A tale of 2 summers AFC vs. Celtic

[PondHopper]

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

[CraigHill]

NRT

[RabidGiraffe]

TL;DR

[TouzaniLeers]

13 minutes ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

WTAF is this unhinged spiel? 

What on earth is the title of this thread? 

Have a fucking word with yourself 😂

[RAZOR]

 

[Johnnyred1]

Personally, I think he makes some valid points. Maybe a bit long for some on here to concentrate that long to finish it.

[Dynamo]

45 minutes ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

Really long post which I read 1/3rd of. Presume you missed our awesome match against Atlanta B a couple years ago? It was absolutely abysmal. 

 

You points about B teams or even Reserves are true and impact us though. I wonder how worthwhile loans to part time league one or league two clubs are. Not very I imagine. I'd rather Boyd got 15 mins here or there for the first team than ended up at Elgin City for half a season.

[DD1903]

Nope

[Tord31]

1 summer 2 clubs?

Thought we were speaking about 2 summers?

[Footballs coming Rome]

Just now, Tord31 said:

1 summer 2 clubs?

Thought we were speaking about 2 summers?

Follow up to 2 girls one cup. 

[Footballs coming Rome]

1 hour ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

Yes we should qualify for Europe more, keep our best players and sign good players. 

 

[aberdeen1970]

The only reason Celtic can play in these games at the same time as EPL teams is because they've qualified for the champions league group stages. 

So unless we won the league we wouldn't be able to play as we'd be playing euro qualifiers while these teams are off on a jolly 

[JumboJET]

Imagine starting such an inane thread.

[caledonia]

1 hour ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

Post a bit long but some things ring true with me

p.s are you related to clydeside

[Dons79]

A liked the bit, instead of playing shitty Dumbarton come awa over here and play our cannon fodder lol, as if we had a choice, aye we will forfeit one of the 3 tournaments on offer to play Vancouver lol

[Russell]

4 hours ago, Footballs coming Rome said:

Yes we should qualify for Europe more, keep our best players and sign good players. 

 

Controversial 

[Russell]

5 hours ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

Nobody is going to give a shit about watching Aberdeen live. Did you see the Copa America attendances? And that was to watch exciting teams.

We went and played Atlanta B youth reserves, by all accounts the Aberdeen fans that were there enjoyed it (as did the yankee commentator) but I'm sure no new fans were picked up.

We've signed 4 folk from over there in Polvara, Gurr, Hernandez and the Irish boy who I cannae mind. So a 1 in 4 success rate.

Never say roster again.

[PondHopper]

2 hours ago, Russell said:

but I'm sure no new fans were picked up.

I'd suggest a short tour of USL teams in mid markets. Some of these clubs draw 5k-8k fans and might be on TV. If I was in marketing for any of those teams, I'd be all for it. Especially years AFC has qualified for Europe.

Then AFC upsets Celtic on CBS Sports. That's how you develop a fanbase.

[Russell]

23 minutes ago, PondHopper said:

I'd suggest a short tour of USL teams in mid markets. Some of these clubs draw 5k-8k fans and might be on TV. If I was in marketing for any of those teams, I'd be all for it. Especially years AFC has qualified for Europe.

Then AFC upsets Celtic on CBS Sports. That's how you develop a fanbase.

I think it's very much wishful thinking. American sports is all about winning with the idea that every few years each team should have an even chance to win with drafts and wage caps. They're not going to follow a team from Scotland who will never challenge for the league. Plus Aberdeen games are on (depending where you bide) at anywhere from 4 to 8 am on a Saturday which isn't exactly prime time viewing.

Celtic is a very poor comparison as they live off the Irish stuff, and America is full of plastic paddy's. Aberdeen literally have a 'partnership' with a top MLS team and if that can't develop a fan base, playing diddy teams in the middle of nowhere is unlikely too.

[NEM]

Gluepot of the year sewn up before the season starts 😄

[Poodler]

We did go to America a filey ago

 

Atalanta showed us the contempt we deserved and let us play their u18’s or something 

 

 

The dons shouldn’t be lifting the skirt to the Yankee dollar 

[Dom Sullivan]

5 hours ago, Russell said:

Nobody is going to give a shit about watching Aberdeen live. Did you see the Copa America attendances? And that was to watch exciting teams.

We went and played Atlanta B youth reserves, by all accounts the Aberdeen fans that were there enjoyed it (as did the yankee commentator) but I'm sure no new fans were picked up.

We've signed 4 folk from over there in Polvara, Gurr, Hernandez and the Irish boy who I cannae mind. So a 1 in 4 success rate.

Never say roster again.

^^^this

Fucking hate the use of that word when talking about proper fitba.

[Guest Matt Armstrong's Dog]

5 hours ago, Russell said:

Nobody is going to give a shit about watching Aberdeen live. Did you see the Copa America attendances? And that was to watch exciting teams.

We went and played Atlanta B youth reserves, by all accounts the Aberdeen fans that were there enjoyed it (as did the yankee commentator) but I'm sure no new fans were picked up.

We've signed 4 folk from over there in Polvara, Gurr, Hernandez and the Irish boy who I cannae mind. So a 1 in 4 success rate.

Never say roster again.

Not one of Sean Connery's finest performances as James Bond. 

[Guest Matt Armstrong's Dog]

11 hours ago, PondHopper said:

I've been on Red TV watching Aberdeen playing no-name lower division teams domestically. It's an okay chance to build some team chemistry, but the other clubs are trash. And nobody really knows how good the team really is due to that simple fact.

Celtic is is playing on national TV in the United States and absolutely smashing PL teams. Celtic has a substantial following in the US, and fans are taking notice of these games. SPFL games (mainly featuring Celtic and Rangers) are broadcast nationwide on CBS sports in the US. AFC should be in more of these fixtures. 

FIrst, AFC needs to finish top 4 and qualify for Europe. But next summer why not come over to the US and/or Canada? They could easily visit mid size cities and play exhibition games against eager local sides. They may not see national TV, but they could hit local and regional TV. It would be a step in building the brand in the US.

The same opportunity probably exists in the winter in the southern United States. Come train and play an exhibition somewhere. This all makes way more sense than playing Dumbarton. You learn very little, you maybe build a bit of team chemistry, but overall you are ill prepared for Celtic, Rangers, and European football.

I am also taking issue with some of these moves. If Aberdeen is a selling team, then why not rehab a Mason Hancock vs. sign a James McGarry? Is McGarry any better than Hancock today? Eeeh.

I get that a manager needs to bring in his own veteran guy to build culture. But does this Nilsen have more potential going forward than Barron?

Unless Gueye comes on strong at LW, AFC will need to go and purchase a winger. Wouldn't it have just been cheaper to have paid Scott Wright? Wright may not be a superstar, but what better prospect will they sign? 

Now I know those 2 went on to a piece of garbage rival. But from a mathematical perspect Aberdeen are paying fees on many that are very borderline prospects that aren't any better than players that are walking away. I'll get to the wage issues shortly. 

That brings me to Bojan Mioviski. I think there are two reasons Aberdeen is going to get underpaid for him. The first is Aberdeen needs to be a bigger brand and win more. If AFC was off to Europe, the offers would be bigger. The other issue is that clubs know that AFC struggles to extend contracts for their top talent. Part of it is players want to move on, and part of it is AFC being too cheap.

If Bojan is on 6 or 7k and he doesn't sell this summer, then AFC needs to offer a wage increase that can also have performance incentives. If Bojan can make 3 or 4k more weekly this year and sign a short extension (while AFC mulls over offers) you'd think he'd do it. If the window passes without a good offer and Bojan has extended, every interested teams know they will have to pay up. And while this process plays out Bojan is helping AFC win. AFC pays an extra 100k over 6 months in wages. But they make 6 million plus incentives vs. 3 million plus incentives. And AFC has a great start to the season. 

AFC wants to be a develop and sell club. But more often than not they are looking early to mid 20s. It's more like a showcase and sell plan. And they want to spend about 500k. The reality is they should probably be looking at teenagers in the 500k to 2m range. 

With no real B Team it makes it a challenge to develop teenagers. You either loan them to the championship/league one or you put them on the bench. 

Of all the players on this roster I only see one player that moves the needle. By moves the needle I mean can make an impact against the old firm and in European competition. I like Shinnie, but he's on the wrong side of 30. I would count Miovski and Duk, but they are on the way out. There are plenty of prospects and maybe they "come good" types, but only one legit talent for the future. Leighton Clarkson is the only guy I see that is at the level AFC needs going forward.

They need to find a defender they are just as excited about. The same holds true for an attacker and keeper. 

Hell the manager that we can count his term by the hour was able to bring in a decent talent on a free. I'm not sure AFC should be paying for a 30+ something transfer or a McGarry. You can't do that and call yourself and development and selling team. You might as well pay more for quality on a free. 

There has got to be an exciting winger in Africa, Latin America, European country, etc out there.  He's out there somewhere. But for every Miovski there is too many like Richardson, Morris, McGarry, Stewart, etc coming in. Better to find one prospect that checks the boxes, get a development plan in place, and pay the fee. 

There seems to be a disconnect between everyone throughout the organization on how to proceed. Hopefully the new manager can find the correct path forward.

From my perspective, this season is a big question mark. Everyone is just hoping for some stability and a top 4 finish. 

We're 25 years too late in trying to sign Frankie Fredericks min. 

We have recruited from the African market before but without much success. Zerouali, when in the mood, and Luis Lopes (*see Zerouali) were, on average, alright but, for the fees we paid for them both, not much return was/has been had by the club. 

The last African winger we had, Daniel Uchechi, was Wildebeest fodder. Truly useless. He had the heart of a vacuum cleaner.

Delving into this particular market only appears to be worthwhile if you've obscene amounts of money (whether it be egal or illegal) to spend, or gamble with, I'm afraid.

[newcastlered]

Celtic have a large US fanbase because the personality void freaks who inhabit the country like to think they're from County Fiddlethekids because five generations ago someone got off the boat. 

We aren't picking any fans from the cosplay Irishmen. 

[RDS]

38 minutes ago, Matt Armstrong's Dog said:

We're 25 years too late in trying to sign Frankie Fredericks min. 

We have recruited from the African market before but without much success. Zerouali, when in the mood, and Luis Lopes (*see Zerouali) were, on average, alright but, for the fees we paid for them both, not much return was/has been had by the club. 

The last African winger we had, Daniel Uchechi, was Wildebeest fodder. Truly useless. He had the heart of a vacuum cleaner.

Delving into this particular market only appears to be worthwhile if you've obscene amounts of money (whether it be egal or illegal) to spend, or gamble with, I'm afraid.

You should do some research on Rights to Dream and Tom Vernon and  what he achieved from being Man United Africa scout then building an Academy from scratch in Ghana over the years to massive organisation now

[TouzaniLeers]

6 hours ago, PondHopper said:

I'd suggest a short tour of USL teams in mid markets. Some of these clubs draw 5k-8k fans and might be on TV. If I was in marketing for any of those teams, I'd be all for it. Especially years AFC has qualified for Europe.

Then AFC upsets Celtic on CBS Sports. That's how you develop a fanbase.

What if we don’t want the Yankee tentacles all over our beloved club? 

Tart ourselves out to the globalisation of football? 

Im quite happy just being Aberdeen and having the club belong to the people of Aberdeen. 

The idea that an American market is vital for any growth is for corporations and big British rock bands. 

Leave the fucking normal clubs alone and let us cherish the game we all love before it evaporates completely. 

 

[Big Hat Logan]

Celtic have a big following in the states because loads of them love to think of themselves as Irish and all that shite.

I doubt there’s any point trying to go over and get exposure there, the dumb yanks have their own fitba teams now and a bit of identity. The costs involved with flying over and expenses accommodation etc it wouldn’t be worth it.

If the Wisconsin Wankstains or Pittsburgh Paedos came over here would anyone care or bother to go? 

[Big Hat Logan]

13 minutes ago, TouzaniLeers said:

What if we don’t want the Yankee tentacles all over our beloved club? 

Tart ourselves out to the globalisation of football? 

Im quite happy just being Aberdeen and having the club belong to the people of Aberdeen. 

The idea that an American market is vital for any growth is for corporations and big British rock bands. 

Leave the fucking normal clubs alone and let us cherish the game we all love before it evaporates completely. 

 

Well said. I shudder every time someone mentions the “American market”. 

[Big Hat Logan]

1 hour ago, RDS said:

You should do some research on Rights to Dream and Tom Vernon and  what he achieved from being Man United Africa scout then building an Academy from scratch in Ghana over the years to massive organisation now

I haven’t seen it but I suspect the Man Utd part helped immensely. We don’t have the “brand” or finances to even consider something like that