Considering the funding deficit this year and even more so the year after, closing the academy should have been the first decision.
I don’t know the detailed ins & outs of the finances of that part of the club (and I suspect you don’t either) but the claim made by our current leader that it hasn’t produced anyone saleable in a number of years seems to be incorrect. Also, if you produce a youth team player who can play in the first team you can avoid signing an external player. So that’s another way to offset the running costs.
I can understand that the owner would be looking to cut costs but when that’s balanced against the sheer number of signings (one of whom has immediately gone out on loan!) it does seem like a very short-term approach.
