Looking to move on again this summer. Being courted by Rotherham and Charlton... Certainly doesn't seem to have gained many Championship level admirers.
Sadly another one who thought the grass was greener. I honestly don’t blame him as I would have done the same, but he would have been better having another year with us.
Let's hope they are all enjoying their couple of years of extra money before probably being paid less than they were at Oakwell when they are shipped on again.
https://www.soccerbase.com/players/player.sd?player_id=71286 He took a while to settle at Preston probably due to a lack of games. But he's been involved in three clean sheets in their last four games. He's still another two seasons on his Stoke contract and should get another Championship club in the summer. I can see Huddersfield being after him as their defence is weak as piss with Stearman and Keogh in it and Schindler out of contract.
I honestly think he'd be better suited to playing in our current team, than when he was here. His distribution left a lot to be desired, especially when there was an emphasis on playing out from the back. I think our 'vertical' game would suit him more now. That being said, I'm not suggesting we go in for him.
He is not a bad laiker ,we built him up to get more cash,might be carrying an injury but as not progressed
Be a good signing for rotherham whichever league they end up in. Although I imagine stoke would want a good bit of the 2million they spent on him. Was good for us but it was clear who was going to make the better impression on the championship out of him and pinnock.
Grass isn't always greener but the money is better. Moore - doing o.k at Cardiff will no doubt be sniffing out his next move with them missing out on the Play-Offs. Winnall - Oxford League 1. Davies - Bench warming at Stoke. Scowen - League 1 Sunderland. Watkins - Sheep shagging at Aberdeen. Mawson - On loan at Bristol City. Hourihane - On loan at Swansea. Angus Mcdonald - about to be relegated with Rotherham Andy Yiadom - Done nowt at Reading. Liam Lindsay - vastly overrated. Can't believe Adam Jackson has ended up at Lincoln City. I rated him. Also Pearson playing out of his skin at Luton.
There is no way on earth that Adam Jackson was better than Lindsay. Jackson was bang average, hardly ever won a header, not much pace and positionally wasn't great. Towards the end of his stay here he did get better and wasn't a terrible back up but to claim he was better than Lindsay is bonkers.
I'd say the grass is still greener for Hourihane. He has a Premier League contract still. Don't think anyone could begrudge Mawson his move at the time, from L1 promotion team to the Premier League. He even got into the England squad at one stage, so I'd say the grass was greener for him. Winnall's injuries did for him, but moving to a club that already has a load of players in his position wasn't particularly smart. Same applies to Davies. Can only assume Davies, Lyndsay and Brown didn't have any other offers because I'm not sure why they would choose Stoke.
This is one aspect of fandom I don't really get. I'm so proud of us this year but lifting the fog of our current success, I think it's pretty clear that the grass was greener for almost all of those players. Hourihane, Mawson, no content. Both played in the Prem, the former playing something like 150 games for Villa in both leagues. No Prem for Moore but he has done really well at both clubs, again both closer to their Prem days than us (hopefully the latter half of that statement turns out to be untrue in a few weeks!) Scowen and Yiadom and played at a higher level by avoiding a relegation. Watkins too, although with less success. All of them moving closer to home to (IIRC.) McDonald who knows what would have happened without the health problems. I think Brown has done well for Stoke, and while maybe Davies and Lindsay haven't pulled up trees all three moves are understandable. We may not rate a cold night in Stoke (I don't, by the sounds of it) but most would say they went from a perennially relegation threatened club to one with bigger attendances that was, again, not long out of the Prem. And who knows what agents and national team managers were wispering in Davies's ears. And Winnall, well, he was never going to hang around. He woulda left for anyone at any time if they'd offered the wages. I'm going to stop typing before this becomes a full on rant but will add that I'm not belittling our success is any way. I could see maybe Davies and McDonald and Lindsay looking back and wondering "what if" but for the majority, I doubt they'd change a thing. Even before thinking about the money.
Disagree. Only Hourihane and Mawson can really be justified for me. We have a long long history of this. Players leaving and really doing nothing. For me, it's symptomatic of a huge problem with agents and football in general - at the first sign of success agents are trying to get that player out of the door and a pay day. The success stories for this are few and far between. I personally think, it's because each of these players leaves at least a season too early in their development, hurting both us as a club and themselves. The best example for this, Jacob Brown. He ASKED for the move to Stoke, who are in fairness a bigger club, but did they really look like a club moving in the right direction? I don't think so. I'd happily take a bet that they go nowhere and his career stagnates at the most important time in his development. On the other hand.....for me it was quite clear that we were moving in the right direction, and whilst not many predicted play offs, most thought that we were now quite likely to be a mid table championship team. Had Brown stayed this season I think he would have excelled, and the move he would be looking at would be much better than Stoke. What does this mean? I'm certainly very doubtful that players and especially agents take into account the earning potential of the players career as a whole. With both being completely focused on there here and now only. Understandable from and agents perspective, naïve from the players perspective.
I wonder how many of our ex players are looking enviously at us in the playoffs thinking "mmmmm if I'd have stayed I could just have been on Premiership wages next year"
