Clough The Board Apologist

[SillyBilly]

The transfer activity has put the club under serious risk of relegation, this is under GSE stewardship. The wage bill is probably no longer proportional to gate size (make of that what you will). I personally don't find it outrageous that the 2nd or 3rd biggest club in this league with the 2nd best gates should be running a top 3 wage bill (I'd hazard a guess we're out of the top 6 now). Net gains seem to be being made in transfer activites over the last year or so. Bids for players have been laughed off as totally derisory by several chairmen. I understand bartering but I really do question whether we have any real buying power.

Talk of further reductions to the wage bill possibly. Nigel Clough will have failed yet again to make wage size proportional to league position, yet he uses it as an excuse as to why Forest are miles above us, why are we not miles above Donny or Scunny? Personally I think we are being drastrically underfunded and Nigel appears to be out of his depth. This is his squad now, it's better paid than most championship squads, he's been here longer than most other championship managers (unbelievable I know) and to me squad quality has stayed the same or perhaps worsened. Don't point to the wage bill being reduced, any wally could have turned up day 1 and sacked half the squad and been no worser off. Bad players on huge wages when he arrived.

[ramblur]

Possibly.

I honestly don't know, all I was getting at is that everyone pipes up GSE spin as soon as Glick opens his mouth and we get the usual Yanks out of my club posts all over the forum. I'd like people who are accusing Glick of lying to actually backup what they are saying.

I get the impression some people have made they're mind up that GSE are pure evil and made a scapgoat for everything, take last nights game for example, I can't remember who started it but it ended up being GSE's fault we lost last night due to a lack of ambition blah de blah.

It gets very tedious especially straight after the full time whistle has just blown.

Well I certainly don't see them as pure evil,Daveo.I simply think they've got their fingers burnt and want to restrict/claw back damage.What I do object to is a portrayal of this process as a masterplan to get us back in the Prem -the evidence of recent transfer window/s activity doesn't to me indicate much desire to achieve this aim.It's not a feeling I get after one defeat,but a suspicion that I've harboured for some time (consistently).

[ramblur]

The transfer activity has put the club under serious risk of relegation, this is under GSE stewardship. The wage bill is probably no longer proportional to gate size (make of that what you will). I personally don't find it outrageous that the 2nd or 3rd biggest club in this league with the 2nd best gates should be running a top 3 wage bill (I'd hazard a guess we're out of the top 6 now). Net gains seem to be being made in transfer activites over the last year or so. Bids for players have been laughed off as totally derisory by several chairmen. I understand bartering but I really do question whether we have any real buying power.

Talk of further reductions to the wage bill possibly. Nigel Clough will have failed yet again to make wage size proportional to league position, yet he uses it as an excuse as to why Forest are miles above us, why are we not miles above Donny or Scunny? Personally I think we are being drastrically underfunded and Nigel appears to be out of his depth. This is his squad now, it's better paid than most championship squads, he's been here longer than most other championship managers (unbelievable I know) and to me squad quality has stayed the same or perhaps worsened. Don't point to the wage bill being reduced, any wally could have turned up day 1 and sacked half the squad and been no worser off. Bad players on huge wages when he arrived.

Well,it was quite clever of our owners to say that they wanted to get the wage bill down to £10m,and that this would still be competitive.The problem is that (apparently) a fans forum was told (towards the end of last season) that the then current figure was £10.4m.Now I can't validate this claim,but I do remember Glick quoting about £11.5m some months earlier,and in the interim Barnes/Priovic/Zadkovich were dispatched and I think someone (Connolly perhaps) was farmed out,all of which appeared to possibly validate the £10.4m.

Now take all of the activity since-is our current bill really that competitive?Also,you should judge Nigel's signings in the context of the funds he's been allowed to spend.

[CraigZ]

In my opinion, of those, Barker, Moxey, Brayford, Anderson, Bailey, Roberts, Ben Davies and Cywka are good enough at this level, giving Clough a success rate on that list of 50 per cent in terms of starters.

I reckon that's about what you'd expect from most managers. I've always said you have to give a manager enough money to fail a few times as well as succeed.

[CraigZ]

Well I certainly don't see them as pure evil,Daveo.I simply think they've got their fingers burnt and want to restrict/claw back damage.What I do object to is a portrayal of this process as a masterplan to get us back in the Prem -the evidence of recent transfer window/s activity doesn't to me indicate much desire to achieve this aim.It's not a feeling I get after one defeat,but a suspicion that I've harboured for some time (consistently).

Couldn't agree more. 'Success' seems to be measured by achieving the same results for less cash, not better results.

[ESR]

Well,it was quite clever of our owners to say that they wanted to get the wage bill down to £10m,and that this would still be competitive.The problem is that (apparently) a fans forum was told (towards the end of last season) that the then current figure was £10.4m.Now I can't validate this claim,but I do remember Glick quoting about £11.5m some months earlier,and in the interim Barnes/Priovic/Zadkovich were dispatched and I think someone (Connolly perhaps) was farmed out,all of which appeared to possibly validate the £10.4m.

Now take all of the activity since-is our current bill really that competitive?Also,you should judge Nigel's signings in the context of the funds he's been allowed to spend.

I've just read on BBC that Hull are aiming to run the club within their means, like Derby, but Adam Pearson said he's wanting the wage bill down to £12m to do so.

So how come Hull can have £2m more than Derby in the wage bill if both clubs are living within their means? Surely Derby are more better off than Hull? Higher gates, etc

[jagerbob]

I personally blame clough more so than GSE or Glick.

Its clough who persists with waiting for players like Porter and Steve Davies to get to fitness. Its clough who actually rates these players.

Its also Clough who sees Bywater as undroppable despite the fact he's hopeless.

With Fielding and Kuqi in the team last night theres no way we would have lost.

[davenportram]

I've just read on BBC that Hull are aiming to run the club within their means, like Derby, but Adam Pearson said he's wanting the wage bill down to £12m to do so.

So how come Hull can have £2m more than Derby in the wage bill if both clubs are living within their means? Surely Derby are more better off than Hull? Higher gates, etc

Two words

Parachute Payments

[ESR]

Yea but weren't they in debt anyway, plus parachute payments don't last forever..

[Dangerous]

I personally blame clough more so than GSE or Glick.

Its clough who persists with waiting for players like Porter and Steve Davies to get to fitness. Its clough who actually rates these players.

Its also Clough who sees Bywater as undroppable despite the fact he's hopeless.

With Fielding and Kuqi in the team last night theres no way we would have lost.

Clough cannot escape blameless,his bad judgement has contributed to our freefall.

[davenportram]

Yea but weren't they in debt anyway, plus parachute payments don't last forever..

4 years now isn't it and they are considerabally more than 2m pound

Just because they are in debt they haven't got to pay it back straight away.

As and when the parachute payments run out I would expect them to cut the wages further.

[dabber]

Does anyone else think though that this quote from Nigel is consistent with the rumour Ambitious posted on the Gadsby not interested thread that Glick has been left stranded by the owners. I.e. Glick is doing all he can given the circumstances... But if tht was the case why wouldn't they both speak out and say that the owners are taking all the money that we raise and only leaving us a pittance to re-invest in the team. It might get them both the sack but then the owners position would be untenable and have to sell up, if this is the case....

[rynny]

Their position maybe untenable, but they can't sell if nobody wants to buy the club, what can they do?

[dabber]

But with our low wage bill and manageable debt (mortgage only) I would think there would be people willing to buy as we always have the potential of a 25K crowd and an excellent academy. With "appropriate" investment it could go so well so quickly, but this stagnating is intolerable

[Derbiean]

Well,it was quite clever of our owners to say that they wanted to get the wage bill down to £10m,and that this would still be competitive.The problem is that (apparently) a fans forum was told (towards the end of last season) that the then current figure was £10.4m.Now I can't validate this claim,but I do remember Glick quoting about £11.5m some months earlier,and in the interim Barnes/Priovic/Zadkovich were dispatched and I think someone (Connolly perhaps) was farmed out,all of which appeared to possibly validate the £10.4m.

Now take all of the activity since-is our current bill really that competitive?Also,you should judge Nigel's signings in the context of the funds he's been allowed to spend.

Don't know if you remember Ramblur but earlier this season when we were playing Hull away on a Tuesday night Gibson got a interview with Adam Pearson about his time with us, i remember Pearson making a claim that seemed to contradict GSE, he claimed the wage bill by the time he left was just under £10m, i put up a thread about it on the old DET asking if others had heard it and they had.

So it makes me wonder now where exactly the wage bill is if Pearson is correct, i find it hard to believe that he could be mistaken but then again nothing was said about it afterwards which i find curious.

[ramblur]

Don't know if you remember Ramblur but earlier this season when we were playing Hull away on a Tuesday night Gibson got a interview with Adam Pearson about his time with us, i remember Pearson making a claim that seemed to contradict GSE, he claimed the wage bill by the time he left was just under £10m, i put up a thread about it on the old DET asking if others had heard it and they had.

So it makes me wonder now where exactly the wage bill is if Pearson is correct, i find it hard to believe that he could be mistaken but then again nothing was said about it afterwards which i find curious.

I actually missed that interview,but it's an interesting comment.Also don't remember your thread,which is surprising as it would appear to be the kind of trough I'd have had my snout stuck into!

[Derbiean]

I actually missed that interview,but it's an interesting comment.Also don't remember your thread,which is surprising as it would appear to be the kind of trough I'd have had my snout stuck into!

Well it was a fair few months ago, i only remember because i know that Pearson went to Hull and it was the first match between our clubs since his departure and arrival to Hull.

[dabber]

Glick knows what the wage bill is down to the last nickel (sorry penny!). He is now under orders not to reveal it or else even the few remaining that believe in GSE / owners will put 2 and 2 together and figure out we are being taken for a ride.

[Alph]

I missed the thread too.

How did this sort of info go univestigated by local journos? It's a contradiction worth looking at, no?

[Bris Vegas]

Well it was a fair few months ago, i only remember because i know that Pearson went to Hull and it was the first match between our clubs since his departure and arrival to Hull.

Was his job to go back to Hull and find immediate investment from elsewhere?

If so, seems to have done a good job, they've got a local millionaire in charge willing to improve the club and the city in every department, including on the pitch.

I wonder what his take would be now on the going ons at DCFC.