That dreaded ‘PSR’ word has dominated the headlines and most of our moves – made with a ‘business’ hat on, not a footballing one – but it’s hoped that this short-term pain will lead to long-term gain.
Offloading Miguel Almiron and Lloyd Kelly for a combined £30m while failing to bring in anyone is far from ideal, but it could serve to benefit us hugely this summer – at least, that’s the plan.
Howe offers hope for future Howe admitted that there is an “overall element of frustration” that our squad has got weaker over January, but offered a glimmer of hope that we’ll soon be in a position to strengthen.
Without offering promises, the boss hinted that there could be freedom to make “football-based decisions” over the summer, suggesting our “prudent” moves last month – no signings and £30m in sales – will pay dividends soon.
This is a risk, of course, as we’ve lost two squad players in the process, but Howe is hopeful that the “future looks a little bit brighter” from a transfer perspective after a successful month from a PSR perspective.
“I said right at the start in the build up to the window, that it was not a case really of looking at incoming – it was a case of trying to manage outgoings really and trying to not weaken the squad to a point where the team’s affected. But we also future plan and make sure that we control everything in terms of our PSR level, so I think we’ve done that. I think it’s been successful in that regard.
“I think the two sales the two players go with our best wishes, they’re two great lads. The squad is lighter in numbers but high in quality so I think for us managing injuries will be a big part of what we do now in this part of the season coming up. There is still no reason why we can’t be successful but yeah, hopefully the future looks a little bit brighter
