Benjamin Stambouli - Sold to PSG

[glorygloryeze]

Just need official confirmation now.................................



.....................nah. As far as I'm concerned, we're all far, far more committed to seeing the club we love succeed than we are to being proven right or wrong on an internet forum. I don't think anyone believed Stambouli was ever going to be as good as Schneiderlin, or that he was anything other than a bargain bin signing, whatever his qualities (and he has some great ones: committed, apparently an extremely hard worker, seemingly a decent guy): the disagreement, as far as I can recall, centred around whether or not his signing constituted 'backing' for Poch. From that perspective, it doesn't matter if he goes or if he stays and becomes a smashing success: the intent behind his signing is what matters, and I doubt the arguments over that point will go away, whatever happens to Benji himself. And that's really quite alright in my book.

Interesting

I actually wonder if Levy has a rule to not back the coach too much in the first season (so long as we aren't in danger of getting relegated), see how he does with the team and how he reacts generally, if he does well and 'passes the initiation' then he backs him a lot more in the second year.
I think overall this is what happened with AVB, though it all fell to apart when Madrid offered those greenies and THFC PLC couldn't resist...

 

[DubaiSpur]

Interesting

I actually wonder if Levy has a rule to not back the coach too much in the first season (so long as we aren't in danger of getting relegated), see how he does with the team and how he reacts generally, if he does well and 'passes the initiation' then he backs him a lot more in the second year.
I think overall this is what happened with AVB, though it all fell to apart when Madrid offered those greenies and THFC PLC couldn't resist...

We made a profit in the summer of 2013 as well mate, while also missing out on a bunch of AVB's targets. I just don't think Levy backs his managers much, if at all. He had to with Harry in his first couple of seasons, but this trend was in evidence even prior to that, as Juande's comments in 2014 prove. We'll see what happens this summer (with Levy's claim that things will change), but I'm not expecting miracles: another Stambouli, another large profit in the market, another bout of arguing with bill, braine and Jord as they rush to acclaim the aforementioned signing as the true Schneiderlin replacement and a sure sign of Levy's trust in Poch, etcetera.

 

[parklane1]

Did levy ever kick your cat?

 

[glorygloryeze]

We made a profit in the summer of 2013 as well mate, while also missing out on a bunch of AVB's targets. I just don't think Levy backs his managers much, if at all. He had to with Harry in his first couple of seasons, but this trend was in evidence even prior to that, as Juande's comments in 2014 prove. We'll see what happens this summer (with Levy's claim that things will change), but I'm not expecting miracles: another Stambouli, another large profit in the market, another bout of arguing with bill, braine and Jord as they rush to acclaim the aforementioned signing as the true Schneiderlin replacement and a sure sign of Levy's trust in Poch, etcetera.

We did make a profit, but to be fair to Levy we started spending relatively big BEFORE Bale said he wanted to go. Paulinho for 17M was serious money, plus Soldado for 15-26M (or whatever it was) for a 28 yr old from overseas with likely little re-sale value was very un-Levy like and that was certainly backing the manager. In fact, thoise two signings alone were almost certainly with Bale staying at the club in mind.

 

[DubaiSpur]

Did levy ever kick your cat?

He runs my football club, you know. I just wish he wouldn't look like this

Spoiler: this

whenever someone hesitantly asks for a bit of backing. I'd like to see us live up to our damn mottos, and he's generally the exact antithesis of those sentiments.

 

[DubaiSpur]

We did make a profit, but to be fair to Levy we started spending relatively big BEFORE Bale said he wanted to go. Paulinho for 17M was serious money, plus Soldado for 15-26M (or whatever it was) for a 28 yr old from overseas with likely little re-sale value was very un-Levy like and that was certainly backing the manager. In fact, thoise two signings alone were almost certainly with Bale staying at the club in mind.

With regard to Paulinho, I believe we sold Huddlestone, Parker, Luongo, Dempsey and Caulker in that window, with the total fees generated adding up to just over 20-21 million quid: I think we were probably planning to offset the fee we spent on Paulinho with those outgoing transfers, with perhaps another signing thrown in by virtue of the incoming TV deal money (Which every club spent: the summer of 2013 saw record spending as everyone splashed the cash in anticipation of increased TV revenues in 2013-2014 (http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/23913033)). Soldado came in on the 1st of August, didn't he? Certainly everyone knew Bale was involved in a transfer saga by early July, so I don't see Soldado as signing made without that saga in mind.

 

[glorygloryeze]

With regard to Paulinho, I believe we sold Huddlestone, Parker, Luongo, Dempsey and Caulker in that window, with the total fees generated adding up to just over 20-21 million quid: I think we were probably planning to offset the fee we spent on Paulinho with those outgoing transfers, with perhaps another signing thrown in by virtue of the incoming TV deal money (Which every club spent: the summer of 2013 saw record spending as everyone splashed the cash in anticipation of increased TV revenues in 2013-2014 (http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/23913033)). Soldado came in on the 1st of August, didn't he? Certainly everyone knew Bale was involved in a transfer saga by early July, so I don't see Soldado as signing made without that saga in mind.

Didn't Paulinho and Soldado say themselves that one of the reasons they signed was that when they asked if Bale was staying they were told yes?
Soldado was signed later granted but negotiations and talks i believe had started when Bale was still assumed to be staying, and later when he did sign most at the club were hoping (though less certain than previously) that this would be the case.
Selling most of those players, who AVB didn't want anyway, and using the money to buy players he did looks like backing the manager to me, albeit in a more prudent, wheeler-dealer fashion than say what Roman might instinctively do if not for FFP.

 

[DubaiSpur]

Didn't Paulinho and Soldado say themselves that one of the reasons they signed was that when they asked if Bale was staying they were told yes?
Soldado was signed later granted but negotiations and talks i believe had started when Bale was still assumed to be staying, and later when he did sign most at the club were hoping (though less certain than previously) that this would be the case.
Selling most of those players, who AVB didn't want anyway, and using the money to buy players he did looks like backing the manager to me, albeit in a more prudent, wheeler-dealer fashion than say what Roman might instinctively do if not for FFP.

Paulinho ,yes (http://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...to-stay-at-Tottenham-Hotspur-tempted-Paulinho). Soldado, no, with the closest I could find being this: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...-Real-Madrid-and-stay-at-White-Hart-Lane.html


Paulinho believed Bale would be staying. Soldado asked him not to leave. I believe we were already en route to the Bale sale by the time Soldado was signed, so it does make sense. And as for players AVB did want, we sold the one guy he did want above all and spent the money on four players he absolutely did not want (Eriksen, Chiriches, Lamela and Chadli) while ignoring the ones he did want (Villa, Hulk, Coentrao et al). I really don't see much of an improvement from our conduct during the 2012 summer window (where, again, we signed players he didn't want to replace players he did want to keep).

 

[glorygloryeze]

Paulinho ,yes (http://www.express.co.uk/sport/foot...to-stay-at-Tottenham-Hotspur-tempted-Paulinho). Soldado, no, with the closest I could find being this: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/fo...-Real-Madrid-and-stay-at-White-Hart-Lane.html


Paulinho believed Bale would be staying. Soldado asked him not to leave. I believe we were already en route to the Bale sale by the time Soldado was signed, so it does make sense. And as for players AVB did want, we sold the one guy he did want above all and spent the money on four players he absolutely did not want (Eriksen, Chiriches, Lamela and Chadli) while ignoring the ones he did want (Villa, Hulk, Coentrao et al). I really don't see much of an improvement from our conduct during the 2012 summer window (where, again, we signed players he didn't want to replace players he did want to keep).

Sorry, apart from probably Modric (who wouldn't want to keep him), who else did AVB want to keep that was sold in summer 2012?

 

[DubaiSpur]

Sorry, apart from probably Modric (who wouldn't want to keep him), who else did AVB want to keep that was sold in summer 2012?

Apparently VDV.

“The chairman proposed a challenge to increase Tottenham’s competitive level, but immediately [Luka] Modric left and we didn’t get any of the targets I had identified such as João Moutinho, Willian, Oscar or Leandro Damião,” he told Portuguese television. “These were promises that were not kept. I had a group of players I had not chosen. In two years I lost [Rafael] van der Vaart, Modric, Bale, and all the promises made were unfulfilled.”

http://www.theguardian.com/football...las-boas-tottenham-daniel-levy-broke-promises

 

[glorygloryeze]

Apparently VDV.

“The chairman proposed a challenge to increase Tottenham’s competitive level, but immediately [Luka] Modric left and we didn’t get any of the targets I had identified such as João Moutinho, Willian, Oscar or Leandro Damião,” he told Portuguese television. “These were promises that were not kept. I had a group of players I had not chosen. In two years I lost [Rafael] van der Vaart, Modric, Bale, and all the promises made were unfulfilled.”

http://www.theguardian.com/football...las-boas-tottenham-daniel-levy-broke-promises

I very much doubt he was that bothered that VDV left, but i agree he was probably bothered about who was brought in to replace him. I believe a deal for Oscar was all but done before Chelski swooped. Same with Willian. I don't think Levy could be blamed for Roman's ex-KGB agents stalking AVB's every trabsfer move tbh. Levy DID seem to be backing him when gong for those two at least. Just because Roman blew us out of the water doesn't mean he wasn't backed on those two potential transfers...

 

[DubaiSpur]

I very much doubt he was that bothered that VDV left, but i agree he was probably bothered about who was brought in to replace him. I believe a deal for Oscar was all but done before Chelski swooped. Same with Willian. I don't think Levy could be blamed for Roman's ex-KGB agents stalking AVB's every trabsfer move tbh. Levy DID seem to be backing him when gong for those two at least. Just because Roman blew us out of the water doesn't mean he wasn't backed on those two potential transfers...

He wasn't, since we didn't end up getting them, no? In a similar vein, if you really want to, you can definitely argue that Poch was 'backed' over Schneiderlin last summer: we threw one, solitary ten million pound bid at then which they just stared incredulously at before turning down (that Telegraph article I keep linking, if you haven't seen it already) and then ran away gleefully, but we still tried to get him, right?

The scale of how much we tried to acquire a player is a bit of a fuzzy, uncertain one, but the fact that we ended up without said player in a summer where we also royally screwed up some other pretty major transfers that the coach desperately wanted (Moutinho, Damiao, Coentrao, some CB whose name escapes me at present) does suggest that we weren't wholly committed to backing the manager.

 

[DTA]

I like Benji.......please stay.

From what I have seen of him I like him to, seems like a bit of a leader, on the pitch.

 

[Dicko]

If he does go to Watford I hope he does well. I like the fact in that French Radio interview he said he was aware that he had been linked with a return to France but he was adamant he came to England to try and be a success and wanted to stay in the PL.

 

[Denmark Spur]

Couple of posters/ITKs over at a Watford forum say that they have put in a £6m bid for Stambouli.

Pinch of salt as always.

http://www.wfcforums.com/showthread.php?55072-Benjamin-Stambouli/page5

 

[Papercut]

I honestly do not get the disdain for BS here? He's hardly played, he's very young, he filled in brilliantly as a CB post-season and he is good on the ball... When did we become THIS F*CKIN IMPATIENT??? It really is getting tiresome now!!!

 

[Mumorn]

yeah, he was hardly given a chance and looked good whenever he played. He just wasn't taken to because he was from "the bargain bin" - find it funny that Mitchell had Stambouli down as Schneiderlins replacement for Southampton too.

£6,000,000 to Watford would be good business considering we'd have made profit but I wouldn't mind if he stayed.

 

[indianspur]

I honestly do not get the disdain for BS here? He's hardly played, he's very young, he filled in brilliantly as a CB post-season and he is good on the ball... When did we become THIS F*CKIN IMPATIENT??? It really is getting tiresome now!!!

ask Poch, he is the one who has dismissed Stambouli and wants to sell after a year

 

[Rorschach]

I honestly do not get the disdain for BS here? He's hardly played, he's very young, he filled in brilliantly as a CB post-season and he is good on the ball... When did we become THIS F*CKIN IMPATIENT??? It really is getting tiresome now!!!

Do you think there is much disdain in here for him? I'm not so sure disdain is the right word. A bit of confusion why he is not picked more often perhaps but I can see arguments for and against his inclusion.

IMO I believe the reason why he is not in the picture for the first team more often is because he is slow. Possibly the slowest player in the squad I would think, and this has to be a major factor. His reading of the game compensates somewhat but against any sort of speed he gets left for dead. Beyond that I don't think there is a whole lot wrong with his game.

 

[Cochise]

A few people were on his back before he'd even played for us, mainly because they didn't see the point of the signing.