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Thank you Mr Duchatalet

I have been thinking about our club constantly it seems now for months. I know most people were excited when we found out we had (at last) a new owner, but it wasn't long before the negativity started, firstly with the sacking of Chris Powell, then the sale of certain players! The "infamous" loanees from 'the network' and then not offering Jose Riga the job which he seemed to adapt to very very well! I could go on BUT look where we are now, financially getting stability ie not paying silly money for players or silly wages, our much maligned pitch being completely overhauled, now replacing those awful faded seats, a new young well thought of coach/manager. Yes I know we haven't got certain players signed up renewing their contracts, or made any grandstand signings (any signings come to that) but I am sure Bob P would not have come here if he wasn't promised some sort of budget or half decent players from the network. So I know it's frustrating seeing other clubs signing players, I hate it to be honest but I do think we have to be patient and hopefully we will attract some good players by the way our club is going, if it's true the goal is to get back to the premiership this shouldn't be impossible.
So I for one have changed my mind (at the moment anyway!) about our new ownership and am quietly looking forward and excited about the future.
So let's get behind Mr Duchatelet, after all he's the one with the money!!!
COYR....
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Comments

  • It seems to suggest the owner is here for the long haul rather than short term and is intending to build the club on a solid foundation. At least I hope so!
  • Time will tell if Roland did the right thing in replacing JR with BP, but it looks to me like a bad mistake. We'll see.
  • I'm backing Roland.

    He has deep pockets unlike the spiv and the solicitor.

    I think he'll be good for us but he's not going to spend big money to get success. And he seems willing to change coaches often as well as let players go if he doesn't want to pay what they want.

    Doesn't mean I won't criticise or that I'm not concerned about some practices such as player recruitment and the network. But KM is a big improvement on Bradshaw and Prothero IMO.

    So it will be a long and bumpy road IMO but with luck and Roland we'll get there.

    Now that KM and RD have got their feet under the table and had the chance to assess the personal qualities of individuals, I wouldn't be surprised to see a change in the SMT in the near future.
  • Im still in two minds about this. Im delighted that he has renovated the valley and provided some financial stability as you said.

    However, on the other hand its difficult to deny the club are still in a mess, we have a squad that spells out fairly clearly "strong relegation candidates". And this Bob Peeters bloke has very little managerial experience unlike Riga did when he came in. Under Powell, we had a clear direction and a strong determination to go upwards. After seeing the way he and Alex Dyer were treated and then to see what happened to Riga Im just not sure that I can trust him with the future of our club. If Diego Poyet leaves (or now it could be a matter of when) I feel that this will have been one of his main reasons for doing so. If we had someone who we knew about such as Jason Euell in charge I would feel more comfortable and trusting towards Roland.

    Dont know if anyone agrees with this but I think its just worth pointing out. We are at the end of what was a happy but short era and are now entering a new one, I just dont feel that there is enough evidence at the moment to say that this one is going to be anywhere near as good as the last. Mr Duchatelet's motives are still not clear and it worries me.
  • I started supporting Roland when I realised it makes no since for him to want us to fail. I still question whether he knows what he is doing though and how much he understands the league we are in but I guess we'll have to wait and see.
  • He makes mistakes; sometimes appears to learn from them - that's business! He gives us financial stability and for the present I can live with that.

    I have always enjoyed seeing young Charlton players proving their worth; if this an RD priority I can live with that.

    If, by the end of this Summers transfer window, we have a team playing good football that shows we can compete, I can live with that.
  • I am still worried that a guy is a megalomaniac that only wants to surround himself with yes men. He appears to have done his best to rip the heart out of the club by removing back office staff with years old links to the club and is now setting about creating a new year zero where all links to the past must be extinguished. So, when we eventually end up with a new squad of (probably unknown and foreign) players there will be little to no trace of the 'old Charlton' left around the place. Whilst this may fill some people with excitement, I feel quite saddened that the club appears to be turning into something that I recognise less every day.

    Forgive me if I don't share your enthusiasm!
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  • edited June 2014
    Uboat said:

    I look forward to this thread covering a new ground.

    Now giving CP the boot was always going to make Roland unpopular, but a 'new ground' is pushing fans tolerance a bit too far! Doubt he'd have spent ten bob on the pitch if he had that in mind.

  • I was talking to some Belgian clients of mine recently and the breaking news is that Roland is famously autocratic and considered 'a bit mad' amongst the Flemish. Anyone who makes that much money in a single venture runs the risk of survivor bias and not recognising and compensating his own weaknesses.

    So I don't really question his intent but I do worry about he's approach.

    On the positive side, he's just pumped a bar into a Premiership quality pitch, the most investment the ground has seen since the new stands were built. He's also put another half into the academy, to bring it back to Premiership standard. That clearly isn't the intent of a man who expects us to get relegated to the third tier and be limited indefinitely as a feeder club to SL. I'm sure he thinks that the easiest way for him to make money out of his investment is to get us promoted.

    On the negative, there's a danger he's throwing out the baby with the bathwater by getting rid of all the old faces. The club has always felt special in that way and there's the risk we'll end up like all the other soulless clubs. But, again, I don't doubt that the guy's intention is to improve the talent at the club, however brutal his tactics.

    As for Bob, I seem to remember the same people saying similar things about Jose when he arrived ....

    Finally, as for us being a feeder club, well, wake up people, we've been a feeder club for years. In fact, in the forty years I've supported Charlton, I can only remember a couple of years in the Premiership when it didn't feel like that, only to be rudely reminded of the fact when the arrogant Russian bought the player our entire team was built around, then stuck him in their reserves.

    Remember the Jonjo deal where Liverpool were going to give us priority on loanees? There were a few of those deals. I can't remember Arsenal, Villa, Man U, or Mr Redknapp doing us any favours after picking up our best talent at rock bottom prices once we'd taken all the risk and done all the development work. With RDC there is at least a chance of Poyet being promised CL football at SL and hanging on an extra year or coming back when we've improved. Under the old regime (and may still be true) we would simply have lost him to one of the big 4 and got SFA for him.

    Let's put things in perspective - we've definitely been in worse scrapes than this!!
  • How did he spend £50k on the Academy ?
    Genuinely, I have missed the story.
  • I am still worried that a guy is a megalomaniac that only wants to surround himself with yes men. He appears to have done his best to rip the heart out of the club by removing back office staff with years old links to the club and is now setting about creating a new year zero where all links to the past must be extinguished. So, when we eventually end up with a new squad of (probably unknown and foreign) players there will be little to no trace of the 'old Charlton' left around the place. Whilst this may fill some people with excitement, I feel quite saddened that the club appears to be turning into something that I recognise less every day.

    Forgive me if I don't share your enthusiasm!

    I thought most of the back room staff that have been removed was done by TJ/MS. I know a few have gone recently, but I think most new owners would do the same.
  • How did he spend £50k on the Academy ?
    Genuinely, I have missed the story.

    I'm not aware that he has spent anything on The Academy. The funding is through grants and the community trust according to Airman Brown.
  • Uboat said:

    I look forward to this thread covering a lot a new ground.

    ...and the three bears.
  • interesting how closely Charlton have followed Leige's path as outlined somewhat in this article from our Belgian jour no friend http://issuu.com/castrust/docs/tnt5-hi-res/5?e=6744795/6651521
  • Sounds like he's doing exactly the same with us as he did at Standard but a club in England will never succeed without having to use agents. It's impossible.
  • Be careful be very careful...

  • This thread is a glass full, glass empty job, to be expected at this early stage. Me ? I am feeling very positive about the coming season, and will show that in my attitude when the football starts. Ask yourself, when the new team starts to play what will motivate them to give 100%, loud support or the sound of grumbling ? Young Igor with his obvious energy will be a dangerous missile up front, come on people lets get behind this Club.
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  • I am still worried that a guy is a megalomaniac that only wants to surround himself with yes men. He appears to have done his best to rip the heart out of the club by removing back office staff with years old links to the club and is now setting about creating a new year zero where all links to the past must be extinguished. So, when we eventually end up with a new squad of (probably unknown and foreign) players there will be little to no trace of the 'old Charlton' left around the place. Whilst this may fill some people with excitement, I feel quite saddened that the club appears to be turning into something that I recognise less every day.

    Forgive me if I don't share your enthusiasm!

    Fair enough, BUT what choice do we have as supporters?
    Moan & groan or get behind the new owner and his team. As I said it's his money and basically I would expect him to do what he wants. So what if we have "unknown players" signing or foreign players? We haven't exactly set the world alight with some known and English players recently (in my opinion)
    I also do not think the regime change will have anything to do with DP staying or leaving us.
    As for our other players, New deals have apparently been laid on the table only to be refused.
    Once again I wholeheartedly agree with Mr Duchatelet in not offering silly money for "getting on" players or average ones. I think the players mentioned in the last day or so look very promising, as other posters have said the proof will be when the season kicks off.
    The "old Charlton" has been "ripped apart" quite a few times in the nearly 50 years I have been going to the valley, what with "always selling our best players" etc....I can even hear my old man moaning about one of his heroes Len Glover........
    And for a "small club in London" I don't think we've done to bad!
    COYR
  • I actually was bricking it when i heard we'd got Brentford away first game, first defeat of the season?
  • edited June 2014

    How did he spend £50k on the Academy ?
    Genuinely, I have missed the story.

    I'm not aware that he has spent anything on The Academy. The funding is through grants and the community trust according to Airman Brown.
    More to the point nothing has been built and no date has been given for the work to start (not that unreasonably given that the consent is fairly recent), so talking about what RD has spent on the work is currently meaningless. The funding package may have to change and RD may invest, but at the moment all that has happened is that the pre-existing plans have been submitted and approved, while there has been a big saving in salary costs with the departure of Paul Hart (for better or worse).

    Early days and It may well be that there is a substantial investment in the academy, as it would make sense. But I don't think there has been any yet.
  • Just tweeted "it's not ridiculous. It's just an illusion. Then if you're not happy, look at Charlton, dammit."

    Anyone got any idea what he's on about?!
  • Just tweeted "it's not ridiculous. It's just an illusion. Then if you're not happy, look at Charlton, dammit."

    Anyone got any idea what he's on about?!

    Is this the fake RD twitter account
  • It is the fake one
  • How do you know it's fake? I have a fake one for when I want to double muff people
  • Bluff, I meant bluff....
  • oh. does he have a real one?
  • Fumbluff said:

    How do you know it's fake? I have a fake one for when I want to double muff people

    because the profile says he's a fake
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Roland Out Forever!