This is Clarkeonenil’s regular comment column, cutting through the various passing issues of football and getting to the core principle in the shortest time.
Gambling on idiocy.
So Beckford is still a Leeds United player (but Showumni isn’t so thankful for small mercies) and the stand-off between club, player, agent and suitors continues. Ignoring this morning’s garbage about “the manager decides” (comments that would lack credibility with any club never mind coming out of Bates mouth) this is still a very simple equation in my mind. Beckford is a declining asset, like renovating a house in LS11 no matter how much time and effort you put into it there is a ceiling price. The ceiling price on a L1 player with 5 months left on his contract is £1.5m maximum. He will not be the difference between automatic promotion or not, this is a no brainer, stop playing Texas Hold Em and cash in.
The other gamble that the club has taken is to suggest that it is entirely reasonable to withhold all information about players and whether they want to play for the club, a kind of mushroom mentality towards the fans, just continue pumping shite on them and keep them in the dark. That no-one, including any of the fans organisations, have sought to question this shows it might be working. But there hopefully comes a point when it won’t; if Beckford signs a pre-contract with anyone, which he will surely do if no move has materialised by the week after the Spurs game, and the fans find out via the media then this gamble will have back-fired.
We will be left with a dead asset, Beckford’s motivation will be diminished and Bates’s credibility will have taken another knock (but he hardly had any to lose).
Gambling on saving pennies.
What to make of the appointment of Brian Laws to the Burnley job? Well let’s try and give credit, if the reason O’Driscoll wasn’t offered the job is Burnley weren’t prepared to make him an offer before agreeing terms with Doncaster Rovers then well bone Mr Kilby. Equally if they are using some of the Bolton compensation to ensure they don’t go into the red whilst in the PL, again I can see some merit in that. However that is not the same as understanding why a manager looking so bereft of ideas at Sheffield Wednesday got the job so soon after his recent sacking. Curbishley, Coppell, Hoddle, Hughes, Pearce et all were available and would have cost nothing but wages to employ. This looks like a gamble of prudence.
Laws himself has taken somewhat of a gamble also, his reputation at Burnley will be formed on his capacity to plug a leaky defence and improve a shocking away record, all whilst not undermining the passing mentality Coyle introduced (unless he wants to be the new Gary Megson). He will need to keep in mind that some of the players not quite up to the PL mark are popular at Turf Moor and trying to replace them with dross that spends its career hopping from relegation threatened club to relegated club will not endear him. Also if he goes back to Hillsborough for players it is probably for the best if it wasn’t Francis Jeffers or Leon Clarke he picked up.
Laws has a contract for 30 months, he might want to work on the assumption at least 12 of those will be in the CCC and plan accordingly. If the Burnley board have understood that then maybe this gamble isn’t so costly.
Gambling on other peoples careers.
Wasn’t it a joy to watch, Liverpool conceded a penalty, at Anfield, in stoppage time, superb, it will be happening to the Germany team in a World Cup game next! Benetiz really has lost the plot, Reading were worthy of that victory and to cap it all both Torres and Gerrard went off injured (and in the ultimate irony Liverpool then improved!). It is well known both players need surgery on long standing niggling injuries but Benetiz is refusing to let them have the rest and recuperation till he has taken Liverpool out of contention for all possible prizes! He is gambling with the long term careers of both men and particularly with their presence in South Africa.
Now to be honest, if Gerrard finishes up spending June in his bling Merseyside mansion I won’t be too bothered (and in fact if he wants to have a career ending injury that’s fine by me, small price to pay for perverting the English justice system I think) but I would be a little more concerned if Torres wasn’t part of the Spain team likely to take their first World Cup. This is where Benetiz is misreading his hand, Torres knows that in order to get fit for South Africa he needs a two month break, either he will get one of those mysterious injuries which allows him to get that rest or he will have to force the clubs hand by threatening to leave if he isn’t allowed the surgery. Now given that Liverpool don’t have a pray of getting 4th in the PL they take their future football credibility in their hands if they lose Torres.
Of course the real gambles at Anfield are keeping on Benetiz and the owners financial mess, but even on the latter side they are just amateurs compared to Manchester United and their American owners.
