Thanks for all the updates and comments. Very informative. Still unclear to me why the deal was structured so as to give ESI a fair crack at the January transfer window and deal with the DD etc of other parts of the club and yet here we are six days from the end of the window with the team having needed reinforcements for weeks and weeks and sitting in a precarious league position and yet all we have to show for all this talk and ambition is the loan of Green from Aston Villa and the squad is now weaker than when they bought the club. What I’ve read gives me some encouragement but I will only feel confident once some of this talk is translated into action. Losing our Championship status surely cannot be an option. Certainly when some sensible expenditure can ensure it.
The Trust's report of the meeting answers all of your concerns. Let's wait a week before choosing not to believe them.
Cullen wants to make it at West Ham. Well if he changes his mind he will be very welcome here.
Let's see how he feels if we start to move up the table, and they get relegated.
Given that a lot of their better players would almost certainly not want to play in the championship and they'd have to get rid of some of their higher earners, i'd think it almost a given that Cullen would stay at West ham if they were relegated.
Our best hope of keeping him is for them to stay up and after next pre-season they tell him he's not at the level they require.
Just to give my view on the statement by Matt that transfer fees go down nearer the end of the window ?
If a player is in demand with numerous clubs chasing that player and they all make concrete bids, then that isn't the case that transfer fees would go down.
If in the case of Marcus Madison, the Owner and Manager of Peterborough have said he's not in their plans anymore, hence why the bid from Cafc and then Birmingham was accepted despite not reaching 2.5 million release clause, is an example backing up Matt Southall.
Maddison, if he has any ambition and wants to play in the Championship will go to Cafc or Birmingham in the coming week.
Cullen wants to make it at West Ham. Well if he changes his mind he will be very welcome here.
Let's see how he feels if we start to move up the table, and they get relegated.
That will make it more likely he stays there, won't it?
The only chance we have of getting him is if he isn't part of thier plans next season. If they are in the championship he probably will be.
I'm not sure that is the case (although it can be).
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but to me that club now has the sense of decline about it. All the dosh splashed on players as a result of the stadium deal has gone to waste, a large number of their fans hate the stadium; and despite being the most disorganised fan-base of all the London clubs, they are now doing just that. Gullivan and Brady have few friends. Bear in mind too, that they only extended his existing contract. Hardly a ringing commitment to him.
Suppose they do indeed go down, and meanwhile Bow steers us to, say, 12th position, with a vibrant fanbase constantly showing Josh their appreciation as they did on Wednesday, and we can match his wages. What would you choose in his shoes?
"Brighton, Burnley, Brentford and Sheffield United are role models."
4 well run clubs, but that would suggest that our aims are more the Curbishley/Murray years than anything more flashy (which is fine with me)
I don't think the more flashy option is realistically possible, without contravening FFP, even if we wanted and were able to.
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year. Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
I have been critical of ESi and I'm still concerned about the ownership of the various bits that makes up CAFC. However I do feel happier with the current situation having read the CAST report (thank you) and having been involved in employment negotiations for many years I understand that we need to give it the week to see which players come in/ go out.
So thank you MS for being as open as you can and good luck this week
I just want Duchâtelet out completely, regardless of assurances that ESI own the leasehold. I don’t trust Roland an inch.
Trust shouldn't come into it, if there are legally binding contracts.
Contracts are easily amended and messily ignored, happens every day.
I just can't see ESI getting knocked by RD, which is the context of Arsenetatters' post. If anything, I reckon RD would be the one to get his fingers burnt, out the two
As well as not trusting Roland I also want him to have absolutely nothing to do with any aspect of the club. I want him out completely, no sign of his name on anything to do with Charlton.
Cullen wants to make it at West Ham. Well if he changes his mind he will be very welcome here.
Let's see how he feels if we start to move up the table, and they get relegated.
That will make it more likely he stays there, won't it?
The only chance we have of getting him is if he isn't part of thier plans next season. If they are in the championship he probably will be.
I'm not sure that is the case (although it can be).
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but to me that club now has the sense of decline about it. All the dosh splashed on players as a result of the stadium deal has gone to waste, a large number of their fans hate the stadium; and despite being the most disorganised fan-base of all the London clubs, they are now doing just that. Gullivan and Brady have few friends. Bear in mind too, that they only extended his existing contract. Hardly a ringing commitment to him.
Suppose they do indeed go down, and meanwhile Bow steers us to, say, 12th position, with a vibrant fanbase constantly showing Josh their appreciation as they did on Wednesday, and we can match his wages. What would you choose in his shoes?
(wrong thread though, sorry)
I would sign for Charlton, but it hasn't been my dream to pull on the claret and blue for the last ten plus years. If West Ham had bought him at 18/19 and farmed him out it might be diffrent.
Not sure how organised or not, the fans are has much to do with it.
"Brighton, Burnley, Brentford and Sheffield United are role models."
4 well run clubs, but that would suggest that our aims are more the Curbishley/Murray years than anything more flashy (which is fine with me)
I don't think the more flashy option is realistically possible, without contravening FFP, even if we wanted and were able to.
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year. Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
£39m.
It’ll be interesting to see if we end up with a sponsor from the Middle East, that would be one way to increase what we can spend.
Longer term I can see us doing it through player sales. A good Championship season can make a player worth £10-20m.
I don’t want our better players to be sold, but I’d much rather we were the club selling them for £10m in the Championship than the one selling them for £1m in League 1.
"Brighton, Burnley, Brentford and Sheffield United are role models."
4 well run clubs, but that would suggest that our aims are more the Curbishley/Murray years than anything more flashy (which is fine with me)
I don't think the more flashy option is realistically possible, without contravening FFP, even if we wanted and were able to.
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year. Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
£39m.
It’ll be interesting to see if we end up with a sponsor from the Middle East, that would be one way to increase what we can spend.
Longer term I can see us doing it through player sales. A good Championship season can make a player worth £10-20m.
I don’t want our better players to be sold, but I’d much rather we were the club selling them for £10m in the Championship than the one selling them for £1m in League 1.
Quite, which is why we keep hearing MS talking about sponsorship.
"Brighton, Burnley, Brentford and Sheffield United are role models."
4 well run clubs, but that would suggest that our aims are more the Curbishley/Murray years than anything more flashy (which is fine with me)
I don't think the more flashy option is realistically possible, without contravening FFP, even if we wanted and were able to.
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year. Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
£39m.
It’ll be interesting to see if we end up with a sponsor from the Middle East, that would be one way to increase what we can spend.
Longer term I can see us doing it through player sales. A good Championship season can make a player worth £10-20m.
I don’t want our better players to be sold, but I’d much rather we were the club selling them for £10m in the Championship than the one selling them for £1m in League 1.
Quite, which is why we keep hearing MS talking about sponsorship.
And praising Brentford last night.
He said players will be sold but only after we've had them for a few years and for decent money.
Pitches don't have French Drains, they would only go beside a pitch. It's a trench with a land drain at the bottom that is back filled with pea gravel. It can help reduce the water table and as there is no soil/turf on the top, it takes surface run off away quickly to the land drain and away.
Ideal for use close to buildings with no damp proof course. Maybe we are saving money on construction costs 😉
The idea was some bloke in America called French.
It's Friday night and I've just spent 20 minutes reading about drains on wikipedia on the back of this post.
Cullen wants to make it at West Ham. Well if he changes his mind he will be very welcome here.
Let's see how he feels if we start to move up the table, and they get relegated.
That will make it more likely he stays there, won't it?
The only chance we have of getting him is if he isn't part of thier plans next season. If they are in the championship he probably will be.
I'm not sure that is the case (although it can be).
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but to me that club now has the sense of decline about it. All the dosh splashed on players as a result of the stadium deal has gone to waste, a large number of their fans hate the stadium; and despite being the most disorganised fan-base of all the London clubs, they are now doing just that. Gullivan and Brady have few friends. Bear in mind too, that they only extended his existing contract. Hardly a ringing commitment to him.
Suppose they do indeed go down, and meanwhile Bow steers us to, say, 12th position, with a vibrant fanbase constantly showing Josh their appreciation as they did on Wednesday, and we can match his wages. What would you choose in his shoes?
(wrong thread though, sorry)
The club who offers him the most money would be my guess.
All very encouraging. Massive thanks to @Pico for such an excellent summary.
The approach of steady and sustainable is one I strongly align with, no real interest in silly money signings and boom / bust approach even if it does seem more exciting.
They are being advised by a very experienced PR / Journo man (Hi Paul) so key things for me will be understanding whether they prove that all the good talk is actually followed through, and what certain individuals get out of this arrangement / ESI’s real goals.
Those things will emerge much further down the line so for now it’s 100% backing and hopefully the start of a rising period for our club.
I would have asked if there is a project in hand to hook up the underground soil heating at The Valley to the long awaited boiler? Actually I can’t remember if there is a boiler somewhere in situ or one needs to be bought?
I know there’s been plenty of lively & interesting chat about french drains, but the thing I found interesting about the CAST minutes is that 5 or so of our younger players will be offered new contracts, which I do find really encouraging, the more saleable assets we have the better.
I would have asked if there is a project in hand to hook up the underground soil heating at The Valley to the long awaited boiler? Actually I can’t remember if there is a boiler somewhere in situ or one needs to be bought?
"Brighton, Burnley, Brentford and Sheffield United are role models."
4 well run clubs, but that would suggest that our aims are more the Curbishley/Murray years than anything more flashy (which is fine with me)
I don't think the more flashy option is realistically possible, without contravening FFP, even if we wanted and were able to.
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year. Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
£39m.
It’ll be interesting to see if we end up with a sponsor from the Middle East, that would be one way to increase what we can spend.
Longer term I can see us doing it through player sales. A good Championship season can make a player worth £10-20m.
I don’t want our better players to be sold, but I’d much rather we were the club selling them for £10m in the Championship than the one selling them for £1m in League 1.
Quite, which is why we keep hearing MS talking about sponsorship.
And praising Brentford last night.
He said players will be sold but only after we've had them for a few years and for decent money.
Pitches don't have French Drains, they would only go beside a pitch. It's a trench with a land drain at the bottom that is back filled with pea gravel. It can help reduce the water table and as there is no soil/turf on the top, it takes surface run off away quickly to the land drain and away.
Ideal for use close to buildings with no damp proof course. Maybe we are saving money on construction costs 😉
The idea was some bloke in America called French.
It's Friday night and I've just spent 20 minutes reading about trains on wikipedia on the back of this post.
I would have asked if there is a project in hand to hook up the underground soil heating at The Valley to the long awaited boiler? Actually I can’t remember if there is a boiler somewhere in situ or one needs to be bought?
No boiler was ever installed. It is a requirement of the PL that undersoil heating is operational, but with "global warming" it may not ever be used.
cabbles said: I think that if you take the time to consider that we are being backed by the private sec to one of the ruling families of the UAE, this is big boy s*** for want of a better term.
This is where I’m confused , the private secretary of someone super duper wealthy , does that mean our man is wealthy as in more money than sense in order to burn money slowly on this project . No idea how it works out there but would a secretary of a rich person be loaded enough or is he trying to raise the capital through his contacts or prolly a bit of both . What I’m saying is is he loaded or not !
Very good CAST report of the meeting. I must admit that Matt Southall seems to be a very approachable chap and his openness in sharing plans with us is a breath of fresh air. I am much reassured.
Cullen wants to make it at West Ham. Well if he changes his mind he will be very welcome here.
Let's see how he feels if we start to move up the table, and they get relegated.
That will make it more likely he stays there, won't it?
The only chance we have of getting him is if he isn't part of thier plans next season. If they are in the championship he probably will be.
I'm not sure that is the case (although it can be).
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but to me that club now has the sense of decline about it. All the dosh splashed on players as a result of the stadium deal has gone to waste, a large number of their fans hate the stadium; and despite being the most disorganised fan-base of all the London clubs, they are now doing just that. Gullivan and Brady have few friends. Bear in mind too, that they only extended his existing contract. Hardly a ringing commitment to him.
Suppose they do indeed go down, and meanwhile Bow steers us to, say, 12th position, with a vibrant fanbase constantly showing Josh their appreciation as they did on Wednesday, and we can match his wages. What would you choose in his shoes?
(wrong thread though, sorry)
I would sign for Charlton, but it hasn't been my dream to pull on the claret and blue for the last ten plus years. If West Ham had bought him at 18/19 and farmed him out it might be diffrent.
Not sure how organised or not, the fans are has much to do with it.
Best to take a look at the Cullen thread, some interesting comments there, although the majority do feel West Ham less likely to sell if they are relegated.
The point about the fans is the atmosphere. It is likely to turn toxic and he players will not enjoy playing at home. The question is only whether they will organise and target their invective, or lapse into Spanner behaviour and fight with each other (which is already happening).
cabbles said: I think that if you take the time to consider that we are being backed by the private sec to one of the ruling families of the UAE, this is big boy s*** for want of a better term.
This is where I’m confused , the private secretary of someone super duper wealthy , does that mean our man is wealthy as in more money than sense in order to burn money slowly on this project . No idea how it works out there but would a secretary of a rich person be loaded enough or is he trying to raise the capital through his contacts or prolly a bit of both . What I’m saying is is he loaded or not !
We don't know, but he's definitely looking to raise capital through his contacts, because he has said so and is always banging on about commercial revenues and sponsorship.
oohaa.......Not quite sure from your post exactly who you are asking is wealthy.....Matt Southall or Sheik Nimmer.....or even the real No1 honcho (the head of the family), His Excellency Sheik etc etc etc?
Not quite sure from your post exactly who you are asking is wealthy.....Matt Southall or Sheik Nimmer.....or even the real No1 honcho (the head of the family), His Excellency Sheik etc etc etc?
Comments
Let's wait a week before choosing not to believe them.
Our best hope of keeping him is for them to stay up and after next pre-season they tell him he's not at the level they require.
If a player is in demand with numerous clubs chasing that player and they all make concrete bids, then that isn't the case that transfer fees would go down.
If in the case of Marcus Madison, the Owner and Manager of Peterborough have said he's not in their plans anymore, hence why the bid from Cafc and then Birmingham was accepted despite not reaching 2.5 million release clause, is an example backing up Matt Southall.
Maddison, if he has any ambition and wants to play in the Championship will go to Cafc or Birmingham in the coming week.
It may be wishful thinking on my part, but to me that club now has the sense of decline about it. All the dosh splashed on players as a result of the stadium deal has gone to waste, a large number of their fans hate the stadium; and despite being the most disorganised fan-base of all the London clubs, they are now doing just that. Gullivan and Brady have few friends. Bear in mind too, that they only extended his existing contract. Hardly a ringing commitment to him.
Suppose they do indeed go down, and meanwhile Bow steers us to, say, 12th position, with a vibrant fanbase constantly showing Josh their appreciation as they did on Wednesday, and we can match his wages. What would you choose in his shoes?
(wrong thread though, sorry)
Yes I know we may be close to break even this year, but we can still "only" lose £13M per season and £45M over 3 seasons going forward (if I'm correct).
So we can't spend an extra £10M in transfer fees and £5M in wages every year.
Any supporters that desire this, need to be realistic.
So thank you MS for being as open as you can and good luck this week
Not sure how organised or not, the fans are has much to do with it.
It’ll be interesting to see if we end up with a sponsor from the Middle East, that would be one way to increase what we can spend.
Longer term I can see us doing it through player sales. A good Championship season can make a player worth £10-20m.
I don’t want our better players to be sold, but I’d much rather we were the club selling them for £10m in the Championship than the one selling them for £1m in League 1.
He said players will be sold but only after we've had them for a few years and for decent money.
Of course, very similar was said six years ago.
Many thanks.
The approach of steady and sustainable is one I strongly align with, no real interest in silly money signings and boom / bust approach even if it does seem more exciting.
They are being advised by a very experienced PR / Journo man (Hi Paul) so key things for me will be understanding whether they prove that all the good talk is actually followed through, and what certain individuals get out of this arrangement / ESI’s real goals.
Those things will emerge much further down the line so for now it’s 100% backing and hopefully the start of a rising period for our club.
Actually I can’t remember if there is a boiler somewhere in situ or one needs to be bought?
MS has discussed it with the head groundsman.
No definite decision given.
No boiler was ever installed. It is a requirement of the PL that undersoil heating is operational, but with "global warming" it may not ever be used.
No idea how it works out there but would a secretary of a rich person be loaded enough or is he trying to raise the capital through his contacts or prolly a bit of both .
What I’m saying is is he loaded or not !
The point about the fans is the atmosphere. It is likely to turn toxic and he players will not enjoy playing at home. The question is only whether they will organise and target their invective, or lapse into Spanner behaviour and fight with each other (which is already happening).
Something we'll look at in the summer MS said.