The Albion’s chief executive and deputy chairman has reflected on 2019, and while he has been pleased with the season so far, he says it is important not to get too carried away with the progress.
Once again, Barber has also highlighted the importance of the significant financial backing of the club’s chairman Tony Bloom.
Barber said, “We end the year in almost a similar position to the end of 2019, but we’re playing good football and not always getting the results our performances deserve, although at Arsenal we did, so overall, it’s been a positive start.
“You have to stay humble when things are going well and not panic when they are not.
“It’s part of my job and that of Tony to convey this to the staff because although we know in the Premier League there is every chance you can lose three or four games on the spin, it’s not a cause for panic if you are running the club properly and have the bigger picture in mind.
“We also know that in such a tight league, two or three wins can propel you into the top ten easily, and we’re hoping that we can build on what we’ve achieved in the first half of this season, and hopefully take that into a fourth season in the Premier League.”
Albion recently announced the annual accounts, which showed a £21m loss, but Barber explained part of this was down to the club retaining its best players.
“Despite getting £100m in TV revenue this year, we still need Tony’s support to compete. We haven’t sold players and we believe that is a big factor in our performances on the pitch.
“It’s very easy to turn a £20m loss into a profit if you sell your best players, but we believe in the squad we’ve got and their potential to improve and achieve big things.
“We still need to maintain a strict control on our costs and maximise revenues wherever we can. It means being smart in the way we run the business. We have to find ways of selling things that people want – in that regard football is no different to any other business.
“We don’t want to rely on Tony in future years to make a profit, but we don’t have the worldwide brand profile that the top six clubs have, although we have negotiated a fantastic new agreement with American Express and one with Nike, which will help us, and we’re continually looking to bring exciting new and more diverse sponsors to the club.”
Log on to BrightonAndHoveAlbion.com tomorrow for part two of our three-part series with Paul Barber, as he reflects on 2019.