Hammonds negotiating skills

[Extended-Phenotype]

Yeah, without it I had no f/cking idea what the thread was about.

[Man Friday]

Yeah, without it I had no f/cking idea what the thread was about.

I'm not surprised.

[paddy20]

Is it time to question Nicky Hammond's skills at negotiating? If we believe some of the paper talk we seem to always offer figures either well below or just below the asking price. That seems sensible but on occasions you cant always get a bargain deal. Again if we believe what's reported we have offered £6.5m for Ince when they want £7m. Would 500k make such a difference when compared to staying in this division? We seemed to have lost a number of other targets by not willing sometimes to go that extra mile. Is there an obsession on his or others part of only buying if you get a player at less than their true value? Its clear that we desperately need one or two top quality players in this transfer period to enable us to survive. Lets hope we don't sink the ship for a haporth of tar

This in Januaury 2012

[paddy20]

Is it time to question Nicky Hammond's skills at negotiating? If we believe some of the paper talk we seem to always offer figures either well below or just below the asking price. That seems sensible but on occasions you cant always get a bargain deal. Again if we believe what's reported we have offered £6.5m for Ince when they want £7m. Would 500k make such a difference when compared to staying in this division? We seemed to have lost a number of other targets by not willing sometimes to go that extra mile. Is there an obsession on his or others part of only buying if you get a player at less than their true value? Its clear that we desperately need one or two top quality players in this transfer period to enable us to survive. Lets hope we don't sink the ship for a haporth of tar

This in January 2012

[paddy20]

Is it time to question Nicky Hammond's skills at negotiating? If we believe some of the paper talk we seem to always offer figures either well below or just below the asking price. That seems sensible but on occasions you cant always get a bargain deal. Again if we believe what's reported we have offered £6.5m for Ince when they want £7m. Would 500k make such a difference when compared to staying in this division? We seemed to have lost a number of other targets by not willing sometimes to go that extra mile. Is there an obsession on his or others part of only buying if you get a player at less than their true value? Its clear that we desperately need one or two top quality players in this transfer period to enable us to survive. Lets hope we don't sink the ship for a haporth of tar

This in January 2012

Sorry meant 2013

['lista]

So, are we saying Hammond's negotiating skills can be improved simply by adopting Strategy B below?



STRATEGY A

Agent: My player wants £100,000 per week.

Hammond: oxf*rd off you cheeky oxf*rd.

Player doesn't sign.

Fans:




STRATEGY B

Agent: My player wants £100,000 per week.

Hammond: Erm, OK.

Player signs.

Fans:


It's so simple. Someone should tell the club.

[SapperBRoyal]

Do we really think these fundamentals escape him? He can count and doesn't bank roll the club himself, he facilitates the deals he can within the limitations placed upon him. If there is board level rhetoric where there should be money, guess what: selling, free transfers and loans. Silk purse, sow's ear... I am amazed he has stuck around frankly.

[RoyalBlue]

First of all why is this thread in rumours and gossip? It is neither it is people expressing their views on Hammond's negotiating skills which is surely no different from expressing views on Adkins' management skills or the way the business side of the club is run.

From the little information we have been given by the club, or been able to glean from other sources, it would appear that, having devoted his efforts to selling two very good players (albeit one was very injury prone and appears to have refused to play in order to get his way) Hammond then focussed pretty much exclusively on signing just one player (Sissoko). He then failed to even secure his services, by which time the window had slammed shut. As a consequence, far from getting the three players he had said he wanted, Adkins got bugger all and lost one of just four experienced central defenders in the process.

Clearly Hammond got nowhere near securing Sissoko or the deal could have been finalised today. Instead, and just to add insult to injury the minister for misinformation - CMZ - stuck out a statement celebrating the fact that we had kept hold of some key players (no mention at all of the fact that we had flogged two very good players, at least one of whom could have been key)!

So having put all his eggs in one basket last time around by pursuing Sig on the last day and then being left with no other options when that move went nowhere, Hammond appears to have made exactly the same mistake. Truth was we stood virtually no chance of ever landing Sig and our chances of landing Sissoko were probably little better.

So whether it is his negotiating skills, tactics or a combination of both, Hammond has done a pretty piss poor job in the last two windows and has let his managers down.

[Platypuss]

First of all why is this thread in rumours and gossip?

Ask the OP - he put it there!

[SapperBRoyal]

First of all why is this thread in rumours and gossip? It is neither it is people expressing their views on Hammond's negotiating skills which is surely no different from expressing views on Adkins' management skills or the way the business side of the club is run.

From the little information we have been given by the club, or been able to glean from other sources, it would appear that, having devoted his efforts to selling two very good players (albeit one was very injury prone and appears to have refused to play in order to get his way) Hammond then focussed pretty much exclusively on signing just one player (Sissoko). He then failed to even secure his services, by which time the window had slammed shut. As a consequence, far from getting the three players he had said he wanted, Adkins got bugger all and lost one of just four experienced central defenders in the process.

Clearly Hammond got nowhere near securing Sissoko or the deal could have been finalised today. Instead, and just to add insult to injury the minister for misinformation - CMZ - stuck out a statement celebrating the fact that we had kept hold of some key players (no mention at all of the fact that we had flogged two very good players, at least one of whom could have been key)!

So having put all his eggs in one basket last time around by pursuing Sig on the last day and then being left with no other options when that move went nowhere, Hammond appears to have made exactly the same mistake. Truth was we stood virtually no chance of ever landing Sig and our chances of landing Sissoko were probably little better.

So whether it is his negotiating skills, tactics or a combination of both, Hammond has done a pretty piss poor job in the last two windows and has let his managers down.

The performance of NH in the transfer market is a direct reflection of the resources available to him, the incoherence of the policy imposed upon him (board vs manager vs owner) and the shambolic 'dabbling' of AZ who seems to have become an overnight football expert. Fact. This is not down to who has blinked first around the negotiating table, an inability to understand the transfer window, or the fact that we like to leave things late. Look at what happened; we were evidently under orders to generate funds by selling the sort of players that would attract interest. Hammond's plan, money or authority? Nope.

[Man Friday]

Can't see Hammond sticking around for much longer working for this idiotic spoilt brat.

Then we'll find out what a good job he's been doing on a shoestring these past few years.

[paddy20]

Can't see Hammond sticking around for much longer working for this idiotic spoilt brat.

Then we'll find out what a good job he's been doing on a shoestring these past few years.

Good question. Is it Hammond or AZ. But then it would have also have to have been Hammond or Madjeski. Hammond seems to be the common factor. AZ said last year we failed to spend the money available. Are we all suffering from Hammond's ego about signing players on the cheap or what is the reason that we have been unable to attract more players and we are losing good ones?

[SapperBRoyal]

I'd suggest that transfer budget(be it SJM's or AZ's pockets) and the vast majority of the board (including SJM) all remain common factors. Given the nature of the DOF role, NH is not the organ grinder here and should get some credit for the money he potentially generated in selling (as directed by his hierarchy) Kebe and Maps for what he managed to. The money just isn't there - we could have Kofi Annan and Franco Baldini negotiating for us, but with nothing to spend we are not going to finance the deals we want/need or compete dynamically with the Southampton, Palace, Cardiff, Swansea type clubs.