Superb Brown Interview

[Guest]

How much Brown has at his disposal? Did you even read what I wrote I said. Some people seem to think that the budget has been slashed and that we are going to have a smaller weaker squad. I believe that we have got rid of overpaid underperforming players and I also believe that Brown has the ability to bring in better players on similar terms. These two things do not equate. While maybe erring on the side of optimisim, even if the budget is equivalent to what McGhee had last year, I think Brown will do better. I think Brown will at least retain the increased budget he got when he came in though, which has the potential to make a decent squad, that can compete. Nothing about league wins or whatever ridiculous notions you have somehow brought in to the discussion, but all to do with Brown operating in what I expect the budget to be...

 

You said the budget will increase but now you are saying it will remain the same. Make your mind up.

[Guest]

I don't care what you think and I'm beyond attempting to persuade you.

 

The two Browns cornerered Milne and both he and Knox made it clear the sum of money required to turn the club around, a take it or we walk away now offer.

 

Amazingly, Milne agreed it. I'm not going to get involved in figures so don't ask.

 

This is bona fide fact.

 

My reputation? Listen, I like a laugh and a joke but I'm not into fabrication, when I say something serious you can be assured I mean it.

 

Unless you were a fly on the wall inside that room, during said meeting, I would take that comment to be pure speculation (unless of course you are the b*stard child of Stuart Milne himself who entrusts you with such important information.

 

So, after 10 odd years of bleeding this club dry of all it's natural assets (pride, determination, honour, business acumen), Milne has suddenly had a prick to his conscious and is about to unleash the fury that is a blank cheque signed in his own hand writing?

 

I'd much rather Milne attempted to write off some of the debt he's helped saddle the club with, and leave us in a position of not addressing a massive interest repayment to the bank ever year.

 

Come on... who's feeding you this yarn? Fess up min!

[Foster14]

You said the budget will increase but now you are saying it will remain the same. Make your mind up.

 

...

 

I echo these sentiments pretty much entirely. Brown might be saying certain things to the press, but I wouldn't be reading too much in to anything till things actually happen. He wants to get the best deals possible and if he were to say there was a healthy enough budget and lots of signings to be made, then we will be getting a harder bargain from the other side.

 

I don't think Milne and co will have reneged on whatever deal was made to get Brown here (and that obviously took some sweetening) so I am happy enough that there are plenty players to arrive and that Brown is well aware of what is required and the contacts to find them...

 

Highlight the bit where I said I think the budget will increase please...

[Guest]

...

 

 

 

Highlight the bit where I said I think the budget will increase please...

 

Erm, this bit....

 

"I don't think Milne and co will have reneged on whatever deal was made to get Brown here (and that obviously took some sweetening) so I am happy enough that there are plenty players to arrive and that Brown is well aware of what is required and the contacts to find them..."

 

Essentially you are agreeing with Tup in that Milne has made a deal (sweetener as you put it) to Brown in order to get him here.

 

In other words, yourself and Tup are suggesting that without said sweetener, he would not have agreed to come. A sweetener is not a similar size of empty biscuit tin that McGhee and all his predecessors had to play with. A sweetener is, "look Craig, tell me what you need and I'll make sure you get it" sort of deal.

 

Feck me.... I would love for this all to become a reality, but it aint ever gonna happen. Milne has NO intention of ploughing any of his hard earned money into AFC. That my friends, is a bona fide fact. Take that to the bank and cash it!!

[tup]

Unless you were a fly on the wall inside that room, during said meeting, I would take that comment to be pure speculation (unless of course you are the b*stard child of Stuart Milne himself who entrusts you with such important information.

 

So, after 10 odd years of bleeding this club dry of all it's natural assets (pride, determination, honour, business acumen), Milne has suddenly had a prick to his conscious and is about to unleash the fury that is a blank cheque signed in his own hand writing?

 

I'd much rather Milne attempted to write off some of the debt he's helped saddle the club with, and leave us in a position of not addressing a massive interest repayment to the bank ever year.

 

Come on... who's feeding you this yarn? Fess up min!

 

I can hardly tell you that in full glare of the public eye as I've already explained to you, several times now.

 

I've already said too much in attempting debate with you, you seem utterly convinced of your stance but you're wrong.

 

 

I have no history of lying or fabricating so I'm hardly going to start now

[Foster14]

Erm, this bit....

 

"I don't think Milne and co will have reneged on whatever deal was made to get Brown here (and that obviously took some sweetening) so I am happy enough that there are plenty players to arrive and that Brown is well aware of what is required and the contacts to find them..."

 

Essentially you are agreeing with Tup in that Milne has made a deal (sweetener as you put it) to Brown in order to get him here.

 

In other words, yourself and Tup are suggesting that without said sweetener, he would not have agreed to come. A sweetener is not a similar size of empty biscuit tin that McGhee and all his predecessors had to play with. A sweetener is, "look Craig, tell me what you need and I'll make sure you get it" sort of deal.

 

Feck me.... I would love for this all to become a reality, but it aint ever gonna happen. Milne has NO intention of ploughing any of his hard earned money into AFC. That my friends, is a bona fide fact. Take that to the bank and cash it!!

 

He brought in Milsom (decent wages?), Blackman (decent contribution to wages?), McNamee (mid-range wages?) and Smith (decent contribution to wages?). Only getting rid of Velicka (any contribution to wages?) and Ifil (decent wages?).

 

Essentially he got a promise he could bring in players that to me was an increased budget for the remainder of the season, so at least, he will retain that and will do a good job of it. I also think he will get there will be a wee bit more than that, but not a bucketload. Still something a decent manager should be able to operate with in returning our fortunes a bit more favourably.

 

I am not going to get in to the boardroom politics levels of it anyway, my view is that Brown will operate better given the oportunity for wholesale changes like there is now even if the budget remains at McGhee's level (as I think McGhee made a pigs ear of the summer last year in terms of squad composition).

[Guest]

I can hardly tell you that in full glare of the public eye as I've already explained to you, several times now.

 

I've already said too much in attempting debate with you, you seem utterly convinced of your stance but you're wrong.

 

 

I have no history of lying or fabricating so I'm hardly going to start now

 

Eh? You've said that Brown will have plenty more money to spend... that's hardly implicating anyone is it. Jeez..... I can confidently predict that Kenny Dalglish will have plenty cash to spend this summer..... go on, slap a libel case on me!!

 

Of course, the more you come out with this story, the more it smacks of 'boy who cried wolf'. It's so true - it's so water tight.... but I can't name my sources as I'm entrusted to do so.

 

Feck me.... is it a director, the manager himself, the tea lady or have you some private eye bug planted inside the board room?

 

Many have came on here before and stated this, that and the next thing, only to be totally blown out of the water when push came to shove. I kinda get the feeling your integrity and honesty is unquestionable Tup. But whoever has fed you this story probably knows it will serve purpose to quell yet another season in discontent.

 

Come 27th July - I can confidently predict we'll have a mediocre side which will be battling it out with Utd, Hibs and Motherwell for mid table position. There.... I said it. I have no sources, I am covering for no one. The facts of history are my only testimony in this instance.

 

AFC - a broken club under broken management. Only God can save us now

[tup]

I think you're being unnecessarily pessimistic.

 

It's not strictly AFC that are broken, it's Scottish football per se.

 

But in the grand scheme of things people point to the debt, and the funding for the new stadium,

 

If my figures stack up, we almost have the new stadium project covered.

 

Twelve million pounds is not a massive amount in the grand scheme of things and, if the new stadium pays off, which I'm certain it will, we will be in rude health. We have a lot of transient supporters, ones who canna be arsed trekking to Pittodrie, I reckon a new ground would awaken several thousand from their self-inposed slumber, adding to our income significantly.

 

So I think we've already hit our lowest point, that was the 9-0 defeat to Celtic, a watershed moment hopefully never repeated, and it's time to get back to being Aberdeen FC again, and get back to the core values that made us world famous in the first place.

[Stoneybloke]

With no matches to comment on, no players to berate and ridicule, and no astounding transfer news, it's inevitable that the forum will be a haven for the pessimists to give vent to their doom and gloom as there is nothing positive for them to focus on.

 

It will be like this for a month or so. But as the words of the song say, after then, it can only get better.

[Guest]

With no matches to comment on, no players to berate and ridicule, and no astounding transfer news, it's inevitable that the forum will be a haven for the pessimists to give vent to their doom and gloom as there is nothing positive for them to focus on.

 

It will be like this for a month or so. But as the words of the song say, after then, it can only get better.

 

Yes that's right, because when the season is in full flow, everyone is a picture of happiness, rejoicing in the total football on display and the massive improvements being made at Board Room level......

 

 

 

Not!!

[villaforrent]

I would argue that " us pessimists are really just realists"

 

Anybody who thinks Brown can turn AFC into a team capable of wining a trophy, with the current budget, is a fantasist!

[seanthesheep]

I think you're being unnecessarily pessimistic.

 

It's not strictly AFC that are broken, it's Scottish football per se.

 

But in the grand scheme of things people point to the debt, and the funding for the new stadium,

 

If my figures stack up, we almost have the new stadium project covered.

 

Twelve million pounds is not a massive amount in the grand scheme of things and, if the new stadium pays off, which I'm certain it will, we will be in rude health. We have a lot of transient supporters, ones who canna be arsed trekking to Pittodrie, I reckon a new ground would awaken several thousand from their self-inposed slumber, adding to our income significantly.

 

So I think we've already hit our lowest point, that was the 9-0 defeat to Celtic, a watershed moment hopefully never repeated, and it's time to get back to being Aberdeen FC again, and get back to the core values that made us world famous in the first place.

 

Great post TUP. I must admit you really do speak a lot of sense if people actually sit back and listen to what your saying.

 

I'm now officially in the TUP fan club

 

 

PS I dinna ant to ride ye or feck all like that though

[Foster14]

I would argue that " us pessimists are really just realists"

 

Anybody who thinks Brown can turn AFC into a team capable of wining a trophy, with the current budget, is a fantasist!

 

Winning a cup in Scotland has f**k all to do with budget and all to do with matching up to a team on its day. We probably don't have the budget to match up to Rangers, Celtic and Hearts as regularly as we would like, but that doesn't we can't do it ever. We got to two semi-finals this season and got humped in both by a very expensively assembled Celtic team, a team that through money at Freddie Ljungberg to sit on the bench for them. No matter what budget Milne extended it to, we aren't going to be on a level pegging with them. Build a squad with a decent mentality, decent adaptability and a couple of inspiration players and we'd always have a chance though...

 

Dundee United did it. Livingston did it. Hibs did it.

[HH_is_back]

Winning a cup in Scotland has f**k all to do with budget and all to do with matching up to a team on its day. We probably don't have the budget to match up to Rangers, Celtic and Hearts as regularly as we would like, but that doesn't we can't do it ever. We got to two semi-finals this season and got humped in both by a very expensively assembled Celtic team, a team that through money at Freddie Ljungberg to sit on the bench for them. No matter what budget Milne extended it to, we aren't going to be on a level pegging with them. Build a squad with a decent mentality, decent adaptability and a couple of inspiration players and we'd always have a chance though...

 

Dundee United did it. Livingston did it. Hibs did it.

 

 

Aberdeen did it during the 80'S before money killed the game totally.

[villaforrent]

I would also argue, we got very easy fixtures to get to the semi finals last season!

 

Also you will find Dundee Utd & Hibs spent more on there playing staff than us.

[spamspamspam]

I would also argue, we got very easy fixtures to get to the semi finals last season!

 

Also you will find Dundee Utd & Hibs spent more on there playing staff than us.

 

no they didnt

 

less spent on transfers

less spent on wages

[Foster14]

I would also argue, we got very easy fixtures to get to the semi finals last season!

 

Also you will find Dundee Utd & Hibs spent more on there playing staff than us.

 

At the respective times they were winning their trophies, no they were not...

[villaforrent]

At the respective times they were winning their trophies, no they were not...

Are you sure?

 

I thought the Thomsons were ploughing in there own cash to finance the team? It's only since Eddie died that they have tried cutting back.

 

I might be wrong, but that's what I thought.