Heard somewhere there are 14 players out of contract in the summer - now I don't know who they all are but even if maybe half are 1st team regulars then I see that as a concern.
We could get promoted and have a mass exodus putting us back to square one.
I suppose there is the argument that that it keeps players on their toes but sounds risky to me
hopefully there are a number of gentlemens agreements in place though your average footballer isn't known for their loyalty is he!
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if we do go up then i'm sure the better players out of contract will want to stay and play at a higher level and we can get rid of the chuff that aren't good enough for that level....
one of the reasons we've ended up nigh on skint is cos we gave ridiculous contracts to some real shit .....
we have to go up this year or imo we are stuck down here for the foreseeable future
And personally I think that is right. Wages are going to slowly decline and until the players get it into their thick skulls that they can't demand ridiculous (in football terms) wages anymore then they lose the luxury and 3/4/5 year contracts.
Football is changing, from the top level up in money terms we're seeing that with Pompey, Watford, Palace and a whole host of others. The sooner players, managers and boards realise the better.
Maybe it will take Pompey going into admin or a CCC club going out of business to really hit home.
worries me more so if we go up and still lose a few first teamers, as we havent exactly got the money to replace them
I actually be more worried about losing some of the young players that are in the side.
Players like Dailly are on 1 year and at his age rightly so.
No we won't have money to replace first teamers but as shown with Dailly, Richardson, Sodje Major and Llera you don't necessarily need to pay fees to get decent players.
As WSS this is the way football is going and there will be lots of other free agents around next summer.
If we go up we can offer decent contracts to most of those PP will want to keep, if we stay down we are up a creek without a paddle and as said it will be a good thing that we can shed wages quickly.
As long as we keep people like Basey who is becoming a very good player at this level; and I think will be a top central defender/defensive midfielder in the champ; I'll be happy. I'd be sorry to see Darren Randolph go but no doubt he's on money that a fully battle hardened lower league pro earns. As for the others they need to be proving their worth and we don't need players like Ben Thatcher on two 1/2 years, just in case they can't contribute. Whatever div we are we should be able to compete for free transfers and loan signings like Mooney and Sodje.
For example, take Jon Fortune, reportedely earning less at Sheff Utd now than he was offered with us in the summer. Yes, he is a league higher in the Champ and if that motivates him (which it should), all the best to him.
Fortune is a good example of a decent player with plenty (150 games?) of prem experience who will be out of contract in January.
May well be offered another contract at Sheff U but I would guess it would be no more than 18 months.
And I'd still have him back at Charlton now or in the summer
yep henry i completely agree and understand why daily, llera etc will be on 1 year contracts and does make good sense
just vital we go up really as losing alot of players with no fees would be a big blow.... fingers crossed
Remember a month ago he was being described as total rubbish after the JPT and FA cup games. Now he's a worry that we might lose him.
Remember a month ago he was being described as total rubbish after the JPT and FA cup games. Now he's a worry that we might lose him.[/quote]
Oh shit! i am not just saying this, but i have always rated him. used to have a good free kick, only worry is his pace. but he's shown this season when had the chance that he reads the game well and is a good defender, still would have youga slightly ahead of him(although start of season wouldnt have said that)
Not too worried about contracts expiring. Lots of these players are probably on a decent wage and not many other clubs at our level could afford them, nor are many of them likely to be in that high demand when pre-contract agreements can be signed. By that point we'll have a better idea of whether promotion is likely or not as well.
Another bonus is that with so many players out of contract they will have to work hard to get another one.
As people have already said, it makes financial sense to keep most players on short term contracts, which is more or less the norm for this division anyway. The exceptions should be your young rising stars and those who've improved significantly to have earned a new contract - these players would have an increasing transfer fee value.
Whether we gain promotion or not is the key issue for this season - and not only dictates which players the club choose to retain, but also players who are likely to want to stay here rather than be tempted away to "bigger" clubs.
Anyway ........ players on free transfers don't come for nothing. Apart from wages, rsettling in fees, hotels/accomodation etc, there's always a negotiable lump sum signing on fee to be paid up front. And similarly, loans don't come for free either - apart from expenses paid to the player, wages in full or part/ loan transfer fees are often paid.
Sam Allardyce when at Bolton pioneered this strategy. He'd hunt down 'soon to be out of contract', proven players, make them a pre-contract offer and give them higher wages and signing on fee ......... he could afford to do this because his club rarely paid a transfer fee to the incoming player's ex-club.
Maybe this strategy could alsoexplain why Charlton have not paid a transfer fee to a club for any incoming player in the last 15 months ...... using the budget instead to offer higher wages to tempt the player?
Might explain why we've picked up players like Burton, Dailly and Richardson?
But there are players who whatever division we are in, would be great to keep- Sam, Semedo/Racon?, Burton, Dailly, Sodje, Richardson, Basey etc
There are then players out of contract that I would not be sad to see leave but think if we tried we could get some money for them before the summer- McLeod, Dickson if they are both out of contract.
Hopefully by Jan, our finances may allow us not only to get A Sodje for longer but also to try to get a couple of players on longer contracts.