What our opponents' fans are saying about us 17/18

[spursfan77]

Biggest in the league right now I think...almost at an unsustainable level.

Third biggest after Man U and Chelsea as far as I recall.

 

[Lo Amo Speroni]

I loved 606. Miss it hugely still.

I don't miss holtelegend.

 

[StartingPrice]

Amazing work, you should put that out as a blog 'Dear Liverpool fans'

My response to that guy would simply have been, isn't that exactly what you said last summer? How'd that work out for ya??

Yes pundits were saying the same too, but I think a lot more will give us a chance next season despite the transfer madness that no doubt ensues.

This year is hardly a missed opportunity, it would have taken the 2nd highest finish in PL history to stop Chelsea this season. That alone says they won't easily beat this years tally next year. Last year maybe was one , but thats the problem with organic growth, it can't be fast-tracked.

It's 'pool fans like this that are why I won't shed a tear if Arsenal overtake them (although seeing europa at the Emirates would be better). Worry about sealing 4th before spouting how you are gonna easily finish higher than us next season.

To be fair I have a formerly typical scouse fan at work who has finally realised we are the model they should aspire to, and also that they are behind us currently. Rare one obviously!

Yeah, it started as a bog standard rant and mutated into an open letter to all Mickey fans everywhere

I agree.

Your friend is right...the problem is that was apparent years ago, and even when they seemed to get it, they almost immediately abandoned it again in order to keep Suarez on obscene Citeh-esque wages in order to have their mythologized title challenge that never materialized (the season after they finished second).

It is the point where their previous domination has become a mill-stone around their necks. Thinking they were still billy big bollocks for a while, after they lost their grip at the top, was understandable, really - it was hard enough convincing our fans that they weren't what they had been and were vulnerable. Not that it is ever a bad time to win CL (we should hope), but I really don't think their Istanbul triumph helped them in that regard. But at some stage after Citeh were gifted their oil windfall LiverPewel really have needed to sit down and think about it logically.

They are now fifth best financed team in the BLP and aside from financially have been consistently outperformed by the sixth best financed club (that's us) who have closed the gap financially in the same period, and are undergoing a massive infrastructural growth. Their response to all of this - to pay wages grossly out of kilter with the revenues they generate. Our wage to revenue percentage is approximately what UEFA advise theirs is about half again! And still the fans think in the same we are inherently better than everyone else way. Hell, when we built a training centre that was heralded throughout the footballing world, their response was it is almost as good as Melwood. There was no logical assessment for them to say that - just that Melwood was their training centre so it must be the best there is!

Apparently, there are now going to build a more modern facility. It just remains to be seen if they will take the drastic surgery required of reducing their wage bill by a third - but would they then have got Mane? One thing is for sure, I would amend my thinking about them if they have the humility to actually think and act a bit more like us, rather than acting like they are still the biggest club there is Even then, we have made up a hell of a lot of ground on them that we wouldn't have done if they had started this process, properly, a decade ago.

 

[panoma]

Hopefully Liverpool (should they finish 4th) draw Sevilla, Dortmund or some other decent side in the qualification and get knocked out before they even get started.

 

[Spurger King]

I don't miss holtelegend.

I'd love to chat with him again, now that the 'great' Aston Villa are making up the numbers in the Championship.

 

[tiger666]

Third biggest after Man U and Chelsea as far as I recall.

http://www.express.co.uk/pictures/sport/11372/Premier-League-wage-bills-2016-17-sportgalleries

 

[inclineyid]

The important thing is what you pay as a percentage of turnover... is there a league table showing that?

 

[Saoirse]

The important thing is what you pay as a percentage of turnover... is there a league table showing that?

Most recent figures available are for the 15-16 season (as we won't know clubs' turnover for 16-17 until they publish accounts next April).

 

[worcestersauce]

Most recent figures available are for the 15-16 season (as we won't know clubs' turnover for 16-17 until they publish accounts next April).

Interesting thing about that is that the bottom four are among the top six clubs, I guess Utd, City and Arsenal has higher turnover than us which helps their percentage even though all their wage bills are double ours give or take but the most notable thing is that the other two are chelsea at 68% and Liverpool at 69% that is quite a jump and you have to wonder how sustainable that is. No wonder Chelsea are running a second hand players market as a sideline.

 

[slartibartfast]

Interesting thing about that is that the bottom four are among the top six clubs, I guess Utd, City and Arsenal has higher turnover than us which helps their percentage even though all their wage bills are double ours give or take but the most notable thing is that the other two are chelsea at 68% and Liverpool at 69% that is quite a jump and you have to wonder how sustainable that is. No wonder Chelsea are running a second hand players market as a sideline.

I know Man U have a colossal turnover compared to most but I can't see how their current finances are sustainable while they're out of CL.
I'd be very surprised if they haven't had a drop in merchandise sales over last few years.
And yet they're paying players ridiculous wages and buying players for 90m that they sold for way less.
I hear they're contemplating buying a defender from Burnley for about over 20m they sold for pittance.
I don't care who you are you can't keep going down that route.
£370k a week or whatever for big nose is a fkin lot of t shirts.

 

[danielneeds]

I know Man U have a colossal turnover compared to most but I can't see how their current finances are sustainable while they're out of CL.
I'd be very surprised if they haven't had a drop in merchandise sales over last few years.
And yet they're paying players ridiculous wages and buying players for 90m that they sold for way less.
I hear they're contemplating buying a defender from Burnley for about over 20m they sold for pittance.
I don't care who you are you can't keep going down that route.
£370k a week or whatever for big nose is a fkin lot of t shirts.

CL money is a drop in the ocean to them. Their commercial deals are huge- their training kit sponsor pays them more than our main shirt sponsor.

 

[Saoirse]

Interesting thing about that is that the bottom four are among the top six clubs, I guess Utd, City and Arsenal has higher turnover than us which helps their percentage even though all their wage bills are double ours give or take but the most notable thing is that the other two are chelsea at 68% and Liverpool at 69% that is quite a jump and you have to wonder how sustainable that is. No wonder Chelsea are running a second hand players market as a sideline.

In the short-medium term, they're fine. However, it's not a great starting point for trying to build a stadium, unless Uncle Roman is bankrolling the entire thing. The big risk for them would be the TV bubble bursting since they'd see some of the bigger revenue drops from that, would also likely lose European money as performances declined and wouldn't have any way out of it in terms of reducing wage spend quickly.

The thing to really watch for is Net Debt, since clubs with a lot of that will hit trouble if and when interest rates go up. In that regard, Manchester United (£464m) are probably the most vulnerable to changing economic circumstances. If they continue to fail to make the Champions League while spending massively on the likes of Pogba and Ibrhamiovic, that wage-to-turnover ratio is going to start looking a lot less pretty, the debt will likely grow further, and their owners aren't going to give them a bottomless pit of money. It's notable also that I believe a lot of that debt is likely held in the United States - we'd have likely seen an interest rate rise there already were it not for the instability caused by the antics of President Cheeto and it's still likely to increase significantly in years to come. That possibility, matched by the possibility of a recession if things go less well, is bad news for United who need to get their act together on the pitch and fast (likely explaining their panic-spend last summer).

 

[Giovanni]

Just goes to show how much better off we could well be once the staium is done with naming rights, nfl, other event, hotel ect.
I dont know the sums on these kind of things but i do really wonder how close to arsenal, chelsea and the other we will get?

 

[Saoirse]

Yep. There's income is blowing my huge. Saw a journalist say this week, players don't get the bonus if you do t make champs league and you get Europa money so actually you only lose out on 20 million or so.

Problem for them is less the direct loss of revenue. It's the commercial impact, the increased transfer/wage costs as they become increasingly desperate, the competition in the league growing stronger by enjoying the benefits of the UCL. If there's one big club at the risk of snowballing into serious trouble it's them. Wednesday night is absolutely massive for them.

 

[slartibartfast]

CL money is a drop in the ocean to them. Their commercial deals are huge- their training kit sponsor pays them more than our main shirt sponsor.

Yes but the longer they're out of CL those monster money deals and shirt sales, ticket sales etc must be dropping surely.
They can't be getting bigger. Remember a mahoosive chunk of that revenue is from glory hunters. They wont want to follow them while they're shit.
Actually I was thinking the other day, is it me or has there been a decline in Man U shirts you see wandering about.
Only sing when they're winning.
Tossers.

 

[slartibartfast]

Apologies.
I totally fkin derailed this thread lol.

 

[Saoirse]

Yes but the longer they're out of CL those monster money deals and shirt sales, ticket sales etc must be dropping surely.
They can't be getting bigger. Remember a mahoosive chunk of that revenue is from glory hunters. They wont want to follow them while they're shit.
Actually I was thinking the other day, is it me or has there been a decline in Man U shirts you see wandering about.
Only sing when they're winning.
Tossers.

Think probably a slight decline, but loyalty is pretty strong in England. It's if their sales drop off considerably in the States and Asia that they're in deep shit.

 

[Saoirse]

CL money is a drop in the ocean to them. Their commercial deals are huge- their training kit sponsor pays them more than our main shirt sponsor.

Why the disagree on the chart mate? Pretty sure it's accurate unless I'm missing something really stupid here??

 

[slartibartfast]

Think probably a slight decline, but loyalty is pretty strong in England. It's if their sales drop off considerably in the States and Asia that they're in deep shit.

Agree but those are the real glory hunters.
They have no loyalty to Man U at all.
No American kid is gonna want a Man U shirt when he looks at the table and sees they're 6th and are frankly shit boring to watch.
I think slumps like that to those type of fans could be very sudden.
New shirt comes out and it'll be 'fk that dad I want a Spurs shirt. Kane is a fkin God' lol.

 

[StartingPrice]

After the amount of times I've had gooner taking the piss about the Europa league, all I want is for them to have to play Mordor, FC deckchairs and Sporting Narnia next season in the far flung reaches of Europe.

I've always said I don't mind it tbf, it's a respectable competition but they've ridiculed it for years. Now hearing them say it's a good thing and it well respected is a beautiful thing. Pricks

If they get a team of fecking Romanian farmers they could swap notes with Wet Spam