2025 Summer Transfer Thread. 😂

[Tomphil2]

I think the amount of home grown players who've gone on loan for their development and expected to be coming back knocking on the first team squad door, when many haven't done much in their loans, highlights the flaws of over reliance.

Do we just stick some in and give them mins so it looks better on their cv and value sheets ?

Not really the right approach but when you end up with no money and a thin squad you aren't giving yourselves any choice.

There'll always be one or two at the most come through but you can't force it for the sake of it and the danger of that is developing here you can see it coming a mile off unless the finances are resolved.

[roversfan99]

We used to give over 2,000 minutes to under 23 academy graduates and we "want to go back to that model."

Not factoring in that in the season before last. We had a special talent in Adam Wharton who we have since pushed out of the door. And we also were dishing out too many minutes to players like Garrett and Leonard in a terrible overall season because of cut backs.

[Tomphil2]

We also nearly got relegated because on top of JDTs open style once the squad had to be used the back up development players signed and our own products weren't good enough to sustain a safe level.

I hope Mr Head of Heads is considering this, that you can't go from recruiting experience to stop the rot straight to inexperience just in the name of increasing value and expect a top 10 finish.

[JHRover]

40 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

We have category 1 academy and sometimes we won't produce quality in some years but should that stop us trying really, of course not. We invested in our Academy and we should be producing players for our first team. 

Yes it should stop us trying. If the players aren't good enough or ready then we look elsewhere. The only focus of time and effort for the first team should be assembling a squad good enough to get promoted. 

The academy side of things should be run separately and should be organic - i.e. when a player in the academy is good enough he will inevitably force himself into contention for the first team. The academy exists ancillary to the first team and to support it when needed, whereas the 'modern' thinking seems to be that the first team exists to support the academy and build value into academy players, so that a profit can be made and points earned by people employed down there. 

[bluebruce]

1 hour ago, chaddyrovers said:

Where has Gestede said its the target? 

He has said we would like to go back to producing our own players from own academy 

Rovers will also look to sign younger players and maximise their Academy, to build sellable assets. That was part of the discussion when appointing Valerien Ismael and a value Blackburn want to return to.

"You have to rely on the Academy also, Adam Wharton is an example. He is a rare one but you can do business with the Academy with player-trading," he explained.

"What we have seen in the last year, the minutes played by our Academy players has dropped drastically. We used to be over 2,000 minutes for Under-23 Academy players. Last 12 months, 142 minutes.

"That affects the value of the asset and we want to go back to that model. That was part of the discussions with Valerien. They have to be part of your squad planning.

"We will also go in the market for young players. Instead of one-year deals for players at a certain age, you go younger and buy the assets. You don't have to buy an asset for £5million, it can be a lower fee with more resale value.

That's an exciting time going into the summer. We have to refresh the squad with loans and players out of contract. Now is the right time.

"We want to develop players, give a platform for Academy players to shine and attract young players to be on the pitch for Blackburn."

 

Exactly, he wants to go back to the model of over 2000 minutes. It's very clear. Not sure how you're reading this and not seeing that he's saying that's the target.

[K-Hod]

1 hour ago, chaddyrovers said:

Where has Gestede said its the target? 

He has said we would like to go back to producing our own players from own academy 

Rovers will also look to sign younger players and maximise their Academy, to build sellable assets. That was part of the discussion when appointing Valerien Ismael and a value Blackburn want to return to.

"You have to rely on the Academy also, Adam Wharton is an example. He is a rare one but you can do business with the Academy with player-trading," he explained.

"What we have seen in the last year, the minutes played by our Academy players has dropped drastically. We used to be over 2,000 minutes for Under-23 Academy players. Last 12 months, 142 minutes.

"That affects the value of the asset and we want to go back to that model. That was part of the discussions with Valerien. They have to be part of your squad planning.

"We will also go in the market for young players. Instead of one-year deals for players at a certain age, you go younger and buy the assets. You don't have to buy an asset for £5million, it can be a lower fee with more resale value.

That's an exciting time going into the summer. We have to refresh the squad with loans and players out of contract. Now is the right time.

"We want to develop players, give a platform for Academy players to shine and attract young players to be on the pitch for Blackburn."

 

He said it in the Fans Forum and in the LT. 

I think you just need to accept it and move on 🙂.

[chaddyrovers]

9 minutes ago, bluebruce said:

Exactly, he wants to go back to the model of over 2000 minutes. It's very clear. Not sure how you're reading this and not seeing that he's saying that's the target.

I dont see that as set target but we want to see our Academy players play more when they are ready. I have named 3 young players I want to see in our first team squad this season. Plus I want to see Michalski as third choice 

 

[chaddyrovers]

2 minutes ago, K-Hod said:

He said it in the Fans Forum

That he has set a specific target for minutes has he? 

I posted what he said in the interview with Jackson from the LT

[bluebruce]

14 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

I dont see that as set target but we want to see our Academy players play more when they are ready. I have named 3 young players I want to see in our first team squad this season. Plus I want to see Michalski as third choice 

 

You might not, but he very obviously does. The quote is clear.

[TimmyJimmy]

As I've said previously, the Academy is a business venture not a football venture. It runs parallel to the Championship side of things but are IMO only linked through branding.

The Academy is a sausage making machine. It will (should) produce players who are solid enough in the lower divisions but will never set the world on fire.

The occasional gem that gets snagged up in the net is soon recognised by other watching recruitment teams and are gone before we've even got a sniff of watching them contribute to a promotional push (ho ho yes I know, but we live in hope).

The ones who make through to our first team are earnest tryers for sure but never amount to more than squad fillers.  So ... what's the point?

Venkys see us through the lens of a business (remember the renting players quote), they're just viewing the Academy as a machine to hopefully defray running cost, keep the cupboard stocked with pencils and bog rolls available in the visiting dignitaries toilets [the backroom guys get torn up newspaper pushed onto a nail].

Promotion will never happen because you have to buy most of it, talent acquisition, wages, coaches who can do the job etc., etc..

With Venkys in charge you can forget about every aspiration you ever had ... full stop.

The Academy means nothing at all. I suggest we even stop thinking about it as a solution to anything.

[Tomphil2]

Again i go back to Gestedes words on trading academy players and wonder exactly what he means.

Sell the really good ones early with a load of add on's to provide a new income stream then try and make something of the rest ?

[Hasta]

1 hour ago, chaddyrovers said:

That he has set a specific target for minutes has he? 

I posted what he said in the interview with Jackson from the LT

Gestede actually said:-

"The plan for our squad is to give as much (acadamy minutes) as we can. The year before was 2000 minutes for our academy players, almost 3000 minutes the year before, so now we want to go back to those numbers."

 

i.e we have set ourselves a target.

Edited Monday at 11:59 by Hasta

[roversfan99]

Actually, its not a target but its all part of a great plan whereby players will only play those minutes when they are ready and 3 selected players are 100% ready to play that many minutes based on very brief cameos. And if you doubt this, you must want the academy shutting down.

We were at those numbers before due to 2 reasons. One special once in a generation talent, no longer at the club. And budget cuts meaning that sub par players ended up playing far too much and we ended up nearly going down.

[Ghost7]

Good to see Rovers didn't mess around and got the defender who was in "advance talks" over the line. 

🐖✈️

[BankEnd Rover]

2 minutes ago, Ghost7 said:

Good to see Rovers didn't mess around and got the defender who was in "advance talks" over the line. 

🐖✈️

Yeap over a week ago it was reported...Then add a day or 2 before hand for your standard delay in reporting  etc...Pasha says no. 

[Exiled_Rover]

2 hours ago, TimmyJimmy said:

As I've said previously, the Academy is a business venture not a football venture. It runs parallel to the Championship side of things but are IMO only linked through branding.

The Academy is a sausage making machine. It will (should) produce players who are solid enough in the lower divisions but will never set the world on fire.

The occasional gem that gets snagged up in the net is soon recognised by other watching recruitment teams and are gone before we've even got a sniff of watching them contribute to a promotional push (ho ho yes I know, but we live in hope).

The ones who make through to our first team are earnest tryers for sure but never amount to more than squad fillers.  So ... what's the point?

Venkys see us through the lens of a business (remember the renting players quote), they're just viewing the Academy as a machine to hopefully defray running cost, keep the cupboard stocked with pencils and bog rolls available in the visiting dignitaries toilets [the backroom guys get torn up newspaper pushed onto a nail].

Promotion will never happen because you have to buy most of it, talent acquisition, wages, coaches who can do the job etc., etc..

With Venkys in charge you can forget about every aspiration you ever had ... full stop.

The Academy means nothing at all. I suggest we even stop thinking about it as a solution to anything.

The Academy is the only reason we continue to exist as a club.

Without the likes of Carter, A. Wharton, Lenihan, Hanley, S. Wharton, JRC, Nyambe, Travis, Buckley et al we'd probably be in L1/2 if not folded completely. 

Jack's legacy has propped up the Venkys for a decade. 

[TimmyJimmy]

45 minutes ago, Exiled_Rover said:

The Academy is the only reason we continue to exist as a club.

Without the likes of Carter, A. Wharton, Lenihan, Hanley, S. Wharton, JRC, Nyambe, Travis, Buckley et al we'd probably be in L1/2 if not folded completely. 

Jack's legacy has propped up the Venkys for a decade. 

Agree in principle, that was great vision by Jack, but that vision was that WE should benefit and that one day WE might produce a Man U style golden generation for ourselves.

When the charlatans took over that dream disappeared, we were never going to benefit from a major emerging talent, others were. We're less of a nursery now and more like a simple incubator.

For those old enough, think Crewe. They produced some really good players but they were never going to play for Crewe.

Agree that Academy sales keep some of the lights on but we get peanuts when the talents emerge and are told by their agents to not sign long term papers.

Most of our kids come from far and wide, they're not all Wartons from Blackburn.  They owe us nowt and aren't emotionally tied to the club.  They're here for one reason only - we're recognised as a launch pad for better things elsewhere.

So I repeat ... what's the point? This wasn't Jack's vision.

[sammie]

5 hours ago, chaddyrovers said:

Where has Gestede said its the target? 

He has said we would like to go back to producing our own players from own academy 

Rovers will also look to sign younger players and maximise their Academy, to build sellable assets. That was part of the discussion when appointing Valerien Ismael and a value Blackburn want to return to.

"You have to rely on the Academy also, Adam Wharton is an example. He is a rare one but you can do business with the Academy with player-trading," he explained.

"What we have seen in the last year, the minutes played by our Academy players has dropped drastically. We used to be over 2,000 minutes for Under-23 Academy players. Last 12 months, 142 minutes.

"That affects the value of the asset and we want to go back to that model. That was part of the discussions with Valerien. They have to be part of your squad planning.

"We will also go in the market for young players. Instead of one-year deals for players at a certain age, you go younger and buy the assets. You don't have to buy an asset for £5million, it can be a lower fee with more resale value.

That's an exciting time going into the summer. We have to refresh the squad with loans and players out of contract. Now is the right time.

"We want to develop players, give a platform for Academy players to shine and attract young players to be on the pitch for Blackburn."

 

these lot are absolute scumbags

[Moptop1]

On 01/06/2025 at 08:01, wilsdenrover said:

I don’t think the owners worry at all, they simply don’t appear to give a fuck. 

That’s what I’m saying 

[chaddyrovers]

6 hours ago, roversfan99 said:

Actually, its not a target but its all part of a great plan whereby players will only play those minutes when they are ready and 3 selected players are 100% ready to play that many minutes based on very brief cameos. And if you doubt this, you must want the academy shutting down.

We have always develop our own players and we should carry this on for the future. Yes I question you over your comments about academy players because you are very quick to point out their negatives and what they didn't do which is always your focus in my opinion. 

We see when the season how much our academy players play but I don't what is wrong with have 3 players who one is very highly rated and chased by big PL clubs and 2 players who played last season show their worth for me. 

 

[London blue]

22 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

We have always develop our own players and we should carry this on for the future. Yes I question you over your comments about academy players because you are very quick to point out their negatives and what they didn't do which is always your focus in my opinion. 

We see when the season how much our academy players play but I don't what is wrong with have 3 players who one is very highly rated and chased by big PL clubs and 2 players who played last season show their worth for me. 

 

Do you think those PL clubs are going to play him? 

Or do you think he will sit in their academy for a year before loans to successive EFL clubs, eventually being sold off. 

PL interest has no bearing on whether a player is ready for the championship.

Edited Monday at 19:38 by London blue

[roversfan99]

30 minutes ago, chaddyrovers said:

We have always develop our own players and we should carry this on for the future. Yes I question you over your comments about academy players because you are very quick to point out their negatives and what they didn't do which is always your focus in my opinion. 

We see when the season how much our academy players play but I don't what is wrong with have 3 players who one is very highly rated and chased by big PL clubs and 2 players who played last season show their worth for me. 

 

I am not criticising the academy or individual players. I am criticising the club for setting arbitary targets which I feel creates a conflict of interest, and am also criticising the club for putting an unrealistic burden on producing players that are capable of playing in the Championship. All for the purpose of saving money.

You've taken your own interpretation of Gestede's messages in your usual blinkered way and have assumed its all part of a viable and logical plan.

You've also not acknowledged the reasons why we had so many academy minutes 2 seasons ago. One now departed special talent and also a lack of depth to the point where we nearly went down.

Edited Monday at 19:46 by roversfan99

[den]

Want to keep developing kids to make the first team?

Easy, just drop down the leagues.

[Upside Down]

3 minutes ago, den said:

Want to keep developing kids to make the first team?

Easy, just drop down the leagues.

It'll be this year or next.

[Waggy76]

Venkys only plan since their tenure  began is to asset strip the club! 

There is nothing left on the carcass, relegation beckons. 

We have such wonderful owners, many posters are asking, why do they still want us?? 

That would be the first question I would be asking at these fan consultation meetings..