[RUMOUR] Andre Gray

That's cool. Its just my opinion that the deal was more likely £14m + £4.5m in addons based on appearances/goals. I would imagine if we sell him we'd structure a deal in the same way based on promotion.

Anyway, I'd much rather have Gray here than Deeney, but it looks likely we're stuck with him until his contract is up

 

If we can be grateful for one thing, it’s that he has rendered ‘Ellington’ a much less used word on this forum in the past 12 months.

Thank you Andre.

(Although his pop star other half ain’t gonna be too pleased Burnley to London.....to Stoke.)

 

Would prefer to hear of a replacement before we sell (just in case there isn’t one!) but I guess this is a good deal on the face of it as long as we get someone decent in.

 

We are not London......

 

Indeed. But I expect he lives in London and his pop-star wife likely thinks we are in London. So you’ll see my point....

 

Wow.....£30m for Afobe and Gray……..I'd be so depressed if Watford did this sort of business. However, they could be potent enough in the Championship in order to help get Stoke promoted, which is what it's all about.

They are both Championship strikers, but good ones. They'd be useless if Stoke were promoted but would be a gamble worth taking in order to get back to the Premier league.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/fo...arly-30m-strikers-Benik-Afobe-Andre-Gray.html

 

Be up for selling providing we bring in another striker. Part of me fears that with Sinclair making the bench in a few of our games the club may be satisfied with Deeney, Okaka and Sinclair as our 3 strikers (though we also have Peneranda, Richarlison and Success (?) who could play up front).

 

I still maintain that if we can get someone (might be Gracia, might not) capable of getting Success in shape and enjoying his football, then we have a great player there. I hope they haven’t given up on him. That being said, they were happy to ship him out to Malaga and replace him with Lukebakio....

 

I gave up on him a long time ago. I suspect Penaranda will go the same way in the next 12m but for now I still have a slither of hope. I gave up on Sinclair a year ago. Oulare 2 years ago. We really do need a couple of other options up front.

 

I agree, if he can get back to the levels around the time he made a super cameo in our home win against United then we will have a real asset on our hands. After all the lad's only 22 as well so definitely still has some potential to fill.

 

2 years ago long before Baileysgate? A sub cameo not even a full game. I'd be amazed if he ever became a first team regular.

 

Yeah I guess it's a long shot and since then he's played essentially 0 minutes but his career is far from over. Would be very surprised to see him involved in our squad this season but if he can go out on loan and get some good game time then he might still have a future with us.

 

Doubt it. Watched him quite a lot at Granada when he was there with Penaranda and Doucoure. It was clear that Doucoure was great, but both Penaranda and Success were pacy, powerful and had poor decision making (Penaranda being more skilful and Success more direct). That was his best season and even then he was very raw and somewhat brainless. He's gone backwards since then, only proving that his poor decision making isn't limited to the pitch. His manager at Malaga for the last few months was the one he did well under at Granada, and he couldn't get a tune out of an overweight Success this time either.

 

Doesn't matter what the fee was Dyche is still smiling if his name is mentioned!

 

No news on Peneranda or Success worries me and Richarlison needs to change his shooting boots this summer! Surely Sinclair cannot be our 3rd striker?

 

Would rather have Cassidy.

 

Success linked with a move to Olympiacos - not sure if true though.

 

I seem to remember Sinclair being linked with Celtic - although having two Sinclairs in the team may prove a bit much for their fans.

 

I'd be happy for Gray to go to Stoke for £14m, especially if Crouch came the other way.

 

We need a fox in the box, not that giraffe - you’re havin’ a larf.

 

My favourite bit of that interview is when Affleck comically states that Duxbury spent much time ‘shrewdly’ thrashing out the deal to buy him.

 

I think they would very quickly be able to tell them apart

 

http://uk.pressfrom.com/news/sport/-192525-watford-agree-11-5m-gray-deal/

Not concrete evidence but with the way the Pozzos work I'm sure it may have been a deal like this but not very good pressheadlines!

 

If it was £11.5 with add-ons, can it be called a club record deal? That’s the question. If those add-ons are never triggered, it’s not a record.

The club specifically said it was a club record so I’d be leaning more on the side it was probably £14m-£15m with add-ons.

 

I agree. In an £18m deal, I doubt as much as a third would be made up of add-ons. That just doesn't ring true. Accountants do not like that much uncertainty on their books.

For me, there were too many quotes saying the deal was £18.5m for it not to be. Certainly from the Burnley side this is the what fans thought the transfer fee was. There could well have been add-ons, but I think £18.5m was probably the figure we paid for him.

 

It's entirely possible, for example: http://www.skysports.com/football/n...ny-martial-could-cost-manchester-united-61-5m

Clubs are at their own discretion as to whether they report transfer costs inclusive of add-ons, or not. Burnley will always report the figure inclusive of add-ons because they want to give the impression they got the largest amount for him.

 

If we assume the reported 18.5m figure was with addons then logically we should assume the same about a reported 14m deal to sell him.

On that basis it seems likely we're taking a loss on Gray, but frankly that shouldn't be at all surprising.

 

I don't know if that reasoning applies because the 14m figure to sell him might not be coming from Watford. The addons we sell him under may be less or more likely to be reached than any addons he was bought under, so I don't think we'll ever get correct figure.

 

I think the deal was basically done but his agent scuppered everything at the last moment looking for some extra cash. Definitely happened to Sinclair with a move, can't remember to which club. He was already on a train to go and sign on the dotted line. Instead he's stayed and stagnated here.

One of the papers did an 'inside transfer deadline day' piece which covered it. Was quite an eye opener how all these moves are completely at the whim of the agents.

 

It was a loan move to Sheffield United.

 

And was later denied by Sinclair who said he was never on a train and turned down the move.

 

Straight swap for Berahino.

 

What, Jerome Sinclair?

 

It also ties in with the fact that AG is only a Championship player.