Gus moaning about money (in the Argus) again? [merged]

[LamieRobertson]

I get what he is saying. I just dont think it helps perception when the very thing we need is a goalscorer and the two we had, Murray and Woods, we let slip through our hands.

Uncertain how you think we let Woods slip through our hands

 

[Meade's Ball]

His managerial ways will be tested and exposed to be incredibly wonderful or limited when he moves on to a bigger club. He might think and say IMAGINE WHAT WE WOULD BE LIKE IF WE HAD THAT BUDGET AND THOSE PLAYERS, but for as much as he believes it, i am not sure how he'd get on for starters with those big-money players, controlling them and improving them and dragging them onto the GusBus. He's a big pig in a relatively small sty at present and doesn't have to cope with those hogs and bullocks and foxhounds that really run the farm. I have faith in him to lead us to better times and greener pastures, but i am not a fan of statements that deromanticise our journey just by blaming it on the benjamins.

 

[supaseagull]

If I was manager of this group of players sitting 4 points adrift of the playoffs, I'd be saying the same thing. I wouldn't want people to latch onto my under-performing ways.

I have to agree...The players signed this season are all more than capable of holding their own in the Premier League, all be it possibly the lower half of the Premier League. Add that to an ever improving AEA and Liam Bridcutt, then you begin to see that it's no wonder that certain people at the club who have invested heavily in the team are beginning to become a little concerned by our inability to win important matches.

In fact, if you look at the league table and then consider how much we and other teams have spent this season, we are probably under-achieving, when you consider that Palace, Watford, Middlesbrough who are all above us in the table have spent less on players than we have...I know there are other factors to consider. However, they also don't have the added effect of a constantly increasing capacity which we do.

I've said before that if we don't reach the play offs this season, then there will be questions asked of Poyet - not by the fans but by the board.

 

[Meade's Ball]

This could be the nail that has had its head bashed,.... I believe the 'tinkerman' tag is appropriate here, I think he has had a good enough squad this season, and he should be applauded for attracting them into the Albion,... but... his consistent chopping and changing is not helping one bit,... I was for example, staggered to see Spanish Dave and Orlandi benched last night, it didnt seem to have any logic behind it. Make way for the dagger by all means, but why bench both of them after what I saw as a very decent performance against Hull.

I don't think starting with two generally sideways passers is the best method to defeat a team with 10 men behind the ball. I personally wanted Buckley to start, his pace and movement a necessity, i thought, thanks to the extreme lack of speed in the other two, and for Vicente to come off of the bench. Well i was wrong about Vicente of course as he was the star of the night, but i think resting the Lope and maybe a place on the bench for Orlandi after a dreadful second half against Hull, with that glaring miss, wasn't the worst idea.

 

[Blues Rock DJ]

I have to agree...The players signed this season are all more than capable of holding their own in the Premier League, all be it possibly the lower half of the Premier League. Add that to an ever improving AEA and Liam Bridcutt, then you begin to see that it's no wonder that certain people at the club who have invested heavily in the team are beginning to become a little concerned by our inability to win important matches.

In fact, if you look at the league table and then consider how much we and other teams have spent this season, we are probably under-achieving, when you consider that Palace, Watford, Middlesbrough who are all above us in the table have spent less on players than we have...I know there are other factors to consider. However, they also don't have the added effect of a constantly increasing capacity which we do.

I've said before that if we don't reach the play offs this season, then there will be questions asked of Poyet - not by the fans but by the board.

well said, that man !

 

[Randsta]

I'd rather spend a couple of more season's in this league and be ready than get dicked on every week in the premier league!

 

[Justice]

Flabbergasted at some comments 3 seasons ago we were playing Exeter & Hartlepool, I for one am happy to go along with the chairman's 5 year plan

 

[Simster]

What has he actually ever said? More unsubstantiated bullshit about how our budget is about 15th in the league? I simply don't believe that at all.

 

[Giraffe]

A season more in the championship will be just fine, but there will come a point when attendances will drop if we don't keep moving forward.

The players we have now signed look a good bet for a top six or maybe top two finish next year but as others have said what will the competion be like?

My gut feel is we are improving whilst others are floundering. I still think we can make the top six this season but not getting promoted would not be a disaster at all.

 

[marshy68]

Flabbergasted at some comments 3 seasons ago we were playing Exeter & Hartlepool, I for one am happy to go along with the chairman's 5 year plan

Agreed - i was very excited when i saw the team sheet last night. My only changes with the benefit of hindsight would have been Lua Lua starting for buckley and Spanish Dave for Bruno (buckley and bruno had shockers in my opinion). Thought it was one of the best albion perfomances for years - apart from a couple of great saves from their keep and more profligacy infront of goal we would have won at a canter. I completely agree with Poyet sooner or later we will absolutely tonk someone. I just pray that comes on March 17!

 

[Bozza]

Flabbergasted at some comments 3 seasons ago we were playing Exeter & Hartlepool, I for one am happy to go along with the chairman's 5 year plan

What we were doing 3 years ago is completely irrelevant. We are now something like the 15th best supported club in the country, with a squad peppered with a level of quality not seen at this club for many a year, if ever.

The '5 year plan' is appropriate though, but that relies on steady improvement, and I'm genuinely not sure we're seeing that. It's a marginal call at best.

 

[somerset]

I've said before that if we don't reach the play offs this season, then there will be questions asked of Poyet - not by the fans but by the board.

..and there is the sad reality of it all, we can be on the Gus Bus as much as we like, but those at the top will not stand by and let opportunities slip by, and this season is starting to look like a missed one in my view. We could still make it of course, then all this frustration will be worth it, but I suspect its a longish shot given the inability to finish teams off when opportunity presents.

 

[Bozza]

...and to be clear, I have no issue with Championship football as it's genuinely exciting stuff.

 

[El Presidente]

Referring back to the Paul McShane on £18,000 a week thread, perhaps Gus is right?

There is no evidence to suggest he is lying, based on the figures in the public domain, we will find out when the next set of accounts are published.

 

[Brighton Breezy]

I don't doubt that our budget is not among the top six in this division.

BUT, if you have a limited budget you have to juggle your finances. Wayne Bridge and Bruno are great additions to the squad but would their combined wages have not been better spent elsewhere? If you have a limited budget can you really afford to spend £10,000 a week on your left back when your much-missed centre forward was offered less than that before leaving for Selhurst?

Did we really need to recruit so many players capable of playing in our midfield three?

Could we really afford to make Stephen Dobbie our best paid player and then leave him on the bench for five months at a cost of around £250,000-£300,000 in wages alone?

Could we not be making better use of development squad players rather than pay for first team players to do little other than make up the numbers with relatively small prospects of being used on a regular basis?

I am not saying Poyet should be sacked or that we have a budget which should mean we are in the running for automatic promotion. Just that there are perhaps ways Poyet could have made better use of the cash he has available rather than regularly mention the restrictive budget he claims he has to operate with.

 

[GingerBeerMan]

I don't think he's moaning. He's probably right, isn't he? If we'd spent £11 million on strikers we'd be in the automatic places.

£5m is a more expensive strike force than most in the league

 

[El Presidente]

What we were doing 3 years ago is completely irrelevant. We are now something like the 15th best supported club in the country, with a squad peppered with a level of quality not seen at this club for many a year, if ever.

The '5 year plan' is appropriate though, but that relies on steady improvement, and I'm genuinely not sure we're seeing that. It's a marginal call at best.

The problem is that matchday revenue is not an indicator of budget, because of

1: Benefactors subsidising clubs to a greater operational degree than TB (Cardiff, Leicester).
2: Parachute payments from the Premier League (Blackburn).

Of the clubs above us in this league, only Palace can be said to be overperforming, and that one we can probably lay at the door of Gus!

 

[deletebeepbeepbeep]

Gus in the Argus

Flabbergasted at some comments 3 seasons ago we were playing Exeter & Hartlepool, I for one am happy to go along with the chairman's 5 year plan

I keep seeing this parroted, please can you show me a direct quote where Bloom has said this?

I agree with a lot of the comments here- I fear that this is a season lost rather than consolidation and improvement, and could just as easily see us losing important players and manager over the close season rather than getting stronger for another push. Maybe Poyet will think to himself he's taken as us as far as he can with the experience in the team at the moment and we still can't close out games.

I'm being very pessimistic but all I see at the moment is Vicente, Upson, Bridge and potentially Bridcutt leaving, all quality players with massive experience and how are we going to replace them as well as generally improve the squad overall.

We will lose a lot of the League 1 players at least which might free up wages.

 

[Deleted member 22389]

...and to be clear, I have no issue with Championship football as it's genuinely exciting stuff.

Agreed. If we finish higher up the league than last season, that is improvement. If we don't make the Premier League for a few seasons, but stay on a steady footing without breaking the bank, remain in the Championship without losing supporter, I will be happy.

Lets enjoy the rest of the season no matter what happens. We are gauranteed at least one thing, Championship football next season if we fail.

 

[Meade's Ball]

What we were doing 3 years ago is completely irrelevant. We are now something like the 15th best supported club in the country, with a squad peppered with a level of quality not seen at this club for many a year, if ever.

The players you rightly express an admiration for were not snatched from other clubs playing week in week out at the top of their game. They were the injury-prone sorts who'd lost their way or were only given 10 games a season and wanted some gametime. I find them of the highest calibre, but we've had to scrape the barrel compared to others, finding pearls amongst the barnacles and rat droppings where others perhaps couldn't, or didn't put the effort in to look. So have had to use a small budget and Gus' latino charms to make it as it is, i think.