Stefano Sensi

[StriderHiryu]

23 minutes ago, Ric Flair said:

Hmmmmmm reading Percy's article this morning, I don't see this happening without us selling someone. Casadei going back doesn't seem to have helped, only made it worse that we are another player down and scuppered financially.

 

The rumblings of our financial problems is starting to feel somewhat familiar, hope this isn't the sign of major problems come the summer. Imperative we get promoted, even if just to get the increased revenue to try and clear the decks and rebuild at a much smaller level. 

 

Future looks bleak.

Article here:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2024/01/22/enzo-maresca-methods-leicester-premier-league-return/
 

Maresca is hopeful of making at least one signing before the transfer window closes, but Leicester are restricted on spending by the Profitability & Sustainability rules.

Leicester must offload players before making any additions, with the futures of internationals Harry Souttar and Dennis Praet uncertain ahead of the deadline.

Maresca is targeting Inter Milan’s midfielder Stefano Sensi and talks are understood to be ongoing.

 

IMO this seems like a case of us having money but not being able to spend it. Look at the transfer window in both divisions, the lack of spending is remarkable, given Chelsea this time last season were spending like money was going out of fashion. However, as per your point, you could be right in that we get promoted but are still somewhat hamstrung by the rules. I wouldn't expect a Forest style mad shopping spree, put it that way.

At the same time, so many players will have moved on at the end of this season that surely we have some wiggle room. But I reckon we will see one or two players on loan here for a season for many years to come...

[Happy Fox]

Free agents the likes of Taremi , Koke are available in the summer maybe we will go down this route?

[Finnegan]

4 minutes ago, StriderHiryu said:

Article here:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2024/01/22/enzo-maresca-methods-leicester-premier-league-return/
 

Maresca is hopeful of making at least one signing before the transfer window closes, but Leicester are restricted on spending by the Profitability & Sustainability rules.

Leicester must offload players before making any additions, with the futures of internationals Harry Souttar and Dennis Praet uncertain ahead of the deadline.

Maresca is targeting Inter Milan’s midfielder Stefano Sensi and talks are understood to be ongoing.

 

IMO this seems like a case of us having money but not being able to spend it. Look at the transfer window in both divisions, the lack of spending is remarkable, given Chelsea this time last season were spending like money was going out of fashion. However, as per your point, you could be right in that we get promoted but are still somewhat hamstrung by the rules. I wouldn't expect a Forest style mad shopping spree, put it that way.

At the same time, so many players will have moved on at the end of this season that surely we have some wiggle room. But I reckon we will see one or two players on loan here for a season for many years to come...

 

Exactly. I don't really understand what's bleak at all, that seems like crazy doom mongering. Even last year I don't think we were dangerously cash poor, we were just sticking to the rules and couldn't spend because of FFP.

 

With the contracts we have expiring at the end of the season and the cash injection we'll have for going back up, I think we'll be in an OK position to be honest financially for next season. We don't NEED Sensi now, he'd just help, and several moderately reliable Italian journalists are acting like it's a done deal. Fab gets a lot of stick but it's rare he's this insistent something is happening if it isn't.

 

I'd imagine we're confident we'll be able to scrape together the monies needed to bring in a £2m player. And if not? How many points are we realistically going to lose because we play Praet or Yunus in midfield for a couple of months until Wilf is back?

 

[ClaphamFox]

12 minutes ago, lcfc_forever said:

You're reading way too much into it - don't know how you got all these conclusions from what is a fairly dull, run of the mill article. 

 

He'd have written this largely before the Casadei decision, so let's see. 

 

Obviously, would like our financial position to be stronger but it's fairly quiet window generally. 

 

Posters can judge for themselves here: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2024/01/22/enzo-maresca-methods-leicester-premier-league-return/

It reads to me that the comment about needing to offload players was referring to our general situation before Casadei left. I'm not remotely convinced that Percy has spoken to the club since Friday afternoon and been specifically told that, even after Casadei's departure, we still need to offload more players before Sensi comes in. I still expect the Sensi transfer to happen this week.  

[Ric Flair]

7 minutes ago, Happy Fox said:

Free agents the likes of Taremi , Koke are available in the summer maybe we will go down this route?

I think one of the reasons we don't go for free transfers very often, is they are costlier in the year you bring them in as I don't think you can amortise signing on fees and agent fees.

[Sol thewall Bamba]

27 minutes ago, StriderHiryu said:

Article here:
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2024/01/22/enzo-maresca-methods-leicester-premier-league-return/
 

Maresca is hopeful of making at least one signing before the transfer window closes, but Leicester are restricted on spending by the Profitability & Sustainability rules.

Leicester must offload players before making any additions, with the futures of internationals Harry Souttar and Dennis Praet uncertain ahead of the deadline.

Maresca is targeting Inter Milan’s midfielder Stefano Sensi and talks are understood to be ongoing.

 

IMO this seems like a case of us having money but not being able to spend it. Look at the transfer window in both divisions, the lack of spending is remarkable, given Chelsea this time last season were spending like money was going out of fashion. However, as per your point, you could be right in that we get promoted but are still somewhat hamstrung by the rules. I wouldn't expect a Forest style mad shopping spree, put it that way.

At the same time, so many players will have moved on at the end of this season that surely we have some wiggle room. But I reckon we will see one or two players on loan here for a season for many years to come...

"Leicester must offload players". Iversen and Casadei leave, and still we "must offload players" before we can get anyone in. 

 

Going into the run in with 23 registered players and a bunch injured, sorry but what the fvck is going on. 

[westernpark]

It makes no sense why we wouldn’t sell Iversen for 4 million in the summer, especially when Enzo had him below Ward in the pecking order.

[Finnegan]

8 minutes ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

"Leicester must offload players". Iversen and Casadei leave, and still we "must offload players" before we can get anyone in. 

 

Going into the run in with 23 registered players and a bunch injured, sorry but what the fvck is going on. 

 

We probably weren't paying a significant amount of money for Casadei. I'm not sure what his wage is at Chelsea but if it's silly season we almost certainly weren't paying 100% of it and I doubt there was much of a fee. At the end of the day, we were doing them a favour in giving him game time and development.

 

And Iversen's only gone on loan and probably again not for a lot. I doubt we pay him a massive amount and Stoke probably aren't paying a very big fee.

 

 

[Guest Chocolate Teapot]

12 minutes ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

"Leicester must offload players". Iversen and Casadei leave, and still we "must offload players" before we can get anyone in. 

 

Going into the run in with 23 registered players and a bunch injured, sorry but what the fvck is going on. 

Same as every January. Spent too much in the Summer, desperately trying to offload players and not communicating to the manager.

 

We're never going to learn with a bloke running the football who's more bothered about protecting his relationship with the top brass than doing a good job.

[StriderHiryu]

24 minutes ago, Finnegan said:

 

Exactly. I don't really understand what's bleak at all, that seems like crazy doom mongering. Even last year I don't think we were dangerously cash poor, we were just sticking to the rules and couldn't spend because of FFP.

 

With the contracts we have expiring at the end of the season and the cash injection we'll have for going back up, I think we'll be in an OK position to be honest financially for next season. We don't NEED Sensi now, he'd just help, and several moderately reliable Italian journalists are acting like it's a done deal. Fab gets a lot of stick but it's rare he's this insistent something is happening if it isn't.

 

I'd imagine we're confident we'll be able to scrape together the monies needed to bring in a £2m player. And if not? How many points are we realistically going to lose because we play Praet or Yunus in midfield for a couple of months until Wilf is back?

 

 

6 minutes ago, Sol thewall Bamba said:

"Leicester must offload players". Iversen and Casadei leave, and still we "must offload players" before we can get anyone in. 

 

Going into the run in with 23 registered players and a bunch injured, sorry but what the fvck is going on. 

 

This stuff is super boring, but important. The club gambled post Puel with an aggressive wage structure. This was written last season:

 

https://swissramble.substack.com/p/leicester-city-finances-202122

 

As a result, Leicester's 85% is one of the highest (worst) wages to turnover ratios in the Premier League, though better than Everton 96% and Newcastle United 95%. In contrast, the Big Six have much better ratios, thanks to their much higher revenue, e.g. Tottenham 47% and Arsenal 58%.

 

During Covid the ratio was 105% (!), meaning we were spending more money than we were earning because of the loss of matchday revenues.

 

Then from here:
https://theathletic.com/4311802/2023/03/16/leicester-city-accounts-explained/

 

Leicester were chasing the dream and attempting to punch above their weight, despite the mismatch.

“Leicester are pretty close to the top of what we call the other 14 in terms of their wage bill,” says Maguire. “They have invested substantial amounts in the squad, but it now looks to an extent that that policy is going in reverse as wages did come down a little bit.

“I’ve got an average weekly wage of £87,000 per week, which is clearly substantially higher than when they won the Premier League.

 

So here's the thing, if we sign just one player, but show a loss in the accounting period that exceeds the amount of losses you can make, then you are in breach of the rules and can have points deductions, like Everton and probably Forest. So it's not that we don't have the money, it's that we can't spend it.

 

 

 

 

It's just as well we made such a great start, because it might be that we limp over the line. But as long we get back up that's the most important thing. These rules are terrible, though, they seem designed to stop another Leicester City story from ever happening again...

[Finnegan]

4 minutes ago, Chocolate Teapot said:

Spent too much in the Summer

 

We're seven points clear at the top of the table, ten if we win tonight, having smashed more or less every record going in this tier in an unprecedented start.

 

A large part of that is down to some excellent recruitment with Mavididi, Winks, Fatawu, Hermansen and now Cannon in particular all looking like exceptional deals - not to mention a fantastic bit of recruitment in Maresca.

 

And you're still unsatisfied? Because, why exactly? We should have under-spent and risked falling behind at the start of the season just in case there was someone we fancied signing in the notoriously difficult January window?

 

Fantastic strategy, man. Can see why you're a successful, professional director of football at a major multi-million pound football club.

 

[foxpleasure]

16 minutes ago, StriderHiryu said:

 

 

This stuff is super boring, but important. The club gambled post Puel with an aggressive wage structure. This was written last season:

 

https://swissramble.substack.com/p/leicester-city-finances-202122

 

As a result, Leicester's 85% is one of the highest (worst) wages to turnover ratios in the Premier League, though better than Everton 96% and Newcastle United 95%. In contrast, the Big Six have much better ratios, thanks to their much higher revenue, e.g. Tottenham 47% and Arsenal 58%.

 

During Covid the ratio was 105% (!), meaning we were spending more money than we were earning because of the loss of matchday revenues.

 

Then from here:
https://theathletic.com/4311802/2023/03/16/leicester-city-accounts-explained/

 

Leicester were chasing the dream and attempting to punch above their weight, despite the mismatch.

“Leicester are pretty close to the top of what we call the other 14 in terms of their wage bill,” says Maguire. “They have invested substantial amounts in the squad, but it now looks to an extent that that policy is going in reverse as wages did come down a little bit.

“I’ve got an average weekly wage of £87,000 per week, which is clearly substantially higher than when they won the Premier League.

 

So here's the thing, if we sign just one player, but show a loss in the accounting period that exceeds the amount of losses you can make, then you are in breach of the rules and can have points deductions, like Everton and probably Forest. So it's not that we don't have the money, it's that we can't spend it.

 

 

 

 

It's just as well we made such a great start, because it might be that we limp over the line. But as long we get back up that's the most important thing. These rules are terrible, though, they seem designed to stop another Leicester City story from ever happening again...

 

[FosseSpark]

A win tonight and everyone will be happy. 

Lose tonight and the wheels will have fallen off. 

Such is football

 

I think a Nuge/Vardy style partnership wil really throw Ipswich. 

 

Hermansen

Faes Vest Doyle

Justin Winks KDH

Ricardo Vardy Cannon Mavididi

[hackneyfox]

If you're only getting a ten point deduction then surely you just take that and spend £80m rather than £8m, the extra £72m is likely to earn more than ten points.

[Chelmofox]

Just now, hackneyfox said:

If you're only getting a ten point deduction then surely you just take that and spend £80m rather than £8m, the extra £72m is likely to earn more than ten points.

Depends if you spend it on Soumare's, Praets and Vestergaards (in the PL playing 4 at the back). 

[Viva]

17 minutes ago, hackneyfox said:

If you're only getting a ten point deduction then surely you just take that and spend £80m rather than £8m, the extra £72m is likely to earn more than ten points.

You would probably get another 10 point deduction the following season or two as well, as it would be hard to recover from those losses for FFP. 

[Pliskin]

I think our club definitely has the most depressed fan base. One defeat and it seems the club are back to heading down the shitter! 

[hackneyfox]

48 minutes ago, Viva said:

You would probably get another 10 point deduction the following season or two as well, as it would be hard to recover from those losses for FFP. 

I didn't say spend £80m each season, surely staying up and a second and third years TV monies would sort out FFP?

 

[Chelmofox]

3 minutes ago, hackneyfox said:

I didn't say spend £80m each season, surely staying up and a second and third years TV monies would sort out FFP?

 

The wages are arguably more of a problem than the net spend. Blow 80 mil, you are likely going to have to pay big bucks on wages as well. 

[st albans fox]

1 hour ago, hackneyfox said:

If you're only getting a ten point deduction then surely you just take that and spend £80m rather than £8m, the extra £72m is likely to earn more than ten points.

Not all seasons will have burnley, luton and sheff utd in the PL 

[st albans fox]

2 hours ago, Chocolate Teapot said:

Same as every January. Spent too much in the Summer, desperately trying to offload players and not communicating to the manager.

 

We're never going to learn with a bloke running the football who's more bothered about protecting his relationship with the top brass than doing a good job.

Seriously, you need to stop posting the truth …… someone will get upset 

[st albans fox]

2 hours ago, Ric Flair said:

I think one of the reasons we don't go for free transfers very often, is they are costlier in the year you bring them in as I don't think you can amortise signing on fees and agent fees.

i presume you can spread out the s/o fee across the contract length by having it as a salary. (Assuming no tax imolications). We probably avoided that in the past few years because our salary numbers were too high and there are limits as to how much they can increase season on season. The goalposts may have moved a bit on that with all the players out of contract and gone over last summer and next. 
 

however, i can see a big sale pushed through in june even if we go up to make this years accounts smell better. Our three year rolling number must be well whiffy. 

Edited 22 January by st albans fox

[hackneyfox]

22 minutes ago, Chelmofox said:

The wages are arguably more of a problem than the net spend. Blow 80 mil, you are likely going to have to pay big bucks on wages as well. 

Wages for most players will be plunging from here on in. Having another £100m plus per season from PL TV rights helps.

[iancognito]

19 hours ago, LVFox said:

People on here going way overboard on his injury record. I was far more worried about Ricardo & Justin heading into this season than I am about Sensi coming in now. 

 

Winks too. Supposedly injury prone according to Spuds fans.

 

23 hours ago, LVFox said:

With sensi returning from Saudi tomorrow, will likely need a day or two to get things in order in Italy before he heads over to us. I think we see this announced Friday. First appearance is Swansea the following Tuesday. 

He's nothing more than a squad player to them, I can't see them being arsed about losing someone off the bench for the Super Cup.

 

23 hours ago, ClaphamFox said:

Or could the hold-up possibly be that Sensi has been with Inter in Saudi for the Italian Super Cup, which ends tomorrow? 

Enzo already said in his presser the other day there was nothing imminent either in or out. And again, he's barely played for them, I can't see them hanging on to him to warm the bench.

[st albans fox]

Inter want a fee for sensi because otherwise they lose him for nowt in the summer

the player will want to hang around for a free for obvious reasons 

 

Assuming that the player is committed to coming here or going nowhere then surely our leader will be playing the long game with inter to the end of the window and getting a cheapish  loan deal where we pick up his wages. The alternative for inter is they get nothing in and have to pay him.  We can then move his s/o fee etc into next years accounts by taking him July 1st