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2020/21 Marcel Brands

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His biggest failing is that he has allowed others to dictate key decisions. That is unacceptable for a director of football. Yes, managers and owners can have an input into a signing or staff appointment, but it looks like he's just been told what to do and gone along with it.
 
windymiller said:
The important factor here is how we have advanced (or not) as a club during his tenure. We have hugely increased our wage budget and have a perilous wages to turnover ratio. That would be an acceptable risk if we were making good progress on the pitch, that's not all on Brands but most of his predecessors mistakes have now been moved on. Unfortunately, we are, at best, stagnating in terms of league position and sooner or later (three years isn't an insignificant period of time) Brands, as DoF has to take responsibility for that. For many, including me, that time is now, I appreciate that others are prepared to give him another year or two but eventually he has to be fully responsible for sporting outcomes. That is literally his job description.
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We haven't advanced, agreed. Wage budget is massive but I believe it was under Walsh as well. My biggest criticism of Brands at the moment is with things like managerial appointments and some very anti-Brands signings (Townsend) that he doesn't have control as a DoF but isn't willing to leave.
 
Nymzee said:
We haven't advanced, agreed. Wage budget is massive but I believe it was under Walsh as well. My biggest criticism of Brands at the moment is with things like managerial appointments and some very anti-Brands signings (Townsend) that he doesn't have control as a DoF but isn't willing to leave.
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…I’m not sure of the process at other clubs, but from what I understand at Everton the Manager and/or the DoF can initiate a transfer and either can veto the deal if they disagree.
 

After last week's hectic transfer period, Marcel has a holiday in Florida this week, contract Dave also has taken a holiday i guess. Pffff the wait for Dumfries (and any outgoings) is killing me lol
 
Appointing him to the board is one of the strangest decisions ever made.

Seemingly untouchable despite a very shaky track record. Probably so well-liked by Moshiri as he can walk all over him whenever he wants.
 
Why do we keep letting managers choose players? Brands should be identifying the manager and the players. Instead he has no input on one and 50% at best with the other.
 

MACCA75 said:
Why do we keep letting managers choose players? Brands should be identifying the manager and the players. Instead he has no input on one and 50% at best with the other.
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In fairness, we were long linked with Demarai Gray - as recently as the Jan transfer window. But agreed, there have been a few transfers in his tenure which look as though the manager has dictated.
 
davek said:
No. He built up the Park End; won a cup. There was a base for him to work from, and there was ambition; but he failed to make the right appointments after Royle left and we were a disaster - avoiding relegation narrowly. But his time here was less harmful than Kenwright's.
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Still not convinced, Dave.

There was indeed a “base to work from” but that only makes his failure to build on it once the Sky/PL revolution came all the more damning.

The Park End, IMO, looks like something built by numbers and has done so since the day it was built….not an impressive structure at all and no monument to the man who got it built.

EFC won a Cup under his stewardship…. legions of teams have won a single trophy whilst a particular individual owned the team.

And not only did he make the wrong appointments after Joe, he precipitated Joe’s resignation by refusing to give him the dough to buy Torre Andre Flo.

And to crown it all, he made such a hames of owning EFC that when the time came to sell no one was interested in buying the club….enter one Mr. William Kenwright esq.

That alone should make you re-evaluate the contribution Mr. Johnson made to our club’s decline lol
 
Nymzee said:
We haven't advanced, agreed. Wage budget is massive but I believe it was under Walsh as well. My biggest criticism of Brands at the moment is with things like managerial appointments and some very anti-Brands signings (Townsend) that he doesn't have control as a DoF but isn't willing to leave.
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It's really not unheard of for Directors of Football to patch up their squad depth with short term, experienced cover. Monchi seems to do it quite regularly at Sevilla and Campos I believe signed players like Jose Fonte and Burak Yilmaz for Lille, and they are apparently two of the best around.

Brands' failings go far beyond signing a few cheap bench warmers. He has deployed no strategy at all for the bulk of our first team recruitment in the 3 years he's been here. He does not address our problem positions, he doesn't target young talent from emerging markets where we could find cheaper deals and there is no consistency in his approach from one manager to another which is supposed to be a big selling point of a DoF.

As for having a lack of authority, granted he appears to be completely sidelined for the key decisions of hiring and firing managers, but I absolutely do not believe that he is subservient to the manager were transfers are concerned. I think he relents to the manager's requests for players often because he has no better suggestions of his own. Look at Abdoulaye Doucoure, the manager who asked for him had been out the door for nearly a whole season yet Brands didn't want to look elsewhere to see if there were other options.
 

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