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NOW the celebrations have died down and minds are more focussed, Wanderers have some serious decisions to make.
Nearly six months ago, Ken Anderson sat before a room of Whites fans at the Macron to announce this would be the summer the club started to make more financial sense.
Seventeen players were out of contract, including many of the so-called ‘big-hitters’, representing an opportunity to rein in a wage structure which had escalated wildly out of control under the watch of the previous regime.
At one stage this season Wanderers were losing £800,000 a month, the vast majority on salaries.
Anderson has worked hard to cut losses further but we will not begin to see proof in black and white until the accounts are posted at Companies House. Confidence is high within the Macron that this red-letter day could take place before the end of May.
In the meantime, what affect will promotion have on the cold, sensible business decisions Anderson spoke about back in December?
Buoyed by a quite brilliant campaign under Phil Parkinson, fans clamour to see Adam Le Fondre, David Wheater, Filipe Morais or Gary Madine signed up for a longer deal.
These players have just served up the first promotion campaign in 16 years, rebuilding the reputations which lay in tatters after relegation 12 months earlier. With such positivity in the air, who can forgive them for wanting to stay longer?
Logic and financial planning seem incongruous with the mood of celebration but that is the challenge facing Anderson, his advisors and Parkinson himself as they look toward next season.
Parkinson wants to retain the team spirit he built in League One, and with it the core of his squad. Realistically, those same players now have a promotion on their CV and their bargaining power has now increased.
Somewhere a pragmatic line must be drawn if the club is to move towards the sustainable model Anderson discussed back at Christmas.
“If we get promoted it will bring around £6-7m into our budget,” he said. “And I think we’ll be in a situation where the club, without selling players or doing anything else, will be making a loss of circa £3m. That’s being honest and telling you the figures.”
Allied to retaining the players who helped restore Wanderers’ Championship status, Parkinson has also spoken of the need to strengthen his squad in key positions.
The lack of an effective option at right-back in February forced the whole team to change formation, while form also took a dip during the run-in when the manager failed to find an alternative for the injured Gary Madine.
Standards will obviously be higher next season against the likes of Sunderland, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Derby County and Norwich City but Wanderers may also find the financial landscape has changed in their year away from the second tier.
Premier League TV money is having an even greater effect on the Championship and for all their recent top flight history – Wanderers are back down at the bottom rung of the ladder, ‘Little Old Bolton’ once again.
Counting in their favour is a feel-good factor which can’t be bought. Fans are identifying with their club once again, and even when the Whites were rubbing shoulders with the real giants of the English game not so long ago, Little Old Bolton came up trumps.
How far Anderson and Parkinson gamble on retaining the players who have served them so well and investing in enough quality to keep Wanderers competitive is the big question this summer. The outcome of discussions this week with the out-of-contract stars could give us a big clue as to the answer.
http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/wanderers/15274208.OPINION__Now_the_party__39_s_over_for_Wanderers__is_it_time_for_clear_financial_thinking_/
Nearly six months ago, Ken Anderson sat before a room of Whites fans at the Macron to announce this would be the summer the club started to make more financial sense.
Seventeen players were out of contract, including many of the so-called ‘big-hitters’, representing an opportunity to rein in a wage structure which had escalated wildly out of control under the watch of the previous regime.
At one stage this season Wanderers were losing £800,000 a month, the vast majority on salaries.
Anderson has worked hard to cut losses further but we will not begin to see proof in black and white until the accounts are posted at Companies House. Confidence is high within the Macron that this red-letter day could take place before the end of May.
In the meantime, what affect will promotion have on the cold, sensible business decisions Anderson spoke about back in December?
Buoyed by a quite brilliant campaign under Phil Parkinson, fans clamour to see Adam Le Fondre, David Wheater, Filipe Morais or Gary Madine signed up for a longer deal.
These players have just served up the first promotion campaign in 16 years, rebuilding the reputations which lay in tatters after relegation 12 months earlier. With such positivity in the air, who can forgive them for wanting to stay longer?
Logic and financial planning seem incongruous with the mood of celebration but that is the challenge facing Anderson, his advisors and Parkinson himself as they look toward next season.
Parkinson wants to retain the team spirit he built in League One, and with it the core of his squad. Realistically, those same players now have a promotion on their CV and their bargaining power has now increased.
Somewhere a pragmatic line must be drawn if the club is to move towards the sustainable model Anderson discussed back at Christmas.
“If we get promoted it will bring around £6-7m into our budget,” he said. “And I think we’ll be in a situation where the club, without selling players or doing anything else, will be making a loss of circa £3m. That’s being honest and telling you the figures.”
Allied to retaining the players who helped restore Wanderers’ Championship status, Parkinson has also spoken of the need to strengthen his squad in key positions.
The lack of an effective option at right-back in February forced the whole team to change formation, while form also took a dip during the run-in when the manager failed to find an alternative for the injured Gary Madine.
Standards will obviously be higher next season against the likes of Sunderland, Aston Villa, Middlesbrough, Derby County and Norwich City but Wanderers may also find the financial landscape has changed in their year away from the second tier.
Premier League TV money is having an even greater effect on the Championship and for all their recent top flight history – Wanderers are back down at the bottom rung of the ladder, ‘Little Old Bolton’ once again.
Counting in their favour is a feel-good factor which can’t be bought. Fans are identifying with their club once again, and even when the Whites were rubbing shoulders with the real giants of the English game not so long ago, Little Old Bolton came up trumps.
How far Anderson and Parkinson gamble on retaining the players who have served them so well and investing in enough quality to keep Wanderers competitive is the big question this summer. The outcome of discussions this week with the out-of-contract stars could give us a big clue as to the answer.
http://www.theboltonnews.co.uk/sport/wanderers/15274208.OPINION__Now_the_party__39_s_over_for_Wanderers__is_it_time_for_clear_financial_thinking_/
