Following one of the most frenetic transfer windows at AFC Wimbledon with eight players leaving – some unexpectedly - and seven coming in, Mick Buckley lifts the lid on that eventful January.
Our Club Chair provides an insight into the departures of Ayoub Assal, Paris Maghoma and Ryley Towler – and reveals how close we came to losing Jack Currie….
Q: That was a whirlwind transfer window by any standards, Mick. Did it all go to plan or were there some unwelcome surprises?
A: With Johnnie Jackson and Jamie Johnson getting involved relatively late in the summer, they had been looking to strengthen the squad in this window since September. They had identified different options to ensure we strengthened or had cover in every position. They knew the window would throw up a few surprises with inevitable interest in our players, but no one anticipated the departures of players like Ayoub Assal, Paris Maghoma, Nathan Young-Coombes or Ryley Towler.
Q: Let’s start with Ayoub. Are you saying we didn’t plan to sell him in this window?
A: That’s correct. The plan was to sell him in the summer to support next year’s playing budget. Things changed on Boxing Day when we were made aware that there was interest. Our stance was that Ayoub would be staying until the summer and we declined several offers. The only way that was going to change was if a club came forward and triggered the buy-out clause in his contract. None of us wanted to see him go - we really didn’t - but the end result in financial terms was extremely positive for our club. Everyone here wishes him well in this next chapter of his career.
Q: Many fans were surprised to see him leave the UK for Qatar. Did he explain why the Middle East appealed?
A: Ayoub was very open minded and enthusiastic about the culture in Qatar. He is also extremely passionate about wanting to play for Morocco and it may well be that playing in Qatar would put him more in the spotlight. I suspect he is earning more there than Wimbledon can pay him at this point in time!
What about Ryley Towler and Paris Maghoma. Their departures within a matter of days felt like a double blow – but did we see it coming?
A: Parent clubs reserve the right to recall in January, that’s the deal we sign up to. Whilst indications had been that the two players were staying for the rest of the season, plans changed, and it showed how unpredictable the transfer window can be.
Paris was the first; then, just as Johnnie Jackson and our new head of football operations, Craig Cope, were sitting down for a recruitment planning meeting, news came in that Ryley was being recalled as well. It was a very tough moment for them but they quickly faced forward to their list of target players. I am delighted that both players developed well here and wish them both well in the next stage of their careers.
How did you identify the incoming players?
A: Jamie Johnson, Johnnie Jackson and Terry Skiverton had identified different types of players for each of the positions they wanted to strengthen or cover. For example, if they wanted a centre back, they identified an experienced player in that position, an Under-23s at a Premier League club, and another playing in the National League or League One.
Players were tracked, scouted and conversations with their clubs and agents led to seven of them joining us.
In a competitive market, how do we sell the benefits of coming to AFC Wimbledon?
A: It is a good question because the manager and recruitment team will often be offering less than other clubs. It always helps when the team is doing well. Players talk, and we have a management team that players want to play for.
Our new ground – and its London location - also made a big difference. It’s widely known around Leagues One and Two that we have established a real atmosphere at The Cherry Red Records Stadium and players want to be part of it. I think Wimbledon’s proud place in football history also helped. People know who we are and what we’ve achieved.
How close did we come to losing Jack Currie?
Again, there was no plan or intent to sell Jack Currie in this window. That said, based on the scouts watching us in recent weeks, it was probable we would get an offer.
Bristol City have an excellent track record in developing young players. They have loaned us two excellent players. I guess the writing was on the wall – quite literally – when Jamie Johnson and Craig Cope went to Bristol City to meet the technical director and there on the wall were his recruitment targets – including Jack’s name!
Bristol didn’t actually make an offer until the last Saturday of the window. Several offers and conversations followed but Bristol City couldn’t get to our valuation, and they weren’t willing to loan him back to us for the rest of the season.
How has Jack responded?
Jack has conducted himself in an exemplary fashion throughout. He’s naturally ambitious and playing in the Championship would obviously be attractive for him but, as someone studying for a business degree, he is smart enough to know that a deal needs to work for all parties.
He didn’t agitate for a move and made it clear that if things didn’t work we had his 100% commitment. He is a fantastic role model as he showed recently when a group of students were given a tour of the stadium recently. He will continue to develop here, and further opportunities will follow.
Does all the money we receive from player sales go back into our playing budget?
Selling players certainly enables future playing budgets. For example, the sales of Jack Rudoni and Luke McCormick helped to boost this year’s budget.
Each year we set ourselves a target amount for the Club to earn from selling players. If we bring in more, then the Board decides whether to spend it on extra players – or on things like better facilities or holding back funds to help repay the first trench of debt due to Plough Lane Bond holders in 2025.
In this transfer window, it was decided to channel an additional eight per cent into the playing budget. The remainder is currently being held back and the Board will decide whether it carries over into next year’s playing budget, or it goes into some of the other areas I’ve mentioned above.
Some fans can get frustrated when the Club doesn’t update them about transfer activity. Why can’t they be constantly updated?
Believe me, everyone at the Club has wanted to give more regular updates. It’s a constant tension between meeting the expectations of the fans/ owners for fresh information and doing what’s best for AFC Wimbledon in the long term.
When a player and an agent want to leave, it triggers a whole series of emotive conversations. Staying firm, calm and factual and sometimes confidential is normally most helpful.
Despite all of us as fans and board members wanting to communicate more, sometimes saying something will jeopardise a deal or risk reducing the perceived value of the departing player.
In terms of announcing transfer fees, there are at least two issues. The norm in football now is the ‘undisclosed fee’ and is part of the contract. That issue aside, it would not have been in our commercial interests to tell the football world the fees we have received when we are negotiating to bring in new players.
What’s your verdict on this transfer window? Did we win?
Ask me at the end of the season! While it’s difficult, if not impossible, to replace players like Ayoub Assal on a like-for-like basis, the management and recruitment teams believe we have come out of this transfer window with a stronger squad.
We have a lot of Saturday/Tuesday/Saturday fixtures between now and the end of the season and the depth of the squad will be very important.
Q: so in terms of recruitment, I guess we are now focussed on the summer?
Craig Cope joined as Head of Football Operations at the start of January. Craig will oversee recruitment and all football and training ground operations.
Craig had a ‘baptism of fire’ in January and met all the challenges thrown at him. He will now start to build a recruitment team with a strong emphasis on data.
Now that Craig has settled in, he will be giving an update looking to the future next week. Our interim head of recruitment, Jamie Johnson, has now completed his six-month contract and is joining Coventry City. Jamie did a fantastic job and will always be welcome back as a member of the Wimbledon family.
Q: How are things going off the pitch since you updated us in November?
A: Our new managing director, Danny Macklin, continues to make rapid progress. He has now presented the first draft of his club strategy and vision to the Board. We are aiming to have a top third League One budget by 2026 and Danny highlighted the immense challenges and potential solutions to enabling that. For example, the ‘Stockport for a fiver’ initiative was well received, half-price season tickets have proved popular and following feedback from fans/ members, the Silver Lounge is now open after the game to all fans.
Q: What about maximizing other revenue opportunities within our stadium?
A: Danny and his team recently launched the education centre via a partnership with a well-known education provider as one of the first partners – we will soon be announcing details of this. Alongside that, plans are in development to realise and maximise the third floor potential in the stadium.
Q: With so many new faces on and off the pitch, is the club well equipped for the future?
There is a lot of work ahead but good progress is being made. With Johnnie Jackson, Craig Cope, Danny Macklin, and Michael Hamilton, the Club has impressive leadership of all of our core areas.
Financially, the Club is on track to hit our broadly break even budget this year - and that’s without including the money generated from Ayoub’s sale.
That said, we still have £10m of debt to the Plough Lane Bond holders. The finance committee of the PLC board are working on how we will finance the first repayments due in 2025. As we reduce this debt, it means that money currently being paid in interest (£400,000) will find its way into the playing budget. On the plus side, we own our stadium outright and have valuable planning permissions to expand as fan demand and the appropriate financial solution emerges.
We have something very special here. We are not so big that we can’t look out for each other with football and community entwined. We control our destiny. If we can continue to work hard, smart and together there will be a lot more chapters to the AFC Wimbledon story.