Owner of Blackpool, Simon Sadler, says he’s always willing to spend money on players he thinks would help the team get better.
The 54-year-old talked about what the Seasiders look for in a transfer and how different members of the team collaborate to bring in the appropriate players in an interview with BBC Radio Lancashire.
After repurchasing 96.2% of the club to end the Oyston era, Sadler assumed leadership of Blackpool in 2019. He claims to invest a significant amount to get the club to where it needs to be.
He added, “It cost me a bit more money, but I’m putting in a few million pounds a year anyway, so I’ll probably end up putting in more in this year than the Covid year,” while speaking about the effects of taking over the club around the time of the Covid 19 pandemic.
“Wages are greater because salary caps presumably benefitted us back then. Brexit is also a hindrance since it makes it more difficult to attract qualified international players to our level. I’ve been very transparent about it, and this year it’s probably about four or five million pounds. There are times when the heart and brain are not linked.
“I always tell the recruitment guys that I’m happy to invest in players, particularly ones we think we can improve- and maybe they can move on or come on a journey with us,” he continued, speaking about the availability of finances in the transfer market.
“We meet frequently to discuss recruitment. After giving an indication of what he wants, David (Downes) will leave to complete his work, and Neil (Critchley) will take it from there.
Plans for renovations to the East Stand at Bloomfield Road and a new training centre are still in the works for Blackpool.
Regarding the latter, the club applied to Wyre planners in March of last year for the new facility, which would be located on a greenfield site off Streeton Road in Poulton. This would include constructing ten outdoor pitches in addition to a two-story building, an indoor pitch, a single-story groundstaff facility building, a single-story ancillary building, and a single-story retail building.
Sadler told BBC Radio Lancashire, “If anyone has ever done a big project like this, they always take longer than you expect and they always cost more than you expect, and that’s happening right now.”
“It’s been made pretty clear we’re a long way ahead with the development of the East Stand and around the stadium than we will be with the training ground.”
