May as well get going with this since with Sullivan at the helm, season ticket renewals slow, and the football vacuum to commence, this will soon be all the "news" there is.
Can Potter and MacCauley pull multiple rabbits out of the hat, or will Sullivan 'try really hard' with all of them before grabbing a few aging bargains from Big Willie Salthouse?
Window this close season comes in two parts:
Part 1: 1st June to 10th June
Part 2: 16th June to 1st September
Yep, was never going to happen, nor could I see it working between them hence why they wanted him gone. Steidtens signings have mostly been a disaster, especially for the outlay.
Fullkrug - Injury prone Striker that struggles to score
Mavropanos- The Greek Tragedy
Twenty-a-day Todibo - Can never last 90 mins with suspect attitude
Alvarez - Disciplinary liability
Guilherme - Failed to make any impact last season
Kudus was his only real success but even then he was another with a poor atittude. Due diligence was never Steidtens strong point.
That's over £170M budgeted with little to show for it on the pitch.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 21 Aug 2025, 06:02
by Mex Martillo
But I understood Steidten was pushed out by Potter and Macaulay. Macaulay was considered to be Steidtens replacement. Was there any consideration that the 3 should work together? Sounds good, but was never a possibility.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 21 Aug 2025, 04:50
by John Drake
You are 100% wrong about the Premier League not being an attractive investment proposition. Club valuations will only increase over time as more is squeezed out of media rights – which may include the PL setting up its own TV channel with direct subscription.
Although it’s true that owners cannot buy immediate success under existing PSR rules, they are still able to improve year on year by increasing revenues through investing in the squad, development and attracting more high-profile sponsors (including associated parties). You can see this happening at Newcastle where revenue growth has rapidly outstripped West Hams. And the existing PSR rules may well be replaced in the next year or two.
What is needed is for someone to consolidate the shares held by Kretinsky and the Gold family so that Sullivan is forced into a minority shareholding.
It would be ludicrous for any owner to get their side relegated on purpose.
RBshorty wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 22:59
Calling it here folks. We're being prepped for the drop. A lot of names will be thrown about by the ITK's. And Brownhill will be the only body through the door. Razzle, Dazzle. Bait and Switch. Or plain old Bullshit. It's just noise. This time in twelve months we will be in the Championship. And someone different in the big chair.
COYI.
To suggest Sully is doing a Brewster's Millions with the club is a bit mental, it's pure ineptitude for sure. I think we'll get two midfielders but one of them might be Brownhill, who I actually welcome on a free for a role off the bench. He'll be alright. Fernandez and Mukau would be the ideal for me. Not much chance of that though.
V. Take the football club out of any Sullivan decision. Investing in us was always a gamble to get the OS. Now that ain't happening. We're a burden to him. He never has been a football person. (Agents have always filled in the gaps.) And nobody going to take it off his hands at Premierships prices. (Who at this moment in time is going to buy a team. When the richest owners on the planet. Can't even invest in the playing squad. Newcastle anyone.?) After 15 years. Both him and the Gold estate have made money on their investment. Just not as much as they would have hope for. West Ham United is now a Distressed- Asset. That's why other people in the boardroom are here. Anyone we bring in will be sold next summer. Or be good enough to get us out of The Fizzy Pop. At the first time of asking.
The “Sullivan Effect” is in overdrive right now. He will not get the signings Potter and the squad needs is where Im leaning as we have seen many times before. Steidten may have not been perfect but could get a deal over the line
I think, in our current setup, Steidten would be perfect. Potter talks to Macaulay, they identify what they need, suggest some names, Steidten either gets them or unearths a better alternative. If Sullivan had kept him on and stayed out of it from here, this is a system that could really work. As an old school manager, Potter is useless but as a Head Coach who can talk to his pal about identifying areas for improvement, his pal doing the ground work on the data side and then The Pearl Diver making the deals, you might see Potter's expertise in player development and tactical team building turn into a winning team.
I think there's a good team leader inside Potter somewhere deep down, but he's going to look a complete mug at West Ham bringing a tactical philosophy we're not ready for and with no club infrastructure to build a team in his vision. And when it fails due to not having the missing piece of the jigsaw that Steidten would have been and putting Sullivan at the top of the player identification and purchasing tree, they have their scapegoat lined up because he has Macaulay.
What a mess.
“Potter's expertise in player development and tactical team building?”
Genuine question: where does this come from?
He’s 50 years old and has one top-ten finish in the Premier League to his name: 9th with Brighton, who finished with 51 points that season - a total that often sees you finish outside the top ten.
His average finishing position in the Premier League is 14th, even with that outlier year included.
He managed Chelsea, with their unfathomable riches, to 12th place and was sacked within 7 months.
He does not have the track record that he, and many others, think he has.
He is the epitome of the emporer’s new clothes. His best position/finish is below Glenn Roeder’s.
I just don’t get why people think he has a record to speak of. Nobody else was in for him. Almost nobody at West Ham wanted him. He’s Mr Below Average.
I'm a bit of a stats nerd, and what he did at Ostersund was nothing short of amazing. Having those accomplishments on his CV with a budget starting at zero and building it by making the players he inherited better, selling them and buying underrated players to improve and either sell at profit or better the team makes him a great Head Coach (but not a manager). It's what got him the Swansea gig to get back into this country then overachieve at Brighton.
I didn't want him because I think he belongs in a club whose stature doesn't come with any expectation whereas we are big enough to expect and demand more. I wanted Amorim, but at that time would have preferred Potter over Lopetegui. Then we got Lopetegui and wanted to back him but wasn't sure what the project was and we kept shipping tons of goals. I didn't agree with getting rid of him but given where we were, was begrudgingly accepting of Potter given his record of team building rather than buying success. However, since we are a much bigger club than the sort of club who needs a man with the Potter expertise, you'd want a recruitment team around him so that he can get on with what he's really good at. This is why he didn't succeed at Chelsea, too many irons in the fire.
Give him a mate to deal with transfers (Macaulay) and an expert in making the deals or finding an alternative (Steidten) and I reckon we have a good, solid Head Coach who will identify his own areas for improvement and not have to deal with any interference from noisy fools. Sadly, we have lost that bridge between his team and the board with Steidten gone and the noisiest fool in the division is his boss, and the one making the deals.
It ain't gonna work, and he's going to look really bad when it goes tits up.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 23:54
by Barty888
Barty888 wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 19:44
ExWHUemployee says we are bidding for these two...
They got pretty decent stats...
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 23:35
by Vexed
RBshorty wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 22:59
Calling it here folks. We're being prepped for the drop. A lot of names will be thrown about by the ITK's. And Brownhill will be the only body through the door. Razzle, Dazzle. Bait and Switch. Or plain old Bullshit. It's just noise. This time in twelve months we will be in the Championship. And someone different in the big chair.
COYI.
To suggest Sully is doing a Brewster's Millions with the club is a bit mental, it's pure ineptitude for sure. I think we'll get two midfielders but one of them might be Brownhill, who I actually welcome on a free for a role off the bench. He'll be alright. Fernandez and Mukau would be the ideal for me. Not much chance of that though.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 22:59
by RBshorty
Calling it here folks. We're being prepped for the drop. A lot of names will be thrown about by the ITK's. And Brownhill will be the only body through the door. Razzle, Dazzle. Bait and Switch. Or plain old Bullshit. It's just noise. This time in twelve months we will be in the Championship. And someone different in the big chair.
The “Sullivan Effect” is in overdrive right now. He will not get the signings Potter and the squad needs is where Im leaning as we have seen many times before. Steidten may have not been perfect but could get a deal over the line
I think, in our current setup, Steidten would be perfect. Potter talks to Macaulay, they identify what they need, suggest some names, Steidten either gets them or unearths a better alternative. If Sullivan had kept him on and stayed out of it from here, this is a system that could really work. As an old school manager, Potter is useless but as a Head Coach who can talk to his pal about identifying areas for improvement, his pal doing the ground work on the data side and then The Pearl Diver making the deals, you might see Potter's expertise in player development and tactical team building turn into a winning team.
I think there's a good team leader inside Potter somewhere deep down, but he's going to look a complete mug at West Ham bringing a tactical philosophy we're not ready for and with no club infrastructure to build a team in his vision. And when it fails due to not having the missing piece of the jigsaw that Steidten would have been and putting Sullivan at the top of the player identification and purchasing tree, they have their scapegoat lined up because he has Macaulay.
What a mess.
“Potter's expertise in player development and tactical team building?”
Genuine question: where does this come from?
He’s 50 years old and has one top-ten finish in the Premier League to his name: 9th with Brighton, who finished with 51 points that season - a total that often sees you finish outside the top ten.
His average finishing position in the Premier League is 14th, even with that outlier year included.
He managed Chelsea, with their unfathomable riches, to 12th place and was sacked within 7 months.
He does not have the track record that he, and many others, think he has.
He is the epitome of the emporer’s new clothes. His best position/finish is below Glenn Roeder’s.
I just don’t get why people think he has a record to speak of. Nobody else was in for him. Almost nobody at West Ham wanted him. He’s Mr Below Average.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 22:24
by Gank
The “Sullivan Effect” is in overdrive right now. He will not get the signings Potter and the squad needs is where Im leaning as we have seen many times before. Steidten may have not been perfect but could get a deal over the line
I think, in our current setup, Steidten would be perfect. Potter talks to Macaulay, they identify what they need, suggest some names, Steidten either gets them or unearths a better alternative. If Sullivan had kept him on and stayed out of it from here, this is a system that could really work. As an old school manager, Potter is useless but as a Head Coach who can talk to his pal about identifying areas for improvement, his pal doing the ground work on the data side and then The Pearl Diver making the deals, you might see Potter's expertise in player development and tactical team building turn into a winning team.
I think there's a good team leader inside Potter somewhere deep down, but he's going to look a complete mug at West Ham bringing a tactical philosophy we're not ready for and with no club infrastructure to build a team in his vision. And when it fails due to not having the missing piece of the jigsaw that Steidten would have been and putting Sullivan at the top of the player identification and purchasing tree, they have their scapegoat lined up because he has Macaulay.
What a mess.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 22:01
by Barty888
Fauxstralian wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 21:54
We aren’t doing jackshit so news from elsewhere
Was reading that Eze to Tottenham is close … but that Arsenal have come back in late & he’d prefer to join them
That’s got to hurt
Of course we could have bought Eze for £20m when he was at QPR but went for Benrahma on loan & subsequent purchase
Usual cock up
And we could have signed Ekiteke from PSG for 15 million ca but Moyes did not want him
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 21:56
by eusebiovic
goose wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 17:40
Even as a fan you have to laugh at the total ineptitude of the situation.
I know Kretinsky & Smith aren’t football people but they are serious business people. They must just sit back & think ‘WTF is going on here’??
I would say they know exactly what they are doing.
Neither will be subsidising his crass stupidity any further so it's simply a waiting game. How long can the he hold on for now that they have withdrawn their advice and support which he has just taken for granted and pissed up the wall?
I suspect they must be seething about it... it's the straw I'm grasping at this late stage...there is some logic to it
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 21:54
by Fauxstralian
We aren’t doing jackshit so news from elsewhere
Was reading that Eze to Tottenham is close … but that Arsenal have come back in late & he’d prefer to join them
That’s got to hurt
Of course we could have bought Eze for £20m when he was at QPR but went for Benrahma on loan & subsequent purchase
Usual cock up
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 21:46
by Vexed
I wonder what Sully's record is for consecutive wrong decisions is? He must have smashed his PB this window. Everything you could possibly do wrong to do with transfers this cսnt has done it. Yeah I think this two million will make all the difference! Meanwhile, time, patience and alternatives drift away. When we get beat by a hatful on Friday they'll be everywhere saying there going to step up their efforts - aka showing everyone how desperate they are now. Helicopter fireball please baby Jesus son.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 20:53
by El Scorchio
Tomshardware wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 20:47
Carlos Bacca
Don't joke. He's 38 and still playing....
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 20:47
by Tomshardware
Carlos Bacca
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 19:55
by El Scorchio
Whichever is the cheapest player from the most desperate club will end up signing for us. Regardless of what number on Potter's list they are- if indeed they are on his list at all.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 19:44
by Barty888
ExWHUemployee says we are bidding for these two...
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 19:18
by dealcanvey
Looking at the saints forum it seems they majority would rather them sell Dibling and keep Fernandes.
were having a good old laugh at the latest offer.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 19:07
by Massive Attack
If I had to choose out of all of them? Casado please! Schooled in La Masia and had a decent season last year for Barcelona in his first full season earning 2 Spanish caps as well.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 18:56
by Barty888
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 18:54
by RBshorty
goose wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 17:40
Even as a fan you have to laugh at the total ineptitude of the situation.
I know Kretinsky & Smith aren’t football people but they are serious business people. They must just sit back & think ‘WTF is going on here’??
As a pair of business men who have made their fortune from Distressed-Assets. I would guess they know full well what's going on. And like us.Waiting for our Glorious Leader to perform Seppuku.!
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 17:56
by stubbo
Trouble is Sullivan assumes all the other clubs are like him. Basically that they WANT to do a deal for players. He probably assumes they're in the same boat with Fernandes that he was with Kudus...that they want to sell and he can 'tease' them into it.
Reality...Southampton don't need the money and are happy to keep the player.
So it's all rather pointless.
He's just bad at this game. He's always been bad at it. And he'll always be bad at it.
Everything that can be said about him, has already been said about him. A frustrating, hopeless, omnishambolic mess of his own making.
As an owner he deserves for us to get relegated. We don't deserve it as fans. He deserves huge pelters this season and I hope he gets it at every single home game. Abhorrent, nasty chants aimed squarely in his direction over and over.
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 17:40
by goose
Even as a fan you have to laugh at the total ineptitude of the situation.
I know Kretinsky & Smith aren’t football people but they are serious business people. They must just sit back & think ‘WTF is going on here’??
Re: Summer Transfer Window 2025 | Official Thread
Posted: 20 Aug 2025, 17:26
by Massive Attack
claypole wrote: ↑20 Aug 2025, 17:23
It seems Sullivan has gone fucking senile
It probably shouldn't be ruled out at this stage in his life..