Whilst I’m not yet ready to treat relegation as nailed-on (at least not at the time of writing), in the perilous position that we find ourselves thoughts inevitably turn to the make-up of next season’s squad.
If only our board and recruitment team demonstrated this sort of forward thinking, eh?
The Championship as a youth incubator
Now, one of several plus points to a potential spell in the Championship (a change of scenery, no VAR, less tourists etc) is that it’s a better incubator for youth development.
Young guns such as the midfield trio of Fernandes, Magassa and Potts, AFCON champion Diouf, new recruit Pablo and a promising crop of homegrown talent all have time on their side and would probably benefit from the mindset of expecting to win week after week, though it’s worth noting that the Championship is fiercely competitive and should never be taken lightly.
Is it realistic to expect to hold on to all these players? Demotion would inevitably bring sales and cost cutting but we should strive to hold on to those we can build a brighter future around.
The increasingly impressive Fernandes would no doubt be wanted by others but at the same time consecutive relegations don’t look great on the CV and he didn’t immediately push to leave Southampton.
The captaincy and the Bonds comparison
Most in demand of all will be captain Jarrod Bowen, one of the few in our current squad who’s in his prime. Some of the criticism he’s faced this season has bordered on the ridiculous. Granted, he’s not traditional captain material in the mould of Billy Bonds, but then how many modern footballers are?
He quietly leads by example rather than screaming and shouting and, while we don’t really know what goes on behind the scenes, there should be no doubt that he gives his all on the pitch.
The comparison to Bonds is pertinent given that our erstwhile leader famously stayed after relegation to guide us back to the top flight and to further FA Cup triumph. Bowen has witnessed first-hand what this means to fans having led the team out when emotional tributes were paid to the late great Bonds against Liverpool and Villa, two teams who could well be interested in Bowen’s signature.
Another who had the chance to leave but opted to stay and subsequently accrued club legend status is sporting director Mark Noble, who could use his influence to sway his one-time teammate.
Imagine the conversation… “Remember the send-off I received. And I never scored a last-minute winner in a European final! Although I have to admit I never had a Champions League club wanting to buy me. Nor did I get an England cap.”
England ambitions and the Tuchel factor
Those international ambitions could prove pivotal. The term ‘club legend’ can be bandied about too easily but if Bowen were to turn his back on England in favour of West Ham, which is essentially what a year or more in the Championship would amount to, then, on top of what he’s already achieved, he deserves to join the likes of Bonds and Noble in the pantheon of club greats.
So, legendary status versus the Three Lions, Champions League nights and an even bigger pay packet. Here, Thomas Tuchel could have a decisive say. If selected for this year’s World Cup, that could be Bowen’s ambitions fulfilled.
If not, that could effectively spell the end of his ambitions anyway thanks to the competition for his position being younger. Despite his undoubted quality, Bowen is not held in the same esteem as Bukayo Saka, but he could rightly conclude that the only thing Noni Madueke has over him is ‘big-club’ experience. Whatever, he is unlikely to become a first-choice England star. Similarly, a move to a Champions League team would likely see Bowen become a bit-part player rather than the main man.
Family ties and indie football
Perhaps staying loyal is little more than an ego trip. Given some of his social media pronouncements post-retirement, one could argue that the adulation from Southampton fans might have fried Matt Le Tissier’s brain. But ask him or Noble whether they’d swap their respective club statuses for England or Champions League appearances and I believe it would be a resounding “No”.
Maybe his father-in-law would have the final word. I could well imagine Danny Dyer threatening to kneecap Bowen if he tried to move the family out of east London. Let’s face it, Jarrod can already afford to put family needs and desires above money. And this tension between finance and footballing ambitions put me in mind of a recent ode by punk poet and Brighton fan John Baine, aka Attila the Stockbroker, reproduced below with his kind permission.
Stuart Pearce was well known for his punk attitude and the former Hammers coach revealed in an interview a few years back that Bowen had “left-field” musical tastes as a fan of Scottish indie singer-songwriter Gerry Cinnamon, so perhaps someone should put this poem in front of our star player – and chairman, based on the fact that the balance sheet could well take the decision out of Bowen’s hands.
INDIE FOOTBALL
Football needs an ‘indie scene’ like music
Players who see their lives a different way
Who don’t always just want to join a ‘big club’
But love their home town team, decide to stay
Full backs who write weird stuff in local outfits
Fired up with individualistic indie rage
Like Sleaford Mods and, yes, Half Man Half Biscuit
Although Nigel is now three times their age.
I want to read about a young midfielder
Who absolutely loves Northampton Town
And when he gets the chance to sign for Brighton
Says ‘no, this is my club’ and turns us down
Who scores a brilliant goal and then another
And when the game is gloriously won
Runs up to the home end and throws his shirt in
And on his vest it reads ‘Don’t Buy The Sun’
When players can come out, play chess, read Camus
Without some tabloid hack taking the piss
When managers use words like ‘existential’
Say ‘Hang on, Gary, that comment’s remiss’
When what they earn is one part of the issue
But how they feel about their lives is more
The game will be a whole lot better for it
Not just an oligarch owned slave state bore.
I never wanted to be ‘rich and famous’
Just earn my living doing things my way
I’ve done so now for well over four decades
And I’ve had far more fun than words can say.
There’s loads like me in music. None in football.
Although the two are linked. I find that funny.
I’d like to see more indie players out there:
There really is much more to life than money.
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