Transfer windows...good thing or disaster for Derby?

[ramAnag]

I know they've been around for a while now and I may be saying this for selfish - i.e. relatively wealthy Derby based - reasons but I really miss the days when managers could see how things were going for a month or two and then make adjustments/signings accordingly.
Two of my all time favourite signings - Dean Saunders and Stimac - both fell into this category. Back in the late eighties Arthur Cox needed a goal scorer and Deano was acquired, with a little help from manipulative Maxwell, to transform the side - around October time I think - in much the same way as Jim Smith's signing of Stimac would do when we needed a leader and talisman a few years later.
That 'leader' is exactly what we are lacking now and I'd be so much more optimistic if I didn't think we'd got to wait at least another three and a half months to stand any chance of getting one.
I'm sure there must be advantages with the 'windows' system but for me it concentrates all the transfer 'excitement' into two periods of just a few weeks and must be frustrating for managers who want to ship certain individuals out in order to afford the injection of a bit of 'new blood' into the side.
We all suspect that there are individuals who Pearson would be happy to move on but really he is powerless now, as far as these very well paid under achievers are concerned, until January at the earliest. Seems to me to have removed much of the skill of management along with the excitement that all slightly older fans will remember at the prospect of those mid season signings. Thoughts anyone?

[Oldtimeram]

One word answer. Agree

[swaledale]

Agree, its rather odd that an employee cannot move jobs at any time subject to appropriate notice! Again i think transfer fees should be abolished, replaced by say a training and development levy base don the years a player spent at a club before he was 21, after that age the only fee should be compensation by the buying club for the remaining years of a players contract.

[swaledale]

I know they've been around for a while now and I may be saying this for selfish - i.e. relatively wealthy Derby based - reasons but I really miss the days when managers could see how things were going for a month or two and then make adjustments/signings accordingly.
Two of my all time favourite signings - Dean Saunders and Stimac - both fell into this category. Back in the late eighties Arthur Cox needed a goal scorer and Deano was acquired, with a little help from manipulative Maxwell, to transform the side - around October time I think - in much the same way as Jim Smith's signing of Stimac would do when we needed a leader and talisman a few years later.
That 'leader' is exactly what we are lacking now and I'd be so much more optimistic if I didn't think we'd got to wait at least another three and a half months to stand any chance of getting one.
I'm sure there must be advantages with the 'windows' system but for me it concentrates all the transfer 'excitement' into two periods of just a few weeks and must be frustrating for managers who want to ship certain individuals out in order to afford the injection of a bit of 'new blood' into the side.
We all suspect that there are individuals who Pearson would be happy to move on but really he is powerless now, as far as these very well paid under achievers are concerned, until January at the earliest. Seems to me to have removed much of the skill of management along with the excitement that all slightly older fans will remember at the prospect of those mid season signings. Thoughts anyone?

The ting is though Anag is that IF the management agreed with this, WHY did they not purchase such a player before the end of the transfer window?

[DCFCArmy]

I think we should rid the transfer markets altogether, I mean how stupid would it be for say Thorntons (off the top of my head) to only be allowed to buy in ingredients around a certain point of the year.

FFP is good to a degree but it favours the big clubs, so tweak it so smaller clubs have more of a leeway.

And get rid of transfer fees, we all know by now no club is actually paying 90m quid for an average Frenchman anyway, its money laundering under the guise of paying for players.

AND... get RID of agents.

[macstheman]

Totally agree, the importance of a leader cannot be over stressed. Mackay for example, yes when Willie Carlin arrived we suddenly became a team but the arrival of big Dave changed everything. Not only the effect on our relatively young team but the effect on the opposition. They were in awe of him, he just had to give them the look and they became putty in his hands. He stuck out that chest which said 'just try it!!' and they just bowed down before him - those that did'nt finished as a heap of blubbering jelly on the floor. I agree Swale why we did'nt go for one is a mystery, NP tried to raise Keogh's profile but despite his never say die spirit he's not an 'in your face' leader.

[ramspride]

Totally agree, the importance of a leader cannot be over stressed. Mackay for example, yes when Willie Carlin arrived we suddenly became a team but the arrival of big Dave changed everything. Not only the effect on our relatively young team but the effect on the opposition. They were in awe of him, he just had to give them the look and they became putty in his hands. He stuck out that chest which said 'just try it!!' and they just bowed down before him - those that did'nt finished as a heap of blubbering jelly on the floor. I agree Swale why we did'nt go for one is a mystery, NP tried to raise Keogh's profile but despite his never say die spirit he's not an 'in your face' leader.

If Keogh was 'in my face' it would frighten me to death. I agree about a leader needed but I've been saying that for the last two years. We also need someone who can head the ball. It doesn't need to be a forward but we haven't got one player who can head the ball with any skill I think they all shut their eyes and hope. It restricts our free kicks and corners as the stats prove.

[swaledale]

If Keogh was 'in my face' it would frighten me to death. I agree about a leader needed but I've been saying that for the last two years. We also need someone who can head the ball. It doesn't need to be a forward but we haven't got one player who can head the ball with any skill I think they all shut their eyes and hope. It restricts our free kicks and corners as the stats prove.

A good point as Newcastle have scored 80% or something like that of their goals from set pieces, we fail miserably, but surely we have players who can head the ball? The quality of our corners and free kicks has been poor for the last few seasons.

I think Keogh is a leader and scary, but maybe he does not impose himself on one or two "big time" charlies? I had thought Johnson would provide the bite and leadership but it seems not.

[ramAnag]

All very well to say 'get rid of agents' DCFC. I agree, but how? It's a bit like saying we need a 'clear out' at Derby...we all know we do...but how?
The contracts monster has been created and with it comes agents and a level of player 'security' which is now actually unhelpful. Imagine a scenario, difficult I know, where a player is underperforming and causing dressing room unrest but is actually on a £30,000 a week contract. In the past maybe a Clough or a Shankly would have been able to cut them down to size and move them on, maybe Mackay would have 'stuck out his chest' and brought people 'to heel' but what, say this were the case, is Pearson now able to do about such a situation before next January at the earliest?
Even then, if the agent feels a move isn't beneficial for 'his' player/meal ticket, how is a manager anything but powerless?

[swaledale]

All very well to say 'get rid of agents' DCFC. I agree, but how? It's a bit like saying we need a 'clear out' at Derby...we all know we do...but how?
The contracts monster has been created and with it comes agents and a level of player 'security' which is now actually unhelpful. Imagine a scenario, difficult I know, where a player is underperforming and causing dressing room unrest but is actually on a £30,000 a week contract. In the past maybe a Clough or a Shankly would have been able to cut them down to size and move them on, maybe Mackay would have 'stuck out his chest' and brought people 'to heel' but what, say this were the case, is Pearson now able to do about such a situation before next January at the earliest?
Even then, if the agent feels a move isn't beneficial for 'his' player/meal ticket, how is a manager anything but powerless?

I'd say exactly the same as in other walks of life! How many managers have the ability to simply "move on" a less than ideal employee from their workforce? Why should it be different in football? In any case, isn't the "bad apples" or underperforming player a monster created more by the media and fans assumptions than the actual truth? THe whole point of the manager is about leadership, about getting players motivated to play in the team and I'd ave thought pearson s able to do that.

In any case, there seems to be no problem last season with players being side lined and not playing a part on the team, not sure the transfer window actually makes that much difference from that point of view.

I don't see that Agents can be removed, but there could easily be much more control over them from a the FA and other authorities, i'm guessing there isn't because the same snouts are in the same trough?