The Chairman

[AlargeClaret]

The result of all this astute, prudent and successful stewardship is that (as at last June, the latest accounts) we had £42m in the bank. That is money that can be used for:

- future player signings
- reserve in case of relegation
- ground development
- unexpected pandemics

How much do you think we should reduce that reserve by? We've saved about £10m per year cash by not throwing money about. If we spent an extra £10m on combined player signings and wages, would that make a huge difference? Or would you be looking to go into deficit?

It’s about ambition (And what is life without it?) and not stagnation .By rights we should be in desperate relegation struggles every year but (imo) Dyche has created a culture allied to tactical pragmatism and “players that fit “that’s enabled us to eke our every ounce of what we have .It’s a finely balanced act and I’d simply like to shore that up a bit and add a touch more talent ,no silly risks and yes it would cut our surplus .

[snapcrackleandpop]

We are a more attractive job than we were when Dyche took over.
Modern infrastructure, PL quality squad, soon to be top catagory youth set up, a good number years in the top flight and a brief flirtation with Europe that the club will have learnt from.


We can attract a decent standard of manager as and when Dyche goes, don't be trying to kid people into thinking otherwise.

No good asking for names, because there are thousands of potential managers out there.

99% of Managers will want money to build THEIR team and they won't get that with MG, so they like Dyche will be working with their hands tied which will surely put a lot off. So i'm not convinced the quality will be there.

Lets hope this is all irrelevant and SD isn't going anywhere.

[GodIsADeeJay81]

99% of Managers will want money to build THEIR team and they won't get that with MG, so they like Dyche will be working with their hands tied which will surely put a lot off. So i'm not convinced the quality will be there.

Lets hope this is all irrelevant and SD isn't going anywhere.

Dyche built his team with money though.

Difference is Dyche rebuilt us with some very astute signings initially.
Jones, Heaton and Arfield all for free, Barnes for £400k and got an excellent striking partnership out of 2 players we had here already.
He's carried on that vein during his tenure signing players on the cheap and improving them.

The next manager won't have to do such a desperate rebuild under such tight financial restrictions.

There are way to many managers who just want to sign players without really thinking about long term and not being able to improve who they sign or who they've already got.

Wasn't it Billy Davies who always wanted a few more players in each window when at Forest and he didn't really move the club forward...

[The Enclosure]

Anyone think Joey with Duffo as assistant would work if SD leaves?
Perhaps a bit early in their careers but they do know the Burnley way.
Perhaps Graham Alexander another candidate.
Be very sorry if SD did leave.

[LoveCurryPies]

Anyone think Joey with Duffo as assistant would work if SD leaves?
Perhaps a bit early in their careers but they do know the Burnley way.
Perhaps Graham Alexander another candidate.
Be very sorry if SD did leave.

No and no.

[Woonderbah]

But can you really see SD getting the freedoms he's enjoyed here at another club ?
How many chairmen stick with their managers on a losing streak and serving up lousy football as MG has done when SD couldn't buy a win or even a shot on target ?
Plenty of managers would like that backing.

[claptrappers_union]

Chris Hughton would be my choice if Dyche was to leave

[Spijed]

Was the contract offer made to Hendrick, knowing he would never accept it?

Hence why it was a deliberately lower salary than he was already on?

[AlargeClaret]

Chris Hughton would be my choice if Dyche was to leave

Imo,the most underrated manager in football .His record is superb ,and often left with loose change once he’s promoted sides. Odd none of the big clubs ever came for him,also conducts himself well .

[Woonderbah]

Was the contract offer made to Hendrick, knowing he would never accept it?

Hence why it was a deliberately lower salary than he was already on?

May not have been a lower salary.
May have been 2yrs instead of 3.
Not sure we'll know.

[Woonderbah]

If Ian Woan takes the post match press conference cos Dyche is 'visiting his grandma' I'll be livid.

[TVC15]

The result of all this astute, prudent and successful stewardship is that (as at last June, the latest accounts) we had £42m in the bank. That is money that can be used for:

- future player signings
- reserve in case of relegation
- ground development
- unexpected pandemics

How much do you think we should reduce that reserve by? We've saved about £10m per year cash by not throwing money about. If we spent an extra £10m on combined player signings and wages, would that make a huge difference? Or would you be looking to go into deficit?

Is that what you think our reserves are going to be spent on ?
Based on what MG has been saying it looks like they will be used to cover our reduced TV income and match day revenues this season and next - so unexpected pandemics is the only one on your list I see any signs of us spending it on at the moment or near future.

It’s reassuring that we have this in reserve and this is down to MG and Dyche. But MG will be looking beyond that and what we do about a wage bill which for June 20 year end has to be close to £90m.

Whilst we may think we are in a much better position than other clubs in this league I would say that perversely the pandemic will have more of an effect on a well run club like us than many / most other clubs in this league who have owners that can afford to subsidise their clubs like they already do before Covid.

I am convinced letting Dyche depart will make things worse - a lot worse and prettty quickly too.

But that said it’s hard to point the finger at anyone - manager or chairman. In the last 7 or 8 years they have been brilliant - I will never ever get my head round fans who complain about SD, his signings, our style of football etc when you look at what he has given us.
In the same way it’s hard to be too harsh on MG and the board who appointed him in the first place and then backed him and managed our half a billion or so of income in the best way they thought was right for the club and never taken a penny out for themselves.

[grapidianclaret]

"though it seems some would want a benefactor so we can get used to living beyond our means, then collapse into an awful mess when they get bored or leave"


It's a great point, but the question is how do we move on financially, if we are effectively left with 30 million after wages and other deductions...how on earth do we recruit decent players without outside assistance.

Lets build a hotel

[Quickenthetempo]

Lets build a hotel

When Bolton were going under, a lot more people bid for the hotel than the football club.

[grapidianclaret]

When Bolton were going under, a lot more people bid for the hotel than the football club.

It still didn't help Bolton out much though. I was obviously being flippant. I personally think this disagreement between Manager and Chairman as healthy. Both are obviously heavily invested in BFC.
It will be interesting,and probably extremely painful to see club finances when the virus is eventually under the heel. the diligence of the board in storing all that dry powder,following the efforts of manager and team. I doubt we will have much of a dry powder store remaining.
The chairman has to put the long term viability of the club first, the manager has to try to strengthen the playing staff. Not so much a dance, more a wrestling match.Both have very good reasons,both depend on the others continued success, whilst we the fans watch and pick a side.

[KRBFC]

I agree with the chairman’s stance on the largely useless out of contract players but regardless of your opinion Dyche has acted like a child, so unprofessional to go public almost like self sabotage to find an excuse to get pushed out the door.

[IanMcL]

There are two sides to the finances.

1 is the capital expenditure the other revenue/running costs.

Money is so cheap to get at present, that the club could and perhaps should, make any long term infrastructure investments.

Transfer fees would be capital too and written off over the duration of the contract. A younger player,extending their contract,xshiukd make that initial fee even more viable.

The wages however, have to fit the guaranteed budget for the year. That is a dilemma, when you cannot actually guarantee prem football. Look at all those teams, who thought they were solid prem, invested and got swiftly relegated.

Change without squad disruption is the key to ongoing success, unless your name starts with Sheikh, rather than Mr.

However, this coming season is a time when several new faces will arrive. It is essential that Mr Dyche is here to ensure they blend, learn and succeed.

Up the Clarets.

[ClaretTony]

I agree with the chairman’s stance on the largely useless out of contract players but regardless of your opinion Dyche has acted like a child, so unprofessional to go public almost like self sabotage to find an excuse to get pushed out the door.

Which you say without any understanding of a problem which has been worsening for some considerable time. Maybe the manager is just about at the end of his tether.

[TVC15]

IanMcL - I know you are trying to be positive but your assessment of the finances is a bit off.
It’s not capital - it’s expenditure...that often we are allowed to pay over over a few years but in the same way that’s how our player sales are also paid for.
As for access to cheap money - banks have pretty much pulled out of financing football clubs 10 years ago. There’s little prospect of us borrowing our way out of this

[Leo the Lion]

We need a reality check. Last year our profit was circa 5 million. But bear in kind we sold Sam Vokes for a reported 9 million. We have hardly made any record signings for sometime and even then it was after selling such players as Keane and Gray for large sums. Even this season we sold Heaton for again a reported 9 million. Our signings overall since have been bluntly modest.
Fact is even with Premiership benefits we are barely if at all making an operating profit.
This board of directors do not like making a loss. They are well off but not well off enough to risk financial uncertainty.
Other more wealthy owners/corporations could well be more adept at offsetting losses at their clubs against other areas of their business empires.

[matttheclaret]

Which you say without any understanding of a problem which has been worsening for some considerable time. Maybe the manager is just about at the end of his tether.

I have sympathy on both sides.

From the boards point of view, especially with the uncertainty that most clubs are facing financially, I can understand why they would be taking measures to cut spending where possible.

But also pretty clear why this would be frustrating for SD. Nearly 8 years of, in the main, having pretty limited funds to play with, and now seemingly that might be reduced even further, it's no wonder he's annoyed.

I'm hoping that the situation between manager and chairman can still improve

[Stockbrokerbelt]

The daily mail that has been ridiculed on here for its transfer gossip is now to be believed with a chip paper story that Dyche is going to leave because he can’t get what he wants, give it a rest. He is well aware of the present & future financial restraints in being manager of Burnley & if you listen to his interviews that challenge is one that he gets some enjoyment from. As for close season transfers dealings I would be surprised if we did not sign around 6 players to give the squad a depth of 24/25 players. Do you really think the board is going to starve the club of players to give it a chance of the 100+ million per season, they are businessmen who run a tight ship but are not going to torpedo their own ship. The new CEO has said around transfer dealings for next season to watch this space, lets watch what happens before doom & gloom from chip paper....

[Quickenthetempo]

Which you say without any understanding of a problem which has been worsening for some considerable time. Maybe the manager is just about at the end of his tether.

If he is then he needs to leave, the press conferences have put the whole club on a downer.

What's he going to write on his next job application?

Reason for leaving last employment.

The chairman wouldn't let me give a two year deal to a 35yr old right back or let me re-sign highly paid experienced lads for the dressing room banter.

[randomclaret2]

Chris Boden commenting on the " chip paper " story ..
" Clearly tensions between the manager and chairman, and I’m led to believe things are as bad as they are made out to be in the Mail article."

[ŽižkovClaret]

To be cynical, we have a prime opportunity to cherry pick from the best of the non-promoted Championship talent.

Would a decent war chest for this keep Dyche happy? He clearly loved helping to bring on Trippier and would surely relish the chance to refine more young talent

[ClaretTony]

The daily mail that has been ridiculed on here for its transfer gossip is now to be believed with a chip paper story that Dyche is going to leave because he can’t get what he wants, give it a rest. He is well aware of the present & future financial restraints in being manager of Burnley & if you listen to his interviews that challenge is one that he gets some enjoyment from. As for close season transfers dealings I would be surprised if we did not sign around 6 players to give the squad a depth of 24/25 players. Do you really think the board is going to starve the club of players to give it a chance of the 100+ million per season, they are businessmen who run a tight ship but are not going to torpedo their own ship. The new CEO has said around transfer dealings for next season to watch this space, lets watch what happens before doom & gloom from chip paper....

It is chip paper quite often but, although they’ve now removed some of the article, they clearly know what’s going on. There is obviously a leak there.

[KRBFC]

Which you say without any understanding of a problem which has been worsening for some considerable time. Maybe the manager is just about at the end of his tether.

Yeah, my first thought was there’s an underlying issue for Dyche to go public but without knowledge of that it looks incredibly unprofessional to go public.

[ClaretTony]

Yeah, my first thought was there’s an underlying issue for Dyche to go public but without knowledge of that it looks incredibly unprofessional to go public.

As I said, end of tether.

[Herts Clarets]

Could it be that, as reference in the article, that there are investors interested in the club? Hence the reluctance of Garlick and the other Directors to authorize expenditure? Reduce the headcount, reduce the wage bill, maximize reported profit, all on the back of securing another year in the Premier League with the expected revenue that generates makes the business a more attractive proposition for any potential investors.

[snapcrackleandpop]

CT's last couple of posts make me a little uneasy.

[Paul Waine]

OK, the club has got a challenge, which of course, is we don't have enough money to pay the players. AS many have posted, only the big clubs have the resources to survive long term. So, how do we make Burnley a big club?

Big clubs are found in large cities, high population areas where there will always be lots of fans ready to fill the stadiums. Big cities also have strong global profiles, so that the big money, wherever it is in the world, wants to invest in the club to enhance it's own global profile...

How do we turn Burnley into a "big city?" I'd think that will take too long and there's always the risk that other towns around Burnley will also grow to compete, so Burnley never becomes a "big city." So, should we do a "Wimbledon/MK Dons" type re-location? It's what the franchises do in US sports.

I'm going to rule relocation out... and, I can't think of a ready made "big city" that it would be fun to move to, or that doesn't already have it's own club struggling lower in the pyramid.

What would the "corporate world" do in this situation? Corporates merger with each other to great a bigger whole and enable them to compete with the other big clubs.

So - and, bear with me here - Burnley becomes the club of "Northern Powerhouse North." We acquire all the clubs (and their fans) from the area that we can define as Northern Powerhouse North. So, Accrington Stanley, Bolton, Colne Dynamos.... We could even give Bury their team back, by letting them become fans of our team. And, yes, there's a team down the M65, we could swallow them up as well. "Northern Powerhouse North" would be a "clumsy" name for a club. We could decide the name as they do with some corporate mergers, by combing parts of the merged teams names. Several of the teams start their names with "B" so the new club's name should begin with "B." We might then take some letters from Blackburn and Bury... hmm, they've both got "UR" so let's use those two letters for the new club's name, so, so far, we have "BUR..." Let's then complete the new club's name by taking the last 4 letters from "Burnley." So, we end up with our new "northern powerhouse north" club, called "BURNLEY." And, our fan base will have a population of at least 500,000. And, all our money challenges will all behind us.

UTC

[Spijed]

One thing I can't see happening id SD walking out on £70k per week unless he has another job to go into.

And therein lies the difficulty of getting another Prem job in the short term for him. When the likes of Everton go for a manager such as Ancelotti he'll know it'll be very difficult to go to such a club.

[summitclaret]

It is chip paper quite often but, although they’ve now removed some of the article, they clearly know what’s going on. There is obviously a leak there.

Is the most likely culprit Sean's agent? If so I hope we don't end up paying him/she anything.

[Jakubclaret]

99% of Managers will want money to build THEIR team and they won't get that with MG, so they like Dyche will be working with their hands tied which will surely put a lot off. So i'm not convinced the quality will be there.

Lets hope this is all irrelevant and SD isn't going anywhere.

Some others would just tap into the foreign leagues & unearth some gems overseas & build from there, but it's well known SD prefers players closer to home, it's a fallacy that scouting networks cost extremes amounts of money there don't, it's a simple case of a knowledgeable football scout with a passport & a few plane tickets & watching some games & identifying the players & then reporting there findings & then checking the availability & then submitting the offer, are some legal issues visas which need authorising subject country to country, adopting different approaches you limit yourself to a narrow pool. Obviously with the way things are right now with the virus it's trickier.

[ClaretTony]

Is the most likely culprit Sean's agent? If so I hope we don't end up paying him/she anything.

Don’t know but agents are often involved with these sort of stories

[TheFamilyCat]

Some others would just tap into the foreign leagues & unearth some gems overseas & build from there, but it's well known SD prefers players closer to home, it's a fallacy that scouting networks cost extremes amounts of money there don't, it's a simple case of a knowledgeable football scout with a passport & a few plane tickets & watching some games & identifying the players & then reporting there findings & then checking the availability & then submitting the offer, are some legal issues visas which need authorising subject country to country, adopting different approaches you limit yourself to a narrow pool. Obviously with the way things are right now with the virus it's trickier.

How did Mike Rigg get the job in front of you?

[TheFamilyCat]

I'm going to rule relocation out... and, I can't think of a ready made "big city" that it would be fun to move to, or that doesn't already have it's own club struggling lower in the pyramid.

Wakefield, we should move to Wakefield.

[summitclaret]

Merge with Pendle, Rossendale and we will be almost as big as Hull and other cities. Then apply for city status. Seriously though, those 3 boroughs are not a massive geographic area. We already have a good catchment, when you include Tod/parts of W Yorkshire, Craven, Ribble Valley, half of Hyndburn etc.

[cblantfanclub]

Is it only in football where owners and mangers don't talk to each other and do their dirty washing through the press?
I get that Dyche may feel his suggestions are not being acted upon but surely he' been given reasons and options. It reflects badly on the chairman if he can't communicate with SD.
You would like to think the two talked regularly. This stand off seems to happen regularly in football generally with managers throwing out comments like I haven't spoken to the chairman in months. Is it ego or incompetence?

[GodIsADeeJay81]

Nah, one goes to the press when they aren't getting their own way and want to force the issue.

Football agents have been doing it for years.

[ClaretAL]

Reading between the lines, and that's all we can do at the moment, I think the unrest has between then has been growing for months, and with the attention from Villa and their current plight, it might have turned his head as safety blanket he can use if things go wrong at Burnley regardless if they are in the PL or EFL the money is there to spend. That safety net and getting to the end of his tether added together may make 10 but you could understand it.

[DCWat]

Is it only in football where owners and mangers don't talk to each other and do their dirty washing through the press?
I get that Dyche may feel his suggestions are not being acted upon but surely he' been given reasons and options. It reflects badly on the chairman if he can't communicate with SD.
You would like to think the two talked regularly. This stand off seems to happen regularly in football generally with managers throwing out comments like I haven't spoken to the chairman in months. Is it ego or incompetence?

I’d hope that they talk regularly, but it certainly doesn’t sound like it, certainly of late.

Garlick is obviously a very successful business man but are his business methods so easily transferable to the football world?

An approach that appears to be forcing the hand of a manager that we really need to keep, seems to be to be a risky one, short and long term.

There’s a much wider choice of candidates out there in the real world, but in football, if Dyche leaves, Garlick will be shopping in an already small pool, made smaller by the constraints under which we operate.

Within reason, Garlick should in my opinion, be doing all he can to keep Dyche happy. It may be that Dyche’s expectations have grown too much, but I really don’t think that will be the case.

Dyche has always been realistic about our financial position and I just can’t envisage him asking for money that would put us at longer term risk. He probably firmly believes that he’s earned the right to stretch things a little and if he feels he can’t improve on things without change from Garlick, he will likely move on.

The ball is in Garlick’s court here, from what I can see. He needs to get this sorted and ideally with Dyche still at the helm.

[mdd2]

Unless SD wants to buy out Garlick and become Chairman as well as manager if the rumblings have been true, then it is time he left. It is a sad end and I have enjoyed the ride with the best manager in two generations; I wish things were different but when the manager and Board get to loggerheads, then it is time for a parting of the waves. We have been lucky twice with managers in OC and SD; it is a bit optimistic to expect a third to follow those two. However, the sooner all this is put to bed and a new man comes in, the better in my view. As I have previously posted were a younger BL still here
after Sean's recent outbursts, he would be gone having been in breach of his contract.

[IanMcL]

A public siding with his players, when his chairman failed to listen, is expected of a manager wanting his team support.

The next stage should be a Chairman/Manager discussion, on future plans for both.

Hopefully, they agree the route forward.

Up the Clarets

[jojomk1]

Reading between the lines, Dyche may appear to have lost some of the kudos/control that he has been allowed to have over many years
Yes, he has more than proved his worth in the past, and is now highly rewarded for that
Garlic and the Board see the true financial position we are in. We cannot even guess at that situation and if they do not want to carry on paying good, huge for BFC, wages on older players then that's ok with me (even if it upsets the manager)
Where could Dyche go - Palace would be logical given Hodgson will more than likely be let go this summer
But would any other club give him the freedom he has enjoyed for many years here
Is the grass greener on the other side?

[Stockbrokerbelt]

We could discuss who’s agent is bull——ing the best, Mark Hughes agent must have been on a bender to put his clients face into the non existent frame.

[Aclaret]

Like i said when starting this thread, come on Mr Garlick say something.
Arnt the fans important to the club anymore, surely we have a right to know what's going on !

[AshevilleNCClaret]

I believe the tension between SD and the club will eventually subside.

I don't know any manager outside of the top six who is happy with the management of the club, especially when it comes to players and contracts.

The club felt it could save decent money by not extending the contracts of a few higher-paid players. Lennon and Hart were hardly playing and this made financial sense.

I think SD made his point with his bench against City: I needed these players and the youngsters were all that I had to work with. If Barnes, Wood, and JBG had been fit, there wouldn't have been any issue.

The Bardsley contract is proof that there is dialog and compromising going on.

The club extended Brady's contract in hopes to convince Hendrick to stay, but the ball is squarely at Hendrick's feet.

[COBBLE]

Merge with Pendle, Rossendale and we will be almost as big as Hull and other cities. Then apply for city status. Seriously though, those 3 boroughs are not a massive geographic area. We already have a good catchment, when you include Tod/parts of W Yorkshire, Craven, Ribble Valley, half of Hyndburn etc.

This is currently the real position. Burnley's core support does, and since at least the sixties, has, extended to these areas. 250,000 population.

[dsr]

This is currently the real position. Burnley's core support does, and since at least the sixties, has, extended to these areas. 250,000 population.

Which is a lot smaller than any other PL team's catchment area.