Quote Originally Posted by swaledale View Post
Well there are a limited number of options as to why he has gone and given the circumstances the salary demands are the most likely.

I didn't say "over the odds" deal, but he will have an agent who if he is doing his job will have calculated the likely salary that other clubs in will pay, he may even have got firm offers ( don't forget a player on a free transfer can often get a higher wage as the club looking to sign him hasn't got a transfer fee to pay) and there are other richer clubs in the championship who may well be prepared to pay more than Derby are. Who would blame Wildsmith for seeking the best financial deal for himself? I'm sure even a "back up" keeper at Norwich, Southampton, Burnley, Sheff Utd for example would pay more than 1st choice at derby with potential promotion bonusses as well.

In the end no matter how pleasant and well balanced a player is, money talks and if that comes with potentially better career opportunities as well, why wouldn't he take them?


To say its a big mistake seems to suggest that Derby should pay him what he wants? Surely that approach is not sensible? At any rate it implies that his departure is purely down to Derby and Warne, whereas its more than possible that it was Wildsmith's choice to take an opportunity which his good performances last season and the fact that he is out of contract have become available.
You did actually refer to paying ‘over the odds’, in post #37, but no matter and I take your other points, although he has always come across to me as a player who values first team opportunities over Carson like salary security.
I didn’t actually intend it to sound over critical of either Derby or the manager although it will be very interesting to see where JW ends up.
Maybe ‘big mistake’ was overstating things because, as you rightly suggest, none of us know the full details…probably just disappointed, because Wildsmith would have been one of the first four or five names from last season’s squad - along with Nelson, Cashin, NML and Adams - I’d have been looking to secure for next season.