xmiles wrote:
Don't get me started on Megson.
I agree that Coyle has found some excellent players at very little cost (Holden and Ream being the best examples). What worries me is what Coyle would do with a large amount of money. The two most expensive players he has signed are Ngog and Sordell. Ngog has had at best a limited impact and Sordell has played 37 minutes because ??
These are young players, not the finished article. Particularly with strikers, we can't compete for top quality. Even second tier strikers - 10-12 goal a season men in the PL. Players like this; say, Grant Holt, Danny Graham, Yakubu, cost nearly 10m.
So we spend the money we can afford (3m-4m) on young players with an awful lot of potential and we develop them, knowing that even if they don't develop very quickly we can recoup most of what we paid, and if they do very well, we can make a big profit.
You say Ngog has had a limited impact and I would agree, but I would also ask what did you expect? Maybe 6-7 goals instead of 3? Fair enough, but he did an awful lot of hard work on his own up front last season, I believe he has been signed to replace Kevin Davies (Ngog won over 50 free kicks last season) and you're expecting a lot of impact for not a lot of cash. I say, wait and see how Ngog is as a player in a year or two's time before deciding he was a bad buy. See what he does for us and see how much we get for him when he eventually leaves.
Sordell is not dissimilar. I believe he was signed to replace Klasnic - again it is a case of a lot of potential, a lot of natural ability, but raw ability and a long term resale value. If you're disappointed about the amount of game time he got last season I can understand that, but you will see an awful lot more of him this season now that Klasnic has left, and again, evaluate his effectiveness as a player and the prudence of his acquisition when he has had chance to develop.
Criticism which can be leveled at Coyle for signing Ngog and Sordell as his "big money buys" isn't even in the same ball park as the criticism which should be levelled at Megson for signing players in their late 20s for big money such as Elmander, Taylor, Knight, Steinsson, Robinson, Ricketts - we have lost 30m on these players. It is criminal.
What would Coyle do with 8m from a sale of Mark Davies? He would probably sign 2 midfielders and put some in the kitty for January. At least 1 of these midfielders will have a resale value. I say at least 1 instead of both, because typically, effective holding midfielders tend to me mid-20s and older.
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