ToffeeWeb - Season 2008-09

The Mail Bag

Biffa to Stoke

It appears that James Beattie has been sold to Stoke for 2.5 million pounds. http://soccernet.espn.go.com/news/story?id=608023&sec=england&cc=5901 We sold him for 4 - 4.5 million, and since then he has scored 34 in 62 games for Sheffield United (albeit against lower competition).

Looks like a solid piece of business by Moyes when you consider that even such a strike rate at Sheff Utd. was not sufficient to raise his value beyond what we sold him for (or even keep it the same!), and Moyes sold him on the heels of a season in which he did not score from open play AT ALL. Basicially, DM turned Biffa & Naysmith into Jagielka. Would we sell Jags now for 2.5 million + Naysmith?

The point is that I believe Moyes to be a very astute player in the transfer market. I struggle to think of anyone jettisoned by Moyes in his tenure who has been sold since/could be sold now for more than the sum we got for him. One may say 'Rooney', but that transfer was forced upon Moyes and I believe Shrek hasn't progressed to become the international superstar that many predicted coming off the heels of Euro 2004. One can only wonder what Moyes could achieve at Everton were he not hamstrung by such crippling budgetary constraints...
Dave Reiner, New York Posted 09/01/2009 at 13:41:12

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Comments

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Stephen Stuart
1 Posted 10/01/2009 at 04:38:09

You gotta bleedin? laugh... just think of all those players, dead or alive, that Moyes hasn?t bought and the savings he?s made.

Dick Fearon
2 Posted 10/01/2009 at 04:40:00

I can see it now, Beattie rises majestically to power a header past Reinna for his first. Beattie turns Hypia inside out to lash an unstoppable for his second. Beattie crowns a fantastic display with a brilliant third goal that sinks the RS title hopes. Moyes is criticised for selling him. BK is ridiculed for letting it happen. TW is inundated by posters who always knew Beattie was a good un.

Dave Wilson
3 Posted 10/01/2009 at 07:16:36

Dave

Selling Biffa for £4.5 million was only good business if you turn a blind eye to the amount we payed to get him.

DM has had a few westons to go with his successes in the market.
Signing, then perservering with Beattie has got to be up there.

Andy Mack
4 Posted 10/01/2009 at 08:33:32

Good signing for Stoke in their current situation, Biffa had no confidence at all in his final season with us and we had balls coming in from the wings. Delap long throws and Meatie a burly forward, might well keep them in the league - I can see what Pulis is thinking. A forward worth 8m three years ago and in a scoring run, for 2.5m. Best of luck to the lad.

Jeremy Benson
5 Posted 10/01/2009 at 08:46:04

Wouldn’t be surprised if he scored 10 for them in the second half of the season and kept them up.

Of course he will score against us.

Simon Jones
6 Posted 10/01/2009 at 09:37:01

Don’t you think if the current economic climate was more healthy he would have gone for nearer 4 million? I don’t suppose Stoke are awash with money.

Alan Clarke
7 Posted 10/01/2009 at 09:44:53

Buying someone for £6mil and selling them for £4mil. That’s very astute!

Steve Carter
8 Posted 10/01/2009 at 09:39:39

It’s raking over old coals a bit on this one. Our style of play at the time did not suit Biffa and visa versa. Yes it was ’albeit against lower competition’, but there’s no denying that he has done very well for the Blades - scoring ratio is excellent and he was their player of the year last year. Good luck to him. Whatever else we may say about his time with us, he was a good fella and at the Tim Cahill end of the scale when it came to treating and interacting with the fans. Personally, I’d rather have kept James if there’d been the alternative of shipping Big Vic instead.

Aiden Doyle
9 Posted 10/01/2009 at 09:47:32

I’m with Dave Wilson on this one.

I think that David Moyes has generally proved himself to be pretty astute in the transfer market, but I really don’t see anything about Beattie’s transfers to be pleased about. The most positive spin that I could put on his sale (at a loss of around £2.5 million, don’t forget) is that it made the best of a bad situation - that with better judgement we wouldn’t have been in in the first place.

Peter Keating
10 Posted 10/01/2009 at 10:53:03

It also looks like Fernandes is going to Portsmouth for £6 million! Why don’t we get in there before they do as £6 million is nowhere near what Valnencia wanted. Sure there would be problems with ownership mind you

Shaun Brennan
11 Posted 10/01/2009 at 11:26:37

Biffa?
Wasn’t he in Grange Hill.

Robbie Muldoon
12 Posted 10/01/2009 at 11:59:27

He’s a fukin minge bag is what he is. Bleeds every penny. Sometimes its good such as sellin shite players (which he bought!), on the downside sometimes it results in laughable bids for players well below there value ( Moutinho etc etc.)

Andy Morden
13 Posted 10/01/2009 at 14:15:06

How about this - Moyes could have kept our £6 million quid, got interest on it, we could have bid £7.5 mil for the Yak like Boro did that summer and we could still have got Jags for £4.5 million without having brought boobies Beattie. We would also have saved £4 million on the Yak.

Of course, it is all relative and hypothetical. If MOyes had sold Beatties for a PROFIT and not lost £2 million on him then it would be shrewd.

Jonathan Bradley
14 Posted 11/01/2009 at 15:14:59

He was still a better buy than Morientes was.