Attention: Please take a moment to consider our terms and conditions before posting.

Thierry Small - signed a 4 year deal with Preston (p36)

1404143454659

Comments

  • carly burn
    carly burn Posts: 19,442
    Good riddance.
    No doubt in a season or twos time you'll find him in the 'not quite at it' wingers scrapheap along with Balckett,-Taylor and John Leko!

    Only joking. Did well enough for us. Footballs a short life. Grab it while you can Thierry.
  • scabbyhorse
    scabbyhorse Posts: 2,542
    Looked good at times, but to be honest, I thought he was abysmal in a few games too. There's definitely potential there, and time will tell if it's a good move for him. Of course, we can only thank him for being part of our promotion-winning team.

    That said, I do think we can do a bit better—and I get the feeling Nathan thinks the same. But that's not to say he wouldn't have signed him if he'd accepted the lower wage we offered. £11k a week for four years is just too much of a gamble for us to spend on Small, in my opinion.
  • NorthEnder
    NorthEnder Posts: 4
    Croydon said:
    Can't remember who said it on here earlier in the thread, but we had a lot of patience with Small. Preston fans will be expecting him to perform and if he still can't shoot or cross consistently next season then I can't imagine they'll be particularly thrilled about it.
    Can categorically say, we aren’t. Most of us have wanted the club to sign young players we can develop. Yes, we are very pleased to get this deal done but the vast majority appreciate he’s still very raw. As I’ve said previously though, pace is what of a novelty in our squad. So that’s very welcome. 
  • Crispywood
    Crispywood Posts: 616
    Small leaving isn’t the end of the world, the most irritating thing about it is a 20 year old championship footballer automatically goes for 7 figures minimum we’ve lost out on a very good pay day and his potential is up there. However, his current ability isn’t irreplaceable no guarantee he smashes it in the championship. We’re going to be doing much more defending this year and Small’s defensive abilities like positioning, decision making would have been a liability. Even going forward 5 G/A in 39 L1 games one is poor even considering in possession he plays more like a winger than a wingback. 3 of those G/A also came from Wollacott and Norris not stopping easy chances and Santos passing the ball straight to him. Plenty of other proven championship players who for next season would be an improvement on small maybe not long term but definitely short term which we really need considering we’re likely to be battling relegation 
  • stop_shouting
    stop_shouting Posts: 3,678
    Summink tells me he’s gonna have a really weird career with tons of clubs. Can see him back on loan in league one next season.
  • wmcf123
    wmcf123 Posts: 5,823
    Croydon said:
    Can't remember who said it on here earlier in the thread, but we had a lot of patience with Small. Preston fans will be expecting him to perform and if he still can't shoot or cross consistently next season then I can't imagine they'll be particularly thrilled about it.
    Can categorically say, we aren’t. Most of us have wanted the club to sign young players we can develop. Yes, we are very pleased to get this deal done but the vast majority appreciate he’s still very raw. As I’ve said previously though, pace is what of a novelty in our squad. So that’s very welcome. 
    He’s made a financial decision , which I can’t criticise .  I’m not saying you aren’t better than us - you will be , but he would have played 40 games for us next year.  
  • thenewbie
    thenewbie Posts: 10,999
    For me there’s a hint of Alfie May situation about this… reckon he might have stayed but Jones didn’t really want him or certainly show him the love he would have needed to convince him 
    Not buying that, he's got a history of doing just this at previous clubs - comes in, looks good, gets a move/pay rise then off to the next club to repeat the cycle. I won't hold it against him, it's not personal he's done it at every other club before us.

    If anything I'd guess maybe he/his agent was trying to get a better deal from Charlton but the bluff was called - if he really thinks Preston is that much better, well go ahead and prove it.
  • Bailey
    Bailey Posts: 3,265
    Says it’s the best club for him right now ??? he is desperately trying to get back in the big league and does not matter who he uses on the way ? 
    Nothing wrong in belief in your own ability Ronnie, the problem for Thierry is that a few managers did not share that belief. He still has a lot to learn but is young enough to get there. 
  • Gravesend_Addick
    Gravesend_Addick Posts: 7,298
    Surprised by that.  I was convinced he'd stay once we clinched promotion, but it's most likely his mind was already made up.

    I'm sure the recruitment team would've planned for this outcome & will have a replacement lined up 
  • PBr
    PBr Posts: 3
    He wants to play left back. For us he played right wing. He’s strong and confident and has bags of talent. He helped us get promoted, I wish him well. We’ll adapt.
  • Sponsored links:



  • scabbyhorse
    scabbyhorse Posts: 2,542

    Slightly off topic, but do any of our fans on here actually join another team's forum when we sign one of their players? Has anyone joined the Blackpool forum today? Or Cardiff’s? I just find it a bit weird, really.

    Anyway, back on topic!

  • Marriott110
    Marriott110 Posts: 1,528
    Unsure if it's been mentioned but it's worth remembering, Small was brought in in Jan and Jones went out last summer and got an upgrade as soon as he feasibly could. Small got a chance due to Sean Clare's assault on Josh Edwards and as soon as Edwards was fit again, Small was out the side, it's only after moving to RW did he finally find a home but was still quite inconsistent, and whilst yes he was exciting, I question how much of that is down to just him and TC having raw pace and trickery, (hopefully something we address this window) it's also quite telling that in the home leg at 0-0 he was hooked off, all the above makes me feel it's someone Jones and the club would of liked to have kept, it's not someone we'd break the bank, or our wage structure for.


  • redman
    redman Posts: 5,285
    PBr said:
    He wants to play left back. For us he played right wing. He’s strong and confident and has bags of talent. He helped us get promoted, I wish him well. We’ll adapt.
    No he didn't. Told me face to face he preferred right wing, I had no reason to disbelieve him. 
  • Dazzler21
    Dazzler21 Posts: 51,343
    Good player, probably rates himself more than the manager does. No animosity to him.
  • ct_addick
    ct_addick Posts: 4,333
    Think he wasn’t impressed with NJ….got pulled early in some games….so fuck off then….we move on
  • cafc_se7
    cafc_se7 Posts: 2,271
    For all the talk of 'end product' etc. 

    He was one of our best players. Will be a real miss. 
    Not that I am picking on this one particular comment but one thing I would say is….we are in the championship now, Small will be up against better full backs week in week out….for anyone who was at the Birmingham away game they will remember Thierry being completely non existent as Cochrane did an absolute number on him! 

    I’m sad to see him go as he could have grown with us but let’s get real, he is not irreplaceable as a few on here have already mentioned.
  • The Red Robin
    The Red Robin Posts: 26,126
    Always enjoy the rewriting of player narratives if they dare to leave us. 
  • wmcf123
    wmcf123 Posts: 5,823
    cafc_se7 said:
    For all the talk of 'end product' etc. 

    He was one of our best players. Will be a real miss. 
    Not that I am picking on this one particular comment but one thing I would say is….we are in the championship now, Small will be up against better full backs week in week out….for anyone who was at the Birmingham away game they will remember Thierry being completely non existent as Cochrane did an absolute number on him! 

    I’m sad to see him go as he could have grown with us but let’s get real, he is not irreplaceable as a few on here have already mentioned.
    At least it won’t be Watson there as the replacement .  
  • GreenWithEnvy
    GreenWithEnvy Posts: 1,839
    edited June 6
    I liked him and we suffered when he was out of the team once we got the balance of the team working. He’s a nice guy but clearly lured by PNE and yes it’s not exactly a skyward type of move so baffling for sure. But of all the players we could lose he’s the one I can stomach. Surely Jones and Chapple will get a proper replacement. Who would you want within our budget? 
  • Danny Addick
    Danny Addick Posts: 3,930
    edited June 6
    Losing Small is absolutely not the end of the world - losing Ramsey or Jones (Lloyd or Nathan!) would have been much worse. Very odd move to go to Preston. 
  • Sponsored links:



  • wmcf123
    wmcf123 Posts: 5,823
    I liked him and we suffered when he was out of the team once we got the balance of the team working. He’s a nice guy but clearly lured by PNE and yes it’s not exactly a skyward type of move so baffling for sure. But of all the players we could lose he’s the one I can stomach. Surely Jones and Chapple will get a proper replacement. Who would you want within our budget? 
    Someone solid defensively and good going forward, that allows Ramsay to stay where he is .  
  • Danny Addick
    Danny Addick Posts: 3,930
    edited June 6
    Manager Nathan Jones said: "We wish Thierry all the best. We tried to keep him at the club and offered him a contract, which he turned down. He felt Preston was a better fit for him, so we thank him for his contribution and wish him well."

    That reads pretty cold to me and not someone we were particularly fighting hard for. 
    What do we surmise “he felt Preston was a better fit for him” meant? In terms of football? Money? 
  • AndyG
    AndyG Posts: 5,905
    Even though I had pretty much decided he was off I’m still gutted. And honestly it’s gutted from all sides, I loved watching the bloke as he although can be frustrating is a gets your arse off your seat player but also I’m genuinely gutted for him as I truly believe he would have been better served staying and developing here.
    that said good luck Thierry thanks for your efforts here
  • eastterrace6168
    eastterrace6168 Posts: 22,456
    Manager Nathan Jones said: "We wish Thierry all the best. We tried to keep him at the club and offered him a contract, which he turned down. He felt Preston was a better fit for him, so we thank him for his contribution and wish him well."

    That reads pretty cold to me and not someone we were particularly fighting hard for. 
    What does we surmise “he felt Preston was a better fit for him” meant? In terms of football? Money? 
    Probably just paraphrasing his bloody agent, who we could probably blame all this on...
  • Gribbo
    Gribbo Posts: 8,467
    Mind boggling and a touch insulting tbh
  • Dazzler21
    Dazzler21 Posts: 51,343
    Manager Nathan Jones said: "We wish Thierry all the best. We tried to keep him at the club and offered him a contract, which he turned down. He felt Preston was a better fit for him, so we thank him for his contribution and wish him well."

    That reads pretty cold to me and not someone we were particularly fighting hard for. 
    What does we surmise “he felt Preston was a better fit for him” meant? In terms of football? Money? 
    Money. I reckon Charlton offered better than his current contract but not what he believed he was worth. 
  • Chizz
    Chizz Posts: 28,322
    Gribbo said:
    Mind boggling and a touch insulting tbh
    Is that your tinder profile?
  • 1968CAFC
    1968CAFC Posts: 577
    He was good, but not that good.
    I doubt we will miss him in the long run.
    we move on, and get a better replacement who also has an end product 👍👍👍
  • Gribbo
    Gribbo Posts: 8,467
    Having slept on it, I don't give a fuck who goes, as long as we're play in a Reebok kit next season
  • charente addick
    charente addick Posts: 3,808
    Preston v Charlton next season. Edwards v Small or Ramsay v Small. Would take Edwards/Ramsay to come out top.