Any chance of two for the price of one, mate? |
As the negotiations
around Winston Reid’s future at West Ham continue alongside the tentative
efforts to explore how much a permanent signing of Alex Song would cost from Barcelona, the reality is that
West Ham may ultimately have to opt for one over the other. Although the East
London outfit have made huge financial strides under the Sullivan-Gold ownership
team, they may struggle to finance both deals. At 15plus million, Song would
severely dent the Bubbles’ budget facing into the Olympic Stadium move, while
at a reported 75K a week, Reid will become one of the best paid defenders in
the league.
One option would
be to offload the fit again (for now anyway!) Andy Carroll who cost a whopping
15 million and is reported to be receiving £100K per week. However, the Hammers
would be doing well to recoup even a modest fraction of that amount after an
injury-plagued time at the Boleyn whereby he has never managed more than a
handful of consecutive games and a mere handful of goals. Carroll still has
over four years to run on his current contract which will pose a continued
drain upon resources unless the likes of Newcastle can be persuaded to take a
gamble on the former Magpie.
An alternate
solution may lie in the Hammers current excellent form which sees then reside
in fifth place after a series of exciting performances during which both Song
and Reid have been key players in a run of victories that includes current
Premiership champions Manchester City. David Sullivan has hinted that money is
only one aspect of the deal with Reid, who at 26 years of age is apparently
keen to move up a level to include European football. Song meanwhile, has been credited
with the observation that West ham at the Olympic Stadium will likely be a
bigger club than Arsenal over time! As such, a top-six finish might attract
both players to stay at the Premierships fastest rising club while also providing
the necessary funds to support both signings.
One area where
the board have been somewhat quiet relates to the extent that the sale of the
Boleyn ground with a modest rent at the new Olympic stadium should also open up
funds for squad strengthening. However, although some fans were somewhat
sceptical at the beginning of the Davids era, time has proven that the pair
have been more than willing to splash the cash when necessary to advance the
club and it is likely that their silence is an effort to avoid having the club
perceived as cash-rich with the attendant premium upon any transfer business
that that entails. Hammers fans need only think back to the outrageous transfer
fees shelled out during the disastrous Icelandic era to remind themselves that
it’s sometimes better to maintain a modest profile!
So for now,
Hammers fans should enjoy the action as the futures of both Song and Reid are
likely to remain uncertain until much later in the season. Let the good form continue and anything is possible, including surpassing Spurs, Arsenal and even Chelsea over the next few years?
This article is total speculation. We can increase our wage bill by an additional 4 million under the FFP next season which would more than cover Reid's wages if he accepted the reported new offer and with players going out of contract such as Vaz, Cole, Jussi, Morrison etc leaving and the very lightly sales of now fringe players such as Nolan or Jarvis would free up more than enough to cover Song's wages should he sign. On top of which any increase in turnover through additional sponsorship etc which is almost guaranteed with the OS just around the corner we can increase the wage bill under the FFP anyway. Which is exactly what we will do to allow us to strengthen further and bring in more quality players.
ReplyDeleteClass mateacher. Are u an accountant or sumfink?
ReplyDeleteYes, it is speculative. That is because it is a discursive piece that considers what we know about the club at present and in the immediate future. Your comments re the freeing up of funds and the FFP rules are astute and add to the notion (hope) that we can hold on to both players. Fingers crossed!
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