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Leicester City managers have over the years used a lot of money and
wasted most of it. Martin O'Neill used £ 3 million or more on Arnar
Gunnlaugsson and Graham Fenton, two of his most expensive signings but
must be regarded as two of the worst signings in the clubs history.
Before O'Neill not much money was really wasted and people like Matt
Gillies and Jimmy Bloomfield worked wonders in the transfer market. Jock
Wallace made fantastic additions from unknown places adding talent like
Ian Wilson, Kevin MacDonald and Bobby Smith.
City had reasonably success under those people and with David Pleat and
Brian Little it also worked out. Gordon Milne and Bryan Hamilton cannot
be faulted either with the club back then basiclly balancing the books
by selling expensive and buying cheap.
Peter Taylor made a number of additions like Ade Akinbiyi and Trevor
Benjamin. He also added Dennis Wise and Lee Marshall that all of them
never really became anything more than desribed as wasted cash. The rest
of the signings made by Peter Taylor was not that bad, despite not being
able to build on the Martin O'Neill work.
Peter Taylor used £ 6.5 million on Trevor Benjamin and Ade Akinbiyi, but
he also added Roberto Mancini and Dean Sturridge almost for free.
Sturridge and Mancini was a class act up front for City. They were both
at the club at the same time, but it lasted only a month, with Mancini
leaving for Fiorentina.
if you look at the way Micky Adams worked. He added players for nominal
fees and almost nothing, but signed the likes for Marcus Bent (loan),
Ben Thatcher, Les Ferdinand and Craig Hignett and Paul Dickov. All
players that contributed well but cost almost nothing.
Sven also made a number of good signings for smaller fees and free
transfers. Sol Bamba was not expensive, John Pantsil came in on a free
and David Nugent never became an expensive signing. So if the owners at
the football club during time would have said, don't use money, just
pick players from the Bosman market, it can work.
This is TCF's team of this century with players that never cost more
than either a nominal fee or came in on a free transfer or a season loan,
would have worked for me and saved the club a lot of worries and £ 10 to
£ 20 million in chash.
Squad:
Goalkeepers: Royce (free), Arphexad (free), Defenders: Hobbs (nominal),
Pantsil (free), Thatcher (nominal), Stearman, Vitor (loan), Mattock,
Dabizas (nominal), Johansson (nominal), Solano (free), Midfielders:
Nalis (free), Izzet (nominal), Savage (nominal), Lennon (nominal), Nalis
(free), Guppy (nominal), Stewart, King, Gilliespie (nominal), Hignett (free),
Gradel, Forwards: Ferdinand (free), Bent (loan), Dickov (nominal),
Fryatt (nominal) Sturridge (nominal)
Would have worked ok, and this shows that some of the best players at
the club in the last 10 years have all cost less than £ 1 million each,
so it can be done. |