May’s going to go, isn’t he?
I think the writing is on the wall with regard to Alfie. There’s rarely any smoke without fire and between Huddersfield having money to spend and Nathan Jones’ word gymnastics I am pretty convinced last season’s L1 top scorer has played his last game in a Charlton shirt.
This is a very high risk strategy from Jones, and he is quick to repeat his success at Luton stemmed from making tough early decisions for the betterment of the club and there is no doubting their onward success from there, but this is not just a fan favourite, this a player who has scored 66 league goals at this level in 128 games these past three seasons.
A player coming into his prime who works his socks off for the team, and has influence and character off it.
There may be a lot of transfer activity coming in, and perhaps between Jones, Scott and Rodwell they have made more thoughtful selections than most of the dross we’ve had walk through the door in recent seasons, but the fact is the club have allowed Blackett Taylor, George Dobson and now it seems Alfie May to leave the club in the past 6 months.
Players come and go, but Charlton fans have had little on the pitch to identify with in recent times, except Dobson and May.
Jones has reiterated that he has autonomy over signings and I normally line up behind the ‘he is the manager’ and ‘team over player’ type guff, but Jones will seriously need to pull a couple of bloody good rabbits out of the hat.
Jones is known for his tunnel vision, adamant in the way he wants his teams and players to play. I think flair and unpredictability has no place in a Jones dressing room, he wants unequivocal action and formulae.
As for Alfie, it appears that his wife and the kids have already moved back to Yorkshire, and at almost 31, he will want to be playing every game, which I think even if he stayed he won’t be doing under Jones.
Huddersfield’s manager, Michael Duff, was also a big influence on May when at Cheltenham.
I am sure we’re holding out for as much money as we can snaffle from Huddersfield, they are not in a great bargaining position, and we have been fed the line that we don’t have to sell.
I am sure an offer of £1 million will do it.
I do feel very conflicted, and will need to lie down in a dark room if and most likely when this happens. I will also need some serious convincing that this move will make us a stronger proposition for promotion, especially as we help a rival to a 25+ goal striker.
Makes no sense to me on a football level. 20+ goals a season strikers are hard to find. And it also makes no sense in terms of keeping the fans onside. Why would you make life so difficult for yourself? I just don’t get it i am afraid.
I agree with you and Richard, it would seem such a mad thing to do that I can’t quite bring myself to believe it …. not yet anyway!
If he leaves then it’s with fond memories and thanks from me. The cards are truly on the table now for all decision makers at the club to show they can deliver on recruitment.
WAIT TILL THE MAJORITY OF SUPPORTERS BUY THERE SEASON TICKETS THEN SELL ONE OF YOUR BEST PLAYERS TO A LEAGUE RIVAL TYPICAL CHARLTON. I DECIDED NOT TO RENEW MY SEASON TICKET AFTER THE GEORGE DOBSON FIASCO ZERO FAITH IN OUR NEW OWNERS WE WERE WARNED BY SUNDERLAND REGARDING METHVEN SCOTT ETC
GARY G
PRECISELY 100%
£1m is a lot of money for a 31 year old who’s never played higher than L1. Is Alfie May a NJ type of player though? He subbed him off in quite a few games and NJ likes a physical player which May isn’t.
We have Miles Leaburn returning from injury and have money in the bank and some good younger players, Micah Mbick and Pat Casey coming through plus DK and Chuks (when fit).
I wouldn’t sell him, but if I had to and especially not to a rival but if £1m is on the table then I’d get the deal done quickly before it gets disruptive and also when we have time to get his replacement in. I don’t want a late in the transfer window sale.
If he does go…then I’m sure there’ll be gnashing of teeth and rending of hair and clothes but we will need to relook at the decision in the fullness of time. Maybe Alfie May will have a poor season and maybe his replacement will have a blinder of a year, who knows?
Yes can see all angles and yes noticed many times he was a sub or brought off a lot but this is CAFC a xlub nany of us have supported for 7 DECADES AND MORE.
So we aare used to this but 3 really star performers going out of the door in 6 months says ot all..
DISGUSTING
May will be gone and I m afraid to say by mid October probably nathan jones as well we must not keep pussy footing around mbick and casey just let the guys play. if miles and chuks can’t stay fit enough for longer than 3 games I m afraid to say we are doomed again.. fingers crossed 🤞 to a better season.
if Charlton sell Alfie they might make money on the deal but will lose a lot more through supporters not buying memberships ! You just dont sell your top scorer to another club you are competing against ! If he goes then will s lot of supporters ! Rodwell and Scott and methven had better be prepared for the flak they cop if it happens and then explain to investors why memberships have stalled !
As stated several times CAFC over many decaded too think we genuine supporters are thick and stupid and instead of stating “He is simply not for sale” they have deliberately given so much bull and saw the long video but was and not convinced on this Ownership model and what what coud go wrong with Methvern and the others at the helm and Jones it seems to be very happy.
Unfortunately CAFC are in the blood of many and yes for 7 DECADED AND MORE.
DISGUSTING BUT VERY PREDICTABLE AND NONE OF US ARE SURPRISED!!
Supporters were saying, NJ came in and saved the club from relegation. It would be more accurate to say Alfie May saved the club from relegation. 23 League goals……
Selling him would be an act of crass stupidity and will alienate many (including me)
I have never been convinced that NJ is the Messiah, this decision shows him to be a fool.
I know money talks but loyalty means a great deal to supporters. I hope Alfie holds out for better conditions from CAFC and stays. I thought that he had just bought a house in Snodland, Kent near his family? Absolute madness selling him to a rival🤬
Proven goalscorer at this level. If he goes, who would be in the frame as his replacement, or would the Board have a share out with the profit of the sale !!!!! Up until now we have had decent incomings in this window, lets just wreck it all by selling our best striker to a rival.
Obviously Alfie May should not be sold to rivals Huddersfield virtually at any price. It was said he came to Charlton as he had family member in Kent, have they now moved to Yorkshire?
Where can you sign a proven goal scorer ( Gold dust in any league) for a few hundred thousand pounds (don’t forget part of any fee goes to Cheltenham).
If he stays he could be playing Championship football for us next season.
I say we should be giving him an extension to his contract and a pay rise for services already given to the Club.
By all accounts his wife is from Yorkshire.
NJ’s assessment of forward players was his weakness when he ran the U21s ten years ago. He rated Pigott higher than Smith to the extent that he recruited Pigott whilst at Luton, I knew it wouldn’t work and it didn’t.
If we lose May as well as Dobson we will have lost our two best players and I thought Thomas was a better player than he was able to show. He should have been used as the central player in a back 3, he and Hector should never have been a pair they should have been competing for the 5 jersey.
Leaburn is a very good player but has missed significant periods in each of the 4 seasons he has been with us through injury.
Everybody knows Aneke is prone to injury and unlikely to be a regular 90 minute player.
Kanu was a good finisher in the U18s but needs to improve technically, he should be a squad player and not a regular starter while his skills improve. Played well with Leaburn in the U18s.
Casey and Mbick both have great goalscoring records in the academy teams but are similar to Kanu in that they need time to work on their technical skills so unlikely to feature this coming season in the first team.
If May goes we will need at least 2 experienced strikers.
As you know I have followed the U18s for over 60 years and the goalscorers that make the grade were all technically good.
Walsh ,Leaburn, Watson and Lookman are good examples.
In the early 70s John Stenson scored heavily for the U18s but never progressed. Azezz and Sho Silva scored goals regularly 10 years or so ago but again never made the grade with us.
Hopefully Mr Brayne recruited from Birmingham will be able to improve skill levels in Kanu, Casey and Mbick.
I pray to God that you are all wrong. I think I may ask for a refund on my season ticket. Utterly ridiculous – we all know how rare a proper striker is, plus his personality and work rate. Sorry NJ, but this is a huge mark against you. You have made a sunny Saturday very gloomy.
Good luck Alfie – I will cheer every goal you score – and think of you in the bleak, cold, windswept, rainy north.
Or rainy midlands as now looks more likely.
If Alfie goes so do I after over 70 years. I.just do not in any way understand Nathsn Jones and the Clubs attitude and view on Alfie. I’m done
Looks like the investers are just another Roland and the all the others, just talk and no substance! As soon as they have someone they can flog off for a profit to recoup some of the current losses, its done. If they really wanted to get promotion you don’t sell off your prize asset, especially the best goal scorer in the league and worse still to a competitor!
As for the crap that is coming out of NJ’s mouth, who has told every reporter he is under no pressure to sell May and only wants the best players, who are 100% behind Charlton, no shirkers/time wasters or players that just want to spend their last days here getting a salary, well May has just saved us from relegation with his 100% work rate, his goals and his passion in playing for Charlton? Yet you are happy to off load him as soon as you can, as it is known you prefer taller & also younger strikers. So you can then bring some of your old cronnies who you know, such as Matt Godden who is actually two years older than May and has hardly played for Coventry this last season! Similar at the other end, you want to offload both keepers, Brewer and Istead, though you never gave Brewer a chance as again another of your ex buddies Istead, whilst having some real howlers was never dropped by you yet you have brought in an unknown goalie from Cambridge who has hardly played anywhere so has no track record whatsoever, presumingly because he is taller and was a freebie!!!
So far looking to this season, apart from another centre back from Millwall who can’t be any worse than the ones released, another of your buddies a 34 year midfielder from Luton who will be replacing the younger Dobson the other best player we had and a Left full back from Scotland, who surely can’t be better than Small, though that’s probably the next sale if someone comes in with a few bucks for him, we have an untested new keeper who is supposingly better than the current two we have and are selling the best goal scorer in this divsion to a rival to be replaced by an inferior goal scorer, how will this make us a better team than last season?
And you have asked the supporters to Trust you as you have done it before, but you also forgot to add you have also failed twice afterwards!
Sorry but only a fool would sell off their prize asset unless it was for stupid money and if you think £775,000 is stupid money for a record goal scorer, who in three consecutive seasons was playing each time for really poor teams, which includes Charlton and kept them from relegation, then you are not just a fool but a complete idiot! Any good manager would want to keep a top goal scorer and build a team around them, as they are as rare as hens teeth, for as long as they could, and would only sell if forced to, which according to you, its your decision!
I only wish you had been honest with the supporters before you gave us all this bull about trust us etc, as I definately wouldn’t have renewed my season ticket, which would have been the first time ever. I also believe so would thousands of others not renewed, thats why you kept side tracking about May, as you knew you were going to sell May if your under estimated price, was attained for a quick sale, so you could bring in your own choices!
As it’s unlikely I will get a refund now and just pray that somehow we will have a decent team and play some decent football and hopefully get promotion. If we don’t and get off to a really bad start &/or lose out to the team that gets May & wins promotion, you will be gone and probably Charlton will once again be looking for new investors and it will be all down to you, no excuses!
At least the club got May to call up fans to flog some season tickets.
I have a very similar opinion of NJ, Mike*
If we aren’t in the promotion hunt by Christmas he’ll be gone before the January window opens. The man is a fool.
I just dont get it !!!!