“What’s Dillon going to do if he doesn’t go? He is going to sit there not playing any games and is going to be forgotten next summer – no-one is going to take him."
Sorry don't buy that. A keeper of Phillips quality doesn't get "forgotten about". A home grown keeper of Phillips' quality on a free even less so. He will either get a place as a Championship number one or back up in the PL a la Elliott at Newcastle.
You see, I think Bow is right.
If he doesn’t get a move now and waits until next summer, clubs are going to forget about him. They’ll instead go for players who have been playing well this season, not someone who refused to sign a contract and not played for a year.
He has had one full season in professional football in his entire career, that was last season. He’s 25 now, will be 26 by the time his contract is up. One full season by 26 is not going to attract many Championship clubs, that’s for sure, even with how good he was last season.
Players do listen to their agents far too much, forgetting the only reason they’re saying the things they do is because they have an agenda themselves, money.
If Phillips was really in demand, and clubs genuinely wanted him, he’d be gone by now.
The fact is, there may be interest but not enough to get a deal done for him to be playing at Championship level. That’s what he needs, there is no point him signing for another club to just sit on the bench.
He’d have been better off signing a deal with us, helping us get back up and then looking to move even if we do or do not get promoted this season.
Phillips made 73 consecutive League matches and generally recognised as being in the top three keepers in the Championship. And he might be prepared at some point to sign for another Championship club on a three or four year contract to initially sit on the bench on the basis that his opportunity will come and for more money and security.
But, accepting that no one might come in for him, there is another issue. What if Amos gets injured and Phillips then refuses to play or even sit on the bench because of the way he's been treated? He could argue that we have a history of signing players on 12 month contracts (or with less than that left) but continue to play them, so why are we singling him out? He could also argue that, in keeping him out of the shop window, we have been detrimental to his career and restricted the possibility of him being sold. If the "out of sight, out of mind argument" hold water does it have to have a timescale?
My concern is that we have now had Solly, Taylor and Davis who all refused to play for LB. Bonne said that he left because he didn't feel wanted after being publicly singled out for criticism and we don't appear to have found a ready made replacement for him. We have an impasse with Phillips and Doughty might well be the next to up sticks too. With the other departures, by my reckoning, that will leave us with no more than three or four players who played 20 plus games last season and they are hardly the ones who are going to be the difference between us being successful or not.
In not playing Phillips and with him still being on the books we will end up paying him to sit at home. In those circumstances Phillips won't be the only loser. And that's all without taking into account that he is the best keeper we have at the club.
He made 73 consecutive league appearances but has only had one full season in his professional career in the EFL, that is the point I made. The amount of consecutive appearances doesn't matter, clubs will look and see only one full season.
There is also no chance that Phillips is going to sign for another club to be their number 2. He hated waiting for his chance here and was very strong in his opinion, Andy Marshall would say the same. If Phillips is to be sold, he will only leave for a club where he will play. Security and more money is not his ambition, it's to be playing games and at the highest level he can.
Phillips was regarded as one of the best performers in goal in the league last season, but you have to ask the question as to why he has not been sold yet? I can assure you it is not because we have refused to, if a club matches our valuation, it's down to Phillips to go. There have been suggestions that he or his agent has been picky.
We have not been or will be detrimental to his career, far from it.
The club, and especially Bowyer, gave him the opportunity and stuck with him in the Championship after 6 months of League One. He improved enormously and Bowyer was full of praise for him. He was our POTY for a reason.
At the end of the day, we have been hurt too many times by players who have improved whilst at the club, to then leave for nothing and we suffer from it. Phillips has chosen not to sign a new contract when it was on the table, we can only do so much.
Phillips has made it clear he would like to leave and play Championship football. Fair enough, he done well last season, it's football and that happens. But he has not been treated in any kind of way or singled out. That's simply not true.
Bowyer and the club are doing what is best for the club and that is protecting ourselves, ensuring we get something from him in terms of a sale, and not including a player who doesn't want to be here anymore.
Please point me in the direction to where Bonne has said he left as he didn't feel wanted? Bonne left because he was offered more money to play for a club in the league above and did not have to move house. It is that simple.
Bowyer also praised him just as much as he criticised him, it was good management. When he wasn't doing it, he needed the honesty of Bowyer and when he played well, Bowyer said he was outstanding. Our manager is firm but fair and if players don't like the truth, they're in the wrong industry.
You can probably say well it doesn't need to be said publicly, but why not? If he can praise him publicly, why can he not say when he wasn't good enough? It's keeping consistency and honesty. Everything he says and does is to improve the players, I think you can say he has succeeded in that.
Bringing in a replacement is not as easy as that. A good deal was on the table for Bonne, we took it because it was too good to refuse. We have 2 weeks to bring in 2 strikers. Be patient because they will come.
Solly, Taylor, and Davis are all completely different to this situation and I fail to understand why they have been brought up. But as you have touched on the subject...
Solly didn't play for us for his own personal reasons which have yet to be disclosed, we may never know the full reason and that's completely up to him. However, he was not going to be offered a new contract for this season and hadn't featured due to the success of Matthews.
Taylor refused to play because he was selfish and did not want to risk himself getting injured when his team needed him the most. He focused only where he wanted to be playing this season rather than helping us survive which I am certain had he played the last 9, we would have done. It was nothing to do with Bowyer and Taylor himself says how much he respects him. His actions say otherwise, but that is not to do with Bowyer.
Davis refused to come back because he and his family was based in the Midlands and did not want to go back to London in uncertain times. Ultimately, he did not want to bother helping us as it made no difference to him. Again, nothing to do with Bowyer.
I really struggle to see what you're trying to get at with that point.
Back onto the actual point of Phillips... it boils down to doing what is best for the club. If Bowyer had a choice, Phillips would sign a new contract or have had already and be our number 1 this season. But he hasn't and once again, we are not putting ourselves in a vulnerable position, yet again.
Phillips has made his decision by listening to his agent, whether he is the best keeper at the club or not doesn't really matter anymore. He doesn't want to be here and so once we get a fair offer, it is up to him to complete his move.
We will say thank you for all your hard work and performances and giving us a good chance of survival last season, and good luck in future. No hard feelings. We are doing what is best for us, and he is doing what he believes is best for him.
My experience of singling out players in public, whatever the sport is, for criticism is exactly that. It singles them out. If someone can prove to me, from a psychological perspective, how blaming your forward for missing a goal, in public straight after a game when that person knows full well what he's done, is going to help him him, as LB did, then I would love them to do so. It simply doesn't. If it doesn't cause a rift then it will just ruin his confidence.
Why not single out the full back for missing a vital tackle? Or the centre back for missing a header? Will he publicly single out Amos when he makes a blunder and if not why not? It is a defensive mechanism from the Manager. Is it Bonne's fault that the whole of the rest of the squad has scored just SIX goals in the last 16 league games during which time Bonne has scored four times himself? Of course not. Was it Bonne's fault that we didn't have a single shot on target on Saturday? Why didn't LB come out and blame someone specifically for that?
I think we can both agree on that power is held by the player/agent in the modern era of football is held and that is a really sad. And it is this and our previous inability to offer long term contracts (Grant and Taylor for example) why we were relegated and why LB now has a whole new squad to gel together. I really hope, of course, that he is successful in doing so.
This has digressed beyond the point. But again I don’t know what you’re trying to suggest or get at?
Bowyer has never came out and blamed X player for this or that. He has always used language of ‘we must do better, they should score or should have took more care with a pass or defended properly etc.’
The language he has used throughout his managerial career is progressive, it is constructive.
Not once have I heard or seen Bowyer say someone is at fault for something not happening. But he often will say someone is the reason why something good happened, such as Amos getting praise on Saturday.
What he has always done is be honest, and players often appreciate that. If he says something in public you can be damned sure he says it in private. There is no point Bowyer coming out to the media saying one thing but something different to them in the dressing room or training pitch.
Psychologically, that will cause problems with mixed messages and players will soon begin to think you’re dishonest and that is the complete opposite of what he is.
I can go into further details and with a bit of extra time, research with papers to show that what he aims to do can have a psychological advantage, I done sport psychology at masters so I have an understanding of the points. But we have moved so far away from the subject that it’s not fair to take over this thread about something that is not related.
I agree that this is taking things away from what this thread is about so I will just leave you with this:
Charlton Athletic coach Lee Bowyer was left frustrated with Macauley Bonne’s performance in 1-0 home defeat to Reading on Saturday.
The Zimbabwean striker failed to bury several chances including a close-range miss just after the half-hour when his team was seeking parity.
Speaking in his post-match press interview, Bowyer said Bonne should have scored in the game despite some of the referee’s decisions going against his side.
“Disappointment. Again, it’s another game that we should have got something from,” the coach said. “We haven’t really done much wrong.
“They get a penalty early on. And then after that, I thought we were the better side. I thought we created more clear-cut chances again.
“You can say that’s cost us but Macauley [Bonne] has to score. You can’t keep missing chances like that. Three yards out. Connects with the ball properly and you score. Can’t miss chances like that. It ain’t good enough.
“I said to the players, they’re a good group and they keep pushing and fighting for everything. Right to the end. They don’t deserve what’s happened today. I’m very disappointed because we played well.”
As long as the paperwork is with the FA by 11 they can continue to work on the rest of the deal until 1am I believe so wouldn't be surprised if any deal is announced tomorrow.
As long as the paperwork is with the FA by 11 they can continue to work on the rest of the deal until 1am I believe so wouldn't be surprised if any deal is announced tomorrow.
I was wrong earlier then, it’s the next two hours from now that could be crucial.
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Millwall have recalled Isaac Olaofe from his loan spell at St Johnson. 21 next month & he's a striker.
Put me on your list @Dazzler21 🤫
Charlton Athletic coach Lee Bowyer was left frustrated with Macauley Bonne’s performance in 1-0 home defeat to Reading on Saturday.
The Zimbabwean striker failed to bury several chances including a close-range miss just after the half-hour when his team was seeking parity.
Speaking in his post-match press interview, Bowyer said Bonne should have scored in the game despite some of the referee’s decisions going against his side.
“Disappointment. Again, it’s another game that we should have got something from,” the coach said. “We haven’t really done much wrong.
“They get a penalty early on. And then after that, I thought we were the better side. I thought we created more clear-cut chances again.
“You can say that’s cost us but Macauley [Bonne] has to score. You can’t keep missing chances like that. Three yards out. Connects with the ball properly and you score. Can’t miss chances like that. It ain’t good enough.
“I said to the players, they’re a good group and they keep pushing and fighting for everything. Right to the end. They don’t deserve what’s happened today. I’m very disappointed because we played well.”
So make sure you all calm down and recharge those batteries after such an exciting evening!!
Nick Pope is not great with his feet.
Two big mistakes at the weekend.
I'm old fashion, I like a keeper who has good hands.
0 international players for CAFC
Totally confused and no idea what's happening.