Thursday 30 August 2012

Poker face

The latest news suggests that Tony Jiminez has turned down a £1.5m (yes, million) bid from Aston Villa for Dale Stephens. If this is true, I am amazed. Huddersfield have only managed to attract a £2m bid for Jordan Rhodes. We paid circa £350,000 for Stephens (another undisclosed fee) and would appear desperate keen to ensure we balance the books on our Summer dealings. A fourfold increase in Stephen's value in less than a less would seem good business, especially if it means we can hang on to Chris Solly. 

If we have turned down this sort of fee and are, presumably, holding out for more, then Tony Jiminez is playing a high stakes game. Other clubs are rumoured to be interested in Stephens, so you have to wonder whether we have a conditional offer elsewhere. 

I am immediately reminded of some of the appalling decisions of the past where necessity saw us robbed of top quality players on the cheap. Paul Walsh and Paul Elliott to Luton was probably the worst offence (I think we got £300,000 or something ridiculous for the pair), although Mark Hulyer at the time lived hand-to-mouth, so perhaps that shouldn't have been such a surprise, even if it was a crime of mis-management. At least when Robert Lee was lured north for £700,000 Kevin Keegan was honest enough to say no-one else was offering anything close to that and he knew we had been touting him around to pay debts.

Having said all this, if Scott Sinclair is worth £6m+ to Man City, perhaps I shouldn't be surprised if we are holding out for more for Dale Stephens who could potentially be a bigger piece in a top class side. Personally, I don't believe he has the pace or aggression for the Premier League.

4 comments:

  1. I'll be honest Dave I thought he was no more than an average League 1 player, and if we got any more than we paid for him I'd be pleased.

    Pembury Addick

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  2. Well clearly you wrote this before the Jordan Rhodes deal was announced as it looks like he is off to Blackburn for 8 million!!??

    I think we are right to hold out for more. For some reason British-based players always command a higher fee. So why shouldn't we hold out for the best deal for us?

    My only fear is that the Chris Solly deal is already done and Powell is not happy about losing another from his first XI.

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  3. PA - with you completely ....

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  4. Mick - I thought £2m was risible for Rhodes, so perhaps the comparison was well made!

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