02 Jan 2025 00:06:29
Honestly it's a good job fans don't run the club.
"Give him what he wants! " I'm sure of the club thought what the players were asking for was reasonable they would have don't that already. The employer/ employee relationship at all levels is an adversarial one in which one side wants to keep your wages low and the other wants to increase them and you try to meet at a reasonable point.
Also don't assume that just because an official offer may not have been made doesn't mean the club has been sat around playing FIFA and reading spreadsheets. They would still have been talking to his agent the whole time. They don't draw up contracts (paying lawyers in thr process ) until they're sure the player and agent find it acceptable. Everything before that point is two parties talking informally.
02 Jan 2025 08:10:49
The last thing we want at this stage is someone talking sense @Nevada ?.
02 Jan 2025 08:46:40
Whereas I’m not in the “give them what they want camp”, we should have started this a lot earlier than October 2024. That’s nothing short of negligence. We’re now at the point where we probably will have to do that as we’ve given ourselves little time to negotiate. If, in the worst case scenario, they all leave, can anyone really see us being able to adequately replace all three? I can’t simply because of the cost of it and that Hughes doesn’t give me any confidence that he’s even remotely competent.
02 Jan 2025 08:52:40
The fans couldn’t have done any worse on these 3 contract negotiations. It’s been said no one even bothered to talk to Trent. What sort of tactic is that?
02 Jan 2025 10:26:11
It’s the replacing all three with nothing bit that bothers me the most. I don’t buy what the media are saying about Trent, but also I don’t begrudge any of them wanting a new challenge, as much as I want them all to stay. It’s bothers me that all three are near the best in the world in their position, regardless of age, and if any were to leave we’re not getting a single penny for them - how have we allowed that to happen? I mean if we had £200m to replace them with, it would significantly soften the blow.
02 Jan 2025 10:36:40
youtube has been flooded with loads of videos about man United and how much work they need to do. I just shake my head when I hear the salary they're paying for the likes of Antony, Casemiro, Rashford etc etc
trust our guys and the players to find the right balance.
02 Jan 2025 10:56:26
My only concern is that Hughes and Ward are the new Moores and Parry.
I cannot believe they are managing, as it appears to me from the outside, to pull the wool over their superior’s eyes. what (apart from a failed Zubimendi chase with no plan B) have they been doing since the summer to earn their hefty salaries?
And Ward is in his second stint of failure!?!
02 Jan 2025 11:12:56
There’s something like 80 free contract players available in the prem at the end of this season, which tells its own story. The level of expectations of agents and players is unsustainable and clubs can’t be held to ransom. We’re a world top 10 club financially and are struggling to settle with three of our squad. Our main squad in terms of the ones who can command big salaries runs to about 15 players. Just settling with these three alone would probably cost us an additional £30-40m above existing terms, it would then trickle through the squad and increase other salary demands. We’re making losses overall so where does that come from?
Spin this on its head and think about the future of the club, instead of the three players, and think about the rest of the squad because that’s what we’re talking about here. I wouldn’t say for a minute Trent is worth what he and his agent are asking for, he’s a great player but we can’t just give him what he wants. Mo and VVD are harder to find alternatives for right now, so we’re likely to have to settle with them and they’re above Trent in the pecking order.
I’d argue the likes of Grav, Diaz, Szob, and Cody are closing in on Trent in terms of value to us as a team so what will they all want, why wouldn’t they all expect huge increases in terms? I don’t mind if Trent wants to try his hand at Real after a great career and winning everything with us, if he moves on respectfully after we win the league good luck to him. I hope the other two stay for a few more years.
02 Jan 2025 11:22:40
Ward and Hughes are nowhere near Moore and Parry for me. Ward and Hughes may be incompetent but Moore and Parry actively held the club back for their own personal benefit. That's a far worse crime for me.
02 Jan 2025 11:25:57
Nevada - agree with that. Furthermore, if the fans were in charge, then we probably wouldn't even be having this discussion about Salah as he would have already left by now; I recall there being some consensus that we should have taken the money for him and let him go.
That said, the club don't appear to have managed the situation well at all. Even if all three players do now sign extensions, I won't be convinced by anybody trying to claim "what were you worrying about, it was always under control".
To be in a situation where we might be talking about a club that has won the league title and then sees three of it's best players leave for nothing, including it's two very best currently, one of whom is regarded by some as the best in the world right now, the other who is regarded as being in the best two or three in his position, is astonishing and surely unprecedented.
02 Jan 2025 12:25:23
@Nevada I fully agree with you. And the whole "Just give the player whatever he wants" is just people showing their ignorance about how such a complicated process actually works at a basic level. I ignore such stuff. Like you, I also believe that this is just posturing and gamesmanship by both clubs in the media so I wouldn't draw too much out of what is essentially standard procedure in such scenarios as this.
Now IMO, if the contract situation has led us here, it is cos we literally had no DOF in place to start get the ball rolling at the time. Hence as Klopp had all the power to the point on having a say as to us hiring Jorg Schmadtke as a temp. DOF (not saying I know this happened for a fact. Just an opinion) then, he prolly should have started that process with a higher up like say Billy Hogan who was in charge of the Caicedo deal, btw.
Now, I know this is all hindsight and all that and I get why contracts for Salah and VVD could wait to see what happens due to their age and how they perform esp. with a new manager coming in BUT to allow Trent's contract to be this big of an issue, is quite disheartening and not a great look at all.
02 Jan 2025 11:58:18
The Ed’s may not know the inner workings but one posted recently to say the European regs mean we need to reduce the wage bill, or at least keep it within a certain threshold. That’s against a backdrop of needing a few reinforcements who will cost more in transfers and wages than the squad players who they’re replacing as it all comes from the same pot. It is unprecedented to risk losing three, I still suspect we’ll keep two and lose one.
02 Jan 2025 12:34:48
You may remember that Julian Ward was in charge of getting Salah's last contract extension over the line. That was a long drawn out saga too if I recall. He has form on this stuff.
I am still confident that all 3 get done but there is a risk that the PR machines of both Real and Liverpool are now putting huge pressure on Trent and it could end up being very damaging for his relationship with the club and fans. We are already seeing lots of hate. It will only get worse unless there is a conclusion sooner rather than later.
02 Jan 2025 14:05:43
That's a very good reminder, @Pelican re: Julian Ward and Salah's last contract. It could be that he is part of the negotiating team, we don't even know.
Like you, RM are just doing what RM do and you have described it perfectly so not arsed about that media circus. I don't think it puts Trent under pressure cos these processes are NEVER rushed nor do they get affected by such media circuses, IMO. What will be will be, regardless.
Now, I do have a feeling that Trent could go BUT that doesn't mean I want him to go nor does it mean he will go. That being said, I obv. want him to stay cos well, why wouldn't I?
02 Jan 2025 14:10:59
I'm fairly certain that Ward and Hughes know that all three players can leave for free in the summer. I notice that Edwards in now off the hook.