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Smith is a player who could develop into a Championship level player. But he is not ready made to take a Championship team back into the Premier League. So at Championship level maybe a club like Birmingham that is cutting its clothe to suit its pocket is a reasonable ambition. Re Stoke City, for me they need squad cleanse. They have a very well paid ex Premier League squad with a lot of players who are getting old or who are not wholesome in their commitment to the club. So take an example of excellence, Liverpool the club and team are completely together. But they still dream of a return to the Premiership even if fighting a relegation battle currently. I can't see how Smith fits in to what they need next season. If I was a Stoke fan, and in the Championship next season, I think I would see signing Smith, a League 2 defender from Port Vale, as a terrible indication of the club's aspirations. And he totally isn't what they need if they are genuinely going to challenge for promotion. I think last time Stoke got promoted Pullis produced a surprising achievement, and possibly a really good manager with a model of play and stable squad can do it. But the players have to have a base level of achievement at that level to build from. And then I look at the current top two in the Championship - Leeds and WBA - and they are way off being good enough for the Premier League. They would be the next Norwich. Of course at the level reality is setting in, they can't keep grossly overspending, so Smith fits into the model of reducing the wage bill to a sustainable level; if that type of readjustment takes place. I think Port Vale needs to move on from Smith without that much concern. Think Brentford!

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I am disappointed with Smith. We have looked after him well and given him lots of support. I understand he has ambition to play at a higher level but is now the time to look around? John Askey has obviously been good to him but now has to look for a replacement. We could end up with a situation where we have a poorer team next season and Smith ends up in non league.

 

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1 minute ago, Rampant Zebra said:

I am disappointed with Smith. We have looked after him well and given him lots of support. I understand he has ambition to play at a higher level but is now the time to look around? John Askey has obviously been good to him but now has to look for a replacement. We could end up with a situation where we have a poorer team next season and Smith ends up in non league.

 

I get the frustration, but this breaks down into 2 bits for me:

1. Smith has an opportunity to quadruple his wages (if not more over his next contract) and he deserves the opportunity to do that. He can earn 5 years money in a year. He would be daft not to and secure the future for his family.

2. There will be a load of football players out of a job, there have already been some very decent Centre halves released and there will be more under contract teams will be willing to get rid of if someone is willing to take on their contract. Thankfully, thanks to Carol and Kevin we are in a good place. We will get a good centre half... or if Askey thinks Brisley can be that guy, we will get a cheap cover and spend the excess on other parts of the squad... in Askey we trust.

Now the bit I do agree with is it’s a risk for Nathan. He could end up where he doesn’t want but point one means he is willing to take that risk. I’m sure if his big move doesn’t come off he can match what he is on now in league 2.

Roll the dice on 5x the salary and end up on what you are on Now if it fails. Odds he has to take.

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6 minutes ago, Rampant Zebra said:

I am disappointed with Smith. We have looked after him well and given him lots of support. I understand he has ambition to play at a higher level but is now the time to look around? John Askey has obviously been good to him but now has to look for a replacement. We could end up with a situation where we have a poorer team next season and Smith ends up in non league.

 

Change is risk for him and Port Vale. I think football is a terrible career for the vast majority of players. Short contracts, short career, high insecurity. Look at our retained list and those of every other club. An average professional career is 8 years. Therefore I can forgive him everything really, because he is seeking work in a torrid labour market. I mean I an sat here now, aged 61 and still carrying on my professional career after about 40 years. There is no comparison of thought process possible between the two routes in life.

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11 minutes ago, Rampant Zebra said:

I am disappointed with Smith. We have looked after him well and given him lots of support. I understand he has ambition to play at a higher level but is now the time to look around? John Askey has obviously been good to him but now has to look for a replacement. We could end up with a situation where we have a poorer team next season and Smith ends up in non league.

 

I think you're being very harsh. We have looked after him but he has also played his part by being a model professional for six years and being great for the Vale on and off the field. There's plenty of other players who have let their standards slip or been idiots when contracts started winding down but he has done nothing, hasn't agitated for a move, said anything bad in the press - he has been professional throughout.

As for the time, to  honour a contract and then look at other options when a free agent is entirely proper (far better than say going on strike when under contract or sulking like others have done). I can't see what he's done wrong - what other young player, in demand, would not do something similar? Football is only a short career after all.

It may or may not work out for him in the future but I am not disappointed with Nathan Smith one bit, he has been a cracking player and person for Port Vale and he'd get a warm welcome from me if he returned in another side's colours. 

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3 minutes ago, robf said:

I think you're being very harsh. We have looked after him but he has also played his part by being a model professional for six years and being great for the Vale on and off the field. There's plenty of other players who have let their standards slip or been idiots when contracts started winding down but he has done nothing, hasn't agitated for a move, said anything bad in the press - he has been professional throughout.

As for the time, to  honour a contract and then look at other options when a free agent is entirely proper (far better than say going on strike when under contract or sulking like others have done). I can't see what he's done wrong - what other young player, in demand, would not do something similar? Football is only a short career after all.

It may or may not work out for him in the future but I am not disappointed with Nathan Smith one bit, he has been a cracking player and person for Port Vale and he'd get a warm welcome from me if he returned in another side's colours. 

Completely agree. I think he was sensible when he signed the longterm contract and stayed a few years back. He could have got a move and played under 23 football at a bigger club at that point. I'm sure 150 plus league appearances since then had been better for him as a footballer, though probably less lucrative. It's really now or never for him if he has ambitions to play at Championship level. Yes he might get there with Vale but how many of the last 50 years have we spent at that level?

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We had a squad of players who played for nothing during administration, most of whom hadn't been at the club as long as Nathan. We have paid him well and developed him and he is trying to leave for free to get more money for himself. His choice but it could go badly wrong for him. I get that it is a short career but we offered him a good deal for a league 2 club I expect. Sensible choice would have been to take it and move in January if an offer came in. Immediate security for him and a chance for the club to get some money from him in return for the development. 

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18 minutes ago, Rampant Zebra said:

We had a squad of players who played for nothing during administration, most of whom hadn't been at the club as long as Nathan. We have paid him well and developed him and he is trying to leave for free to get more money for himself. His choice but it could go badly wrong for him. I get that it is a short career but we offered him a good deal for a league 2 club I expect. Sensible choice would have been to take it and move in January if an offer came in. Immediate security for him and a chance for the club to get some money from him in return for the development. 

And he breaks his leg and never plays again in September! We won't compensate him for a Championship move that then never happens. There's nothing sensible about that choice. He's got 2 clubs talking to him right now, nobody knows what the position will be in 6 months.

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Let's hope it works out for him then. I am sure Shaun Brisley will do a fine job for us and will be grateful for the opportunity. 
I think he has got to be replaced.

Brisley looked OK in some games pretty atrocious in others. He's a good option as a back up but I'd be uneasy with him and Legge as our starting pairing.

Crooks is a slightly unknown quantity. Injured for nearly all of his time as a permenant vale player, and little of the time he has played for us has been at CB.

I'm not sure what the answer is, as I don't think young, strong, experienced centre halves are growing on trees, probably half the reason why we are about to lose ours.

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3 hours ago, Walka003 said:

I think he has got to be replaced.

Brisley looked OK in some games pretty atrocious in others. He's a good option as a back up but I'd be uneasy with him and Legge as our starting pairing.

Crooks is a slightly unknown quantity. Injured for nearly all of his time as a permenant vale player, and little of the time he has played for us has been at CB.

I'm not sure what the answer is, as I don't think young, strong, experienced centre halves are growing on trees, probably half the reason why we are about to lose ours.
 

I thought Brisley struggled a bit in a couple of the early EFL games but thereafter was quite impressive.  Wasn't he nominated for the EFL February player of the month when he got a run in the side? Wasn't a surprise that he struggled at first as he'd not had a preseason or reserve games to get up to full match fitness.

A few years ago Brisley was Smith when he signed for Peterborough in The Championship. He's had a mixed career since. The Carlisle move didn't work out well for him, followed by an excellent first season at Notts County. Then fell victim to County's managerial merry-go-round and their attempt to sign the largest squad in league 2 history; along with Kewell's attempts to convert him into a midfield player. 

We won't sign a better young centrehalf than Smith because Championship clubs would be after him. Losing your better players will always leave a hole. Looking at the players currently signed, based on performances since Christmas we probably have the best group of players contracted or with contacts agreed outside the 3 automatically promoted sides in this league. With Smith leaving we'll be after 6 or 7 rather than 5 or 6 new players. If Askey gets his recruitment right there's every reason to be optimistic about 2020/21.

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