Rate this summer transfer window

[Dr Gloom 21909]

3 hours ago, Toonpack said:

Utter garbage, we didn’t sell everyone who was saleable.

I already backtracked for that reason. It has been unquestionably been the worst window since the Ashley era, however. 

[Toonpack 9373]

5 minutes ago, Dr Gloom said:

I already backtracked for that reason. It has been unquestionably been the worst window since the Ashley era, however. 

 

Are we ranking transfer windows now ?? 

[Dr Gloom 21909]

Just now, Toonpack said:

 

Are we ranking transfer windows now ?? 

Yeah - it’s deadline day. If we’d just bought three or four elite players we’d probably be comparing it to our best windows ever.
 

It’s only because this one is an outlier. Every window since the takeover (other than Jan because of the PSR crunch)  they’ve made a statement signing or two. This could the first one to underwhelm since the Ashley era. Perhaps we’re getting greedy and entitled because of how they’ve splashed the cash until now.
 

But people are moaning mainly because the teams around us have all improved and we have struggled for whatever reason to sign anyone of note. 

[thebrokendoll 9187]

41 minutes ago, Toonpack said:

 

Are we ranking transfer windows now ?? 

 

isn't that at the point of the thread we're all having a discussion in?

anyway, as of 09.50 I would rank/rate it along side 'we tried' and 'keeping our powder dry' aka.... fucking shite! 

[Dr Gloom 21909]

10 hours ago, toonotl said:

I think it's perfectly fair and reasonable to say that it is not acceptable for our department of people involved in sourcing transfers to only identify one target to improve the first team for the transfer window, especially when that target doesn't seem to be for sale. We can talk about availability until the cows come home. We can talk about other good players going to other clubs too. We can talk about who wants to come here and who doesn't. We can talk about wages, ambition and a million other factors. It's all guesswork on our part for the most part. And it's fun (most of the time) and very low stakes all of the time.

 

It seems like it is possible that the market wasn't favourable for the transfers to materialise the way anyone wanted them to materialise. However, it is the job of certain people to allow for such an occurrence and have plans to mitigate it. If we want to talk about simplistic then having a single solitary transfer target to improve the first team for the entire window. That's simplistic. It's also naive. It's setting yourself up to be exploited by a selling club that knows they have you on the hook. And for people to determine that these things are the case as a necessary precondition of market availability also seems simplistic. It's possible. But not necessarily so and so questions should be asked. It seems naive to suggest that nobody should challenge the approach taken by the people in charge at the club to suggest that it could've been possible to find another way and absolutely should have been possible given the resources and expertise at the club.

 

From my perspective, the argument that the people at the club know best means that in most circumstances where things could have gone better that they should have known better. They're experts in their field. I agree with that. We have hired some impressive operators. That makes failure less conceivable but it doesn't make it more excusable. 

 

They could have done something different. And in a results based business it may well turn out that they should've done something different. And for that they deserve criticism. I don't agree to the automatic determination that the top brass have a monopoly on making correct decisions in a business so overwhelmed with risk and uncertainty.

 

It's a risk to sign a player that there may be questions over. It's a risk to sign Guehi at an inflated transfer fee. And it's a risk to sign nobody at all. There's nothing necessarily wise about keeping our powder dry nor is there anything necessarily imprudent about buying a player that wasn't our first choice. This is all conjecture and opinions for the most part and beyond that it's sheer blind luck. I find it pretty useless to accuse each other of a lack of foresight in a situation where there is limited foresight for everyone.

 

At the end of the day, I'm thankful for the complainers on the board because for the most part they drive the conversation. Otherwise we'd all be sitting around watching the ivory tower dwelling so-called accountants debate probabilities around League Cup draws every day.  

 

[RobinRobin 11252]

44 minutes ago, Dr Gloom said:

 

[Dazzler 9679]

14 hours ago, toonotl said:

I think it's perfectly fair and reasonable to say that it is not acceptable for our department of people involved in sourcing transfers to only identify one target to improve the first team for the transfer window, especially when that target doesn't seem to be for sale. We can talk about availability until the cows come home. We can talk about other good players going to other clubs too. We can talk about who wants to come here and who doesn't. We can talk about wages, ambition and a million other factors. It's all guesswork on our part for the most part. And it's fun (most of the time) and very low stakes all of the time.

 

It seems like it is possible that the market wasn't favourable for the transfers to materialise the way anyone wanted them to materialise. However, it is the job of certain people to allow for such an occurrence and have plans to mitigate it. If we want to talk about simplistic then having a single solitary transfer target to improve the first team for the entire window. That's simplistic. It's also naive. It's setting yourself up to be exploited by a selling club that knows they have you on the hook. And for people to determine that these things are the case as a necessary precondition of market availability also seems simplistic. It's possible. But not necessarily so and so questions should be asked. It seems naive to suggest that nobody should challenge the approach taken by the people in charge at the club to suggest that it could've been possible to find another way and absolutely should have been possible given the resources and expertise at the club.

 

From my perspective, the argument that the people at the club know best means that in most circumstances where things could have gone better that they should have known better. They're experts in their field. I agree with that. We have hired some impressive operators. That makes failure less conceivable but it doesn't make it more excusable. 

 

They could have done something different. And in a results based business it may well turn out that they should've done something different. And for that they deserve criticism. I don't agree to the automatic determination that the top brass have a monopoly on making correct decisions in a business so overwhelmed with risk and uncertainty.

 

It's a risk to sign a player that there may be questions over. It's a risk to sign Guehi at an inflated transfer fee. And it's a risk to sign nobody at all. There's nothing necessarily wise about keeping our powder dry nor is there anything necessarily imprudent about buying a player that wasn't our first choice. This is all conjecture and opinions for the most part and beyond that it's sheer blind luck. I find it pretty useless to accuse each other of a lack of foresight in a situation where there is limited foresight for everyone.

 

At the end of the day, I'm thankful for the complainers on the board because for the most part they drive the conversation. Otherwise we'd all be sitting around watching the ivory tower dwelling so-called accountants debate probabilities around League Cup draws every day.  

[wykikitoon 20107]

5

We kept our big players which is a massive plus, but didn't strengthen a key area.

[Dr Gloom 21909]

Still a 3/10 with just over two hours to go till the window SLAMS shut 

[toonotl 2977]

3/10

 

One point for each of the big players we kept. Minus seven points because we won't keep them for long at this rate.

 

There is a bright point to keep in mind that we have shown that we won't be pushed into paying over the odds for a player no matter the circumstances. But on another note we've not exactly shown that we are skilled negotiators. With PSR the entire landscape has changed with the transfer market now being closer than ever to an extension of the league. Every cent that one club costs another is a victory and vice versa.

 

For the conspiracy theorists, Chelsea doing a favourable deal with Palace for a player mere hours after the confirmation that they wouldn't sell us Guehi is interesting. Everyone is everyone's enemy in this new PSR world. But we know that for the British there are no permanent enemies, and no permanent friends, only permanent interests. Palace don't have a realistic interest in hampering our progress. But Chelsea sure do. Not suggesting it would happen. But we've already that Chelsea have zero interest in playing by the rules.

[Dr Gloom 21909]

3/10 for me too. Piss poor 

[toonotl 2977]

4 minutes ago, Dr Gloom said:

3/10 for me too. Piss poor 

 

Is that 6/10 total? Or does sober Gloomy agree with pissed Gloomy?

[Kitman 2204]

Id give it shit out of 10

[Andrew 4747]

It gets points for us not losing any of our big names. Theres little else to say for it though, very poor. 

 

3/10 being generous. 

[Dr Gloom 21909]

22 minutes ago, toonotl said:

 

Is that 6/10 total? Or does sober Gloomy agree with pissed Gloomy?

9/10

 

I upped my bid again, like Gemmill

[Dazzler 9679]

[aimaad22 4156]

Their is only one correct way to look at this transfer winow:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Holden McGroin 6578]

10/10. Im not sure what everyone is moaning about. We have massively strengthened the GK department. We have an England International, a Slovakian International, a Greek international a former England international and Mark Gillespie all ready and waiting. We might even be able to re-call Max Thompson if 5 of them all get injured.

[Toonpack 9373]

13 hours ago, wykikitoon said:

5

We kept our big players which is a massive plus, but didn't strengthen a key area.

 I also went 5 for same reason, but I’m revising up to 5.5 because Fraser is away.

[Ayatollah Hermione 13856]

I can’t quite believe we’ve shit the bed as much as we have tbh. It started badly with the Anderson and Minteh PSR debacle and got worse from there. I understand what they’re saying about only wanting players who can bring us forward but the idea that, in the whole of European football, the only defender who can do that is Marc Guehi is frankly laughable. The longer we go, the more I think that we are genuinely snookered by PSR and we need to brace for losing Isak, Gordon or Bruno before long otherwise we can’t spend. Trying to get rid of some of the shite in this squad is near impossible since they’re all nothing players on big money who won’t move or they’re permacrocks who nobody will take a chance on.

 

If £70 million for Guehi was going to sail us close to the wind with PSR, then why the fuck aren’t we trying to box clever? I hope that Mitchell coming in late has meant that the strategy, if you can call it that, for this window was already in place and he didn’t want to deviate but he’s got a massive January window on his hands here. Once more, we’re asking Eddie Howe to perform miracles, not only on the pitch, but in also convincing our better players that the ambition is still there and we want to kick on.

[Kid Dynamite 7025]

This window is all the more miserable for Dan Ashworth having a decent window at Man United. 
 

5 players in who will end up in the starting XI and the likes of McTominay, Greenwood, Sancho, Wan Bissaka and Van de Beek off the books for a fee.

 

I still don't believe we couldn't have made a modest fee on Trippier, Wilson or Almiron. Absolutely amateurish not to have walked away from the Guehi deal until the last day of the window. 

[Holden McGroin 6578]

The Guehi deal stunk from day one. It was all played out in public whilst Joachim Anderson was sold quickly and at a reasonable price in the background. 
 

We should have spotted the signs and moved on quicker. 

Edited August 31 by Holden McGroin

[toonotl 2977]

Ashworth the rat having a decent first window at ManU is definitely galling. But I think the circumstances are very different between the two squads.

 

I'm happy we've kept Tripps. He still has a lot to offer. And I really hope he moves into coaching with us. He seems like a great person to have around even apart from his clear quality as a player. Wilson couldn't realistically be sold because he's injured. And Almiron kept refusing wages from elsewhere because he's clearly on a nice wedge here. Plus perhaps without getting a RW in first we really couldn't be too aggressive in trying to move him out at all costs.

 

ManU on the other hand have a team of saleable assets. Granted they're mostly overrated and overpaid shit. But they have the illusion of quality being associated with ManU that other clubs go for. And tbf many a ManU reject has performed well once they've moved away from the stink of Ten Hag's influence.

 

And, at least we didn't profit as a club from the sale of a rapist. So there's that.

 

Don't get me wrong. I'm 100% onboard that the transfer window has been a fuckup. But we can also accept that it is a difficult situation for us. We are basically the club that the PSR rules are designed to impact remember. We are in a unique position even compared to Villa (who are probably the closest equivalent), but they don't have the decades of neglect as a football club on their record that we had under Ashely. PSR fundamentally stops a club going from rocks to diamonds overnight. And with Ashley, we'd been basically reduced to fuckin dust man. The cunt.

[Dr Gloom 21909]

12 minutes ago, Holden McGroin said:

The Guehi deal stunk from day one. It was all played out in public whilst Joachim Anderson was sold quickly and at a reasonable price in the background. 
 

We should have spotted the signs and moved on quicker. 

yeah, it was so unlike our dealings under the Saudis so far. Bizarre 

[JawD 99]

Absolute horse shit.  I'll start at a moderate 5/10.  Then looking at the lack of preparation opening in June with some panic sales that weaken us, drops it to 4/10.  Realising they done nothing on targets while this was going on i'll be kind and go to 3.5/10.  Spunking all your time on a decent defender, not having a plan B and twisting even when the prices went beyond unreasonable, 2.5/10 and if that gasp of desperation is to be believed with the last day Forest offder, 1/10.

 

Oh, and signing keepers and holding on to Dubs, -1/10

 

I'll give them back to 0 for concluding the Hall deal. Oh and for holding on to Bruno +1 but leaking the whole Gordon thing, back to 0.