I wish Minto had asked Adkins about the lack of signings. Charlton TV is great but that was an obvious thing to ask after a performance like that, that showed how desperate we are for new recruits.
Sadly the really difficult questions are never going to be asked on a TV show run by the club.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
Completely agree. I personally feel that if people hung onto ‘we’ll blow the league out of the water’, it’s naivety on their part. I genuinely feel that he came in on a whirl of positivity and belief and as is perhaps transpiring, some naivety on his part on what it takes to run the club successfully. I think he is the sort of person that will learn and adapt as he continues to run us, but only time will tell. I think he’s caught between the harsh reality of the money pit that running a loss making league one club really is, and his optimism for getting us to be successful and promoted…
My only hope is that we reign in a bit of the ‘pull your finger out comments and this is unacceptable’ stuff on Twitter. He puts himself out there so he should expect it, such is the way of the world these days, but I can’t see what good can come of haranguing him about getting players in.
In his head, and he may be proved wrong, he’s given Gallen and Roddy a budget that he might think his workable/what he can afford, it’s not his fault the likes of Clare & Dobson haven’t hit the ground running and the team haven’t gelled yet. That’s on the players and Adkins
I wish Minto had asked Adkins about the lack of signings. Charlton TV is great but that was an obvious thing to ask after a performance like that, that showed how desperate we are for new recruits.
Sadly the really difficult questions are never going to be asked on a TV show run by the club.
Its a propaganda machine for the club, much like the matchday programme and the website. The only people who can ask those questions are the journalists independent from the club, like Louis Mendez, and Rich Cawley.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
This could be a historic season. Our worst ever season in the League was 1925/6 when we finished 21st in the old Division 3 South. Could we be set to break that long standing record?
Our 13th place finishes in 2010-11 and 2016-17 are looking like the best we can aim for with this squad in its current state.
I don't think other people should be telling people they're overreacting, everyone is entitled to their opinion. Last night was my first game since before Covid and I wish I hadn't bothered absolutely pathetic 2nd half performance. Its clear that starting 11 isn't anywhere near good enough and the bench is as bad as I can remember. If that's our team after 43 games then league 2 is a more likely proposition than the top half.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
I wish Minto had asked Adkins about the lack of signings. Charlton TV is great but that was an obvious thing to ask after a performance like that, that showed how desperate we are for new recruits.
Sadly the really difficult questions are never going to be asked on a TV show run by the club.
Its a propaganda machine for the club, much like the matchday programme and the website. The only people who can ask those questions are the journalists independent from the club, like Louis Mendez, and Rich Cawley.
Spot on Trev, you could add Airman Brown to the independent list because Rick will probe for the truth because that is the role of a fanzine not to copy the website, programme or Charlton TV, which obviously tries to promote the club in a good light.
Scott Minto does talk to his guests (ex players) about our situation where better players are needed in this window. both Gary and Matt said the need for new players after the question was posed by SM.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
Christ almighty, what a shambles.
Yep, its begs the question why buy a club if youre not willing to fund a competitive squad, wages being a massive part of that.
Hopefully its a lesson learned by TS now, but it might mean this season will end up being another forgettable one.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
There is no shame in getting some things wrong, it taking a bit longer or needing help.
What I find it hard to believe that he had no idea how much it was going to cost in the short term. Anyone can look at the accounts for the 3 years we were in this division under Roland and work out its going to cost a bloody fortune standing still. With a thread bear staff and squad. Let alone improving things.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
I think Clare can be moulded into a better player. I just don’t think he knows what his role is. Started superbly yesterday then after they scored he didn’t really know whether to keep pressing or not and become lost.
In terms of Dobson, I rate his work rate and tenacity but with the ball he’s poor. Gets himself in all sorts of bother when he has to think what he’s doing. He’s the type of player you want coming off the bench last 10-15 to inject a bit of energy into the middle of the park.
I think Clare can be moulded into a better player. I just don’t think he knows what his role is. Started superbly yesterday then after they scored he didn’t really know whether to keep pressing or not and become lost.
In terms of Dobson, I rate his work rate and tenacity but with the ball he’s poor. Gets himself in all sorts of bother when he has to think what he’s doing. He’s the type of player you want coming off the bench last 10-15 to inject a bit of energy into the middle of the park.
Their first goal yesterday, him running in to make a challenge when he was miles away from the ball started the whole move off. School boy stuff.
The next 14 days are going to be...... a tad important in the fortunes of Cafc for the 21/22 season where we are still in the starting block while others have shown us a clean pair of heals.
Don’t think it’s the money being spent on players it’s the quality.we’ve got better players in for no money in the past. Lot of discussions on Albie Morgan is he good enough.his been the best player in midfield in my opinion so far this season. Yet he has struggled to get in the side previously so that says to me how our midfield has gone backwards. At the moment I think I’d like to see Watson next to Morgan with Kirk and d j on wings in 442 formation because stockley is to isolated but now Washington is injured we got no one else to play up front.
A midfield 2 of Morgan & Watson would be absolutely criminal. Look how easy we are to play through with 3 players in there, and you want to take one out, and replace another with a bloke that should be playing walking football. Mental.
Don’t think it’s the money being spent on players it’s the quality.we’ve got better players in for no money in the past. Lot of discussions on Albie Morgan is he good enough.his been the best player in midfield in my opinion so far this season. Yet he has struggled to get in the side previously so that says to me how our midfield has gone backwards. At the moment I think I’d like to see Watson next to Morgan with Kirk and d j on wings in 442 formation because stockley is to isolated but now Washington is injured we got no one else to play up front.
A midfield 2 of Morgan & Watson would be absolutely criminal. Look how easy we are to play through with 3 players in there, and you want to take one out, and replace another with a bloke that should be playing walking football. Mental.
I know there is alot of sentiment when it comes to judging Albie but anyone who thinks he is anywhere near being good enough to deserve a starting place in even an average midfield at the moment needs to give their head a shake. Yes he does show the odd flash of ability but the other 90% of the game he is lost. I feel sorry for him as he should not be put in the position where he is being asked to set the tempo and direction of play for the team. The sensible thing to do if we had other options would be to send him out on loan for a year to get him some gametime at a lower level where he wont be exposed whilst his game develops.
Don’t think it’s the money being spent on players it’s the quality.we’ve got better players in for no money in the past. Lot of discussions on Albie Morgan is he good enough.his been the best player in midfield in my opinion so far this season. Yet he has struggled to get in the side previously so that says to me how our midfield has gone backwards. At the moment I think I’d like to see Watson next to Morgan with Kirk and d j on wings in 442 formation because stockley is to isolated but now Washington is injured we got no one else to play up front.
A midfield 2 of Morgan & Watson would be absolutely criminal. Look how easy we are to play through with 3 players in there, and you want to take one out, and replace another with a bloke that should be playing walking football. Mental.
I know there is alot of sentiment when it comes to judging Albie but anyone who thinks he is anywhere near being good enough to deserve a starting place in even an average midfield at the moment needs to give their head a shake. Yes he does show the odd flash of ability but the other 90% of the game he is lost. I feel sorry for him as he should not be put in the position where he is being asked to set the tempo and direction of play for the team. The sensible thing to do if we had other options would be to send him out on loan for a year to get him some gametime at a lower level where he wont be exposed whilst his game develops.
According to Bowyer, we did try last season, but no league club would take him. That says a lot.
The more I think about this, the stranger it gets.
In his post-match comments last season, Adkins was always talking about keeping the ball on the floor. I remember our last game, against Peterborough, we kept possession really well and it felt like Nigel's blueprint was finally being acted on.
Now he is not mentioning it all... And we are lumping long ball after long ball.
So does he know we don't have the players to pass it? And if so, why don't we?
Dobson was obviously bought to play, Watson is the only backup. He gave Morgan the no. 10 shirt. That leaves only Clare, who may or may not be a squad player. And that's our midfield. Yet we hoof it over their heads every single time.
I can't believe he has decided to build a long ball team over the Summer. Something else must be going on.
I suspect that when it’s going well, like in the first 15 mins, everyone wants the ball, which makes the midfielders job easy, but as soon as it isn’t everybody’s hiding, and players end up passing back to the keeper, or each other.
Bit like snooker; good players play lots of simple shots to build breaks, because they’ve given themselves simple options with their positional play. Lose position and it goes to sh1t.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
Christ almighty, what a shambles.
I think loans were always a key part of the mix.
Indeed, though even there we're lagging behind other clubs
MK Dons have 4 loan players, all signed in July Pompey 3, Sunderland 3, Oxford 3
What's so special about our loan targets, that we have to wait until the end of August for them?
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
Christ almighty, what a shambles.
I think loans were always a key part of the mix.
Indeed, though even there we're lagging behind other clubs
MK Dons have 4 loan players, all signed in July Pompey 3, Sunderland 3, Oxford 3
What's so special about our loan targets, that we have to wait until the end of August for them?
Because, at that time, teams are desperate to offload players and we can get better deals on the wage front. It's all to do with minimising your outlay. Not ideal for getting the players that you want or need.
Yes Andy g I do the diamond worked well under bowyer and that’s 4 players in midfield at the moment we got 3 and 3 players up front producing nothing. Because there to far apart.
I would have chose pratley as the sitting midfield but we gave him away to keep Watson for some reason. That seems mental to me.
2 Wingers, Watson and Morgan in a diamond. Mind boggling.
We started off brightly but after they scored it all fell apart. The second half was very poor. No composure when we had the ball, couldn't play through them so we resorted to long balls which didn't stick. Midfield hiding from the passing game wity only Dobson coming short, is very easy to defend. Combined with a lack of leftfooted players we are very predictable.
Kirk, Washington and DJ must have felt quite useless on the wings without any service. And I'd rather play one of the U23s at leftback than Gunter. How he got to 100+ caps for Wales is beyond me. He offers nothing defensively as well as going forward.
I don't think other people should be telling people they're overreacting, everyone is entitled to their opinion. Last night was my first game since before Covid and I wish I hadn't bothered absolutely pathetic 2nd half performance. Its clear that starting 11 isn't anywhere near good enough and the bench is as bad as I can remember. If that's our team after 43 games then league 2 is a more likely proposition than the top half.
Except those saying people are overreacting? To me it’s a fair opinion to hold, although I’m not sure if I hold it myself. I agree with much of your post though, especially the bench bit. Most clubs have a wild card on the bench, a Leko or a Jonny Williams. We don’t.
My only game so far this reason was this time last week in the League Cup, I’ve got it all to look forward to on Saturday by the sounds of it.
I can completely get the anger and frustration at what appear to be 3 dire performances. The team was weak last season and the league was just as weak. We needed an absolute refresh and we haven’t had that.
It looks unlikely that based on this current team/squad, even with 5/6 more players of the ilk we’re likely to get, we’ll be challenging for promotion. Never say never, but when we’ve got people scratching for crumbs saying it will be okay when we get Gilbey and JFC back, or, we should’ve kept Shinnie, you know you’re desperate
The one thing I can’t get my head around is the gradual anger directed at TS. He’s made some mistakes, said things that he probably shouldn’t have and there’s lots up to debate re: how he’s running the club etc etc. however, seeing some of the comments on Twitter and here about pulling his finger out, put your money where your mouth is etc. bloody hell, we’re like a bunch of spoilt little brats that just expect this guy to plough millions into the squad and we’ll sign 12/13 players. I would love that. I would love for us to be signing as many players have Ipswich have, but football, like life isn’t that simple. TS is putting his money where his mouth is. It’s costing him personally every single month. We don’t have a divine right to have better players or expect anything more than what we’ve got.
He’s literally been in charge over a year, most of that in Covid. No to very little income. How many other benefactors were lining up to run this loss making league one football club last summer when we were on the brink.
I get his personality and presence might wind people up, his actions and words aren’t always the best way, but have a word with yourselves. We’ve gone from being on the brink of existence to putting out tweets where we tell him how much to spend and on who and it’s that simple????
He may get it catastrophically wrong on the playing side with regards the players purchased, and it might not be that what he thought was a decent budget is enough to get us the quality we need, but I think people just need to show a bit more respect.
I’m not arguing with anyone’s viewpoint on how crap we look, I’ve had many a rant at how shit we are over the years. I just can’t get my head around how quickly some of us seem to be up TS’ backside when the bloke is pretty much keeping us breathing financially
I agree with you that the anger directed at TS is unreasonable, although as fans we really need to stop believing what owners say just because we want it to be true. I think in TS’s case he has bitten off more than he can chew, which if true is a forgivable mistake.
In reality there WAS a queue of people interested in buying the club from 2015 onwards. Some may have been desirable, others not so much. It is Roland who determined that none of them got over the line because of his chronic over-valuation of the ground.
As ESI showed, it was easy to buy the club (losses). What TS did and deserves our respect and appreciation for is seeing off the chancers. We had no business expecting anyone from outside to do that.
He will want to succeed at running the club and we all want him to do so, but it’s not (just) about being cleverer than what went before. It will cost more than he ever imagined and you can’t just wish that away.
This is the bit that scares me the most, you not the first person to say it and I think we have all thought it. How the hell do you go through all the shit he did, not to mention the costs, to not know how much its going to cost?
If he looked at it and said "I'll just do it better" and we will spend less and earn more over night. He is quite frankly an idiot.
He quite obviously isn't an idiot, neither are Manford and Adkins they have both been around long enough to know what's what. Either Thomas has had some shocking advice or he has ignored the advice he was given.
One trait common to all recent owners is the belief they don’t need that advice, whether offered or not. Thomas has been quite clear he believes he can bring qualities to the business that will transform it.
I don’t think he’s an idiot at all, just in an unfamiliar and harsh business environment that he was always going to 1) need time, 2) need money and 3) need help to navigate. No shame in any of that.
Do you think hes actually decided not to adequately fund a promotion push this season, or its just his lack of knowledge that has caused the recruitment issues?
Thing is there is no definite figure at which promotion becomes inevitable, or a challenge likely, so it’s always an option to believe you can get away with things. So, for example, Davison or Schwartz can replace Aneke?
Looks to me as if TS has been willing to pay reasonable one-off transfer fees (which he has also received in 20/21) but not necessarily the wages (recurring costs) to get some other deals over the line.
In the early stages we also found ourselves competing with Championship clubs - specifically Birmingham on Aneke and Graham. I know that Graham was minded to sign until Bowyer came in for him and that Adkins was very keen. That’s not a lack of ambition.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
And there we have it. All this rubbish about Europe in 5 years when we won't even pay decent league one wages for players.
Christ almighty, what a shambles.
I think loans were always a key part of the mix.
Indeed, though even there we're lagging behind other clubs
MK Dons have 4 loan players, all signed in July Pompey 3, Sunderland 3, Oxford 3
What's so special about our loan targets, that we have to wait until the end of August for them?
Comments
My only hope is that we reign in a bit of the ‘pull your finger out comments and this is unacceptable’ stuff on Twitter. He puts himself out there so he should expect it, such is the way of the world these days, but I can’t see what good can come of haranguing him about getting players in.
In his head, and he may be proved wrong, he’s given Gallen and Roddy a budget that he might think his workable/what he can afford, it’s not his fault the likes of Clare & Dobson haven’t hit the ground running and the team haven’t gelled yet. That’s on the players and Adkins
Spot on Trev, you could add Airman Brown to the independent list because Rick will probe for the truth because that is the role of a fanzine not to copy the website, programme or Charlton TV, which obviously tries to promote the club in a good light.
Scott Minto does talk to his guests (ex players) about our situation where better players are needed in this window. both Gary and Matt said the need for new players after the question was posed by SM.
Other feedback has been that we are just not willing to pay the money that will get the better players at this level, hence Clare and Dobson. What we don’t know is what Roddy and Adkins have been telling him.
It can still turn around but the foundations look weak.
Christ almighty, what a shambles.
Yep, its begs the question why buy a club if youre not willing to fund a competitive squad, wages being a massive part of that.
Hopefully its a lesson learned by TS now, but it might mean this season will end up being another forgettable one.
Thanks for the insight Airman Brown!
What I find it hard to believe that he had no idea how much it was going to cost in the short term. Anyone can look at the accounts for the 3 years we were in this division under Roland and work out its going to cost a bloody fortune standing still. With a thread bear staff and squad. Let alone improving things.
IMO we need a minimum of 6 first-choice players in the following positions.
Goalkeeper, left-back, 3 x midfield and a goal scorer.
Many fans for weeks have been saying something is not right.
And if the answer is that we are not willing to pay competitive wages to attract quality players,
In the belief that the pandemic has surpassed wage demands,
Then these positions are going to be inevitably filled with loans or with more low-quality players.
In that case, we should all now quickly adjust our expectation levels and face the fact that it could be a very rough season.
In terms of Dobson, I rate his work rate and tenacity but with the ball he’s poor. Gets himself in all sorts of bother when he has to think what he’s doing. He’s the type of player you want coming off the bench last 10-15 to inject a bit of energy into the middle of the park.
MK Dons have 4 loan players, all signed in July
Pompey 3, Sunderland 3, Oxford 3
What's so special about our loan targets, that we have to wait until the end of August for them?
Not ideal for getting the players that you want or need.
Kirk, Washington and DJ must have felt quite useless on the wings without any service. And I'd rather play one of the U23s at leftback than Gunter. How he got to 100+ caps for Wales is beyond me. He offers nothing defensively as well as going forward.