PNE fail in third Twellman bid Lancashire Evening Post, 1/28/2008 http://www.lep.co.uk/sport/PNE-fail-in-third-Twellman.3717638.jp
I can only imagine this last bid was like pouring gas on a fire. Twellman must be one unhappy camper right now. I have to wonder that if Dorman and Noonan were signed to contracts would MLS and the Revs have sold Twellman at this price?
That's almost a $3 million dollar transfer fee, with the overall value of the deal probably being a bit more (Another U.K. publication set the total transfer value at $3.9 million) when factoring in what he was to be paid, etc. I can see why the Revolution want to hold onto him, and a good part of me wants him to stay as well, but I can't help but feel for Twellman... I really wish the Revolution would give him this chance. The Magpie
I can absolutely understand why the Revs wanted to hold on to him, but it just sucks for Twellman that he's being denied this chance.
Additional information here: http://www.thisislancashire.co.uk/s...lub_record_bid_for_us_striker_turned_down.php "North End offered $3m (approximately £1.5m) to Major League Soccer for Twellman, plus a further sell on clause but this was turned down. PNE chairman Derek Shaw told the club's website: "Unlike the situation over here, it appears the MLS do not want to negotiate, they just say 'yes' or 'no'."
There is an obvious disconnect in valuation from the 3 sides... Looking from Preston's side, 1.5 million pounds is the value of a risky, potential contributor to the strike force... This is money that brings you an "insurance" striker, someone to push your starters... This is a low-risk bid to shore up the team for the relegation battle... We (and apparently TT) have the idea that he will walk into a starting role (or even start at all), and that is simply not true... They are not bringing him in as a star and, for that money, can afford to sit him if he isn't putting in world-beating performances (and the history of "cheap" yanks abroad suggest that he will have to prove to be CLEARLY better than what they have to get the starting role)... From the Revs side, they are looking at it as losing a perennial all star and league top scorer who is on top money... He is also the player around which their marketing, etc, revolves... I suspect that the 4-6 million dollar range (the landmark that has been set over the past couple of years for top US players) would have freed him up (and I would be a bit more sympathetic to TT if this is what was offered)... however, from PNE side, I can see why they didn't offer this (they would be getting a somewhat on the older side, risky striker)... it is all a matter of valuation... From TT side it is easy... more money... away from a difficult personal situation... higher profile league... Therefore, we have a pi$$ed off striker... that is why so many players these days have written into their contracts how much transfer fee they can leave for (the lower that number, the less salary they are able to leverage from their current employer)... that has to become standard in MLS until it is paying salaries on a par with at least the Colaship (that will be a lot of years)...
I'm disappointed. We're not going to get much more for Twellman, and I'd have to assume this is going to be a rather unproductive year (intentionally) for Twellman. I won't be surprised if he holds out on camp. Let him go, get the allocation money and trade it or buy a new player, I don't care, but I don't want an expensive, unhappy, potentially unproductive striker on the team.
Something seems really strange/fishy about MLS responding to a legitimate transfer request with only an email.
I would be willing to bet Preston sent an email of which MLS responded to, but that wouldn't sound as bad.
I've seen something like this a few places on BS now and am not sure how it's perpetuating itself. PNE is not low-balling MLS, 1.5 million pounds is, according to the club itself, equal to the largest player bid they have ever made. You do not spend record making money for a substitute or "cover".
Maybe, maybe not: remember it's been previously reported that both MLS and the Revolution have accused the other of nixing the deal.
It's not Tuesday yet, and even then, who knows if the Globe will sacrifice column inches from their Super Bowl coverage.
I don't think Twellman is the type of person to intentionally slack off and I have no idea why he would ever think that would HELP his situation. If he struggles this season he will get no offers overseas on the future. This is not a Vince Carter-type situation where a team KNOWS the player will succeed if he tries. Who is going to risk taking on a player that might not succeed at his best and, at worst, has shown he will sit and sulk if things aren't going his way?
Which, as a fan, is extremely frustrating. It's hard enough trying to figure out who on the Revs to blame (Nicol, Kraft, Burns, etc), nevermind trying to figure out who in the MLS front office is responsible.
One thing I dont understand is why everyone is acting like this is some huge chance for Twellman to prove himself on the big stage. This is a team that plays in the second tier and is very likely to be playing in a league next year that is inferior to MLS. The only thing that I think this would be worth doing for Twellman is the money.
I couldn't agree more. The fog that covers management in both the league and this team is maddening...
Please explain to me how selling Twellman would be a good thing for the Revs or MLS? How would that make the Revs a better team or MLS a better league? You worry about young players getting the idea that if you get a big contract you'll be expected to honor it? The Revs and MLS don't lock their players into contracts, but there is a right time and wrong time to consider transactions like this. The first year of a 4 year deal is the WRONG time to do it. The later in the contract, the more likely a deal becomes - that's just market reality. If the league took this deal, it would be open season on every player in MLS, no matter where the stood in their contract. Would you really want to be a fan of a league that is purely a feeder-league, willing to sell it's best (and most popular) players whenever enough money is offered? I think there's this idealistic view of teams all over the world doing nice-nice for their players by selling them on. That's pretty naive - teams do what's in their best interest or they go out of business. And some of these Euro teams that are held in such high esteem, have a pretty sordid history of exploiting young players - so they have no business holding *ethics* of the head of MLS. How come there's no hue and cry about MLB - which holds young players to pitifully low contracts (in comparison to the established veterans) every last day they can (think Jacoby Ellsbury is going to sulk because he makes a fraction of what Coco Crisp does)? Everyone gets their day - unless they choose not to (like Twellman has, over and over). And, you know what, the Revs and MLS have a right to be pretty ticked off at PNE for continuing to publicly bid for a player that MLS has pretty much told them is not for sale. All PNE is doing is causing MLS problems. So if MLS wants to give them a one-word answer by email, I'd say they're showing a lot of restraint. How do we know he's not for sale? If he was, why would they be trying to negotiate in the press?
I don't want Twellman to go, and I didn't say anywhere that I did, what I'm saying is the La Cosa Nostra-esque veil concering who makes what decisions at both our club and this league is pretty frustrating- from a fan's standpoint. When my friends who are Red Sox fans ask me who makes our player decisions (this came up a lot during the Noonan thing), I told them I honestly didn't know who had the final say. Is it Nicol? Is it Burns? Is it Bilello? Sunil? Possibly Tornberg? Does anybody really know?
Interesting, PNE publicly telling its fans we want a player and offered a good chunk of change for him.....how dare they!!!! They must not have read the Revs front office hand book. Every player in MLS has a price even Donovan. its a business, if someone offers a good price they will sell. PNE has just not made the right bid. As for negotiating in the press, that is Par for the coarse in England.
Well he shouldn't have signed the contract extension. I realized things maybe have changed a bit in his personal life since then, but those are the breaks. Twellman is the franchise when it comes to the Revolution. He's far and away their all-time franchise player. It's not hard to understand why New England would rather not sell him.