Even Gooch says we need to adjust the model

[Binxy]

If the club weren't prepared to offer Stewart a decent contract due to his injury record, it was the right decision to sell and in hindsight it was a great fee we received.

If we had if spent the money on 2 strikers of the ilk of a Tom Cannon, Ellis Simms, Broadhead, Stansfield etc then we would have been fairly happy.

To waste it on replacements like Hamir, Rusyn, Mayender, Burstow loan fee/wages, was inexcusable and heads should roll for that.

This.
Simms - available
Cannon - available
Stansfield - available
Moore (loan) - available

Instead the Stewart, Lihadji, Baath (wages), Gooch (wages), Pritchard (wages) money was wasted on dross.

We didn't need 14 players, we needed 4-5 good players to kick on.

 

[Safc1987]

Experience isn't just down to games played.

It's through experiencing everything. Going through changes of manager, relegation fights, promotion battles, dealing with injuries, adjusting to changes in the team/playing staff.

There's loads of different situations physically and mentally that footballers deal with.

Common sense right here
Surely speakman knows this deep down, staggering if he doesn’t

 

[Houghtoner]

This.
Simms - available
Cannon - available
Stansfield - available
Moore (loan) - available

Instead the Stewart, Lihadji, Baath (wages), Gooch (wages), Pritchard (wages) money was wasted on dross.

We didn't need 14 players, we needed 4-5 good players to kick on.

This exactly. Signed mostly a load of rubbish and majority of them only play when there are injuries to others.

 

[Flea Market Trader]

I like Gooch and believe a lot of what he is saying makes sense apart from the part about selling Stewart who we got a good deal on all things considered.

 

[sir rowell cummins]

I like Gooch. He’s right we’ve missed a bit of leadership and experience but some of his examples aren’t right. Hume needed to be be playing this year but arguably was second best behind Huggins who was class. Pembele was a third option. Sad to lose his personality and physicality but Gooch got mullered against us and may not have played had Huggins not got injured. We also replaced Baath with an experienced player in 09. I’d say the Evans position needed sorting and a better quality striker.

 

[ATS]

.

Oh we've got a £10M bid including add ons for a player who we'll lose for nothing at the end of the season.

Shall we sell him or keep him even though he's injured for another couple of months at least to help bring the young lads on (no guarantee it will help anyway).

Gooch says keep Stewart! Who says footballers are thick

We might as well bring an experienced striker in like Quinn or Sheringham to coach the kids. We get £10M for Stewart and pay them a grand a week.

Love how you pick out the only thing he has said that anyone could possible disagree with.

Every single other thing he has said is spot on yet you'd rather and call him thick .

 

[Smiler]

This.
Simms - available
Cannon - available
Stansfield - available
Moore (loan) - available

Instead the Stewart, Lihadji, Baath (wages), Gooch (wages), Pritchard (wages) money was wasted on dross.

We didn't need 14 players, we needed 4-5 good players to kick on.

Same issue years ago with Bruce and many more managers over the years. Although we have changed everything/every one in the background the club keeps making the same mistakes year in, year out with the squad. It's just now we are doing it with children and ignoring the value experience can bring as well.
That Man U squad that Hansen famously exclaimed 'you don't win anything with kids' about after an opening day defeat to Villa had Cantona (29), Schmeichel (32), Parker (31), Irwin (30), Pallister (30), Bruce (35), Mclair (32), Keane (24) and Sharpe (24) in it. It's utter bollocks you can do well without experience around.

I like Gooch. He’s right we’ve missed a bit of leadership and experience but some of his examples aren’t right. Hume needed to be be playing this year but arguably was second best behind Huggins who was class. Pembele was a third option. Sad to lose his personality and physicality but Gooch got mullered against us and may not have played had Huggins not got injured. We also replaced Baath with an experienced player in 09. I’d say the Evans position needed sorting and a better quality striker.

I agree, getting rid of Gooch wasn't a bad thing and the lack of experience through the spine is ridiculous. No good team has ever done well without seasoned pros throughout their squad

 

[Hank Scorpio]

If the club weren't prepared to offer Stewart a decent contract due to his injury record, it was the right decision to sell and in hindsight it was a great fee we received.

If we had if spent the money on 2 strikers of the ilk of a Tom Cannon, Ellis Simms, Broadhead, Stansfield etc then we would have been fairly happy.

To waste it on replacements like Hamir, Rusyn, Mayender, Burstow loan fee/wages, was inexcusable and heads should roll for that.

Totally agree mate. The problem is though, the model/wage structure make it near impossible to land a recognised striker.

I hope I’m wrong but I can see another very frustrating window ahead.

 

[Coeus]

While I've obviously time for the chap, he's talking daft.

We tried to upgrade on him and as of yet Pembele on the bench looks to be struggling, nothing ventured.

We couldn't afford to just keep Ross about.

Basically suggesting buying experience and having loads of money, something that his current team know very well, doesnt always work, even if it was viable.

 

[Richie K]

Totally agree mate. The problem is though, the model/wage structure make it near impossible to land a recognised striker.

I hope I’m wrong but I can see another very frustrating window ahead.

Yeah your right, almost every team in our division is looking for a decent forward....if we are only prepared to pay peanuts, we are going to struggle to attract anyone decent.

Signing Ross Stewart for the amount we paid was probably a bad thing in the long term, as this recruitment team don't realise that was a once a decade signing for that sort of money, we aren't gonna get another for £300k, no matter how many times they try.

 

[gramw]

While I agree with most of what he says, the title did make me laugh.

Of course he thinks the model is wrong, it caused him to have to leave the club when he didn’t want to as a senior player.

It would make more sense if it was “even Dan Neil says we need to adjust the model”

 

[Mackem00]

Selling LND was horrific. Yea he got injured hindsight is a wonderful thing. Let’s imagine he got fit and scored 20 goals in a league promotion season for saints.

Keeping LND and he gets injured again gets covered by insurance. It was the worst sign of lack of ambition getting rid of LND the replacements have been horrific. And to say because he got injured that decision was right is a joke to be honest at the point of sale no one knew.

Why?

The opposite happened in real life.

 

[James]

Why?

The opposite happened in real life.

He's a tit and/or wind up merchant that poster. Comes out with deliberate nonsense on the regular.

The crux of Gooch's argument is bang on the money though, imo. I don't think he was necessarily suggesting we should have kept Stewart either, but used it as a crap example of what experience can bring to the squad.

Not a good situation to have your star players feel like they've been overloaded with responsibility. Getting rid of big characters prematurely won't be good for morale either, and we've seen that bomb this season right from the off.

 

[Mackem00]

He's a tit and/or wind up merchant that poster. Comes out with deliberate nonsense on the regular.

The crux of Gooch's argument is bang on the money though, imo. I don't think he was necessarily suggesting we should have kept Stewart either, but used it as a crap example of what experience can bring to the squad.

Not a good situation to have your star players feel like they've been overloaded with responsibility. Getting rid of big characters prematurely won't be good for morale either, and we've seen that bomb this season right from the off.

Never noticed him before tbh but fair enough.

Agree with the rest. Good lad is Lynden.

 

[Kenna]

What do you mean? We've got Adil and Rusyn, every other team is jealous of such experience.

 

[PitYacker]

Speakman has suggested we replaced LND by “heavily investing” in 4 strikers and some “experienced” ones at that.

Selling LND for what we are rumoured to have got is I think great business but then to come out with above bollocks is the worry. Imagine if Clarke has already been back filled with the experience and heavy investment in Mundle and Adil. I can just see that being the case.

 

[Son Of Phillips]

Would’ve offered more than Pembele on/off the pitch

 

[bagpiperay]

He's a tit and/or wind up merchant that poster. Comes out with deliberate nonsense on the regular.

The crux of Gooch's argument is bang on the money though, imo. I don't think he was necessarily suggesting we should have kept Stewart either, but used it as a crap example of what experience can bring to the squad.

Not a good situation to have your star players feel like they've been overloaded with responsibility. Getting rid of big characters prematurely won't be good for morale either, and we've seen that bomb this season right from the off.

I agree on the Stewart point. I don’t think Gooch was saying anything other than we should have been keeping our most experienced players for wgat they could offer. At the time, no one could forecast the consequences of Stewart’s injury. Thus, it would have been ridiculous to say we should have kept a long term injured player.

It should be remembered there is lots of support given by senior players to the younger ones not only on the pitch during games but also in respect of encouragement, training, managing injuries, tactics, home and family life which are rarely, if eve4, mentioned. We get rid of all the senior players and their experience goes with them.

 

[riffraff]

Taking his LND comments too literally. What he’s saying is spot on.

Aye. Some on here can’t see beyond the written word. Some only see in black or white. Some can’t imagine there’s shades of grey.
Some can’t for the life of them imagine that their SAFC related opinions may be even slightly incorrect and that there may be stuff going on that they don’t know about. I’m looking at posters who believed a colour and style of trousers are merely that and automatic Liverpool staggers here.

Common sense right here
Surely speakman knows this deep down, staggering if he doesn’t

Of course he knows.
Theyve either gone so far with his and/or KLDs model/5yr plan that they can’t turn around now as it’d be an admission that they were wrong and 4HCs, media, fans, ex players etc were right and they were wrong OR KLDs family business are making him stick to his 5yr plan/model for its duration.

 

[AyeAyeAye]

What safc have forgotten is some players give enough value during their time at a club so that selling them on isn't a factor. Not all players need to be sold, spreadsheet management rather that on pitch management is a problem.

Nowadays players bought in their late 20s can be sold for a profit 3-4 years later. If we signed a 27 yo now on a 4 year contract and he had 2 good seasons with us we’d still make a profit selling him. The apparent 24 yo limit is completely non sensical.

Oh we've got a £10M bid including add ons for a player who we'll lose for nothing at the end of the season.

Shall we sell him or keep him even though he's injured for another couple of months at least to help bring the young lads on (no guarantee it will help anyway).

Gooch says keep Stewart! Who says footballers are thick

We might as well bring an experienced striker in like Quinn or Sheringham to coach the kids. We get £10M for Stewart and pay them a grand a week.

There’s thick people in all walks of life. Some who thinks Quinn and Sheringham will get out of bed for £1k a week may fall into that category.