I’m thoroughly dissappointed.
First, because Benteke wants out and second because we seem so willing to let him go, as long as the price is right.
I like to think I’m reasonably pragmatic and fairly sensible, but I have to say from the off that I wish the club would put up a bit more of a stance in trying to keep him.
It’s all well and good saying we’ll only consider bids at the price that we want, but why not come out and re-affirm the £30 mill or whatever it was; and chuck in a “don’t even think of insulting us with £20 mill” comment while we’re at it?
Why not?
Because I don’t believe we’ll hold out for the aforementioned top price.
There you have it, I predict he will go for quite a bit less than £30 mill.
Mind you, I was convinced he would stay this season, so what do I know?
No, it’s the way that we seem to have rolled over on this one that is winding me up.
It’s now a given that Benteke is gone and it’s only a matter of how much.
So, my question here is how long can the game put up with this sort of behaviour from players and agents?
I’ve read all the arguments from the previous thread and have sympathy with all points.
But the underlying feeling still sides with the view that the club should just 100% take charge, in a way that says, if we don’t get offered x, he will remain a Villa player.
So why haven’t we done that?
I reckon the rumoured £20 clause is true, that’s why.
If so, Lambert is going to look a right mug, in my opinion.
I’m digressing.
My point is when is a club going to take a real stand against the agents?
I’ve had people on here trying to tell me that Lerner is doing just that, but I’VE don’t believe it for one minute.
The desire of all football fans is there. We have the Odemwingie debacle and the backing of Albion’s stance to back that up.
Sometime, a club will have to make a major stance and threaten a decent player with being dumped in with the kids.
I wish it would be us, but that isn’t going to happen.
But I believe it will happen. It has too, for the good of the game.
So, given the assumption that Benteke is gone (I refuse to call him Judas, as I feel he’s a misguided kid), what will happen with the money?
Let’s say we get £20 million rising to x.
That’s on top of the extra £30 mill from Sky.
And surely we’d have spent £10 mill even before this lot occurred?
That’s a pretty tidy £60 mill, with Lerner not putting a cent in.
Ok, he’s owed a few quid, after what he’s already put in.
Say £15 mill for him then.
Not unreasonable to the owner an the fans I’d suggest.
Add in the savings on wages and it’s even better for the owner.
So we can look forward to a nice £45 million net spend can’t we?
Er, why are we all laughing?
Because we all know it isn’t going to happen, is it?
We all have our views on why it won’t happen and that’s what I’m looking forward to reading.
I’ll start.
Lerner is just recouping as much as possible, as fast as possible.
Oh, one last thing.
As much as we try and hide it, Benteke is a MAJOR loss, that will need more than improving the team overall.
We need a 20 a season striker, simple.
What’s the chances of that happening again on the cheap?
