Pressure will be on Town if Toffolo goes!
| Published date | 01 July 2022 |
| Publication title | Huddersfield Daily Examiner |
If Pipa's exit last week was greeted with a shrug, Toffolo's would be met with outcry from supporters.
Losing one of your best players despite having been in contract talks with him for the past nine months is not a good look, and precisely why clubs are not normally as open about these things as then-chairman Phil Hodgkinson was in September.
It's not just what the 26-year-old does on the pitch, although of course his numbers speak for themselves on that count - six goals and eight assists is an excellent return for a left-back.
He is a deeply likeable, deeply personable character who always has time, humour and consideration for the fans.
The question, though, is whether that kind of gregariousness should be a factor in contract negotiations, and whether Toffolo's efforts on the pitch were worth breaking an established wage structure for given the implications that can have on talks with other players down the line and the opportunity cost involved.
Offers from League are going to be resist both selling the
Town run their ship more tightly than most other Championship clubs, and we saw in both 2017 and 2022 that that need not be an impediment to success on the pitch.
So the question becomes can you get more out of the wage bill by signing a replacement and using the change to strengthen the squad in other areas?
It's also worth noting that in the interim, Town have successfully agreed new contracts with O'Brien, Sorba Thomas and just this week Lee Nicholls - clearly their offerings is not entirely unattractive.
In truth, the contract situation may be a bit of a red herring in this particular case anyway. Offers from the Premier League are always going to be difficult to resist both for the selling club and for the player, and it seems likely Forest would have maintained an interest in Toffolo even if he had signed a new contract at the start of the season.
It may be difficult for some fans to compartmentalise their thinking in that way, particularly given the Premier always it is Forest, specifically, that are showing an interest.
difficult to for the club and player
But O'Brien offers a helpful contrast. If Town get a suitable offer for the midfielder from a topflight club this summer, his departure...
To continue reading
Request your trial