Just intrigues me this whole situation. Seems to me that this scheme of buying multiple clubs around Europe works well for the parent club & weaker feeder clubs - so I can see the benefits for Standard Liege & say CZ Jena or Alcorcon - but the English Championship is a whole different ball game to the Hungarian League or a small team in the Spanish Second Division. I cannot understand really other than boosting the squad numbers - what the likes of Koc, Azradevic & even Thuram are bringing to us - other than tying up resources & adding more stress onto CP as he blaances a squad of his own & RD's players.
Is this plan to shift Standard fringe players it?
Has it been thought out much more than that?
Realistically we need serious money pumping in to the club to secure our place in the Championship next season & it's going to be a hell of a fight just to do that.
Does he have that kind of money? Sure he was able to turn things around at Liege, but he had the luxury of a half decent team in the first place upon which to build as opposed to the husk of Charlton Athletic he has inherited. How much money did he spend in turning Liege around.
Platitudes about youth development & improving match day experience is great - but what is the plan for the next 3 months.
Does he really have one - or has he been sold a dud bought on a whim to further this fantasy football network he has built up.
2
Comments
The early optimism is going to be completely gone in 3 days if we haven't signed anyone.
For us it's a different scenario - its highly doubtful we will attract British talent because of the Liege link as the incentive to go & play in the Juliper League isn't there.
I could surmise that RD ultimately wants Standard to grow & become the clear leaders in Belgium & he needs a better class of farm club for the talented youngsters & fringe players that will come to Liege as their stature grows. No good farming out higher quality players to the German 3rd Division or whatever. So in effect its a tiered system that benefits Standard in the long terms. But what about us?
Think I'll buy me a football team
Lets take four of his teams... and although they are in different countries, they are all a league below each other. Liege being the top team. He could then potentially give us enough players for free from them that are not getting a game but are better than what we have to improve our team. Lets then say we get promoted with those players..... we are then worth more to sell than what he bought us for with minimum investment. In the mean time our players that are not getting in our team then move to the team that is in the next league below (all be it in a diff country) Again this help improve them with minimum investment and could potentially sell them for more than he bought them for. This would apply to the next team in the lower division.
I've said it before - the critical figures in this whole scheme are the coaches and their support staff, who will have a vital role to play not only in nurturing talent but also in nurturing the individual, otherwise their technical expertise as trainers will count for nothing if they fail to care for those in their charge.
We've got a long 3 days to get through. Then we will see what RD plan is.
"The youth academy ... Huh"?
Right now, I have exactly the same doubts as you, both about what the general plan actually is, and whether it will work in practice (because lets not forget, it is almost as new for RD as it is for us. It is not the "Network" that has helped take Standard to the top of the Belgian league).
There have been behind the scenes whispers to reassure us that we, rather than Standard, are the priority, because of the huge revenue boost that would come from promotion to the FAPL. It dwarfs what he can get even by ensuring Standard get to the UCL group stage (which is a big ask for them, given their Europa League performance). The trouble is that we have not seen any action in the transfer window to back this up.
As for whether it is too early to ask this question, I disagree. Everybody will have their own way of taking their interest in CAFC, personally I want to know exactly how it is run as a business, because I see the direct relationship with what happens on the field. That's why I do my best to contribute to the Trust, because it is a group of fans who also think that way and try to build a clear constructive dialogue with owners about the direction of the Club. So, anyone else who thinks about these issues, please join the Trust.
I figured it was to discuss contracts and transfers.....so what's happening?
If that is his business plan, there are a number of implications and even more imponderables. And it has never been done before. There was the ENIC case but I am not sure if they treated their clubs as one profit centre.
Let me know if I explained that OK. Its an important point which Granpa is raising here.
*Replication: Liege seem to be churning out talent and winning. Replicate that elsewhere in the medium to long term at all your clubs and suddenly you hit it big. One of our coaches has gone back to Gillingham this week, is he making room for a new person?
Perhaps the same can be applied for best practise across the network.
*Bulk negotiation for sponsorship, services, etc
*Economies from geography, it may be cheaper to produce talent in certain areas. What he has built is a network with operations in certain specific countries, why is that? Belgium is where he's from, England has the biggest rewards but what of the others?
*Share squad players from loans or freebies to run a leaner operation: within the network and maybe you have a string of successful clubs
Last in his list will be needing to buy talent, but if he's exhausted the above he's made a saving.
And this is where the football realities start to bite.
*Can you really commodotise players? Nationality may be a factor.
*There won't actually be that much loaning across the network because the rules prohibit it to excess - matchday squad and limit from one club.
*What if there is a rule change, there is a Championship level pan European competition planned, might multi ownership come a cropper with UEFA?
*In Charlton's case there is whacking great hole in the roof and the club needs stabilising - they've said that is a priority, little sign of that so far.. do it wrong and it will cost you at least another £5m you didn't need to spend. The Championship and of course the Premiership are big nuts to crack though.