Azaz looked good going forward in games where were on top, threading through a defence-splitting pass here and there and contributing the odd goal. But in games when the team was struggling or even under the cosh, he didn't seem so good, sometimes appearing invisible (or should that be NOT appearing?). If I had the choice of losing Hackney this summer or Azaz, I know which I'd prefer to be staying on at the club. And if things continue to go well, he may be motivated to stay on NEXT season, too, when rather more money may be available to enhance contracts for those players who are good enough to play at a higher level.
I am not wanting Azaz out but it seems like a decent deal and the club will have made a profit, on a player who may want to go. He may, for all I know, have retained his property down there from when he was at Plymouth - though I realise Southampton and Plymouth are not right next door to each other - and/or he might have family down there.
I realise he's Irish. I hadn't realised he'd been at Villa, though!
The fertility rate for England and Wales has fallen for the third year in a row to reach a record low... meaning the average number of live children women can expect to have across their child-bearing life, stood at 1.41 in 2024...
I'm no doctor and despite the advances in medicine, I would cast doubt on whether 0.41 could be considered a live child.
So I would suggest on average 5 out of every 7 women in 2024 are likely to have only 1 child in their lifetime - though that again would depend on whether more women are not having any children at all.
Further to those childbirth statistics...
I was just thinking about those numbers again while washing up after dinner (as you do) as 5 out of 7 didn't sound right so did the maths in my head again plus looked up the number of women who don't have children (~18%).
So if on average each woman has 1.41 children then we can say that women who actually have children have on average 1.66 children (1.41 x 1.18) - which means for every 3 women who have children then they have 5 kids between them (3 x 1.66 = 4.99) - no I didn't do that in my head!
Since you can only have a whole number of children, then I figure either 1 in 3 women who have children probably only have one child and the other two have 2 each - or 2 out 3 women have one child and 1 in 3 have three children.
Apparently only 14% of women have more than 2 children so that's where the simple maths ends!
On average I would've probably finished the washing up by now...
I'm not sure if we could enforce Man City's buy-back clause on Hamilton 😉
I realise he's Irish. I hadn't realised he'd been at Villa, though!
Not only was he at Villa, it was Villa who we signed him from! He was on loan at Plymouth.
Good Deal for Middlesbrough ref to Azaz. Had an awful game on Saturday, apart from the goal. Let's hope the club spend the money wisely.
@malcolm nice to see you posting. Are you back in the UK? ...and arecyou keeping well?
Welcome back Malcolm. Hope to see more posts from you. 😎
@presidentjump Problem would be getting anywhere near what we paid for him, especially more so due to his wages.
@forever-dormo I hope that if HH stays beyond the window as MFC are saying, then they give him a pay rise even if not extending his contract.
Disappointed that Amazon is leaving but the fee is decent. Can’t understand why he wants to go to a Championship team unless there are reasons we don’t know about.
I agree with others that Hackney would be a bigger loss and I understand his wish to move to a Premiership team. Assuming he goes I just hope Boro can screw every penny out of the deal. Hopefully in excess of £20 million as Premiership clubs fees of this level are almost small change.
If these 2 players leave in this transfer window it will take the edge off the start of the season but hopefully that will be offset by the new players showing their skills and a new striker arriving soon. So it’s not doom and gloom
Hoping for the right result on Saturday - live on Sky.
Philip of Huddersfield 👍😁👍
@philip-of-huddersfield I was told on good authority from a close friend, a month ago, that his girlfriend/partner was not happy and did not know anyone. Her mother I am told lives in London.
Could that be part of the reason for wanting to leave, besides probably higher wages.
Talking of Azaz, my major gripe with him is the lack of help that he gave to the defence when we were out of possession. When we played with four at the back, he was generally slow to provide cover to the full back and that may well have contributed to our apparent ‘left back problem’. Now with the wingbacks, it is often his side that seems more vulnerable which manifests as Silvera having a problem in the comments.
When you add in his lack of tenacity in midfield which doesn’t fit with RE’s wish to recover the ball as quickly as possible and as high up the pitch as possible, then he becomes something of a luxury that we can’t afford in a competitive division like the championship.
As a final comment, if his departure means that we keep HH, then I’m 100% in support of it.
UTB
Of course selling Azaz means that the club don't need to sell Hackney - however, there is a complication if a PL club makes an offer for him - the club had already agreed to sell him early in the window to Ipswich and by some accounts weren't terribly pleased he turned the move down. As we also know, Hackney has got a new agent specifically more experienced in dealing with transfers. While he might think twice about a move to say bottom club West Ham or a newly promoted team - I suspect if Everton or Fulham make a bid then the club may struggle to persuade Hackney his future is with Boro having already tried to sell him a few weeks earlier.
@andy-r thanks for taking the time out to explain xG. It is, I suppose like many statistics, a little contrived.but at least I know now.essentially on its own it doesn't tell us morecthan you have created x number of chances. More interesting is the rate you turn those chances into goals. So if Boro have scored over 2 goals more than likely from the number of goal scoring opportunities created, they are not doing so badly...
Alternatively, one could say that there is a risk that we stop beating the odds and, therefore, score less goals.
A better solution might be to create more chances but that is easier said then done. Hopefully, the integration of Nypan and Hansen into the squad, the return of McGree and a breakthrough by Whittaker could help us with extra creativity. Keeping Hackney and Morris wouldn't hurt either.
UTB
@werdermouth re HH
That said, Boro has started the season so well it is reasonable to think now that it is quite possible we will be in the mix. Failing to get promoted by losing in the play off final is worth north of £50m. With this all in mind, HH is worth more to Boro now than when a bid was accepted from the Tractor Boys. I am not saying HH is worth £50m, but a bid substantially higher than previously accepted might be required now if Boro were to be persuaded.
It could be argued that Boro’s recent statement that Hackney is no longer for sale is simply designed to increase the asking price if some reports suggest Hackney wants to leave if a PL club makes an offer.
Of course selling Azaz means that the club don't need to sell Hackney - however, there is a complication if a PL club makes an offer for him - the club had already agreed to sell him early in the window to Ipswich and by some accounts weren't terribly pleased he turned the move down. As we also know, Hackney has got a new agent specifically more experienced in dealing with transfers. While he might think twice about a move to say bottom club West Ham or a newly promoted team - I suspect if Everton or Fulham make a bid then the club may struggle to persuade Hackney his future is with Boro having already tried to sell him a few weeks earlier.
I arent sure i agree with the phrase " Boro having already tried to sell him ", was it not a case of the club received an offer that met their valuation of the player and the club allowed him the opportunity to speak to said club ? Every player has a valuation by every club.
I always say in these situations that there hasn't been a for sale sign hung around Hackneys neck, if however a club meets our valuation then the decision rests with Hayden.
I think RE said it a few weeks ago, it is a win win situation, stay and we keep an excellent player, go and it frees up money to further develop the squad.
We see it week in week out in football, you can't keep a player who wants to leave and expect them to keep performing at their highest level and you can't sell a player under contract if he doesn't want to leave.
Just my thoughts.
I suppose they could have told Ipswich what they have now reportedly told the Echo, that Hackney is not for sale this season - though back then they hadn't sold van den Berg or had agreed to sell Azaz - which will take the value of Boro's summer sales to potentially just over £30m including Coburn. I think either the club have changed their mind over selling Hackney or they're trying to increase the price of a deal if a PL club wants him in the last few days of the window.
Much depends on how strongly Hackney insists on leaving if an offer came or indeed how much he is valued by any interested PL club.
@selwynoz I think that Azaz and our underperforming friend, Whittaker, were discussed on here when Edwards first arrived with his preferred three at the back.
Even with his goals and assists, as you said, he can be a luxury player when we are up against it. When we had both in the side, especially as the latter has not lived up to his 6million fee at all, without even a goal to his name, it made it more difficult for an already porous defence.
Edwards system does automatically tighten things up at the back, more so with Jones and Brittain.
However, I am still concerned with the creation of chances and goals scored from them. As you also said in your following post, we may stop beating the odds. Losing Azaz, from a goals contribution point, has to be a loss and unless we get another 15 goal forward then we could struggle at times.
My other concern is that I do not see Brittain or probably Targett (if he stays fit) being anywhere near as productive as Giles was when he first arrived with chances created or assists.
On the plus side, we hopefully should not leak anywhere near what we did last season.
@werdermouth It is pointless keeping a player who wants to leave. Of course even if we got 20+ plus add ons, that would certainly reduce our chances of continuing our decent start.
We have discussed our xG with Andy’s guidance, but the truth is we need more guaranteed goals. Hackney would be key in that happening in my opinion. So a big loss and no time to replace him probably.
@powmillnaemore. “Failing to get promoted by losing in the play off final is worth north of £50m.”
I am not sure if that figure is correct. I was under the impression that the losing side were gifted the gate receipts by the winners meaning they received c.£1-2M. I could be wrong but £50M sounds a lot.
I just hope we don’t get a late bid for HH from a PL side and agree to sell either because of the size of the fee or because he insists on going; it could result in our wheels coming off if we can’t replace him with a better alternative. 😎
If PL team comes in he will go, way bigger wages and a bigger stage if we were in his position we would do the same. It sucks but there is not much we can do about it, the fans of teams we are taking players from probably have the same thoughts. Most teams are in the same position if the Mags can't keep Isak when they are in PL and champions league and owned by a petro state what chance has anybody else. When HH leaves I will wish him well and sulk a little. It does mean it will be difficult to build a winning team because players will always have someone whispering in their ear if they are any good. If HH doesn't go in next few days ( I think he will ) he will probably go in Jan along with Morris, unfortunately the club is a stepping stone.
🙁☹️
I think it may still depend on which PL club makes an offer as I don't imagine Hackney will want to be back in the Championship next season or worse become a squad player and then be back in the Championship.
OK, there's the level of wages to consider but I guess ultimately money talks and people generally don't turn down a massive pay rise. So yes if the offer comes there's no reason to think Hackney will decide to stay at Boro.
It's got all the makings of a Monday deal and Boro getting a midfielder in on loan at the last minute probably - though hopefully not a late bid for Barry Bannan...
I don't KNOW but I suspect whilst HH would very much want to play at the highest level he can, he isn't banging on the door of the manager insisting on a move right now. I don't KNOW but I suspect that if an offer to buy him which is acceptable to Boro came in from an established PL club (not one at the bottom of the league and/or facing a highly possible relegation at the end of the season), and if that meant a significant rise in his wages, HH would want to talk to that club and would be receptive to a transfer. It may also include an element of which club and how many games he is likely to get per season.
HOWEVER if Boro is looking a likely contender for promotion, then effectively HH could get his wish without moving. I guess a pay rise (in September?) for his loyalty this season could be factored in, together with a rather larger pay rise in the next (PL?) season. None of us (I think!) believed four weeks ago that Boro would be where it is now in the table. If that continued to the January window, then keeping HH might be easier as the path ahead would seem more clear. Obviously the player would be told if Boro received a really big offer for him from a club he'd want to move to, then either that would be accepted or at the least he would be allowed to leave if an offer was received that matched an agreed figure, and then he would leave with everyone's blessing in January or preferably next July.
Imagine being captain of your home town* club in the PL next season! And with the prospect of big money contracts to be negotiated with other clubs if need be after that! I note the BBC Sport site is now confirming that HH is deemed "not for sale" and, of course, the best way for a good professional to behave is to play to the best of his ability. That way his value and his wages will rise and "better/bigger clubs" with more clout might make an irresistible offer, whatever Boro's present position might be. But for the moment, with Coburn and RVDB sold, and with Azaz now apparently on his way for good money, Boro might not need to sell.
* Redcar born and schooled really, but Boro is near enough.
I have friend whose a big Liverpool fan, a few years ago at the time I asked him who is Liverpools most important player, he said Steven Gerrard ,I told him no, their most influential player at that time was Marcherano, because he dug out every space and mistakes others made, what he did allowed the others to get on with it
I think we have a similar with Morris, his endeavor his very important, he is still improving not the finished article yet, but he's the one player I feel we couldn't lose.
On another note ,who is doing our negotiations, Southampton about to receive something like £78m in sales we get £12 m , absolutely ridiculous.
Looks like West Ham have now, just about signed two midfield players, including Fernandes from Southampton for circa 40 million.
@k-p-in-spain you are quite right KP. That will teach me to try and compose an insightful post when I have just woken up in the morning!
Tradition is for the share of gate receipts due to the winner to be gifted to the loser, so in total around c£4m for the loser (£2m +£2m)..rather less than I was suggesting...
Still the general point that the price at which Boro says yes now should be significantly higher than when we said yes to Ipswich.