Tuesday 5th May - "I like driving in my car..." (Thanks for the earworm Lyle)
The Mail Had A Charlton Scoop Tonight's excitement was kicked off by the Mail publishing a story that the police had been called in to retrieve two Range Rovers from Southall. There was some debate in the main thread about why the police would be involved rather than just the bailiffs, and whether he had any hope in his wrongful dismissal claim. Best response was probably from @LouisMend on twitter though:
"Probably for the best that the Range Rovers were seized as he clearly struggled to drive the bloody things, as we saw back at The Valley that time #cafc" (with video attached from the night of 12/03/2020)
The Social Media Tit-For-Tat Resumes Southall responded to the Mail story with a hastily deleted tweet appearing to show him still driving one of the Range Rovers, but he wasn't quick enough to stop screenshots and video clips being taken.
(video here, with NSFW audio)
While Nimer posted a reaction/clarification to the story on Instagram
Surprise Surprise, We're Back on TalkSport Again Chris Farnell showed up on the Jim White and Natalie Sawyer show this morning. Audio starts at about starts about 9:50, or you can just read the summary of what was said, but there wasn't really anything new to those of us that've been following this.
More on the Range Rovers Yesterday, as mentioned, some of us were
wondering why the police were getting involved rather than just the bailiffs, and @Rob7Lee has helpfully provided this screenshot from isitnicked.com, which seems to indicate that at least one of the Range Rovers has been reported as stolen. (For those of you, like me, who don't know what the "cherished transfer" thing is about, that's apparently to do with having personalised number plates)
Monday 11th May - You'd think we were playing Football Rogues' Gallery bingo...
Another Prospective Buyer For The Club? Nothing much happening over the weekend apart from this screenshot doing the rounds, which is apparently from the Sun, although I can't find the story on their website as yet.
The journalist whose story it appears to be has also tweeted the following:
"Cellino has always fancied Charlton as a project. And says he wants a club here again. Could do with moving in fast for it. Don’t know if that message has got across to him."
Southall threatens to sue CAST. Usually that'd be about it from CAST, but then Matt Southall retweeted this from his mate Nad:
https://twitter.com/NadstarNew2020/status/1261272511293112320 "Absolute waste of time as per usual, what are ppl paying £5 for? Why do u keep letting the 'illegitimate director' some random Romanian make false claims without letting @MattSouthall84
defend himself? He has offered to engage with you! Absolute joke organisation #cafc"
Unsurprisingly, this did not go down well
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1261280602474643459 "Probably shouldn’t rise to this tit for tat nonsense but it is noteable that ousted Chairman Matt Southall is currently threatening to sue the Charlton Athletic Supporters Trust because that’s the sort of club Charlton Athletic is these days. #cafc"
The CAST page on the threats to sue includes screenshots of the correspondence back and forth, but I'm not including it here, as the difference in page width between their site and this one means it's likely to be too small to be readable. Best just head to their site instead.
A Bit More TalkSport On Tuesday, Lee Bowyer went onto TalkSport mainly to talk about the issues around restarting the season, but also said when asked that they aren't getting any guidance from the ownership The interview starts at about 4 minutes and
@Sage very kindly provided a summary of the call.
Interview with Lyle The Conversation webshow, has a two part interview with Lyle Taylor. A taster segment is now up, and explains why Lyle is not keen on Southall.
These tweets give a brief flavour of his comments:
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1261272781183946755 "Lyle Taylor on his contract situation: "[Former Chairman Matt] Southall tried to stiff me and then tried to throw me under the bus after he stiffed me. You cannot even begin to imagine the circus that this football club has become." #cafc"
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1261332728676524033 "“The club’s a circus, it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw an AFC Charlton....the only people losing out are the club’s supporters.”
Pretty bold stuff from @lyletaylor90 and he’s right. Well worth a watch. #cafc (with a link to The Conversation's tweet of the interview video attached)"
Meanwhile Southall's friend Nad cherrypicks one comment to try to bolster Southall's reputation
https://twitter.com/NadstarNew2020/status/1261262177081720832 "Thank you @lyletaylor90 for confirming that @MattSouthall84, who fans claim fleeced CAFC of its cash, TURNED DOWN, over £3 MILLION for him in Jan. Money he could have 'fleeced' surely, instead KEEPING a promise to the fans!!
Sadly the holes in Tahnoons story keep appearing #cafc" (with the interview video attached)
Saturday 16th May - Southall Twitter Saturday
For those of you who think Southall shouldn't be given the oxygen of publicity (or even prefer the Linda Smith approach) you can probably skip this one.
First he got into a row with one of the CAFC Museum Trustees. https://twitter.com/MattSouthall84/status/1261582353673183232 "@BenHayes77 you were the ultimate fan boy from December until March. Begging me to come to the museum and trying to make yourself relevant.
Evicted.... from the business premises I own, and still do. Ok 👌🏽
From the comments you aren’t highly regarded amongst fans either."
Ben didn't mince his words in reply, and if you want to read the full exchange it's probably best to start from this tweet from Ben and work down, as these tweets remain up as of Saturday night.
It is unclear exactly when this document was produced, (although the reference to the Coronavirus outbreak does give a few pointers) and the response has been sceptical to say the least. https://twitter.com/mikechang85/status/1261602385320910848 "If you have a report that is supposedly in your favour and ruins Nimer etc, why wouldn’t you just publish it? At the moment all the published evidence shows you to be a leech"
ETA 17/05/2020 It appears Southall has now disabled his twitter account, or possibly had it suspended for posting the personal details of some fans who were criticising him on there.
On further inspection it seems it is a screenshot from the twitter feed of a fan who has locked down their account. Further locked tweets from this fan suggest that they've been told by a source from outside the club that a bid for the club has been accepted, but we haven't actually been sold yet. Who their source was and who is supposed to have made the bid remain unknown at this point. As this is all coming from the locked account of an ordinary fan, I won't be including screenshots here.
There may be more information tomorrow, we shall have to wait and see.
Please see below a short note from the club's Board of Directors...
The club has received notice of a change in ownership at East Street Investments (ESI).
ESI purchased Charlton in January from the previous owner Roland Duchatelet.
A
legal process has to take place for the change in ownership of ESI to
be completed. This is a positive step for the club and will offer some
much-needed stability. For legal reasons, we cannot go into any more
detail on the change in ownership.
We appreciate that supporters will have plenty of questions and, unfortunately, we cannot answer them at this stage.
We ask for your patience during this process, we will update you as soon as we can.
So, Who's Selling, And Who's Buying? https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1263775287541710848 "I know of one interested party in #cafc. Indications are that Matt
Southall asking for at least a high six-figure fee for his stake in the
football club."
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1263867511868620800 "There is somebody. But it’s not all done just yet. However it should be next week. Was a minor delay last week but that seems to be sorted. The previous two main figures will be gone."
I'm still banking on Chief Nzeribe making a surprise return
More from CAST The Supporters' Trust have published the latest set of questions they sent to Marian Mihail this week, but they've had no answers, presumably because of whatever's been going on in the background. Which is a shame, as some of the questions are directly relevent to the latest developments:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/no-answers-from-marian-mihail-this-week/
Another Lyle Interview This time it's with The Beautiful Game podcast on Instagram. In part one you can skip to 4m15 to bypass all the shoutouts to viewers), and part two recommences at 30s due to a line drop. For those who don't have time to watch the whole hour and a half, the following tweets and the clip attached to one of them should give you a bit of a flavour:
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1263942259126476800 "Ouch. A letter on pretend headed paper is coming Lyle Taylor’s way. #cafc" (with video attached)
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1263954453067190278 "More from Charlton striker Lyle Taylor on ESI's takeover at The Valley:
"I feel sorry for the Charlton fans. They’ve had a rough time with Roland, with everything that happened…. & just when you think it couldn’t get any worse, fucking Tweedledee and Tweedledum turn up." #cafc"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1263955535784587264 "LT - "What they’ve done is turn the club into a laughing stock. It’s a sham. It’s embarrassing. It really is embarrassing. We might have a conversation and almost laugh about it, and be like ‘fucking hell I cant believe their doing this,’ but actually, it’s embarrassing." #cafc"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1263955710444011520 "LT - "You’ve got two grown men, big men, having a full-blown civil war, like you’re saying, in public. A boardroom spat, throwing handbags. Lipstick getting thrown at each other. They’re big men, Big men, not kids." #cafc"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1263956071456092161 "LT - "It’s not like they don’t know business. Whether they’re any good at business is another question. If me and you are going to have business conversation, we’re not going to have it on a public forum. It’s not going to happen. Because it’s embarrassing." #cafc"
Saturday 23rd May - Another day, another leaked document...
Bad news, old news or fake news? After the announcement yesterday of an unspecified change of ownership at ESI, the CAFCFansForFans group tweeted this:
https://twitter.com/CAFCfansforfans/status/1264109844048629760 "So after yesterday's no news from what was shared the previous day to this today. Shed any light? @reluctantnicko@RichCawleySLP" (with the following document screenshots attached)
https://twitter.com/4everAddickted/status/1264128599625515010 "Yeah I do think its a false document (not written by Charlton fans of course) - The signatures match down to the angle they're written, one is in a different colour but its not difficult using photoshop"
Richard Cawley implies it is real (or at least it hasn't been invented in the last few days for the purpose of making Nimer look bad)
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1264141959507185664 "Bassini “claimed” to have an agreement in place in April. I saw the documentation then. But he told me a reason he wouldn’t be proceeding. I don’t want to get sued, so won’t be repeating them."
So, If Not Bassini, Then Who? https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1264126393857818625 "I think I know who it is. He’s been trying for weeks. He’s now ducking all calls. So I can’t confirm. He has been in football before. But he may have lost this to another party. So I can’t write it as yet. Whoever it is better be in soon ..."
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1264204003212173314 "There are multiple parties looking at buying #cafc, ranging from legitimate and credible to very undesirable. How much Mihail knows about that is, of course, unknown. But I don’t think the shitshow is anywhere near over, sadly."
Personally, I think this tweet from CAST sums up how I'm feeling about it all at the moment.
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1264218595002810371 "Seem to be more rumours circulating than there were goals when we came back to beat Huddersfield 7-6 all those years ago. #cafc" (plus link to Ben Ransom's tweet)
Airman has spotted another curious coincidence
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1264570105180102674 "On 19 July 2016, the [Swansea City] Supporters’ Trust was approached by Chris Farnell, a solicitor acting for Huw Jenkins and other selling parties..." Oh look, Mr Farnell works for Mr Jenkins. What a small world the buying and selling of clubs is. #cafc"
So, Is This Good News? @Valley11 has passed on the views of some Swansea fans he knows::
Hated now, which is harsh. Would have been given the Freedom of Swansea in 2013.
Very shrewd operator and tighter than a duck’s chuff. Hand on heart, would be a very good move for Charlton.
Then again....it’s the Sun reporting it.
His last move for the Swans was to block Leeds signing Dan James for peanuts. 6 months later, we sold him for £20m
Was a good chairman for a while in the lower leagues but started
believing his own press and controlling transfers.
[snip]...crap random signings toward the end. The rat sold us to the
Americans behind the supporters trusts back. The court case is ongoing.
What's The Latest On Bassini? Still conflicting reports I'm afraid. This morning, the word from Bassini was he was still pursuing the matter:
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1264852421693628418 "Laurence Bassini says that he has agreed a deal to buy Charlton. He says he is not involved with Huw Jenkins.
"I've made an offer, it's been accepted - the lawyers are dealing with it."
Bassini isn’t dealing with Southall. Both he and Jenkins are separately dealing with Nimer via Farnell.
I’m not even convinced this is just a two-horse race.
At least the confirmation of clear water between Bassini and Jenkins appears to be good news.
So, RD (who is being sued by the ex-CAFC directors)
has formed a consortium with Bassini (who is in a legal battle over Bolton)
to buy CARD and a Welsh person who is not a BBC news reader and has little money due to a nasty divorce (but has an on-going court case with Swansea's owners),
is buying the club which has no assets and no money from ESI who spent all the money and invested none of their own but they can't agree who owns them because Southall has fallen out with Nimer (and may be suing him over his removal from the CAFC board),
Bassini, Lyle Taylor and CARD or CAST (who he's threatened to sue for defamation)
but Southall will still wants 35% of the money that the Welsh person with no money but quite a good reputation in Swansea may invest if we don't get relegated but that's not clear either. All that is clear is that a bunch of lawyers are likely to make a
packet out of all this.
Tuesday 26th May - What a difference a year makes...
CAST Launch "Our Club. Our Future" Campaign In response to the ongoing turmoil at the club, CAST have launched their "Our Club. Our Future" campaign. This is aimed at getting as many Charlton fans as possible to register their support for fan ownership of the club if that looks necessary, so they can be mobilised quickly should that time come.
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1265310223390117891 "Charlton is in peril and we might need to take steps towards owning the club we love.
It won't take much, but it will take many....
http://castrust.org/ourclub #cafc #OurClubOurFuture" (with a link to a short video)
Former Charlton stalwart Steve Brown has signalled his support:
https://twitter.com/S66Brown/status/1265325262213873664 "It has become abundantly clear that Charlton need new owners, owners who will have the best interests of the club at its core. The supporters trust along with all Charlton supporters have always come together in difficult circumstances and they will again. #ourclubourfuture" (with a link to the CAST tweet)
Wednesday 27th May - "... in, out, in, out, shake it all about..."
Bassini Out To the relief of everybody except Bolton fans, it looks like Bassini has dropped his bid.
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1265614739817799682 "Laurence Bassini has told @SkySportsNews he is pulling out of attempted Charlton takeover.
He says a £1.2m deal was agreed in last 2 wks, but has told Tahnoon Nimer this lunchtime he is not going to proceed.
Instead he is continuing to investigate possibility of buying Bolton."
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1265616203776655360 "I’ve heard from at least a couple of different people that nothing is close. Huw Jenkins will not rush in, so that could only happen if TN was prepared to wait for a longer-term sale."
Another Square To Tick Off On Football Rogues' Gallery Bingo While Joe Cala may not be as infamous as some of those previously linked with us, he's not exactly got a sterling reputation, and it's also debatable whether he's actually put in a serious bid. https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1265666804724236289 "Joe Cala certainly wants his name linked with Charlton. Someone asked me and others to mention his name yesterday & now, out of the blue this afternoon, 3 separate accounts all mentioned it within 10 mins. Quick search shows none of these three account had mentioned #CAFC before" (with screenshots attached)
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1265668074566488064 "Don't think it means much, just funny how someone is so desperate to be seen to be linked with a Championship football club, rather than just going ahead to and doing it if they had the means. #cafc"
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1265691736195706883 "As a rule of thumb I am sceptical of anyone wanting to pick up #cafc from Nimer without buying The Valley at the same time. It depends on what the existing deal with RD is, but I don’t believe it’s entirely backloaded as some assume."
Someone In The Comms Department Had A Bad Morning www.cafc.co.uk was down this morning, which led to a brief flurry of excitement. Was this the prelude to a takeover being announced, or had someone not paid the hosting bill and the ISP had pulled the plug? First a holding page appeared, advising that the links to the shop and tickets areas of the site were still available (the latter caused some snarking) then it went down again completely. Eventually the full site came back up again, so it seems to just have been a result of unrelated technical issues.
A Possible Route To Fan Ownership/Minority Shareholding CAST put up a new page on its site discussing proposals for financial support for EFL clubs which might involve Supporters Trusts nominating independent directors to the boards of clubs that took it up:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/Damian-collins-mp-efl-clubs-require-public-funding/
Any Further Take Over News? Not really. Alan Nixon has some words of comfort for those fearing we may go into administration, but otherwise it's all a bit vague.
Friday 29th May - "... I need money, that's what I want..."
The Staff Have Been Paid After the uncertainty of the last week as to where the money was coming from to pay staff wages, we do at least now know that they have been paid.
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1266279119404150784 "Looks like Charlton’s staff have received their wages for the month of May.
Couple of irregularities in that no payslips were received this month and staff had been told that wages may arrive later in the day. So relief all around. #cafc"
There was some speculation that the wages had been paid by the ex-directors
https://twitter.com/cafcnew/status/1266268373161086984 "If the ex directors foot the wages today then fair play, but you realise that's just more debt to the club, they're not just gonna stump up half a mill as a present. Someone at some point will need to pay that back! #cafc"
But that seems to have originated in a tweet that's now deleted (based on a misreading of Wyn Grant's blog), as at least two of the former directors professed to know nothing about that.
https://twitter.com/BobWhitehand/status/1266277068058226688 "no who are these Ex Directors that are paying?"
Louis Mendez highlights one of the inconsistencies that's still floating around
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1266319078156894208 "Interesting stuff in latest
@CAStrust Q&A - but the fact that Southall still has 2 Range Rovers after Nimer went onto his Instagram to gloat about the Mail piece about them being seized by police sums this mess up. Chaotic & further proof you can't trust anyone involved with ESI"
Meanwhile at the end of the official site's page publishing the answers, it says:
"The club has contacted additional supporter groups (still including the Trust) to ask questions for Mihail's next update."
Anyone who's ever waded through an average set of minutes from the Fans Forum is now probably wondering how Mihail will answer the inevitable question about the potholes in the Valley car park.
Some More Thoughts On Fan Ownership After a few teething troubles with uploading the recording, this week's Charlton Live podcast featured an interview with Heather McKinlay of CAST about the "Our Club" campaign. The team also discussed the progress (or lack thereof) of the proposed takeover of ESI, and had interviews with Lee Bowyer and Jason Pearce about the return to training.
So, Who Are Corporate Football Organisation (Portugal)? @Scoham did a bit of digging and seems to have found Fernando Corte-Real's LinkedIn profile, while @RedRobin has found their website, which didn't inspire confidence for several different reasons, but particularly this bit:
I think they're aiming to emulate the "Moneyball" model, but it feels like Roland on steroids to me.
Probably not worth getting too far into it yet but having done a bit of googling of the names on the website:
arcadie zaporojan appears to be based in Moldova,
danko djikic appears to be a Croatian football agent, and
mohamed rezki appears to be the president of association of Moroccan football agents
Bit of quick research- Rui Gomes, named as Sport Partner to CFO, his Facebook page (https://m.facebook.com/Rui-gomes-163375341166645/), x07sports, very active football agent, barely a country he's not active in. Big(ish)
links with Bahrain nation team, also University Cluj in Romania, Al Ain
in UAE, and Al-Nasr in Saudi- I mention those as Ana Marie Prodan, agent
and friend of Claudiu Florica has done deals with Gomes before and
shares some of those club connections.
English links (probably just player deals) with Blackburn Rivers and Sheff Weds.
More people with extensive connections to football agents. Oh joy.
For once - I am ever so slightly in the know - and I'm sorry to say that the initial reaction of my very well connected Portuguese friends is that these people have no money and are as dodgy as hell and linked with even dodgier Eastern European people. They are checking further for me but first feedback was exceptionally negative
I think he was only joking, but @Chris_from_Sidcup may have a valid point as to how a consortium of this nature passes the EFL's Owners and Directors Test
[snip] Is anyone else reading the bit about "Our CFO team is a network of more
than 230 experts" and thinking "oh great not one Thomas Dreisen but 230
of the buggers."?
EFL will reject the takeover immediately then. Imagine them having to run the fit and proper person check on 230 people.
Who are you expecting a billionaire Charlton fan who has just woken up
from a 15 year long coma? A philanthropist that out of the blue wants
to pour millions into a community be probably had never heard of until
last week?
No serious business person would be linked to a basket
case, with unresolved ownership issues, during a world wide pandemic
and no idea what league we will be in next season or when fans will be
allowed back on the ground.
Varney followed up with:
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1268231454636507136 "It’s crucial in my opinion that whoever buys #CAFC also own The Valley and the Sparrows Lane training ground. Full story here
👇🏽" (with a link to the Airman Brown tweet above)
So, Who Are Peter Varney and Andrew Barclay? It'd be a rare Charlton fan who doesn't know who Peter Varney is, but just in case you're new round here, or fairly young, he was our CEO during our most successful period in the last 60 years, but later fell out with Richard Murray. Given that, some might wonder why Barclay would team up with Varney, but @Airman Brown has some suggestions as to why that might be the case:
If RD & Murray are anti Varney, why involve Varney? Why doesn't Barclay deal direct or use some one else?
Not able to speak for those involved, but If you wanted someone to
navigate these difficult waters it would always be Varney because he has
been there and done it. I doubt if Andrew Barclay wanted to deal with
any of the current cast. Whatever Murray’s position might be on Varney,
PV is also the one most likely to be able to calm things with the three
ex-directors currently going legal. Similarly he has the trust of the
fans, as the reaction tonight shows.
If you want to know more, the official profile on Peter Varney's website is here.
Is this the Andrew Barclay currenly facing legal action for "misuse of private information, breach of confidence and breach of data protection laws" over the sale of the Ritz? Perfect fit...
(I assume as a civil rather than criminal case it wouldn't affect any EFL fit and proper tests)
It seems that the case is a result of some kind of family feud, and there's a bit more about it on the BBC News website.
I first spoke to Andrew Barclay in March so have had to keep this under
my hat for a long while, but hopefully it was worth the wait. He seems
very genuine and he certainly has the funds.
https://twitter.com/mattjobob/status/1268250058119675905 "You don't have to be a supporter to run a football club, but you do have to care about it.
Anyone who knows Peter, or has worked with him, knows of both his
deep love for #cafc and his keen knowledge of what's best for the club.
He can fix Charlton. But only if gets the chance" (with a link to the Peter Varney tweet above)
https://twitter.com/bentegg/status/1268244940196323329 "There is no one better to run #cafc than this man. He knows the club and it’s supporters better than anyone as unlike any of the potential buyers he is a supporter." (with a link to the Peter Varney tweet above)
At last a glimmer of hope, mainly because
someone we know and trust is involved. I don't know anything about the
Barclays other than what I've read in Private Eye but I don't doubt for a
minute that Peter Varney is working in the best interests of the club.
If he can arrange it so the current and previous owners can fade into
the history books I will be a happy Addick again.
Thursday 4th June - "... Who told you you're allowed to rain on my parade?..."
Something Doesn't Quite Add Up Here After all the excitement of last night, we came down to earth with a bump this morning when this screenshot of a conversation with Mihail showed up
"Thank you for your e-mail. Peter Varney sounds amazing on paper. Unfortunately, last night was the first time I’ve heard of a possible bid any only through the media. Nothing has ever gone into the club, officially or unofficially.
This obviously led to further questions https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1268482878654078977 "#cafc Marian Mihail has now claimed that the first “the club” knew of Varney’s approach was through my VOTV article yesterday. Yet I know Nimer’s lawyer Chris Farnell has been in contact with Varney for weeks. How very strange..."
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1268495713702490112 "The statement put out by Mihail today is misleading, as I have been in contact with Chris Farnell (Nimer’s lawyer) for two months." (with a link to the Airman Brown tweet above)
https://twitter.com/AlanDavo55/status/1268486757814804481 "So, is Mihail lying, or is Farnell keeping him and Nimer in the dark while he manoeuvres his preferred buyers? What does Farnell stand to gain? Being paid by both sellers and “preferred” buyers?"
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1268589519785336834 "Possible things Chris Farnell might claim Peter Varney was discussing with him over last 2 months: Chance to buy a second-hand Range Rover? Potential for partnership with Michael Slater and Katrien Meire? Starring role in British version of Better Call Saul?"
More From CAST CAST have been investigating a number of ownership models initiated by fans at other clubs, and @BDL has been talking with Garry Halliday, who came up with the idea for The Foundation of Hearts. The video of their chat is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGmnggf3IW4
A Bit More On What's Going On Behind The Scenes Steve Gallen was on Radio 5 with Adrian Chiles at lunchtime today talking about the potential restart. You can listen to the audio here starting at 1h43, but the following tweets give a flavour of his comments about the takeover.
https://twitter.com/Iandennisbbc/status/1268872695283941379 "Charlton Director of Football, Steve Gallen on takeover talk, “we have a group of staff, skeleton staff really, who are fighting every day to keep the club afloat. I’ve heard lots of rumours about potential takeovers and we need it”..... 1/2 #cafc"
https://twitter.com/Iandennisbbc/status/1268872698119233539 "“We need someone to come in and lead our football club, in particular to give it some stability in the short term. Peter Varney is very well respected so if that’s the one that happens I’ll welcome it” but says anyone else who can help then happy to work with them. #cafc"
London calling And then there is
England. Again? The acquisition of Leeds United was a thorny issue and
initially contested by the Football League. A break that certainly will
not facilitate a possible acquisition of an English club, especially in
the initial phase, which Cellino is thinking about. The first
possibility is called Charlton United, with Tahnoon Nimer having already
given the placet to sell the south-east London club to the Italian. The
possibility of having a club in London, although in difficulty (it is
in the relegation zone in the Championship), will attract him. The other
possibilities concern two equally important clubs: one is Reading,
always in the Championship, and fourteenth after thirty-seven days. Two
positions higher than Birmingham, the third English club to be examined
by the current number one of Brescia.
Many question marks This
is a scenario and a possibility. Because that of selling Brescia, and
it would certainly not be an instantaneous operation but which would
take months to complete, is an idea. One chance. But Massimo Cellino
would get tired of what he would call battles against windmills in
Italian football. And for this reason he would think of a return to
English football. But first you need to be convinced of your ideas. Sell
the best, without selling them. Define the agreement with the
buyer. Having the ok of the Football League. Find the right club in
England. Purchase it. So many question marks. It is only the first piece
of a domino. Maybe.
However, given they can't even get the name of the club right, the accuracy of it as a whole may be open to question.
The Calm Before The Storm Over the weekend there was this somewhat garbled clip in The Sun about the possible takeover, which still hasn't made it onto their website.
The reaction to this was generally one of people trying to work out how this would play out long term, and a degree of puzzlement as to how the owner's lawyer could be involved in the consortium buying the club without it being a conflict of interest:
https://twitter.com/cafcfan87/status/1270095723120427009 "Surely Chris Farnell action on behalf of nimer for the sale of club then takes over himself is some sort of conflict of interest? Smell another f***ing rat #CAFC"
The difficulty for a serious buyer is Duchatelet and the existing commitments that ESI has entered into, which can’t be sorted out overnight. However, the EFL’s financial requirement won’t disappear with Nimer, which means Farnell will have to show them the money.
Nimer appeared on instagram apparently confirming the sale
This post has now been deleted, although opinions differ as to whether that was because he jumped the gun on the announcement by the club, or due to the vastly negative reaction that it got.
Or It Might Be More Complicated Than That However, whoever runs the Vital Charlton fansite's twitter account had some conflicting information
https://twitter.com/VitalCharlton/status/1270119037188669441 "Spoke to Chris Farnell he has confirmed he is not the purchaser nor is it headed up by him and it will all become clearer tomorrow.
I guess we wait. #cafc"
That Paul Elliott? This caused some confusion, given that when you say "Paul Elliott" to a Charlton fan they think of our former defender, who was associated with the Australian bid for the club. But according to his entry on Wikipedia (and probably The Valiant 500, but I don't have that to hand) he was born in Lewisham, while the Paul Elliott in the Mail story was apparently born in Hammersmith and is based in Manchester.
And no, it's not this Paul Elliott either:
https://twitter.com/OWSILKSE7/status/1270121842695602178 (I think the Mail would've mentioned if we'd been about to be bought by the surviving Chuckle Brother, and he's from Rotherham, so he's out too)
A few people have done some digging on LinkedIn etc and have come up with some possible candidates, but we can't say for certain which if any of them is the correct one at this stage, so I'm not going to link to them until we've got a confirmed ID.
After loaning Matt Smith in January, but not the former Doctor Who or the dangerous Millwall striker, we are now being taken over by Paul Elliott but not the famous one who used to play for us!
Knowing our luck, he'll then sell us on to a consortium of Bill Gates, an accountant from Devizes and Richard Branson, a builder from Taunton.
And We're Back To Virtual Radio Silence Despite the media reports last night and the Nimer's instagram post, we've still not had anything from the club. Unless you count the CAFCOfficial twitter feed posting pictures of the players back training at the Valley.
@DubaiCAFC got in touch with Mihail, and got this response
But then again, it might be tomorrow.
https://twitter.com/Rob_Waghorn/status/1270394134822518785 "Had a brief convo this morning with Chris Farnell. Says positive takeover. Updated just now that statement could still be today but likely tomorrow. Thats all i know. #cafc"
Anything Positive To Report? If you're looking for signs of hope, early on this morning there was this https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1270267171076276224 "Andrew and I have been kept fully informed by the new #CAFC owners and discussions between us are progressing."
Meanwhile, Simon Jordan going off on one about the EFL's ownership rules is quite entertaining
https://twitter.com/talkSPORT/status/1270317876000501760 ""You can't let these clowns keep coming through the door." ❌
"It [clubs] should have a blue plaque above the door."
"You [should] have to put a £10m bounty up." ✅
@SJOpinion10 calls on changes to the EFL's fit and proper person test with #CAFC set for another takeover. 🔴" (with video clip attached)
Not sure if anyone else has posted this, but if the PV/AB takeover goes through before we pick up our next three points, we'll have had more owners in 2020 than wins...
Reaction To The Statements Unsurprisingly underwhelmed so far
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1270672910198493184 "Imagine announcing a “consortium” has acquired the club but only naming one person involved in it. Only at #cafc."
And There May Be A Major Spanner In The Works I'm not entirely sure this makes sense, but as I haven't seen the takeover agreement, I can't say. Thanks to @KillersBeard for asking the questions we probably all are right now
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1270674101611499520 "As per ESI takeover agreement with RD, the latest ownership change means he can now immediately ask for the £50m owed for transfer of the Valley and Training Ground. I’m told by someone who spoke to RD yesterday that he’s ‘furious’ so expect that debt to be called in #cafc"
https://twitter.com/KillersBeard/status/1270681023156756482 "But the club is still owned by the same entity. Unless the agreement takes into account ownership change of ESI, in which case who is liable for the debt, the old owners or the new owners?"
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1270685258476912640 "That’s not true, technically we’re told the holding company remains ESI but the shareholding has changed hands. It’s up to RD and his legal team what they do from here and how they go about reclaiming the debt."
https://twitter.com/KillersBeard/status/1270705843961503746 "Not having a pop Ben and trust me, I'm not expecting you to unravel the complexities of the CAFC ownership. But surely the shareholding of a company doesn't impact on what it owns? So I'm not clear on what part of what I said isn't true. No big deal though."
@Airman Brown is a bit sceptical
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1270679553095217154 "It’s quite possible that the January deal with ESI also allows RD to reverse the sale of #cafc to ESI on the basis the takeover was never fully ratified by the EFL. But that would probably force him to pick up liabilities incurred since, at least initially."
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1270684460380536833 "As usual, RD has no one but himself to blame for the mess created. He had multiple legitimate buyers for #cafc and The Valley at a generous price but instead chose to do a deal with people who didn’t have the money because he wanted more."
Wednesday 10th June Late Night Edition - And it's leaked document time again
The Corporate Guarantee Document Remember Ben Ransom's tweet about the takeover agreement meaning Roland could demand the £50m for the Valley and the Training Ground straight away? This evening screenshots purporting to be segments of that document were leaked. As ever, we don't know if it's real, where it's come from, and whether there are other clauses that would affect our understanding of the document in the pages we haven't seen, so a degree of caution is warranted. (And those of you who are allergic to legalese will need to do some rapid scrolling)
Luckily a few Lifers were willing to try to interpret the significance
@Addickted explained here:
10.2 would appear to be the relevant clause, but rather than the £50m being paid on demand as suggested, then the lender (Duchatalet) would have redress against the guarantor (Nimer) through the Courts.
Good luck with an EU citizen trying to sue a UAE citizen through the British Courts.
It is a corporate guarantee so East Street Investments Limited are the guarantor.
On that basis and assuming ESI continues to exist in that or any other name (as long as the Company Number remains 12312818) then the guarantee and its obligations has not been assigned to a third party. It doesn't matter who owns ESI.
However, clause 10.2 ends with '...another person'. This either indicates poor wording as if it is a corporate guarantee then it should read '...another entity' - or it indicates that there is a personal guarantor - perhaps Nimer. If the latter then the 'sale' of the club to Farnell/Elliot would breach that clause of the contract.
Half of JMW's legal fees have apparently not yet been paid £72k remains outstanding. This is Michael Blood's firm, he who set up ESI and is also a business partner of Heller, jettisoned from cafc along with MS.
It turns out that the Letter Before Action that JMW has issued due to non-payment of an invoice has supposedly been leaked, which threatens requesting a winding up order for ESI if they don't receive payment by the 24th.
In addition to the invoice, the Letter Before Action apparently also includes a bunch of other stuff relating to the invoice such as a Letter of Engagement, which caused a few people to smell a rat:
The introduction letter is dated 17 January. Thank you for choosing us, this is what we will do for you, sign here etc etc dated AFTER the work was done?
Exactly why it's been queried and not paid.
It also doesn't seem to have the client signatures on it, which I would have thought would be needed to authorise the work.
The Mysterious Paul Elliott Still no sign of Paul Elliott making himself known to the fanbase, but Chris Farnell attempts to be reassuring
CAST continue to press for answers:
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1270812006657011713 "
Today we have written to the newly named owner of ESI and hence #cafc seeking an urgent meeting and clarity on short, medium and long term plans.
#OurClubOurFuture"
And Another Round of "Surely That's Fake?" This time it was a twitter account claiming to be Andrew Barclay's turn to go off on one on social media, and the rest of us trying to work out if it really was him or not.
https://twitter.com/andrewdbarclay/status/1270802869185380361 "Joke of a situation.
Not representative of the big South London club Charlton Athletic with a great history.
Rename to Charlatan Athletic until situation resolved with stable leaders/owners ?
EFL farting around whilst clubs go under and stripped to the bone by conmen. Very sad."
https://twitter.com/andrewdbarclay/status/1270803764216242176 "How is it any other business being managed in this manner, stripped of its soul, sold for a pound to buyers with no credibility, stakeholders lose out etc, gets the attention of MP’s, parliament,media
When it comes to football, nothing. Social impact will be huge if continues"
https://twitter.com/andrewdbarclay/status/1270815946941370369 "My comments are purely a frustration at the governance around football particularly in the lower leagues. Want the media/politicians to start holding people to account.
As Peter mentioned he is up to date with recent developments and in touch, we remain keen."
Some thought that perhaps discretion should be the better part of valour at this point, given that if he is going to buy the club then he's going to have to deal with both the current owners of ESI and the EFL, but others were quite sympathetic:
I find it really odd that it’s been a couple of days since this Paul Elliot ( not that one ) has been announced yet there hasn’t been a single picture of him . I know how resourceful some people on CL can be and still not photo . Not even in the press. That’s beyond weird .
Meanwhile The Sun's Alan Nixon had some more inside information:
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1271010582771183618 "Charlton. Elliott and his allies put money in for wages last month. And will do this month whether the EFL test is arranged in time or not."
Hedging his bets a bit with some of those comments - makes it sound like he'd be willing to step aside for different investors.
He's largely said the right things though. Very much distancing himself from the approach of the last lot. I don't mind the lack of grandiose promises of promotion and 5 years plans, because actions speak louder than words. I'll give him the benefit of the doubt for now.
Welcome to Charlton Paul, please treat it with the care and respect it deserves.
Got to remember that the EFL still hasnt actually approved this latest takeover - thats the first step these guys need to prove before I start to have any faith in them
Get through the Directors test, provide the source of funds, getting us out of this damned transfer embargo and then I'll listen some more
Because if that last bit isnt sorted and we do survive this season then it'll all be for nothing next year because we'll truly go down without a whimper seeing we wont be able to sign anyone!!
I’m sure you and your people are on here Paul so don’t take things to heart.
We have zero trust in words from owners / investors as they have repeatedly proven to be PR managed nonsense and outright lies.
If your intentions are genuine then that will be proven over time and fans will be behind you 100%.
But for now, forgive us for our cynicism and lack of trust. It’s nothing personal, But a lot of this purchase doesn’t really make sense and we’ve been burnt a couple of times now.
Make up the HMRC arrears
Evidence sell-on-clauses weren’t sold last month
Write a £50mil cheque to Roland
Spoken & paid back the ex-directors
Satisfied the EFL source & sufficiency test
Told Farnell to do one
That went down on twitter even less well:
https://twitter.com/sl_cardiff/status/1271178941131378693 "What a greedy, theiving, self-important, gob-shite that man is. Only interested in lining his own pockets. Zero integrity, no concept of right and wrong. And zero respect from everyone unfortunate enough to have encountered him."
https://twitter.com/Chips11/status/1271206776365625351 "Opportunist with no scruples. Targets ‘rich’ buyers with nonsense credentials and when they bite, and it all goes tits up, sues them to make a buck. (Soaks up fans’ praise in meantime). #rat"
It'll be interesting to see how much dirt gets dished by ESI in response
Meanwhile @Addickted isn't convinced that it's going to get anywhere (although perhaps the Covid-19 provisions will have expired by December and that's why the court date isn't till then):
You cannot, for now, present a winding-up petition against a company based on a statutory demand that was served between 1 March 2020 and 30 June 2020 (or one month after the Bill comes into force, if later), or based on the company's inability to pay its debts unless you have reasonable grounds for believing COVID-19 has not had a financial effect on the company or the debt issues would have arisen anyway.
Friday 12th June - "...We won't get fooled again..."
And Now For Our Regular Friday Features CAST have posted their weekly update here:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-8/ This includes the following explanation as to why there aren't any answers to supporters questions this week:
"Marian Mihail ... told us that, given the recent change of circumstances, he was not in a position to respond this week".
I'm not sure whether this just means he's been too busy, or the takeover means he's literally no longer in a position to. We shall have to wait and see.
For those of use who aren't especially legal-minded @Blucher has written a detailed post explaining how they think it will pan out. I'm not going to quote it all here, but basically they agree with @Addickted's point from yesterday about the Covid-19 provisions, and also point out that the winding up petition could be seen as an "attempt to exercise unfair leverage" in the dispute over those payments. And in conclusion:
I very much doubt that the club's lawyers will waste time and money
applying for an injunction, given the hopelessness of Southall's
position. They will presumably write to his solicitors inviting them to
withdraw the petition and, if that is ignored, write to the court
explaining the position.
The BBC News piece on the story had a response to Farnell's statement from Southall's new lawyer:
His lawyer, Paul Daniels, added: "He has been treated blatantly unlawfully and wrongfully dismissed in breach of contract.
"Substantial claims are now in process against the club, which will be vigorously pursued, if they are not resolved amicably."
Also some people were querying whether Southall could sue for wrongful dismissal as he'd only been in post for a few months, and you don't gain full employment rights until you've been in a job for 2 years. Luckily @Bob Munro is an expert in these things:
With less than two years' service he has not gained full employment
rights to be able to claim ordinary unfair dismissal at an employment
tribunal. The exception would be if the reason for the dismissal was for
example a protected characteristic - race, disability, sexual
orientation etc... - in which case there is no two year qualifying
period. This relates to statutory rights under employment law.
Wrongful
dismissal is a different thing altogether - it relates to contractual
breaches i.e. the dismissal breaches specific terms or conditions of the
employment contract. This can be challenged in a civil court, whereas
unfair dismissal is the jurisdiction of the Employment Tribunal Service.
Therefore wrongful dismissal relates to contract law rather than
employment law, and there is no equivalent qualifying period.
Fan Scepticism About ESI Continues Despite Takeover It seems there was a protest at the Valley today by some members of the @CAFCFans4Fans group, although oddly there's not anything on their twitter feed about it
Almost all the public leaks have come from Southall's side yet seem to show him in the worst light possible. Why would that be?
How have 4 of them disappeared off the face of the earth? Why do new players keep popping up, where from and why?
Why are at least 3 solicitors/lawyers involved? Why was Blood replaced? Who is running the financial side of the club now? Why and where did the CFO go? Is he a chartered accountant?
What's the clubs income actually been since January? Did Roland actually leave millions in the till? And let them have it for £1?
Various Radio Interviews Lewis Catt from the Charlton Live podcast was on Talksport on Saturday morning. The
audio starts at about 6m40. (Bowyer and Matt Baker the club chaplain have also been on today, but they weren't talking about stuff to do with the ownership so I haven't linked to those clips)
A Little Catching Up With the focus on the upcoming resumption of actual football this week, there's not really been any concrete news on the ownership issues, although on Wednesday evening Peter Varney tweeted the following:
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1273285286940770306 "Andrew Barclay and I had further constructive talks with Paul Elliott and Chris Farnell today and are considering their position further. Both sides have agreed to maintain an ongoing dialogue in the best interests of the football club"
Someone described this as a light at the end of the tunnel, but at present the tunnel appears to be a fairly long one.
Most of the contents will be familiar to regular readers of this post apart from the fact that a meeting with the EFL to discuss the misconduct investigation has been postponed until further notice, and Paul Elliott will arrange to meet CAST once the EFL has approved the takeover.
Weekend media coverage Given the resumption of the season there have been various bits of coverage about Charlton in the media over the weekend, several of which have touched on the ownership situation in some way.
Soccer Saturday had a quick rundown of what had gone on so far, and interviews with some of the Charlton Live guys.
Football Focus had an interview with Lee Bowyer (starts at about 43 minutes)
The Charlton Live podcast was mostly focussed on the Hull game, but had a quick discussion 5 minutes from the end triggered by Paul Elliott's appearance in the stands there.
There wasn't much in the papers, apart from a Mail on Sunday article which said the club would "provide information about the new board to the EFL before the end of this week and prove their new board is fit for purpose", although whether the absence of any mention of source and sufficiency of funds is a deliberate omission on the part of the person who briefed the journalist, I can't say. It also threw some new names into the mix.
Staunch Partners - Who Are They? The Companies House Listing for Staunch Partners doesn't tell us a great deal more than is in that MoS article, although interestingly Staunch Partners was only incorporated a week after ESI was, and less than a fortnight before the bid for the club was announced. Coincidence? 🤷♀️
Any More Details Of Who Actually Owns The Club? Well the Comms Team have finally updated the "Ownership" page on the OS, but it's not exactly informative:
“A consortium led by businessman Paul Elliott” isn’t enough to satisfy EFL disclosure rules.
In addition, the Companies House listing for ESI still shows Nimer, Farnell, Florica, Heller, Southall and the two Mihail brothers as active officers, with Southall and Panorama Magic still listed under "Persons with significant control". Meanwhile Nimer, Florica and Marian Mihail are still listed as officers in the Companies House listing for CAFC Ltd.
Dodger And Co Have Been Doing Some More Digging But I'm going to come back to this tomorrow, as it involves more Companies House listings, The London Gazette, Solicitors Regulation Authority guidance and possibly Insolvency Service records, and quite frankly it's not something I can get my head round when I've already got a headache.
Comments
Tonight's excitement was kicked off by the Mail publishing a story that the police had been called in to retrieve two Range Rovers from Southall. There was some debate in the main thread about why the police would be involved rather than just the bailiffs, and whether he had any hope in his wrongful dismissal claim. Best response was probably from @LouisMend on twitter though:
Southall responded to the Mail story with a hastily deleted tweet appearing to show him still driving one of the Range Rovers, but he wasn't quick enough to stop screenshots and video clips being taken.
(video here, with NSFW audio)
While Nimer posted a reaction/clarification to the story on Instagram
That prompted Southall to post this on twitter:
And Lyle's Back On Instagram Again
Media Coverage:
So far, only The Mail, as mentioned up there.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8289547/Former-Charlton-chairman-Southall-two-Range-Rovers-worth-100-000-seized-police.html
Chris Farnell showed up on the Jim White and Natalie Sawyer show this morning. Audio starts at about starts about 9:50, or you can just read the summary of what was said, but there wasn't really anything new to those of us that've been following this.
Yesterday, as mentioned, some of us were wondering why the police were getting involved rather than just the bailiffs, and @Rob7Lee has helpfully provided this screenshot from isitnicked.com, which seems to indicate that at least one of the Range Rovers has been reported as stolen.
(For those of you, like me, who don't know what the "cherished transfer" thing is about, that's apparently to do with having personalised number plates)
The Supporters' Trust have published the latest set of answers received from Marian Mihail to their weekly questions here:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/marian-mihails-response-to-supporter-questions/
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-4/
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/protecting-the-future-of-charlton-athletic-2/
GSP.ro piece that includes a partial screenshot of the EFL letter confirming Florica has passed the ODT:
Original & Google Translate version
* I really hope I haven't jinxed us with that heading...
Nothing much happening over the weekend apart from this screenshot doing the rounds, which is apparently from the Sun, although I can't find the story on their website as yet.
VOTV: Let's stop pretending - Nimer is looking to sell up
The Supporters' Trust have published the latest set of answers received from Marian Mihail to their weekly questions here:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/marian-mihail-responds-to-supporter-questions-2/
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-5/.
Usually that'd be about it from CAST, but then Matt Southall retweeted this from his mate Nad:
https://twitter.com/NadstarNew2020/status/1261272511293112320
"Absolute waste of time as per usual, what are ppl paying £5 for? Why do u keep letting the 'illegitimate director' some random Romanian make false claims without letting @MattSouthall84 defend himself? He has offered to engage with you! Absolute joke organisation #cafc"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1261280602474643459
"Probably shouldn’t rise to this tit for tat nonsense but it is noteable that ousted Chairman Matt Southall is currently threatening to sue the Charlton Athletic Supporters Trust because that’s the sort of club Charlton Athletic is these days. #cafc"
"Attacking the @CAStrust, who are only trying to get to the bottom of what's going on at the club, is, and I can't stress this enough, not a good look. #cafc"
"I think Matt Southall and Nad the beard just scored the biggest #cafc own goal since Naby and Dillon at Wembley @CAStrust"
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1261291867917950977
"An email sent by Matthew Southall to the Board of the Trust has been made public. Whilst we would much prefer not to conduct our affairs over social media, we think it important, for reasons of transparency, that our members see our response: https://castrust.org/2020/05/cast-responds-to-southalls-threat-to-sue/ #cafc"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1261292479330091009
"After an exchange of emails, Matt Southall has informed @CAStrust that he has now forwarded the matter to his "legal advisors" #cafc"
"I wonder if Southall will refuse to pay these "legal advisors" as he did previously. #cafc"
On Tuesday, Lee Bowyer went onto TalkSport mainly to talk about the issues around restarting the season, but also said when asked that they aren't getting any guidance from the ownership
The interview starts at about 4 minutes and @Sage very kindly provided a summary of the call.
The Conversation webshow, has a two part interview with Lyle Taylor. A taster segment is now up, and explains why Lyle is not keen on Southall.
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1261272781183946755
"Lyle Taylor on his contract situation: "[Former Chairman Matt] Southall tried to stiff me and then tried to throw me under the bus after he stiffed me. You cannot even begin to imagine the circus that this football club has become." #cafc"
"Taylor says that the contract offer he received from Matt Southall when ESI came in was even lower than the one Roland Duchatelet had offered in the summer. #cafc"
"“The club’s a circus, it wouldn’t surprise me if we saw an AFC Charlton....the only people losing out are the club’s supporters.”
Pretty bold stuff from @lyletaylor90 and he’s right. Well worth a watch. #cafc (with a link to The Conversation's tweet of the interview video attached)"
https://twitter.com/NadstarNew2020/status/1261262177081720832
"Thank you @lyletaylor90 for confirming that @MattSouthall84, who fans claim fleeced CAFC of its cash, TURNED DOWN, over £3 MILLION for him in Jan. Money he could have 'fleeced' surely, instead KEEPING a promise to the fans!! Sadly the holes in Tahnoons story keep appearing #cafc" (with the interview video attached)
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-limbo-owner-tahnoon-nimer-waits-efl-feedback-a4441786.html
For those of you who think Southall shouldn't be given the oxygen of publicity (or even prefer the Linda Smith approach) you can probably skip this one.
https://twitter.com/MattSouthall84/status/1261582353673183232
"@BenHayes77 you were the ultimate fan boy from December until March. Begging me to come to the museum and trying to make yourself relevant.
Evicted.... from the business premises I own, and still do. Ok 👌🏽
From the comments you aren’t highly regarded amongst fans either."
https://twitter.com/MattSouthall84/status/1261595890978095105
This tweet is currently still up
This tweet has now been deleted
This tweet has also now been deleted
https://twitter.com/mikechang85/status/1261602385320910848
"If you have a report that is supposedly in your favour and ruins Nimer etc, why wouldn’t you just publish it? At the moment all the published evidence shows you to be a leech"
ETA 17/05/2020 It appears Southall has now disabled his twitter account, or possibly had it suspended for posting the personal details of some fans who were criticising him on there.
https://twitter.com/CAFCfansforfans/status/1263506835300106241
After last night's flurry of excitement, some information from a more official source.
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5ec7ede3b290f/a-note-from-clubs-board-of-directors
Please see below a short note from the club's Board of Directors...
The club has received notice of a change in ownership at East Street Investments (ESI).
ESI purchased Charlton in January from the previous owner Roland Duchatelet.
A legal process has to take place for the change in ownership of ESI to be completed. This is a positive step for the club and will offer some much-needed stability. For legal reasons, we cannot go into any more detail on the change in ownership.
We appreciate that supporters will have plenty of questions and, unfortunately, we cannot answer them at this stage.
We ask for your patience during this process, we will update you as soon as we can.
The Board of Directors
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1263775287541710848
"I know of one interested party in #cafc. Indications are that Matt Southall asking for at least a high six-figure fee for his stake in the football club."
"Bassini claimed to have an agreement to buy the club, but there were reasons he reckoned he would not proceed."
"There is somebody. But it’s not all done just yet. However it should be next week. Was a minor delay last week but that seems to be sorted. The previous two main figures will be gone."
"It’s not Cellino. And I never heard Ashley."
The Supporters' Trust have published the latest set of questions they sent to Marian Mihail this week, but they've had no answers, presumably because of whatever's been going on in the background. Which is a shame, as some of the questions are directly relevent to the latest developments:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/no-answers-from-marian-mihail-this-week/
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-6/
This time it's with The Beautiful Game podcast on Instagram. In part one you can skip to 4m15 to bypass all the shoutouts to viewers), and part two recommences at 30s due to a line drop. For those who don't have time to watch the whole hour and a half, the following tweets and the clip attached to one of them should give you a bit of a flavour:
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1263942259126476800
"Ouch. A letter on pretend headed paper is coming Lyle Taylor’s way. #cafc" (with video attached)
"More from Charlton striker Lyle Taylor on ESI's takeover at The Valley:
"I feel sorry for the Charlton fans. They’ve had a rough time with Roland, with everything that happened…. & just when you think it couldn’t get any worse, fucking Tweedledee and Tweedledum turn up." #cafc"
"LT - "What they’ve done is turn the club into a laughing stock. It’s a sham. It’s embarrassing. It really is embarrassing. We might have a conversation and almost laugh about it, and be like ‘fucking hell I cant believe their doing this,’ but actually, it’s embarrassing." #cafc"
"LT - "You’ve got two grown men, big men, having a full-blown civil war, like you’re saying, in public. A boardroom spat, throwing handbags. Lipstick getting thrown at each other. They’re big men, Big men, not kids." #cafc"
"LT - "It’s not like they don’t know business. Whether they’re any good at business is another question. If me and you are going to have business conversation, we’re not going to have it on a public forum. It’s not going to happen. Because it’s embarrassing." #cafc"
"LT - "I can’t believe some of the thigs that I’ve seen. It’s mad. To be completely honest, the sooner it’s sorted out the better for everyone." #cafc"
BBC Sport https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52777864
Evening Standard https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-receive-notice-change-in-ownership-east-street-investments-a4449066.html
After the announcement yesterday of an unspecified change of ownership at ESI, the CAFCFansForFans group tweeted this:
https://twitter.com/CAFCfansforfans/status/1264109844048629760
"So after yesterday's no news from what was shared the previous day to this today. Shed any light? @reluctantnicko @RichCawleySLP" (with the following document screenshots attached)
https://twitter.com/Ph1Pd/status/1264116095012798464
"Check the title!
Project Haddock?
Behave, someone is on a wind up. "
"Yeah I do think its a false document (not written by Charlton fans of course) - The signatures match down to the angle they're written, one is in a different colour but its not difficult using photoshop"
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1264141959507185664
"Bassini “claimed” to have an agreement in place in April. I saw the documentation then. But he told me a reason he wouldn’t be proceeding. I don’t want to get sued, so won’t be repeating them."
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1264194992437891072
"BASSINI | Marian Mihail tells us that rumours have no substance. #cafc
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1264202459888652288
"Unfortunately, Marian Mihail also told us that Nimer wasn’t looking to sell #cafc a week ago."
(There's supporting information for this tweet in this post from @Airman Brown)
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1264216340929413120
"The Charlton picture anything but clear (we’re getting used to that
While I’m aware of what Marian Mihail has said this afternoon, here’s what some of the other players in the #cafc saga are telling me. Also involves Bolton #bwfc
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11993439/laurence-bassini-confirms-charlton-takeover-interest-but-bolton-also-an-option
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1264243632690925568
"It’s not happening at Charlton. And Bolton is sooooo last year."
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1264126393857818625
"I think I know who it is. He’s been trying for weeks. He’s now ducking all calls. So I can’t confirm. He has been in football before. But he may have lost this to another party. So I can’t write it as yet. Whoever it is better be in soon ..."
"Would need to know what money he has with him ... but overall a decent guy."
"There are multiple parties looking at buying #cafc, ranging from legitimate and credible to very undesirable. How much Mihail knows about that is, of course, unknown. But I don’t think the shitshow is anywhere near over, sadly."
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1264218595002810371
"Seem to be more rumours circulating than there were goals when we came back to beat Huddersfield 7-6 all those years ago. #cafc" (plus link to Ben Ransom's tweet)
BBC Sport https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52777864
Sky Sports https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11993439/laurence-bassini-confirms-charlton-takeover-interest-but-bolton-also-an-option
Daily Mail/Mail on Sunday https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8350899/Laurence-Bassini-confirms-taking-Charlton-decide-Bolton-bid.html (mainly quoting the Sky piece, it has to be said)
After the various hints on Twitter yesterday, Alan Nixon has revealed the person he was tweeting about yesterday is Huw Jenkins, the former Swansea chairman. There are still a few questions that may need to be resolved though:
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1264570105180102674
"On 19 July 2016, the [Swansea City] Supporters’ Trust was approached by Chris Farnell, a solicitor acting for Huw Jenkins and other selling parties..." Oh look, Mr Farnell works for Mr Jenkins. What a small world the buying and selling of clubs is. #cafc"
@Valley11 has passed on the views of some Swansea fans he knows::
Media Coverage:
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11698394/charlton-new-owner-huw-jenkins/ (or webarchive version)
Wales Online: https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/swansea-charlton-takeover-huw-jenkins-18304554
Still conflicting reports I'm afraid. This morning, the word from Bassini was he was still pursuing the matter:
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1264852421693628418
"Laurence Bassini says that he has agreed a deal to buy Charlton. He says he is not involved with Huw Jenkins.
"I've made an offer, it's been accepted - the lawyers are dealing with it."
"Bassini says it is out of his control if Tahnoon Nimer chooses to sell the football club to another interested party."
"So they’ve accepted Bassini’s bid but they might still sell it to someone else? Doesn’t really make sense.."
"Bassini claims he has agreed a deal. I wouldn’t be surprised if ESI were spinning a few plates (in terms of offers)."
https://twitter.com/RichCawleySLP/status/1264891658908434433
"Panorama have confirmed to directors that Laurence Bassini is not involved in the ongoing sale of shares"
And What About Jenkins?
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1264942850283839489
"Exclusive: Huw Jenkins admits Charlton takeover hangs 'in the balance’ making rival bid more likely to succeed.
-Exclusivity period has now lapsed
-3 or 4 other interested parties
-Charlton need to find £400k to pay wages this week #cafc"
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11994430/huw-jenkins-says-his-charlton-takeover-bid-hangs-in-the-balance
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1264936663102390272
"Jenkins wants to complete. Currently trying. Other guy was hanging about before. Hangs about. That’s it."
https://twitter.com/thesunfootball/status/1265003989965430784
"Huw Jenkins confirms £1m #CAFC takeover bid with cash-strapped club facing wage and tax bill | @reluctantnicko
https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11698394/charlton-new-owner-huw-jenkins/"
Anyone else?
@Airman Brown thinks there might be:
This is from the Charlton Athletic FC(The unofficial & UnCensored Charlton Fans Group) on Facebook
Media Coverage:
Sky Sports: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11994430/huw-jenkins-says-his-charlton-takeover-bid-hangs-in-the-balance
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11698394/charlton-new-owner-huw-jenkins/ (or webarchive version)
In response to the ongoing turmoil at the club, CAST have launched their "Our Club. Our Future" campaign. This is aimed at getting as many Charlton fans as possible to register their support for fan ownership of the club if that looks necessary, so they can be mobilised quickly should that time come.
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1265310223390117891
"Charlton is in peril and we might need to take steps towards owning the club we love.
It won't take much, but it will take many....
http://castrust.org/ourclub #cafc #OurClubOurFuture" (with a link to a short video)
"Right now, we are not asking for money, just your support.
We took nearly 40,000 to Wembley a year ago today.
Now is the time to show that support again.
Are you in? 🙋♂️
http://castrust.org/ourclub #cafc #OurClubOurFuture"
https://www.castrust.org/ourclub/
and they've answered some of the frequently asked questions here:
https://www.castrust.org/our_club_faqs
https://twitter.com/S66Brown/status/1265325262213873664
"It has become abundantly clear that Charlton need new owners, owners who will have the best interests of the club at its core. The supporters trust along with all Charlton supporters have always come together in difficult circumstances and they will again. #ourclubourfuture" (with a link to the CAST tweet)
BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52810887
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/lee-bowyer-charlton-takeover-swansea-huw-jenkins-a4450411.html
To the relief of everybody except Bolton fans, it looks like Bassini has dropped his bid.
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1265614739817799682
"Laurence Bassini has told @SkySportsNews he is pulling out of attempted Charlton takeover.
He says a £1.2m deal was agreed in last 2 wks, but has told Tahnoon Nimer this lunchtime he is not going to proceed.
Instead he is continuing to investigate possibility of buying Bolton."
"I’ve heard from at least a couple of different people that nothing is close. Huw Jenkins will not rush in, so that could only happen if TN was prepared to wait for a longer-term sale."
While Joe Cala may not be as infamous as some of those previously linked with us, he's not exactly got a sterling reputation, and it's also debatable whether he's actually put in a serious bid.
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1265666804724236289
"Joe Cala certainly wants his name linked with Charlton. Someone asked me and others to mention his name yesterday & now, out of the blue this afternoon, 3 separate accounts all mentioned it within 10 mins. Quick search shows none of these three account had mentioned #CAFC before" (with screenshots attached)
"Clearly not a good track record at Gateshead. Weird how people like this just pop up over & over in football.
https://chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/under-fire-chief-financial-adviser-15924125
https://sunderlandecho.com/sport/football/exclusive-joseph-cala-his-controversial-role-gateshead-finances-and-clubs-future-89325
Person who wanted Cala's name mentioned was moaning his bid was being "stonewalled" & not even considered #cafc"
"Don't think it means much, just funny how someone is so desperate to be seen to be linked with a Championship football club, rather than just going ahead to and doing it if they had the means. #cafc"
"Seems like he decided to try and attach himself to Bury when they were in big trouble too. Weird.
https://www.hartlepoolmail.co.uk/sport/football/bury-chairman-steve-dale-makes-shocking-revelation-ex-gateshead-chief-joseph-cala-has-come-forward-take-over-league-one-crisis-club-491953"
Rumours coming in this evening that Jenkins has pulled out, but nothing concrete so far
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1265769078544891905
@Airman Brown has a bit more news on the ex-directors case, and discusses
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1265638056335376387
"NEW FROM VOTV: ex-directors left in dark over #cafc takeover bids as parties, including ex-Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins (pictured), fail to engage with them. Read it now at http://votvonline.com"
"As a rule of thumb I am sceptical of anyone wanting to pick up #cafc from Nimer without buying The Valley at the same time. It depends on what the existing deal with RD is, but I don’t believe it’s entirely backloaded as some assume."
"The risk is that someone else without sufficient capital takes over, even with the best of intentions, hoping they can raise the cash on the pitch or of it."
Voice Of The Valley: http://www.votvonline.com/home/the-2019-20-blogs/21-5-ex-directors-left-in-dark-over-latest-interest/
Sky Sports: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11995567/laurence-bassini-pulls-out-of-charlton-athletic-takeover
Wales Online: https://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/huw-jenkins-interview-swansea-city-18314954
www.cafc.co.uk was down this morning, which led to a brief flurry of excitement. Was this the prelude to a takeover being announced, or had someone not paid the hosting bill and the ISP had pulled the plug? First a holding page appeared, advising that the links to the shop and tickets areas of the site were still available (the latter caused some snarking) then it went down again completely. Eventually the full site came back up again, so it seems to just have been a result of unrelated technical issues.
CAST put up a new page on its site discussing proposals for financial support for EFL clubs which might involve Supporters Trusts nominating independent directors to the boards of clubs that took it up:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/Damian-collins-mp-efl-clubs-require-public-funding/
https://damiancollins.com/a-way-forward-for-football/
Not really. Alan Nixon has some words of comfort for those fearing we may go into administration, but otherwise it's all a bit vague.
The Express: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1288384/Charlton-takeover-Huw-Jenkins-Laurence-Bassini-Championship-news
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-championship-david-davis-lee-bowyer-a4453481.html
The Athletic: Charlton line up friendly at Premier League side as they plan for June 20 return (paywalled) or (local version)
After the uncertainty of the last week as to where the money was coming from to pay staff wages, we do at least now know that they have been paid.
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1266279119404150784
"Looks like Charlton’s staff have received their wages for the month of May.
Couple of irregularities in that no payslips were received this month and staff had been told that wages may arrive later in the day. So relief all around. #cafc"
"I actually got my wage slip this morning Jimmy. Let's hope its good news going forward"
https://twitter.com/cafcnew/status/1266268373161086984
"If the ex directors foot the wages today then fair play, but you realise that's just more debt to the club, they're not just gonna stump up half a mill as a present. Someone at some point will need to pay that back! #cafc"
https://twitter.com/BobWhitehand/status/1266277068058226688
"no who are these Ex Directors that are paying?"
"Wasn’t me either"
CAST have published the replies to the latest set of questions they've sent to the club.
https://www.castrust.org/2020/05/marian-mihail-answers-questions-about-the-changes-at-esi/
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1266319078156894208
"Interesting stuff in latest @CAStrust Q&A - but the fact that Southall still has 2 Range Rovers after Nimer went onto his Instagram to gloat about the Mail piece about them being seized by police sums this mess up. Chaotic & further proof you can't trust anyone involved with ESI"
"The club has contacted additional supporter groups (still including the Trust) to ask questions for Mihail's next update."
Anyone who's ever waded through an average set of minutes from the Fans Forum is now probably wondering how Mihail will answer the inevitable question about the potholes in the Valley car park.
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-agree-deal-to-sell-club-a4454426.html
The Express: https://www.express.co.uk/sport/football/1288940/Charlton-takeover-Championship-news-Huw-Jenkins-exclusive (seems to be based on the Wales Online piece)
FootieCentral.com: https://www.footiecentral.com/charlton-athletic-the-club-that-never-gives-up/
After a few teething troubles with uploading the recording, this week's Charlton Live podcast featured an interview with Heather McKinlay of CAST about the "Our Club" campaign. The team also discussed the progress (or lack thereof) of the proposed takeover of ESI, and had interviews with Lee Bowyer and Jason Pearce about the return to training.
SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/charlton-boss-bowyer-we-need-stability/
The Sun: I haven't been able to find a link on the Sun website for this piece yet, so a screenshot will have to do:
This morning Sky Sports News had an exclusive interview with Fernando Corte-Real, who announced that he was heading up a consortium to buy the club:
https://www.skysports.com/watch/video/sports/football/11999543/portuguese-consortium-in-talks-with-charlton
"A bit more on the Portuguese consortium that have made an attempt to buy Charlton ⬇️
Club remain hopeful of a sale soon, although I’m sceptical of so many public takeover bids #cafc
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/11999630/charlton-portuguese-consortium-reveal-attempts-to-buy-club"
@Scoham did a bit of digging and seems to have found Fernando Corte-Real's LinkedIn profile, while @RedRobin has found their website, which didn't inspire confidence for several different reasons, but particularly this bit:
I think they're aiming to emulate the "Moneyball" model, but it feels like Roland on steroids to me.
@Chris_from_Sidcup reckons something in the pitch on Sky Sports sounded a bit familiar::
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/portuguese-consortium-hopeful-of-completing-charlton-takeover-a4458651.html
Having been underwhelmed by the Portuguese Consortium, hope appeared to be fading that a reasonable bidder was going to appear:
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1268226276155969538
"EXCLUSIVE: British pair ready to rescue #cafc. EX-CEO Varney teams up with investor Andrew Barclay. Read the breaking news first at http://votvonline.com"
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1268231454636507136
"It’s crucial in my opinion that whoever buys #CAFC also own The Valley and the Sparrows Lane training ground. Full story here 👇🏽" (with a link to the Airman Brown tweet above)
It'd be a rare Charlton fan who doesn't know who Peter Varney is, but just in case you're new round here, or fairly young, he was our CEO during our most successful period in the last 60 years, but later fell out with Richard Murray. Given that, some might wonder why Barclay would team up with Varney, but @Airman Brown has some suggestions as to why that might be the case:
This sparked a rare outpouring of positivity from the fanbase and others associated with the club
https://twitter.com/JimmyStone_/status/1268247776971931649
"Welcome to Twitter @_PeterVarney, we’re right behind you. #cafc"
"You don't have to be a supporter to run a football club, but you do have to care about it.
Anyone who knows Peter, or has worked with him, knows of both his deep love for #cafc and his keen knowledge of what's best for the club.
He can fix Charlton. But only if gets the chance" (with a link to the Peter Varney tweet above)
"Great stuff. After all that has happened at the club this would be the perfect way to bring everyone back together. A Charlton man who knows how to run a club. #cafc"
"There is no one better to run #cafc than this man. He knows the club and it’s supporters better than anyone as unlike any of the potential buyers he is a supporter." (with a link to the Peter Varney tweet above)
"Is there genuine interest to get this deal done @_PeterVarney . Behind it 100% but has communication begun after failed attempts?"
"This is great news Peter and I know the fan base support your bid. Have you been able to speak to ESI about a takeover?"
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1268235287467040768
"Hopefully! But the ball is now in ESI’s court."
Voice of The Valley: http://www.votvonline.com/home/the-2019-20-blogs/3-6-british-pair-ready-to-rescue-charlton/
After all the excitement of last night, we came down to earth with a bump this morning when this screenshot of a conversation with Mihail showed up
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1268582539666604032
"We made sure Mihail was very aware of the high regard among #cafc fans for @_PeterVarney"
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/peter-varney-in-purchase-bid/
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1268482878654078977
"#cafc Marian Mihail has now claimed that the first “the club” knew of Varney’s approach was through my VOTV article yesterday. Yet I know Nimer’s lawyer Chris Farnell has been in contact with Varney for weeks. How very strange..."
"The statement put out by Mihail today is misleading, as I have been in contact with Chris Farnell (Nimer’s lawyer) for two months." (with a link to the Airman Brown tweet above)
"So, is Mihail lying, or is Farnell keeping him and Nimer in the dark while he manoeuvres his preferred buyers? What does Farnell stand to gain? Being paid by both sellers and “preferred” buyers?"
https://twitter.com/LouisMend/status/1268580496352710659
"Possible things Chris Farnell might claim Peter Varney was discussing with him over last 2 months: Chance to buy a second-hand Range Rover? Potential for partnership with Michael Slater and Katrien Meire? Starring role in British version of Better Call Saul?"
Media Coverage:
Sky Sports: Lee Bowyer on the Sky Sports Football Show (from yesterday, mostly about Lyle, a bit about the backroom issues)
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11787699/charlton-takeover-varney-bowyer-lyle-taylor (or webarchive version)
The weekly Q&A with Marian Mihail has now been extended to other supporters' groups, and the club have posted the answers here:
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5eda157c04654/director-marian-mihail-answers-questions-from-supporters-05062020
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/what-is-happening-at-our-club-update
CAST have been investigating a number of ownership models initiated by fans at other clubs, and @BDL has been talking with Garry Halliday, who came up with the idea for The Foundation of Hearts. The video of their chat is here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGmnggf3IW4
Steve Gallen was on Radio 5 with Adrian Chiles at lunchtime today talking about the potential restart. You can listen to the audio here starting at 1h43, but the following tweets give a flavour of his comments about the takeover.
https://twitter.com/Iandennisbbc/status/1268872695283941379
"Charlton Director of Football, Steve Gallen on takeover talk, “we have a group of staff, skeleton staff really, who are fighting every day to keep the club afloat. I’ve heard lots of rumours about potential takeovers and we need it”..... 1/2 #cafc"
"“We need someone to come in and lead our football club, in particular to give it some stability in the short term. Peter Varney is very well respected so if that’s the one that happens I’ll welcome it” but says anyone else who can help then happy to work with them. #cafc"
Tutto Mercato Web (the Italian version of Transfer Market Web) has a piece on Cellino's current trials and tribulations at Brescia which included a bit about Charlton for which @cafcbrown kindly provided the translation below.
London calling And then there is England. Again? The acquisition of Leeds United was a thorny issue and initially contested by the Football League. A break that certainly will not facilitate a possible acquisition of an English club, especially in the initial phase, which Cellino is thinking about. The first possibility is called Charlton United, with Tahnoon Nimer having already given the placet to sell the south-east London club to the Italian. The possibility of having a club in London, although in difficulty (it is in the relegation zone in the Championship), will attract him. The other possibilities concern two equally important clubs: one is Reading, always in the Championship, and fourteenth after thirty-seven days. Two positions higher than Birmingham, the third English club to be examined by the current number one of Brescia.
Many question marks This is a scenario and a possibility. Because that of selling Brescia, and it would certainly not be an instantaneous operation but which would take months to complete, is an idea. One chance. But Massimo Cellino would get tired of what he would call battles against windmills in Italian football. And for this reason he would think of a return to English football. But first you need to be convinced of your ideas. Sell the best, without selling them. Define the agreement with the buyer. Having the ok of the Football League. Find the right club in England. Purchase it. So many question marks. It is only the first piece of a domino. Maybe.
Media Coverage:
Voice Of The Valley: http://www.votvonline.com/home/the-2019-20-blogs/5-6-for-charlton-the-day-of-reckoning-has-arrived/
SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/ex-charlton-chief-varney-as-talks-enter-crucial-stage-club-needs-to-be-bought-as-a-package-with-ground/
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-could-still-face-legal-action-if-takeover-happens-marian-mihail-a4461211.html
Over the weekend there was this somewhat garbled clip in The Sun about the possible takeover, which still hasn't made it onto their website.
http://sportwitness.co.uk/businessman-gives-details-bid-charlton-athletic-takeover-not-promising-big-signings/
A Unique* Solution To The Ownership Problem?
* "Unique" meaning "weird"
https://twitter.com/TheSunFootball/status/1270083910156853252
"#CAFC chief Tahnoon Nimer ends five-month reign as owner with consortium fronted by lawyer Chris Farnell to take over | @reluctantnicko https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11814349/charlton-tahnoon-nimer-owner-chris-farnell/"
https://twitter.com/cafcfan87/status/1270095723120427009
"Surely Chris Farnell action on behalf of nimer for the sale of club then takes over himself is some sort of conflict of interest? Smell another f***ing rat #CAFC"
"Nimer-friendly ownership that takes Southall out of the frame cheaply before a proper takeover? #cafc"
"Seems as if #cafc could potentially have four different sets of owners in 2020, which even by our standards is pretty extraordinary."
"Only Charlton could get an interim owner.."
This post has now been deleted, although opinions differ as to whether that was because he jumped the gun on the announcement by the club, or due to the vastly negative reaction that it got.
Or It Might Be More Complicated Than That
However, whoever runs the Vital Charlton fansite's twitter account had some conflicting information
https://twitter.com/VitalCharlton/status/1270119037188669441
"Spoke to Chris Farnell he has confirmed he is not the purchaser nor is it headed up by him and it will all become clearer tomorrow.
I guess we wait. #cafc"
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8400475/Charlton-owners-agree-sell-club-Manchester-based-businessman.html
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1270123369313243136
That Paul Elliott?
This caused some confusion, given that when you say "Paul Elliott" to a Charlton fan they think of our former defender, who was associated with the Australian bid for the club. But according to his entry on Wikipedia (and probably The Valiant 500, but I don't have that to hand) he was born in Lewisham, while the Paul Elliott in the Mail story was apparently born in Hammersmith and is based in Manchester.
https://twitter.com/OWSILKSE7/status/1270121842695602178
(I think the Mail would've mentioned if we'd been about to be bought by the surviving Chuckle Brother, and he's from Rotherham, so he's out too)
Media Coverage:
Sport Witness: http://sportwitness.co.uk/businessman-gives-details-bid-charlton-athletic-takeover-not-promising-big-signings/
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/relegation-charlton-future-peril-a4462656.html/
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11814349/charlton-tahnoon-nimer-owner-chris-farnell/ (or webarchive version)
Daily Mail: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8400475/Charlton-owners-agree-sell-club-Manchester-based-businessman.html
Despite the media reports last night and the Nimer's instagram post, we've still not had anything from the club. Unless you count the CAFCOfficial twitter feed posting pictures of the players back training at the Valley.
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1270410278845526017
"Charlton due to make a statement shortly on the takeover ... about time."
"How long is shortly!?!?"
"It was due at 6. So 90 minutes late already. Or about 24 if you count yesterday. Amateurish."
https://twitter.com/Rob_Waghorn/status/1270394134822518785
"Had a brief convo this morning with Chris Farnell. Says positive takeover. Updated just now that statement could still be today but likely tomorrow. Thats all i know. #cafc"
If you're looking for signs of hope, early on this morning there was this
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1270267171076276224
"Andrew and I have been kept fully informed by the new #CAFC owners and discussions between us are progressing."
https://twitter.com/talkSPORT/status/1270317876000501760
""You can't let these clowns keep coming through the door." ❌
"It [clubs] should have a blue plaque above the door."
"You [should] have to put a £10m bounty up." ✅
@SJOpinion10 calls on changes to the EFL's fit and proper person test with #CAFC set for another takeover. 🔴" (with video clip attached)
Media Coverage:
BBC News: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52976779
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-tahnoon-nimer-buyers-on-alert-ends-reign-a4463611.html
SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/talks-still-ongoing-over-ownership-of-charlton/
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11822799/charlton-lyle-taylor-lee-bowyer-simon-jordan-sympathy/ (or webarchive version)
Remember Nimer's instagram post from the other day? It's now been repackaged as a statement on the Official Club site:
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5edea939abf30/a-statement-from-tahnoon-nimer
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5edf3aa26a41c/consortium-led-by-businessman-paul-elliott-purchases-east-street-investments
Unsurprisingly underwhelmed so far
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1270672910198493184
"Imagine announcing a “consortium” has acquired the club but only naming one person involved in it. Only at #cafc."
" There is no likelihood of this deal being approved by the EFL in the short term, not least because of their own timelines for doing so."
"And presumably we’ll never know if it was or not, because EFL policy is not to tell us."
"Worded that last tweet clumsily. It's the second time the ownership of Charlton Athletic FC has changed hands without it being approved by the EFL. Shambles."
"Read our response to news of the change in ownership. #cafc
https://castrust.org/2020/06/cafc-under-new-ownership-again/
Like many, we have more questions than answers."
I'm not entirely sure this makes sense, but as I haven't seen the takeover agreement, I can't say. Thanks to @KillersBeard for asking the questions we probably all are right now
https://twitter.com/BenRansomSky/status/1270674101611499520
"As per ESI takeover agreement with RD, the latest ownership change means he can now immediately ask for the £50m owed for transfer of the Valley and Training Ground. I’m told by someone who spoke to RD yesterday that he’s ‘furious’ so expect that debt to be called in #cafc"
"But the club is still owned by the same entity. Unless the agreement takes into account ownership change of ESI, in which case who is liable for the debt, the old owners or the new owners?"
"That’s not true, technically we’re told the holding company remains ESI but the shareholding has changed hands. It’s up to RD and his legal team what they do from here and how they go about reclaiming the debt."
"Not having a pop Ben and trust me, I'm not expecting you to unravel the complexities of the CAFC ownership. But surely the shareholding of a company doesn't impact on what it owns? So I'm not clear on what part of what I said isn't true. No big deal though."
https://twitter.com/airmanbrown/status/1270679553095217154
"It’s quite possible that the January deal with ESI also allows RD to reverse the sale of #cafc to ESI on the basis the takeover was never fully ratified by the EFL. But that would probably force him to pick up liabilities incurred since, at least initially."
"Next question is whether new consortium actually wants to acquire The Valley now and if so why?"
"As usual, RD has no one but himself to blame for the mess created. He had multiple legitimate buyers for #cafc and The Valley at a generous price but instead chose to do a deal with people who didn’t have the money because he wanted more."
"It’s actually quite hard to see where RD could get the £50m from if ESI don’t want to pay it."
Hopefully this is a good sign, but I'm not making any promises
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1270700485956304896
"I spoke to the @EveningStandard around latest #CAFC developments. Andrew and I still plan to meet the new owners to discuss takeover plans. Full story here
https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-takeover-championship-peter-varney-east-street-investments-a4465136.html"
SLP: SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/championship-charlton-formally-announce-takeover-by-paul-elliott-days-before-vital-match/
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-takeover-new-owner-paul-elliot-east-street-investment-a4464966.html
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-takeover-championship-peter-varney-east-street-investments-a4465136.html
Sky Sports: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/12004049/charlton-athletic-consortium-completes-takeover-of-club
BBC News: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/52993505
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-tahnoon-nimer-buyers-on-alert-ends-reign-a4463611.html
Independent: https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/football-league/charlton-athletic-takeover-matt-southall-paul-elliot-latest-news-a9558356.html
Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/football/2020/jun/10/charlton-takeover-brings-in-third-owner-of-their-troubled-season
Remember Ben Ransom's tweet about the takeover agreement meaning Roland could demand the £50m for the Valley and the Training Ground straight away? This evening screenshots purporting to be segments of that document were leaked. As ever, we don't know if it's real, where it's come from, and whether there are other clauses that would affect our understanding of the document in the pages we haven't seen, so a degree of caution is warranted. (And those of you who are allergic to legalese will need to do some rapid scrolling)
@Addickted explained here:
The Law Firm Letter and Invoice
This evening started with a bit of fan baiting of Chris Farnell
@swords_alive was able to help:
The Mysterious Paul Elliott
Still no sign of Paul Elliott making himself known to the fanbase, but Chris Farnell attempts to be reassuring
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1270812006657011713
" Today we have written to the newly named owner of ESI and hence #cafc seeking an urgent meeting and clarity on short, medium and long term plans. #OurClubOurFuture"
And Another Round of "Surely That's Fake?"
This time it was a twitter account claiming to be Andrew Barclay's turn to go off on one on social media, and the rest of us trying to work out if it really was him or not.
https://twitter.com/andrewdbarclay/status/1270802869185380361
"Joke of a situation.
Not representative of the big South London club Charlton Athletic with a great history.
Rename to Charlatan Athletic until situation resolved with stable leaders/owners ?
EFL farting around whilst clubs go under and stripped to the bone by conmen. Very sad."
"How is it any other business being managed in this manner, stripped of its soul, sold for a pound to buyers with no credibility, stakeholders lose out etc, gets the attention of MP’s, parliament,media
When it comes to football, nothing. Social impact will be huge if continues"
"My comments are purely a frustration at the governance around football particularly in the lower leagues. Want the media/politicians to start holding people to account.
As Peter mentioned he is up to date with recent developments and in touch, we remain keen."
"More debate and scrutiny goes into deciding who gets a knighthood at New Years than who controls the future of English football"
Media Coverage:
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11829133/charlton-takeover-completed-paul-elliot/ (or webarchive version)
Morning dawned on another day where we had no idea who Paul Elliott actually was:
https://twitter.com/reluctantnicko/status/1271010582771183618
"Charlton. Elliott and his allies put money in for wages last month. And will do this month whether the EFL test is arranged in time or not."
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5ee2687e35a0b/paul-elliott-im-excited-to-get-started-and-im-looking-forward-to-the-challenge
https://twitter.com/CH_040/status/1271154162454183938
"You’ve a to do list
Make up the HMRC arrears
Evidence sell-on-clauses weren’t sold last month
Write a £50mil cheque to Roland
Spoken & paid back the ex-directors
Satisfied the EFL source & sufficiency test
Told Farnell to do one
Once done then come back to us or just jog on"
And this isn't exactly reassuring either:
Southall's Stirring Again
And if that wasn't enough excitement for one evening, the Sun added this into the mix:
https://twitter.com/TheSunFootball/status/1271172815434264579
"Former #CAFC chief Matt Southall launches High Court insolvency action against club over unpaid fees | https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11841942/matt-southall-charlton-high-court-fees/"
https://twitter.com/sl_cardiff/status/1271178941131378693
"What a greedy, theiving, self-important, gob-shite that man is. Only interested in lining his own pockets. Zero integrity, no concept of right and wrong. And zero respect from everyone unfortunate enough to have encountered him."
"Opportunist with no scruples. Targets ‘rich’ buyers with nonsense credentials and when they bite, and it all goes tits up, sues them to make a buck. (Soaks up fans’ praise in meantime). #rat"
It'll be interesting to see how much dirt gets dished by ESI in response
Media Coverage:
The Athletic: https://theathletic.com/1862013/2020/06/11/peter-varney-charlton-tahnoon-nimer-paul-elliott-andrew-barclay/ (or local copy)
SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/new-charlton-owner-vows-not-to-take-money-out-yet-and-to-welcome-further-possible-investment/
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11842871/new-charlton-owner-elliott-southall (or webarchive version)
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11841942/matt-southall-charlton-high-court-fees/ (or webarchive version)
CAST have posted their weekly update here:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-8/
This includes the following explanation as to why there aren't any answers to supporters questions this week:
"Marian Mihail ... told us that, given the recent change of circumstances, he was not in a position to respond this week".
I'm not sure whether this just means he's been too busy, or the takeover means he's literally no longer in a position to. We shall have to wait and see.
As mentioned on twitter yesterday, Farnell has now put a statement up responding to Southall's threat of legal action.
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5ee3447fc921c/club-respond-to-alleged-high-court-claim-from-matthew-southall
"Substantial claims are now in process against the club, which will be vigorously pursued, if they are not resolved amicably."
https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/12005566/charlton-and-ex-chairman-matt-southall-embroiled-in-legal-row
It seems there was a protest at the Valley today by some members of the @CAFCFans4Fans group, although oddly there's not anything on their twitter feed about it
@RodneyCharltonTrotta warns us not fall for these people just because of a few nice words
@Cardinal Sin is amazed to see so many people hoping for the best with this bloke when all the evidence screams otherwise
@SE7toSG3 agrees with @Cardinal Sin and believes Farnell & Elliot are no 'fresh start'
@JamesSeed reckons that at the root of our problems lies Roland
SLP: https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/ownership-change-is-a-positive-step-charlton-boss-lee-bowyer-reacts-to-paul-elliotts-arrival-in-se7/
BBC: https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/53023432
Sky Sports: https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11684/12005566/charlton-and-ex-chairman-matt-southall-embroiled-in-legal-row
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-matt-southall-court-championship-a4467651.html
The Sun: https://www.thesun.co.uk/sport/football/11852529/charlton-lyle-taylor-championship-restart-lee-bowyer/ (or webarchive version) - mostly about Lyle Taylor, but a bit about the Elliott at the end
CAST have written to the EFL about their concerns over their investigation into the original ESI takeover::
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/punish-the-individuals-not-the-club/
https://www.castrust.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/06/EFLjune20.pdf
Paul Elliott was down at the Training Ground today and met up with the staff. There are a few pictures from the Official Site but no further comment:
https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/view/5ee7933108c10/behind-the-scenes-at-sparrows-lane-paul-elliott-meets-club-staff
Lewis Catt from the Charlton Live podcast was on Talksport on Saturday morning. The audio starts at about 6m40. (Bowyer and Matt Baker the club chaplain have also been on today, but they weren't talking about stuff to do with the ownership so I haven't linked to those clips)
https://twitter.com/CAStrust/status/1271892266433613835
https://www.charltonlive.co.uk/2020/06/13/charlton-live-sunday-14th-june-2020/
Media Coverage:
Ziare.com (Romania): https://m.ziare.com/dinamo/surse-milionarul-claudiu-florica-a-plecat-de-la-charlton-si-vrea-sa-cumpere-dinamo-1615000 (or English translation)
GSP.ro (Romania): https://www.gsp.ro/fotbal/liga-1/dinamo-claudiu-florica-si-tahnoon-nimer-au-reintrat-in-carti-pentru-preluarea-clubului-601738.html (or English translation)
With the focus on the upcoming resumption of actual football this week, there's not really been any concrete news on the ownership issues, although on Wednesday evening Peter Varney tweeted the following:
https://twitter.com/_PeterVarney/status/1273285286940770306
"Andrew Barclay and I had further constructive talks with Paul Elliott and Chris Farnell today and are considering their position further. Both sides have agreed to maintain an ongoing dialogue in the best interests of the football club"
CAST have posted their weekly update here:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/06/what-is-happening-at-our-club-weekly-update-9/
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-investigation-championship-owners-bury-a4473206.html
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-lee-bowyer-championship-relegation-a4473431.html (mostly about the football but has a bit talking about Elliott)
Evening Standard: https://www.standard.co.uk/sport/football/charlton-takeover-news-roland-duchatelet-championship-a4473866.html
Given the resumption of the season there have been various bits of coverage about Charlton in the media over the weekend, several of which have touched on the ownership situation in some way.
The Companies House Listing for Staunch Partners doesn't tell us a great deal more than is in that MoS article, although interestingly Staunch Partners was only incorporated a week after ESI was, and less than a fortnight before the bid for the club was announced. Coincidence? 🤷♀️
Well the Comms Team have finally updated the "Ownership" page on the OS, but it's not exactly informative:
But I'm going to come back to this tomorrow, as it involves more Companies House listings, The London Gazette, Solicitors Regulation Authority guidance and possibly Insolvency Service records, and quite frankly it's not something I can get my head round when I've already got a headache.