[Albion] Are we destined to become a 'selling club'?

[kevo]

Great recruitment and development, but as soon as we have an outstanding player the 'big six' vultures start to circle. It's pretty depressing really. If Bloom really wants to establish us in the top ten we need to hold on to our best players, but it seems impossible.

 

[atomised]

Great recruitment and development, but as soon as we have an outstanding player the 'big six' vultures start to circle. It's pretty depressing really. If Bloom really wants to establish us in the top ten we need to hold on to our best players, but it seems impossible.

That's the model though. Buy at reasonable prices, develop outstanding talent, sell talent on and unearth another gem, rinse and repeat

 

[Farehamseagull]

Great recruitment and development, but as soon as we have an outstanding player the 'big six' vultures start to circle. It's pretty depressing really. If Bloom really wants to establish us in the top ten we need to hold on to our best players, but it seems impossible.

In the same way that every single club outside of the 'big 6' are, yes.

 

[Kalimantan Gull]

Almost every club is a selling club, if they've got players that a bigger club wants. In the Premier league I can only think of the current Man City as a team which hasn't sold a star player to a bigger club. Every other team has.

So I think the list of non-selling clubs globally has only 3 or 4 names on it.

Anyway you're only a selling club if you've got assets worth buying.

 

[Arthur]

Nope, we are just a lot lower down the football food chain than others so if anyone above us in said chain wants our players then we are always going to be at risk of losing them.

 

[Monkey Man]

Fine to be a selling club – in fact inevitable – as long as you have a top-notch recruitment team, and a policy of developing young talent in as many ways as we are at the moment.

Nobody likes seeing our best players leave but it's pretty exciting seeing their replacements coming through.

 

[Brian Fantana]

In the same way that every single club outside of the 'big 6' are, yes.

And indeed some of the big 6 are themselves selling clubs when it comes to massive offers from European giants. It is the nature of thing. Would I rather we kept our best talent long-term? Absolutely. However, if the business model continues to deliver successful, enjoyable to watch football then that's a very, very decent position to be in. Especially when you consider that not that long ago, we were excited when we signed anyone and the concept of having a saleable asset was somewhat pie in the sky.

 

[JBizzle]

Yes we are, and we always will be. I don't think being " a selling club" is a bad thing either as it's the only way to run a club in a sustainable way without selling out to an oil state

 

[The Fits]

Yes we are, and we always will be. I don't think being " a selling club" is a bad thing either as it's the only way to run a club in a sustainable way without selling out to an oil state

Exactly. Absolutely no shame in developing players and moving them on. Dortmund is a pretty special club to aspire to be. Absolutely no shame in having such a high profile end to the season that about five of our players have become linked with the biggest clubs here and abroad. It’s a tribute to the great job everyone is doing.
And I’ve said this before- it’s not like the old days where you lost a gem that was irreplaceable- when we sell a player it just makes me super excited to see who is gonna step up next and who are going to sign.

 

[zefarelly]

We sold Lawrenson, Stevens . . . . Robinson . . .it's the way of the world for little clubs like Brighton.

 

[mothy]

I hope so. Imagine constantly having players other clubs desire

 

[Blue Valkyrie]

Very very very few clubs are not "selling clubs".

 

[kevo]

I wonder though now Ashworth's gone whether our recruitment will suffer. It's fair to say we had our share of duds before he arrived.

 

[Tom Hark Preston Park]

That's the model though. Buy at reasonable prices, develop outstanding talent, sell talent on and unearth another gem, rinse and repeat

It's a model not without its risks tho. Players like Sanchez and Cucurella don't grow on trees figuratively speaking, and it's never going to be a case of just nurturing or unearthing a replacement of similar quality. Wish it were that easy

 

[Bold Seagull]

Great recruitment and development, but as soon as we have an outstanding player the 'big six' vultures start to circle. It's pretty depressing really. If Bloom really wants to establish us in the top ten we need to hold on to our best players, but it seems impossible.

You need to consider the flip side of this argument.

How many times in our history have we had players approaching world class status, heading off to World Cups etc.? I say enjoy it.

We sold White for £50m and followed up with our best ever top flight season. We have international players throughout the side. We've enjoyed an absolute gem in Bissouma for 4 years where he has blossomed into a fantastic talent.

Cucurella is one of the best left backs playing in England, and he graced the stripes and looked great. Even if it's just a year, I've loved him being here.

Players leave the MUs, Liverpools, Spurs of this world for better contracts, it's not limited to the smaller clubs. Just got to have decent succession planning and get on with it.

 

[Springal]

I guess it is the ‘flaw’ in the model of looking for undervalued players. Cucurella was almost always to good for us, we got a good deal and because Barcelona messed up their sell on, even more of a bargain. The down side is of course it doesn’t take long for their talent to shine and they stand out like a sore thumb as being at a level below than they are at.

The flip side is you become an Everton who never seek value, pay vast sums for failed Man Utd / Arsenal player who aren’t that good and they can’t get rid of

 

[The Fits]

I guess it is the ‘flaw’ in the model of looking for undervalued players. Cucurella was almost always to good for us, we got a good deal and because Barcelona messed up their sell on, even more of a bargain. The down side is of course it doesn’t take long for their talent to shine and they stand out like a sore thumb as being at a level below than they are at.

The flip side is you become an Everton who never seek value, pay vast sums for failed Man Utd / Arsenal player who aren’t that good and they can’t get rid of

Yes, personally I’d hate us to resort to that. More than happy to come slightly lower in the league next year if it means another couple of younguns coming through. It’s a long game. In ten years time you can’t imagine us being anything other than a top half Premier League team which even ten years ago would’ve seemed nuts. And we are doing it the right way.

 

[Bold Seagull]

Almost every club is a selling club, if they've got players that a bigger club wants. In the Premier league I can only think of the current Man City as a team which hasn't sold a star player to a bigger club. Every other team has.

So I think the list of non-selling clubs globally has only 3 or 4 names on it.

Anyway you're only a selling club if you've got assets worth buying.

Echoing that above. Spurs are always losing players to MU, City, Barca, Real etc. Likewise Arsenal, Liverpool, MU. Liverpool currently could lose both Salah and Mane. It's not limited to so called smaller clubs.

 

[Wozza]

We're attracting amazing talent because we can offer a pathway to the very top.

We give young starlets game time and excellent coaching - and put them in the shop window to further their careers.

Would be naive to think that Brighton & Hove Albion is the summit of ambition for players like Cucurella, Caicedo, Mac Allister, Trossard and Lamptey.

 

[Brian Fantana]

I wonder though now Ashworth's gone whether our recruitment will suffer. It's fair to say we had our share of duds before he arrived.

I suspect Ashworth has built a fairly robust structure that will continue to deliver high performance even after his departure. I believe the mantra of the club across the board is to creation structures and processes that can absorb individual changes of personnel in key roles.