[Archived] Transfer Talk

[Proudtobeblue&white]

Break or bust for me. I've renewed because it's something me and my lad experience. Enjoy when we win, more recently injure because we've paid for it. This season could be the end for many. I'm getting to the stage I was at when they didn't sack Coco. I agree they need a statement of intent, but will never arrive.

I fear when JR & Rudy are sold. A long dark season awaits.

[Mike E]

Only reason I'll renew is that going to Rovers is something I do with my 80 odd year old Dad, (who wouldn't be able to go on his own).

Above all, this manager simply doesn't spark any enthusiasm or excitement and the attendances will most certainly continue to decline under his watch.

We're stuck in the usual hiatus waiting for Venky's to do something, eg manager not even been to discuss transfers.

Preferably, sack him or if not sort out the plan ASAP.

Pathetic.

I'm similar. My dad was given 5 years in November. As long as he goes, I go. It's one of the precious few things we get to enjoy together without distraction (occasional round of golf too).

[tomphil]

Unfortunately think they're about to get worse as a lot of people I know are now saying they can't be bothered anymore sad but true apathy really is setting in

We need some statement of intent at the very least but nothing seems forthcoming

I don't think anyone at the club actually knows the intent so they are probably terrified of saying anything at all. 90% of the staff at Rovers will be on hols and won't give a toss what's happening next season as long as that direct debit keeps going in the bank. Those in India will have been fed the line everything is progressing quite nicely so they'll just keep the wolves from the door and check in again sometime in the future when there is a diary space or they are bored.

[47er]

I agree glen , one minute we release a " premiership incentive " in season tickets. The next bowyer is harping on about the embargo killing us and saying Bolton etc can spend more than us. I feel they are lowering ambition already. Surely the target has to be promotion ? I feel like every season the club starts to convince the fans that we are lucky to be a mid table championship club !

Sadly some appear convinced.

[JHRover]

I thought it wasn't permitted to sponsor your own club in order to get around FFP?

Am I wrong about this?

Sadly for some as yet unknown reason the rules only seem to apply to some clubs and not to others.

You are correct that owners directly sponsoring the club shirts shouldn't be allowed under FFP as it is a direct cash investment in the club beyond the £8 million permitted. I'm sure I remember this being mentioned in the rules when I had the energy to bother reading them. I imagine the people enforcing these rules will simply turn a blind eye to it, as they have done with most things.

It seems some people are forgetting that Sheffield Wednesday are supposedly under the same restrictions as us i.e. they are allowed losses of no more than £8 million per year. So talking about their new owner 'splashing the cash' and 'forcing' Rovers to offload our better players as they assemble a promotion winning squad is simply impossible, assuming of course FFP is applied to them.

Of course if we're assuming FFP is applied fairly and consistently then questions need to be asked why clubs like MIddlesbrough (increased losses of £20 million), Bolton (losses of £10 million+) and Brighton (losses of £10 million+) have all been let off the hook without punishment, despite all losing more than £8 million.

[Pedro]

I'm similar. My dad was given 5 years in November. As long as he goes, I go. It's one of the precious few things we get to enjoy together without distraction (occasional round of golf too).

I'm wobbling because I'm at the opposite end of the scale. I have two young children that I absolutely adore and want to be spending quality time with them as they'll both be at school and weekends fly by. They've liked going to Rovers the couple of times they've been (too young to understand haha!!!) but I am struggling to abide seeing such a lack of passion and mundane matchday experience on a regular basis. I'd definitely keep going from time to time but as I'm sure you certainly realise, time is so prescious and for me, wasted time is criminal.

[jim mk2]

You were around during the oft mentioned 70's and 80's Jim. There was a genuine feeling of despair for many of those years. Claims of "no ambition" - "the club doesn't want promotion", not necessarily true, but nevertheless, that's how a lot of fans felt about the club. Today's fans preaching the stability line, the idea that we are a club that belongs "naturally" in the lower leagues, or that mediocrity is acceptable even for a short while, should understand that once that becomes the position again - for any length of time, progress will be infinitely harder.

Wouldn't you say?

Yes I would.

The difference is the club then was being run by a chairman and board who were dyed in the wool Roverites, lived locally and were in touch with fans.

Today's position feels more hopeless because of absentee owners who do not communicate and a general feeling of a lack of passion around the club.

[chaddyrovers]

Leon Best set to see out his last year of his contract. Plus Rovers still.interested in Rudy Austin. http://t.co/CMC5hnr8tf

Simon Garmer column. Rovers only need minor tinkering if Rhodes and Gestede stays http://m.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/13314494.Simon_Garner_column__Blackburn_Rovers_need_only_minor_tinkering___if_star_strikers_stay/

[Stuart]

I'm similar. My dad was given 5 years in November. As long as he goes, I go. It's one of the precious few things we get to enjoy together without distraction (occasional round of golf too).

Sorry to hear about your dad.

[joey_big_nose]

Leon Best set to see out his last year of his contract. Plus Rovers still.interested in Rudy Austin. http://t.co/CMC5hnr8tf

Simon Garmer column. Rovers only need minor tinkering if Rhodes and Gestede stays http://m.lancashiretelegraph.co.uk/sport/13314494.Simon_Garner_column__Blackburn_Rovers_need_only_minor_tinkering___if_star_strikers_stay/

I wonder what Leon Best has lined up for his post football life. Guessing from his total lack of interpersonal skills and lack of ambition it looks like a long lonely decline awaits.

Pretty sad. I don't think the lad sees the wood from the trees.

As for Garner... Agree (in the extremely unlikely event Gestede and Rhodes stay) that the priorities are pace out wide and experience in midfield. But I would hardly say that is " tinkering". We need need two game changing signings substantially better than anything we currently have - Gestede quality signings I mean.

Also more cover is required at right back and better backup strikers than "I don't score goals" Brown and, um, actually that's it. We don't have any other strikers...

Its a big ask.

[rickard]

I wonder what Leon Best has lined up for his post football life. Guessing from his total lack of interpersonal skills and lack of ambition it looks like a long lonely decline awaits.

Pretty sad. I don't think the lad sees the wood from the trees.

I wonder that too. You'd think that if you are not wanted by a club and they send you out on loan, you'd do the most you can to play well and prove them wrong. Does not seem like the case for good ol' Leon though.

But at the end of it, no matter how much I despise him, it's all down to the ones responsible for handing him that stupid contract. If he'd been on reasonable money we could have had the chance to offload him, but no one else is ever going to pay him what he gets here.

[Gav]

I wonder what Leon Best has lined up for his post football life. Guessing from his total lack of interpersonal skills and lack of ambition it looks like a long lonely decline awaits.

Pretty sad. I don't think the lad sees the wood from the trees.

I mentioned on another thread that I'm a firm believer in what goes around comes around.

Best is typical of some modern day footballers, money money money, if he had any self respect he'd be looking at actually playing football to earn his money, but no this idiot thinks he's being clever sat on his arse picking up his wages. He had a great chance to resurrect his career at Derby, but was by all accounts absolute rubbish for the most part and Maclaren soon lost patience with him.

Yes he’ll be swimming in cash when he leaves here, but it’ll be interesting to see where his career goes, and his life after football for that matter

[DE.]

Best will be lucky to get a third of the wages he's currently on now at any other club. His loan spells have proven that he's barely even a Championship quality striker. I'm sure he'll find another club when he leaves here, because there are plenty of thick chairmen/managers who will just see that he once played for Newcastle and sign him on that basis, but he will never get another wage like the one he has here again. Not even close. Nonetheless, even £5k p/w is money the majority of us can only dream of. All I will say is he had better get his personal life priorities in order, because his £35k p/w lifestyle is coming to an end.

[T J Hooker]

My st renewal pack was turned into a 1000pc jigsaw by my mut.

[Gav]

My st renewal pack was turned into a 1000pc jigsaw by my mut.

'Mans best friend' doing you a favour.

[G Somerset Rover]

Best will be lucky to get a third of the wages he's currently on now at any other club. His loan spells have proven that he's barely even a Championship quality striker. I'm sure he'll find another club when he leaves here, because there are plenty of thick chairmen/managers who will just see that he once played for Newcastle and sign him on that basis, but he will never get another wage like the one he has here again. Not even close. Nonetheless, even £5k p/w is money the majority of us can only dream of. All I will say is he had better get his personal life priorities in order, because his £35k p/w lifestyle is coming to an end.

We can only but hope that he's been spunking his wages up the wall like nobody's business.

Seeing his name next to 'bankrupt' years down the line would have me choking on my porridge with laughter. He certainly won't get anywhere with his brains post football.

[tomphil]

Hopefully Best has had some really good business advisors, similar to the ones Rovers had a few years ago, ahem... I just wonder if his contract has some loyalty bonus or something in it that he's determined to sit it out. After drawing on it for 3 years and the fact that surely the club are offering him at least half his remaining year you'd think he'd be happy to be off. Footballers are supposed to play football right ?

He's a disgrace to his profession and other up and coming players ought to look at the likes of him and shake their heads. People like him will screw it up for the next generation when clubs at this level only ever offer modest short term contracts because they've been stung before.

[glen9mullan]

In fairness to Best (tin hat time) if someone was stupid enough to give him a contract which is bonkers , then I think in the same position id be reluctant to just walk away from it .

His scoring record was mediocre before we signed him , God knows what Kean saw in him

However since signing , he picked up a nasty injury at Fleetwood , got back in the team when he was nowhere near fit and the team on the pitch as a whole where struggling . He's then been farmed out here, there and everywhere for openly stating he is fit and wants to play.

So yes his social media antics ain't exactly been a good thing , however there is 2 sides to the story and bar paying him a kings Ransom

rovers treatment of Best ain't exactly been that great either.

Looking further down the line , if we lose Gestede and Rhodes , some people on both sides may have to eat some humble pie , because we ain't actually ripping at the seams with replacements within our current squad for those two. Whilst free transfers and loans are not going to be an adequate replacement for those two

[thenodrog]

Correct me if I'm wrong (get confused with identities on here sometimes )

But didn't you pack in going and held the torch for others to do the same , before you decided to go back watching ?

Indeed so. But tbh Glen why don't you try and keep up? I'm getting sick of repeating myself! I decided not to renew at the end of 2010/11 when it was becoming clear that the club was in a tailspin caused by the decisions made by the new owners. We'd had a disastrous spring after the club ended in a desperate relegation battle after sacking Allardyce when we were comfortably mid table. The form of 5 players toward the end of that season being imo the reason we stayed up. Those 5 were (in no particular order) were N'Zonzi, Samba, Hoillet, Jones, N'Zonzi and Jones. At the end of thats season we sold Phil Jones. sent JJones back to Schalke whilst stories abounded that (all the French speakers) Hoilett was not going to sign another contract and Samba, Givet and n'Zonzi were disenchanted under Kean. Small wonder given the treatment of EHD by Kean and Anderson in January.

Something needed to be done. The Kean / Anderson influence needed booting out before anymore damage could be done and done whilst we were still in the prem and on Prem income. I came on the protests and went home. Simple as that. You screwed up imo by not advocating everyone do the same. Your strategy was pretty poor tbh. All this 'now lets go inside and cheer the lads on' was just counter productive tosh and destroyed any effect that the protests were having. We had a chance to put our grievences into the full glare of the national spotlight at an early stage of the season. Small wonder that instead of snow balling that the numbers diminished and the protests and protestors faded to a few dozen shivering outside ewood on the coldest night of the year?

Glen, you took up the cudgel when others didn't but have you ever considered that if attention had been given to a boycott rather than a march and the supporters had all stayed away that the owners would have had no choice but to clear Kean out and replace him whilst we were still in the Prem? Our history could have been so very different.

Oh and final point .... I'm back now because without Prem income (gone) and without the venkys (gone sooner or later who knows?) and without supporters we will just become a page in the history books. It is way way more important to back the club with our attendance than at any time in our history yet we still have people (sheep) bleating about packing in.

[thenodrog]

Time will tell den, but you reach a point where the die hards will attend no matter what, I feel we're at that point about now.

Nowhere near that point. There were 5-6000 die hards in the 70's and now most of their equivalents have left the area. Put another way gav how many supporters do you think the club had from Bastwell, Whalley New Road, Little Harwood traingle in the 70's and how many have they from there now? Now multiply that effect through the rest of town.

[glen9mullan]

Indeed so. But tbh Glen why don't you try and keep up? I'm getting sick of repeating myself! I decided not to renew at the end of 2010/11 when it was becoming clear that the club was in a tailspin caused by the decisions made by the new owners. We'd had a disastrous spring after the club ended in a desperate relegation battle after sacking Allardyce when we were comfortably mid table. The form of 5 players toward the end of that season being imo the reason we stayed up. Those 5 were (in no particular order) were N'Zonzi, Samba, Hoillet, Jones, N'Zonzi and Jones. At the end of thats season we sold Phil Jones. sent JJones back to Schalke whilst stories abounded that (all the French speakers) Hoilett was not going to sign another contract and Samba, Givet and n'Zonzi were disenchanted under Kean. Small wonder given the treatment of EHD by Kean and Anderson in January.

Something needed to be done. The Kean / Anderson influence needed booting out before anymore damage could be done and done whilst we were still in the prem and on Prem income. I came on the protests and went home. Simple as that. You screwed up imo by not advocating everyone do the same. Your strategy was pretty poor tbh. All this 'now lets go inside and cheer the lads on' was just counter productive tosh and destroyed any effect that the protests were having. We had a chance to put our grievences into the full glare of the national spotlight at an early stage of the season. Small wonder that instead of snow balling that the numbers diminished and the protests and protestors faded to a few dozen shivering outside ewood on the coldest night of the year?

Glen, you took up the cudgel when others didn't but have you ever considered that if attention had been given to a boycott rather than a march and the supporters had all stayed away that the owners would have had no choice but to clear Kean out and replace him whilst we were still in the Prem? Our history could have been so very different.

A good post ,

Would I have done things differently ? Definitely , I wouldn't of bothered .

I agree with much of what you have written , but sadly at that time not enough supporters would of boycotted , even as the club fell as each day came , people still would have none of it that the club was going in the wrong direction.

4 years later , I still read post from people asking , when is the poop going to hit the fan .

I have to pinch myself then , and ask am I one of only a few that's actually witnessed the last four years ?

Could it be any more different than it was 5 years ago .

Some supporters Journey with Rovers has ended for ever .

Some supporters will take the continual pain as each day comes , hating that they couldn't do a thing to stop this circus

Whilst others , deserve all they get

[thenodrog]

I'm similar. My dad was given 5 years in November. As long as he goes, I go. It's one of the precious few things we get to enjoy together without distraction (occasional round of golf too).

Ooops. Now you're in for it from the Bash St kids on here.

His scoring record was mediocre before we signed him , God knows what Kean saw in him

£'s. Rather surprised you of all people have to ask.

[gumboots]

I opened the pack. That's as far as I got. Will I renew? If I could see one glimmer of hope, however feeble, that things would be different, yes. But so far I've seen and heard nothing to suggest that life at ewood won't be exactly as it's been this year only potentially less exciting. I don't suffer from insomnia so my stance is as it was. If nothing changes I won't be buying a season ticket. I will still attend the odd game and possibly go to the odd away game but I can't see myself making the week in, week out commitment that a ST brings

[thenodrog]

A good post ,

Would I have done things differently ? Definitely , I wouldn't of bothered .

I agree with much of what you have written , but sadly at that time not enough supporters would of boycotted , even as the club fell as each day came , people still would have none of it that the club was going in the wrong direction.

4 years later , I still read post from people asking , when is the poop going to hit the fan .

I have to pinch myself then , and ask am I one of only a few that's actually witnessed the last four years ?

Could it be any more different than it was 5 years ago .

Some supporters Journey with Rovers has ended for ever .

Some supporters will take the continual pain as each day comes , hating that they couldn't do a thing to stop this circus

Whilst others , deserve all they get

There were approx 1000 on that first protest imo. None should have gone to watch the match and all should have been employed handing out fliers outside the ground to people going in explaining the situation and the reasons for boycotting. (riverside should have been the prime target. Next home match there might just have been 2000 and so on. All it needed was a couple of home games played before a empty stadium and the media, Scudamore, and venkys could not have ignored that situation.

[perthblue02]

I wonder what Leon Best has lined up for his post football life. Guessing from his total lack of interpersonal skills and lack of ambition it looks like a long lonely decline awaits.

Probably end up as Director of Football here helping to do lots of lovely deals with drinks, no doubt Desai and the Rao's will green light it