandgaard was rightly lambasted for his "we will blow this league away commemts", we have had enough nonsense to try to appease the fans. now is the time to show real ambition. The youngsters (Kanu, Anderson, Campbell) are currently not good enough to start, so lets bring in three key players that are. Just about everybody on here and elsewhere is saying that if that happens we will be knocking on the door of a top six place. The transfer window is still open and this may happen but whilst we continue to wait until the likes of Fraser are moved on the players we require are and will continue to be sucked up by our rivals and once again we will be left with deadline day left overs. Ps £10m pa is a lot of money to us but split between 2/3 billionaires that isn't so much the case. I think the elephant in the room is that those running the club made some kind of assurance to the owners that they could achieve success within the budgets that we currently have. They may well be right. In any event, if I am correct about this, we will need to give Methven, Rodwell et. al. another season or two to deliver, or to fail to, before the owners decide to try something else - or sell the club on. Edit: Incidentally, I am quite happy with this approach, I would just prefer it if we were not misled by the club with promises of marquee signings etc. |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 12:14:08 GMT
I think selling the club at some point is at the very top of their to do list.
They are trying to cut costs and reduce debt to make it a more attractive proposition which is having a negative impact on us bringing quality players in.
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Post by 19addickted96 on Aug 15, 2024 12:31:19 GMT
I think selling the club at some point is at the very top of their to do list. They are trying to cut costs and reduce debt to make it a more attractive proposition which is having a negative impact on us bringing quality players in. So they’re trying to get out already? What happened to long term plan etc |
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Post by jacobearl99 on Aug 15, 2024 12:45:32 GMT
I think selling the club at some point is at the very top of their to do list. They are trying to cut costs and reduce debt to make it a more attractive proposition which is having a negative impact on us bringing quality players in. Just conjecture at this point though Reams. Serious funding has been made into the infrastructure of the club which points the opposite of what you’re saying. |
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Post by mendonca on Aug 15, 2024 12:47:24 GMT
How to throw a dose of negativity into the optimism and hopes for the season!!!
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 13:04:20 GMT
I think selling the club at some point is at the very top of their to do list. They are trying to cut costs and reduce debt to make it a more attractive proposition which is having a negative impact on us bringing quality players in. Just conjecture at this point though Reams. Serious funding has been made into the infrastructure of the club which points the opposite of what you’re saying. Possibly mate but could an attractive infrastructure also be seen as a major selling point to would be buyers? If you asked me what I think will happen first, selling the club or promotion, you would have to choose the former because the infrastructure is the only place where they are spending money. It ceratinly isn't being ploughed into building a promotion winning squad. |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 13:16:36 GMT
I'm having a bit of a moan I know but struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not investing properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. Fantastic summer of work off the pitch to be fair which is going to create a great match day experience. All I'm asking is for is a few more players to help create a winning team to match. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/ |
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Post by 19addickted96 on Aug 15, 2024 13:23:05 GMT
I'm struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not invest properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/From my point of view, if they can raise ‘non- footballing revenue’ with sponsorships/commercial partners then there is less need to raise funds via player sales etc The budget for players seems pretty set and solid each season, but whether the overall budget means that players have to be sold to keep the budget where it is means more. Increasing the commercial rev’ means we are more attractive to investors yes, but also means the fan experiences is better and therefore more money being spent inside the stadium and for tickets |
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Post by seriouslyred on Aug 15, 2024 13:25:50 GMT
Just conjecture at this point though Reams. Serious funding has been made into the infrastructure of the club which points the opposite of what you’re saying. Possibly mate but could an attractive infrastructure also be seen as a major selling point to would be buyers? If you asked me what I think would come first, selling teh club or promotion, you would have to choose the former because the infrastructure is the only place where they are spending money. It ceratinly isn't being ploughed into building a promotion winning squad. What's attractive to brand new owners or additional equity injections from the current owners will be: - competent management team - improving revenues - decent infrastructure - increasing chances of promotion There's much randomness in the games and results every Saturday. But ten games should be enough to tell existing owners, new investors AND the fans whether we're going in the right direction. For that reason, it will be surprising if the club do not acquire more talent before the window closes. |
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Post by bengland93 on Aug 15, 2024 13:37:07 GMT
Happy to see the continued work and partnerships off the pitch! We still have members of this playing squad on silly wages and we need to be sustainable in our daily operation. We need to remember the years of mismanagement we’ve had as a club and that this is our fifth season at this level. Take every game as it comes but the real challenge for promotion I feel will be next year. We can still be competitive this season and I’ve said it before, seeing the likes of Fraser and Aneke finish their contracts next year will be a huge plus!
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Post by melrose555 on Aug 15, 2024 14:17:17 GMT
I'm having a bit of a moan I know but struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not invest properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. Fantastic summer of work off the pitch to be fair which is going to create a great match day experience. All I'm asking is for is a few more players to help create a winning team to match. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/Nail on head |
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Post by manikin on Aug 15, 2024 14:53:17 GMT
I'm having a bit of a moan I know but struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not investing properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. Fantastic summer of work off the pitch to be fair which is going to create a great match day experience. All I'm asking is for is a few more players to help create a winning team to match. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/Two quality additions loan or otherwise would put the icing on the cake. |
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Post by ExeterAddick on Aug 15, 2024 15:05:26 GMT
I'm having a bit of a moan I know but struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not investing properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. Fantastic summer of work off the pitch to be fair which is going to create a great match day experience. All I'm asking is for is a few more players to help create a winning team to match. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/Has our transfer approach so far directly contradicted what you'd been told earlier in the summer, Reams? |
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Post by zenga on Aug 15, 2024 15:33:40 GMT
Simplified example why owners need to be very careful with that is because it becomes a recurring thing if the revenue remains more or less the same: Year 1: Your turnover is 100, of which 60 are wages (max allowed). Owners put in 20 (raise capital), turnover is now 120 max allowed wage bill is 72 Year 2: revenue is just like previous year 100, but your wage bill is still 72 and too high, to comply with the rules the owners have to put in again 20 that basically does nothing fans unhappy, and they want to increase the wage bill once more by 20 to sign players now turnover is 140 (100 revenue and 40 coming from owners), max allowed wages are 84 Year 3: revenue is again 100, but you are sitting with 84 wages. Owners now need to put in 40 to comply with the rules. etc Zenga , maybe football works differently and I'm not an expert on football financing but in every other business on the planet, raising capital ( as per your example above ) does not increase turnover. Its investment capital and will go to the balance sheet and cash but it won't increase turnover It does as per the EFL rules for league one. Hence why, like I pointed out in my example, if you do it, the only way to offset it in the future is by increasing your real turnover or by repeating the injection of capital. |
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Post by bexleyboy on Aug 15, 2024 15:48:35 GMT
Don’t think for one min selling the club as crossed the owners mind just watched the video of the changes at the valley and it’s very impressive and there doing everything they can to make match day an experience.. the investment behind the scenes both at the valley and Training ground is incredible and it needed it .. but before success can happen on the pitch we have to get off the pitch right first .. and we are getting there . That don’t mean to say they ignored the squad cause they have not our transfer business has been excellent so far and expect to see another 3/4 before the window closes , but it’s a project as we been told by Jones it’s a 4 year project and we are in the first year .. we all want to see improvement on last season but again fans expectation is going overboard again , we can get top 6 as it stands today but so can 9 other clubs . Let’s get behind the team , and see where this season takes us if we have to go through another two windows to get the squad we need to not only get promotion but to stay in the championship then so be it .. COYR
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Post by Mundell on Aug 15, 2024 16:03:14 GMT
Don’t think for one min selling the club as crossed the owners mind just watched the video of the changes at the valley and it’s very impressive and there doing everything they can to make match day an experience.. the investment behind the scenes both at the valley and Training ground is incredible and it needed it .. but before success can happen on the pitch we have to get off the pitch right first .. and we are getting there . That don’t mean to say they ignored the squad cause they have not our transfer business has been excellent so far and expect to see another 3/4 before the window closes , but it’s a project as we been told by Jones it’s a 4 year project and we are in the first year .. we all want to see improvement on last season but again fans expectation is going overboard again , we can get top 6 as it stands today but so can 9 other clubs . Let’s get behind the team , and see where this season takes us if we have to go through another two windows to get the squad we need to not only get promotion but to stay in the championship then so be it .. COYR You’ve included your customary optimism bias in that post but I think it’s a decent summary. The plan is to professionalise the management of the club with the aim of winning promotion to the Championship. Winning promotion will create immediate value and optionality. Once in the Championship, the hope is that a new regime for financial control will enable us to compete without breaking the bank. At that point I’d expect the investors to decide whether to sell or press on. Success on the pitch is always going to be a bit hit and miss and I’m sure that’s understood by the investors. Where they may be less sympathetic is on revenues. Historically, the club has chronically underperformed on commercial revenues and Methven may have argued he could fix this. The lack of obvious progress here may help to explain why he’s found himself in an executive role with direct responsibility for commercial activity. |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 16:07:34 GMT
I'm having a bit of a moan I know but struggling to understand why we are doing so many good things off the pitch, it really is a Premier League approach, but then not investing properly in the squad. One guy says we want to attract new fans with the changes but the only way you win them back or have fans coming through the turnstiles for the very first time is to have good players, playing exciting football and winning matches. I'd rather talk about that after the game than how nice my Pukka Pie of piece of fried chicken were or how good my new replica shirt looks on me. Fantastic summer of work off the pitch to be fair which is going to create a great match day experience. All I'm asking is for is a few more players to help create a winning team to match. www.facebook.com/share/r/ok485quSknEKJsmn/Has our transfer approach so far directly contradicted what you'd been told earlier in the summer, Reams? I was told we would be busy and create a squad to compete. I'm not seeing that at the moment. We haven't brought enough quality and to compound that we have Anderson and Campbell who are seemingly the first two name son the teamsheet. |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 16:15:20 GMT
Don’t think for one min selling the club as crossed the owners mind just watched the video of the changes at the valley and it’s very impressive and there doing everything they can to make match day an experience.. the investment behind the scenes both at the valley and Training ground is incredible and it needed it .. but before success can happen on the pitch we have to get off the pitch right first .. and we are getting there . That don’t mean to say they ignored the squad cause they have not our transfer business has been excellent so far and expect to see another 3/4 before the window closes , but it’s a project as we been told by Jones it’s a 4 year project and we are in the first year .. we all want to see improvement on last season but again fans expectation is going overboard again , we can get top 6 as it stands today but so can 9 other clubs . Let’s get behind the team , and see where this season takes us if we have to go through another two windows to get the squad we need to not only get promotion but to stay in the championship then so be it .. COYR BB we are not even top 10 mate so I think you are going well overboard there. We won't score enough goals, we can see that already. Only way new players will come in is if we make room for them but don't bank on it because there is live interest in only one of our players at the moment, that being Terry Taylor. Notts County have cooled on Ness and want assurances of his fitness in the next week to ten days or they will move on to other targets. If Dundee sell their best player and captain they will then have funds to do better than Scott Fraser from us. |
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Post by dittonaddick on Aug 15, 2024 16:19:53 GMT
We have come a long way over the summer IMO.
What we have is a reliable and sturdy foundation. Something that has been lacking in recent years.
Dobbo/CBT/JRS/May have all been bright sparks that cover over gaping chasms around them.
Dobbo shielded a shaky defence and a lacklustre midfield from being exposed more than they were.
CBT/JRS scored and assisted out of nothing for us, covering glaring issues in attack.
May's composure and energy kept both us and Cheltenham in the division.
We are not a relegation team now, but recently we have been. Other than those 4 players pulling us up over the last 2 seasons, we had a league 2 squad struggling to compete. Very few who have left us have stayed at this level.
What we are missing now is the X factor we've miraculously had previously. The X-factor that take this team from sturdy, reliable and difficult to beat to difficult to contain.
That is hard to find, and requires serious investment. You can find these players in the leagues below (CBT) or on loan (JRS). They can be assets that aren't valued at their clubs (Dobbo), but often you need to prise these players away from their club and show them you can match their ambition on and off the pitch (May).
The owners have done the off the pitch, and have funded a foundation on it.
Now we need to invest into the final pieces of the puzzle that take you from top half to top 6. 3 games left in August and you don't want to be running around on deadline day.
Charlton's deadline day transfer dealings often have all the hallmarks of a bloke buying flowers and car fresheners from the petrol station at 11pm on Christmas Eve. I hope this time the delivery driver has just been a little delayed and Jones' plans come to fruition.
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Post by clarky on Aug 15, 2024 16:26:06 GMT
Don’t think for one min selling the club as crossed the owners mind just watched the video of the changes at the valley and it’s very impressive and there doing everything they can to make match day an experience.. the investment behind the scenes both at the valley and Training ground is incredible and it needed it .. but before success can happen on the pitch we have to get off the pitch right first .. and we are getting there . That don’t mean to say they ignored the squad cause they have not our transfer business has been excellent so far and expect to see another 3/4 before the window closes , but it’s a project as we been told by Jones it’s a 4 year project and we are in the first year .. we all want to see improvement on last season but again fans expectation is going overboard again , we can get top 6 as it stands today but so can 9 other clubs . Let’s get behind the team , and see where this season takes us if we have to go through another two windows to get the squad we need to not only get promotion but to stay in the championship then so be it .. COYR BB we are not even top 10 mate so I think you are going well overboard there. We won't score enough goals, we can see that already. Only way new players will come in is if we make room for them but don't bank on it because there is live interest in one of our players at the moment, that being Terry Taylor. Notts County have cooled on Ness and want assurances of his fitness in the next week to ten days or they will move on to other targets. If Dundee sell their best player and captain they will then have funds to do better than Scott Fraser from us. And presumably if Terry Taylor were to go he would need replacing as the back up to Coventry, should be get injured or loses form, would be playing somebody out of their natural position eg REG |
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Post by aucklandaddick on Aug 15, 2024 16:29:10 GMT
Don’t think for one min selling the club as crossed the owners mind just watched the video of the changes at the valley and it’s very impressive and there doing everything they can to make match day an experience.. the investment behind the scenes both at the valley and Training ground is incredible and it needed it .. but before success can happen on the pitch we have to get off the pitch right first .. and we are getting there . That don’t mean to say they ignored the squad cause they have not our transfer business has been excellent so far and expect to see another 3/4 before the window closes , but it’s a project as we been told by Jones it’s a 4 year project and we are in the first year .. we all want to see improvement on last season but again fans expectation is going overboard again , we can get top 6 as it stands today but so can 9 other clubs . Let’s get behind the team , and see where this season takes us if we have to go through another two windows to get the squad we need to not only get promotion but to stay in the championship then so be it .. COYR BB we are not even top 10 mate so I think you are going well overboard there. We won't score enough goals, we can see that already. Only way new players will come in is if we make room for them but don't bank on it because there is live interest in one of our players at the moment, that being Terry Taylor. Notts County have cooled on Ness and want assurances of his fitness in the next week to ten days or they will move on to other targets. If Dundee sell their best player and captain they will then have funds to do better than Scott Fraser from us. Would imagine it is a case of who blinks first on the Fraser situation…..I just can’t see him being here come Sept 1……think it will all be down to how much of a hit we take on him……. I think there will be takers for Taylor, Stevenage were sniffing around recently apparently……personally I think he will be a loss The problem is though I think these deals including Ness could well go through on deadline day…..and our record of bringing in quality players on deadline isn’t that great……..usually with the comment afterwards we tried our best but couldn’t deals over the line blah blah blah….and then with Cawley rubbing things in by naming the really good players that we lost out on…… |
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Post by aucklandaddick on Aug 15, 2024 16:32:03 GMT
We have come a long way over the summer IMO. What we have is a reliable and sturdy foundation. Something that has been lacking in recent years. Dobbo/CBT/JRS/May have all been bright sparks that cover over gaping chasms around them. Dobbo shielded a shaky defence and a lacklustre midfield from being exposed more than they were. CBT/JRS scored and assisted out of nothing for us, covering glaring issues in attack. May's composure and energy kept both us and Cheltenham in the division. We are not a relegation team now, but recently we have been. Other than those 4 players pulling us up over the last 2 seasons, we had a league 2 squad struggling to compete. Very few who have left us have stayed at this level. What we are missing now is the X factor we've miraculously had previously. The X-factor that take this team from sturdy, reliable and difficult to beat to difficult to contain. That is hard to find, and requires serious investment. You can find these players in the leagues below (CBT) or on loan (JRS). They can be assets that aren't valued at their clubs (Dobbo), but often you need to prise these players away from their club and show them you can match their ambition on and off the pitch (May). The owners have done the off the pitch, and have funded a foundation on it. Now we need to invest into the final pieces of the puzzle that take you from top half to top 6. 3 games left in August and you don't want to be running around on deadline day. Charlton's deadline day transfer dealings often have all the hallmarks of a bloke buying flowers and car fresheners from the petrol station at 11pm on Christmas Eve. I hope this time the delivery driver has just been a little delayed and Jones' plans come to fruition. Really good post that mate…totally agree about our deadline day dealings…… |
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Post by steve2707 on Aug 15, 2024 16:46:57 GMT
A lot of talk about players like Aneke and Fraser contracts running down...
Also a lot of concerned talk (justifiably) about Zach Mitchell and Leaburn being in the last year or their contract...
But no-one seems to have noticed that our vice-captain, and (arguably) our best CB in also in the last year of his contract!
We would get compensation for Mitchell and Leaburn, but if we let Jones leave for nothing, that really would be criminal...
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Post by aucklandaddick on Aug 15, 2024 16:58:54 GMT
A lot of talk about players like Aneke and Fraser contracts running down... Also a lot of concerned talk (justifiably) about Zach Mitchell and Leaburn being in the last year or their contract... But no-one seems to have noticed that our vice-captain, and (arguably) our best CB in also in the last year of his contract! We would get compensation for Mitchell and Leaburn, but if we let Jones leave for nothing, that really would be criminal... When was the last time we re-signed one of our best players onto a new contract? Players now just tend to run their contracts down and see what the best offer they can get at the end of it? |
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Post by reamsofverse on Aug 15, 2024 17:09:35 GMT
We have come a long way over the summer IMO. What we have is a reliable and sturdy foundation. Something that has been lacking in recent years. Dobbo/CBT/JRS/May have all been bright sparks that cover over gaping chasms around them. Dobbo shielded a shaky defence and a lacklustre midfield from being exposed more than they were. CBT/JRS scored and assisted out of nothing for us, covering glaring issues in attack. May's composure and energy kept both us and Cheltenham in the division. We are not a relegation team now, but recently we have been. Other than those 4 players pulling us up over the last 2 seasons, we had a league 2 squad struggling to compete. Very few who have left us have stayed at this level. What we are missing now is the X factor we've miraculously had previously. The X-factor that take this team from sturdy, reliable and difficult to beat to difficult to contain. That is hard to find, and requires serious investment. You can find these players in the leagues below (CBT) or on loan (JRS). They can be assets that aren't valued at their clubs (Dobbo), but often you need to prise these players away from their club and show them you can match their ambition on and off the pitch (May). The owners have done the off the pitch, and have funded a foundation on it. Now we need to invest into the final pieces of the puzzle that take you from top half to top 6. 3 games left in August and you don't want to be running around on deadline day. Charlton's deadline day transfer dealings often have all the hallmarks of a bloke buying flowers and car fresheners from the petrol station at 11pm on Christmas Eve. I hope this time the delivery driver has just been a little delayed and Jones' plans come to fruition. Great post. |
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Post by 1978sussex on Aug 15, 2024 19:21:25 GMT
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Post by bexleyboy on Aug 15, 2024 21:04:37 GMT
West Ham Divin Mubama joining Man City according to the BBC
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