2014/15 Transfer Speculation

How big I wonder. They are throwing huge dollars around. Shandong & Evergrande have made big signings already this month.

http://www.nzherald.co.nz/sport/news/article.cfm?c...

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/sport/football/sh...

Small sum would pay out his current contract id imagine.
We cant expect much more than that unfortunately, especially as he always said he was wanted to spring board from the A League to somewhere more substantial.
Would love him to stay!

While the money is great, gotta be sceptical of a club that first went for Juric before chasing Burns. Completely different players.

But hey, look how far our club has come if clubs are looking to throw cash at our players. I'm sure it will be pretty tempting for Nix owners.

They only can have Burns if they build us a new stadium.

If we're gonna quote that story, the for completeness:

"...but so far Burns’s club, Wellington Phoenix, have refused to consider selling the 26-year-old."

and

"...have been unable to make any headway with Wellington and will turn their attention elsewhere if Phoenix hold firm to their desire not to sell."

Except that Shenhua had a hugely flat season last year and have had a big clean out so will be recruiting all over the place.  They are a big club - think of Tards and Bling and the CSL equivalent is Shanghai Shenhua and Beijing Guoan.

"It’s understood he has told teammates that he wants to take the deal to secure himself financially, putting him on a collision course with Phoenix if they refuse to budge.

This was always going to happen. You get a player who is top of the goal scoring table, who is tearing it up in the A-league and is being showcased in the Australian national team in an International tournament......of course they will become a target.

There have been stories of a $1.5 million transfer deal...that would be tempting for Welnix. It would be nice to keep him until the end of the season but who knows what is going to happen. He will almost certainly be gone for next season. We need to at least sign up Boyd(who is no Burns but is developing nicely). The Burns transfer money could come in handy for buying a striker for next season.

Stay a little longer Burnsy.....just until we get to the Grand Final.

I would trust ernie . If Nathan goes then ernie will find a suitable replacement if not better , especially if they get a good fee him.

But saying that I would rather he stay till at least seasons end

China is playing Australia on Thursday.

Shenhua is not China

I think it's fair to ask him to stay till the end of the season. But past that, if he really wants to go, I would let him walk and use some of the transfer money to look for a proper striker, and then add the rest onto a whopping extension offer for Roly.

We'd miss Burns for sure, but no point holding someone here who doesn't want to be here (IF the rumours are true).

Agree it is always likely to happen.

The transfer fee would ONLY be if he left in the transfer window, NOT if he went at the end of the season. If he stays to help us through the GF then there is no 1.5 million. It's either, or...

Crap - as said this was always going to happen, leading the league in goals this season and playing in the top comp for asia - everyone is watching and have their wallets out. If the welnix team decide to sell burns then they'd better be prepared to invest the cash in a replacement - Ernie can't buy a new player without the $$$$$$$.

I'm torn - this is great for Burns and his financial future - it could well be a great step in his career, it does however take our leading goalscorer from us and leaves a massive gap up front.

Net salary mentioned in article. That sounds like a big gross amount on offer in there somewhere.

If we got $1 million as a transfer fee I think he'd be gone. 

He's on a two year contract though. If he went at the end of the season we would command a transfer fee as he's still contracted to us for the 2015/16 season. The only way we wouldn't get a transfer fee is if we released him.

I'd take the money to be honest, they always said they wanted to do the CCM model. Sell a player for a million every year and your profitable.

He has a buy out clause at seasons end according to the article

Or do you work on establishing a successful club that players want to come to (so take a $$ hit now in the expectation that we can attract good players for later seasons)?

Would they be more likely to come if the club proves to be successful at being a spring board for bigger and better things / doesn't get in the players way?

Would burns be motivated to continue his form if the club turned down this offer? It's shark load of money for an A-League player.

Good considerations but the flipside is that we are then a development club rather than a club that seriously contends for title honours?

Might only appeal to a certain subset of players and possibly not for other stakeholders (public, sponsors).

"That’s despite Burns having told teammates he has a buyout clause that will allow him to leave Wellington at the end of the season for a small sum."

For gods sake. Not sure why we would put that clause in..?

Anyway, I think we can still be a decent side without Burns; as we showed in the last two games. Roly is far more important.

If he leaves at the end of the season, then so be it. We were always just going to be a stepping stone for him.

A-League clubs by definition are all development clubs. All top teams in the A-League constantly have players tapped up by Asian clubs.

Maybe he's got the buyout clause because he wouldn't sign a 2 year deal without it?

Anyway, hopefully this just media BS fed by his sparkling form and the Asian Cup currently underway attracting a few scouts to Aussie

I think he'd be more concerned with securing himself financially at this point. He already tried to make it in Europe, then Korea - and had a torrid time.

Agree.  

The comment was more around does the club sell now to get some shekels (with the loss of some fire power up front) or hold on until the end of the season and get nothing (but if we do well then we have a reputation for achieving).

Plus he apparently has issues with his knees (can't train with us every session, consistently monitored by our medical staff, etc), so might want to cash in earlier rather than later.

I disagree. I think he went to Europe previously, made the Australian squad, was a fringe player, went to the Asian Cup only to return and find he was now out of the first team squad in Greece, and as he was not an established international it was hard to get back in, and without being back in the team and playing regularly he drifted out of the Socceroos squad.

I doubt he'd want to make the same mistake again when he can stay put, in the shopfront window for Ange and playing in a winning team on the high profile stage in Australia to press his claim for a regular starting role with the Socceroos. THEN he can look to move and be much more valuable. I think that should be MUCH more valuable to him in the long term than the cash.

That coupled with the fact that China is a career dead end - no one seems to have made it there yet except end of career European superstars.

I was quick off the mark on Boxall so will hold my tongue on Burns until something more concrete turns up.

Take the cash, let him go. We become the good guys who help reignite careers and don't stand in the way of our players securing their financial futures. 

Welcome him back with open arms when it all falls apart.

That is, if it's even a real offer. 

Not sure if China is the best move career wise (apart from the money of course) - hasn't proved to be much of a stepping stone to Europe for other A-League players. That was part of the reason Juric turned down the offer I believe. You'd think it might be wiser for Nathan to get a full season under his belt here, score a heap of goals, hopefully win the league or come close, then look for more attractive offers overseas in better leagues. There is a danger that if he went to China now he would fade into obscurity when, at 26, it is still realistic that he could pick up a gig in a decent league in Europe again.

The club's at a crossroad with license renewal under negotiation. On field results are also seeing the fan base rebuild, sponsors get on board and general public interest in the Nix grow.

It's really important this momentum continues through to the end of the season and Burns is pivotal to that happening.

We've got to keep him through to the end of the season. 

If he wants to move on at that time then the best of luck to him. We'd have the off season and some $s to replace him so, given Ernie's eye for talent, that should be manageable.

26 is old? Buggar me, pass me my zimmer frame.....

Take the money while it's there. No brainer. Burns can't afford not to go, and go now. Not with his injury background.