Brentford
- Thread starter AlGard
- Start date
Yes. A very well run club with a long term plan to EVENTUALLY reach the PL.
And it worked out for them, they had to be patient but they got there in the end.
Now it will be interesting to see what they do with their newfound PL riches and whether or not that strategy turns out to be enough to keep them there.
There is a lot to admire about Brentford, I agree.
Kudos
UTC Legend
I know it's a more popular opinion after 1 win but I predicted them to surprise a few.
They turned their relatively modest Championship budget into a conveyor belt of talent over a sustained period while creeping up the table. I don't see any reason why they wouldn't continue that process with their increased Premier League resources.
You would think they would, yes. Heck, we might even end up with a PL club which makes a decent profit year on year !!! You never know, it could even catch on and become a thing
NWCherries98
Fans' Favourite
Leaving.
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
Everyone says how well clubs are run until it all goes tits up.
Kudos
UTC Legend
Such as .....
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
Swansea, Norwich, Ipswich, Middlesbrough.... even AFCB. 'well run club' appears to be a synonym for 'got promoted'.
New Forest Cherry
Star Player
heard on talksport (sorry) yesterday they are £200m in debt with borrowed money
no idea if this is true but, if so, doesn't smell of good management to me
Kudos
UTC Legend
Also TalkSport less than a week ago
"Brentford fans once sang about being the Barcelona of the lower leagues, but they’re nothing like the Spanish giants.
Riddled with debt and spending way beyond their means? The Bees are far too clever to find themselves in a mess like Barca."
https://talksport.com/football/9259...-barcelona-premier-league-smartest-ever-club/
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
Long thread. In short, they do well in players sales but are still heavily reliant on friendly owner debt. Despite being 'well run' the consistently lose money like everyone else.
northstandmark
UTC Legend
Much like us the rely heavily on friendly owner debt, Matthew Benham in their case.
Interestingly, Benham has a famous rivalry with Brighton's Tony Bloom. Both involved in mathematics, statistics and betting, their paths have crossed in business and football. Brighton's rise reportedly and in part fuels Benham's desire to go after them.
One thing Brentford have done better is recruit and sell-on players, but that's partly a function of them staying in the championship for several years. For example imagine we missed out on promotion in 2015, chances are we'd have sold Callum Wilson or Matt Ritchie to a PL club for a hefty sum, and re-invested in replacements. Though would we have recruited replacements as well as they have? They have done that exceptionally.
Kudos
UTC Legend
I agree "well run" is a bit of an umbrella term that does often get abused
It's probably quite telling I don't remember Norwich, Ipswich, us or 'Boro being touted as well run.
I remember "Spanish Swansea" had 'a way' until a takeover in 2016. I'd argue they were well run prior to that. Perhaps also you could look at the 20% fan stake in the club.
Us and Ipswich I'm guessing it's due to superstar managers Howe and Robson? Personally, I wouldn't say that reflects positively across the club beyond the appointment and retention of that manager or their succession planning.
Norwich are fiscally sensible but it's very rare that that is lauded as a sign of a well run club in the media. Normally, it's described as a "lack of ambition".
Middlesbrough I've come up blank on.
Kudos
UTC Legend
Also highlights from the thread.
"loss of £9m is actually one of the better financial results to date in the 2019/20 Championship, only surpassed by Hull City’s £3m profit. Even before the pandemic, many clubs lost more than £20m, while #LUFC and #Boro reported losses of £62m and £36m last year."
"The #BrentfordFC financial challenge is highlighted by the fact that their £14m revenue was third lowest in the Championship, only above Preston £13m and Wigan £12m, so they hugely punched above their weight. For context, only around 20% of clubs with parachute payments (£71m)."
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
I agree the term is lazily bandied about about any club. Brighton is another, with their hundreds of millions of debt that their fans don't think counts as some of it paid for their ground.
Boro and Ipswich were 'well run' by local boy made good owners who invested significant funds, arguably it worked for a while but eventually every team fails in the pitch as will Brentford.
We were well run when we were achieving things with lower league players... Until we had to invest in new players in the hit-and-miss environment of the PL. Is Brentford's model going to work for top flight players? I'm sceptical.
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
As I say a mixed bag. One of the higher operating loses in the Championship and 6th highest debt on the third lowest revenue. If their player sales income dries up they are in trouble. If it becomes more tricky to operate in the PL they are in the same position as every other bottom half club and will eventually go down like everyone else.
Kudos
UTC Legend
With Brighton I'd be inclined to agree with their fans if the ground debt was reduced year on year instead of piled up. I think up to £280M at last count.
They also fall in with your 'local boy made good' collection. I would consider those examples as almost the antithesis of a 'well run' club.
Does that mean when you heard the oft repeated "Arter was signed from non-league Woking for £4,000" you thought it was hinting at a great transfer policy?
I just saw it as either banal trivia or a complement on Howe's ability to coach players.
I'm expecting Brentford to wipe out their debt, survive the drop and settle as a mid table side. Baring some bad fortune and/or injury crisis as that can easily take down any mid table team. A bold prediction for sure.
They might need a few tweaks to their off field system but for over ten years now they've effectively resourced their playing side to be competitive with teams resourcing at up to around 5 times the expense. Last year for example, not an exception Brentford spent net £23M (£14 plus £9M debt) compared to Villa at ~£160M, Leeds ~£115 deliberately not including parachute payment teams.
I think their challenge will become wages and their pool of customers for players shrinking and including their rivals but I think they'll overcome it.
SlowDownDerek
UTC Legend
Banal is what I'd go with. Any club outside the top six needs a narrative and it's almost always an overly simplified generalisation or half truth. We were lauded for turning sow's ears into a silk purse but often the media glossed over the financial backing in those early years. I see the same thing happening with Brentford.
Personally I don't think such a thing as a settled mid table side exists. Who knows what Brentford will do but if you think they will last longer in the top flight than we did I'd suggest getting some cash on it.
I think you're comparing Brentford's championship spend to Leeds and Villa post promotion spend there.
Kudos
UTC Legend
Probably bias blocked me from seeing our coverage from that perspective. I get where you're coming from where a bunch of events are woven into a story. It would be possible to continue our lower league heroes narrative to logically conclude with big time charlies bringing us down.
By "settle at mid table" I mean avoid relegation without it looming over them for the best part of the season most of the time. Kind of like West Ham. If you can find anyone offering odds for it, I'll give it a punt
RE: Villa and Leeds, I thought it was only us that are stupid enough to have our financial year span the summer break and tempt the wrath of FFP.
