Alex Pearce

[melonhead]

Dirk, when you say you've heard that Fulham offered Pogbrenyak more than £70k a week, and that we outbid them, what kind of source was that?

There seems to be a lot of talk about about his massive wages but I've not heard any reasonably sourced rumour that would suggest their massively higher. I know there's the story about Hunt kicking off about his wages, but is that true? Was Hunt really just reacting to the press reports that we were offering him £65k etc?

My impression is that all the stories about his wages stem from those newspaper stories about how much were were going to be paying and I don't think they were accurate.

I'm 100% certain that we have a number of players on more than £30-35k though, so I don't think it's that unlikely Pearce would be after that kind of money.

really?!
100%?!
30-35K?!
wtf?!
omg!

think pogs deal may have included his sign on fee, though that would have to have been ~5 million if it has to add up to more than 70KPW from fulham
i honestly cant see anyone (pog apart) being on 35k, and if they are, then the scrooge like hammond has suddenly gone mental


personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc
slightly below the level of players like shorey, roberts etc

[Rsince67]

really?!
100%?!
30-35K?!
wtf?!
omg!

think pogs deal may have included his sign on fee, though that would have to have been ~5 million if it has to add up to more than 70KPW from fulham
i honestly cant see anyone (pog apart) being on 35k, and if they are, then the scrooge like hammond has suddenly gone mental


personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc
slightly below the level of players like shorey, roberts etc

I think pearce would jump at 25k, club prob offering less than 15k hoping they can bully him into signing. with liverpool circling and reading going down the toilet, not to mention the way they treated me i know i wouldnt be too quick to sign the next 3 years of my life away.

[cmonurz]

That's a football league mentality, brendy.

[Colin Cheeselog]

personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc

How much should he be on as a 24 year old?

[cmonurz]

personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc

How much should he be on as a 24 year old?

This isn't a hairdressing salon, you don't "do your time" to earn more money.

So Roberts has scored a few Premier League goals, and Shorey has played averagely for middling Premier League teams - that's not, realistically, how this works.

[melonhead]

That's a football league mentality, brendy.

its a mentality that roughly fits what we can afford to spend.

if other premiere league clubs are giving unproven and slightly iffy 21 year old defenders 35k a week, that up to them, but i shall have no part in it

[melonhead]

personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc

How much should he be on as a 24 year old?

25k

[melonhead]

personally i think pearcey as a 21 year old with decent champ experience is worth 25KPW tops, and should be on a par with players like karacan, nhunt etc

How much should he be on as a 24 year old?

This isn't a hairdressing salon, you don't "do your time" to earn more money.

So Roberts has scored a few Premier League goals, and Shorey has played averagely for middling Premier League teams - that's not, realistically, how this works.

realistically our two best and most experienced players
im hoping thats pretty much how it works

[cmonurz]

It's not.

[melonhead]

It's not.

best most experienced players who were on the most money before they came here?


if its based on anything other than actual ability, actual attainment, and previous salary then im a dutchman

[Victor Meldrew]

I think in our set-up Irish players expect to get paid more with our manager being more Irish than the f*****g Irish-that's why Pearce suddenly became Irish but he thinks punts = pounds and nobody has told him about the euro.
Scottish Irish English centre-backs from the backwater that is Wokingham aren't very bright.

[Victor Meldrew]

It's not.

best most experienced players who were on the most money before they came here?


if its based on anything other than actual ability, actual attainment, and previous salary then im a dutchman

Edam or Gouda then?

[melonhead]

neither, dont like dutch cheese.

but then im sure there may be dutch men who dont like dutch cheese too

[cmonurz]

It's not.

best most experienced players who were on the most money before they came here?


if its based on anything other than actual ability, actual attainment, and previous salary then im a dutchman

If the club wants to go places, it can't run a wage structure like John Lewis. Football clubs have to safeguard their young and talented players with long and sometimes lucrative contracts - this incentivises the player to stay, whilst also valuing that player to the market.

Football salaries at the level we are playing at are much more about current and potential worth to the club than a players' medals cupboard or previous salary.

[winnersh_royal]

Why does Pearce really care how the wage structure at Reading works? He has a value, if Reading don't want to pay it then he will quite happily go elsewhere, loads of players outgrow Reading. I will just be sad to see him go, an tbh I'm not happy with his freeze out. I don't think Pearce would have trouble moving to say Palace or Cardiff when they go up and the will prob be happy to pay the 20k he wants. I think it's unproductive to compare players at Reading because there wages unfortunately do not reflect ability or loyalty (cba to list players as its pretty obvious)

[melonhead]

it runs a structure it can afford. the end.
i think 25 k is more than enough for a player of pearces quality/experience
if he can get more elsewhere then good luck to him, ill be sad to see him go and warm liverpools bench.

[melonhead]

and the will prob be happy to pay the 20k he wants

again- i cant be sure- speculation and rumour aside etc- but if this protracted impasse is about a wrangle over us holding out over 20Kpw id be even more amazed than if he was holding out for 35kpw

[Ian Royal]

Dirk, when you say you've heard that Fulham offered Pogbrenyak more than £70k a week, and that we outbid them, what kind of source was that?

There seems to be a lot of talk about about his massive wages but I've not heard any reasonably sourced rumour that would suggest their massively higher. I know there's the story about Hunt kicking off about his wages, but is that true? Was Hunt really just reacting to the press reports that we were offering him £65k etc?

My impression is that all the stories about his wages stem from those newspaper stories about how much were were going to be paying and I don't think they were accurate.

I'm 100% certain that we have a number of players on more than £30-35k though, so I don't think it's that unlikely Pearce would be after that kind of money.

I agree with this. IIRC the newspaper said we offered Pog a four year deal worth £60k a week. That could be £30k a week, rising to £40k a week if we stay up, with a signing on fee of £2m and a further payment of £2m if we stay up. I suspect he's on more than £30k a week to be fair, but I'd be flabbergasted if he was actually on £60k a week.

I'd guess Roberts, Pog, Guthrie, Shorey, Federici, Kebe, and maybe Mariappa with a small chance of Gunter too would be at that level. All players who've been signed recently, or have signed new deals recently. Anyone from Gorkss, McAnuff, Leigertwood, Hunt & Karacan could be approaching it as well if they've signed new deals since promotion.

Personally I like Pearce a lot and think he's one of our better centrebacks so far this season. But he has always struck me as a Championship player at best (although potentially a very very good one), so I'm not really sure he justifies a £30k+ wage. But contract issues should absolutely not come into picking the first team in this sort of case.

[cmonurz]

So Pearce looks at that list and sees a 34-year old striker with maybe a year left in him, a midfielder who can't get in the matchday squad, our current second choice keeper, and a defender with a career at Watford, and thinks, reasonably, I'm worth that too.

[Ian Royal]

So Pearce looks at that list and sees a 34-year old striker with maybe a year left in him, a midfielder who can't get in the matchday squad, our current second choice keeper, and a defender with a career at Watford, and thinks, reasonably, I'm worth that too.

I can see why he'd want it certainly. I can also see why the club wouldn't be up for it. Especially seeing as (hypothetically of course) they'll see the likes of Pog and Guthrie at least, if not Kebe, Federici & Mariappa as not being worth it, or the contract level having been a mistake.