Bart Verbruggen

[ClaretinBudapest]

This is a strange one for me.Call me paranoid but why would VK be prepared to pay €6m for a keeper that has only played a handful of games at senior level and from his old club-it has a brown envelope smell about it to me.I will probably get slagged off for this post but BPF is more than adequate for the Championship.
I think a proven goalscorer is more urgent than another goalkeeper.

[The Bedlington Terrier]

Watch it CiB, that post could well count as malicious slander.

[sinkov]

He's only 19, probably be the back up keeper. This fits in with our new philosophy, buy them young and cheap, develop and improve them, sell them on at a profit. This lad fits the bill and our new goalkeeper coach rates him. I don't have a problem with it.

[ClaretinBudapest]

€6m for an untried GK?

[sinkov]

It's a bit less in real money money CiB, and you've got to back your judgement. If our coaches think this lad could be a £10 million keeper in two or three years, then do it. If our coaches opinions are worthless and not to be trusted then we shouldn't be employing them.

[Swissclaret]

If we are going to be a club that buys low, develops and sells at a profit, so be it. However, what then is the point of the academy and it’s related costs?

We may as well pack that in, save the money and use it to buy the aforesaid talent - especially as it has produced the square root of f*#k all over the years.

[Supersub6]

If we are going to be a club that buys low, develops and sells at a profit, so be it. However, what then is the point of the academy and it’s related costs?

We may as well pack that in, save the money and use it to buy the aforesaid talent - especially as it has produced the square root of f*#k all over the years.

The only problem with shutting the Academy down is the fact that, should we gain promotion, the Premier League Rules state that you must have an academy of at least Category 3 level at the start of the 2024/25 season.
We currently have a facility that is at a high level, thanks to the major improvements in the infrastructure at the club. Sadly, the academy has lost its Category 1 status for whatever reason, although, I think that they made a big mistake in getting rid of the chap who had managed to achieve its status and was still working on things.

[Swissclaret]

I have to hold my hand up and acknowledge that I know nothing about the Academy requirements. However, it doesn’t seem to produce anything - not even players who can cut it in the lower leagues, with very few exceptions.

[Supersub6]

I have to hold my hand up and acknowledge that I know nothing about the Academy requirements. However, it doesn’t seem to produce anything - not even players who can cut it in the lower leagues, with very few exceptions.

Sadly, the whole system was very much in decline and I am led to believe that people were brought in during the Eddie Howe era and it dropped even further. They lost a lot of 'scouts' during this period, although I am unaware of the 'politics' involved. Things started to improve about five or six years ago and we progressed from Category 3 to Category 1 in a short period of time. This meant that, two years ago, many of the lads at under 16 did not progress because better players were required to compete at Category 1 level. They brought in Jon Pepper who was doing a good job in raising the standard and responsible for our Cat 1 status.
Sometime, during the last year, he left, I know not why, and quite a number of staff seem to have been laid off and this has led to the downgrade to Cat 2.
There is a lot more to all this than I know, however, there are some very strict regulations that come into play whenever you are coaching and managing children and young adults.
Had we been playing at a lower level it is possible that a few more players would have developed and been given a chance. However, because our recruitment had been at a lower level for several years as a Cat 3 Academy, it meant that we virtually started again just a few years ago and it takes time to develop young players. I am hopeful that one or two who have been included in pre-season may get an opportunity this season, however, from a manager's point of view it is his job that is on the line. We shall see what transpires.

[sinkov]

If we are going to be a club that buys low, develops and sells at a profit, so be it. However, what then is the point of the academy and it’s related costs?

We may as well pack that in, save the money and use it to buy the aforesaid talent - especially as it has produced the square root of f*#k all over the years.

I've been saying this for about ten years Swiss, I have no idea why we persevere with it and keep throwing good money after bad.