I stand corrected but I think the contract was withdrawn ayway . I agree that he could have accepted the offer earlier but I think he , rightly so , was hoping for a slightly better deal . Were talking and extra £200 a week here and after the season he had I think he deserved it . I don't see the connection between the contract negotiations and him ' Knuckling down '.
We withdrew from negotiations because he wanted more money. We didn't want to give him more money because we only saw him as a back up. If the figures reported are correct then it was, in hindsight, the wrong decision. But if we bend for an extra 200 quid or so for a back up full back after one season of professional football, does this then start a trend of paying wages we can't afford? Do we then offer an extra 200 a week to two back up centre backs? Do we offer an extra 300 a week for back up midfielders? Do we offer an extra 400 a week for back up wingers? Do we offer an extra 500 a week for back up strikers? You're looking at figures then adding up and without knowing it you're paying more and more. And of course the club isn't infallible. Far from it. But it's also not as ***** as your daily threads intimate it to be.
But in reality not keeping George Williams has led to us paying more money out for loan players like Janko , Jones and Elder . Hindsight is a wonderful thing i know but , I think it was remarkably short sighted of the club to release him knowing he could play both full back roles ,and for such a small financial outlay . It's a bit embarrassing when 3rd division Milton Keynes can afford to pay more than us .
George was one of my favourite players in our memorable second half of last season. He was absolutely immense at LB and I am still mystified to this day why we decided to let him move on. Pass on my congrats to George and tell him he will be assured of a warm welcome any time he returns to Oakwell.
Janko has finally come good after a season of injury, but it is probably too late for us now. Jones looked the business against Leeds and has had some fair games since, but not enough to convince me to sign him Elder - no point, no further comment But then let's not forget Kpekawa who was signed as either a centre half or full back but was never given a run of game to prove he was worth signing. Goodness knows how much we have wasted on him. The club can't always get it right and this one looks a dead duck, UNLESS he starts next season a new player. He was interviewed on last week's Reds Report so he is definitely still around. They didn't ask him any searching questions though, like "Cole, why aren't you playing?"
I agree with most of that. And you can't blame a player who leaves to play for more money at another club - he wasn't the first, and he sure as **** won't be the last. It probably was a mistake to let him go - many at the time said so. But the usual suspects are using it as a stick to beat the club again.