lufan
Posts: 72
Joined: 09 June 2011
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Jan 18, 2012 11:13
Who would have thought we would end up as a feeder club for Norwich, what with Johnson and now Howson!
I've got to say I can't blame the players for wanting to go there as Norwich look pretty good at holding their own in the premier league and have a bright young manager in Lambert.
When you look at them you can see they have a totally different way of doing things. They went up and bought Morison and dropped Holt, their captain who had scored lots of goals over the previous two promotion seasons. We wouldn't dream of doing anything like that. It was obviously the right thing to do because it's worked and Holt is back fighting for a place. They came knocking for Snodgrass in the summer and were rumoured to be after him again. They could end up with him as well!
Clayton's contract talks have stalled.
Lees is being watched by Bolton.
McCormack - Wigan.
Becchio - Boro.
White is also getting good reports and there is rumoured to be interest in him.
Where will it all end?
Sad day at LUFC with Jonny going!
Don't know who would be remotely interested in coming here now - even on loan!
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Mc10
Posts: 215
Joined: 05 January 2012
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Jan 18, 2012 11:15
This is disgusting news. A day after we hear clayton is stalling on talks aswell and Bolton are sniffing around lee's. Not impressed. So what's going on, has Grayson lost the players backing that even a Leeds through and through Lad like howson is jumping ship... I honestly can't even hold it against howson either . No ambition being shown to strengthen, and obviously we are being tight gits with wages as don't tell me howson and clayton are pre madonnas holding out for massive salaries. You won't find 2 harder working, Leeds loving lads. Obviously clayton hasn't gone but every after match interview he praises johnny and 'rooms' with him. This won't help his situation. Expect snoddy and McCormack to leave. Hate to say it as I think both Grayson and bates have done a great job in steadying the club and taking us back up to the right half of the championship but the last couple months have made it clear we need a new approach...grayson can't be happy and him and bates should go now. Warnock in please.
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RamseyWhite
LUFCTALK MODERATOR
Posts: 4258
Joined: 08 December 2008
Location: Ramsey, Cambridgeshire
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Jan 18, 2012 11:18
Shocking, disgraceful, what is this cretin doing to our club.
What hope have we got if we continue to sell our best young players.
I have never joined in the Bates Out chants at matches but this latest news is really testing my patience.
'BATES OUT'
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sheepy
Posts: 10402
Joined: 08 October 2008
Location: Rothwell
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Jan 18, 2012 11:18
Wigan White
Has Howson (when fit) had a good season?
He had a few stinkers, but this more the lack of ambition than selling a player who may have lost form. It just seems the club has no desire to keep the players who are capable of taking us back into the Premier League.
Wigan White
I've never really been an advocate of the "Bates Out Brigade" as I don't have a problem with running the club as a tight ship (Look at Darlington) and we know how close we were to being in the same boat a few years ago. However my opinion is changing. We are now operating successfully in a financial way, but the financial restraints need to be loosend for us to get back were we belong.
Exactly how I feel, but enough is enough now. We have sold Howson and Gradel without so much of a fight it seems. Bates demands promotion from Grayson but will happily sell our best players and fail to keep the others we have. I seriously believe we are now at risk of losing McCormack, Snodgrass, Clayton, White and Lees.
What does this say to other clubs? It says make them an offer that is slightly above average and the mugs will sell.
Last edited by: sheepy
- Jan 18, 2012 11:21.
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mintyshoe
Posts: 55
Joined: 03 January 2012
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Jan 18, 2012 11:23
I'm not even angry about this, its just a complete farce and I'm left feeling completely and utterly disillusioned for the future of the club. Even more disillusioned than when we were relegated to L1; at least we had a sense of togetherness then and we built up a squad to be proud of.
Now it just seems that the club cannot possibly sustain any kind of promotion push with the current leadership. Expect a dramatic fall down the league. How has our form been since Howson has been out, not just in terms of points (fortunately) picked up but performances!?...Below par would be an understatement. I feel completely exploited by Bates; his constant demands for promotion and PL ticket prices are at odds with the resources at the clubs disposal. Pressure from upstairs coupled with tight purse-strings and this ridiculous policy of offering relatively small wages has been a leech on management and ultimately the players. We've seen Beckford, Johnson, Kilkenny and now potentially Howson and Clayton leave as a result. RE Clayton I was silently fuming after reading the articles suggesting he's off, with the club failing to offer him acceptable terms. The club's policy has made us nothing more than a stepping-stone.
The departure of Howson would be massive; crowd favourite, local lad, focal point behind the positivity and enthusiasm of our revival, club captain, heart of the team in many ways...This blah blah about agents and players demands has gone too far, we're now at a stage where the club is depleted of all its top talent with half a dozen examples of contract rejections. One or two may be fair enough, but when it comes to Howson - who clearly loves the club and city - something is going very wrong. I'm not even convinced by the financial argument of keeping wages below a threshold when it comes to key players that are assets to the club - If we'd offered Beckford higher terms earlier then yes we'd be paying him more but Leicester paid up to £4m for him which would see a huge return over and above his higher relative wage.
Clayton is now our best CM and he could be off, so we have Brown, Vayrynen and Pugh. What a load of garbage. Even if we pull off a bit of a coup and land Delph it will only be a loan, with the club left technically no better off than before but improved temporarily by a player we could never bring back under current circumstances.
Where do we go from here...
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birkybullufc
Posts: 1295
Joined: 31 May 2011
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Jan 18, 2012 11:31
sheepy
The only way Bates can redeem himself is if he brings in 3 or 4 top quality players.
I won't be holding my breath though.
Which decent player in their right mind would want to come play for Leeds now? I would be shocked if Delph would want to come back now if he has the chance to go elsewhere.
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smugboy
Posts: 27
Joined: 06 May 2010
Location: Sydney, Australia
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Jan 18, 2012 11:34
GET OUT BATES - YOUR KILLING OUR CLUB!!
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sheepy
Posts: 10402
Joined: 08 October 2008
Location: Rothwell
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Jan 18, 2012 11:38
I think we need to bring back the Smiley badge but turn it upside down.
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The Johnson
LUFCTALK MODERATOR
Posts: 3044
Joined: 11 November 2009
Location: Auckland
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Jan 18, 2012 11:41
On the brighter side.
He is trending worldwide.
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birkybullufc
Posts: 1295
Joined: 31 May 2011
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Jan 18, 2012 11:42
sheepy
I think we need to bring back the Smiley badge but turn it upside down.
And add some tears, with hands holding head. Why? why? why?
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Wigan White
Posts: 236
Joined: 05 August 2011
Location: Wigan
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Jan 18, 2012 11:42
sheepy
I think we need to bring back the Smiley badge but turn it upside down.
True!!
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dlw10
Posts: 1187
Joined: 14 September 2011
Location: Stoke on Trent
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Jan 18, 2012 11:47
Wigan White
Has Howson (when fit) had a good season?
Before his injury quite a few people were calling for him to be dropped from the team.
£2m now, or £0 at the end of the season?
£2m now of course. The new contract for Jonny has been on offer for about 4 months and it doesn't look like it would ever have been signed. (Remember Johnson and Kilkenny)
Saying this I'll be sad to see him go, but I don't think he's the shining light some think he is. (Be more concerned if Snoddy left).
Lets hope the money is put to good use for a change with the PERMANENT SIGNING of some quality footballers, and not some new chairs for the executive boxes.
I've never really been an advocate of the "Bates Out Brigade" as I don't have a problem with running the club as a tight ship (Look at Darlington) and we know how close we were to being in the same boat a few years ago. However my opinion is changing. We are now operating successfully in a financial way, but the financial restraints need to be loosend for us to get back were we belong.
I absolutely agree with everything you say here. People need to start understanding that Leeds United is a business as well as a football club. If Howson wants Premier League football now he can only get it by going to a Premier League club. If he refuses to sign a new contract we have no choice but to take the money - or have an unhappy player on the staff and then get bugger all in the Summer. I know most of the folk on here hate Bates and want him out, but I do think some are now ignoring the economics and will blame Bates for anything they dont like going on at tghe club and give him no credit for anything positive. Howson has been poor this season compared to previous years, he's either lost his mojo or he aint any good any more, take the money. Move on.
I also do not believe Howson will cut it in the Premiership and will soon be disillusioned playing in the reserves. Johnson is now struggling to keep a place at Norwich and Howson will go the same way. Beckford thought the Premiership was the place for him, now he's a Championship player again. Gradel thought top french football was the place to be , now he's unhappy. Kilkenny thought he was worth a mint and ended up at Bristol City. The grass always looks greener on the other side until they have to play on it.
I would be more worried if we were trying to keep players who want to leave than if we cash in on players sensibly. I havent actually heard anyone say what could be done to keep Howson now either?
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Brien o beireann
Posts: 231
Joined: 11 August 2011
Location: Dublin
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Jan 18, 2012 11:50
What a joke we have become, and I hold Grayson just as culpable as bates. We have far too many average players in our squad, and this is down to Grayson.
His overall management of the club has been poor, bates has said time and again that there is a pot there that covers transfers and wages IMO the amount of average/poor players picking up wages at the club is disgraceful. Would it not be better management to have 18-20 pros on the books picking up decent wages rather than 30 or how ever many there is earning peanuts.
The club needs a major overhaul and I think it has to start with a new manager although if I was an out of work manager Leeds united would not be very high on my list of clubs I would like to manage right now. 
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Wigan White
Posts: 236
Joined: 05 August 2011
Location: Wigan
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Jan 18, 2012 11:52
Jonny Howson - "Local lad", "Leeds captain", "Leeds supporter".
He doesn't have to go! He's not being forced out because of the clubs financial position (e.g. Smith and Milner).
He can (if he choses to), say he wishes to stay, fight for the club he is supposed to love, and sign a new contract.
I may be living in a fantasy world here, but does the word "loyalty" get erased from a footballers dictionary?
What do you think the likes of Gary Kelly would have done?
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The Johnson
LUFCTALK MODERATOR
Posts: 3044
Joined: 11 November 2009
Location: Auckland
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Jan 18, 2012 11:53
dlw10
I absolutely agree with everything you say here. People need to start understanding that Leeds United is a business as well as a football club. If Howson wants Premier League football now he can only get it by going to a Premier League club. If he refuses to sign a new contract we have no choice but to take the money - or have an unhappy player on the staff and then get bugger all in the Summer. I know most of the folk on here hate Bates and want him out, but I do think some are now ignoring the economics and will blame Bates for anything they dont like going on at tghe club and give him no credit for anything positive. Howson has been poor this season compared to previous years, he's either lost his mojo or he aint any good any more, take the money. Move on.
I also do not believe Howson will cut it in the Premiership and will soon be disillusioned playing in the reserves. Johnson is now struggling to keep a place at Norwich and Howson will go the same way. Beckford thought the Premiership was the place for him, now he's a Championship player again. Gradel thought top french football was the place to be , now he's unhappy. Kilkenny thought he was worth a mint and ended up at Bristol City. The grass always looks greener on the other side until they have to play on it.
I would be more worried if we were trying to keep players who want to leave than if we cash in on players sensibly. I havent actually heard anyone say what could be done to keep Howson now either?
Firstly the point isn't that we're all annoyed because of when we sold him, we're annoyed that he wanted to leave at all. He was our CLUB CAPTAIN, if he doesn't want to stay then who does? That's the problem, that's the annoyance and that's the big worry.
As for his ability, he will flourish. He flourished for us even though we had an average Championship squad.
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EdF
LUFCTALK Sponsor
Posts: 58
Joined: 11 January 2010
Location: Ampleforth
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Jan 18, 2012 12:00
I feel sick
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Lee
LUFCTALK Sponsor
Posts: 1610
Joined: 14 December 2008
Location: Wakey
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Jan 18, 2012 12:02
Wigan White
Has Howson (when fit) had a good season?
Before his injury quite a few people were calling for him to be dropped from the team.
I'm afraid this particular transfer transcends anything to do with ability or lack of ability.
The fact is the club were unable to persuade a Leeds lad, born 2 miles down the road and was made club captain at the age of 21 to sign a contract. This speaks volumes about the direction the club is going.
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YorkWhite
Posts: 213
Joined: 17 June 2011
Location: York
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Jan 18, 2012 12:06
Well after the statement about negotiating for a few players to leave the club, this wasn't what I was expecting to say the least. Have gone from Hopeful (but not expectant) that 3 or 4 fringe players would be leaving & a couple of quality signings would be coming in, to expecting the remainder of our quality to jump ship & am nervously looking at the wrong end of the table.
This move (if Jonny agress terms) has got to send a ripple through the entire squad & signal our lack of ambition to any potential signings. Expecting this to start a mass exodus from Leeds, & if Grayson has any sense he'll jump before he's pushed & landed with the blame for everything by Bates. 
BATES OUT
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birkybullufc
Posts: 1295
Joined: 31 May 2011
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Jan 18, 2012 12:07
All the players leaving over the last 2 seasons is a reflection that the players no longer believe their ambitions are matched by the board. Selling Howson now for 2 million may be better business than letting him leave for free next season and keeping an unhappy player. It shouldn't have come to this though. The board are not learning from their mistakes as the same thing is being repeated over and over.
Gary Kelly stayed with us before because we were doing well. If he was 23/24 now in this team and he had offers from the premier league do you think he would stay around? Really? Loyalty to a football club only stretches so far for a player with a short career span. Ambition and money have to be their focus.
Only Becchio and Snodgrass left from the best front 6(said by numerous opposition managers) in the championship last season.
Will they still be here in february?
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SammyHughes
Posts: 14
Joined: 15 January 2012
Location: Belfast
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Jan 18, 2012 12:08
Whether it's money or a desire to play at the top level Leeds clearly weren't giving Howson what he wanted. Bates won't pay the wages and doesn't seem to be interested in acquiring players good enough to get us up.
Good luck to Howson and I hope he does well. Wish he wasn't going but nothing anyone on an internet forum can do about it.
Still MOT
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