Fresh on the back of the Kipre debacle, it would make sense for the timing for doing such a thing to be now.

I agree it's very important to tie your talent up. But all of that comes with improved wages, signing on fees, agent fees. Which makes it harder to get those 5 or 6 players and may result in not getting them all, or getting worse ones. It's all a balancing act on a limited budget.

There is a difference between the manager wanting 5 or 6 additions and thinking he needs 5 or 6 additions. We don't know which is the case.

Fairly sure this isn't the signing JB was on about. Nixon was saying yesterday it had already been done, so there'd have been no need for secrecy. It was also implied it's a midfielder.

That sounds like a clue...

Why would he be getting nothing at all if he's under contract? You mean when his deal expires?

Unless it's a crap signing or won't improve one of our over stocked areas. In which case, tell the entire press.

At this rate we will probably hit that within the hour...

And (following from my previous post) if that's the case then it would really have been a 12 million quid deal, but we will only get a cut from the 10 million. Which is us getting shafted.

Probably not I'd guess. Which would be exploitable really if you think about it. Say a selling club wanted to avoid paying the previous club their cut. They could arrange with the buying club for a loan with a loan fee of say, 10 million with a purchase clause of 10 quid, and keep the lot.

The issue would be on what the two clubs want there. WBA likely do want a stronger squad option who might really challenge for the shirt, and we likely want to stop pissing about in the loan market for this key position. I don't think WBA are looking at this one as just an investment or they could have done it already.

Ffs, Holtby already needs bringing off after about the 60 minute mark as it is. I've not noticed him being a slacker but if he isn't working as hard as TM would like it could be because he's trying to be impactful with the fitness he does have until it improves. Obviously this raises questions as to whether you want him on the pitch in the first place if he only lasts 60 mins and doesn't give you the work rate you want...but he signed the guy.

And what source have you seen saying it was only 200k?

Or ya know, maybe they'll just be happy their club made two good recruitment rather than lamenting their loss in a point-scoring battle on a message board. Can you imagine that?

I knew somebody was going to pop up saying something like this, but honestly I was hoping to avoid having to explain the extensive differences. I still can't be arsed tbh. Short version though, if you think ourselves and Preston should have had similar expectations after coming out of League One, you're selling us short. They'd been down there for 4 seasons not 1, and we had a lot more financial muscle. Personally I didn't want him sacked at that point anyway, and I wouldn't say the majority of this board did.

They seem an overly demanding bunch. I remember one telling me Grayson had taken them as far as he could, in what I think was their first season back up from league One where he had them halfway up the league and the season wasn't that far in. I was thinking he didn't know he was born and asked what he expected.

4 million for Wigan? Fuck it let's just buy them.

Most of the posters between your post and mine here seem to have thought you weren't joking...

Not these days though. Might as well say it's a 500 of 'insert fantastic player from 70s' or whatever.

I reckon this Brereton discussion could go in the Brereton thread. But whilst I'm here I'll say that if we had signed him during lockdown and only seen the performances since then, we would probably be reasonably optimistic about the lad, albeit concerned about the three big fluffed chances in that time. I'm still hoping that tendency fades with further confidence. Also hoping like others that Kipre is the guy we are close with, and that WBA's interest goes when they sign someone else, which is probably the only chance we have if they are actually at the personal terms stage as reported. But I suspect it's someone else.

You would think it was in the forum rules to only make polarised posts, the way most carry on.

I wish my shirt buttons were worth £450k

I'm going to be what I think (without going through all the comments) is a lone voice of disagreement about Dolan. To a degree at least. My view of him so far after today is the same as it was after I saw whichever friendly it was recently. Yes he's exciting, very young, quick with tidy feet. Good work rate too, and wants to make things happen. But I'm still seeing him run into a few too many blind alleys for now. I feel there's a degree to which the main difference he has to Rothwell other than height (and experience) is that he has just shown up and is only 18. He's still fresh and exciting to us. I suspect this is going to become more apparent to more fans as the season goes on, and even more, TM is going to want to deal with it by curbing some of his instincts and get him to play more conservatively to keep possession longer as he is fond of (when personally I think he just needs better knowledge of when the run he is picturing isn't feasible and he should either play a pass or go a little wider to pass his man). These are just friendlies and he will be very, very eager to make his mark in them having just shown up after PNE discarded him. I think he might end up in the Rothwell category in a few regards with many, for a while, especially when some of his enthusiasm and TM's free rein allowance subside when the real cut and thrust begins. That said, he really is exciting, especially coming from such a low profile swoop (which is adding to his wow factor for now) and is very young compared to when Rothwell and even Chapman (second time) arrived. If he starts using his head a little more wisely, and this ability isn't a flash in the pan new recruit effect, we could have a real asset on our hands over the next year or two. For now I think the bench role in competitive games is about right, coming on with the x factor. I suspect if he starts against Bournemouth he will get found out and it could set him back. I don't expect this to be a popular post given how many have waxed lyrical lol

You don't mention a CB but it seems pretty clear CB is next on the agenda, and getting two has been mentioned.

Might be he can but it scares Mowbray so he has to rein it in...