I'm pleased that Sandgaard has now had the kind of clear-out that some of us advised a few months ago.
The one bit I'm interested in now is just how good Gallen's recruitment record is. I know there have been some real successes (Bielik, Cullen, Gallagher etc), but he has been responsible for some real donkeys too (Bogle, the various Smiths etc ... you can pick your own).
Has anyone done a full critique so that we can judge whether Sandgaard has gone far enough?
The truth is no one, certainly who posts on here, actually knows. When Gallen first came in his and Robinson's recruitment was pretty good. His and Bowyer's was pretty good, even with the funding slashed and having to go through Tommy D. You can't blame him for the Southall window, then it all gets a bit murky.
The premier league loans are a bit cloudy as well. Especially the first time loans. Do you just ask for a midfielder and it's a bit of pot luck if you get a Gallagher or a Levitt?
Gallen has had to recruit under Duchatelet/Driesen, then under Southall/Amis.
He's a fecking miracle worker. End of.
At least the couple of interviews with the SLP and the OS have clarified particulars that could/should have been spelt out when the announcements were made EG the triggers for Jackson's contract and the hierarchy within recruitment IE Gallen is in charge.
How that works out in practice with MS we shall have to see but it doesn't APPEAR that he has the power of Driesen or the control of Roddy.
For all his smiling image and genuine goodwill Sandgaard snr is showing he has a ruthless streak when sidelining someone who was an key ally before the takeover.
I'm pleased that Sandgaard has now had the kind of clear-out that some of us advised a few months ago.
The one bit I'm interested in now is just how good Gallen's recruitment record is. I know there have been some real successes (Bielik, Cullen, Gallagher etc), but he has been responsible for some real donkeys too (Bogle, the various Smiths etc ... you can pick your own).
Has anyone done a full critique so that we can judge whether Sandgaard has gone far enough?
The truth is no one, certainly who posts on here, actually knows. When Gallen first came in his and Robinson's recruitment was pretty good. His and Bowyer's was pretty good, even with the funding slashed and having to go through Tommy D. You can't blame him for the Southall window, then it all gets a bit murky.
The premier league loans are a bit cloudy as well. Especially the first time loans. Do you just ask for a midfielder and it's a bit of pot luck if you get a Gallagher or a Levitt?
Gallen has had to recruit under Duchatelet/Driesen, then under Southall/Amis.
He's a fecking miracle worker. End of.
At least the couple of interviews with the SLP and the OS have clarified particulars that could/should have been spelt out when the announcements were made EG the triggers for Jackson's contract and the hierarchy within recruitment IE Gallen is in charge.
How that works out in practice with MS we shall have to see but it doesn't APPEAR that he has the power of Driesen or the control of Roddy.
For all his smiling image and genuine goodwill Sandgaard snr is showing he has a ruthless streak when sidelining someone who was an key ally before the takeover.
Roddy moving in can only be a good thing imho. I spoke with a guy who knew him when he used to scout for Reading and he said he was a total nightmare to work with and not very popular.
Roddy moving in can only be a good thing imho. I spoke with a guy who knew him when he used to scout for Reading and he said he was a nightmare to work with.
Roddy moving in can only be a good thing imho. I spoke with a guy who knew him when he used to scout for Reading and he said he was a nightmare to work with.
Was it Nigel Adkins?
No. Sorry I should have been clearer. The bloke I know was scouting for Reading at the time but is now here in Denmark working for SønderjyskE
Thank God he’s gone. Everything seemed to point to him as a problem and I could never see what value he was adding. I thought it demeaning to Gallen and Jackson that they had to liaise with him at all.
I’d back Gallen all the way in the recruitment process. Given what he’s had to deal with in the past I think he’s very much in credit.
Clear that despite the vigorous defence of Roddy by some, based on his CV, his role has been identified as a problem and consequently he has been removed from it.
He’s been given a soft landing by Sandgaard but it’s pretty obvious there’s no real role for him going forward beyond advising on category one.
Don't think I ever defended him based on his CV. I asked if anyone could produce a credible piece of evidence that he'd done anything wrong, and nobody could.
Given the amount of accusations he's faced, some wild in their nature, I do wonder what he's actually guilty of. Still nobody would be able to tell me with any degree of real certainty.
On the flipside, if there hadn't been a campaign of character assassination against Ged, I imagine this would be playing out very differently... Thomas replacing someone highly qualified with his unqualified son.
Not at all. Just because Gallen has worked under some testing circumstances, doesn't mean he's a miracle worker. You say he worked under Amis/Southall but who did we bring in that transfer window - Green, Smith, McGeady and Davis, all flopped bar a couple of decent cameos from Green. Of course I'm not blaming him but where was the miracle?
Roland was a shit owner, we all know that but Gallen still had a larger budget to work with than most of the other clubs in League 1. I have to be say, that seasons recruitment was still superb, particularly the loanees and the vital addition of Purrington in the January. Then in the following season, we made some pretty poor signings. Players like Oztumer and Oshilija didn't even last for us in League 1, let alone the league above. Hemed and Kayal were woeful. Again, not fair to blame him but where was the miracle? We ended up being relegated because the squad wasn't good enough. Yes, injuries certainly played a major part in that as did some questionable substitutes/tactics late on.
Gallen has had his excuses and the manager certainly shoulders a lot of the blame. Some of the summer additions were slammed because of their performances under Adkins, and are now starting to look a lit better so that's positive.
Only my opinion but I do think Gallen, like Bowyer, received a bit too much credit purely because of the circumstances they worked under. In a way, that is justified because they don't have the loyalty we do as fans. It does however give them convenient excuses. When Gallen has signed a cracker, we sing his praises. When we sign a few duds, it's because of the ownership or because Sandgaard completed the takeover too late to sign anyone worthwhile (let's not forget that Gunter, Inniss and Watson were tracked all summer).
Overall, I'm glad he's here. He's shown loyalty and clearly has a good footballing knowledge and some excellent contacts. I think the Director of Football role suits him more because his contacts and negotiating skills are a real asset. I'd very much like to see an extra scout/analyst or two join the ranks though.
Not at all. Just because Gallen has worked under some testing circumstances, doesn't mean he's a miracle worker. You say he worked under Amis/Southall but who did we bring in that transfer window - Green, Smith, McGeady and Davis, all flopped bar a couple of decent cameos from Green. Of course I'm not blaming him but where was the miracle?
Roland was a shit owner, we all know that but Gallen still had a larger budget to work with than most of the other clubs in League 1. I have to be say, that seasons recruitment was still superb, particularly the loanees and the vital addition of Purrington in the January. Then in the following season, we made some pretty poor signings. Players like Oztumer and Oshilija didn't even last for us in League 1, let alone the league above. Hemed and Kayal were woeful. Again, not fair to blame him but where was the miracle? We ended up being relegated because the squad wasn't good enough. Yes, injuries certainly played a major part in that as did some questionable substitutes/tactics late on.
Gallen has had his excuses and the manager certainly shoulders a lot of the blame. Some of the summer additions were slammed because of their performances under Adkins, and are now starting to look a lit better so that's positive.
Only my opinion but I do think Gallen, like Bowyer, received a bit too much credit purely because of the circumstances they worked under. In a way, that is justified because they don't have the loyalty we do as fans. It does however give them convenient excuses. When Gallen has signed a cracker, we sing his praises. When we sign a few duds, it's because of the ownership or because Sandgaard completed the takeover too late to sign anyone worthwhile (let's not forget that Gunter, Inniss and Watson were tracked all summer).
Overall, I'm glad he's here. He's shown loyalty and clearly has a good footballing knowledge and some excellent contacts. I think the Director of Football role suits him more because his contacts and negotiating skills are a real asset. I'd very much like to see an extra scout/analyst or two join the ranks though.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions 👍 but I’m with Henry. He’s a miracle worker. The standard of signings that we made given the state of the club over the last few years is staggering.
Of course not every signing is going to work perfectly, but given he was doing the job of scouting, selling the club, negotiating with clubs and agents combined. He is one of the main reasons we aren’t in league 2.
I also love the fact he spends the clubs money like it is his own. Such an important thing to have in these situations.
Not at all. Just because Gallen has worked under some testing circumstances, doesn't mean he's a miracle worker. You say he worked under Amis/Southall but who did we bring in that transfer window - Green, Smith, McGeady and Davis, all flopped bar a couple of decent cameos from Green. Of course I'm not blaming him but where was the miracle?
Roland was a shit owner, we all know that but Gallen still had a larger budget to work with than most of the other clubs in League 1. I have to be say, that seasons recruitment was still superb, particularly the loanees and the vital addition of Purrington in the January. Then in the following season, we made some pretty poor signings. Players like Oztumer and Oshilija didn't even last for us in League 1, let alone the league above. Hemed and Kayal were woeful. Again, not fair to blame him but where was the miracle? We ended up being relegated because the squad wasn't good enough. Yes, injuries certainly played a major part in that as did some questionable substitutes/tactics late on.
Gallen has had his excuses and the manager certainly shoulders a lot of the blame. Some of the summer additions were slammed because of their performances under Adkins, and are now starting to look a lit better so that's positive.
Only my opinion but I do think Gallen, like Bowyer, received a bit too much credit purely because of the circumstances they worked under. In a way, that is justified because they don't have the loyalty we do as fans. It does however give them convenient excuses. When Gallen has signed a cracker, we sing his praises. When we sign a few duds, it's because of the ownership or because Sandgaard completed the takeover too late to sign anyone worthwhile (let's not forget that Gunter, Inniss and Watson were tracked all summer).
Overall, I'm glad he's here. He's shown loyalty and clearly has a good footballing knowledge and some excellent contacts. I think the Director of Football role suits him more because his contacts and negotiating skills are a real asset. I'd very much like to see an extra scout/analyst or two join the ranks though.
Everyone is entitled to their opinions 👍 but I’m with Henry. He’s a miracle worker. The standard of signings that we made given the state of the club over the last few years is staggering.
Of course not every signing is going to work perfectly, but given he was doing the job of scouting, selling the club, negotiating with clubs and agents combined. He is one of the main reasons we aren’t in league 2.
I also love the fact he spends the clubs money like it is his own. Such an important thing to have in these situations.
Fair enough. Not sure the signings have been “staggering” but overall, I’d say they’ve been good. This season was the big one and have to say, so far they look positive, probably not the time to judge yet.
Completely agree with the point about being short staffed and taking on multiple jobs, he’s definitely an asset to the club and I’ve never said otherwise.
One of the main reasons we’re not in League 2? Don’t see there being anywhere near accurate to be honest. Any half decent scout makes good signings and some poor ones, irrespective of budget. Every time we’ve been in League 1 we’ve had one of the bigger budgets in the league, going down to League 2 would have needed some real flops, I don’t think most of us on here could have signed enough quality to avoid that.
Not at all. Just because Gallen has worked under some testing circumstances, doesn't mean he's a miracle worker. You say he worked under Amis/Southall but who did we bring in that transfer window - Green, Smith, McGeady and Davis, all flopped bar a couple of decent cameos from Green. Of course I'm not blaming him but where was the miracle?
Roland was a shit owner, we all know that but Gallen still had a larger budget to work with than most of the other clubs in League 1. I have to be say, that seasons recruitment was still superb, particularly the loanees and the vital addition of Purrington in the January. Then in the following season, we made some pretty poor signings. Players like Oztumer and Oshilija didn't even last for us in League 1, let alone the league above. Hemed and Kayal were woeful. Again, not fair to blame him but where was the miracle? We ended up being relegated because the squad wasn't good enough. Yes, injuries certainly played a major part in that as did some questionable substitutes/tactics late on.
Gallen has had his excuses and the manager certainly shoulders a lot of the blame. Some of the summer additions were slammed because of their performances under Adkins, and are now starting to look a lit better so that's positive.
Only my opinion but I do think Gallen, like Bowyer, received a bit too much credit purely because of the circumstances they worked under. In a way, that is justified because they don't have the loyalty we do as fans. It does however give them convenient excuses. When Gallen has signed a cracker, we sing his praises. When we sign a few duds, it's because of the ownership or because Sandgaard completed the takeover too late to sign anyone worthwhile (let's not forget that Gunter, Inniss and Watson were tracked all summer).
Overall, I'm glad he's here. He's shown loyalty and clearly has a good footballing knowledge and some excellent contacts. I think the Director of Football role suits him more because his contacts and negotiating skills are a real asset. I'd very much like to see an extra scout/analyst or two join the ranks though.
We've expanded our analyst team since TS bought the club. Believe we have more scouts too but can't find where it was mentioned. At one point before TS came in Gallen was doing the scouting on his own.
Sandgaard obviously felt that he wasn't in the loop enough with Roddy involved and has put in someone who will report back better. There were issues with our summer recruitment that were rooted in a lack of good communication between all parties.
Source?
This is something that Bowyer was unhappy about saying that we didn't move fast enough to get a few deals done and lost out on players to other teams because of it. Could well be that the time difference between Colorado and London has caused issues for confirmation of the go-ahead for signings. Having someone TS implicitly trusts (evidently not GR) can only be a good thing as you'd imagine that MS would have the approval to move ahead with a deal if the situation arises.
People saying what skills does he have that are transferable - manufacturing and supply chain management for a massive medical company probably means he can sort and improve processes and source key elements to produce products, I'd hazard a guess that would include analysing data to a high level and putting together best cases for options on relevant products etc.?
Sandgaard obviously felt that he wasn't in the loop enough with Roddy involved and has put in someone who will report back better. There were issues with our summer recruitment that were rooted in a lack of good communication between all parties.
Source?
This is something that Bowyer was unhappy about saying that we didn't move fast enough to get a few deals done and lost out on players to other teams because of it. Could well be that the time difference between Colorado and London has caused issues for confirmation of the go-ahead for signings. Having someone TS implicitly trusts (evidently not GR) can only be a good thing as you'd imagine that MS would have the approval to move ahead with a deal if the situation arises.
People saying what skills does he have that are transferable - manufacturing and supply chain management for a massive medical company probably means he can sort and improve processes and source key elements to produce products, I'd hazard a guess that would include analysing data to a high level and putting together best cases for options on relevant products etc.?
Firstly I’m not in the know but what the club looked like at the start of the season and the frankly bizarre management structure with GR seemingly at the apex looked to me like all problem roads led to him. The rumours and things that came out of sparrows made me very sceptical about his role and influence. In any case it looks like he’s out and again without full knowledge I’m happy he’s gone. Sometimes it’s just gut instinct. That’s mine.
So Gallen in charge of recruiting the players after properly checking them out and Martin provides the data for him to do so. Good thing we all saw that coming! Seems like an improvement on the previous system and will hopefully speed things up when it comes to getting players in
Sandgaard obviously felt that he wasn't in the loop enough with Roddy involved and has put in someone who will report back better. There were issues with our summer recruitment that were rooted in a lack of good communication between all parties.
Source?
This is something that Bowyer was unhappy about saying that we didn't move fast enough to get a few deals done and lost out on players to other teams because of it. Could well be that the time difference between Colorado and London has caused issues for confirmation of the go-ahead for signings. Having someone TS implicitly trusts (evidently not GR) can only be a good thing as you'd imagine that MS would have the approval to move ahead with a deal if the situation arises.
People saying what skills does he have that are transferable - manufacturing and supply chain management for a massive medical company probably means he can sort and improve processes and source key elements to produce products, I'd hazard a guess that would include analysing data to a high level and putting together best cases for options on relevant products etc.?
Most likely, reading through the Gallen and Roddy session it was:
Scouts and analysts report to Gallen
Gallen and Roddy share (meet the model criteria I guess) Gallen and Roddy go to Adkins Adkins yes/no
They go to Sandgaard
Convoluted, but if Martin has the company credit card and xyz parameters are met them hopefully no need for a teams call to Colorado.
Sandgaard obviously felt that he wasn't in the loop enough with Roddy involved and has put in someone who will report back better. There were issues with our summer recruitment that were rooted in a lack of good communication between all parties.
Source?
This is something that Bowyer was unhappy about saying that we didn't move fast enough to get a few deals done and lost out on players to other teams because of it. Could well be that the time difference between Colorado and London has caused issues for confirmation of the go-ahead for signings. Having someone TS implicitly trusts (evidently not GR) can only be a good thing as you'd imagine that MS would have the approval to move ahead with a deal if the situation arises.
People saying what skills does he have that are transferable - manufacturing and supply chain management for a massive medical company probably means he can sort and improve processes and source key elements to produce products, I'd hazard a guess that would include analysing data to a high level and putting together best cases for options on relevant products etc.?
Most likely, reading through the Gallen and Roddy session it was:
Scouts and analysts report to Gallen
Gallen and Roddy share (meet the model criteria I guess) Gallen and Roddy go to Adkins Adkins yes/no
They go to Sandgaard
Convoluted, but if Martin has the company credit card and xyz parameters are met them hopefully no need for a teams call to Colorado.
Take out the Adkins section and you'd probably be right.
Comments
The premier league loans are a bit cloudy as well. Especially the first time loans. Do you just ask for a midfielder and it's a bit of pot luck if you get a Gallagher or a Levitt?
He's a fecking miracle worker. End of.
At least the couple of interviews with the SLP and the OS have clarified particulars that could/should have been spelt out when the announcements were made EG the triggers for Jackson's contract and the hierarchy within recruitment IE Gallen is in charge.
How that works out in practice with MS we shall have to see but it doesn't APPEAR that he has the power of Driesen or the control of Roddy.
For all his smiling image and genuine goodwill Sandgaard snr is showing he has a ruthless streak when sidelining someone who was an key ally before the takeover.
Just wish he'd do the same to Keohane.
Oh! OK.
I thought it demeaning to Gallen and Jackson that they had to liaise with him at all.
Given the amount of accusations he's faced, some wild in their nature, I do wonder what he's actually guilty of. Still nobody would be able to tell me with any degree of real certainty.
On the flipside, if there hadn't been a campaign of character assassination against Ged, I imagine this would be playing out very differently... Thomas replacing someone highly qualified with his unqualified son.
Roland was a shit owner, we all know that but Gallen still had a larger budget to work with than most of the other clubs in League 1. I have to be say, that seasons recruitment was still superb, particularly the loanees and the vital addition of Purrington in the January. Then in the following season, we made some pretty poor signings. Players like Oztumer and Oshilija didn't even last for us in League 1, let alone the league above. Hemed and Kayal were woeful. Again, not fair to blame him but where was the miracle? We ended up being relegated because the squad wasn't good enough. Yes, injuries certainly played a major part in that as did some questionable substitutes/tactics late on.
Gallen has had his excuses and the manager certainly shoulders a lot of the blame. Some of the summer additions were slammed because of their performances under Adkins, and are now starting to look a lit better so that's positive.
Only my opinion but I do think Gallen, like Bowyer, received a bit too much credit purely because of the circumstances they worked under. In a way, that is justified because they don't have the loyalty we do as fans. It does however give them convenient excuses. When Gallen has signed a cracker, we sing his praises. When we sign a few duds, it's because of the ownership or because Sandgaard completed the takeover too late to sign anyone worthwhile (let's not forget that Gunter, Inniss and Watson were tracked all summer).
Overall, I'm glad he's here. He's shown loyalty and clearly has a good footballing knowledge and some excellent contacts. I think the Director of Football role suits him more because his contacts and negotiating skills are a real asset. I'd very much like to see an extra scout/analyst or two join the ranks though.
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/6139d07e655f0/in-depth-summer-transfer-window-2021
In September analysts Ruben Sammut, Aaron Barnes (our former academy player) and Dan Pelchen were talked about in the above OS article.
Reading it back it's intersting it says the black box has data on 6.5k players, the below article from today now says 12k players.
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/61c596681c4de/update-on-the-roles-of-steve-gallen-and-martin-sandgaard
People saying what skills does he have that are transferable - manufacturing and supply chain management for a massive medical company probably means he can sort and improve processes and source key elements to produce products, I'd hazard a guess that would include analysing data to a high level and putting together best cases for options on relevant products etc.?
Most likely, reading through the Gallen and Roddy session it was:
Scouts and analysts report to Gallen
Gallen and Roddy go to Adkins
Adkins yes/no
Convoluted, but if Martin has the company credit card and xyz parameters are met them hopefully no need for a teams call to Colorado.
Merry Xmas IAN
Happy to see Martin heading up the analytics dept, I'm sure he will learn a lot by working alongside Steve Gallen.
Thomas is learning fast now that running a football club remotely isn't ideal. I think the structure in place now will start to pay dividends.