Transfer Rumours and Deals - Winter Window 2016/17

[Frankie 8,157]

Not to labour the point but another way of looking at it (granted subjective and simplistic) is to rate each signing:

 

Failure: -1

Neutral: 0

Success: +1

 

KEEPERS

 

Foderingham: +1

Alnwick: 0

 

DEFENDERS

 

Tavernier: 0

Hodson: 0

Kiernan: 0

Wilson: 0

Hill: +1

Senderos: -1

 

MIDFIELDERS

 

Halliday: 0

Krancjar: 0

Crooks: -1

Windass: +1

Holt: +1

Rossiter: 0

(Barton: -1)

 

FORWARDS

 

Waghorn: +1

Garner: 0

Forrester: 0

O'Halloran: -1

Dodoo: 0

 

 

I make that a total of +1 for a current squad of 19 players. Far from great but slightly better than 50/50 given the positive result and the jury is certainly still out on some of the zeros I've given.

 

There's have also only been three or four genuine failures including Barton. That's going to happen when you need to find fringe players such as Senderos or younger lads who may not develop as well as you'd like. Where I think criticism is correct is that out of all the signings there's not been any huge successes. That's a worry - particularly given the two windows this season - and we do need to improve our record as a whole. However, I would take issue with the suggestion millions have been wasted per se.

Edited January 31, 2017 by Frankie

[rbr 1,247]

Some people need to get a serious grip of reality , we have no retail deal , no decent shirt sponsorship , we are approx. £10 million down before a ticket is bought because of these poor inherited deals . We have no credit line as such , we are relying on soft loans until the outstanding court cases are sorted which MUST go in our favour or its going to be a long long road back.

 

Yet the reality is we are sitting 3rd/2nd and haven't really kicked a ball this year , our main midfield transfers haven't worked out for one reason or another , I've yet to see any evidence that Barton's signing wasn't universally welcomed by the vast majority of our fan base , yet as I said we sit comfortably in 2nd/3rd .

 

Some people just like to moan and moan , our present squad is worth a dam sight more than where it stood before MW took over, reality and some Rangers fans never sits well imho.

[Frankie 8,157]

Some people need to get a serious grip of reality , we have no retail deal , no decent shirt sponsorship , we are approx. £10 million down before a ticket is bought because of these poor inherited deals . We have no credit line as such , we are relying on soft loans until the outstanding court cases are sorted which MUST go in our favour or its going to be a long long road back.

 

Yet the reality is we are sitting 3rd/2nd and haven't really kicked a ball this year , our main midfield transfers haven't worked out for one reason or another , I've yet to see any evidence that Barton's signing wasn't universally welcomed by the vast majority of our fan base , yet as I said we sit comfortably in 2nd/3rd .

 

Some people just like to moan and moan , our present squad is worth a dam sight more than where it stood before MW took over, reality and some Rangers fans never sits well imho.

 

I don't think there's much wrong with constructive criticism but it frustrates me when people label new signings a waste of money before they've even played.

 

In general I think our transfer dealings have been largely mediocre at best. However, there are mitigating circumstances (to a degree) whilst our budget and lack of scouting means we're never going to hit the bullseye every time. As such, whilst criticism is valid, we have to retain an element of pragmatism if we're ever to come out the other side of some of the worst years in the club's history.

[craig 5,199]

If they rated his approached they wouldn't have been looking for ways to drastically change it. Why do you think they decided to change approach? Because it was working so well?

 

His transfer record at Brentford was very poor. He had a couple of successes but the amount of players who completely failed far out weighed the good actually

 

You do realize that with Warburton's approach they finished in the play-offs in the Championship with the 3rd lowest budget in the league ?? And you do realize that after they brought in their Moneyball approach that the next manager lasted less than a year ?

 

Your statement makes it sound as if all Chairmen are rational and that they don't simply change things on a whim. We know that to not be the case in many circumstances. You can't simply say, as you are attempting to do, "they changed the approach because they didn't agree with the approach of Warburton". Chairman will often take a different approach simply because they can and because they are ultimately the boss. Lest we forget that Benfield owns an online bookmaker matching service which uses mathematical algorithms to determine matching bets and odds.

 

Seems to me that Benfield went the Moneyball route because he was "into" statistical analysis and felt he could achieve the same outcomes as were achieved in baseball if applied to football - he was fairly convincingly proven wrong.

 

As for not liking the approach of Warburton..... I am sure that Benfield wasn't complaining when he sold Andre Gray to Burnley for 6 million quid, having signed him from Luton fairly cheaply. I'm also sure that Benfield didn't have too many complaints when Warburton managed to make the play-offs with a squad whose wages should have been more relegation-contenders than promotion-contenders. I am also sure that Benfield wasn't complaining when that same transfer strategy had Brentford finish in such a league position as be the highest they had obtained since 1935 - some 80 years previously.

 

Yes, it all points to Benfield having zero confidence in Warburton's transfer dealings. Highest league placing in 80 years, 3rd lowest wage budget in the league, making the play-offs, winning manager of the month awards on multiple occasions. Or maybe I will just accept the official statement from Brentford itself upon announcing Warburton's departure which states they were going in a different direction and looking to use "mathematical modeling".

 

But you continue with your "they removed transfer dealings from his hands because they didn't trust him" all you like.... when, in fact, it also emerged just before his departure that one of the other reasons for his departure, aside from mathematical modelling, was that he actually, rather than not being trusted to make any transfers, had vetoed attempts to sign new players outwith the exception of Lewis MacLeod - so rather than remove his authority to make transfers one of the reasons that he left was because they didn't like the fact that he actually didn't WANT to sign any new players. They wanted him to sign players and he didn't want to, happy to go with what he had, aside from MacLeod's signing.

 

Kind of flies in the face of the argument you are trying to make, wouldn't you agree ?

[craig 5,199]

I'm not so sure. His budget/menu from last season's windows will have been different from this.

 

Have his signings been great? No, many have lost their way and perhaps the jump from last season to this has been too big for some. However, I'd also argue there's still a future for a few as well and the nature of our club and its recent issues have made our dealings very difficult for the manager and his Head of Recruitment.

 

I'm not so sure we've wasted millions either. Yes, the gamble on Barton was a disappointment and the monies spent on MOH and Garner hardly repaying in spades either. However, I reckon Tav, Waggy and Wes would all bring in a few bob if/when they leave and the careful development of McKay has made him an excellent asset.

 

With that in mind, perhaps there's an argument MW's transfer work has been around 50/50 which although disappointing is also perhaps typical of most manager's record in the market.

 

I'm pretty certain that if every Warburton signing was made available on the market right this minute, that they would see the club recover far in excess of what the club has paid out for them - far in excess. But that just simply doesn't suit some people's agendas.

[der Berliner 3,257]

In today's interview, MW said that there won't be any more deals in this window.

 

Here's a list of the comings and goings this season:

http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/glasgow-rangers/transfers/verein/124/saison_id/2016

Sum: £1.72m

 

This is the list of last season:

http://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/rangers-fc/transfers/verein/124/plus/0?saison_id=2015&pos=&detailpos=&w_s=

Sum: £316k

 

Add the odd 100k here and there for undisclosed fees.

 

All in all, we do have a decent enough team to finish second this season, maybe challenge for the cup again. Not least if some players finally start to find their form, while others settle in.

 

What happens over the next 6 months is hardly forseeable. Investment may come through various avenues, be it transfers out, a share issue, shirt or naming rights deals.Whether that money will help us getting the players we want / need remains to be seen still. We are so much out of the picture when it comes to throwing money about like the English, French, Italians or the like, that it is unreal. Scouts or no scouts. Big name or not. Whether we like it or not, we have to concentrate on our domestic stuff and while and performances will tell you, that the Yahoos are clearly dominant right now, there is hardly any certainty how much that will continue.

[craig 5,199]

The biggest difference this season is...... Brendan Rodgers.

 

Much as though we haven't played that well I'm pretty confident that if Deila was still at Parkhead we would at least be challenging them. They have proven that a change in manager (for the better) is as important as new players.

[Frankie 8,157]

Scott Hogan has also just moved to Aston Villa for up to £15m. Not bad for someone MW (along with FMcP) signed for around £750K apparently...

Edited January 31, 2017 by Frankie

[craig 5,199]

Scott Hogan has also just moved to Aston Villa for up to £15m. Not bad for someone MW (along with FMcP) signed for around £750K apparently...

 

Nope, simply cant be true. Must have been all his successor's achievement - or did they actually sign him using the Moneyball techniques ? Because it certainly cant be because Warburton had the authority to sign him.....

[Frankie 8,157]

The biggest difference this season is...... Brendan Rodgers.

 

Much as though we haven't played that well I'm pretty confident that if Deila was still at Parkhead we would at least be challenging them. They have proven that a change in manager (for the better) is as important as new players.

 

I agree with this.

 

And Rodgers will be costing a hell of a lot more than MW. Same goes for the signings he has made.

 

PS: You won't find his fans saying their players are worthless either. They may not like certain players but they'll defend them to ensure their value remains decent (artificially or not).