Steve Sidwell allowed to leave Stoke, at 33 could he be an attacking midfielder who could do a job for us or too similar to JJ? Loftus Cheek not getting a game at Chelsea, big time charlie or worth a dabble for a few months?
Steve Sidwell allowed to leave Stoke, at 33 could he be an attacking midfielder who could do a job for us or too similar to JJ? Loftus Cheek not getting a game at Chelsea, big time charlie or worth a dabble for a few months?
Think Sidwell's wages would put off the Belgians.
My wifes wages would put off the Belgians...........and she's only on £100 pw!!! However on the plus side, she is in the right age bracket (over 35), cant play football, and has no affinity with CAFC................so come on Roly sign her up!!! PS Roly - I'll send you a video of her skills (behave u lot!!!)
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
I don't think we are even a plaything, we are just numbers on a page.
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
I think he has a very good understanding and knows EXACTLY what he Meire, Fraeye et al are doing.
Steve Sidwell allowed to leave Stoke, at 33 could he be an attacking midfielder who could do a job for us or too similar to JJ? Loftus Cheek not getting a game at Chelsea, big time charlie or worth a dabble for a few months?
Would take both.
Would have had Sidwell back when Curbs left and Dowie said no (wrong agent allegedly)
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
I think he has a very good understanding and knows EXACTLY what he Meire, Fraeye et al are doing.
YOU ARE ALL GROSSLY UNDERESTIMATING THE MAN.
I agree but it what he is TRYING to do and in my opinion failing ie find a different way to run a football club.
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
I think he has a very good understanding and knows EXACTLY what he Meire, Fraeye et al are doing.
YOU ARE ALL GROSSLY UNDERESTIMATING THE MAN.
To be fair he is giving us a lot to underestimate. Two years in the driving seat, stated ambition - the PL - we'll be lucky to still be in the Championship by the end of this season. Falling attendances, dreadful PR, appalling managerial appointments. That in my view suggests a regime who does not understand the football business from the perspective of their own stated aim above. But if running a "business" irrespective of the customer fanbase and the generally recognised purpose of a football club which is normally to try to achieve some success on the pitch, then yes the man is doing great. Intentional actions? Quite probably. Misguided and wrong? In my view, yes.
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
Steve Sidwell allowed to leave Stoke, at 33 could he be an attacking midfielder who could do a job for us or too similar to JJ? Loftus Cheek not getting a game at Chelsea, big time charlie or worth a dabble for a few months?
Think Sidwell's wages would put off the Belgians.
You should see what wage Reuben Loftus-Cheek is on. Not a hope on Heaven's earth would we even be able to loan him or the best of part of a month let alone a few.
'look, your policies may well be moving in the right direction from your point of view, but one bit of a mistake has been on first team achievements, and you're not now going to be able to prevent relegation.
Roland, the best thing to do is to accept relegation and don't waste any money in January. Instead see if you can establish a credible footballing structure to be an overwhelming force in League One.
Now Roland, this is the tricky bit for you, there are mistakes you have made, either because of poor advice, or scant research, mistakes on the way to run a football club in the English leagues, and I'm sorry to say this Roland but it has lost you money you needn't have lost, but we are where we are.
You really ought to have a change of direction with regard to the first team structure at Charlton. You might even have to trust the advice of strangers. A decent starting point for a good broad brush perspective about how to change would be a long chat with Keith Peacock. Roland you don't have to go into detail with Keith about any specific players or managers, but get a sense of where the problem lies. Oh and Roland, try hard not to obsess about the cost of any change of direction initially, hear out and formulate a credible plan first, and then consider if it affordable second, you might even be pleasantly surprised.
The good news is that if you thoroughly prepare for next season now Roland, ok season tickets and initial interest will stall seriously, but if Charlton Athletic can have a storming season even in League One there is a good chance crowds will improve, and those crowds will have smiles on their faces.
I suppose what I am saying Roland my friend, is a significant part of your Algorithm needs to be changed, it is too late for this season I fear (unless a miracle happens) but what I want to say to you is essentially when you're in a hole, stop digging.
Steve Sidwell allowed to leave Stoke, at 33 could he be an attacking midfielder who could do a job for us or too similar to JJ? Loftus Cheek not getting a game at Chelsea, big time charlie or worth a dabble for a few months?
Think Sidwell's wages would put off the Belgians.
You should see what wage Reuben Loftus-Cheek is on. Not a hope on Heaven's earth would we even be able to loan him or the best of part of a month let alone a few.
Loftus-Cheek will go to a Norwich / Aston Villa type side in the Premier League.
'look, your policies may well be moving in the right direction from your point of view, but one bit of a mistake has been on first team achievements, and you're not now going to be able to prevent relegation.
Roland, the best thing to do is to accept relegation and don't waste any money in January. Instead see if you can establish a credible footballing structure to be an overwhelming force in League One.
Now Roland, this is the tricky bit for you, there are mistakes you have made, either because of poor advice, or scant research, mistakes on the way to run a football club in the English leagues, and I'm sorry to say this Roland but it has lost you money you needn't have lost, but we are where we are.
You really ought to have a change of direction with regard to the first team structure at Charlton. You might even have to trust the advice of strangers. A decent starting point for a good broad brush perspective about how to change would be a long chat with Keith Peacock. Roland you don't have to go into detail with Keith about any specific players or managers, but get a sense of where the problem lies. Oh and Roland, try hard not to obsess about the cost of any change of direction initially, hear out and formulate a credible plan first, and then consider if it affordable second, you might even be pleasantly surprised.
The good news is that if you thoroughly prepare for next season now Roland, ok season tickets and initial interest will stall seriously, but if Charlton Athletic can have a storming season even in League One there is a good chance crowds will improve, and those crowds will have smiles on their faces.
I suppose what I am saying Roland my friend, is a significant part of your Algorithm needs to be changed, it is too late for this season I fear (unless a miracle happens) but what I want to say to you is essentially when you're in a hole, stop digging.
I assume you have your hands around his throat whilst saying all this ?
The window will not tell us anything we don't know and the Trust and others are mistaken to wait until it is over.
Sure, they will sign some much needed players. But nothing will have changed.
They may even appoint another coach but nothing will have changed.
It might even be enough to keep us up but nothing will have changed.
Because they will be more short term signings. And come next summer the squad will again be overhauled. Nothing will have changed.
The squad will again be too small, too inexperienced, too reliant on the academy. Nothing will have changed.
The coach will not have control over which players sign. Nothing will have changed.
The budget will still be set too low to make us competitive outside of the bottom 6 of this division, if we are still in this division. Nothing will have changed.
The CEO and her stooge will still mismanage the club. Nothing will have changed.
The owner will still believe he can make his mad experiment work despite all the available evidence. Nothing will have changed.
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Unfortunately I too often speak to people who still give these Belgian a******* the benefit of the doubt.
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Pretty sure the loss in TV revenue is £4M, so add that to the £1.4M of reduced season ticket revenue then remove a huge chunk of any commercial income (appreciating that this is quite small anyway) and I reckon our t/o would fall by say £5.5-£6M.
Fixed costs (rates, electricity etc will remain the same) and I am not sure who would buy people like Sarr (5 years left on contract) Bergdich (3 years left) etc etc.
Now take the academy which is going to take us to profit... Well with say £5M loss last season and £5M less turnover next then that is a £10M black hole. We close say £3M by reduced wages so have to sell £7M of talent. But where does the talent come from? What kids sign for third div CAFC with PL West Ham/Palace so close? Even if they join at 10, how many will really sign professional terms. So even with Cat 1, EPPP screws that 'gravy train'.
We are not viable in League One, period. I have seen nothing to convince me otherwise. I agree RD wants to break even but he will be even further away from this fantasy in League One.
My take, he bought us thinking the Championship was easier than it is and thinking he could loan us SL rejects and give us a decent shout of promotion. FFP was in place so he thought the division would even out and wage pressure would be increasingly downwards with the bridge to break even getting smaller and smaller. He also saw our academy and it's track record as a way of bridging this gap.
FFP was back tracked, he sold SL, he realised the chances to get promotion are slim to none without massive equity speculation and he is cutting costs like the last bunch did as he has lost interest, wants out and has us quietly on the market (this is pure conjecture on my part).
He is rich enough to keep us going but the real risk to us is he says sod it, I don't want to fund them anymore, I will cut my losses, stick them in admin, whack a claim in for the debt Strapix is owed and as major creditor force sales of capital assets like The Valley and Training ground to get his capital back.
Not saying it will happen, and for some reason I don't think he is that unpleasant to do so but it is possible.
I don't think it is unreasonable now to seriously question either the competence or the mental health of our owner. He purchased a London Club with obvious potential, given investment to make the one step up to the Premiership and its £120 million a season. His next task was to appoint a CEO capable of running the Club, and assisting him to achieve his ambitions. He decided upon a young person with absolutely no knowledge whatsoever of football, and as far as I can see no experience of running a Business let alone a multi million pound Business in a foreign country. Next we were awarded a series of unknown Head Coaches, who with the exception of Riga would be more suited to driving a coach. Now he is looking at a Club in chaos, supporters leaving in droves, players dropping like flies, heading fo the lower leagues and oblivion, whilst a good number of well qualified Championship Managers are kicking their heels at home. Something stinks here, has Roland got a secret agenda ? We already have Katrien being called Pinocchio, is Roland's new name about to be Rasputin ? I don't trust either of them, and probably never will. The sooner we see the back of them, the better.
To use the sort of language and turn of phrase that your generation understand Granpa you need a " bloody good clip round the ear " for posting nonsense like that.Get back to your allotment at once .
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Pretty sure the loss in TV revenue is £4M, so add that to the £1.4M of reduced season ticket revenue then remove a huge chunk of any commercial income (appreciating that this is quite small anyway) and I reckon our t/o would fall by say £5.5-£6M.
Fixed costs (rates, electricity etc will remain the same) and I am not sure who would buy people like Sarr (5 years left on contract) Bergdich (3 years left) etc etc.
Now take the academy which is going to take us to profit... Well with say £5M loss last season and £5M less turnover next then that is a £10M black hole. We close say £3M by reduced wages so have to sell £7M of talent. But where does the talent come from? What kids sign for third div CAFC with PL West Ham/Palace so close? Even if they join at 10, how many will really sign professional terms. So even with Cat 1, EPPP screws that 'gravy train'.
We are not viable in League One, period. I have seen nothing to convince me otherwise. I agree RD wants to break even but he will be even further away from this fantasy in League One.
My take, he bought us thinking the Championship was easier than it is and thinking he could loan us SL rejects and give us a decent shout of promotion. FFP was in place so he thought the division would even out and wage pressure would be increasingly downwards with the bridge to break even getting smaller and smaller. He also saw our academy and it's track record as a way of bridging this gap.
FFP was back tracked, he sold SL, he realised the chances to get promotion are slim to none without massive equity speculation and he is cutting costs like the last bunch did as he has lost interest, wants out and has us quietly on the market (this is pure conjecture on my part).
He is rich enough to keep us going but the real risk to us is he says sod it, I don't want to fund them anymore, I will cut my losses, stick them in admin, whack a claim in for the debt Strapix is owed and as major creditor force sales of capital assets like The Valley and Training ground to get his capital back.
Not saying it will happen, and for some reason I don't think he is that unpleasant to do so but it is possible.
Agree with most of this apart from putting us into administration. Admin is when you can't pay your debts and wipes out a lot of the debts. However, the debt accruing by CAFC is to Staprix, so why would he want to wipe out that debt/debt to himself ? Where's the benefit of wiping out money owed to yourself ?
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Pretty sure the loss in TV revenue is £4M, so add that to the £1.4M of reduced season ticket revenue then remove a huge chunk of any commercial income (appreciating that this is quite small anyway) and I reckon our t/o would fall by say £5.5-£6M.
Fixed costs (rates, electricity etc will remain the same) and I am not sure who would buy people like Sarr (5 years left on contract) Bergdich (3 years left) etc etc.
Now take the academy which is going to take us to profit... Well with say £5M loss last season and £5M less turnover next then that is a £10M black hole. We close say £3M by reduced wages so have to sell £7M of talent. But where does the talent come from? What kids sign for third div CAFC with PL West Ham/Palace so close? Even if they join at 10, how many will really sign professional terms. So even with Cat 1, EPPP screws that 'gravy train'.
We are not viable in League One, period. I have seen nothing to convince me otherwise. I agree RD wants to break even but he will be even further away from this fantasy in League One.
My take, he bought us thinking the Championship was easier than it is and thinking he could loan us SL rejects and give us a decent shout of promotion. FFP was in place so he thought the division would even out and wage pressure would be increasingly downwards with the bridge to break even getting smaller and smaller. He also saw our academy and it's track record as a way of bridging this gap.
FFP was back tracked, he sold SL, he realised the chances to get promotion are slim to none without massive equity speculation and he is cutting costs like the last bunch did as he has lost interest, wants out and has us quietly on the market (this is pure conjecture on my part).
He is rich enough to keep us going but the real risk to us is he says sod it, I don't want to fund them anymore, I will cut my losses, stick them in admin, whack a claim in for the debt Strapix is owed and as major creditor force sales of capital assets like The Valley and Training ground to get his capital back.
Not saying it will happen, and for some reason I don't think he is that unpleasant to do so but it is possible.
Agree with most of this apart from putting us into administration. Admin is when you can't pay your debts and wipes out a lot of the debts. However, the debt accruing by CAFC is to Staprix, so why would he want to wipe out that debt/debt to himself ? Where's the benefit of wiping out money owed to yourself ?
If you are losing £5M per annum and want out but no one else wants in then sooner or later losing the money sunk is better than sinking yet more (see Bolton).
I have no idea on figures but saw Henry said the other day he spent £11M buying us. Say he has sunk a further £10M in the 2 years so he is £20-25M down. He may think a big sale of players in the summer, pocketing the cash and sticking us in admin / selling up shortly after is not a bad idea and if selling some fixed assets to get out on par completely helps him recover all his cash then from a pure investment basis that would make sense. There is no such thing as friendly debt (maybe except from fans like Richard Murrey)
After reading this thread, I think the awful realisation has finally dawned on me that we are heading for League 1 and beyond. We are hoping for a change of direction that is just not going to happen. We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Unfortunately I too often speak to people who still give these Belgian a******* the benefit of the doubt.
Absolutely clueless.
So we need to devise a cunning plan to change their minds & bring them into the Light !!
It's been Charlton Alexandra right from the off. He's had a go at trying to stabilise in the Championship with cheap imports and cheap coaches. He has also been badly advised on the standard of the Championship, probably by the current clown in the dug out. However, in the background it has always been about developing a first class Academy, and producing a Gomez or Lookman to sell on. He's hoping to produce a couple each year to offset costs. He bought the club because of its Academy and made an early decision that committing funds for an attempt at getting to the Premiership was not in his plans, despite the propaganda. They have also probably now assessed that League One is the best level to break even or turn a profit. This is a long term project.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
He'll reduce costs perhaps, but he'll certainly increase losses because his revenues will go through the floor. Gates and TV money remain the biggest revenue items. He may not be able to realise the savings on the wage bill anyway because unless he's inserted relegation clauses in all the contracts that won't decrease a penny without sales - and players at League One clubs simply don't attract the transfer fees of those at Championship ones. It makes zero business or football sense for Charlton to be relegated.
He will realise savings on the wage bill if we are relegated, because he will sell all the players !
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Unfortunately I too often speak to people who still give these Belgian a******* the benefit of the doubt.
Absolutely clueless.
So we need to devise a cunning plan to change their minds & bring them into the Light !!
Comments
PS Roly - I'll send you a video of her skills (behave u lot!!!)
We are the plaything of a rich man, who has no understanding of the business he is in. And he has absolutely no interest in us.
January Transfer Window will explain feck all as usual
YOU ARE ALL GROSSLY UNDERESTIMATING THE MAN.
Would have had Sidwell back when Curbs left and Dowie said no (wrong agent allegedly)
Two years in the driving seat, stated ambition - the PL - we'll be lucky to still be in the Championship by the end of this season.
Falling attendances, dreadful PR, appalling managerial appointments.
That in my view suggests a regime who does not understand the football business from the perspective of their own stated aim above.
But if running a "business" irrespective of the customer fanbase and the generally recognised purpose of a football club which is normally to try to achieve some success on the pitch, then yes the man is doing great. Intentional actions? Quite probably.
Misguided and wrong? In my view, yes.
If we drop into League One, he will reduce costs again, and load more debt onto the club. A reduction in Match-day income will be offset against wages and costs. As @Covered End says, don't underestimate him. He will adjust the plan, but he won't tell the customers, because to him, that's all we are. We pay our money to watch a football match at the Valley, take it or leave it.
'look, your policies may well be moving in the right direction from your point of view, but one bit of a mistake has been on first team achievements, and you're not now going to be able to prevent relegation.
Roland, the best thing to do is to accept relegation and don't waste any money in January. Instead see if you can establish a credible footballing structure to be an overwhelming force in League One.
Now Roland, this is the tricky bit for you, there are mistakes you have made, either because of poor advice, or scant research, mistakes on the way to run a football club in the English leagues, and I'm sorry to say this Roland but it has lost you money you needn't have lost, but we are where we are.
You really ought to have a change of direction with regard to the first team structure at Charlton. You might even have to trust the advice of strangers. A decent starting point for a good broad brush perspective about how to change would be a long chat with Keith Peacock. Roland you don't have to go into detail with Keith about any specific players or managers, but get a sense of where the problem lies. Oh and Roland, try hard not to obsess about the cost of any change of direction initially, hear out and formulate a credible plan first, and then consider if it affordable second, you might even be pleasantly surprised.
The good news is that if you thoroughly prepare for next season now Roland, ok season tickets and initial interest will stall seriously, but if Charlton Athletic can have a storming season even in League One there is a good chance crowds will improve, and those crowds will have smiles on their faces.
I suppose what I am saying Roland my friend, is a significant part of your Algorithm needs to be changed, it is too late for this season I fear (unless a miracle happens) but what I want to say to you is essentially when you're in a hole, stop digging.
Can't see him dropping down the Divisions
Instead of having 4/5 academy players in the 1st team and about 11 of the 18 man squad.
He'll probably have 8/9 academy players and 15 of the 18 man squad.
He'll see this as good news. The more academy players he can stick in the 1st team, the better chance he has of selling them. Lookman anyone ?
So he loses 4,000 S/T holders at £350 = £1.4M, plus £2M in TV revenue = £3.4M.
However, he sells a few players for £3M & also brings through another academy player, he can sell for £1M.
Profit !
RD does not give a flying #### about football, Charlton, the supporters.
He is an emotionless businessman trying to turn a profit/break even on the production and trading of footballers.
SURELY EVERYONE SHOULD GET THIS BY NOW. IT'S BEEN 2 YEARS !
Absolutely clueless.
Fixed costs (rates, electricity etc will remain the same) and I am not sure who would buy people like Sarr (5 years left on contract) Bergdich (3 years left) etc etc.
Now take the academy which is going to take us to profit... Well with say £5M loss last season and £5M less turnover next then that is a £10M black hole. We close say £3M by reduced wages so have to sell £7M of talent. But where does the talent come from? What kids sign for third div CAFC with PL West Ham/Palace so close? Even if they join at 10, how many will really sign professional terms. So even with Cat 1, EPPP screws that 'gravy train'.
We are not viable in League One, period. I have seen nothing to convince me otherwise. I agree RD wants to break even but he will be even further away from this fantasy in League One.
My take, he bought us thinking the Championship was easier than it is and thinking he could loan us SL rejects and give us a decent shout of promotion. FFP was in place so he thought the division would even out and wage pressure would be increasingly downwards with the bridge to break even getting smaller and smaller. He also saw our academy and it's track record as a way of bridging this gap.
FFP was back tracked, he sold SL, he realised the chances to get promotion are slim to none without massive equity speculation and he is cutting costs like the last bunch did as he has lost interest, wants out and has us quietly on the market (this is pure conjecture on my part).
He is rich enough to keep us going but the real risk to us is he says sod it, I don't want to fund them anymore, I will cut my losses, stick them in admin, whack a claim in for the debt Strapix is owed and as major creditor force sales of capital assets like The Valley and Training ground to get his capital back.
Not saying it will happen, and for some reason I don't think he is that unpleasant to do so but it is possible.
I have no idea on figures but saw Henry said the other day he spent £11M buying us. Say he has sunk a further £10M in the 2 years so he is £20-25M down. He may think a big sale of players in the summer, pocketing the cash and sticking us in admin / selling up shortly after is not a bad idea and if selling some fixed assets to get out on par completely helps him recover all his cash then from a pure investment basis that would make sense. There is no such thing as friendly debt (maybe except from fans like Richard Murrey)
Give him a black & white scarf !