Ex Royals

[WestYorksRoyal]

It's staggering how with only a handful of better decisions we could be

Sell Moore for ~£8m - net gain ~£14m
Don't buy Aluko - net gain ~£8m
Sell Loader - net gain ~£3m
Sell Swift - net gain ~£5m
Don't buy Ejaria - net gain ~£4m
Don't buy Puscas - net gain ~£3m

I make that almost £40m better off and we only really miss Swift's contribution. Or from another point of view, 6 decisions cost us twice the value of the club.

Those figures are only transfer fees; not wages. Add them in for Aluko, Puscas, Ejaria and Moore and it's even more nuts. All of them at some time were barely playing but picking up a huge wage packet (Ejaria still is). Swift was on big wages too but his contribution on the pitch justified them.

[Snowflake Royal]

It's staggering how with only a handful of better decisions we could be

Sell Moore for ~£8m - net gain ~£14m
Don't buy Aluko - net gain ~£8m
Sell Loader - net gain ~£3m
Sell Swift - net gain ~£5m
Don't buy Ejaria - net gain ~£4m
Don't buy Puscas - net gain ~£3m

I make that almost £40m better off and we only really miss Swift's contribution. Or from another point of view, 6 decisions cost us twice the value of the club.

Those figures are only transfer fees; not wages. Add them in for Aluko, Puscas, Ejaria and Moore and it's even more nuts. All of them at some time were barely playing but picking up a huge wage packet (Ejaria still is).

I did add wages in for Aluko, Moore and Ejaria.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Liam Moore really is a microcosm of the Dai era. He was one the last pre Dai signings (arguably the last given Dai funded the following January). Young but with Championship experience, plenty of scope to improve and initially he looked like a great signing.

We then made the decision not to sell at his peak, he never recaptured his best form, struggled with injuries. By the end his contract was a millstone and I don't think he's remembered fondly by many.

When really he should have either made the club a lot of money or, if we were good enough, got promoted with us and become a legend.

[Snowflake Royal]

Liam Moore really is a microcosm of the Dai era. He was one the last pre Dai signings (arguably the last given Dai funded the following January). Young but with Championship experience, plenty of scope to improve and initially he looked like a great signing.

We then made the decision not to sell at his peak, he never recaptured his best form, struggled with injuries. By the end his contract was a millstone and I don't think he's remembered fondly by many.

When really he should have either made the club a lot of money or, if we were good enough, got promoted with us and become a legend.

Yep, a player with an exciting future who watched it get flushed down the toilet with us through the prime of his playing career.

[skipper]

Liam Moore really is a microcosm of the Dai era. He was one the last pre Dai signings (arguably the last given Dai funded the following January). Young but with Championship experience, plenty of scope to improve and initially he looked like a great signing.

We then made the decision not to sell at his peak, he never recaptured his best form, struggled with injuries. By the end his contract was a millstone and I don't think he's remembered fondly by many.

When really he should have either made the club a lot of money or, if we were good enough, got promoted with us and become a legend.

It's moments like that where you realise the fine margins of it all. You're bang on there. I do remember Moore fondly, but wished we had sold him. I get why we didn't - we were ambitious! But looking back I do wish things had panned out differently for both parties.

[Hound]

Think the bid for Swift was 7m for Leeds wasn’t it? Or at least rumoured to be that

Was also a bit of chat about a Brentford bid for Ejaria after his first full season with us. Obvs not sure how true but it was 5m+

But yes that’s just small amounts on your basic 40m. Pretty nuts really. Stupid contract extensions like JVDB etc and buying that Edwards chap - just chucking away another million a time for very little in return

[Snowflake Royal]

Think the bid for Swift was 7m for Leeds wasn’t it? Or at least rumoured to be that

Was also a bit of chat about a Brentford bid for Ejaria after his first full season with us. Obvs not sure how true but it was 5m+

But yes that’s just small amounts on your basic 40m. Pretty nuts really. Stupid contract extensions like JVDB etc and buying that Edwards chap - just chucking away another million a time for very little in return

Meanwhile a lot of our Academy players stepped down or sideways then went beyond us.

[From Despair To Where?]

Just seen a link to an article in the S*n from 2007 naming their future England 11 of up and coming Stars. Let's gloss over the fact that only 2 of them (Mica Richards and Theo Walcott) ever played for England and concentrate on 2 more familiar names on the list:

James Henry
Sam Hutchinson.

Who said the S*n wasn't full if shit?

[Mid Sussex Royal]

Not technically an ex player yet but Bouzanis had a mare yesterday for Sutton, check out the 6th Stockport goal, its comical.

[WestYorksRoyal]

Apparently we only got Emi Martinez on loan because Emery recommended us as a bigger loan challenge than Leeds. That's what the mail are reporting. Did very well out of that if so.

[Hendo]

Apparently we only got Emi Martinez on loan because Emery recommended us as a bigger loan challenge than Leeds. That's what the mail are reporting. Did very well out of that if so.

Unai Emery goes even further up in my estimations.

[YorkshireRoyal99]

Think the bid for Swift was 7m for Leeds wasn’t it? Or at least rumoured to be that

Was also a bit of chat about a Brentford bid for Ejaria after his first full season with us. Obvs not sure how true but it was 5m+

But yes that’s just small amounts on your basic 40m. Pretty nuts really. Stupid contract extensions like JVDB etc and buying that Edwards chap - just chucking away another million a time for very little in return

Not even just that, but the summer after we lost the PO final, imagine how much we were paying the likes of Edwards, Meyler, Bodvarsson etc as well, considering how high our wage bill was. Of course we all know about Moore's wages and Aluko's and Baldock's were also "known" to be high, but whoever sanctioned those deals doesn't deserve to be in football.

Moore, at the time, I could understand. He was wanted by a PL club and wanted PL wages, which is understandable. But out of the rest of them, in terms of signing players, some of those contracts must have been eye-watering for what we got.

[Hound]

Actually yeah Baldock alone was a £5m cost or so, for very very little in return

That’d be one for Ian’s original list

[Snowflake Royal]

So, essentially, none of this would have happened if I'd been charge. One in the eye for the 'IR doesn't have a clue brigade'.

[Hound]

So, essentially, none of this would have happened if I'd been charge. One in the eye for the 'IR doesn't have a clue brigade'.

Yes if you’d have been in charge you’d be too busy making pointless arguments with the likes of Leon to make any signings, agreed

Interestingly enough, wonder how many of those decisions were actually backed by the majority of fans at the time? Would say

Moore - most people said sell, def not on board with big contract
Baldock - not at that price
Puscas - was quite exciting at the time but the cost was worrying
Joao - prob not at the price
Ejaria - most were in favour after a good loan spell
Loader - everyone said sell
Aluko - very few in favour, certainly not at that price
Swift - most said don’t sell, mainly because he was so vital to us at the time

So most weren’t even in hindsight

[Sutekh]

So, essentially, none of this would have happened if I'd been charge. One in the eye for the 'IR doesn't have a clue brigade'.

Most fans would probably not have signed half the players the idiot did.

[Snowflake Royal]

Shhhhh

[WestYorksRoyal]

Alex Pearce scored for Wimbledon against Portsmouth last night and his celebration is doing the rounds on Twitter. Very familiar, reminds me of watching back 11/12 compilations.

[Hendo]

Alex Pearce scored for Wimbledon against Portsmouth last night and his celebration is doing the rounds on Twitter. Very familiar, reminds me of watching back 11/12 compilations.

https://twitter.com/AFCWimbledon/status/1737387687399641216

[Sutekh]

Did Reading sell him or was he another just given away?