From EDP 24 - this is a good read

[Midlands Yellow 3,946]

On 16/07/2020 at 11:31, hogesar said:

We didn't get "lucky" last season.

"Lucky" teams don't score nearly 100 goals and finish top of the league over the entirety of a season.

Your quite right  with that statement but neither were we unlucky this season. 

[City 2nd 191]

On 16/07/2020 at 09:07, lake district canary said:

Webber was perfectly clear. The club COULD NOT bring in the kinds of players it wanted. They may have tried to get a defender but anyone that fitted the bill was either too expensive or not available.  It was also perfectly clear that the club would not spend that much and we were told so at the beginning. The club in the previous season did not have money to buy itself out of the chamionship - we were in the early stages of rebuilding the finances of the club after getting rid of all the big wage contracts. That we got out of that league was remarkable, given the circumstances.

He confirmed that this season we were STILL rebuilding the finances and were NEVER going to spend a large amount.  Because of that rebuilding we NOW have money to spend next season which will help build the squad to a better strength. It is the plan, it has been since the start and it will be the same next season - a gradual build.

On to this season and we all know what happened, but some people are fixated by the Southampton match, yet that was the first of the unknown - NO-ONE knew how the lockdown restart behind closed doors would affect the players, yet it has been clear in hindsight that particularly in those first few games at the restart,  teams were doing better away from home and that the bottom teams were struggling to get anywhere.  It was the first match and we learned the hard way.

Whatever chance we had for staying up went with the lockdown, that should be clear to anyone now we have all seen how it has transpired.  I was hopeful that we could come back and make the lockdown work in our favour somehow, but it is clear the opposite happened. 

So we are down, but recriminations should be minimal imo - the break in the season and the way we have had to cram games in with 5 subs possible and our inexperienced squad and lack of fit defenders, has done for us.  I've seen people say we were "unprepared" "unfit" "not trying hard enough"...........that is total b*ll*x. 

People will spin it in different ways and I suppose that is up to them, but the underlying truth is plain to see. We are rebuilding the club, this was always going to be a hard season and whatever we had going for us in terms of momentum disappeared with the defensive injuries and then the lockdown...and more defensive injuries.  The 5 sub rule was just the final factor - same for all clubs? My ar$e. 

"We now have money to spend next season"

one can only hope you are right Lakey, does that money include the 30m loss the pandemic is supposedly costing ncfc as according to mr webber? Bargain buys are going to be the order of the day for a long long time to come and we can only hope defenders are amongst that maxim, because we have had the worst defence for the last two seasons. We can only hope webber has learnt a lesson.

[City 2nd 191]

On 16/07/2020 at 14:33, lake district canary said:

Then you are stupid. There are a lot of factors involved and simplistic "we were bottom and stayed there" type comments just demean the team and the efforts they put in and ignore the factors that affected the situation.

What efforts were they then?

[yellow_belly 226]

1 hour ago, Midlands Yellow said:

Your quite right  with that statement but neither were we unlucky this season. 

This was my point 

[Icecream Snow 761]

12 minutes ago, City 2nd said:

"We now have money to spend next season"

one can only hope you are right Lakey, does that money include the 30m loss the pandemic is supposedly costing ncfc as according to mr webber? Bargain buys are going to be the order of the day for a long long time to come and we can only hope defenders are amongst that maxim, because we have had the worst defence for the last two seasons. We can only hope webber has learnt a lesson.

Michael Bailey on the Athletic had a breakdown of the numbers, but Webber said it was £20m. £15m loss and a provisional £5m loss of gate receipts for empty stadiums for the rest of the year. £8m rebate payment needs to be made to the broadcasters, but that will be deducted from the year 2 parachute payments (if we don't go straight back up).

We claimed £2.5m from the government furlough scheme, so whilst the club is relaxed they're not going to be screaming our financial position from the rooftops.

[yellow_belly 226]

4 minutes ago, Icecream Snow said:

Michael Bailey on the Athletic had a breakdown of the numbers, but Webber said it was £20m. £15m loss and a provisional £5m loss of gate receipts for empty stadiums for the rest of the year. £8m rebate payment needs to be made to the broadcasters, but that will be deducted from the year 2 parachute payments (if we don't go straight back up).

We claimed £2.5m from the government furlough scheme, so whilst the club is relaxed they're not going to be screaming our financial position from the rooftops.

It is morally questionable for any football club or business to ‘trouser’ £2.5m from the taxpayer, and then purchase a commodity / asset (in this case a footballer) for financial gain... especially when the owners / directors / key wage earners (Eg footballers) do not reduce their salaries/ dividends/ profits.

This was the moment I became very critical of Norwich City and the champagne socialists.

[yellow_belly 226]

... and if we go bankrupt this is the optimum time to sell the club to a new backer! (As argued by Lakey) 

[Herman 9,717]

If you are talking about the lad from Luxembourg then I think it was agreed pre covid. 

[yellow_belly 226]

9 hours ago, Herman said:

If you are talking about the lad from Luxembourg then I think it was agreed pre covid. 

I am talking about any players bought  post lockdown (In the short term)

[Herman 9,717]

Like who? 

[essex canary 492]

Perhaps one thing the article was reflecting is that whilst perhaps the odds were against us this season,  had we have maintained the same outlook and attitude  as say Paul Lamberts first Premier League season or Burnley's return to the Premier League or Sheffield United this season, we may have done better.