How not to spend £35million of transfer money

It seems from the comments we keep hearing from Derek Llambias that the money received from Liverpool for the services of Andy Carroll has been used up.


Some people simply don't believe this due to the enormous mistrust of anything this man/puppet/scheister says.


So lets look at where the transfer money we received has been utilised.


Agent and signing on fees for Ba, Marveaux, Cabaye.
Money put aside for 'possible January signings'
A contract for Jose Enrique if he wants it.
(unconfirmed) - To go towards the wage bill.
(Unconfirmed) - Undersoil heating for the training ground.
(apparently) - Money for a new striker.


Now lets give Mr Llambias the benefit of the doubt for once. Lets say he is telling the gospel truth about the above. Lets say all of the figures add up and yes indeed the money has been used up.


Then the issue isnt, when are you gonna spend it?, but just what the hell do you think your doing wasting transfer money in this way?!!


I completely understand running a football club as a business, if I were charge I would do the same. But what seems to be completely absent from our current administration is the Football Club as a business lives and dies by how good/bad the Football TEAM is.


The income the business of the football club makes, is 100% dependant on the team on the pitch. If you qualify for the Champions League you make an extra £40mil, if you get relegated from the Premier League you lose £40mil. Being the biggest examples to use.


When Newcastle Utd Football Club received £35million for one player, they had a chance of investing in the team to fast forward our development and rise and rise up that league table, quicker than estimated/planned. Not to mention the deadwood we would sell with every player coming in to take up their squad numbers in the squad. So really you could take that £35m and add another £15m -£20m at least.


But yet what have we done?:


FACT - Zero NETT Spend on transfer fees.
FACT - Sold top scorer and club captain.
FACT - Wage bill hardly any different seeing as Nolan and Campbell takes £90k off as the 3 new players adds about £100k on.
FACT (will be) - Will sell Jose Enrique to the highest bidder, which also in turn rights off this 'contract' we have offered him, which also will take his £50k wage off the wage bill, as well as inject us with even more transfer money. Probable around £10mil.
FACT -Have brought in injury prone, unproven in the Prem League, French fancies who come december might not like the cold and not put a full shift into the team. We will be TOTALLY relying on these signings to see what kind of season we will have. Scary.


The most logical way of using the Transfer Money we received, for one player, is the following:


Bring in at least 2/3 quality proven strikers.
By all means bring in the signings we have made so far, seeing as they haven't cost out! To add to this, a proven Premier League midfielder or two to bolster our engine room.
Bring in a left back, a centre back and right back at least, as our defence was our weakest area last season.
Sell Jose Enrique for at least £10 mill to whoever wants him, but try and sell him to a foreign team. Maybe even Jonas aswell for about 7-10mil to a foreign team.
Sell other deadwood to reduce wage bill and bring in modest fees to add to transfer kitty. ie Smith, Ranger, Best, Lovenkrands, Xisco, Routledge etc.


At the end of August Newcastle should have a quality 25man squad, with depth, that can genuinely challenge the top 6.
Without breaking the bank as the Carroll, Nolan, Enrique, Deadwood money will more than cover the expenditure on Quality and Quantity.


Now all of the above would create MORE Income to the Football Club as a business as it would perform better on the pitch. Higher league position/good cup run/European qualification/cup winner....just some of the possibilities.


Which in football business terms is the basic essence of success.


Better team = More income. If you can create this equation by not having a significant NETT expenditure inc fees and wages....YOU ARE LAUGHING!


But do you hear anyone laughing wearing Black and White?


Somebody needs to tell all of these football club owners this very simple fact of business life at a football club. Including Gold/Sullivan/Brady down in the Championship for e.g.


But as far as we are concerned, we will be destined to be hugely handicapped by our own administration as they cant even buy a decent team when somebody gives them £40 million plus to use!


Useless. Absolutely useless.