ESI: Thoughts so far?

Well as the hiatus in our Championship recruitment drive continues please reflect this situation is not of ESI's making.

I will repeat that.

This situation is not of ESI's making.

However it is a situation which ESI must manage.

I regret however despite the skill sets available they appear to be largely unprepared for the challenge.

I hear the words. Though lacking some clarity and consistency they are good words. I have absolutely no reason to doubt ESI intentions, nor indeed the resources to fulfil such intentions. I remain positive all will indeed "turn out all right on the night". How? Well from the evidence to this point "I do not know  - it is a mystery", while I am reliably informed the road to hell is full of good intentions.

Any new venture can have a few false steps in emerging into the light of day but as another poster suggests you have to be "Ready for Anything" (Utrinque_Paratus). The challenge is to make sure those false steps do not turn into a stumble, where a few more false steps turn the stumble(s) into a fall.

I welcome the new "planned" investment and clearly any assessment of the long term performance of anybody after 18 days is meaningless. However I am troubled ESI preparation for the task in hand appears to be falling well short of the business requirement.

When you take over any business there is a natural impetus, a new momentum and normally an element of goodwill. New people are ever keen to make their mark on the business, set new ground rules and establish their credentials in the industry, with their investors, their clients, their staff and indeed themselves.

It is not easy. Most business are taken over because they are struggling. They have bad habits. They have questionable financial disciplines etc., etc., For those working for the business the very experience of being taken over means uncertainty, confusion and stagnancy.

That is this business.

Despite the extraordinary progress made by Bowyer on the field and the call to arms which brought so many back to The Valley, in business terms, the undeniable truth is we have stagnated for 2yrs where.:
- the 2018/ 2019 project was built on sand
- the 2019/ 2020 project was built on the 2018/19 project with a few foundations removed and replaced by untested reinforcements and a lot of temporary sticking plasters.

There is only so long any such "structure" can survive "beating those odds". Unfortunately untested reinforcements bend and sticking plasters become unstuck with the gale force winds of an injury hurricane.

In acquiring this size of business you are committing a not inconsiderable sum of money but as you step through the door there will be a dozen items in the "in-tray" all waiting for decisions because of the previous owner's suspension of normal business, while you will find the same number of issues no even one mentioned.

So whatever your takeover budget, " the launching new business" budget had better include a margin for remedial activity, a margin for things you never knew existed, and a margin to drive momentum.

Momentum is precious and maintaining it promotes the need to "get things done". There can be no denying the false steps seen to this point leading to a loss of momentum in just 18 days is not a good look.

I 100% accept ESI have walked into a perfect storm with the injury crisis, senior management on short term contracts, an over reliance on loan transfers, and the January transfer window.

The balance to all of those factors may well have and should have been reflected in the price paid for the business. Indeed they may have acted as a catalyst to trigger the acquisition in November.

Nobody should need telling football, like buying heating supplies in winter, is a seasonally priced industry. Every man, woman and child with the vaguest interest in UK professional football will know clubs, agents and players will ask for silly money in January.

Activity at this stage of the season will always cost you more than the norm but ESI took the opportunity to complete the deal now. Whether by accident or design it is now the cost of doing business.

I will not bore you with anecdotal experiences but Mr Southall while I am sure you have done your numbers probably a thousand times, do them again. I can hear you and your finance director spluttering into your tea, with HE Tahnoon Nimer spluttering into his pool side beverage but these are "one off" launch costs.

You can still maintain your sustainable disciplines once you are on the road but there is no value in trying to reboot a failing business without the capital to change the dynamics.

You are probably mulling over four or five deals beyond Bowyer and "his" coaching entourage.

Everyone wants to get "the right deal" but while "doing the right deal" is important each deal is a means to an end.

Doing the right deal is not an end in itself. So please no "look at the deal I did there" or "I am not a mug". I do not need to know. Hundreds if not thousands will have walked in your shoes. I admire the skills involved but you are not in sales or the agent any more you are the CEO.

You, Gallen, Bowyer, the coaches, the players need, the staff - the business and its supporters need things to get done.

Will certain other clubs, agents and players "exceptionally" profit. Absolutely they will. So be it. It happens every day, in every industry especially with the new boys on the block.  It is not about you. It is about your business. Have the confidence to make things happen.

Whatever the "one off" costs you will build a momentum, validate the work of your DOF, the Manager and get an extra 10% out of everybody, including coaches, players, staff and supporters.

Does it create a precedent? It need not. First and foremost there is no vanilla deal in football, and this is the January premium. Just make sure you do your future business in the Summer.

Who made these deals an issue? You did. Had the deals been done few would have been the wiser. There are 50 ways to position any additional "one off" reimbursements.

Whatever the advice of your DOF the extra £1000 a week is your call.

Maddison is not playing us. He, like Taylor, is playing the Bosman system. He is playing Peterboro. On Feb 1 they get nothing. They drop the price you can pay him more.

You have recently appointed Steve Gallen as DOF, are about to conclude a deal with Bowyer and his team of coaches on Championship wages apparently for 5yrs, costing probably not much shy of £1.2mn per annum.

If you are not prepared to give them the tools to do the job you are wasting your money. Contract or no contract there is no quicker way for any Manager to lose the dressing room if he is not empowered to deliver.

In recent memory we had the pleasure of Bikey "going awol" in protest at the powder puff attack under Peeters. No matter the latter's management style it will have been nothing to the dressing room "conversations".

I respect the challenge particularly if budgets needs realigning but this situation has been staring the club in the face for weeks.

It is has been staring us all in the face. With such an exceptional injury list at the most intensive time of the season the squad carry every indication of fatigue to the point of collective burn out. The players have performed with exceptional professionalism this season. I have not a problem with a single one. They, with many playing beyond their years, have done everything physically possible to keep us in games. It is not enough.

3 weeks into the job it is time to lead.

I wish you well.