Few can argue with the logic behind accepting a £40 million bid for a young player who came in a year ago for half of that price. Buying low and selling high is a blueprint for financial success which West Ham fans have not often seen.
Indeed the opposite has been the case in recent years with hundreds of millions of pounds wasted by paying inflated prices for players that flopped.
The list of shame incudes the worst of em’ all, Niclas Fullkrug, whose £27 million transfer fee and £90k a week in the Premier League cost West Ham millions for his three goal return.
Niclas Fullkrug – West Ham’s worst ever transfer?
Similarly paying £40 million for MaxKilman doesn’t look clever in hindsight with the defender’s value not even half of that amount two years on.
So the possibility of banking a £20 million profit for the still 21 year old El Haji Malick Diouf makes sense from every angle.
According to TalkSPORT’s Alex Crook
“Brentford expected to make a fresh bid for El Hadji Malick Diouf. Offer could be as high as £40m”
West Ham fans have seen the Senegalese youngster with all his good and bad points. Flip it and ask: Would we be happy buying him for £40 million? Not at all, I suspect. Error prone in defence, unsurprising for one so young.
Banking the cash, sending Diouf on his way to become a top player in about four years and reinvesting wisely is the key. With reports now suggesting that even £45 million might be attainable, the very clubs West Ham profess to admire – Bournemouth or Brighton are often mentioned by Claret and Hugh readers – have made themselves hugely successful by replicating the buy low, sell high model over many seasons. Irons’ supporters will have to get used to it.
Where Hammers fans won’t be forgiving is if the likes of Castellanos, Mavropanos and Magassa follow Diouf out of the door without sound financial reasoning behind their sales and a decent replacement coming in. Not merely free signings or players at the end of their careers.
Is Kretinsky sticking to his lofty promise that ‘financially West Ham don’t need to sell’ or is this simply more cash being siphoned off to pay debt, instead of the promised cash injection?
So, by all means, sell the player, bank the cash, but reinvest it wisely.
At the moment there’s every sign of the Hammers doing the former: But until supporters see the second phase – the ‘reinvesting’ element – carried out wisely there’ll remain the suspicion that this is an exodus by another name.
Let’s face it, DK wants to improve the value of his shares. That means unseating Sully, shifting the debt and changing perceptions of the club. His public comments were based on the assumption that the share deals would go smoothly (don’t think he’s that naive though), but maybe designed more for other clubs than the fans.
He did calm the feeding frenzy around our key players and ensured we got decent prices and (so far) have sold in a controlled way. Hanging on to Nuno for now helps the stability too.
Whoever the next shareholders are, the club’s finances were in tatters, with any new signings nigh on impossible. Now the debt burden looks much better, and just perhaps good young players and their agents will begin to see us as a serious stepping stone option, not a final destination for overpriced journeymen. This should apply to good young managers too!
Kretinsky is so fortunate that us fans remain so gullible. What he said was “WHU does not need to sell their best players for financial reasons”, emphasising that “keeping the squad together is part of a credible strategy to secure an immediate return to the PL” He has hoodwinked us all and we continue to fall for his fairytales. When will we wake up and see his promised investment into the club never materialised, he is selling the family silver under our noses and protecting his own personal interests. Those fans who claim a fire sale is inevitable following relegation are overlooking these fibs and need to smell the coffee. It’s all change since we put our hands in our pockets and paid for 50k season tickets whilst the board just contemplated their navels and did nothing. This lot are no better than Sully.
Not all Nuno decisions are based on players football ability.
Doesn’t forgive and forget even if it’s not right decisions.
Can’t base transfers on what might be needed in 12 months concentrate on immediate problems.
Squad depth and reinvestment is only way forward.
Absolutely spot on Martin. Measured and considered.
Let’s wait and see (and hope).
I’m not throwing DK under the bus so early, but we also need Nuno to speak up if players are pushing for a move and just be honest with the fans.
No one wants to stay at an employer they don’t want to work for and footballers are no different, yes more money but if you’re unhappy you still want to move and people forget that.
I don’t know if Diouf is unhappy or not but I suspect he wants to be playing in the prem.
Even if Diouf is sold, certainly don’t agree at all with the “will have to get used to it”. Manager & Koppen are supposed to also be building for the future through Academy and buying youngsters wisely, such as Diouf, perhaps Jordan James.
Koppen has also to be judged, along with Noble & manager, on squad building for the future, using Academy & buying/selling wisely with only a few highly valued, high salaried players.
If Koppen ONLY judged on profit, then yes, emphasis will be on constant turnover of players and squad rebuilding every 2nd season like Bournemouth and other rans. For me, a couple of aspects are good examples. We are supposed to cope financially, not be subject to it.
Also, Iraola left after 3 seasons as he has ambition and feels he has to. I want a manager/recruitment/academy who will build and take this club forwards long term and not be like Bournemouth, rebuilding every 2 seasons or so.
One problem with people like Koppen, or rather his role, is they are highly salaried and are expected to sell/buy players which forces player turnover, otherwise people wonder why he is being paid so much.
This can run contrary to building a successful team and keeping that team to go on and win things. For example, if Orford turns out to be an excellent midfielder in 3 seasons time, then everyone will be saying ‘pure profit’ and rubbing their hands in glee. He is sold & start looking for a replacement or nurturing an academy player, basically rebuilding in midfield. You lose key players who are still developing but at their prime to be sold for greater profit and a good manager (if you are lucky enough to have one), will leave.
I think Bournemouth are the standout team in the premier league! Their club is run so well from top to bottom.They buy cheaply and sell high,that’s exactly the model west ham should be following? Especially now that we can only spend what profit we make on improving the team.
Seems clear to me, there are players who Nuno wants, players he doesn’t, players that want to leave, players who have offers too good to turn down and players not wanted but paid too much to find another club.
Just the usual chaos of relegation / end of season.
The key difference is no owner spewing out his agenda to ITKs and shooting himself in the foot
If investing wisely means not jumping in two footed for players this week just because Burnley away is looming, then that’s fine. I think we need to give them until the end of this month before we jump in on them. I’m skeptical but also hopeful. Lets see.
Not defending DK, saying that we don’t need to sell isn’t saying that we will not sell!
It is a negotiating tactic.
Business 101.