[Archived] Hughes Signs New Deal

[1864roverite]

Personally, I'm a little concerened. Hughes is getting an awful lot of press and air time lately it seems, I catch the odd little phrase now and then that he may be testing the waters, very very subtle little messages that although sound long term and in the distant future it clearly signals he sees his career path as somewhere other than Ewood. Could well tempt a suitor to test the waters.

I also can't make up my mind as to whether the new love affair is gen or an effort to shop him around to get him away from Ewood. The unjustified barracking as bully boys did not work, perhaps now a more positive approach will pry him away and THEN they can all celebrate that pesky little Blackburn's demise and boast about their I told you so's.

On the contrary Blackburn Rovers FC are getting the same press and airtime as Hughes so it may be the club is being seen as an attraction likewise.

You have to ask the question, just how many pther PL clubs would love to have the stability of BRFC ?

[USABlue]

On the contrary Blackburn Rovers FC are getting the same press and airtime as Hughes so it may be the club is being seen as an attraction likewise.

You have to ask the question, just how many pther PL clubs would love to have the stability of BRFC ?

I am over the Atlantic, so all I am seeing is Hughes pretty much.

[USABlue]

I don't subscribe to the view that 'Hughes does not like to spend money'. He does not have much choice in the matter.

The reason he has been shopping in the bargain basement is because we do not have any money (well not lots of it!).

I do think with the TV deal we may be able to spend a bit more than in previous years, but we simply don't have the resources.

Then we will disagree in that matter. I think he would still penny pinch. He would only pay what he thought was value.

[John]

I agree on the value part. He is commercially astute.

However, if he has to pay over the odds to get someone I am sure he would do it to get his man - some could say he payed over the odds for Savage at the time. Even though he has proved to be a great signing for us.

To say he does not like to spend money is flawed, as he has never had much money to spend at BRFC.

[bluebruce]

Personally, I'm a little concerened. Hughes is getting an awful lot of press and air time lately it seems, I catch the odd little phrase now and then that he may be testing the waters, very very subtle little messages that although sound long term and in the distant future it clearly signals he sees his career path as somewhere other than Ewood. Could well tempt a suitor to test the waters.

I also can't make up my mind as to whether the new love affair is gen or an effort to shop him around to get him away from Ewood. The unjustified barracking as bully boys did not work, perhaps now a more positive approach will pry him away and THEN they can all celebrate that pesky little Blackburn's demise and boast about their I told you so's.

That sounds too paranoid for my liking, that his showing commitment to Blackburn publicly is some Machiavellian plot to shop him around. As for him seeing his distant future away from Blackburn, OF COURSE he does! And so he should, in fairness. Unless we can grasp the holy grail of Champions League football, I'll be pleasantly astonished if he is still with us in 3 years.

However...

All three of those are nice but I don't think they come close to the best means of keeping Hughes at Ewood.

My way of keeping him would 100% support on the financial side in his bringing in players, go out on a limb if we need to. He's proved his savvy in the market and I don't think we need fear any Grabbi, Davies situations, although I do get the feeling Sparky personally does not like to spend money even if it is available I think he is still going to be frugal even with a Detroit Bank Roll in his pocket.

Next would be for the townsfolk of Blackburn and fans from surrounding areas start showing their approval of his efforts by showing up for games, I tihnk that would be huge for the crowds to start flocking in. If it is entertainment they want then this current Rovers side can be as entertaining as any I have seen in all my years of watching, with the possible exception of the MacKenzie, waggy, bailey, hird era but the quality is obviously far and away better.

This seems spot on to me. Apart from that I don't believe he would be especially frugal (except maybe relatively speaking, but who knows?) if he had a much bigger budget. In the past he has complained about the amount of resources available to him here, hinting he wants more. Also like John said, he overpaid for Savage, and I'm pretty sure I remember him saying something like 'we paid more for him than we wanted to' at the time.

I'm delighted he's signed onto a new deal, I was very worried by all this rolling contract talk, but since it doesn't kick in til 2010, that's not a big concern. What is a bit of a concern is how Hughes' contract mirrors Ferguson's. Rather than seeing this as a good thing, I find it worryingly coincidental.

[gumboots]

Basically I think we're all getting far too paranoid. He's happy in his job; he said there was never any doubt he'd sign a new contract. He made it plain he wouldn't want the Spurs job when there were rumours of interest. He says the Chairman and the board and him have a good relationship. He says he's excited about the players he has. What more can we reasonably ask from a guy who is one of the rising stars of football management, who has given us players and football we'd almost lost hope of seeing again at Ewood, at a fraction of the cost of most teams. So what if the contract favours him. He's in a fickle industry where, as O'Neill said again yesterday, you're only as good as your last result, and definitely only ever about a dozen matches from potentially getting the sack. I'm glad he's signed any form of extension and I don't think we have the right to begrudge him any conditions he may or may not have wanted included.

[den]

Thenodrog, I deleted one of your earlier posts that were somewhat tasteless. I deleted a couple of following posts from other people as well.

[Billy Castell]

He is probably waiting for a Man Utd or Barca type job, which may come in a couple of years time. And that is fair enough, because let's face it, we are never going to win the Champions league or even the Premiership until the G14 finally sod off to form their own league. Then we'll get someone else who has recently led a small nation to comparative glory by doing surprisingly well...............step forward Roy Hodgson.

OK maybe not him. Step forward.................Laurie Sanchez

Erm, OK, this is harder than I thought

[thenodrog]

Thenodrog, I deleted one of your earlier posts that were somewhat tasteless. I deleted a couple of following posts from other people as well.

Tasteless? Why? If he signs for 10 years he can have mine too!

[den]

Tasteless? Why? If he signs for 10 years he can have mine too!

You're getting subtler in your old age. I was waiting for the PM.

[tony gale's mic]

of course hughes will leave eventually. but the longer he's around to keep us performing at a high level in the premiership, maintaining a squad packed with seasoned internationals and getting into europe on a consistent basis, the higher the club's profile will rise and the more attractive the club will seem to a potential successor.

[thenodrog]

You're getting subtler in your old age. I was waiting for the PM.

Why didn't you simply delete the bit that you were unhappy with instead of the entire post Den?

[thenodrog]

Just watched MoTD and I must be getting paranoid! Dunno why but I was wondering if Fat Boy Ashley was texting Sparky with a name your price offer.

[gumboots]

More likely John williams and the trust to ask how much it takes to buy a proper football club

[den]

Why didn't you simply delete the bit that you were unhappy with instead of the entire post Den?

Would that make it easier for you? Then you would be able to write what you want and leave it to the mods to sift through everything?

[Rover4ever]

England names in the frame

What the leading candidates are saying about the England jobhttp://news.bbc.co.uk/sport

BBC's article with the above title has Hughes' thumbnail (instead of Capello, Mourinho or O'Neal). Is that yet another subversive method of unsettling us, or am I just being paranoid

[philipl]

The links aren't working but names in the frame was posted before Hughes signed his new contract.

[BrianPotter]

I don't subscribe to the view that 'Hughes does not like to spend money'. He does not have much choice in the matter.

The reason he has been shopping in the bargain basement is because we do not have any money (well not lots of it!).

I do think with the TV deal we may be able to spend a bit more than in previous years, but we simply don't have the resources.

Quote from Hughes Interview "I've got a great relationship with the chairman and the board have supported me in everything I've wanted to do. They've backed by judgement. You have to have the tools to do your job and that's what I've got here."

That would suggest to me exactly what it says, everything he asked for from the board (including funding for new players) has been provided.

Whilst it would be great to have limitless amounts of money to spend, and no doubt Hughes would find it more than useful I think we pretty much have everything at the right level for the moment. I've always seen MH as a very intelligent person who understands that throwing around huge sums of money (in both wages and fees) is not a sensible long term plan for our club (or any club outside the top 4 or 5 - unless its investment from someone like Jack). If you go down this route there will be a point when the financial footings collapse from beneath the club (i.e. Leeds) as the money being spent is not reflecting the success on the pitch, and thus the return on the money spent is insufficent to service the debt. I honestly belieive that this is going to be a huge problem in football sooner or later, its probably been held off for a couple more years by the increase in TV money but there will come a point where a number of clubs in the PL end up in a pretty sticky financial mess. Thankfully, we wont be one of them.

[joey_big_nose]

I also can't make up my mind as to whether the new love affair is gen or an effort to shop him around to get him away from Ewood. The unjustified barracking as bully boys did not work, perhaps now a more positive approach will pry him away and THEN they can all celebrate that pesky little Blackburn's demise and boast about their I told you so's.

You have got the strangest persecution complex.

[philipl]

The super soaraway bum newspaper are running a story that Mark Hughes' new contract allows him to leave Rovers without compensation if he gets the England job.

Mind you its a good news day. There are at least three other stories running where one newspaper says x categorically and other newspapers equally categorically say not x.

EXCLUSIVE!!!!

Paul Ince is (NOT) the Derby new manager

McLeish is (NOT) the Brum new Manager

Berbatov is (NOT) leaving Spuds in January

Here's to the Sun's recent track record of being worse than Tribal Football on all things Rovers continuing!

[Oakland]

Hughes dismisses 'clause claims'

[roverich]

"There is no such clause - I have no idea where this has come from"... Craig Bellamy... oops I mean Mark Hughes... oh now I'm really confused... they're both Welsh so I'm half right at least!

I actually believe Sparky though and that's the difference. He has been around a lot longer and, considering this, he has done very well to avoid being the source of controversy. I guess I'm saying he has always come across as a genuine bloke who keeps his word. Craig Bellamy taught those who didn't already realise it that, a money grabbing, "success" obsessed celebrity will lie through his teeth if he thinks it will "further" his/her career BUT this isn't black and white and some people are actually genuine, honest blokes (Mark Hughes!).

In my opinion, Sparky won't leave us until ManYoo come calling and when they do, you won't see him for dust, however, i can't blame him for that - given the success he enjoyed with them he obviously genuinely holds them in high regard and a return as manager is probably one of his lifelong goals as a football club manager.

[Eddie]

Be careful...the "he's not like the others" comments usually come just before the person goes and proves that he's just like the others.

[RevidgeBlue]

The super soaraway bum newspaper are running a story that Mark Hughes' new contract allows him to leave Rovers without compensation if he gets the England job.

I saw that, and as I recall it did NOT say that Sparky could leave without compensation, simply that he had a release clause in the event England came calling.

i.e. we wouldn't be able to prevent him speaking to them.

I notice Sparky has since denied the existence of any clause, (been here before I think) but realistically if either United or England ever came calling it would be optimistic expecting him to turn either post down, clause or not.

[roverich]

Do you really think the England job holds that much appeal?

As Sven put it himself, "to be the England manager you must win every game, not do anything in your private life and hopefully not earn too much money. They are the only qualities you need and if you have those, you are perfect."

It's kind of limiting and it's absolutely true. Sven had an amazing games won:lost ratio but people were constantly on his back about him earning too much money (a contract noone was particularly upset about when the FA offered it to him to begin with) and cheap papers twisted his words and constantly cast him in bad light. I think the England job used to have great appeal because we have some great footballers but the British press now puts most people off.