Raheem Sterling

[Vermilion]

Doesn't look like the choice is ours tbh, don't like the idea of letting his contract run down, not at all, if he wants out then get the maximum soon as, and say tara ****er.

Either it's quite simply about his agents past associations and the financial benefits coming his way should the contract be signed at a later date, or he's waiting to see where we finish, and who comes in for him and is likely to offer him what.

Both probably. Either way all we can do is wait and see, i think all scenarios have been covered, and we are none the wiser.

Summer will be here soon enough.

[MrMichael]

I wonder who turned his head and also if we could maybe have tied his contract up sooner.

Still he has two years left in the summer and we'll hopefully get something for him, I really doubt it'll be best for his personal improvement to move on though.

Also he seems like a very high maintenence person and I don't have the patience for it any more. Would prefer him to stay but not end of the world if he goes.

Honestly I don't see how we could have. He signed a new deal 2 seasons ago paying him £35k as an 18yr old who'd hardly started a dozen games. We then started negotiating another new deal, offering him basically 3x his current salary, only just over a year into that last deal. I think there are very valid complaints that Henderson's contract has been left to run down as it has, but with Sterling the issue is quite flagrantly the advice he has been getting, not what the club have been doing, imo anyway.

This is what happens to us every season now, we lose out best players. An unwanted trend is happening and we have turned into a selling club. Lack of champs league, money & location are all factors. It's very frustrating.

Does it though really? Ok so there was Suarez, but he's absolutely one of the best in the world so that was to be expected. Who was the one before that, Torres?

I think characterising us as a "selling club" is a bit... excessive. Real Madrid have sold Ozil and Di Maria in the last couple of summers, are they a selling club? Chelsea sold Luis, Mata, DeBruyne last year, are they? For me a true selling club is a team like Newcastle, who actively look to take the profit on anyone semi-decent they have and usually don't reinvest it.

Sure we aren't one of the half-dozen or so mega-rich teams who can afford to point blank refuse to sell someone and take a huge loss on them if they run their contract down, but in the business of football players come and players go, as long as we aren't in the habit of actively looking to move players like Sterling on unless we have to I'm not sure that characterisation is quite fair.

I fully expect there to be a Coutinho saga in the next year. You get use to this at LFC

That would be the same Coutinho who signed a new contract like a month ago, on quite reasonable wages, without any drama or nonsense whatsoever? I don't think we have any need to worry about that one wanting to leave right now. Other top teams will want our best players, that's normal and shows we at least have some who are that good, I'd be more concerned about how we are doing if nobody of note was interested in any of them at all

[Saveloy]

Two years left hasn't he? Carry on as we are, sell in January or next summer if he doesn't sign this summer. Still get a decent fee for him then and will have had his services in exchange for his current wage which is pretty low for a player of his ability.

Certainly no reason to sell this summer anyway.

I don't get this (second of these posts) . Surely selling a player in the last year of his contract you take a sizeable hit on the fee? Am I missing something?

[McDermotX]

I don't get this (second of these posts) . Surely selling a player in the last year of his contract you take a sizeable hit on the fee? Am I missing something?

I think its the weighing up factor, in that you keep the player's services (at the same or better level), plus you're only shelling out the previous contract's terms rather than having desperately caved in to ridiculous demands.
Guess it comes down to how desperate you are to keep the player's services for the next season, and how much keeping him helps your goals, as opposed to losing the player and gambling on the replacement hitting the ground running by cashing in.

There is a logic in there...not sure in this case, as Sterling has a loooong way to go before being indispensable. Sure there were plenty who'd loved to keep hold of Suarez for a bit longer and take the hit in transfer a year later.

[Roboklopp]

We sold Monstermash & Xabi tbf mr m.

[Vermilion]

I think its the weighing up factor, in that you keep the player's services (at the same or better level), plus you're only shelling out the previous contract's terms rather than having desperately caved in to ridiculous demands.
Guess it comes down to how desperate you are to keep the player's services for the next season, and how much keeping him helps your goals, as opposed to losing the player and gambling on the replacement hitting the ground running by cashing in.

There is a logic in there...not sure in this case, as Sterling has a loooong way to go before being indispensable. Sure there were plenty who'd loved to keep hold of Suarez for a bit longer and take the hit in transfer a year later.

Don't think Sterling would we worth keeping on the basis of retaining his services for a season; two max, then seeing him leave for free just as he gets closer to his peak.

Better to get maximum dollar soon as; on the basis of his blossoming potential, if he was absolutely intent on leaving.

[McDermotX]

Don't think Sterling would we worth keeping on the basis of retaining his services for a season; two max, then seeing him leave for free just as he gets closer to his peak.

I say sack 'im !!

Don't even want a transfer fee

[Kenneth]

We sold Monstermash & Xabi tbf mr m.

All of those players, with the probable exception of Torres, wanted out of the club. We weren't trying to offload them or make a profit, they were Spanish speaking players who wanted to move to the top two clubs in Spain.

If the argument is that we always sell our Spanish players when they want to join Real or Barca then fair enough, but it certainly doesn't prove we're a 'selling club' imo.
Add in Owen and MacMamaman and there's a definite theme to our biggest exits.

[Vermilion]

I say sack 'im !!

Don't even want a transfer fee

[G]

I don't get this (second of these posts) . Surely selling a player in the last year of his contract you take a sizeable hit on the fee? Am I missing something?

Yes but if he's going anyway at least we get a fee rather than lose him for free having also got some cheap use out of him in the meantime. To be quite honest I can't see who would stump up an obscene amount for him for us to consider selling him this summer so it will drag on past that and then it becomes cat and mouse as to how close it gets to him leaving on a free or us deciding to take a fee for him.

[MrMichael]

We sold Monstermash & Xabi tbf mr m.

All of those players, with the probable exception of Torres, wanted out of the club. We weren't trying to offload them or make a profit, they were Spanish speaking players who wanted to move to the top two clubs in Spain.

If the argument is that we always sell our Spanish players when they want to join Real or Barca then fair enough, but it certainly doesn't prove we're a 'selling club' imo.
Add in Owen and MacMamaman and there's a definite theme to our biggest exits.

Yup, this, plus I also really don't think we can conflate the dark times of H&G when Mash & Xabi left (and that even ran into / caused Torres' exit) with the state of the club now.

[Roboklopp]

Furry muff.

[RedRum]

Really? I wouldn't be, Sterling can reach heights that Walcott never will and the latter has serious injury problems.....

On second thoughts, yeah your right, not Walcott, his injuries are bound to be an issue. With the money from selling we are unlikely to get someone with as much potential as Sterling but we could get a better player now, already at the top of his game instead. Would be happy either way but definitely nothing to panic about if he leaves.

[danperkins]

Honestly I don't see how we could have. He signed a new deal 2 seasons ago paying him £35k as an 18yr old who'd hardly started a dozen games. We then started negotiating another new deal, offering him basically 3x his current salary, only just over a year into that last deal. I think there are very valid complaints that Henderson's contract has been left to run down as it has, but with Sterling the issue is quite flagrantly the advice he has been getting, not what the club have been doing, imo anyway.



Does it though really? Ok so there was Suarez, but he's absolutely one of the best in the world so that was to be expected. Who was the one before that, Torres?

I think characterising us as a "selling club" is a bit... excessive. Real Madrid have sold Ozil and Di Maria in the last couple of summers, are they a selling club? Chelsea sold Luis, Mata, DeBruyne last year, are they? For me a true selling club is a team like Newcastle, who actively look to take the profit on anyone semi-decent they have and usually don't reinvest it.

Sure we aren't one of the half-dozen or so mega-rich teams who can afford to point blank refuse to sell someone and take a huge loss on them if they run their contract down, but in the business of football players come and players go, as long as we aren't in the habit of actively looking to move players like Sterling on unless we have to I'm not sure that characterisation is quite fair.



That would be the same Coutinho who signed a new contract like a month ago, on quite reasonable wages, without any drama or nonsense whatsoever? I don't think we have any need to worry about that one wanting to leave right now. Other top teams will want our best players, that's normal and shows we at least have some who are that good, I'd be more concerned about how we are doing if nobody of note was interested in any of them at all

I say selling club, but not because it's our choice. Maybe the wrong choice of words, more like we can't hold onto our best players. I meant from the point of view, there has been a trend over the last 5 or 6 years, that our best players leave when we don't want them to leave. Chelsea didn't want Luiz,De Bruyne or Mata & Madrid didn't want Ozil, not sure about Di Maria. Whether it be their choice or not... we are still losing them & we find ourselves trying to rebuild or replace. Arsenal (Hleb, Flamini, Nasri, Song, Ade, RVP, Cesc) & Spurs (Carrick, Berbatov, Modric, Bale) suffer from this also. Spurs to a lesser extent but means playing catch up every season when the like of Chelsea,City & United for the most part, can keep their best players and then improve their side even further. It's frustrating.

As for the transfer saga, we do seem to have a long drawn out one every season, that is played out through the media. Coutinho signing is great but these days contracts just means we'll get a better price if he decides to leave. I don't see footballers signing contracts these days as a sign of loyalty that they well see it out. Means the club is protected and the player gets more money. If we keep finishing outside of the top 4... we will lose our best players & understandably so. Taking out location which we can do nothing about, it's up to us to break into the top 4 regularly, to attract and keep top players.

[Doc_Piptorious]

I say selling club, but not because it's our choice. Maybe the wrong choice of words, more like we can't hold onto our best players. I meant from the point of view, there has been a trend over the last 5 or 6 years, that our best players leave when we don't want them to leave. Chelsea didn't want Luiz,De Bruyne or Mata & Madrid didn't want Ozil, not sure about Di Maria. Whether it be their choice or not... we are still losing them & we find ourselves trying to rebuild or replace. Arsenal (Hleb, Flamini, Nasri, Song, Ade, RVP, Cesc) & Spurs (Carrick, Berbatov, Modric, Bale) suffer from this also. Spurs to a lesser extent but means playing catch up every season when the like of Chelsea,City & United for the most part, can keep their best players and then improve their side even further. It's frustrating.

As for the transfer saga, we do seem to have a long drawn out one every season, that is played out through the media. Coutinho signing is great but these days contracts just means we'll get a better price if he decides to leave. I don't see footballers signing contracts these days as a sign of loyalty that they well see it out. Means the club is protected and the player gets more money. If we keep finishing outside of the top 4... we will lose our best players & understandably so. Taking out location which we can do nothing about, it's up to us to break into the top 4 regularly, to attract and keep top players.

If we look at the really big players for us over the past 10 to 15 years that left whilst in their prime, then for the most part two clubs in particular keep popping up as the destination of choice for those players.

Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Both are clubs that are bigger than us on a global scale, and both are clubs that most professional footballers probably see as being the pinnacle of club football.

So when those two clubs come knocking most players will answer the call, and few clubs in the game, if any, will be able to knock back overtures from Real or Barca.

You mentioned Arsenal and Spurs. The majority of the big names that those two clubs lost also went to Real or Barca as well (although in the case of Arsenal Man City have started to nab some of their players).


Even Man Utd were unable to stop their top player at the time in Ronaldo from eventually winging his way over to Real Madrid.


So losing players, your best players, to Barca and Real Madrid does not make a club a selling club in my eyes. Rather it instead highlights a club's position on the food chain. If it usually takes a Barca or Real Madrid approach to take your very best, then you are pretty high up the food chain and are probably the type of club that is able to take players from clubs all over the world and cause fans of those clubs to bemoan the fact that their clubs are selling clubs.


As for having a drawn out transfer saga every summer/season....seems to me that nearly every top club sees this happen to this every season and more than likely it happens at the not so big clubs every season as well.


This coming summer I expect to see plenty of paper inches get filled up with transfer "sagas" involving;


Mancs - De Gea and Di Maria

Arsenal - Walcott, Wilshire, and maybe Ramsey

Spurs - Eriksen and Kane

Chelsea - Hazard to PSG again

Man City - Pick one from Jovetic, Mangala, Kompany, and maybe even Aguero.


It is just that our transfer sagas stand out more for us because it involves the club we care about and tattle about other clubs does not register in the same manner.