andrew1957 Some are talking about Bearwood and the Academy being too expensive in L1 but I disagree. Surely the Academy can be a very profitable entity if you have owners with money. The likes of Nelson Abbey could have been sold in a couple of years for millions if he kept progressing as he was let alone Vickers and Harris. We let them all go for pence because the owner had no money. I honestly believe that we would get back to Championship status far quicker with the Academy continuing than by just buying or loaning other clubs cast offs. A well run Academy can be a great financial success.
Reading FC without a Cat 1 Academy just becomes another small struggling club whereas with a strong Academy and patient owners you can see us getting back to the PL eventually.
Where it all went wrong for Dai was not spending money on Bearwood and the Academy (which were investments) but spanking millions on Aluko, Jaoa, Pusca and a huge contract for Moore + others in a desperate gamble to get to the PL in a couple of seasons. If instead Dai had sold the likes of Moore when he had the chance and built the team with Academy youngsters and free transfers we would likely still be in the Championship and not in this awful mess.
I do broadly agree, especially as I seem to recall that spending on the academy isn’t counted towards FFP. However, opting not to maintain the expense of a cat 1 academy is not the same as opting to have no academy. They go right down to cat 4.
