Apparently Bristol Rovers are looking at him, according to X (Twitter).

Not sure I’d go there if I were him. If he has a solid season or two here he will move upwards.

Thought we'd get more than half a season before this started, but it's to be expected he's a player with massive potential! I would have hoped that Bristol Rovers isn't a quite the massive pull other clubs maybe. If he has a good season or two here and he'd get a far better move imo, risks not been able to quite make the step up to L1 yet and slowing his progress. However seems there are a few others skulking around.

Rumour of a release clause, hopefully not true as I think a sell on fee has the potential to make us some serious money later down the line. I reckon the best bet at keeping him if interest is serious is him recognising he could hold out for a better move in the summer or sometime after that.

Quoted from davmariner

Not sure I’d go there if I were him. If he has a solid season or two here he will move upwards.

Aye, mid-table League One club with no real chance of promotion this year. He’ll get a better offer than that in the summer if he knuckles down.

That aside, there’s very little to suggest the Tweetist / Xist knows what he’s on about…

Unfortunately there is a release clause in his contract so if that’s triggered Town can’t wait until the summer for a bidding war it’ll be down to the player if he wants to move now or not. Only hope for town to make some serious cash out of him is if they can get a decent sell on fee put in for when he does go. Also Middlesbrough have a sell on fee for when we sell him on so they will take a chunk of the money too.

Have they got any money?

Our owners are very astute and I think are trying to follow the Brighton model for recruitment.

You can bet your bottom dollar that any sale will recover a healthy profit (on top of the sell on fee) and include a large sell on fee for his next move!!

JS & AP are no mugs!!

Maybe, just maybe this could be the start of that plan falling into place!!

Unless I've missed it when he was signed I'm not sure how anyone would know the details of his contract, but as ever this is a football message board and loads of people are ITK.

I'd be really disappointed with him if he went there, not just for the fact he's leaving but for the fact that someone with his talent and potential should aim higher.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Unless I've missed it when he was signed I'm not sure how anyone would know the details of his contract, but as ever this is a football message board and loads of people are ITK.

I'd be really disappointed with him if he went there, not just for the fact he's leaving but for the fact that someone with his talent and potential should aim higher.

Hurst even admitted to Matt Dean in an interview that Middlesbrough had a sell on clause in his contract as part of the deal.

They can’t afford him

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Unfortunately there is a release clause in his contract so if that’s triggered Town can’t wait until the summer for a bidding war it’ll be down to the player if he wants to move now or not. Only hope for town to make some serious cash out of him is if they can get a decent sell on fee put in for when he does go. Also Middlesbrough have a sell on fee for when we sell him on so they will take a chunk of the money too.

Any idea what that might be?

Quoted from mariner91

Any idea what that might be?

Yeah send me a private message if you like and I’ll let you know as I’m not prepared to put it on here incase it affects anything.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Yeah send me a private message if you like and I’ll let you know as I’m not prepared to put it on here incase it affects anything.

If there's a release clause, his agent will know about it, so there's hardly any point in keeping at a secret.
If he wants to move anywhere his agent will make any buying club aware of that clause.

I think Hurst said Middlesbrough had a buy back clause and a significant sell on.

There's no way there'd be a release clause aswell as guaranteeing Middlesborough a sell on %. You are just limiting yourself and there's no way JS or PH would be that naive. I'd be very shocked if he went anywhere in January when he signed a 3 year deal in the summer.

If theres no release clause, stick a £500k price tag on him, as we have no reason to sell.

If there is one, theres nothing we can do about it, but I certainly hope the release clause is close to £350k, due to the rumoured £150k purchase price and Middlesboroughs rumoured 20% sell on clause.

This would net us a profit of £160k, which isn't bad for 6 months, however personally I wouldnt want him to go yet.

Quoted from Corkyefes

If theres no release clause, stick a £500k price tag on him, as we have no reason to sell.

If there is one, theres nothing we can do about it, but I certainly hope the release clause is close to £350k, due to the rumoured £150k purchase price and Middlesboroughs rumoured 20% sell on clause.

This would net us a profit of £160k, which isn't bad for 6 months, however personally I wouldnt want him to go yet.

500k too low in my opinion. Very talented young player with a lot of interest, it's January, and he's got 2.5 years left on his deal. £1,000,000 minimum

Quoted from MaccasBoots

500k too low in my opinion. Very talented young player with a lot of interest, it's January, and he's got 2.5 years left on his deal. £1,000,000 minimum

Defo this! 👆

You've got to see the irony that there's several players we would love to see the back of this window but Conteh is not one of them...

...b*gger!

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Unless I've missed it when he was signed I'm not sure how anyone would know the details of his contract, but as ever this is a football message board and loads of people are ITK.

Info is coming from "Alan Buckley" with 11 posts, how much ITK do you want?

He will play in the Premiership won't he ?

And go for a lot of money at some stage barring disaster

Whether we lose him now or in the summer it's vital we get the right deal for us with regards his next move after this which will probably be the big 1 .

Quoted from pizzzza

Info is coming from "Alan Buckley" with 11 posts, how much ITK do you want?

In fairness, this was my initial thought too, but a quick check of those posts reveals that he did in fact correctly predict the signing of Callum Ainley several days before it was announced.

https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?m-1682500547//id-1672124

Either way, he's a fantastic player, and one we should all appreciate him for just how good he is.
Hopefully we get at least another year with him!

Quoted from pizzzza

Info is coming from "Alan Buckley" with 11 posts, how much ITK do you want?

To be fair, I’m pretty sure he’s right.

I really like the lad he's a Rolls Royce on his days However in the event we got a decent fee 750k+ it would allow DA to bring in his own players Player's move on all the time and Conteh will play a lot higher than league 2 .

Quoted from 1mickylyons

I really like the lad he's a Rolls Royce on his days However in the event we got a decent fee 750k+ it would allow DA to bring in his own players Player's move on all the time and Conteh will play a lot higher than league 2 .

Think we’re looking at about a third of that to be fair. Key is wether we can have a sell on fee.

Quoted from Mikey_345

Think we’re looking at about a third of that to be fair. Key is wether we can have a sell on fee.

250k shouldn't warrant us giving a reply in my opinion but I've no idea what the going rate is for potential?

Quoted from 1mickylyons

250k shouldn't warrant us giving a reply in my opinion but I've no idea what the going rate is for potential?

That’s irrelevant, if he has a release clause fee, then he can go for that fee . Can’t do anything about it

Quoted from supertown

That’s irrelevant, if he has a release clause fee, then he can go for that fee . Can’t do anything about it

Exactly and that’s why I posted about him having a release clause in his contract no to profess to know everything but to just give a reality check to the people thinking we’re going to get anything like half a million for him.

Quoted from supertown

That’s irrelevant, if he has a release clause fee, then he can go for that fee . Can’t do anything about it

You can offer him an improved contract if you felt it was needed surely?

Quoted from 1mickylyons

You can offer him an improved contract if you felt it was needed surely?

You can, absolutely.
But why would he accept it when he can go to a league 1 side that will offer him more than we could on a improved contract anyway?

Ugh, I hate saying this but I think we're probably a bit snookered here.

When we signed Conteh it was pretty obvious that the intent was we would be a stepping stone, but that works for both parties and very much part of that continuous improvement approach.  We benefit from him playing for us, he gets experience and exposure. When it comes to selling we can then reinvest whatever transfer fee we get for him into something (hopefully) better.  Repeat until we win the Champions League...

But getting him here in the first place was as much of a coup as it was unexpected.  No doubt we will have had to have made significant compromises.  Firstly to 'Boro - return clause and hefty sell-on fee.  Secondly to the player himself, otherwise he probably wasn't signing for us, that will have come in the relatively low release fee.  That enables him to impress and move on quite quickly, limited time wasted slumming in League Two with us...

That's the matter of the situation.  We can't get away from it and we agreed to it.  

I've absolutely no idea on what that release fee looks like but I don't think we're in a position to be demanding mega money.   For some context, here's a player who has played less than 2000 minutes in the fourth tier of English football.  Yes he's got potential but he's not a baby either, he's just turned 21.  Equally so when he's impressed he's looked the absolute business, but he's also looked anonymous at times too.

Different type of midfielders but to give some comparison for a similar aged midfielders in the lower leagues.  Jack Rudoni left AFC Wimbledon 18 months ago after two seasons as a mainstay in a League One side.  His final season, one he bagged 12  goals from midfield, that's in a side that got relegated too.  No transfer fee was ever disclosed but it was rumoured to be around £800,000.  Rudoni had just turned 21.

Joe Randall - nearly 22 when he joined Peterborough from Exeter for 'at least £1million' according to Darragh McAnthony.  That was on the back of 8 goals in 30 games in League Two though.

As stated, that's comparing attacking midfielders to Conteh but generally the further up the pitch you go the higher the price anyway.  Exeter did sell Ethan Ampadu to Chelsea in 2018 for £1,3million, but that was for a 16-year-old with 8 League Two games under his belt, arguably an awful lot more scope for development than a 21-year-old.

I don't think we've seen the best of Conteh yet.  I think the lad has ridiculous levels of ability and potential, but I'm also not convinced any sale of him is going to be a mega windfall.  Our best hope of really cashing in will be on the long term and him progressing from somewhere like Bristol Rovers to the next level.

Quoted from Mikey_345

Think we’re looking at about a third of that to be fair. Key is wether we can have a sell on fee.

It's rumoured that we paid 200'000, I don't see any world in which we don't sell for at least double that especially the fact that it's public knowledge that there's a sell on for Boro. We'd be making a loss if we sell for 250.

Sell-on clauses are usually profit related wherever you sit in the chain.

'Boro would get 50%, just throwing that out there, of any profit we make.  In your scenario, £25k for them which won't even touch the sides.  I'd genuinely be gutted if we ended up initially making £25k on him.

Its shite here, Rovers purpose built training ground is near me and set in lovely Green Gloucestershire countryside, he'll hate it.  

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

It's rumoured that we paid 200'000, I don't see any world in which we don't sell for at least double that especially the fact that it's public knowledge that there's a sell on for Boro. We'd be making a loss if we sell for 250.

Sell on clauses are often only based on the gross profit. Let's see how it pans out, Conteh seems to have his head screwed on and might want to get some more games under his belt before he thinks about the next step. If he performs well between now and the summer, better offers are likely to come his way.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

It's rumoured that we paid 200'000, I don't see any world in which we don't sell for at least double that especially the fact that it's public knowledge that there's a sell on for Boro. We'd be making a loss if we sell for 250.

250 is the figure I’ve heard a few times. I don’t pretend to know first hand though and I could be completely wrong but I’m comfortable enough with it.

Not sure we paid that much for him but as others have said the devils in the detail as always with contracts as it can be very intricate. Is it profit or total price, 250 above what we paid and/or is our earning potential more tied in to potential sell on fees as opposed to out and out fee - this level it’s generally the former. There is a hundred other conditions or nuances that could be included in any clause.

Let's see how it plays out - windows are never boring are they!

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

It's rumoured that we paid 200'000, I don't see any world in which we don't sell for at least double that especially the fact that it's public knowledge that there's a sell on for Boro. We'd be making a loss if we sell for 250.

1. Do you really think we paid £200k for a player last summer? 2. Do you really think we paid £200k for a player with a buy out clause for £250k? 3. REALLY?.

I think Santa clause is more realistic clause than that.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Hurst even admitted to Matt Dean in an interview that Middlesbrough had a sell on clause in his contract as part of the deal.

Yeah that's probably no surprise to anyone.

As you're clearly ITK can you tell us all what trigger's the release clause? I'm sure it won't just be as weak as L1 club asks the question.

Maybe the release clause only applied to Middlesbrough? Tbh he isn't that great anyway been struggling to get in a team lately on the verge of disaster. I'd take the money and rebuild with it

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Yeah that's probably no surprise to anyone.

As you're clearly ITK can you tell us all what trigger's the release clause? I'm sure it won't just be as weak as L1 club asks the question.

A club has to offer the full release clause in full upfront and then we are obliged to accept the offer. Obviously conteh could still reject that club but we couldn’t stop him talking to them if they meet the release clause.


Also it would be beneficial for us that he did make a small step up first before a big club take a punt on him that way we are more likely to receive a substantial sell on fee from his next club rather than a big club coming in for him now and then him not making a second step up rendering our sell on clause redundant if that makes sense.

Quoted from Blundellite

Maybe the release clause only applied to Middlesbrough? Tbh he isn't that great anyway been struggling to get in a team lately on the verge of disaster. I'd take the money and rebuild with it

DA rested him the other week otherwise he’s the best midfielder we have on our books by a country mile. But he’s only just 21 so there are obviously areas he needs to improve and like all players he has poor games however, if he does move on he would leave a big gap and I would want any money his sale brings in to bring in two quality midfield players at this level.

Any deal would have to satisfy the requirements of both parties, obviously, so I doubt that anybody would be surprised at a young player, with high potential, insisting on a sell-on clause when joining a League 2 club on a three year deal.

However - and this is me speculating a bit - if I had been negotiating on behalf of the club, I think I would have agreed, providing that the clause only became active after the first year, thus giving the buying club (us in this case) stability for this season.  I don't see why the player would find this unacceptable, it wouldn't prevent a move in the January window if an offer came in which suited both the player and club.

Like I said, pure speculation as I have no knowledge or experience of footballer contracts, but it would be interesting to see feedback on this from anybody who has.

#ClutchingAtStraws?

Quoted from Alan Buckley

A club has to offer the full release clause in full upfront and then we are obliged to accept the offer. Obviously conteh could still reject that club but we couldn’t stop him talking to them if they meet the release clause.


Also it would be beneficial for us that he did make a small step up first before a big club take a punt on him that way we are more likely to receive a substantial sell on fee from his next club rather than a big club coming in for him now and then him not making a second step up rendering our sell on clause redundant if that makes sense.

Get that, but I think my question is what actually triggers the release clause, your reply was a bit generic like reading a horoscope in the paper.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Get that, but I think my question is what actually triggers the release clause, your reply was a bit generic like reading a horoscope in the paper.

I mean, I’m not sure how else I can simplify it. If a club matches the release clause upfront then that triggers it? I’m not sure what else I can say 🙃

Quoted from Alan Buckley

I mean, I’m not sure how else I can simplify it. If a club matches the release clause upfront then that triggers it? I’m not sure what else I can say 🙃

What is the release clause?

Isn’t the whole purpose of a release clause usually some kind of inflated amount? so to say that if you want a player you have to pay through the nose for it. It would be very ‘town like’ to have a sh1te release clause.

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

Isn’t the whole purpose of a release clause usually some kind of inflated amount? so to say that if you want a player you have to pay through the nose for it. It would be very ‘town like’ to have a sh1te release clause.

That depends on if you’re trying to convince a player to join you instead of a league 1 club. So you offer him a realistic release clause so that if he performs he can get a move up the ladder.

Does he play like a player that cost £200,000 in league 2 tho. That cost as a defensive midfielder in league 2 to a club who has let in 11 goals at home in 2 games.....just saying

Quoted from jamesgtfc

What is the release clause?

Exactly!

Isn't there a sell on clause that the selling club can receive future fees if the player moved on numerous times as long as the future selling club also has the same clause?  Ah i'm probably getting confused.

  

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Exactly!

I’m not going to disclose the figure publicly and when he does go the fee will be undisclosed also I’d imagine to help protect the club in negotiations with new players and clubs.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

I’m not going to disclose the figure publicly and when he does go the fee will be undisclosed also I’d imagine to help protect the club in negotiations with new players and clubs.

Hmmmm....... Whilst I don't doubt there is various clauses in his contract I do doubt you truly know the detail, but I guess we'll never know that for sure.

Quoted from Meza

Isn't there a sell on clause that the selling club can receive future fees if the player moved on numerous times as long as the future selling club also has the same clause?  Ah i'm probably getting confused.

  

Now known as the Dembele clause.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

A club has to offer the full release clause in full upfront and then we are obliged to accept the offer. Obviously conteh could still reject that club but we couldn’t stop him talking to them if they meet the release clause.


Also it would be beneficial for us that he did make a small step up first before a big club take a punt on him that way we are more likely to receive a substantial sell on fee from his next club rather than a big club coming in for him now and then him not making a second step up rendering our sell on clause redundant if that makes sense.

Good point; I was thinking that for the player why move to League 1 now when a much bigger move could be on the cards in the summer, with a good second half of the season (and he was outstanding on Saturday), but for us if the big move is at the release clause price we may miss out on our sell-on. On that basis the smaller the club that takes him at the release clause price the better for us in terms of likelihood of a sell-on dividend.

So 6 pages on and the conclusion is that nobody knows.

What I want to know is this guy the  real ALAN BUCKLEY ?

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Hmmmm....... Whilst I don't doubt there is various clauses in his contract I do doubt you truly know the detail, but I guess we'll never know that for sure.

That’s absolutely fine that’s your opinion and like I say I could say the figure and that figure will probably not come out even when he’s sold so it wouldn’t prove me right anyway. But I am 😉

Quoted from crusty ole pie

What I want to know is this guy the  real ALAN BUCKLEY ?

No, my son isn’t a thief

Quoted from Bristol Mariner

Its shite here, Rovers purpose built training ground is near me and set in lovely Green Gloucestershire countryside, he'll hate it.  

I've heard that he really despises cider, so that could go in our favour.

Quoted from crusty ole pie

What I want to know is this guy the  real ALAN BUCKLEY ?

More chance of him being Alan Partridge

Quoted from Jammin242

More chance of him being Alan Partridge

A Ha!

I hope he doesn't leave but it's quite plausible that he has a release clause. He'd had a great loan, was clearly above the level, clearly fancies he's got the ability to play higher.

3 year deal gives him some security, release clause means that if he really shines he will get his move.
I'd love to see him stay, as I think he's going to be a really fantastic player. He's already improving, noticed in recent games he's driving forward with his head up and has made some great long range forward passes that weren't happening before.
I think we might have a struggle though as the data fans will know he has made the most tackles and interceptions of anyone in the division. That will not go unnoticed by other clubs.

I'd also add it's brilliant work from the club and Joe whatshischops. He's either signed us a quality player for 3 years or he will have paid his own wages back to the club for years by getting Conteh in.

I’ve no inside info but we might have bought him for 200k or we might have a 250k release clause, but I absolutely guarantee both won’t be true.

One way to look at this would be to ask what would Bristol Rovers be capable of paying and does that make what has been said here likely. Thought not relevant today there record transfer fee paid was £446k for a certain Andy Tillson over 30 years ago . More relevant the most they have paid in modern times is £350k last summer for Connor Taylor a 21 year old centre back from Stoke with few league appearances. So being capable and willing to pay a similar fee for Conteh is clearly a possibility and that sort of fee could well be more then specified in any release clause. So if they want him and he wants to go a deal looks probable. Also worthy of note is that he is London boy who only spent one year in Middlesbrough so a move down south is also on the cards. Our best outcome might be a bidding war if a south eastern club is interested.This is merely an attempt at logic no inside knowledge.

Quoted from pontoonlew

I’ve no inside info but we might have bought him for 200k or we might have a 250k release clause, but I absolutely guarantee both won’t be true.

Quite right. If we paid 200k with the view to developing him as a player (and the expectation that he would be moving on before the end of his contract), I can't see any way that a release clause would be less than double what we paid.

I tend to doubt he'll move anywhere this season as, though he's done well in lots of games, we're in the bottom half of the division and not many of his performances have proved game-changing. As others have commented, it's a bit different for attackers who can start scoring or creating goals to get themselves noticed, but sitting in midfield breaking up and linking play is a less glamorous role.

Quoted from HerveJosse

One way to look at this would be to ask what would Bristol Rovers be capable of paying and does that make what has been said here likely. Thought not relevant today there record transfer fee paid was £446k for a certain Andy Tillson over 30 years ago . More relevant the most they have paid in modern times is £350k last summer for Connor Taylor a 21 year old centre back from Stoke with few league appearances. So being capable and willing to pay a similar fee for Conteh is clearly a possibility and that sort of fee could well be more then specified in any release clause. So if they want him and he wants to go a deal looks probable. Also worthy of note is that he is London boy who only spent one year in Middlesbrough so a move down south is also on the cards. Our best outcome might be a bidding war if a south eastern club is interested.This is merely an attempt at logic no inside knowledge[b][/b].

That's the mistake I made Herve - there is no bidding war (except for clubs talking to Conteh and his agent); the club meets the release clause and he's gone (so long as he agrees terms with the club)

in other words; teams A,B, C&D are all after Conteh, and each agree to pay the release clause. The only thing that remains to be tied up is which club Kamil agrees to go to

Quoted from forza ivano

That's the mistake I made Herve - there is no bidding war (except for clubs talking to Conteh and his agent); the club meets the release clause and he's gone (so long as he agrees terms with the club)

in other words; teams A,B, C&D are all after Conteh, and each agree to pay the release clause. The only thing that remains to be tied up is which club Kamil agrees to go to

You have absolutely no idea of what's in his contract though do you.

Quoted from forza ivano

That's the mistake I made Herve - there is no bidding war (except for clubs talking to Conteh and his agent); the club meets the release clause and he's gone (so long as he agrees terms with the club)

in other words; teams A,B, C&D are all after Conteh, and each agree to pay the release clause. The only thing that remains to be tied up is which club Kamil agrees to go to

It’s perfectly possible to have a release clause which says if more then one party meets it the club can accept the highest bid .

Quoted from HerveJosse

It’s perfectly possible to have a release clause which says if more then one party meets it the club can accept the highest bid .

Absolutely- I don’t think AP & JS got where they are from being niave!! They’ll have this all wrapped up as it would have been all part of the plan.

We aren’t dealing with Fenty anymore!!

All of this is intriguing speculation. Personally I believe the following

1. The club is run by a savvy Chairman. I can’t speak for other contributors to fishy, but I think he is more commercially savvy than me.
2. Given the above, I doubt he has allowed commercially sensitive to be released to the likes of us lot.
3. Let’s just rejoice in 5 goals scored last Saturday and hope our defence improves.
4. I’m going to watch the game at Harrogate. I hope we win, but given the fact that Harrogate can go into playoff position if they win, I’m going with a prediction score of 3-2,…..just not sure which team….

Quoted from Maringer

I've heard that he really despises cider, so that could go in our favour.

Nah we'd get him on the Natch soon sort him out

Quoted from Maringer

Quite right. If we paid 200k with the view to developing him as a player (and the expectation that he would be moving on before the end of his contract), I can't see any way that a release clause would be less than double what we paid.

I tend to doubt he'll move anywhere this season as, though he's done well in lots of games, we're in the bottom half of the division and not many of his performances have proved game-changing. As others have commented, it's a bit different for attackers who can start scoring or creating goals to get themselves noticed, but sitting in midfield breaking up and linking play is a less glamorous role.

It’s absolutely obvious he’s a fantastic footballer though, and he’s only just turned 21 which still amazes me given how assured he is on the pitch. Any scout worth their salt would pick him out of the crowd and any side paying 250k (based on the rumour) should be looking at that as an absolute steal.

I was told by a mate with close links to the owners before they fully took over that they were keen on the Brentford model of investing in quality young players that sell on for good profit and this fits that bill. He also said though, that it we couldn’t do it at their level as it’s costly to set up and they use the infrastructure of a betting company that already has it in place - I guess that’s why we’ve signed up with Loughborough university to use a more affordable version - that looks like it’s starting to pay off.

Quoted from Mappers

He will play in the Premiership won't he ?

And go for a lot of money at some stage barring disaster

Whether we lose him now or in the summer it's vital we get the right deal for us with regards his next move after this which will probably be the big 1 .

Not sure he'd fancy Scotland tbh

I’m 100% sure that Conteh & maybe a couple of others would have a clause in their contract to exit if an attractive offer for the player or the club came in.

So far it’s 8 pages based upon a tweet and someone who claims to be ITK but hasn’t  backed up his posts.

Also unlike some who claim they can confirm this I’m pretty sure we didn’t pay £200k for him, in fact if we did I’d be pretty p1ssed off with the club for spending such a big part of the budget on a “prospect” who’d never played in the EFL.

At this stage I suspect this needs to sit in the Healy & Morrison folder on top of the Glennon & Clifton file.

The silly season is upon us.

Quoted from Lost in Lincoln

Not sure he'd fancy Scotland tbh

I heard he was off to Saracens.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

I’m 100% sure that Conteh & maybe a couple of others would have a clause in their contract to exit if an attractive offer for the player or the club came in.

So far it’s 8 pages based upon a tweet and someone who claims to be ITK but hasn’t  backed up his posts.

Also unlike some who claim they can confirm this I’m pretty sure we didn’t pay £200k for him, in fact if we did I’d be pretty p1ssed off with the club for spending such a big part of the budget on a “prospect” who’d never played in the EFL.

At this stage I suspect this needs to sit in the Healy & Morrison folder on top of the Glennon & Clifton file.

The silly season is upon us.

Aww bless you.


My posts have been firstly about Callum Ainley signing which was backed up. And now about Conteh’s release clause which I’ve let a few people know who have private messaged me, again I’ll state that even when he is eventually sold his fee almost certainly won’t be made public anyway.

Also we didn’t pay anywhere near the 200k that people are saying we will still make a healthy profit on him especially if he moves twice. It just won’t be a £500k bid that he goes for 😂

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Aww bless you.


My posts have been firstly about Callum Ainley signing which was backed up. And now about Conteh’s release clause which I’ve let a few people know who have private messaged me, again I’ll state that even when he is eventually sold his fee almost certainly won’t be made public anyway.

Also we didn’t pay anywhere near the 200k that people are saying we will still make a healthy profit on him especially if he moves twice. It just won’t be a £500k bid that he goes for 😂

So, are you saying that we do have a sell on clause then?

Quoted from pontoonlew

I’ve no inside info but we might have bought him for 200k or we might have a 250k release clause, but I absolutely guarantee both won’t be true.

If we paid 100k for him there is no way we'd have a clause for 250k

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Aww bless you.


My posts have been firstly about Callum Ainley signing which was backed up. And now about Conteh’s release clause which I’ve let a few people know who have private messaged me, again I’ll state that even when he is eventually sold his fee almost certainly won’t be made public anyway.

Also we didn’t pay anywhere near the 200k that people are saying we will still make a healthy profit on him especially if he moves twice. It just won’t be a £500k bid that he goes for 😂

I’m 100% sure we won’t officially announce a fee too, we quite rightly never do.

Quoted from grimps

If we paid 100k for him there is no way we'd have a clause for 250k

Why?

I don't know the figures be it for his transfer fee or for his release.  But I don't think it's unfathomable that there would have been other interest in him last summer.  Getting him required an incentive that no-one else would have been prepared to offer.

That could well be a very low release clause.  I don't think we'll have paid massive wages for him and as much as I think he's got his head screwed on I really can't imagine he bought into the long-term vision of the club.  More I think about it the more I can see us pitching the club to him on the basis that he comes here, builds up his reputation a bit more and then we really don't stand in his way when it comes to someone else higher up the food chain wanting to take him.  He's proved he can cut it at the next level in his development, which probably allows him to demand a better deal at his next club.  Our benefit just comes a little bit differently.

Profit is profit, regardless of when it comes. It might be that we make very little off this transfer, let's say £25k.  But with a sell-on clause any future transfers is where we really make our money on him.

Obviously we want to see the money back from him straight away but would we rather see £250k profit now or £500k upwards in 18 months time?    Easy answer but to add another angle to it, I can't imagine there's a cat in hells chance he signs for us last summer without that release fee in place.

Take the short-term out of it and I really like this plan.  It's different and makes us a little bit different to the rest when it comes to the transfer market.  We've seen how the non-league market has become completely ravaged.  The days of signing Jamie Vardy for 47p and then selling them a year later for £1million have long gone.  So we need to think of other ways that we can gain that competitive edge and steal a march.  This type of deal not only is a potential future income stream but it's also a great way for us to become appealing to the next Kamil Conteh.  

We might have to wait 18 months to see the real profit from Conteh.  But in those 18 months we might have brought in Conteh Mk II and Mk III.  Mk II we sell next summer, again not a huge initial profit but another year down the line we make a tidy profit as part of their next transfer... and so on.

Rovers bid has apparently been rejected by the club

Some of the ITK posters going to look quite daft if they’ve made up a release clause

But all the Bristol Rovers supporters on twitter were bragging about their club's undoubted financial might and certain ability to meet whatever paltry release clause was set in Conteh's contract, how could this be possible!??!

Quoted from pontoonlew

Some of the ITK posters going to look quite daft if they’ve made up a release clause

Piece from the local Bristol news outlet here. No inference is made towards a release clause, and references the £370k club record for Andy Tillson as the benchmark. Have they really got the spondoolies to be paying that kind of sum?

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/bristol-rovers-interested-signing-league-9041647

Quoted from Poojah

Piece from the local Bristol news outlet here. No inference is made towards a release clause, and references the £370k club record for Andy Tillson as the benchmark. Have they really got the spondoolies to be paying that kind of sum?

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/bristol-rovers-interested-signing-league-9041647

They have Middle Eastern owners with net worth of £500 m plus have just built a new 3000 capacity stand in 6 months even though they expect to relocate in the future and paid £350k for a 21 year old  from Stoke so yes they have the spondoolies

Quoted from HerveJosse

They have Middle Eastern owners with net worth of £500 m plus have just built a new 3000 capacity stand in 6 months even though they expect to relocate in the future and paid £350k for a 21 year old  from Stoke so yes they have the spondoolies

Right, £700k it is then.

The Arabs like chucking money around when it comes to football clubs, so make 'em pay if they want to sign him!

Hopefully, he'll stay with us until at least the end of the season, however.

Quoted from Mappers

Tweet 1747925093886345484 will appear here...

This tweet reads as that there's no release clause to me...

So one source saying it would break their record fee and another saying we've rejected. If both are right then the clause would be at least more than 375k.

The big problem for Town could well be a player with his head turned and trying to replace him in January. Hopefully a few Clubs are interested and we get a good fee and better still it happens quickly  

Quoted from 1mickylyons

The big problem for Town could well be a player with his head turned and trying to replace him in January. Hopefully a few Clubs are interested and we get a good fee and better still it happens quickly  

Agree with that and JS has always stated that he'll do right by the players and the football club, but a good next 6 months and there'll be a lot more lucrative offers than Bristol Rovers on the table for Kam.

You would think first bid or two will be low to try it on.. hopefully there's a few clubs interested

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

This tweet reads as that there's no release clause to me...

Reach Media though.  You can trust them about as far as Nathan Clarke can lob the ball from a throw-in.

Quoted from 1mickylyons

The big problem for Town could well be a player with his head turned and trying to replace him in January. Hopefully a few Clubs are interested and we get a good fee and better still it happens quickly  

Aye I’ve got absolutely no issues selling Conteh, a shame we’ll get less than 6 months of him but this kind of business not only helps us survive but it *should* help us progress in the long term.

Artell said no bid has been made for Kam, so puts an end to that then.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Reach Media though.  You can trust them about as far as Nathan Clarke can lob the ball from a throw-in.

As you correctly point out, an article from Reach Media, the same group who own our GT, Daily Express etc. Can you believe a word they print? or do they just like to fill a page with opinions? One would assume that Bristol Live would have contacted Grimsby Live for a story, but nothing.GL, at this time, has no mention of a Conteh transfer rumour.

So believe what you want.


https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/all-about/grimsby-town-fc

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Artell said no bid has been made for Kam, so puts an end to that then.

That’s not quite what he said. He said there isn’t one on the table to consider - which would be true if reports we’ve turned one down are correct.

Also worth remembering that we signed Contrh from Middlesbrough, who are a league higher than Bristol Rovers, so it might not turn his head as much as some are imagining

Quoted from pontoonlew

Some of the ITK posters going to look quite daft if they’ve made up a release clause

Hurst pretty much said there was a release clause.

Quoted from DB

As you correctly point out, an article from Reach Media, the same group who own our GT, Daily Express etc. Can you believe a word they print? or do they just like to fill a page with opinions? One would assume that Bristol Live would have contacted Grimsby Live for a story, but nothing.GL, at this time, has no mention of a Conteh transfer rumour.

So believe what you want.


https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/all-about/grimsby-town-fc

There is now an article about this in GL, but not on the GTFC pages. It's on the news pages.

https://www.grimsbytelegraph.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/bristol-rovers-lodge-transfer-bid-9042457

It reads as if the lazy journalist has done a cut and paste job from Bristol Live.

Before anyone pipes up all panicked, Mikey the Gimp is a bullshitter.

Quoted from davmariner

Before anyone pipes up all panicked, Mikey the Gimp is a bullshitter.

Tweet 1748072999167619211 will appear here...

Has the bloke ever guessed a right one yet? Even a clock is right twice a week

Quoted from forza ivano

Has the bloke ever guessed a right one yet? Even a clock is right twice a week

Suggest you get a new clock Forza!!!

Quoted from Lincoln Mariner 56

Suggest you get a new clock Forza!!!

Or maybe he lives on Pluto(huh)

Quoted from fishboyUTM

Hurst pretty much said there was a release clause.

He never even came close to saying those words, it would be hitting the self destruct button to let clubs know that a player that he himself said he's suprised we were able to sign has a release clause in his contract. Hurst said that Middlesborough have a sell on percentage in the deal, never once has there been mention of a release clause.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

He never even came close to saying those words, it would be hitting the self destruct button to let clubs know that a player that he himself said he's suprised we were able to sign has a release clause in his contract. Hurst said that Middlesborough have a sell on percentage in the deal, never once has there been mention of a release clause.

Whilst I can’t remember him saying as much either - I could be wrong though. Conteh’s agent will know which is pretty much as good as it been public knowledge anyway to other clubs.

Quoted from davmariner

Before anyone pipes up all panicked, Mikey the Gimp is a bullshitter.

Tweet 1748072999167619211 will appear here...

You are having a laugh. WUM

Quoted from Mikey_345

Whilst I can’t remember him saying as much either - I could be wrong though. Conteh’s agent will know which is pretty much as good as it been public knowledge anyway to other clubs.

With how dillegent Paul was in interviews regarding speaking about players etc I would find it mental that he'd discuss something like that in the public etc and i'm 99% sure that people may be mis remembering what he said. I know he stated about the sell on to Boro but nothing else. I don't think we'd be so naive in putting in a release clause if i'm honest, i've been very open about that I think Kam will leave the club for close to 7 figures and when he arrived here he was very much seen as a coup which I think we can all see has proved to be true. A championship club as big as Boro wanting a sell on % should be a pretty good indication that they expect him to go for some value.

Quoted from davmariner

Before anyone pipes up all panicked, Mikey the Gimp is a bullshitter.

Tweet 1748072999167619211 will appear here...

He’s made his excuse already. He’ll claim we accepted the offer but they couldn’t agree personal terms. What a clown.

Quoted from forza ivano

Has the bloke ever guessed a right one yet? Even a clock is right twice a week

Mine is correct twice a day.  It must be a higher quality broken clock than yours.  :)

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

A championship club as big as Boro wanting a sell on % should be a pretty good indication that they expect him to go for some value.

This is more thinking aloud than any insight.  But would Boro's insistence on a sell-on fee have any influence on the personal terms that Conteh agreed with us?

I can only flip this round to when we sold Dembele to Peterborough.  We insisted on a sell-on fee but would have had no influence on Demebele having an agreement with Peterborough that he could be sold for £x and/or if mitigating circumstances are met.

I suppose the difference would be that we probably want 'Boro to let us do this again, other clubs too.  This probably wouldn't do any favours if their sell-on fee is £4.91 and a paperclip.

You'd think he'd make more of an attempt to sound somewhat plausible.

£125,000 for a highly regarded, young player, watched by many clubs, with 2 and a half years left on contract in the dead of winter...

The club would have to be utterly shambolic to accept the first club to come sniffing in the winter market for that price tag. Considering the nature of experience our new owners have, i'ma say this is utter colly wobble

And I understand Barcelona haven't agreed a fee either

Quoted from Balthazar Bullitt

And I understand Barcelona haven't agreed a fee either

To be fair, Barca can only afford free transfers nowadays anyway! They’ve got no chance.

Really hope that there isn't a release clause as we have one hell of an asset in Kam.
Clearly not all of the summer business was fantastic but getting Rose and Conteh was pretty impressive, especially Conteh. Great player already and could go very far, makes the game look easy.
Did wonder on Saturday when he was applauding the fans after everyone else if that was a goodbye but remembered he does that often. In fact he ran the whole length of the pitch doing so at Notts. County. Top bloke and top player. Hope we get something decent for him and hope he does well if he goes. As has been mentioned this definitely looks good on the club, bit like McAtee. We can show players that they can earn decent moves if they do well.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

With how dillegent Paul was in interviews regarding speaking about players etc I would find it mental that he'd discuss something like that in the public etc and i'm 99% sure that people may be mis remembering what he said. I know he stated about the sell on to Boro but nothing else. I don't think we'd be so naive in putting in a release clause if i'm honest, i've been very open about that I think Kam will leave the club for close to 7 figures and when he arrived here he was very much seen as a coup which I think we can all see has proved to be true. A championship club as big as Boro wanting a sell on % should be a pretty good indication that they expect him to go for some value.

I'm sure he said Middlesborough have an option to buy him back.
Lots of players have release clauses. It makes sense for him to have one with a 3 year deal, if he does really well he knows we have to sell him. Player and agent power.

It's all about Risk v Reward. There is no way that the release clause will be a fraction over what we paid for him. Case in point is Alex Hunt. We paid a fee for him and at the moment, it looks like he will leave the club for less than we paid or nothing between now and the end of his contract. A lot can change between now and the end of next season, but he's not establishing himself in our team.

Essentially what I'm saying is that there is no guarantee of any signing being a success and sold on for profit, so those that are successful need to generate a fee that covers those that aren't, and any sell-on clause will likely reflect that risk v reward. Obviously, it would cap our earning potential somewhat and it may have been something that made him choose us over another club, but deals have to work for both parties and I can't see how a sell-on clause a fraction above what we paid would work for us.

Whatever the clause is, if there even is one, I hope it insists on a sell-on clause because that is where the real earnings potential with Conteh sits.

Id be beyond amazed if we paid 200k like some are suggesting for a defensive midfielder who'd played 1 season in non league. Think we paid about 55k for Bogle didn't we who was a hot striker from the division below were conteh was playing.

If 200k is involved at all it's probably what we are required to pay if he reaches targets in terms of appearances, promotion and length of stay in order to reward Boro and protect them if he just saw out his 3 years with us and so didn't net them any sell on fee.

If we paid a more realistic up front sum, 50k or 75k then a release clause of 250k (and a sell on percentage) seems more plausible.

When we signed him the initial fee was £50 grand I was told before any add ons appearances promotions etc
Which is probably a decent fee from what he has achieved in his career up to then

It’s a win win scenario with our business in the future with stuff like this. I’d love if we could follow a similar mould to Exter/Crewe even Peterborough in the right capacity. Where we developing our own youngsters or bringing them in from leagues below try and develop them as much as we can and sell for a profit.

It only takes Kami to get a move to the Championship, play week in week out and have one fantastic season for a Prem team to pump 10-15m for him if he’s good enough. It’s the gems that everyone are looking for and there isn’t many. Recent memory only suggests the likes of Ollie Watkins, Jamie Vardy, Nick Powell going on to play in the Premiership after moves from L2.

Quoted from GtfcGarner

It’s a win win scenario with our business in the future with stuff like this. I’d love if we could follow a similar mould to Exter/Crewe even Peterborough in the right capacity. Where we developing our own youngsters or bringing them in from leagues below try and develop them as much as we can and sell for a profit.

It only takes Kami to get a move to the Championship, play week in week out and have one fantastic season for a Prem team to pump 10-15m for him if he’s good enough. It’s the gems that everyone are looking for and there isn’t many. Recent memory only suggests the likes of Ollie Watkins, Jamie Vardy, Nick Powell going on to play in the Premiership after moves from L2.

Then there is reality

Quoted from GtfcGarner

It’s a win win scenario with our business in the future with stuff like this. I’d love if we could follow a similar mould to Exter/Crewe even Peterborough in the right capacity. Where we developing our own youngsters or bringing them in from leagues below try and develop them as much as we can and sell for a profit.

It only takes Kami to get a move to the Championship, play week in week out and have one fantastic season for a Prem team to pump 10-15m for him if he’s good enough. It’s the gems that everyone are looking for and there isn’t many. Recent memory only suggests the likes of Ollie Watkins, Jamie Vardy, Nick Powell going on to play in the Premiership after moves from L2.

Now don't get me wrong because I think he is a good player and a great prospect for the future. But if he has that kind of potential then why did Middlesbrough sell him in the first place? I can't imagine that they needed the money and seeing as they are a strong Championship club with realistic aspirations for Premiersh*t football I would have thought that they would have carried on his development to their own advantage.

Quoted from rancido

Now don't get me wrong because I think he is a good player and a great prospect for the future. But if he has that kind of potential then why did Middlesbrough sell him in the first place? I can't imagine that they needed the money and seeing as they are a strong Championship club with realistic aspirations for Premiersh*t football I would have thought that they would have carried on his development to their own advantage.

Rumour is there is a buy-back clause which suggests they think he has potential.

I guess the interest (if it actually exists) confirms that the adopted strategy of spotting & developing talent to then sell on for a net gain has started to work.

As long as any profit is reinvested which I’m 100% confident it will be I’m completely cool with a player moving on if it’s right for the club and doesn’t leave the squad missing something essential.

Quoted from rancido

Now don't get me wrong because I think he is a good player and a great prospect for the future. But if he has that kind of potential then why did Middlesbrough sell him in the first place? I can't imagine that they needed the money and seeing as they are a strong Championship club with realistic aspirations for Premiersh*t football I would have thought that they would have carried on his development to their own advantage.

The same as anything isn't it? A lot of players have a great ceiling of potential but how many of them ever reach it?  
I'm sure Boro are gunning for the play-offs in the Championship this year. Maybe a loan would of been more viable for them in hindsight but was he ever going to be given the chance by Carrick. Some players have to move down a few leagues to be noticed.

Regardless of how far he goes I think the lad will have a career at least one level above this for the majoirty of his playing days and I hope he goes on to play at the top.

Quoted from rancido

Now don't get me wrong because I think he is a good player and a great prospect for the future. But if he has that kind of potential then why did Middlesbrough sell him in the first place? I can't imagine that they needed the money and seeing as they are a strong Championship club with realistic aspirations for Premiersh*t football I would have thought that they would have carried on his development to their own advantage.

Big difference between having the potential and realising it, Ravel Morrison for example. 99% of the players at these clubs are very good footballers but the % of players that actually go on to have good careers is very slim. Kam wanted first team football and Boro were happy to let him go and get it which is a credit to them because most clubs would probably have had him sat on the bench for most the season as they've been ruined by injuries this season. Not forgetting Kam was also released by Watford, Boro picked him up on a free and they've sold him on for a profit.

Their club record is 375k so you’d have to say it’s fantastic business by the club to make a large return on a player we only signed in the summer. A feather in the cap for our much criticised recruitment team

All those that doubted are starting to look rather silly now aren’t they…

Those people saying there is no release clause shown up to be wrong

Quoted from Alan Buckley

All those that doubted are starting to look rather silly now aren’t they…

Okay, you now have me convinced. Kudos to you sir, given that they triggered the release clause.. that means no sell on fee right?

Quoted from Davec

Those people saying there is no release clause shown up to be wrong

Those people confidently stated it was 250k and it looks as if that figure was miles off the mark

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Okay, you now have me convinced. Kudos to you sir, given that they triggered the release clause.. that means no sell on fee right?

It could be part of an agreed release fee. Hopefully the club and player planned that into the deal.

It's a shame because I'd have really liked to see him develop. Opens the door to others though.  

Rovers are about as tinpot as Grimsby are, certainly no Bristol City.... oh well League One, living the dream.

Quoted from pontoonlew

Those people confidently stated it was 250k and it looks as if that figure was miles off the mark

It is still a fraction of the fee we could have got with 2 and half years left on his deal! Bristol Rovers certainly have got the upper hand on this deal

If he goes, he goes.

As long as the deal is brokered correctly and we dot get our pants pulled down, then there's nothing we can do, gives DA a bit of cash to spend on reinforcements.

You'd have to think the sum will be at least paying up his 2.5 years contract plus a pretty good fee, sit back n wait eh.

My only disappointment is that I honestly think Kams agent is selling him short, the boys got bags of potential and should be aiming for at least a crack at a bottom half championship team.

Wonder if any deal could potentially include keeping him on loan here for the rest of the season?

This is really poor business to be fair. Middlesbrough will no doubt receive a hefty chunk and we will left with very little as it would probably go towards paying Eastwood off (or similar) and, most importantly, an enormous hole in the middle of the park!!!! This is 🐮 💩 all round.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Okay, you now have me convinced. Kudos to you sir, given that they triggered the release clause.. that means no sell on fee right?

Middlesbrough will get a sell on fee from us if he goes but then we’ll have our own with Bristol rovers or whoever he signs for. The release clause is more than £250k but not as much as £400k as seems to be spouted. It’ll only rise to those kind of amounts once he’s sold again.

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

This is really poor business to be fair. Middlesbrough will no doubt receive a hefty chunk and we will left with very little as it would probably go towards paying Eastwood off (or similar) and, most importantly, an enormous hole in the middle of the park!!!! This is 🐮 💩 all round.

If we hadn’t of put this release clause in then he wouldn’t have signed for us in the summer as he turned down league 1 clubs to sign for us in the summer to guarantee playing time.

Quote from Bristol live:-

Bristol Rovers are closing in on a deal to sign midfielder Kamil Conteh from Grimsby Town, Bristol Live understands, after the Gas met the 21-year-old's release clause which could lead to a club record deal for the League Two club should an agreement be finalised.

Really, club record deal...doubt it very much

Quoted from Sigone

Quote from Bristol live:-

Bristol Rovers are closing in on a deal to sign midfielder Kamil Conteh from Grimsby Town, Bristol Live understands, after the Gas met the 21-year-old's release clause which could lead to a club record deal for the League Two club should an agreement be finalised.

Really, club record deal...doubt it very much

Is Bogle our record?..muted we got 1.1m for him at the time.

Quoted from WOZOFGRIMSBY

Wonder if any deal could potentially include keeping him on loan here for the rest of the season?

Course not

Quoted from Sigone

Quote from Bristol live:-

Bristol Rovers are closing in on a deal to sign midfielder Kamil Conteh from Grimsby Town, Bristol Live understands, after the Gas met the 21-year-old's release clause which could lead to a club record deal for the League Two club should an agreement be finalised.

Really, club record deal...doubt it very much

I think it means from Rovers' perspective, not ours

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Is Bogle our record?..muted we got 1.1m for him at the time.

Gary Croft and John Oster both higher than Bogle. It means Bristol Rovers' record fee paid though.

Quoted from MaccasBoots

I think it means from Rovers' perspective, not ours

Rovers transfer record is 450K and that was in 92/93

Quoted from pontoonlew

Those people confidently stated it was 250k and it looks as if that figure was miles off the mark

I said I didn’t know first hand and could be wrong, but was what I had heard.

What you say is correct only if the 250k figure didn’t include allowance for sell on to ‘Boro and what we paid for him. 375 would be about the right figure for that. Which I did say might be the case - or just as likely might not! As the truth is none of will know the details.  

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Is Bogle our record?..muted we got 1.1m for him at the time.

Andy Tilson was their Transfer Record (370-400k) so that will be what they are talking about!!

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Is Bogle our record?..muted we got 1.1m for him at the time.

Andy Tilson was their Transfer Record (370-400k) so that will be what they are talking about!!

Might get slated for this, but for a player who cost us nothing  - getting nearly 500k or whatever for him (plus a decent sell on) is not the worst bit of business, if we can use that to bring in a handful of decent players to improve the squad overall (maybe not in Jan, but in the summer too)

He is, of course, technically a brilliant player...better than our level and lovely to watch - but has he made us a better team? Has he truly stamped his authority on games? I don't think so, to be honest.

Quoted from Nelly GTFC

Rovers are about as tinpot as Grimsby are, certainly no Bristol City.... oh well League One, living the dream.

Their majority owner is reportedly worth half a billion. His small change is enough to remove any sort of a tinpot tag around them.

If Conteh goes, I'd imagine we'll have a sell-on clause ourself as he could well end up moving to a Championship club and earning us a few more quid.

If this goes through it could fund a couple of experienced players to bolster the back 4 and midfield. Two older heads wouldn't go amiss right now.

Quoted from Maringer

Their majority owner is reportedly worth half a billion. His small change is enough to remove any sort of a tinpot tag around them.

If Conteh goes, I'd imagine we'll have a sell-on clause ourself as he could well end up moving to a Championship club and earning us a few more quid.

Some reports suggest JS got £495 million for his match dot com shares. Not sure if that was ever verified from a reliable source or was just social media crap. Anyone know?

Quoted from sam gy

Might get slated for this, but for a player who cost us nothing  - getting nearly 500k or whatever for him (plus a decent sell on) is not the worst bit of business, if we can use that to bring in a handful of decent players to improve the squad overall (maybe not in Jan, but in the summer too)

He is, of course, technically a brilliant player...better than our level and lovely to watch - but has he made us a better team? Has he truly stamped his authority on games? I don't think so, to be honest.

I might take a battering here but I would bite your hand off for 500k and a decent sell on - I actually don't think his games suited to league 2 or the standard of player he's playing with and it could well be good business for all if Bristol Rovers have the players to compliment his game ; enjoyed watching him play especially earlier in the season when Hurst tried to play through him which seemed to get scrapped at the first sign of trouble .

See what happens

Quoted from RonMariner

Some reports suggest JS got £495 million for his match dot com shares. Not sure if that was ever verified from a reliable source or was just social media crap. Anyone know?

That was for the sale of the business I think Ron , which would have a number of  shareholders I assume so he would have got a small % of that you would have thought , he did well as CEO I believe and the same with Simply Business which I assume he's still involved at to some degree .

Can you add a sell on if they have triggered a release?  I didn't think this is possible.

Quoted from Meza

Can you add a sell on if they have triggered a release?  I didn't think this is possible.

The release clause may stipulate a sell-on.

Quoted from Meza

Can you add a sell on if they have triggered a release?  I didn't think this is possible.

All depends on the nuances of the contract. If there is a sell on, which is speculation still, it’s quite possible the release clause is only triggered dependant on a sell on fee for future transfer also been included.

I can’t see any reason Conteh would have refused that, it doesn’t affect him, or why we wouldn’t insist - as most of the big money is I’d expect earned at this level through sell on clauses.

Equally the trigger figure could be a profit to us and not an overall cost.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Rovers transfer record is 450K and that was in 92/93

That in today's terms is £1,170,000

Quoted from RonMariner

Some reports suggest JS got £495 million for his match dot com shares. Not sure if that was ever verified from a reliable source or was just social media crap. Anyone know?

Not sure about Match.com, but Stockwood was CEO of Simply Business when it was sold for £400m ($490 USD) in 2017. However, SB's share structure will have been quite complex; Stockwood led a management buyout of the company in 2013, backed by private equity firm AnaCap, who subsequently sold their shares to Aqualine Capital Partners a 3 years later for £120m. What JS stood to make from those two transactions will depend massively on what kind of share % he retained at each stage, but I'd imagine anywhere between 2% and 10% is realistic.

If I had to make an educated guess as to his net worth, I'd suggest it's somewhere in the £10m to £30m range.

I think the clue here is in the wording isn't it?

Quoted Text

Understand that Bristol Rovers are closing in on a deal to sign Grimsby Town midfielder Kamil Conteh after meeting the 21-y/o's release clause.

Could well end up being a club-record deal for the Gas following completion.

That to me suggests that it's got the potential to end up more than the fee paid for Andy Tilson.  So, for example, a fee now that's under the Tilson fee but then so much after 100 appearances, so much after promotion, so much after 10 international caps....all things that will add up to it and take it above the previous record.

Disappointed if the lad is going, was really keen to see how good he could get with us.  Most of us acknowledged after his first few appearances that we might only get to see him up until January.  To be honest I don't think he produced the performances on a consistent enough basis to suggest he would actually go this month, but the potential is of a ridiculous nature and I would imagine Rovers are getting in there now to avoid a scramble on the back of more consistency.

I think he was going to be key to how Artell wants to play, especially in terms of playing out from the back.  I like Green but he can't do that, so be interesting to see how Artell adjusts with that gap in midfield and who he wants to bring in to fill it.

Quoted from diehardmariner

That to me suggests that it's got the potential to end up more than the fee paid for Andy Tilson.  So, for example, a fee now that's under the Tilson fee but then so much after 100 appearances, so much after promotion, so much after 10 international caps....all things that will add up to it and take it above the previous record.

Hopefully, it will beat the Tilson fee when adjusted for inflation.

£370k in 1992 is £780k in today's money...

Hopefully.

Bristol Rovers were a mid-table second tier club at that time though, signing a player from a side that were about to have a run of 5th, 8th and 9th placed finishes in the Premier League.

Quoted from Maringer

Hopefully, it will beat the Tilson fee when adjusted for inflation.

£370k in 1992 is £780k in today's money...

It only has to be more than £370k to be their club record , regardless of inflation. I can't imagine they will pay more than £450k.

I think the DHM theory on the figure is about right. It could be £350k + a sell-on. Hopefully the release clause specifics are watertight with reports that way on suggesting there is a disagreement over the amount we would be owed.

Quoted from diehardmariner

I think the clue here is in the wording isn't it?

"following completion" suggests before add ons to me.

Y'see I read that part as 'once the deal is completed, it has the potential to exceed Tilson's record'.

Interesting how we all read it differently isn't it :)

Just to add another dimension to this. There is nothing stopping us offering Conteh a new deal and changing/removing the release clause. He may not accept it, but it could earn us a few more quid in the summer.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Y'see I read that part as 'once the deal is completed, it has the potential to exceed Tilson's record'.

Interesting how we all read it differently isn't it :)

Indeed. I read the "could well end up" bit as being once they've thrashed out the terms over the next few days.

Isn’t all this still just hearsay at the moment?

Quoted from Theimperialcoroner

Isn’t all this still just hearsay at the moment?

Isn’t all news hearsay?

Quoted from Theimperialcoroner

Isn’t all this still just hearsay at the moment?

Pure and simple! ;)

Quoted from RonMariner

Some reports suggest JS got £495 million for his match dot com shares. Not sure if that was ever verified from a reliable source or was just social media crap. Anyone know?

I  could be wrong, I usually am in my household, but wasn't that figure he reportedly got for 'simply business?...

Makes no odds, he's already stated he won't invest dadt money as that's his kids inheritance.

Wish him the best if he moves on, but we're a selling club and always will be, players come and go all the time and if the club makes a profit, then thats all that matters.

May well open the door for Hunt/Khouri or others to stake a claim

Quoted from MuddyWaters

Pure and simple! ;)

Beat me to it!

I've watched Rivers twice in past few weeks, they play it out from the back never go long. They've just lost two loaners so for them he's perfect. Hope I'm wrong as he'll get better once DA gets going...

load of crap  you lot will not be able to sell any town players you don t own sorry to tell you this

load of crap  you lot will not be able to sell any town players you don t own sorry to tell you this

Quoted from smokin joe

load of crap  you lot will not be able to sell any town players you don t own sorry to tell you this

What you been smoking Joe?

Quoted from smokin joe

load of crap  you lot will not be able to sell any town players you don t own sorry to tell you this

Looks like a village is missing its idiot..

Quoted from Theimperialcoroner

What you been smoking Joe?

Crack by the sounds of it

Quoted from smokin joe

load of crap  you lot will not be able to sell any town players you don t own sorry to tell you this

Obviously but we do own this player.

Just because the gas are willing to pay the release clause amount,  we do not have to sell. It's simply the amount we say that we will start to consider bids. If we don't want to sell at that price we don't have to.
Of course the elephant in the room is they will offer Conteh a lot more money which will turn his head. We could all wait to see if better offers come in since he has two and a half years left on his contract.

Quoted from mimma

Just because the gas are willing to pay the release clause amount,  we do not have to sell. It's simply the amount we say that we will start to consider bids. If we don't want to sell at that price we don't have to.
Of course the elephant in the room is they will offer Conteh a lot more money which will turn his head. We could all wait to see if better offers come in since he has two and a half years left on his contract.

Didn’t Liverpool still reject Arsenal’s offer of £40,000,001 for Luis Suarez a few years ago, despite it triggering his release clause? Sure it was something like that.

Quoted from jimgtfc

Didn’t Liverpool still reject Arsenal’s offer of £40,000,001 for Luis Suarez a few years ago, despite it triggering his release clause? Sure it was something like that.

Liverpool rejected it because, just like Christmas, there was no real clause. *

* or if there was one it wasn’t set at £40m

A release clause means the Town have to accept the offer and its then up to the player to agree terms.  I'm wondering if this noise about the release clause has something to do with trying to add our sell on but i'm not a Football Manager (only in game lol) so unsure as to the combinations that you might be able to add.  

Let’s hope the new administration hasn’t missed a trick here, but either way none of us on this website will get a vote

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

Let’s hope the new administration hasn’t missed a trick here, but either way none of us on this website will get a vote

Not sure everyone understands what a release clause means and maybe the best way to grasp the concept is to look at Man City who signed Haaland for something around £54M when at today’s prices he was probably worth £120M. Once that release clause was met no haggling with the likes of Real Madrid at al over transfer fee and highest bidder just a matter of agreeing terms.

Love the way some people know the facts about a players contract but have chosen to sit on it until there’s speculation, and unless I’ve missed something it’s just speculation ATM now right?

I gather he wants to leave and his agent is working to see it through. Would be surprised if he’s with us beyond the window closure.

Quoted from mimma

Just because the gas are willing to pay the release clause amount,  we do not have to sell. It's simply the amount we say that we will start to consider bids. If we don't want to sell at that price we don't have to.
Of course the elephant in the room is they will offer Conteh a lot more money which will turn his head. We could all wait to see if better offers come in since he has two and a half years left on his contract.

Oh dear 🤦🏻‍♂️

Quoted from davmariner

I gather he wants to leave and his agent is working to see it through. Would be surprised if he’s with us beyond the window closure.

Bang on with your info 👏

Quoted from davmariner

I gather he wants to leave and his agent is working to see it through. Would be surprised if he’s with us beyond the window closure.

I guess he might think conceding 11 goals in two home games might not look to good on his cv as an upcoming  defensive midfield player

Quoted from Meza

A release clause means the Town have to accept the offer and its then up to the player to agree terms

This. No matter what we do if someone meets a release clause we ultimately have our hands tied and its all down to the player and his agent. I ASSUME we could try offer a bigger deal /extension etc but I'm unsure on that one

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Bang on with your info 👏

If poster Alan Buckley is the real Alan Buckley (I have reservations on that one) then there is no argument - he knows stuff that we don't.
He may now be the club allocated voice on here?
Anyway from what I think I understand is that if an interested club meet the agreed release valuation then we have no option but to accept their offer & its then between the player & his agent as to whether to move on.

Quoted from Heswall Mariner

If poster Alan Buckley is the real Alan Buckley (I have reservations on that one) then there is no argument - he knows stuff that we don't.
He may now be the club allocated voice on here?
Anyway from what I think I understand is that if an interested club meet the agreed release valuation then we have no option but to accept their offer & its then between the player & his agent as to whether to move on.

“Allocated voice” that’s a new one.

Quoted from Heswall Mariner

If poster Alan Buckley is the real Alan Buckley (I have reservations on that one) then there is no argument - he knows stuff that we don't.
He may now be the club allocated voice on here?
Anyway from what I think I understand is that if an interested club meet the agreed release valuation then we have no option but to accept their offer & its then between the player & his agent as to whether to move on.

I asked on another thread and he said he was not the real Alan Buckley

Quoted from Heswall Mariner

If poster Alan Buckley is the real Alan Buckley (I have reservations on that one) then there is no argument - he knows stuff that we don't.
He may now be the club allocated voice on here?
Anyway from what I think I understand is that if an interested club meet the agreed release valuation then we have no option but to accept their offer & its then between the player & his agent as to whether to move on.

Are you seriously thinking he is Alan Buckley 😂😂

Quoted from Maringer

Their majority owner is reportedly worth half a billion. His small change is enough to remove any sort of a tinpot tag around them.

If Conteh goes, I'd imagine we'll have a sell-on clause ourself as he could well end up moving to a Championship club and earning us a few more quid.

Yeah just bitter as a lemon at losing a player with decent potential. I was surprised when I started reading up on them, looks like Rovers have got some financial backing >> https://www.bristolrovers.co.uk/news/2023/august/club-statement-new-ownership/  Just been looking at their historical attendances, they used to get decent attendances back in the 1950s, glad there isn't no bigger club in Grimsby.

Handy website this for looking at attendance history >> https://european-football-statistics.co.uk/england.htm

Bristol City >> http://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/bric.htm
Bristol Rovers >> http://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/brir.htm
Grimsby Town >> https://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/grit.htm

Quoted from Nelly GTFC

Yeah just bitter as a lemon at losing a player with decent potential. I was surprised when I started reading up on them, looks like Rovers have got some financial backing >> https://www.bristolrovers.co.uk/news/2023/august/club-statement-new-ownership/  Just been looking at their historical attendances, they used to get decent attendances back in the 1950s, glad there isn't no bigger club in Grimsby.

Handy website this for looking at attendance history >> https://european-football-statistics.co.uk/england.htm

Bristol City >> http://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/bric.htm
Bristol Rovers >> http://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/brir.htm
Grimsby Town >> https://european-football-statistics.co.uk/attnclub/league/grit.htm

Always liked Bristol Rovers as a club tbf pretty similiar to us having their heartbreaks and in size with a unique old style stadium ; although it looks like they are growing their's , wish them well if they have big backing financially (and give us some)  to move through the gears . Won't forget that play-off final  with their  keeper though !

Quoted from sam gy

Might get slated for this, but for a player who cost us nothing  - getting nearly 500k or whatever for him (plus a decent sell on) is not the worst bit of business, if we can use that to bring in a handful of decent players to improve the squad overall (maybe not in Jan, but in the summer too)

He is, of course, technically a brilliant player...better than our level and lovely to watch - but has he made us a better team? Has he truly stamped his authority on games? I don't think so, to be honest.

We paid an undisclosed fee for him

Quoted from Mappers

Always liked Bristol Rovers as a club tbf pretty similiar to us having their heartbreaks and in size with a unique old style stadium ; although it looks like they are growing their's , wish them well if they have big backing financially (and give us some)  to move through the gears . Won't forget that play-off final  with their  keeper though !

Yeah I've got nothing against any club to be honest, I bet we would be doing the same thing if we was higher up the leagues, its a dog eat dog business these days. Brighton seem to be the best at it for quite the last few years. 20 years ago, I would have probally laughed at the prospect of them being a sleeping giant.

Why can’t we keep him for another year an half a see what happens for a change . We’ve been excrement this season When did town ever get rich aswell on an add ons ? I’ve just read a lot of excrement from on this page talking about how much money we could make off conteh . If he wants to better himself then that’s very fair enough to the man keep him for a little bit Shave off . Utm

Town always seem to get short changed for players I think . The biggest as a little kid drinkell for a 105 at a ‘tribunal ‘whatever that means   I thought town was going to get similar to what lineker went to Barcelona ?

We turned down £350,000 from Middlesborough for Drinkall, his contract was up so the fee was set by a tribunral. We got £105,000 fron Norwich for him. We were robbed blind!! He ended up at Rangers for (I think) £750,000.

Ah good knowledge mimma if true ! Think rangers only paid 600 grand for him ? My first ever town match he scored two diving headers against Notts county . Best town striker I’ll ever see . Apart from Steve Saunders

Quoted from Terry duckworth

Why can’t we keep him for another year an half a see what happens for a change . We’ve been excrement this season When did town ever get rich aswell on an add ons ? I’ve just read a lot of excrement from on this page talking about how much money we could make off conteh . If he wants to better himself then that’s very fair enough to the man keep him for a little bit Shave off . Utm

We've had decent money from sell ons in the past. Bennett, in particular, netted us a bit more than the original fee we received.

Quoted from mimma

We turned down £350,000 from Middlesborough for Drinkall, his contract was up so the fee was set by a tribunral. We got £105,000 fron Norwich for him. We were robbed blind!! He ended up at Rangers for (I think) £750,000.

Turned down 300k for Michael Reddy from Bristol City in 05/06 too, which didn't turn out to be a particularly wise decision.

Quoted from mimma

We turned down £350,000 from Middlesborough for Drinkall, his contract was up so the fee was set by a tribunral. We got £105,000 fron Norwich for him. We were robbed blind!! He ended up at Rangers for (I think) £750,000.

Nearly 40 years later I’m still píssed off about this.

Re Reddy, wasn’t the received wisdom that he’d have failed his medical anyway?

Quoted from crusty ole pie

I asked on another thread and he said he was not the real Alan Buckley

He’s not the messiah

He’s a very naughty boy

Quoted from Heswall Mariner

If poster Alan Buckley is the real Alan Buckley (I have reservations on that one) then there is no argument - he knows stuff that we don't.
He may now be the club allocated voice on here?
Anyway from what I think I understand is that if an interested club meet the agreed release valuation then we have no option but to accept their offer & its then between the player & his agent as to whether to move on.

The GTFC people nearer the epicentre of this deal will also know how Conteh feels about moving to the next level, we can only guess. Besides Rovers paying for his contract, there must be a better pay deal in the offer and playing in a higher league of course. If all parties are "happy" then as you say the move is on.

I think he will play higher up than league 1

What if the agent / Conteh insist on a release clause in his Bristol Rovers deal hence making any sell on for Town a lot less than we would hope for ?

Not saying that is the case but I'm sure there are many variables like Mboro's % and something like this that could provide a reason to make any deal complicated .

Does anyone actually know what Kamil's release clause actually is?

According to google, this will be break Bristol Rovers' previous highest spend which was £370k paid for Andy Tillson in 1992 and be a "Club Record Deal"

As for the Kevin Drinkell sale, I believe Town not long after, paid 110K for his replacement. An extremely average - at best - striker from Watford, Jimmy Gilligan.

Quoted from supertown

Are you seriously thinking he is Alan Buckley 😂😂

Ah but I come from a different planet - it's strange.

Quoted from mimma

We turned down £350,000 from Middlesborough for Drinkall, his contract was up so the fee was set by a tribunral. We got £105,000 fron Norwich for him. We were robbed blind!! He ended up at Rangers for (I think) £750,000.

If my memory serves me well - which is dodgy these days - I think we turned down  £150k/£200k  from Man City not Middlesborough. The tribunal accepted circa £100k - pretty much what Norwich had offered.
Whatever I remember were robbed.

Quoted from brigg_mariner

Does anyone actually know what Kamil's release clause actually is?

According to google, this will be break Bristol Rovers' previous highest spend which was £370k paid for Andy Tillson in 1992 and be a "Club Record Deal"

3 x kitkat and a Fanta

Quoted from IowaMariner

As for the Kevin Drinkell sale, I believe Town not long after, paid 110K for his replacement. An extremely average - at best - striker from Watford, Jimmy Gilligan.

Average is been very kind indeed he was awful I believe we signed after he scored for Watford against us in the FA cup I remember the goal it was at the Osmond end . Dave Felgate who I lived next to and frequented the Flamingo nightclub with who as at Town at the time said his nickname was Gillian amongst the other players

Certainly not a good move by Town whichever way you look at it. I did say “average at best,” but Drinkell was quality. So Gilligan for Drinks at a cost of 5K to the Mariners was daylight robbery. However, after leaving BP and fetching up in Wales in the late 80s/early 90s, young Gillian did progress somewhat notching 58 goals in 161 games in stints at Cardiff City and Swansea. I see he’s now the Head of Technical Development at Watford so he clearly managed to carve himself out a career in the game.

Bristol Rovers lost again tonight , a lot of their fans seem to think they might be in a relegation dogfight - maybe it's not such a bright move after all for Conteh .

Quoted from Mappers

Bristol Rovers lost again tonight , a lot of their fans seem to think they might be in a relegation dogfight - maybe it's not such a bright move after all for Conteh .

Slim pickings for the kid, seeing as he’s in a relegation scrap already here!

Quoted from Heisenberg

Slim pickings for the kid, seeing as he’s in a relegation scrap already here!

Quite a lot of their fans are very skeptical in regards this deal and any deal for players  seems like their owner has  history since taking over of pulling out of paying a fee for players at the last minute .

Gaschat is up there with this it seems as a forum a bit of a laugh ,but they are worried really worried they could drop back down to league 2 ; 4 points above the dropline and in freefall with a manager it seems a lot don't fancy since Bartons removal (which seems to have split their fanbase somewhat aswell ).

Quoted from Heisenberg

Slim pickings for the kid, seeing as he’s in a relegation scrap already here!

If the rumours are true, there’s more than Rovers interested in Kam.

Quoted from Mappers

Quite a lot of their fans are very skeptical in regards this deal and any deal for players  seems like their owner has  history since taking over of pulling out of paying a fee for players at the last minute .

Gaschat is up there with this it seems as a forum a bit of a laugh ,but they are worried really worried they could drop back down to league 2 ; 4 points above the dropline and in freefall with a manager it seems a lot don't fancy since Bartons removal (which seems to have split their fanbase somewhat aswell ).

They're 8 points above the relegation zone with two of the teams in the bottom four having virtually no chance of catching them. Even Cheltenham are 11 points behind them but averaging less than a goal a game so would be a big ask for them to make up 11 points. They'll be fine.

Mate of mine sees a lot of Bristol Rovers- reckons they’re in free fall since sacking Barton
Says Barton was a good manager despite everything else

Quoted from mariner91

They're 8 points above the relegation zone with two of the teams in the bottom four having virtually no chance of catching them. Even Cheltenham are 11 points behind them but averaging less than a goal a game so would be a big ask for them to make up 11 points. They'll be fine.

Sorry, they  would have been 4 without Readings points deduction .

I don't know they seem in meltdown mode which makes some on here's look moderately mild after a couple of defeats . 1 of the  latest posts from a member on their Gasworks forum  is 'if we don't get someone in today we are finished ' . It's quite a good forum

I'm more concerned this owner of their's is a wrong un in some way and will try and tuck us up with the Conteh deal .

Their gaffer said after the game they had hoped to have someone in for last night but that now it's doubtful for Saturday - let's see if Conteh starts on Saturday .

Can't help but think he will, either now or in the summer, have much better options open to him. Personally can't see him going to Bristol Rovers - but could be wrong.

Quoted from Mikey_345

Can't help but think he will, either now or in the summer, have much better options open to him. Personally can't see him going to Bristol Rovers - but could be wrong.

Tend to agree , but you could argue the same about him joining us in the summer - Mboro fans seemed suprised he left or didn't get a league 1 club .

He seems quite switched on and is maybe looking for incremental steps up rather than rotting in a higher league teams youth setup /u23's which many similiar level players seem to do now rather than get out and play .

Really hope we keep him till the summer. We need our best players to help us keep our league status. If we were higher up the table I wouldn’t be so concerned about losing him this Jan. Not sure we have anyone as good as him in that role. Maybe Artell could bring someone else in…..?

Suggestions that the deal to Bristol Rovers has collapsed - let’s hope so!!

Matt Taylor also suggested in interview after the game last night that because they have been reactive in the window, other Clubs get made aware and enter the race. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone better has come in and he’s had a change of heart.

Would love for him to see out the season with us though!

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

Suggestions that the deal to Bristol Rovers has collapsed - let’s hope so!!

Matt Taylor also suggested in interview after the game last night that because they have been reactive in the window, other Clubs get made aware and enter the race. It wouldn’t surprise me if someone better has come in and he’s had a change of heart.

Would love for him to see out the season with us though!

Hope he does

I know a lot of people are not bothered about other teams

But that Gasworks forum is worth a look if you have interest , this Conteh move,results  , their board , various other bits and pieces has sent some of their fans potty .

Life of a lower league football fan

Some dude who's close to the gas reckons the BOC was circa £750K which they'd met, negotiated it down to 500K with 250K in way of add ons...
Personally think that's bollox but they're saying at their end it's fell apart due to personal terms.

Few murmers it's fallen apart, but apparently there's now interest from elsewhere

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Some dude who's close to the gas reckons the BOC was circa £750K which they'd met, negotiated it down to 500K with 250K in way of add ons...
Personally think that's bollox but they're saying at their end it's fell apart due to personal terms.

If the BOC was £750k - or whatever - can't see why Town would negotiate over anything less. The lad has proved he has quality & potential.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Some dude who's close to the gas reckons the BOC was circa £750K which they'd met, negotiated it down to 500K with 250K in way of add ons...
Personally think that's bollox but they're saying at their end it's fell apart due to personal terms.

I’m not into the intricacies of contract negotiation but this couldn’t this have meant that the BOC was not met if they could get out of it? I.e. rest of the fee after 30 games, sell him after 29 so therefore not meeting full clause thus not actually meeting requirement needed to open contract talks in the first place? It does seem to fit with the earlier post of their chairman playing silly bugg3rs in contract talks though.

Quoted from Heswall Mariner

If the BOC was £750k - or whatever - can't see why Town would negotiate over anything less. The lad has proved he has quality & potential.

I can see why we might entertain lower bids. Assuming this £750k figure is fact, it could be £750k with no sell on percentage. By accepting a lower fee (£500k) with a sell on percentage of 20% of Rovers profit, we would earn another £300k if they sold him for £2m. If he went for £3m, we would earn another £500k taking the total fee earned to £1m, so you can see why a club might entertain lower bids.

JS & AP are no mugs. Fairly sure they’ll square away a really fortuitous deal for the Club!

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Some dude who's close to the gas reckons the BOC was circa £750K which they'd met, negotiated it down to 500K with 250K in way of add ons...
Personally think that's bollox but they're saying at their end it's fell apart due to personal terms.

Absolutely untrue. The release clause has to be met in full upfront to trigger it not in instalments or add ons. Town rejected an offer in instalments that met the value of the release clause at the start of the window from a league 2 rival.

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Absolutely untrue. The release clause has to be met in full upfront to trigger it not in instalments or add ons. Town rejected an offer in instalments that met the value of the release clause at the start of the window from a league 2 rival.

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap.

That’s quite worrying that he has asked to leave asap!!!

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

That’s quite worrying that he has asked to leave asap!!!

Yeah I don’t believe that tbh.

Quoted from Mikey_345

Yeah I don’t believe that tbh.

Ok.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Absolutely untrue. The release clause has to be met in full upfront to trigger it not in instalments or add ons. Town rejected an offer in instalments that met the value of the release clause at the start of the window from a league 2 rival.

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap.

Why does Conteh want to leave the club ASAP?

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Ok.

Well, I seriously hope this isn’t the case but…..IF and a big IF, it is then no player is bigger than the Club.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Why does Conteh want to leave the club ASAP?

Probably because we are excrement and loads of other teams want to pay him more money 😂

We’ll all look back on this one day and realise how preposterous this whole story is: a relatively small L1 club, threatened with relegation, triggering a 750k buy out clause for a rookie player at a relegation threatened L2 club!! It is patently ridiculous.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Few murmers it's fallen apart, but apparently there's now interest from elsewhere

Luton apparently which in my opinion would be a bad move for the lad, don't understand the appeal of signing for a PL team to just be shipped out on loan

Quoted from Simon

Luton apparently which in my opinion would be a bad move for the lad, don't understand the appeal of signing for a PL team to just be shipped out on loan

Unless they want to let us have him back on loan for the rest of the season?! 😉

Quoted from Simon

Luton apparently which in my opinion would be a bad move for the lad, don't understand the appeal of signing for a PL team to just be shipped out on loan

Unless they want to let us have him back on loan for the rest of the season?! 😉

Quoted from Simon

Luton apparently which in my opinion would be a bad move for the lad, don't understand the appeal of signing for a PL team to just be shipped out on loan

Money? Probably treble or quadruple his salary plus get a loan, at minimum to a decent L1 club, not one struggling to win a home game in L2. If he wants to leave, get it done and use the money to bring in some better quality players.

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

Unless they want to let us have him back on loan for the rest of the season?! 😉

Be a good move for us that, best of both worlds

For someone that wants to leave the club ASAP, he’s in fine spirits at the youth game tonight.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

For someone that wants to leave the club ASAP, he’s in fine spirits at the youth game tonight.

Mate that Alan Buckley on here seems to talk out his rear tbh...Full of his self importance imo.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Mate that Alan Buckley on here seems to talk out his rear tbh...Full of his self importance imo.

Funny I thought he was a bloke who rarely posts but when he does seems to know what’s going on rather then the 99% who haven’t a clue. But I was all for Holloway’s appointment so probably not the best judge!!

Quoted from Lincoln Mariner 56

Funny I thought he was a bloke who rarely posts but when he does seems to know what’s going on rather then the 99% who haven’t a clue. But I was all for Holloway’s appointment so probably not the best judge!!

Funny that, I thought that too. It’s tough at the top though I guess.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Absolutely untrue. The release clause has to be met in full upfront to trigger it not in instalments or add ons. Town rejected an offer in instalments that met the value of the release clause at the start of the window from a league 2 rival.

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap.

Was with you until that last comment, completely untrue.

Quoted from jimgtfc

Was with you until that last comment, completely untrue.

Ok. My source hasn’t been wrong before so I have no reason to think otherwise on this.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Ok. My source hasn’t been wrong before so I have no reason to think otherwise on this.

But why would he want to leave ASAP?! I can understand that he doesn’t want to miss out on an opportunity to further his own career but I can’t think for one minute that he can’t wait to get out. That would suggest issues with the Management Team or Club - which I think sounds very wide of the mark.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Ok. My source hasn’t been wrong before so I have no reason to think otherwise on this.

He might have been spot on with the other bits, not this part though.

Quoted from jimgtfc

He might have been spot on with the other bits, not this part though.

I guess you can prove that, right?

Quoted from Mikey_345

Yeah I don’t believe that tbh.

I’ve no idea who the Alan Buckley poster is or if they are genuine, but I’ve heard he wants to leave as well.

Quoted from davmariner

I’ve no idea who the Alan Buckley poster is or if they are genuine, but I’ve heard he wants to leave as well.

He may well leave - I think he will and that certainly seems to be how it looks. I don’t believe he’s demanding too though in the way it’s come across - that’s the difference.

Quoted from jimgtfc

He might have been spot on with the other bits, not this part though.

This

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

But why would he want to leave ASAP?!

He maybe just doesn’t like the area. If he was at Middlesbrough he had the bright lights of Newcastle nearby and Sunderland plus Borough much bigger than Grimsby/ Cleethorpes. Wouldn’t be the first young player to find the social side of living in NE Lincs not to their liking.

Be disappointed to see him leave but would be like having a good player on loan for six months than his parent club giving us a few hundred grand to take him back. Not who we lose but who we replace them with that counts.

Quoted from Mikey_345

This

You guys keep saying this, but where is the evidence?

Quoted from Mikey_345

He may well leave - I think he will and that certainly seems to be how it looks. I don’t believe he’s demanding too though in the way it’s come across - that’s the difference.

Totally agree, with some of the teams i’ve heard sniffing around I can imagine he’s asked to be allowed to speak with them. The word demand makes it sound like if he doesn’t get the move then he’d be an issue which I don’t think is the situation at all.

Quoted from 123614

You guys keep saying this, but where is the evidence?

There was a few of the lads there tonight, a few also not in attendance. I don’t imagine someone that is demanding to leave would be in attendance.

Quoted from The Dogs Testicles

But why would he want to leave ASAP?! I can understand that he doesn’t want to miss out on an opportunity to further his own career but I can’t think for one minute that he can’t wait to get out. That would suggest issues with the Management Team or Club - which I think sounds very wide of the mark.

Give the man a prize

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

There was a few of the lads there tonight, a few also not in attendance. I don’t imagine someone that is demanding to leave would be in attendance.

I said asked. I didn’t say demanded to leave

Quoted from Alan Buckley

I said asked. I didn’t say demanded to leave

You said asked to leave ASAP! So are you saying he has issues with Management team or Club?

I was thinking about this the other day in maybe he is unhappy, especially not being apart of the AFCON finals, watching it on TV and looking at the league table and thinking hmm....not to mention his agent in his ear.  I must admit i get absolutely drunked off when we have something good or with potential then someone else takes them away, nature of the beast i guess.  I just hope we get a decent fee, but if he does have a release clause then we wont be able to add anything to the deal, and not having a sell on with someone highly rated is a bit silly.  However i have no idea of his contract, so its all a guessing game really.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

I said asked. I didn’t say demanded to leave

Caught with ya pants down there fella, you said " wants to leave ASAP"....that's demanding, not requesting.

28 pages of pure speculation. A Waccaesque figure claiming to be the Oracle. Can’t wait til next week when this is all over for a few months.

I hope from the clubs perspective that the player does ask to leave as that will lower the compensation that the player will be intitled to if a transfer takes place.  If the a player does not ask for a transfer they could be entitle to the full balance on the contract 2 1/2 years  in this case.  Plus the full signing on Fee.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Caught with ya pants down there fella, you said " wants to leave ASAP"....that's demanding, not requesting.

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap

I’ve copied and pasted my sentence ‘fella’ as you seem to be barking up the wrong tree. It even says the word ‘asked’

Demanding to leave is downing tools, not turning up to training, refusing to play etc etc.
no pants down here ‘fella’

Quoted from Alan Buckley

But even if the Bristol rovers interest is dead he has asked to leave the club asap

I’ve copied and pasted my sentence ‘fella’ as you seem to be barking up the wrong tree. It even says the word ‘asked’

Demanding to leave is downing tools, not turning up to training, refusing to play etc etc.
no pants down here ‘fella’

Asking to leave with no deal on the table?...whatever you say, I'm not getting into "he said, she said"...but asking to leave in those circumstances tells me he's demanding a move....savvy?..

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Asking to leave with no deal on the table?...whatever you say, I'm not getting into "he said, she said"...but asking to leave in those circumstances tells me he's demanding a move....savvy?..

But that’s exactly what you did by trying to say I said something I never? Not the sharpest tool in the shed are you? Savvy bruv?

Quoted from Alan Buckley

But that’s exactly what you did by trying to say I said something I never? Not the sharpest tool in the shed are you? Savvy bruv?

Alan, I asked you a pretty simple question on Page 25, which you are yet to answer. Why does Conteh want to leave ASAP?

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Alan, I asked you a pretty simple question on Page 25, which you are yet to answer. Why does Conteh want to leave ASAP?

I clearly have no idea what I’m talking about mate so anything I put will just be shot down by the fishy police so let’s say his cat is homesick.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

I clearly have no idea what I’m talking about mate so anything I put will just be shot down by the fishy police so let’s say his cat is homesick.

At the moment, there is a pretty rational argument from LocalLadGTFC that he didn't look like someone who can't wait to leave the town tonight at BP. I also saw him at the Grimsby Borough game on Saturday and he was laughing and joking with a couple of the other players in attendance.

So, why does he want to leave ASAP? It's a simple question.

It's not like players wanting to leave clubs is unheard of is it? Happens all the time, and Dembele is a prime example.

That he is remaining professional doesn't mean a thing really, and the fact is that nobody knows for sure, except the player, his agent and the club.

Another week of the transfer window, and we'll all know for certain. Think I can wait that long to find out.

Whilst it seems that the Bristol Rovers deal is off, it appears that it is inevitable that Kamil will leave.
I do hope he goes to a club higher up the leagues, with more potential.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

But that’s exactly what you did by trying to say I said something I never? Not the sharpest tool in the shed are you? Savvy bruv?

Nope, I've only got a BA (hons) in power plant, combustion and steam with a masters in materials engineering, thick as pig excrement really...
Like I said, I'm done with this, you get defensive every time you are questioned.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Alan, I asked you a pretty simple question on Page 25, which you are yet to answer. Why does Conteh want to leave ASAP?

He had relationships with a girl I know and she said he hates the area and since he got hauled off against Walsall and made to feel a scapegoat he has had enough and wants out.

Simple as that

Anyone thinking that "Alan Buckley" is the new (or the old) "Voice of Reason"?

Similar levels of certitude/arrogance/touchiness.

It's ok to come on the Fishy declaring yourself to be right all the time, but expect to receive pelters if/when you're wrong. Life's like that.

Quoted from 137

Anyone thinking that "Alan Buckley" is the new (or the old) "Voice of Reason"?

Similar levels of certitude/arrogance/touchiness.

It's ok to come on the Fishy declaring yourself to be right all the time, but expect to receive pelters if/when you're wrong. Life's like that.

thats a throwback

I miss 80's glory 5 page ramblings

Bentley 3

Quoted from male private Nale

He had relationships with a girl I know and she said he hates the area and since he got hauled off against Walsall and made to feel a scapegoat he has had enough and wants out.

Simple as that

If he feels a scapegoat after that god knows that Glennon. Maher, Rodgers and Mullarkey feel like.

Quoted from Hagrid

thats a throwback

I miss 80's glory 5 page ramblings

they should bring back spoony (only real heads know) - https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?v-memberpanel/a-view/u-617/

Quoted from Chrisblor

they should bring back spoony (only real heads know) - https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?v-memberpanel/a-view/u-617/

Ah, Spoony. His “latest posts” page is a real treasure trove of Fishy history.

https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?v-search/p-2/s-1706175903/

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

There was a few of the lads there tonight, a few also not in attendance. I don’t imagine someone that is demanding to leave would be in attendance.

Tbf, I think that is a bit tenuous?

Quoted from Poojah

Ah, Spoony. His “latest posts” page is a real treasure trove of Fishy history.

https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?v-search/p-2/s-1706175903/

I hope his helmet has fully healed by now.

Quoted from male private Nale

He had relationships with a girl I know and she said he hates the area and since he got hauled off against Walsall and made to feel a scapegoat he has had enough and wants out.

Simple as that

Made such a scapegoat that he started our next game against Notts County?

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Nope, I've only got a BA (hons) in power plant, combustion and steam with a masters in materials engineering, thick as pig excrement really...
Like I said, I'm done with this, you get defensive every time you are questioned.

Well done I’m pleased for you still doesn’t tell me you have an ounce of common sense though.

Quoted from 137

Anyone thinking that "Alan Buckley" is the new (or the old) "Voice of Reason"?

Similar levels of certitude/arrogance/touchiness.

It's ok to come on the Fishy declaring yourself to be right all the time, but expect to receive pelters if/when you're wrong. Life's like that.

Absolutely agree on your post apart from me thinking I’m right all the time. I’ve commented on two issues on this board 1: the signing of ainley which I was right and then I had information that conteh has a release clause in his contract.
I don’t claim to be right all the time but on the two topics I’ve commented on I am. But you can’t prove me wrong just like I can’t prove I’m right so I’ll take the pelters but also don’t expect me not to defend myself when they come my way.


I’ll not comment on anything else even if I have info I’ll just leave it to the chancers saying ‘incoming’ every day during the summer on the hope that like a blind squirrel they will once still find a nut.

Peace and out ✌🏽

Quoted from Poojah

Ah, Spoony. His “latest posts” page is a real treasure trove of Fishy history.

https://forum.thefishy.co.uk/Blah.pl?v-search/p-2/s-1706175903/

;D

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Well done I’m pleased for you still doesn’t tell me you have an ounce of common sense though.

A damn site more than you by the sounds of it...I don't try n give it the biggy big bollox every time I'm called out or questioned!!..

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Nope, I've only got a BA (hons) in power plant, combustion and steam with a masters in materials engineering, thick as pig excrement really...
Like I said, I'm done with this, you get defensive every time you are questioned.

Yet here you are doing exactly that 😂

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Absolutely agree on your post apart from me thinking I’m right all the time. I’ve commented on two issues on this board 1: the signing of ainley which I was right and then I had information that conteh has a release clause in his contract.
I don’t claim to be right all the time but on the two topics I’ve commented on I am. But you can’t prove me wrong just like I can’t prove I’m right so I’ll take the pelters but also don’t expect me not to defend myself when they come my way.


I’ll not comment on anything else even if I have info I’ll just leave it to the chancers saying ‘incoming’ every day during the summer on the hope that like a blind squirrel they will once still find a nut.

Peace and out ✌🏽

Are we to just treat everything you say as gospel and not question it? You said that Conteh wants to leave ASAP, but are yet to offer the reason why.

If Bristol Rovers have met the release clause and he is desperate to leave, the reports that he couldn't agree personal terms with Rovers seem a bit odd.

Looks like he’s off - it was the “leave asap” bit I think many had questions about.

Lots of speculation but little evidence

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Are we to just treat everything you say as gospel and not question it? You said that Conteh wants to leave ASAP, but are yet to offer the reason why.

If Bristol Rovers have met the release clause and he is desperate to leave, the reports that he couldn't agree personal terms with Rovers seem a bit odd.

Nope absolutely not you’re entitled to your opinion but I will say if someone’s info is wrong I.e the release clause being £750k etc. just like people tell me I’m wrong. Who’s said Bristol rovers have had a bid accepted? The same people that said his release clause is £750k? And why do you believe that as gospel but are absolutely adamant that my info is wrong?

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

A damn site more than you by the sounds of it...I don't try n give it the biggy big bollox every time I'm called out or questioned!!..

Why has nobody questioned this guy for saying biggy big bollox when everyone knows the saying is billy big bollox? 😂

Whenever there's a transfer window or we're nearing it, we have a massive clamor for inside information.  To the point that recent transfer window threads are full of disappointment that there's no longer massive leaks from the club.

Yet at the point that anyone offers an insight, they're hounded upon and every word poured over with scorn.  I just don't get it.  It it comes to be true, fine.  If it turns out to be bullshit, fine too.  It might also be that it was correct info but things changed, like player changed their mind or someone came in with another offer.  That's also fine. The fretting isn't going to change the outcome is it?

I don't know 'Alan Buckley' and I don't know if he's genuine or not with his inside info.  But the bits he has said so far seem to add up.  No-one else was aware of the Callum Ainley deal but he dropped that one in and the bits about Conteh's release clause appears to not be too far from the truth, or at least what the media are now playing out as the truth.

They're highly unlikely to post a screenshot of their WhatsApp message from Steve Wraith/Dave Moore/whoever is their source in the club so asking for proof of every single rumour is like pissing into a hurricane.   Equally so it might not be that he/she knows every bit of detail and are just sharing what they've been told.  

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Nope absolutely not you’re entitled to your opinion but I will say if someone’s info is wrong I.e the release clause being £750k etc. just like people tell me I’m wrong. Who’s said Bristol rovers have had a bid accepted? The same people that said his release clause is £750k? And why do you believe that as gospel but are absolutely adamant that my info is wrong?

Because the people saying they had a bid accepted are accredited journalists with close ties to Bristol Rovers.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Whenever there's a transfer window or we're nearing it, we have a massive clamor for inside information.  To the point that recent transfer window threads are full of disappointment that there's no longer massive leaks from the club.

Yet at the point that anyone offers an insight, they're hounded upon and every word poured over with scorn.  I just don't get it.  It it comes to be true, fine.  If it turns out to be bullshit, fine too.  It might also be that it was correct info but things changed, like player changed their mind or someone came in with another offer.  That's also fine. The fretting isn't going to change the outcome is it?

I don't know 'Alan Buckley' and I don't know if he's genuine or not with his inside info.  But the bits he has said so far seem to add up.  No-one else was aware of the Callum Ainley deal but he dropped that one in and the bits about Conteh's release clause appears to not be too far from the truth, or at least what the media are now playing out as the truth.

They're highly unlikely to post a screenshot of their WhatsApp message from Steve Wraith/Dave Moore/whoever is their source in the club so asking for proof of every single rumour is like pissing into a hurricane.   Equally so it might not be that he/she knows every bit of detail and are just sharing what they've been told.  

And on that note I’m out ✌🏽

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Nope absolutely not you’re entitled to your opinion but I will say if someone’s info is wrong I.e the release clause being £750k etc. just like people tell me I’m wrong. Who’s said Bristol rovers have had a bid accepted? The same people that said his release clause is £750k? And why do you believe that as gospel but are absolutely adamant that my info is wrong?

I never said that the release clause had been met. I said "if" and that reports are that he has failed to agree personal terms. Why does Conteh want to leave ASAP?

Report of release clause being met: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/exclusive-bristol-rovers-closing-deal-9049401

Report of struggles completing the deal: https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/matt-taylor-provides-telling-bristol-9054108

Quoted from Alan Buckley

And on that note I’m out ✌🏽

There wont be much point in having transfer rumours here if one of the few people who has posted anything credible is hounded out by people wanting to overanalyse and criticise every single individual word they use in an effort to have a go at them as has taken place here.

Quoted from diehardmariner

Whenever there's a transfer window or we're nearing it, we have a massive clamor for inside information.  To the point that recent transfer window threads are full of disappointment that there's no longer massive leaks from the club.

Yet at the point that anyone offers an insight, they're hounded upon and every word poured over with scorn.  I just don't get it.  It it comes to be true, fine.  If it turns out to be bullshit, fine too.  It might also be that it was correct info but things changed, like player changed their mind or someone came in with another offer.  That's also fine. The fretting isn't going to change the outcome is it?

I don't know 'Alan Buckley' and I don't know if he's genuine or not with his inside info.  But the bits he has said so far seem to add up.  No-one else was aware of the Callum Ainley deal but he dropped that one in and the bits about Conteh's release clause appears to not be too far from the truth, or at least what the media are now playing out as the truth.

They're highly unlikely to post a screenshot of their WhatsApp message from Steve Wraith/Dave Moore/whoever is their source in the club so asking for proof of every single rumour is like pissing into a hurricane.   Equally so it might not be that he/she knows every bit of detail and are just sharing what they've been told.  

This surprises me, you've normally got your finger on the pulse. He was Town's manager three times and arguably our most successful one ever.

Be amazed if Barry Fry’s not sniffing

Quoted from Fette Schlange

Be amazed if Barry Fry’s not sniffing

Coke or Speed?

Quoted from Theimperialcoroner

Coke or Speed?

Poppers!

Glue. It's coming back.

Artell has confirmed BR DID NOT meet Contehs BOC...but certainly does sound like he's off, and, reading between  the lines  " he's a human being"  Kamil maybe has asked the club to find him a route out for whatever reason.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Artell has confirmed BR DID NOT meet Contehs BOC...but certainly does sound like he's off, and, reading between  the lines  " he's a human being"  Kamil maybe has asked the club to find him a route out for whatever reason.

where ?

Artell's just said in his latest interview with Radio Humberside that contrary to reports, Bristol Rovers HAVE NOT yet made an offer which triggers Conteh's buyout clause. ITKs in the mud.

Quoted from Chrisblor

Artell's just said in his latest interview with Radio Humberside that contrary to reports, Bristol Rovers HAVE NOT yet made an offer which triggers Conteh's buyout clause. ITKs in the mud.

But DA didn’t mention that they might have accepted a lower offer (which seems to be the suggestion) to release him for that opportunity.

Or instalments.. presume a BOC would be an upfront cost. Instalments may have allowed us to negotiate more than the clause..

Leaves you a little bit deflated doesn’t it??!!

DA interview seems to say Conteh is on his way. Just haggling on price….

I like that the club are remaining firm on the price, he has a release clause for a reason. Plenty of clubs that'd be willing to pay it hence the rumoured interest from elsewhere now.

I suspect it might not be so much the case as him being desperate to leave, but the fact that a move up the leagues would earn him a lot more money (not least a hefty signing-on fee) and potentially be better for his career.

It's a short career and it's all well and good to say he'd be better staying to the end of the season and showing us what he can do, but he could get injured next week and be out for a long time. He'd personally be much better off with a 3 year contract a division or two higher, whatever happens.

Quoted from HerveJosse

There wont be much point in having transfer rumours here if one of the few people who has posted anything credible is hounded out by people wanting to overanalyse and criticise every single individual word they use in an effort to have a go at them as has taken place here.

Couldn’t agree more but some on here appear to get quite offended when someone posts something pretty accurate especially if they don’t like the content of the post. Don’t see many posts of apology to AB whose posts are now looking pretty accurate but others expect him to know exactly why he wants to leave as if Conteh would have shared this with AB.

Certainly posting an actual rumour rather than a matter of fact is risking incurring the wrath of many on here.

I think we see Conteh gone by the end of this window.

Its a difficult one because if his buy out clause isn't matched, then you could say theres no reason to sell.
However if the player is unhappy, its pointless keeping him.

If he wants out, then get rid (for a profit).... No point having players here not up for the fight.

If Conteh wants away fair enough and if his suitors agree a fee then I will wish him well .However he is only a player with potential his goals and assists are missing at this stage of his game.He will get better and better but if he wants out sell him and quick so we can replace.

I'm not so sure that Conteh is playing a role where you would expect him to get goals and assists. The likes of Vieira and Keane anchored midfield without scoring or creating too many goals and Conteh is playing deeper than they ever did at present. Not to mention that he's a young and inexperienced player as yet. Anybody who splashes out some cash on him is likely to do so for his potential rather than anything he has already done this season.

Quoted from mariner91

This surprises me, you've normally got your finger on the pulse. He was Town's manager three times and arguably our most successful one ever.

Know, not know of.  ;)

And to be truthful, I don't know my bottom from my elbow so I wouldn't trust me to find a pulse either.

Quoted from Maringer

I'm not so sure that Conteh is playing a role where you would expect him to get goals and assists. The likes of Vieira and Keane anchored midfield without scoring or creating too many goals and Conteh is playing deeper than they ever did at present. Not to mention that he's a young and inexperienced player as yet. Anybody who splashes out some cash on him is likely to do so for his potential rather than anything he has already done this season.

Absolutely.

Conteh is what Brian Laws would describe as a rough diamond.  There's a hell of a lot for someone to work with there.  

I don't really recall seeing anyone at this level doing what he can do.  The type of players who are of that ability and style tend to be much higher up the ladder, even at his age.  This division doesn't generally lend itself to the way he plays, at a higher level I imagine the expectation will be for him to do more of his stuff on a more consistent basis.  In a weird way, I think he'll find it easier as he goes up the levels.  He won't have the time or option to switch off (which he has done quite a bit and definitely reflects why he's had to drop to our level).

For him though I just hope he goes to a side that wants to him properly, allowing him to dictate play and set the tempo.  Not just use him as a shield for the defence.

Disappointing if we do lose him, especially when we've yet to see him really hit his stride.  But in terms of planning for next season, probably better for us so we can get used to someone else in that role now.

Quoted from Theimperialcoroner

Coke or Speed?

Bum cracks

Pretty telling what he says towards the end about Conteh and “being a human being”. He definitely wants to leave.

I like listening to Artell, he just comes across a proper decent bloke doesn't he?  

I listened to that and can imagine (might be having the wool pulled over my eyes) that he and the club genuinely care about the players, that can only continue to go in our favour moving forward.

I don't think it suggests that Conteh has demanded a move or kicked off, but that he's an ambitious kid who knows his potential.  Personally I want players at this club who want to move up the leagues.  If they impress enough to get interest whilst in a Black and White shirt it's win-win all round.

Quoted from diehardmariner

I like listening to Artell, he just comes across a proper decent bloke doesn't he?  

I listened to that and can imagine (might be having the wool pulled over my eyes) that he and the club genuinely care about the players, that can only continue to go in our favour moving forward.

I don't think it suggests that Conteh has demanded a move or kicked off, but that he's an ambitious kid who knows his potential.  Personally I want players at this club who want to move up the leagues.  If they impress enough to get interest whilst in a Black and White shirt it's win-win all round.

Warming to Artell actually, just seems an honest down to earth guy  . Let's hope that translates to on field results .

Can't help but find the Bristol Rovers thing mildly amusing , it's sent their fans potty, the owner is a busted flush who is going to leave their club 'finished' according to some .

Gasworks is a good forum

Sounds like they royally tucked up a move for Clarke Harris from Pboro in the summer now rinse and repeat with Conteh .

We have been there

Quoted from diehardmariner

I like listening to Artell, he just comes across a proper decent bloke doesn't he?  

I listened to that and can imagine (might be having the wool pulled over my eyes) that he and the club genuinely care about the players, that can only continue to go in our favour moving forward.

I don't think it suggests that Conteh has demanded a move or kicked off, but that he's an ambitious kid who knows his potential.  Personally I want players at this club who want to move up the leagues.  If they impress enough to get interest whilst in a Black and White shirt it's win-win all round.

Don't think your having the wool pulled over your eyes, we've seen a shift in ethos at the club under the new ownership. Player care is big on there list, people first players second. Evidence was clearly seen by the Scannell situation and then the tragic events over the past few weeks. Makes you proud to be a Grimsby fan.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Don't think your having the wool pulled over your eyes, we've seen a shift in ethos at the club under the new ownership. Player care is big on there list, people first players second. Evidence was clearly seen by the Scannell situation and then the tragic events on the past few weeks. Makes you proud to be a Grimsby fan.

Well said local - great courage ,  dignity and duty of care shown

All Town We Are
And I'm proud to say that

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

Artell has confirmed BR DID NOT meet Contehs BOC...but certainly does sound like he's off, and, reading between  the lines  " he's a human being"  Kamil maybe has asked the club to find him a route out for whatever reason.

I thought the same. Seems clear he wants to leave but BR not meeting the clause

All players want to better themselves and play as higher level as possible, Conteh is no different. Artell said the gas haven't met the buy out clause. Conteh would be daft to accept the first offer we get, bide your time and make the right move to a better club. Every player has a price, and hanging on to him for a bit longer we hopefully get a better deal and Conteh plays for a bigger better team than Bristol Rovers (sorry Gas fans!)

Anyway Conteh will start on Sat and we'll win 3-1.

Artell certainly has a massive amount of empathy and emotional intelligence, some of his peers in the game appear to lack that for sure.

I guess the question is for the club would you want a player that was genuinely unhappy to stay, Kamil doesn't seem the kind of kid who'd be disruptive if he didn't get a move but is it fair allowing someone to come into work every day be unhappy, doesn't help with performance that regardless of whether your a footballer or factory worker I guess.  

However there is a BOC that he and his agent agreed to and if there is wriggle room IMHO it should be minimal.

If Kamil is unhappy, we cannot ignore that.

While we shouldn't let him go at a loss, if we can find a sweet spot where we benefit long-term, don't struggle short term, and Kamil benefits. It's probably worth considering. Release clauses can be very good for the club, but there is a lot of middle area which is more than we pay, and less than that perfect case. It would be better for him to hold on until end of the season for both parties at least from a football perspective, but if he cannot for any reason, there is probably more to it than we know.

I do trust DA will make the right decision for all parties, and will support whatever decision comes out of this.

After the first couple of games, I thought to myself that he (Kamil) won't see out his 3 year deal here.

Didn't think it would happen so quickly, but you can see he has the ability to play higher already, even after 20 odd games in the EFL.

Apparently fee has been agreed and he's currently having a medical at Bristol Rovers.

There are many personal reasons why anyone might want to change jobs.
Relationships within and outside of work.
Feelings of not feeling wanted or unjustified criticism.
Many more. Not just money and ambition.

I can remember a town player who was very good at our level who moved on to the south west coast for private matters.

DA is right. We are all people. Even Pep Guardiola would bleed if he was cut with a knife, and his bodily functions are common to us all…….

He signed a contract didn’t he ? If he was useless we’d have to honour that contract. Works both ways. We gave him the clauses he and his agent agreed to so sorry, if he wants to go it’s got to be on our terms , or at least in our favour.
If it doesn’t get resolved before the end of the window I’m sure that DA , with his character will tell him to get his ar.se in gear and earn his move in the summer.

Quoted from louth_in_the_south

He signed a contract didn’t he ? If he was useless we’d have to honour that contract. Works both ways. We gave him the clauses he and his agent agreed to so sorry, if he wants to go it’s got to be on our terms , or at least in our favour.
If it doesn’t get resolved before the end of the window I’m sure that DA , with his character will tell him to get his ar.se in gear and earn his move in the summer.

Maybe. Depends on circumstances. Too many to explain……

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Apparently fee has been agreed and he's currently having a medical at Bristol Rovers.

Apparently?

Quoted from chaos33

Apparently?

Few lads on the Bristol forum believe it's done

Christ those lot said it was a 50k buyout and a bag of crisps + reckon their club is finished .

I’d be amazed if buyout wasn’t above £250k

Think Gy could have managed this situation better

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

I’d be amazed if buyout wasn’t above £250k

Think Gy could have managed this situation better

How could the club have managed it better? Conducting your transfer business via the media is a bit classless.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Few lads on the Bristol forum believe it's done

The same bloke just called DA a liar re not meeting the BOC, think he's hoping rather knowing facts imo.

Think the difference is meeting the buyout in monetary terms but not in one go, which I’d imagine where the “structure issues” are that the Bristol press reported.

Fairly obvious what Bristol Rovers have been doing here in the press, trying to unsettle players/pressurise the club.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

The same bloke just called DA a liar re not meeting the BOC, think he's hoping rather knowing facts imo.

According to Gas Chat:

Quoted Text

Conteh doing his interviews and photos with us now.

That one will either be proved or disproved rather quickly.

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

The same bloke just called DA a liar re not meeting the BOC, think he's hoping rather knowing facts imo.

Think they did match the value, just the structure of the deal was the problem.

Quoted from Poojah

According to Gas Chat:



That one will either be proved or disproved rather quickly.

Fairly likely. A bloke on Twitter that works for Conteh’s agent liked a tweet saying he was having an medical earlier.

Everything seems to suggest he’ll be gone today/tomorrow.

This happens right, but f*ck me Brizzle are so far up their own backsides, listing to some of their support you’d think they were Real Madrid or something.

I guess that’s what happens when you’re the smaller club in one City.

Why do people assume it's so low? Our new owners are more astute than the previous one and I don't think for one minute they would they would allow a prize asset to leave for next to nothing. A release clause is to stop time wasters making low bids that unsettled players. If you want to buy it will cost a minimum of x million pounds. I think he is better than the gas, even if they meet our release clause, and Conteh himself will know this.

Quoted from mimma

Why do people assume it's so low? Our new owners are more astute than the previous one and I don't think for one minute they would they would allow a prize asset to leave for next to nothing. A release clause is to stop time wasters making low bids that unsettled players. If you want to buy it will cost a minimum of x million pounds. I think he is better than the gas, even if they meet our release clause, and Conteh himself will know this.

I doubt we’d want a clause, it limits your earning potential. These I’d suspect are almost always at the behest of the player. So they know if they do well and attract interest, the balls in their court.

We don’t put one in you might not get the player. So you don’t get the player, any resale profit or any add on earnings. Something of something is better than nothing of nothing.

Better now than it drag on into next week. Looking forward to some incomings.

Been told now that he’s definitely leaving and just a case of when it’s announced.

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/exclusive-bristol-rovers-agree-club-9058558

Club record fee for Bristol, so above £380'000 is all we know.

Best of luck Kamil. Think he’ll be a bigger loss than people are suggesting. The only other player we have who can play that role is Green who is not very good on the ball. Equally he’s got one of the highest rates for tackles and interceptions in the league so imagine how bad our shite defence could be without him?

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Think they did match the value, just the structure of the deal was the problem.

What do you mean by “structure”? Please tell me that doesn’t mean being paid in instalments? We should never accept that from an EFL club; if they go into administration we’ll never see the money.

Quoted from Heisenberg

What do you mean by “structure”? Please tell me that doesn’t mean being paid in instalments? We should never accept that from an EFL club; if they go into administration we’ll never see the money.

Most transfers are paid in installments. Rules state that football debts must be repaid in full so the only time you don't get it is if the club completely liquidates like Bury did.

Looks like he’s all but gone to Rovers now, at least we have a 20% sell on clause

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/exclusive-bristol-rovers-agree-club-9058558

Club record fee for Bristol, so above £380'000 is all we know.

If that's correct at least a relatively decent sell on with what he could go for in a couple of years . You have to think we would make this original fee again at least .

Now we need to find the next 1

Quoted from mariner91

Best of luck Kamil. Think he’ll be a bigger loss than people are suggesting. The only other player we have who can play that role is Green who is not very good on the ball. Equally he’s got one of the highest rates for tackles and interceptions in the league so imagine how bad our shite defence could be without him?

He's undoubtably a good player with bags of potential BUT he has also been the DM in a team leaking shed loads of goals. His tackling and composure and passing is great, but he does let players run past/off him quite easily. Will be interesting to see it how it does affect us, I'm not convinced its going to be as big a loss as some think - especially if we get some more new players with the money.

I think he's got the potential to be a much better player than we've seen so far as he has been a little hit and miss at times. I'd imagine we'll have our own sell on clause in any deal made to hopefully make us a few more quid in a few years.

If it’s £380k for a player who’s the just strarted article never mind the finished article at this level I reckon is a decent return after 6 months.

The question is has he developed enough at L2 level to quickly start influencing games a level above to repay a (reported) club record fee?

Not sure, but good luck to him either way.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

If it’s £380k for a player who’s the just strarted article never mind the finished article at this level I reckon is a decent return after 6 months.

The question is has he developed enough at L2 level to quickly start influencing games a level above to repay a (reported) club record fee?

Not sure, but good luck to him either way.

They've said it's a new record fee, think it'll be in the region of 500-750.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

They've said it's a new record fee, think it'll be in the region of 500-750.

Presumably ‘Boro will get 20% of that?

He's been hit and miss for us anyway, clear potential of course but he was even out of the team a few weeks back. I don't think it's a bad deal for us all things considered.  

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

They've said it's a new record fee, think it'll be in the region of 500-750.

If it is then we’re doing the right thing by everyone I believe.

Quoted from Heisenberg

What do you mean by “structure”? Please tell me that doesn’t mean being paid in instalments? We should never accept that from an EFL club; if they go into administration we’ll never see the money.

Swings and roundabouts though, accepting instalments may mean we can extract more from the overall deal. I.e “yeah we’ll accept instalments but for an extra 50/100k total and add ons”

As James says, it’s very safe guarantees of monies as well.

Agree been over egged lets midfield runners go past him for fun not a great loss

I'm sure Green has more goals and assists this season.....just saying....

Interesting that their previous record was for Andy Tillson from QPR, another ex Mariner.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

If it is then we’re doing the right thing by everyone I believe.

This guy who's obviously quite close to Conteh says it's well over the release fee so we can only speculate what that is but maybe somewhere in the region if what local says

Quoted from Mappers

Tweet 1750615478509170736 will appear here...

This guy who's obviously quite close to Conteh says it's well over the release fee so we can only speculate what that is but maybe somewhere in the region if what local says

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

I love this, we (potentially) make a great 6 month return on a player who’s definitely got potential but I can’t recall him having an influence in either box that often and nobody’s even thought about giving Hurst credit for signing him.

Sorry couldn’t resist trying to trigger the anti Hurst brigade 😉

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

Possibly for a chance to avoid a huge outlay as any release clause must be paid in full.

500k across 3 years for example might be slightly more palatable for them than 350k in one go.

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

Maybe there was a term in the release clause they couldn't agree to, such as a really high sell on percentage or payment up front.

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

Maybe there is some sort of timeframe where deals have to go through, BR didn’t want it protracted to alert other suitors, and they maybe asked town to take him off the market if they paid a bit more? A bit like some house sales?

Otherwise, I’m with you. I’ve always thought a release clause seals the deal. Mind you, PH did say in the summer that Boro have a buy back clause - presumably Boro didn’t take up that option, but if they dragged their feet it could indeed have alerted others and BR might have been sweating.

I really am clutching at straws here!

Quoted from pontoonlew

Possibly for a chance to avoid a huge outlay as any release clause must be paid in full.

500k across 3 years for example might be slightly more palatable for them than 350k in one go.

And balances the books in terms of the spending regs you would have thought maybe .

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

If there was more than one interested party perhaps?

Good to see that there are already "he aint all that" type posts appearing on here.

He's played 20 odd games in the EFL, and is attracting a record bid from a team in the league above. He must be junk.

If its any way near 500k thats a very good deal for us in such a short time

Quoted from Mappers

And balances the books in terms of the spending regs you would have thought maybe .

I believe the fee will amortise over the length of the contract, regardless of how it's paid. Paying more in installments would be better for their cashflow.

If we needed the cash up front to sign his replacement, the owners could just stick an interest free loan in if they wished.

Quoted from ginnywings

If there was more than one interested party perhaps?

Good to see that there are already "he aint all that" type posts appearing on here.

He's played 20 odd games in the EFL, and is attracting a record bid from a team in the league above. He must be junk.

He will be good , very good barring injury you would have thought seems to have a good head on his shoulders + ability which  should be a given but even higher up it seems missing from a good % of players . It will be interesting to see just how good he becomes .

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

The most plausible reason would be that Town said it you meet his clause needs paying all at once, however pay over the clause and it could be paid over 2/3 payments.

Quoted from ginnywings

If there was more than one interested party perhaps?

Good to see that there are already "he aint all that" type posts appearing on here.

He's played 20 odd games in the EFL, and is attracting a record bid from a team in the league above. He must be junk.

If it becomes an auction, presumably it’s the player that benefits rather than the selling club. It’s possible it could be related to the payment schedule, however again it seems fairly common knowledge that it is pretty routine for transfer fees to be amortised over multiple years, so I’d have assumed that the small print of any clause would reflect this.

Ultimately, the Twitterati seems to have got more right than wrong on this one, it just strikes me as fanciful that we’d have received more than his contractual release clause.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

I believe the fee will amortise over the length of the contract, regardless of how it's paid. Paying more in installments would be better for their cashflow.

If we needed the cash up front to sign his replacement, the owners could just stick an interest free loan in if they wished.

I'm interested now do we sign another player for a fee , with high potential ?

Clubs already know we are cash rich (relative to most other clubs at this level apart from bankrolled)  , debt free and made about 2 million quid from the cup/transfers over the last year or so ; you would think it might be tricky especially in January to pull off a good deal .

Maybe they already have 1 lined up ?

Well a brief joy to watch and hopefully he will move onto bigger and better things for himself.

Quoted from Poojah

Forgive my ignorance, but why would anyone pay more than the release clause?

Presumably similar to why we get mortgages or use credit cards. Pay more for the convenience of paying over a longer timeframe. As if be surprised if any clause didn’t mandate an upfront fee.

More I hear the more this looks a cracking bit of business for us financially, as well as increasing our reputation as a club you can develop at - like McAtee did - and then move up the pyramid. Only takes a few of these before you become known for it.

Quoted from jamesgtfc

I believe the fee will amortise over the length of the contract, regardless of how it's paid. Paying more in installments would be better for their cashflow.

If we needed the cash up front to sign his replacement, the owners could just stick an interest free loan in if they wished.

Assets amortise rather than costs don’t they?

Quoted from jamesgtfc

I believe the fee will amortise over the length of the contract, regardless of how it's paid. Paying more in installments would be better for their cashflow.

If we needed the cash up front to sign his replacement, the owners could just stick an interest free loan in if they wished.

You definitely listen to that Kieran McGuire podcast!!

I agree he looked a very tidy player but how many times did he influence the result of the game?

I'd expect Joe would of been canny to the fact there's clubs sniffing around and would already have a shortlist of players to replace Kam for when he left. I trust in them to spend the money wisely and make us a better outfit long term. We've now got a nice portfolio of bringing players in, improving them and selling them on and that should be how we work. He's an incredible player that I believe will go on to have a very good career in the championship/premier league but I do agree with some in that he was kind of restricted in that he would only sit. Only against Notts County did we ever see him drive forward consistently. Perhaps now it'll allow us a bit more flexibility and freedom in the midfield to have 3 midfielders in there rather than 1 sitting and 2 pushing forward.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Assets amortise rather than costs don’t they?

It’s a well established practice to amortise players transfer fees over the life of their contract - hence Chelsea giving Mudryk an 8.5 year contract when he signed last year.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

I'd expect Joe would of been canny to the fact there's clubs sniffing around and would already have a shortlist of players to replace Kam for when he left. I trust in them to spend the money wisely and make us a better outfit long term. We've now got a nice portfolio of bringing players in, improving them and selling them on and that should be how we work.

We are going for the pboro/Brentford lite route , it's the only way of any meaningful progress without getting 20k crowds every week or having owners willing / can spend 10's of million minimum isn't it ?

People are going to have to get used to us flipping players though .

It is a big tick in the box for Joe Hutchinson

Quoted from SouthLakesMariner

It’s a well established practice to amortise players transfer fees over the life of their contract - hence Chelsea giving Mudryk an 8.5 year contract when he signed last year.

Ahh yeah I recall know that’s that Todd geezer from Chelsea’s model isn’t it.

Quoted from Mappers

We are going for the pboro/Brentford lite route , it's the only way of any meaningful progress without getting 20k crowds every week or having owners willing / can spend 10's of million minimum isn't it ?

People are going to have to get used to us flipping players though .

It is a big tick in the box for Joe Hutchinson

Yeah, time for us to now go be the hunter and take the talents out of non league. Some very good players in the NL.

😁✌🏽

Quoted from HertsGTFC

Assets amortise rather than costs don’t they?

Players are assets (sometimes!)

Quoted from Alan Buckley

😁✌🏽

Good info Alan, 3 points on the table for you. Any info on the supposed figure being more than release clause they're paying?

Quoted from HerveJosse

I agree he looked a very tidy player but how many times did he influence the result of the game?

In every game he played.....the same as every other player in the world at any level  :P

Quoted from Poojah

If it becomes an auction, presumably it’s the player that benefits rather than the selling club. It’s possible it could be related to the payment schedule, however again it seems fairly common knowledge that it is pretty routine for transfer fees to be amortised over multiple years, so I’d have assumed that the small print of any clause would reflect this.

Ultimately, the Twitterati seems to have got more right than wrong on this one, it just strikes me as fanciful that we’d have received more than his contractual release clause.

The accounting method of amortisation (player fee depreciation over the length of the contract) is unrelated to how a transfer fee is paid I believe. So if it's 600k with a 3 year contract it amortises on the books at 200k per year.
That has nothing to do with the details of how the money is paid to the other club. Could be 600k up front or 300k for 2 years or whatever. So it could be they agree to pay more than the BOC in return for it not having to be up front, which helps with their cash flow.
That's how I think it works anyway.

Quoted from toontown

The accounting method of amortisation (player fee depreciation over the length of the contract) is unrelated to how a transfer fee is paid I believe. So if it's 600k with a 3 year contract it amortises on the books at 200k per year.
That has nothing to do with the details of how the money is paid to the other club. Could be 600k up front or 300k for 2 years or whatever. So it could be they agree to pay more than the BOC in return for it not having to be up front, which helps with their cash flow.
That's how I think it works anyway.

No, you’re quite right, some lazy conflation on my part. But it is commonplace for payments to be be made over a period of time which often tracks that of amortisation, and it is that which I’d assume would be factored into the wording of any release clause.

That’s just my assumption, mind.

Quoted from ginnywings

If there was more than one interested party perhaps?

Good to see that there are already "he aint all that" type posts appearing on here.

He's played 20 odd games in the EFL, and is attracting a record bid from a team in the league above. He must be junk.

i think the point for me is that we seem to have made a barrel load of money for a player who's only been with us 6 months and was never played in his true position. And will we truly miss him, after just 6 months and 20 games?
He's got great stats, and I do think he has the potential to go far, but did he ever really dominate a game for us, or put in a match winning performance? (and that's not necessarily down to him, it's where he's played and what's around him, and it's his first season playing in pro football)
Talking hypotheticals; Artell gets in an experienced defensive midfielder (like James Hunt or Stacey Coldicutt) who's a bit of a leader; then I think we don't miss Conteh and we are laughing all the way to the bank.
Alternatively it may also allow him to rebalance the midfield and make it more effective.
In summary I'd be far more worried if it was Danny Rose leaving

P.S. and if the stuff about a 20% sell on fee is true, then it really is a bloody good deal

PPS given the circumstances of his signing I think GTFC were fully aware from day 1 that he was unlikely to be with us for very long, and I'd be amazed if they weren't looking at replacements from day 1

Quoted from Poojah

No, you’re quite right, some lazy conflation on my part. But it is commonplace for payments to be be made over a period of time which often tracks that of amortisation, and it is that which I’d assume would be factored into the wording of any release clause.

That’s just my assumption, mind.

Theres been a few things on social media said about the BOC requires up front payment. As you say, that isn't the norm, and if we have inserted that in to the contract then it's clever from JS as it means we still have negotiating power even if they meet it, as we can offer to relax the upfront part in return for something, if it suits us to do so.

So i’m told there’s a large chunk of cash upfront, with a lot more in added instalments paid over a duration. 20% sell on fee, that’s a flat 20% not based on profits or anything should see us recoup just over a million pound for a player that’s been here 6 months. Good business by the club.

Quoted from forza ivano

i think the point for me is that we seem to have made a barrel load of money for a player who's only been with us 6 months and was never played in his true position. And will we truly miss him, after just 6 months and 20 games?
He's got great stats, and I do think he has the potential to go far, but did he ever really dominate a game for us, or put in a match winning performance? (and that's not necessarily down to him, it's where he's played and what's around him, and it's his first season playing in pro football)
Talking hypotheticals; Artell gets in an experienced defensive midfielder (like James Hunt or Stacey Coldicutt) who's a bit of a leader; then I think we don't miss Conteh and we are laughing all the way to the bank.
Alternatively it may also allow him to rebalance the midfield and make it more effective.
In summary I'd be far more worried if it was Danny Rose leaving

P.S. and if the stuff about a 20% sell on fee is true, then it really is a bloody good deal

PPS given the circumstances of his signing I think GTFC were fully aware from day 1 that he was unlikely to be with us for very long, and I'd be amazed if they weren't looking at replacements from day 1

How can you say we appear to have made a barrel load of money .We don't know what we paid for him ,we do t know his buy out clause fee and we don't know what sell on % was agreed with Middlesbrough .

Quoted from toontown

Theres been a few things on social media said about the BOC requires up front payment. As you say, that isn't the norm, and if we have inserted that in to the contract then it's clever from JS as it means we still have negotiating power even if they meet it, as we can offer to relax the upfront part in return for something, if it suits us to do so.

A release clause has to be paid in full and upfront. Chelsea did it with Enzo, they paid 115 million which was 10 million pound more than his release clause so that they could split the money over a period of time rather than paying the full 105 million upfront.

Quoted from Norseman

How can you say we appear to have made a barrel load of money .We don't know what we paid for him ,we do t know his buy out clause fee and we don't know what sell on % was agreed with Middlesbrough .

urrrr - that's maybe why I put 'appears'?!?


by the by - Conteh is currently trending on Twitter!

Quoted from toontown

The accounting method of amortisation (player fee depreciation over the length of the contract) is unrelated to how a transfer fee is paid I believe. So if it's 600k with a 3 year contract it amortises on the books at 200k per year.
That has nothing to do with the details of how the money is paid to the other club. Could be 600k up front or 300k for 2 years or whatever. So it could be they agree to pay more than the BOC in return for it not having to be up front, which helps with their cash flow.
That's how I think it works anyway.

So basically the cost is a depreciation line on your P&L rather than a paying out of the cash reserves on your balance sheet I guess.

The way I’m looking at the is it’s been like having a decent loan player then when he leaves you got a good cash windfall.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

So basically the cost is a depreciation line on your P&L rather than a paying out of the cash reserves on your balance sheet I guess.

The way I’m looking at the is it’s been like having a decent loan player then when he leaves you got a good cash windfall.

I'm not so sure it's that good of a deal for us.
We supposedly paid a 100k for him in the summer, he's had wages and a signing on fee from us for six months.
Is selling him for 3-400k really worth it when you add in the cost of replacing him ?


I cant believe they set the sell on clause that low

Him and his agent probably insisted on it being low in order for him to sign. He clearly saw us as a stepping stone and we knew worst case scenario we'd have a good player for a period and make a profit.

It’s quite hilarious to read BR fans speculating what a great player he is and how he could help them in a promotion push next season. Next season?

This is a player that turned pro at Watford and signed a 1 year deal. He spent the second half of that season at Braintree having already decided to leave Watford at the end of the season. He then joined Middlesbrough and again spent the 2nd half of his season on loan, this time at Gateshead. He then joined Town.

BR are signing a player who’s been a pro for 2 and a half seasons and has basically spent half a season at 5 different clubs.

The idea he’ll stay at BR for a prolonged period seems somewhat optimistic. He’s clearly ambitious  and will see BR as the next short stop on his rise up the football ladder.

I don’t mean any of this as a criticism of Conteh and his loyalty. It’s nice to see a talented young player dropping down the leagues to get proper men’s football rather than festering on the under 21s/23s of a top club.

Quoted from GollyGTFC

It’s quite hilarious to read BR fans speculating what a great player he is and how he could help them in a promotion push next season. Next season?

This is a player that turned pro at Watford and signed a 1 year deal. He spent the second half of that season at Braintree having already decided to leave Watford at the end of the season. He then joined Middlesbrough and again spent the 2nd half of his season on loan, this time at Gateshead. He then joined Town.

BR are signing a player who’s been a pro for 2 and a half seasons and has basically spent half a season at 5 different clubs.

The idea he’ll stay at BR for a prolonged period seems somewhat optimistic. He’s clearly optimistic and will see BR as the next short stop on his rise up the football ladder.

I don’t mean any of this as a criticism of Conteh and his loyalty. It’s nice to see a talented young player dropping down the leagues to get proper men’s football rather than festering on the under 21s/23s of a top club.

How far do you think he will go barring injury ?

Agree with your post .

Quoted from grimps

I'm not so sure it's that good of a deal for us.
We supposedly paid a 100k for him in the summer, he's had wages and a signing on fee from us for six months.
Is selling him for 3-400k really worth it when you add in the cost of replacing him ?


I cant believe they set the sell on clause that low

Most income at this level comes from a sell on, which we apparently have now, he moves for decent money that’s the bigger potential earnings.

Decent profit on the initial transaction and decent future potential earnings - good bit of business in my view. As said earlier, if you don’t insert the fee Conteh wants - you don’t get the player or any money at all.

Quoted from Mappers

How far do you think he will go barring injury ?

Agree with your post .

I think his ceiling is Championship, or lower Premier League if he gets promoted.

Quoted from grimps

I'm not so sure it's that good of a deal for us.
We supposedly paid a 100k for him in the summer, he's had wages and a signing on fee from us for six months.
Is selling him for 3-400k really worth it when you add in the cost of replacing him ?


I cant believe they set the sell on clause that low

It’s north of 500, they’ve paid over the release clause in bro contract. It’s a very good deal for the club.

Lads gone 300k plus 20% sell on. Will net us cash in the future for sure

Fabrizio Romano Saying its 300K with a 20% Sell On Clause

Quoted from Hagrid

Fabrizio Romano Saying its 300K with a 20% Sell On Clause

He's miles out, its closer to 500k, his BOC was 350k...

Quoted from Hagrid

Fabrizio Romano Saying its 300K with a 20% Sell On Clause

Good bit of business I think that, the 20% can be a real earner if he kicks on like we know he could. That release clause fee looking fairly accurate then.

Quoted from Hagrid

Fabrizio Romano Saying its 300K with a 20% Sell On Clause

He also says it’s a club record signing fee.. which 300k isn’t a club record fee for Bristol, they paid more than that for a player in the summer.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

He also says it’s a club record signing fee.. which 300k isn’t a club record fee for Bristol, they paid more than that for a player in the summer.

Didn't fact check that after reading the info somewhere else.

Quoted from Abdul19

Didn't fact check that after reading the info somewhere else.

He’s more wrong than right nowadays, problem is because he was once good at what he does he’s treated as the messiah when it comes to transfer news.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

He’s more wrong than right nowadays, problem is because he was once good at what he does he’s treated as the messiah when it comes to transfer news.

Would imagine if he's tweeting about this level it's cause someone's asked him too, like an agent he knows etc? Admittedly I don't follow his output closely but he always strikes me as someone that operates in the top leagues.

If Fabrizio Romano is tweeting it, it’s almost always right

Quoted from Mikey_345

Would imagine if he's tweeting about this level it's cause someone's asked him too, like an agent he knows etc? Admittedly I don't follow his output closely but he always strikes me as someone that operates in the top leagues.

Given the way it’s played out in the media, probably a leak on there side. It’s more than 300k though, that’s for sure.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Given the way it’s played out in the media, probably a leak on there side. It’s more than 300k though, that’s for sure.

See someone suggesting on Twitter that could be the initial payment. However i'd struggle to see the point of that from their side as if the BOC is 375ish then why not pay the extra 75 now.

More than 300k for a fact.

I'm gonna say it , this 300k or whatever it is needs to go to artell in strengthening the squad.

Losing conteh is a big big blow for us in all honesty,  he's the general in midfield for us and now we need to fill it as good as we can but that's gonna cost us money , I hope the directors give David the majority of this money to improve us all over.

We didn't expect him to move on so early so this January is very important and artell needs backing with the majority of this cash.

Surrey97
monkey boy
Alan Buckley
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mendonca1995
Hagrid
coddy60

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Fabrizio Romano
Telegraph Sport
WozofGrimsby

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

It’s north of 500, they’ve paid over the release clause in bro contract. It’s a very good deal for the club.

If that’s true, the magnitude of that deal shouldn’t be underestimated. It’s very, very rare you see anyone paying that sort of money for a League Two midfielder in their twenties. Those that do tend to be attacking, goal scoring players, a la Sammie Szmodics (and he’d scored 35 goals for Colchester by the time he signed for Bristol City).

It’s always disappointing to see good players leave, especially when it feels like he’s only just arrived. But outside the very top echelons of football, it is a sign of a healthy club to be identifying talented, young players and selling them on for a profit. Of course, we need to turn that into a consistent conveyor belt, but a fee in the region of £500k plus a sell on for a Conteh is a significant sign of progress in the club’s recovery.  

Quoted from ska face

Surrey97
monkey boy
Alan Buckley
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mendonca1995
Hagrid
coddy60

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Fabrizio Romano
Telegraph Sport
WozofGrimsby

Welcome back mate!

I'm sorry but why is it a big blow?...
Yes, the kids got some talent, but his actual contribution to most games hasn't been effectual, no assists, no goals, Holohan, Green, Andrews, Clifton, Hunt, have all contributed more!!..
If we've netted a healthy profit in just 6 months then that's brilliant business by the club, kudos to Jo for unearthing him but I'm not going to cry into my morning snowflakes because we've sold him.

Quoted from ska face

Surrey97
monkey boy
Alan Buckley
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mendonca1995
Hagrid
coddy60

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Fabrizio Romano
Telegraph Sport
WozofGrimsby

Do Lukeo and It Bites have their own league now?

Quoted from ska face

Surrey97
monkey boy
Alan Buckley
- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Mendonca1995
Hagrid
coddy60

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Fabrizio Romano
Telegraph Sport
WozofGrimsby

Not to sound petty but I was one of the first re. Kamil!

Quoted from Northbank Mariner

I'm sorry but why is it a big blow?...
Yes, the kids got some talent, but his actual contribution to most games hasn't been effectual, no assists, no goals, Holohan, Green, Andrews, Clifton, Hunt, have all contributed more!!..
If we've netted a healthy profit in just 6 months then that's brilliant business by the club, kudos to Jo for unearthing him but I'm not going to cry into my morning snowflakes because we've sold him.

this. Artell makes the right midfield signing and gets it more balanced/efficient then I don't think we miss him

Shame to see him go as he’s a decent player, but hard to argue this is anything other than a success in terms of the recruitment model we appear to be adopting. Made what appears to be a healthy profit on a lad bought with zero football league appearances, within 6 months, when his contribution as a defensive midfielder has been as part of a team with 1 clean sheet since September 2nd. His value is in his full potential which, truth be told, he would struggle to reach playing in this team.

You’ve also got to factor in the relative strength we have as a club compared to Bristol Rovers both in terms of profile and bargaining power. If he had no release clause, would we even be in a position to turn down a bid of £200k for him if someone like Luton or Ipswich came along? Maybe not. If he’d been the best player in the division and completely untouchable, what do you think we’d be looking at, £700-800k tops? Then when it comes to a sell-on if he does well at Rovers, you’re looking Champ/lower Prem and they’re less likely to be bullied into a bad price than we are.

In total, hard to argue that a decent wedge now & prospect of a good sell-on in a year or two is a worse prospect than hoping his stock improves and then hoping you don’t get lowballed in the summer with him wanting to go.

The big, big plus is that it’s a clear indication for any prospective signings that we’re happy to help players progress if they’ve got the bottle to drop out of the academy system, pampered lifestyle bubble and get some game time. Fair play to Conteh for that, clearly ambitious and not afraid to make some sacrifices to get where he wants to be.

Are we actually able to put a sell on clause in this transaction?

I thought that if a buyout clause is met then there is no negotiation due to the fact of the clause being triggered. Sell on clauses are normally put in as an incentive by the buying club to sweeten the offer being made now.
Why would you offer such a clause if you’ve already made the seller powerless by triggering the buyout clause?

Quoted from Bignic69

Are we actually able to put a sell on clause in this transaction?

I thought that if a buyout clause is met then there is no negotiation due to the fact of the clause being triggered. Sell on clauses are normally put in as an incentive by the buying club to sweeten the offer being made now.
Why would you offer such a clause if you’ve already made the seller powerless by triggering the buyout clause?

It would appear that they didn't meet all the terms of the buyout clause. Rovers had two choices: meet our demands, or meet the explicit terms of his buyout clause.

Quoted from Bignic69

Are we actually able to put a sell on clause in this transaction?

I thought that if a buyout clause is met then there is no negotiation due to the fact of the clause being triggered. Sell on clauses are normally put in as an incentive by the buying club to sweeten the offer being made now.
Why would you offer such a clause if you’ve already made the seller powerless by triggering the buyout clause?

They didn’t meet the BOC, a BOC is a full fee upfront. The deal is being paid in instalments and actually surpasses the BOC fee.

No idea where the fanciful figures for the transfer fee are coming from, the Bristol end talks about their club record being £370k.

https://www.bristolpost.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/exclusive-bristol-rovers-agree-club-9058558

In any event, the important thing is we stay in the EFL, getting rid of your best players isn't the way to do it.

UTM

He doesnt want to be here and thats fine, so accepting a bid that works for us financially was the best option.
If we have returned a profit, after paying out clauses etc, of anything above £150k, then we have done well for a short 6 month period.

Lets not forget that this could also of been a 'Micheal Reddy' situation by holding on to him and him getting an injury, which could happen at any given time.

Personally I think he has shown enough potential, despite being in such a poor team and will probably go on to be a very good player at a higher level, where he will get even more time on the ball.

I am hopeful we have also secured a good sell on clause, in the hope that he does really well and reaches the heights of a top end Championship side, or even Premier League.

Hopefully Artell is given a large chunk of the money to spend in the summer.

Best wishes to Kamil aswell.

Right, I wasn’t aware of that, that’ll teach me for not reading the full 45 pages 😆

Looks a good bit of business. Let’s hope we can invest the proceeds into unearthing a few similar players develop them and sell them for a profit. It won’t always work but the ones that do should offset the ones that don’t make it. If we have got a sell on fee could be a nice long term income too.

Hard to judge just how good a player he will be. He strikes me as the sort of player that would fit in at any level. At the same age Kante was playing in the French National division which looks to be a similar standard to League 2. I doubt anyone watching him thought he would go on to win the World Cup.

His buyout clause was £275k which had to be met as a full upfront payment to be triggered. They didn’t want to pay that upfront so instead have made the value more than £275k with the installments. Forest green offered £275k in instalments for him at the start of the window which town was able to reject luckily!

Quoted from Alan Buckley

His buyout clause was £275k which had to be met as a full upfront payment to be triggered. They didn’t want to pay that upfront so instead have made the value more than £275k with the installments. Forest green offered £275k in instalments for him at the start of the window which town was able to reject luckily!

Not one to post often but this is 100% correct.

Just shows the money FGR have to splash around

Quoted from pizzzza

What doesn't make sense to me (perhaps you can help me understand) is it is a reported club record fee for Rovers, so over £370k. Lets say it's £370k and the release clause is £275k then BR are paying a 74% premium just to pay in installments, which seems a lot to me. Why would they do that? Cash flow? Just get a bank loan and pay Town the £275k, assume they can get one at less than 74% interest.

Because they didn’t want to pay £275k up front not sure if that’s cash flow or so that they could buy other targets too. But town was never going to except £275k in installments so the only way they could get a bid accepted was to pay over the release clause. They know there’s the potential for them to make a lot of money off him so worth the extra investment now.

Quoted from Hagrid

Just shows the money FGR have to splash around

Umteen managers and IMO have left it too late to splash the cash. There're going down.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

His buyout clause was £275k which had to be met as a full upfront payment to be triggered. They didn’t want to pay that upfront so instead have made the value more than £275k with the installments. Forest green offered £275k in instalments for him at the start of the window which town was able to reject luckily!

I'd like to think anyone with their head screwed on and with ambition like Conteh seems to have had would have rejected FGR. Bottom two of L2 and a vanity club with a tiny fanbase. Undoubtedly would have increased his wages but at what cost to his career?

Quoted from Alan Buckley

His buyout clause was £275k which had to be met as a full upfront payment to be triggered. They didn’t want to pay that upfront so instead have made the value more than £275k with the installments. Forest green offered £275k in instalments for him at the start of the window which town was able to reject luckily!

Kamil also turned down Peterborough to come to us after a lot of convincing over the summer. The £275k clause was the only way to get him here.

Quoted from Ollie

Kamil also turned down Peterborough to come to us after a lot of convincing over the summer. The £275k clause was the only way to get him here.

Spot on.

Anybody who can’t see this as good business is stuck in the past IMO. Brentford & Brighton have forced their way into the top leagues by repeating this sort of business season after season.

If it’s a one off then there’s an argument for it not being a good sale, but we’ve explicitly said this is the plan and it’s obviously working. We’ve brought a player in, got a good return on him and now have the opportunity to re-invest it into the next sellable asset.

With Mcatee, Pollock, Grist & Conteh we’ve made over £1m. If we can replicate the same thing with 4 more and maybe make £2m the next time, then progressing up the leagues becomes much more achievable.

Quoted from pontoonlew

Anybody who can’t see this as good business is stuck in the past IMO. Brentford & Brighton have forced their way into the top leagues by repeating this sort of business season after season.

If it’s a one off then there’s an argument for it not being a good sale, but we’ve explicitly said this is the plan and it’s obviously working. We’ve brought a player in, got a good return on him and now have the opportunity to re-invest it into the next sellable asset.

With Mcatee, Pollock, Grist & Conteh we’ve made over £1m. If we can replicate the same thing with 4 more and maybe make £2m the next time, then progressing up the leagues becomes much more achievable.

Exactly this! For the club to be sustainable then we have to have a steady source of income via buying and selling. Obviously you have to balance this with who we sell and how important they are for the club to still be successful and progress.

It’s a good deal in the sense that we’ve made a small profit on a player in just six months, and there maybe some further sell on advantages in the future. I just can’t help but be a little disappointed that 1. We’ve lost a cracking player, and 2. Having not known about the clause previously, I felt we could’ve made a lot more money in 6 months to a year, maybe even getting up to the 7 figure mark. But we’ll move on and I trust the owners and DA to invest that money wisely.

Having met him a few times for several different reasons he’s a cracking young lad and hopefully he’ll work his way up the leagues now.

Good luck Kam

I mean Bristol are saying it's their highest transfer bid paid, so could only be £5 more than that and they can market to the fans that they're splashing the cash.

I think Town had a decision, either wait for the BOC or maybe take a bit more for delayed payment.

Ultimately, if we paid roughly £100k for him, and get £400k, we can replace with 3 good standard league 2 players and get £100k for the January inconvenience. Not to mention 20% sell on, which if he went for £1.5m later, is a tidy £300k. I'd take 3 more Rose's of their position over Conteh. Good player with great potential and I wish him luck, but I think we need players ready to go now.

I think a lot of owners would have bowed to pressure and begrudgingly accepted the release clause in installments, so fair play to those that played the game and negotiated a better deal for the club.

I think that Conteh can be a very good case study for the club to use in demonstrating to talented young players that we won't stand in their way of progressing.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

His buyout clause was £275k which had to be met as a full upfront payment to be triggered. They didn’t want to pay that upfront so instead have made the value more than £275k with the installments. Forest green offered £275k in instalments for him at the start of the window which town was able to reject luckily!

Pleased you’ve been proved correct after, at best, sceptical posts on here. Any idea what we paid for him initially?

Quoted from Lincoln Mariner 56

Pleased you’ve been proved correct after, at best, sceptical posts on here. Any idea what we paid for him initially?

Is it true though? What is your source? GTFC? Bristol Rovers, Kamil, or his agent?

It is Bristol Rovers biggest transfer fee. Why would they pay £75k over the asking price? Even with today's interest rates, they'd be quids in to borrow it.

Great business.

Conteh was never here for the long haul.  Good luck to the lad and I wish him the best.  I think he'll get a lot better with better players around him. But he's looked as anonymous at times as he as influential.  Actually surprised anyone has jumped the gun on him so early when his form has dipped at various points already this season (albeit in a side that hasn't torn trees up).

The value of this transfer will come when/if he impresses at Rovers and gets sold again.  20% straight up sell-on is significant, never mind the actual transfer fee in an age when they tend to for a pittance at this level (as a selling club).

Have we actually announced this yet?
The lad left yesterday morning after saying his goodbyes, what's the delay...

Quoted from coddy60

Have we actually announced this yet?
The lad left yesterday morning after saying his goodbyes, what's the delay...

Maybe we are waiting to announce some Incoming at the same time.....hopefully.!

Imagine if another team gazumped this at the last minute

It would send Bristol Rovers fans potty

Quoted from Mappers

Imagine if another team gazumped this at the last minute

It would send Bristol Rovers fans potty

Yeah especially if it was Brizzle City

The past is littered with stories of how we could've got money for players at their peak, but didn't. Everyone knows about Michael Reddy but also, not long after, we had Danny North and Nick Hegarty establish themselves and they attracted attention.

All three ended up leaving the club for nothing.

Pretty sure we turned down a very good offer from Dundee for Hegarty, and I'm sure North had strong interest in 07/08. We nearly sold Alan Connell in the Jan but kept him until the end of the season and missed out on some money there.

Easy to say all this with hindsight but as hard as it's gonna be, we're gonna have to sell our best players when they get noticed. That makes our recruitment and youth development crucial to our future — not that this is new news to anyone.

Having ready-made replacements, waiting in the wings. Sure that's part of Artell's remit. It's too early in his tenure, but the idea would be to have a talented defensive midfielder from the youth team ready to step up.

We're not there yet, but if the youth team play in the blueprint of the first team and we invest some of this Conteh money in their development then soon enough we'll have a conveyor belt of talent.

Looks like Bristol just teased an announcement. Asking if anyone has that clip of Darrell Clarke having a pop at the telegraph on twitter...

Still nothing on bbc website

Also why is Conteh sat in a stadium with red paint? BC play in blue and white

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

Still nothing on bbc website

Also why is Conteh sat in a stadium with red paint? BC play in blue and white

He's got a Gateshead top on mate.... clearly an old picture  ;D

Confirmed... now for the incomings.

Confirmed by the club, who state that Bristol Rovers MET the release clause yesterday.

Quoted from IlkleyMariner

Still nothing on bbc website

Also why is Conteh sat in a stadium with red paint? BC play in blue and white

Club now announced move

Just watched the BR video. Something about 'print that' and the Grimsby Telegraph. Can't remember what the reference is but it seems an odd way to announce a signing.

Quoted from RichMariner

We nearly sold Alan Connell in the Jan but kept him until the end of the season and missed out on some money there.
.

We sold Alan Connell for a six figure sum. He had a 2 year deal

Think we've done well out the deal.. little surprised we've got so much for him suppose they are buying the potential there hopefully Artell can mould the team to what he wants with the money generated..

Some bizarre behaviour from the Bristol Rovers official account and their supporters banging on about the playoff final they fluked their way through on pens with the official announcement. Have they missed the part where they've given us a truckload of money and a gigantic sell on clause for a player with a handful of football league appearances? Clowns.

Quoted from Marinerdan

Just watched the BR video. Something about 'print that' and the Grimsby Telegraph. Can't remember what the reference is but it seems an odd way to announce a signing.

Darrell Clarke was caught singing 'we are going up' before the play-off final. Grimsby Telegraph printed it, as you'd surely expect. He then got smashed after the final and did this weird thing about 'Grimsby Telegraph, print that' then fell off his stool. We're obviously living rent free

Quoted from Mikey_345

Darrell Clarke was caught singing 'we are going up' before the play-off final. Grimsby Telegraph printed it, as you'd surely expect. He then got smashed after the final and did this weird thing about 'Grimsby Telegraph, print that' then fell off his stool. We're obviously living rent free

Quite - no wonder they're called the Gas!

Quoted from Chrisblor

Some bizarre behaviour from the Bristol Rovers official account and their supporters banging on about the playoff final they fluked their way through on pens with the official announcement. Have they missed the part where they've given us a truckload of money and a gigantic sell on clause for a player with a handful of football league appearances? Clowns.

Have they though? The announcement our side says that they met the release clause.

Our directors will want to play down the sums of money involved if we are in negotiations to get players in.

Quoted from Marinerdan

Just watched the BR video. Something about 'print that' and the Grimsby Telegraph. Can't remember what the reference is but it seems an odd way to announce a signing.

Taking the pi*s out of us mate after that daft managers half cut rant after they beat us in the play off final

See abit of criticism as the fee's undisclosed. Can't for the life of me see why we'd been keen to show the world how much money we've just brought in... during a window,... whilst we're trying to buy players...

Quoted from jamesgtfc

Have they though? The announcement our side says that they met the release clause.

What are you trying to argue about here - what quantifies “a truckload of money”?

The club can announce signings how they want, with whatever bants. Kamil getting involved is just disrespectful for no reason. Hope his career flops and I’d boo him

Quoted from Mikey_345

See abit of criticism as the fee's undisclosed. Can't for the life of me see why we'd been keen to show the world how much money we've just brought in... during a window,... whilst we're trying to buy players...

Simpletons mate who think because Stockwood said we are being 'open and transparent ' he means about every finer detail .

Quoted from Mikey_345

See abit of criticism as the fee's undisclosed. Can't for the life of me see why we'd been keen to show the world how much money we've just brought in... during a window,... whilst we're trying to buy players...

People using it as a stick to beat the owners with when every single club in the country use undisclosed fees. There's absolutely no reason in this day and age to share information about transfers in the public domain.  

Well if they triggered the release clause why would a sell on be included? Also if it's a record fee for them then the release clause can't have been 275k. We also don't know how much we paid for him or how much Middlesbrough had as a sell on clause. Basically we don't know much. Hopefully it's a good deal for us but it might not be?

Quoted from ska face

What are you trying to argue about here - what quantifies “a truckload of money”?

I was referring to the gigantic sell-on clause. Neither announcement mentions a sell-on clause. Both state that it is undisclosed, but our statement specifically states that Bristol Rovers met the release clause yesterday, which is contrary to the rumours of them paying in excess of the release clause.

Am I the only one that's not that bothered he has gone?

Quoted from Mikey_345

Darrell Clarke was caught singing 'we are going up' before the play-off final. Grimsby Telegraph printed it, as you'd surely expect. He then got smashed after the final and did this weird thing about 'Grimsby Telegraph, print that' then fell off his stool. We're obviously living rent free

Thanks totally forgot all about that. Seems weirdly provocative over something no one really remembers, especially as Conteh was 11/12 when it happened. It’s a bit like Luton signing McAtee then getting him to make some sly dig about Mike Newell or Scott Neilson!

Quoted from arryarryarry

Am I the only one that's not that bothered he has gone?

Think the talent is clear to see, but I agree. I think it could be a blessing... he was clearly too good to be sat on our bench, but he limited you in terms of he could only sit in front of the back 4. He was horrendous in the 8 against Harrogate I think it was. I think we might see a more fluid midfield with him gone.

Quoted from ska face

What are you trying to argue about here - what quantifies “a truckload of money”?

Is it more or less than a excrement tonne?

DELETE THE THREAD AND LETS MOVE ON…..

ALL TOWN AREN’T WE?!!

Not at all sad he’s gone.

Quoted from arryarryarry

Am I the only one that's not that bothered he has gone?

Nope, I'm not arsed tbh....yes, he had potential but we've not seen it abd just made cash on the back of it...

The statement actually says triggered the release fee, not met.  It can all be down to interpretation but the term 'triggered' would suggest to me that they've done something to activate it.  That might be meeting it exactly or terms that have exceeded what's needed to activate it.

It could also be that the club have put something out along those lines to avoid people suggesting we should have rejected all bids, i.e. we didn't have a choice.

That there's no definitive figure banded about and lots of ambiguity, I would presume that the suggestion that the actual terms of the release clause weren't met but an agreement has been reached for installments that exceed the outright fee of the release clause.  

Either way, he's gone and the fee we've received is the fee we've received.  

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

Think the talent is clear to see, but I agree. I think it could be a blessing... he was clearly too good to be sat on our bench, but he limited you in terms of he could only sit in front of the back 4. He was horrendous in the 8 against Harrogate I think it was. I think we might see a more fluid midfield with him gone.

In fairness to him, he wasn't alone in stinking the place out that day.

I was keen to see him further forward and more involved, still think he's got the attributes to do it, but that day did leave me feeling a bit cold towards seeing him do it again.

I've no issue with him only sitting in front of the back four, as long as enough play goes through him.  He's too good a footballer to just be that blocker and screener of the back four, equally so I don't think he's good enough at it for it be his only role.

Concentration was his downfall (very loose term considering he's got a move so early on) when it came to games.  That'll be the biggest thing for him to tackle at a higher level I reckon.

Quoted from Lincoln Mariner 56

Pleased you’ve been proved correct after, at best, sceptical posts on here. Any idea what we paid for him initially?

Cheers! I don’t actually. Although I do know we paid £50k for rose so I’d imagine it would be more than that!

Living around a fishy fanny smelling dilapidated shithole like Grimsby, or living in a city like Bristol, not a hard choice really is it.

Bank the profit and move on to the next one.

Weird behaviour from their twitter account. Well done lads, you beat us on penalties 9 years ago in a game where if the rules had been implemented properly by the ref we'd have been out of sight by half time.

Seems like it was only 300k then  :-/

Quoted from GyMariner

Seems like it was only 300k then  :-/

100% more than that! Well 25% more than that 😉

Quoted from GyMariner

Seems like it was only 300k then  :-/

Wasn't this reported as being their biggest transfer? So over £350k?

Quoted from AncientExiledMariner

Wasn't this reported as being their biggest transfer? So over £350k?

Yes, just looks like a couple of their local reporters have now back tracked and said the figure is in fact 300k and not a record amount for Rovers. Either way a bit of profit but would have hoped for more

Quoted from Alan Buckley

100% more than that! Well 25% more than that 😉

Well that’s that then, what else have you got for us?😉

Quoted from GyMariner

Yes, just looks like a couple of their local reporters have now back tracked and said the figure is in fact 300k and not a record amount for Rovers. Either way a bit of profit but would have hoped for more

Oof. I cannot help but feel £300k for him with 20% is short change when I cannot imagine we got any change from £100k to pay for him. Midway through the season and fresh into a 3 year deal also. Not great, but hey. We invest and move on, and hope he goes for millions.

It’s probably me but am I the only one that feels that the Conteh transfer sticks in the throat just a little bit? We sign him on a 3 year contact and then within 6 months he’s buggered off. I know you can’t stand in the way of someone with ability and ambition wanting to better themselves, but he has gone to a Div 1 club who are no more than mid table and hardly considered to be a sleeping giant like for example Bolton, Derby or Portsmouth, all of whom are currently in Div 1. I guess that’s football though and maybe it’ll work out for all parties in the end. Let’s hope so. #UTM

Quoted from GyMariner

Either way a bit of profit but would have hoped for more

Yes probably a bit of profit. So was a good signing I suppose. Not many players have left for a profit in recent times 🙂

Unless we paid 200k for him

Quoted from GrimExile

It’s probably me but am I the only one that feels that the Conteh transfer sticks in the throat just a little bit? We sign him on a 3 year contact and then within 6 months he’s buggered off. I know you can’t stand in the way of someone with ability and ambition wanting to better themselves, but he has gone to a Div 1 club who are no more than mid table and hardly considered to be a sleeping giant like for example Bolton, Derby or Portsmouth, all of whom are currently in Div 1. I guess that’s football though and maybe it’ll work out for all parties in the end. Let’s hope so. #UTM

None of us were party to the decision to sign him so I don’t see the point of getting aggravated about it. The only thing I would say is that I would have hoped that someone higher up the leagues would have been willing to pay more.

Let’s not forget we’ll probably owe Middlesborough 10-20% of whatever we’ve received from BR as well.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

None of us were party to the decision to sign him so I don’t see the point of getting aggravated about it. The only thing I would say is that I would have hoped that someone higher up the leagues would have been willing to pay more.

Yes I think that’s why I’m somewhat disappointed. Had he gone to a Championship side or a sleeping giant mentioned in my post I’d have understood, but I just don’t get why Bristol Rovers. In the overall scheme of things they’re not much bigger than us albeit in the league above. Time will tell.

Quoted from MuddyWaters

None of us were party to the decision to sign him so I don’t see the point of getting aggravated about it. The only thing I would say is that I would have hoped that someone higher up the leagues would have been willing to pay more.

Pay more on the basis of what?

Pretty much every prem club & I suspect most championship clubs will have players with just as much untapped potential in their academies and on the basis of his 20 odd games he played for us I’m not sure they’d be too keen to splash the cash.

I think he mostly looked a class act when here and will go on above League 1 level barring injury.  I wouldn’t be disappointed with the fee, the BOC will have been one of the reasons we got him, which was a coup at the time.  

Made at least £200k on the sale, got a sell on clause.  Good for us and him.

Seems to be good work from Joe in recruitment who seems to have identified Conteh as a target and earned his salary for a couple of years just on this deal.  

Also as a probably unpopular opinion I do think Bristol Rovers are probably a bigger club than us at this point as well as a league above.

Just one sample but pretty sure they took about 10k more fans than we did when we played them in the playoff final, indicating a bigger fan base at the least.

No shame in selling up the pyramid to earn money, especially with a sell in clause.  

[code][/code]
It seems like we initially paid £100k for him to Middlesboro.
We now pay Middlesboro a sell on clause percentage of  25% of £300k which is  £75k.
We receive £300k from Rovers and make £125k profit plus sell on clause of 20%.

Financially on paper a good bit of business for us BUT is anyone else fed up of us finding the off rough diamond to then lose them without a fight. Suppose it's part of being a lower league football supporter the disappointment of losing young talent to the teams above but £375k is feck all for a player that age on a three year deal

We need a Barry Fry doing the negotiations, nothing got past him

Quoted from aussiej

[code][/code]
It seems like we initially paid £100k for him to Middlesboro.
We now pay Middlesboro a sell on clause percentage of  25% of £300k which is  £75k.
We receive £300k from Rovers and make £125k profit plus sell on clause of 20%.

Normally pay % on profit figure rather than the total transfer fee so on your figures £25k more in the kitty.

Quoted from Simon

Financially on paper a good bit of business for us BUT is anyone else fed up of us finding the off rough diamond to then lose them without a fight. Suppose it's part of being a lower league football supporter the disappointment of losing young talent to the teams above but £375k is sodomist all for a player that age on a three year deal

We need a Barry Fry doing the negotiations, nothing got past him

Well Conteh did as it was posted today that in the summer he turned down Peterborough to join town!!!

He only came here because of the BOC and wanting to play football. No point in saying it should've been more because he would not have been here in the first place.
I think it was a decent deal for both parties. If we have the 20% sell on then it may work out very well in the future.

Fair play to him for putting himself out there. Also I think it should be mentioned again about the way he applauded the fans, specifically remember Notts. County where he ran the length of the pitch doing so.

Wish him all the best.

Quoted from Simon

Financially on paper a good bit of business for us BUT is anyone else fed up of us finding the off rough diamond to then lose them without a fight. Suppose it's part of being a lower league football supporter the disappointment of losing young talent to the teams above but £375k is feck all for a player that age on a three year deal

We need a Barry Fry doing the negotiations, nothing got past him

Let’s not kid ourselves here, we didn’t find the lad playing on Bradley Pitches - he was playing at Middlesborough and Watford before a year at Gateshead where he was an FA Trophy finalist and in the non-league team of the year.

We beat other clubs to his signature, including teams in higher divisions like Peterborough, only because we agreed to be in the position we are today - happy for him to go provided we made a certain level of profit.

Mixed feelings on this one  if it was only 300k plus 20% . Think we could have done a bit better.

Quoted from denni266

Mixed feelings on this one  if it was only 300k plus 20% . Think we could have done a bit better.

The question that needs to be asked when people say this is.. how?

Quoted from Mikey_345

The question that needs to be asked when people say this is.. how?

We couldn’t, simple as that. Hands pretty much tied. I think frustrations bare from his possible value had the buyout clause not existed, I’d guess at it being a lot more, probably even double the rumoured 300k. Difficult one though because without that BOC he probably doesn’t even sign in the first place.

Quoted from GrimExile

Yes I think that’s why I’m somewhat disappointed. Had he gone to a Championship side or a sleeping giant mentioned in my post I’d have understood, but I just don’t get why Bristol Rovers. In the overall scheme of things they’re not much bigger than us albeit in the league above. Time will tell.

I have no problem at all with him going to a L1 team, rather than a Championship side. Let’s suppose, as some have suggested, the Championship is his potential ceiling, then had we just sold him to a Championship club we may never get the benefit of a sell on clause. Selling to a L1 side, as a stepping stone to the Championship is the best outcome from our perspective.

Quoted from SouthLakesMariner

I have no problem at all with him going to a L1 team, rather than a Championship side. Let’s suppose, as some have suggested, the Championship is his potential ceiling, then had we just sold him to a Championship club we may never get the benefit of a sell on clause. Selling to a L1 side, as a stepping stone to the Championship is the best outcome from our perspective.

You make a valid point and I must admit I hadn’t thought of it from that point of view.

Quoted from jimgtfc

We couldn’t, simple as that. Hands pretty much tied. I think frustrations bare from his possible value had the buyout clause not existed, I’d guess at it being a lot more, probably even double the rumoured 300k. Difficult one though because without that BOC he probably doesn’t even sign in the first place.

Exactly. No clause, no player, no profit. It’s quite simple.

Quoted from Mikey_345

Exactly. No clause, no player, no profit. It’s quite simple.

It’s amazing how many people on here and FB just don’t seem to be able to understand that!

Middlesbrough aint daft - they held all the cards since he joined. We maybe will make a few bob  for sticking him in the shop window - but methinks they will benefit  financially in the end.

Bristol local press have said they have broken there transfer record which was 360k for a certain Andy Tilson ex town.
So i recon it’s about 450-500k plus sell on.

The amount of speculation on here regarding what we paid for him, what we sold him for, what the buy out clause is/was, what part of him Middlesbrough own, how long his contract was, how long he stayed here, how good/bad/sh1t he is, and on and on..... is mind boggling.

We identified him, lured him here, put him in the shop window and sold him on. Think it was a good bit of business myself.

I'm not really bothered now as he is no longer a GTFC player.

One thing no-one has mentioned is that the owners have always said since day one that if anyone employed by the club wants to move on to other opportunities, they will not stand in their way, whether that is ground staff or players.

Quoted from GrimExile

It’s probably me but am I the only one that feels that the Conteh transfer sticks in the throat just a little bit? We sign him on a 3 year contact and then within 6 months he’s buggered off. I know you can’t stand in the way of someone with ability and ambition wanting to better themselves, but he has gone to a Div 1 club who are no more than mid table and hardly considered to be a sleeping giant like for example Bolton, Derby or Portsmouth, all of whom are currently in Div 1. I guess that’s football though and maybe it’ll work out for all parties in the end. Let’s hope so. #UTM

I think it shows a lack of self belief from him more than anything else ? If he’d stuck it out until the end of the season he could have got a better club than that

If he has a good 2nd half of the season in league 1 then maybe he'll be on the move again in the summer.

Quoted from Nelly GTFC

Living around a fishy fanny smelling dilapidated shithole like Grimsby, or living in a city like Bristol, not a hard choice really is it.

No need to bring my wife's problem into this discussion.

Quoted from jimgtfc

They can’t afford him

Mad how they can and did pay his release clause. Town fans always ITK 🤣

Quoted from aussiej

It seems like we initially paid £100k for him to Middlesboro.
We now pay Middlesboro a sell on clause percentage of  25% of £300k which is  £75k.
We receive £300k from Rovers and make £125k profit plus sell on clause of 20%.

Great bit of business. I hope we keep up this model of buying good young players and reinvesting.

It's a good model to follow and this is a good start, but in the long run it needs to play our more long term with players sticking around for at least a season and a half before moving on. Otherwise there's constant disruption to the first team if we're losing people six months after they join. But either way, hopefully it's given the club confidence to go out and invest in more young players.

Unfortunately, where the big clubs lead, the rest eventually follow. Release clauses in league 2 are pretty rare I would have thought, but may be the start of something.

We gave him a 3 year deal which puts the club in a strong bargaining position usually, but the release clause made it impossible to keep him beyond 6 months  once someone was prepared to pay and the player wanted to go.

Quoted from Nelly GTFC

Living around a fishy fanny smelling dilapidated shithole like Grimsby, or living in a city like Bristol, not a hard choice really is it.

Quoted from arryarryarry

No need to bring my wife's problem into this discussion.

;D  ;D  ;D

I was having a miserable Victor Meldrew moment, I'm usually quite positive, hate it when we lose players. I would have thought he might have got a bigger club to be honest. Maybe we now can bring 2 or 3 extra new players that we might not have had a chance to or something.

Quoted from ginnywings

Unfortunately, where the big clubs lead, the rest eventually follow. Release clauses in league 2 are pretty rare I would have thought, but may be the start of something.

We gave him a 3 year deal which puts the club in a strong bargaining position usually, but the release clause made it impossible to keep him beyond 6 months  once someone was prepared to pay and the player wanted to go.

To be fair listening to the Bristol  Rovers reporter on RH last night they’ve lost 3 MF players pretty much in the space of a week so this may have come earlier than anticipated for Town.

Quoted from SheepGTFC

Mad how they can and did pay his release clause. Town fans always ITK 🤣

Certainly wasn’t claiming to be in the know, just didn’t realise he had such a low release clause at that point.

Quoted from HertsGTFC

To be fair listening to the Bristol  Rovers reporter on RH last night they’ve lost 3 MF players pretty much in the space of a week so this may have come earlier than anticipated for Town.

And the fact that 2 or 3 other clubs were apparently sniffing around ( wonder if his agent or GTFC let that info be known🤔?)I think they replicated what we did in the summer and dived in quickly, paying more than was originally intended, in order to secure the deal.The circumstances are almost identical

Ps those wishing hed stayed till the summer; the way he plays it's easy to see he could sustain an injury that would leave us without a player and a hefty amount of money

Quoted from arryarryarry

No need to bring my wife's problem into this discussion.

That's not an issue before I sh*g her.

I woukd imagine that the longer the contract the more likely there is to be a release clause and it’s 3 year contracts that are rare in League 2.

We quite literally signed him as a young player to develop and try and make a profit from, so I'm not sure there should be too many complaints about him going even at this early stage. Look at it as a quick return on investment and it may help to fund the signing of one or two other youngsters for us to try to 'develop'. If a club gets a reputation for bringing young players on and helping them move to a higher level, it ought to be good for recruitment in the future.

Just need to make sure we're strong enough in midfield for the rest of the season to keep us safe and then look to sign the next Conteh (or two) in the summer.

We made a bit of coin out of him and he's moved on so be it. Who knows what the future has in store for him as its entirely possible he doesn't go on to bigger and better things, which in reality is just as likely as if he ends up going to the Premiership for millions. We've got some money in the bank now at least.

Was he better than say an Elliot Embleton or Jay Matete?

Judging his 20 odd games he looked a real player Rolls Royce in league 2.
However on stats zero goals two assists and a heap of yellow cards to his name. A defensive midfielder who's back four consistently leaked goals suggests he failed to Marshall them.At 19 that's not a shock and he will get better and have a good career. The fact is he wanted to leave and now he's gone and whilst that disapoints me I am just glad it's not Rose.UTM

Quoted from 1mickylyons

Judging his 20 odd games he looked a real player Rolls Royce in league 2.
However on stats zero goals two assists and a heap of yellow cards to his name. A defensive midfielder who's back four consistently leaked goals suggests he failed to Marshall them.At 19 that's not a shock and he will get better and have a good career. The fact is he wanted to leave and now he's gone and whilst that disapoints me I am just glad it's not Rose.UTM

This is what I don't understand. How has he gone for so much being the shield in one of the worst defences I can remember? I think it's a great deal, don't think he's worth anywhere near that much.

How many league 2 Midfielders have sold for over 200k in the last 10 years?

Quoted from pen penfras

This is what I don't understand. How has he gone for so much being the shield in one of the worst defences I can remember? I think it's a great deal, don't think he's worth anywhere near that much.

How many league 2 Midfielders have sold for over 200k in the last 10 years?

Perhaps without him the defence would have been even worse - worrying!

How can people be saying it's 300k if it breaks rovers record transfer fee of 360k or whatever it was. Surely must be 400k or thereabouts?

As for people complaining about him going to rovers, they're a sodomist club in a bigger place in a higher league who will pay him more money. It's a complete no brainer for him. As has been pointed out elsewhere it's better it's a lg1 team for us as makes it more likely that he gets bought during his contract and we make 20 percent. If he had gone to a championship team for his BOC we make no more money, but a bigger chance he doesn't move on during the life of that contract. I think rovers will be a stepping stone for him like we were, probably leave within 18 months.

Good luck Kamil.

Quoted from toontown

Perhaps without him the defence would have been even worse - worrying!

How can people be saying it's 300k if it breaks rovers record transfer fee of 360k or whatever it was. Surely must be 400k or thereabouts?

As for people complaining about him going to rovers, they're a bigger club in a bigger place in a higher league who will pay him more money. It's a complete no brainer for him. As has been pointed out elsewhere it's better it's a lg1 team for us as makes it more likely that he gets bought during his contract and we make 20 percent. If he had gone to a championship team for his BOC we make no more money, but a bigger chance he doesn't move on during the life of that contract. I think rovers will be a stepping stone for him like we were, probably leave within 18 months.

Good luck Kamil.

Bigger club not sodomist club lol

Quoted from toontown

Bigger club not sodomist club lol

You’ve straight up broken the first rule of sodomist club, there.

Quoted from pen penfras

This is what I don't understand. How has he gone for so much being the shield in one of the worst defences I can remember? I think it's a great deal, don't think he's worth anywhere near that

I thought Danny Coyne was an excellent goalkeeper. In his final season with us we finished bottom and on average conceded nearly 2 goals a game. He ended up moving to a Premier league team as back up.
One man can only do so much to help the team.

Quoted from pen penfras

This is what I don't understand. How has he gone for so much being the shield in one of the worst defences I can remember? I think it's a great deal, don't think he's worth anywhere near that much.

How many league 2 Midfielders have sold for over 200k in the last 10 years?

Because his underlying stats are outstanding even in a poor side. He has/had the most tackles of any player in the division and an excellent pass completion rate. Academy produced, young but now played almost 100 professional games and a relatively cheap buy out clause.

Quoted from tashee69

I thought Danny Coyne was an excellent goalkeeper. In his final season with us we finished bottom and on average conceded nearly 2 goals a game. He ended up moving to a Premier league team as back up.
One man can only do so much to help the team.

Seen some brilliant keepers
Danny Coyne at QPR was one of the best goalkeeping performances  (actually The best) I have seen live ,he was a cat on steroids that day .

Let's just hope there's not a low release clause in his new BR contract

Started for Bristol Rovers and they're 2-0 up at half-time vs Oxford United

Cheers mate do keep us updated.

Quoted from Mappers

Seen some brilliant keepers
Danny Coyne at QPR was one of the best goalkeeping performances  (actually The best) I have seen live ,he was a cat on steroids that day .

One of my favourite away days that (although it was local as I lived in Chiswick!)

From the Gas Forum
Pleased for the lad.

Brilliant debut. As I said in another thread: if you watch the game, you won't see Conteh but if you watch Conteh, you'll see the game. He was excellent at the unnoticeables today - the minor possession balls, simple forward-thinking passes and ushering attackers out of play. On that showing, we've got some player on our hands and a bargain price.

Quoted from TAGG

From the Gas Forum
Pleased for the lad.

Brilliant debut. As I said in another thread: if you watch the game, you won't see Conteh but if you watch Conteh, you'll see the game. He was excellent at the unnoticeables today - the minor possession balls, simple forward-thinking passes and ushering attackers out of play. On that showing, we've got some player on our hands and a bargain price.

In summary, what he did against Notts, ran the midfield, Bristol Rovers will have full backs that can defend though.

Quoted from jimgtfc

Because his underlying stats are outstanding even in a poor side. He has/had the most tackles of any player in the division and an excellent pass completion rate. Academy produced, young but now played almost 100 professional games and a relatively cheap buy out clause.

But apart from that ...

“Cheers for Conteh, had a complete blinder today”. Just sent to me from my Rovers mate who was there.

Clearly settled in quickly.

That performance today showed why we will miss him, our midfield today was useless

Quoted from Simon

That performance today showed why we will miss him, our midfield today was useless

Did we have a midfield today?

Quoted from Simon

That performance today showed why we will miss him, our midfield today was useless

Thought the wise sages on here said, with just two assists, he wouldn’t be missed today soon showed that to be a misplaced judgement. Badly need an experienced quality midfielder and at least three other new signings by Tuesday night or else we are really in trouble.

Quoted from cardiffmariner

“Cheers for Conteh, had a complete blinder today”. Just sent to me from my Rovers mate who was there.

Clearly settled in quickly.

I can only think he had time to think about our club and could not wait to get out soon enough.
Bristol rovers are not exactly world beaters…..

We beat Salford and Crewe and played well without him. Our midfield definitely doesn't have as much quality without Conteh, but we still have Holohan who would've been better than we got.

Quoted from AndyGTFC

We beat Salford and Crewe and played well without him. Our midfield definitely doesn't have as much quality without Conteh, but we still have Holohan who would've been better than we got.

The guy whos casual tracking back cost us many times this season and many on here bash for being woeful in passing. It seems he does some magic that results in a goal or has a good cameo and all of sudden folk forget the past and he's Pele. Many here were agreeing last week he should be let go so we can free up wage budget. It's weird how those with short memory, have perfect hindsight after the game.

I said earlier in this thread that he would be sorely missed and was proved right today. None of the other midfielders are as good as he is and this is going to be compounded by the way Artell wants to play. If you want to play through your midfield then you need someone who is readily available and positions themselves well, consistently good at the basic passes and comfortable with the ball on the half turn. We've gone from having one of the best in this division at doing this to having Green who is a non-league player. It is absolutely crucial that we get someone in before the end of the transfer window who can replace Conteh because if we're relying on Green playing as the pivot then we're royally fooked.

I think it's clear Conteh was underestimated.

It reminds me a bit of Gilberto Silva at Arsenal. He never set the world on fire, and you never really knew how good he was until he wasn't there, but you often need someone to sit in the hole, shield the defence and take up good positions to make it harder for the opposition. Conteh is clearly better defensively than a lot here realised. Of course, there is some fans here that think a central midfield is judged on their goals and assists and probably aren't away of the concept of a defensive midfielder. Some just sit defend, take the ball, and pass it to someone who's more competent with it. It was rare because we had someone who had ability defensively and offensively, and it was lucky. Seems Bristol Rovers realised that quite quickly.

Quoted from AndyGTFC

We beat Salford and Crewe and played well without him. Our midfield definitely doesn't have as much quality without Conteh, but we still have Holohan who would've been better than we got.

Our front six against Crewe was Conteh, Hunt, Clifton, Gnahoua, Eisa and Rose. It was comfortably our best performance (and result) of the season.

What's happened to Gnahoua, is he injured  or out of favour? We missed him.

Quoted from mimma

What's happened to Gnahoua, is he injured  or out of favour? We missed him.

Injured according to DA.

Gnahoua is one who is very capable of playing in the manner which Artell wants the team to play and we've missed him a lot. A great touch, looks after the ball very well, doesn't lose possession very often. The polar opposite of Clifton playing there on Saturday, in fact.

Quoted from Maringer

Gnahoua is one who is very capable of playing in the manner which Artell wants the team to play and we've missed him a lot. A great touch, looks after the ball very well, doesn't lose possession very often. The polar opposite of Clifton playing there on Saturday, in fact.

We've missed him and Pyke a lot. Probably more than people think, they both hold the ball well and help us in the transition. Would love to see Rose, Gnahoua, Pyke and Vernam in a team together.

Saturday proved how much that Conteh quietly gave to the team - now a very weak midfield with no one doing the simple hold ups and accurate passes.

How our pro footballers cannot trap the ball without it bouncing all over the place is mystifying when most of our opponents can easily do it and then run to make themselves free for the next pass.

Quoted from LocalLadGTFC

We've missed him and Pyke a lot. Probably more than people think, they both hold the ball well and help us in the transition. Would love to see Rose, Gnahoua, Pyke and Vernam in a team together.

This in spades.

Oh and just to cheer everyone up, we paid £40,000 for Kam so we did very well out of him.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Oh and just to cheer everyone up, we paid £40,000 for Kam so we did very well out of him.

A couple of hundred grand profit and future earnings potential - tidy bit of business. Just wish we could have had him abit longer but still a good job all round.

Quoted from Alan Buckley

Oh and just to cheer everyone up, we paid £40,000 for Kam so we did very well out of him.

Oh. Very nice if true. I thought it would have been closer to £100k. Not a bad bit of business.

Quoted from Mikey_345

A couple of hundred grand profit and future earnings potential - tidy bit of business. Just wish we could have had him abit longer but still a good job all round.

Agree, you have to look at the context as well, we need reinforcements & we need money to make that happen.

Conteh has talent & massive potential but that potential may only truly be released with better players around him.

The dilemma being we don’t have the money to bring in that level of player to make the whole of our midfield a real force.

Some have said we made a quick buck on him which in reality is what we need.

If he had a release clause in his contract did he also have a relegation clause for a lot less money?

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

Quoted from Teestogreen

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

What a completely one eyed post, Town are consistently inconsistent but the Fishy is the gift that keeps on giving.

Quoted from Teestogreen

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

Teestogreen: So, who's your favourite singer, then?
The Fishy: Oh, uh, anything really, you know... Frank Sinatra. Kurt Cobain.
Teestogreen : Who's he?
The Fishy : Nirvana. Blew his head off with a gun.
Teestogreen : Why?
The Fishy : He was depressed.
Teestogreen : Why, were they not very good?
The Fishy : No, they were great.
Teestogreen : Someone should have told him.

Looks like Herts and Knuts are ill - hope you get well soon ❤️

Quoted from Teestogreen

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

Have you been drinking methylated spirits again!

He' s been sold because we are lge 2 & we are a selling club to balance the books hinestly teestogreen thats how 95% of clubs at our level perform , wrexham mansfield stockport are perhaps the exception , no idea where they are in league table

Thanks chaps / ladies..
Hopefully, these Cheltenham pros can help us enough to keep us in Division 2
UTM

Quoted from Teestogreen

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

Because he had a release clause? And wanted to leave to further his career. Have you been under a rock?

Quoted from Teestogreen

If this player is as good as this thread been making him out to be, why has he been sold?
This behaviour by the directors can only spell relegation to the National League again.
Cheltenhams off casts wont  cut it .
Breathe in for - 40

We didn't have a choice in the sale , the only reason he would have signed is because of the buy-out clause , getting him here in the first place and making a profit was good business .

He will be a fine player but wasn't suited to go into the trenches of a league 2 relegation battle imo , time will tell if these new lads are enough but to hammer the owners for a cute move  and recruiting a player above our station for 6 months + a tidy profit defies logic .