Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Did anyone else read that in a Monty Pythonesque way?? 😂😂
History repeats itself. Airman points out some potential problems, maybe more heavy on the doom than most would like, and the tantrums start. I see his posts as like a house survey; you don't get one to tell you everything is hunky-dory, you get one to tell you the problems that might come up and you take from it what you think it's pressing and urgent. Not everyone likes it but what inevitably happens at this point is that the people who want to be positive about the new dawn start lashing out because they've seen negativity from a source that would generally know what he's talking about and start getting upset and calling him an angry old man and a bitter ex-employee. It's stupid though, you don't have to like what he says and you don't have to believe it all, but claiming he's wrong from a position of ignorance and blind optimism is just stupid. If you don't want to hear some dark possible futures from him then skip past. History sadly tells us though that there will be a lot of truth in the warnings, it's not like billionaire philanthropists are buying our shitty League One club is it? Chill out.
Here here
you’ve also got to factor in that unconscious bias that creeps in with anything you’re emotionally attached to. You want to hear it will be okay. Remember last season’s transfer window. People were ‘happy’ with O’Connell. Club captain at Rochdale, ball playing defender etc etc. I’m not having a dig at O’Connell, merely pointing out, we wanted him to work out, ergo our minds psychologically adapt to telling ourselves it will work out.
How many of us every summer get that renewed sense of optimism that this will be a good season, just because it’s a new season?
I was the same up until a few games in last season. Because TS had invested and I wanted it to work out, I wasn’t seeing the bigger picture.
I’m not saying it’s going to be yet another false dawn, just highlighting that some of us are perhaps less emotionally attached and slightly more objective after the last few years. That doesn’t mean we’re coming at it from a more sensible position, it just is, just like it just is for those that are already ready and able to be optimistic
Airman’s input is as always, good to read based on his experience and knowledge of the club. How things play out, let’s hope we can all enjoy the season ahead, taking each step of their ownership as it comes
I in no way intended to spark a pile-on on Airman, I probably should have expanded my original point.
Obviously forewarned is fore-armed, and it's a vital roll that Airman has done diligently for a long time. I know I personally appreciate everything he has done and continues to do.
I guess my issue is not that he's warning things are going to be shit, odds are they will be, so I guess we all cherish the brief period between getting rid of the last shit owner and the next one demonstrating how shit they are.
To add to that, I think it would be very different if it was a case of "new owners are going to be shite, here's the why and here's at least some idea on how we can combat it". Just saying "new owners == more of the same shite" doesn't achieve anything beyond getting people's backs up and yet a another retreading of the grumps Vs rose tinted, and the activist fan Vs the "I just want to watch football on a Saturday".
At the moment I'm cautiously optimistic, I have to be, the alternative is to just give up.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
What makes you so adamant that they'll be a failure and Varney a success?
How much would Varney have pumped into the club over the next 5 seasons?
You seem to have an inside track to him and his supposed backers, perhaps you can put out an interview with him like Prague did with CM?
Like it's been said before you seem very dismissive of anyone and anything that doesn't align with your viewpoint, and hark back to old ownership regimes as apparent evidence that CM & co won't do well. Surely we can tar PV with the same brush if he became owner, based on the previous owners too?
Curious post since PV isn’t an owner, never has been one and has never aspired to be one, because obviously he doesn’t have the funds.
Skirting the question again, I use Varney's name as he would appear to be the frontman for investors that haven't been named at this point. If you want, re-read the questions and insert "Varney's moneymen" wherever you see "Varney"
I suspect you don't actually know who they are and therefore cannot be certain they would be more successful than CM & his army of backers, but because they are different to what you want/hope for, you are all too eager to post disparaging comments about them and their chances of making it work.
We’re not at this point talking about any other investors or any proposed offer involving PV. You and others can’t imagine that I have a view based on anything else, but I didn’t introduce his name to this thread.
I’ve no intention of posting on here regularly in future. It’s entirely possible that I’ve become too cynical because of the demoralising experience we’ve had with four successive ownerships, but I do know a bit about how the business works and doesn’t work from 30 plus years of studying and writing about it and 14 of working in it. Other perspectives are no doubt available. We also have the experience of January, which was insightful if not conclusive.
I’ve got my season ticket and I’ll always be there, but I find myself less and less able to take seriously the opportunists who rock up at our club pretending to care about it.
I don't see why we can't support the new owners and if they give us reason not to stop doing so. Why should we automatically move to the latter position? I hope Airman understands the respect than I and many others hold for him, but part of the rationale for caution applies to many clubs who have gone on to be successful. CM seemed to me to accept the issues in his interview with Prague and some of the accustations like the quick flip etc... just don't match up with the words.
But words are just words at the end of the day and in the coming weeks we will see the initial stages of the plan and we can judge those on what we see. We do need to make some decent signings and we have already made some. I am expecting us too and will take it from there.
No idea why we need to support owners, we support the club/team. Unless an owner turns bad then we need to say so, but equally why do we have to come out in support of people (I'm talking about all owners past and presant) who we don't know and in most cases will ever truly know.
We have been burnt too often with crap owners and most start off with people going far too over the top in praising them and trying to interpret actions and thoughts. The evidence will always be shown by what happens in front of our eyes, on the pitch.
They are owners not players or managers, those are we do support
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Curbs for manager and Darren Bent up front then next season yeah?
Did any of that cost money? I presume so.
Was the club profitable back then?
Was football as a whole a complete basket case like it is now, 20-25 years ago?
Does turnover mean anything at that time when turnover in football as a whole was growing exponentially as a result of increasing sponsorship, TV Rights deals and money overall coming into the sport? Arguably he orchestrated us losing our premiership status at the worst possible time, with the big bucks coming into the sport the very next season, with us having never recovered from that, but we'll gloss over that part of the story I guess
Well done those who hounded out of CL @AirmanBrown - a man who knows more about CAFC than anyone else, and who is entitled to his opinion, as we all are - but this targeting of him today is a disgrace
People get so personal on these forums, it’s actually depressing. Can’t imagine grown adults would ever bicker like this in person but behind a screen they seem to lose consciousness that they’re discussing things with another human being.
Having different opinions is fine but honestly the personal stuff on this forum is deranged and worse than kids in a playground.
There’s a lot of value from some of the comments on CL but the amount of toxicity really makes me question my sanity in reading and posting anything on here.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Curbs for manager and Darren Bent up front then next season yeah?
Did any of that cost money? I presume so.
Was the club profitable back then?
Was football as a whole a complete basket case like it is now, 20-25 years ago?
Does turnover mean anything at that time when turnover in football as a whole was growing exponentially as a result of increasing sponsorship, TV Rights deals and money overall coming into the sport? Arguably he orchestrated us losing our premiership status at the worst possible time, with the big bucks coming into the sport the very next season, with us having never recovered from that, but we'll gloss over that part of the story I guess
Give it a fucking rest now - this is getting out of hand and unnecessary
You see the more I read posts from Airman, the more I dismiss it. Sorry but it just comes across as bitter old man angry at everything.
I get it, I really do, you know more than almost everyone on here about the plight our club has been through, and the huge amount of work put in to get us back to our home and The Valley Party doesn't go away, and I'd like to think is appreciated by all connected to our great club, but at the same time it's starting to look like you have a vendetta against. ANY new group of people coming in.
Riddle me this, if this lot weren't here and PV and his backers took over.... What would be different? Wouldn't they have to try and find a bottomless pit of money and spend "£100m" too? What makes you so sure that they would be successful in that? I look forward to your answers, and until then, paint you as an angry old man clouded by the mists of the past
So which of the owners from RD, ESI all versions and TS were you happy with?
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
What makes you so adamant that they'll be a failure and Varney a success?
How much would Varney have pumped into the club over the next 5 seasons?
You seem to have an inside track to him and his supposed backers, perhaps you can put out an interview with him like Prague did with CM?
Like it's been said before you seem very dismissive of anyone and anything that doesn't align with your viewpoint, and hark back to old ownership regimes as apparent evidence that CM & co won't do well. Surely we can tar PV with the same brush if he became owner, based on the previous owners too?
Curious post since PV isn’t an owner, never has been one and has never aspired to be one, because obviously he doesn’t have the funds.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Yeah but apart from that he’s no better than Southall right?
We needed those ‘support the shirt crap’ supporters when we wanted to get back to the Valley or we wouldn’t have had a club to bring back.
Every supporter matters, no matter how they choose to support our mighty club, imho.
You are so correct in that the likes of you, me, Airman and a few thousand others you made the slog to Selhurst effectively kept the club going by supporting the shirt
That did not mean that when we were there we should not have chanted it was a load of shit and the owners called out for their actions. There were parts of the supporters base (including the Supprters Club) who thought we needed to accept it, that was wrong.
People get so personal on these forums, it’s actually depressing. Can’t imagine grown adults would ever bicker like this in person but behind a screen they seem to lose consciousness that they’re discussing things with another human being.
Having different opinions is fine but honestly the personal stuff on this forum is deranged and worse than kids in a playground.
There’s a lot of value from some of the comments on CL but the amount of toxicity really makes me question my sanity in reading and posting anything on here.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Other than that though what good did he do for Charlton?
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Curbs for manager and Darren Bent up front then next season yeah?
Did any of that cost money? I presume so.
Was the club profitable back then?
Was football as a whole a complete basket case like it is now, 20-25 years ago?
Does turnover mean anything at that time when turnover in football as a whole was growing exponentially as a result of increasing sponsorship, TV Rights deals and money overall coming into the sport? Arguably he orchestrated us losing our premiership status at the worst possible time, with the big bucks coming into the sport the very next season, with us having never recovered from that, but we'll gloss over that part of the story I guess
What part of what Cardinal said is wrong then Sam?
Well done those who hounded out of CL @AirmanBrown - a man who knows more about CAFC than anyone else, and who is entitled to his opinion, as we all are - but this targeting of him today is a disgrace
Anyway, give yourselves a pat on the back
Twats
Airman is a big boy. He’d make mincemeat out of most of us who post on here regarding Charlton. If he intends to back away that’s his choice. Trust me nobody would drive AB away if he wasn’t keen to go.
Many thanks @PragueAddick and the dossier team it was worth the wait to read that and having done so, aligned with our transfer activity so far this pre-season there does seem to be some hope to hold on to that maybe this new group can get it right.
My only caution is CM while saying all the right things, does seem to have said what we all wanted to hear which you can interpret that as both a positive if he's genuine with his words or as a negative if people feel he's just taken his research from here and told us all what we wanted to hear to get us onside. Personally I am on the optimistic side based on our transfer activity so far this summer and with the names that pop up as reported targets in the rumours thread.
Not sure who is putting the money in exactly although with Bremer and Friedman you would assume them to be putting in the most as it appears they have the highest stake between them. If it seems they're happy to fund the losses because it won't make a dent in there pockets then again there has to be caution if we find ourselves still in league one in a couple of seasons could they turn off the money tap just as easy if they lose interest in the project and maybe find ourselves in another Slater/Jimenez etc situation.
So as simple as it sounds, we really do need results on the pitch for this ownership to work, for all his faults on Netflix I do think CM will like to think he can execute a plan to make this project work and I do feel a top six finish is achievable even with CM on board.
At present all we can really see is we are clearly shopping for better players than we have done the last two pre-seasons, and equally i'm not too sure what else this group can have done at present, only time will tell, I am personally optimistic but also remain cautious of supporting previous incoming owners but also shouldn't be a reason to doubt new owners.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
Curbs for manager and Darren Bent up front then next season yeah?
Did any of that cost money? I presume so.
Was the club profitable back then?
Was football as a whole a complete basket case like it is now, 20-25 years ago?
Does turnover mean anything at that time when turnover in football as a whole was growing exponentially as a result of increasing sponsorship, TV Rights deals and money overall coming into the sport? Arguably he orchestrated us losing our premiership status at the worst possible time, with the big bucks coming into the sport the very next season, with us having never recovered from that, but we'll gloss over that part of the story I guess
So which of our owners/CEOs since Varney have got it right.
I'm not saying he should come back, but its a bit rich to start pulling him apart when no one since has done anything like the job he did
In a sense at this stage it matters not what level of optimism or scepticism we all have about our new owners as now is the time to watch and see what happens and refine our views accordingly. Personally I won’t be standing in the covered end singing ‘we’re fucking rich’ or chanting ‘we want Methven out’ anytime soon. What causes me unease is that we have had so many new dawns over the past few years that have all ended up in relative failure. Why will this lot succeed where others have failed? Some things do give me hope. For a start the more stringent EFL checks in place now, would have prevented an ESI style takeover and also that business afterwards where Southall pretended to be trying to get transfer deals done while we were under an embargo with the EFL saying nothing. Also the complicated ownership structure with Jimenez and Slater and hidden Cash, would not fly now. Another plus it seems for us as well as TS is the new owners have spent money to acquire the club, they will not have done that with a view to losing it at least in the short term. It may be that they have been over sold the club and the plan to take it forward or they may think they have a good chance of some medium term success and are prepared to stump up the money to do it. One thing that is for sure is that we will see how it pans out, and every action and inaction will tell us something. I think most people had got to the stage where it felt rolling the dice of a new owner would be a good thing in itself. Let’s hope they land in our favour, but at least the dice are rolling and we can at least enjoy the possibility of some improvement.
Well done those who hounded out of CL @AirmanBrown - a man who knows more about CAFC than anyone else, and who is entitled to his opinion, as we all are - but this targeting of him today is a disgrace
Anyway, give yourselves a pat on the back
Twats
Agreed, don't have to agree with Airman's views but some of the words being exchanged back and forth at him and also by him made for somewhat uncomfortable reading just because he's not taken the majority view on here.
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
But… as excellent as PV was surely we need to recognise that there may be other people out there who could be good? Maybe not better, but I’d settle for good. Or are we so cursed we will only ever have one decent owner/CEO/chairman?
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
Is it because he is a lifelong CAFC fan, like his Dad? Or because as CEO 1997-2008 he grew turnover from £4m to £42m? Launched Valley Express, Target 10,000, Kid for a Quid, Valley Gold, developed and expanded the Valley repeatedly, selling out at every step until we had a full house 27,000 Premiership Stadium? Did I mention over-seeing set-up and development of CACT? Oh, and he returned as Exec Vice Chairman in 2011, recruited Chris Powell and got backing for him to win promotion with 101 points?
But… as excellent as PV was surely we need to recognise that there may be other people out there who could be good? Maybe not better, but I’d settle for good. Or are we so cursed we will only ever have one decent owner/CEO/chairman?
That's not the point being made, it's the unnecessary pulling apart of Varney that is being called out.
Portraying Airman as a harbinger of doom seems a little unfair when he's asked his opinion and gives it. No wonder he's taking flight. Whether your glass is half full or empty, we all want the same outcome.
Well done those who hounded out of CL @AirmanBrown - a man who knows more about CAFC than anyone else, and who is entitled to his opinion, as we all are - but this targeting of him today is a disgrace
Anyway, give yourselves a pat on the back
Twats
Airman is a big boy. He’d make mincemeat out of most of us who post on here regarding Charlton. If he intends to back away that’s his choice. Trust me nobody would drive AB away if he wasn’t keen to go.
He the only one who can confirm or deny what you have posted here
But how has this thread descended into ‘open season’ for some on Rick ??
It’s not on at all IMO
I’m willing to see how this takeover pans out, but, like Rick, I have been a Charlton for a very long time (since 1976 - me, not Rick), and I have lots of scars as a result, so I get his reservations
If any of those who have had a pop at him today can produce a book better than ‘Battle for the Valley’ or decades of VOTV - go on then, but you will fail
We should also not discount the possibility that they could get lucky. Nobody has been able to explain convicingly why Ipswich was purchased but in the short term it has worked out for them. If this lot are not the real deal, it will become clear sooner or later and as we can't do anything one way or the other at this stage so we might as well look on it with some Positive expectation and be ready to call it out if it goes the way of other recent owners.
I don’t but this “oversold” viewpoint. Nobody with money would just take the words of anyone else without taking out some due diligence. TS for all his faults I don’t think was stupid enough to not realise the true costs when he set out. He actually spent good money for league one on players but the money was spent badly. He lost interest once his misses was binned out and all the negativity started due tightly to his running of things. This mob won’t have be going into this blindly unaware of potential costs. There will be agreed budgets set the difficulties will come when a
Ok but why is Varney better than the new lot @Airman Brown you still haven't answered that.
What makes you so adamant that they'll be a failure and Varney a success?
How much would Varney have pumped into the club over the next 5 seasons?
You seem to have an inside track to him and his supposed backers, perhaps you can put out an interview with him like Prague did with CM?
Like it's been said before you seem very dismissive of anyone and anything that doesn't align with your viewpoint, and hark back to old ownership regimes as apparent evidence that CM & co won't do well. Surely we can tar PV with the same brush if he became owner, based on the previous owners too?
Curious post since PV isn’t an owner, never has been one and has never aspired to be one, because obviously he doesn’t have the funds.
Skirting the question again, I use Varney's name as he would appear to be the frontman for investors that haven't been named at this point. If you want, re-read the questions and insert "Varney's moneymen" wherever you see "Varney"
I suspect you don't actually know who they are and therefore cannot be certain they would be more successful than CM & his army of backers, but because they are different to what you want/hope for, you are all too eager to post disparaging comments about them and their chances of making it work.
We’re not at this point talking about any other investors or any proposed offer involving PV. You and others can’t imagine that I have a view based on anything else, but I didn’t introduce his name to this thread.
I’ve no intention of posting on here regularly in future. It’s entirely possible that I’ve become too cynical because of the demoralising experience we’ve had with four successive ownerships, but I do know a bit about how the business works and doesn’t work from 30 plus years of studying and writing about it and 14 of working in it. Other perspectives are no doubt available. We also have the experience of January, which was insightful if not conclusive.
I’ve got my season ticket and I’ll always be there, but I find myself less and less able to take seriously the opportunists who rock up at our club pretending to care about it.
Well said on the last 2 paras. That is what I mean, I think you’ve been so worn down (as have a lot of us) that the cynicism blots out the chance of any positive comments.
My ST hasn’t arrived yet, but has been bought, and I’ll be at as many home and away as any other season. If the owners need ‘direction’ they’ll get it, but for now, COYA!
We've seen umpteen owners come in and tell us what we want to hear. We know how quickly this can all fall apart. I don't see anything wrong in what Airman is saying. Also, it's Charlie fecking Methven FFS.
We can but hope that something positive comes out of this. Lord knows we weren't going anywhere under Sandgaard anyway. But I'm not buzzing with optimism thinking this is a new dawn.
Comments
you’ve also got to factor in that unconscious bias that creeps in with anything you’re emotionally attached to. You want to hear it will be okay. Remember last season’s transfer window. People were ‘happy’ with O’Connell. Club captain at Rochdale, ball playing defender etc etc. I’m not having a dig at O’Connell, merely pointing out, we wanted him to work out, ergo our minds psychologically adapt to telling ourselves it will work out.
I was the same up until a few games in last season. Because TS had invested and I wanted it to work out, I wasn’t seeing the bigger picture.
Airman’s input is as always, good to read based on his experience and knowledge of the club. How things play out, let’s hope we can all enjoy the season ahead, taking each step of their ownership as it comes
Obviously forewarned is fore-armed, and it's a vital roll that Airman has done diligently for a long time. I know I personally appreciate everything he has done and continues to do.
I guess my issue is not that he's warning things are going to be shit, odds are they will be, so I guess we all cherish the brief period between getting rid of the last shit owner and the next one demonstrating how shit they are.
To add to that, I think it would be very different if it was a case of "new owners are going to be shite, here's the why and here's at least some idea on how we can combat it". Just saying "new owners == more of the same shite" doesn't achieve anything beyond getting people's backs up and yet a another retreading of the grumps Vs rose tinted, and the activist fan Vs the "I just want to watch football on a Saturday".
At the moment I'm cautiously optimistic, I have to be, the alternative is to just give up.
I’ve no intention of posting on here regularly in future. It’s entirely possible that I’ve become too cynical because of the demoralising experience we’ve had with four successive ownerships, but I do know a bit about how the business works and doesn’t work from 30 plus years of studying and writing about it and 14 of working in it. Other perspectives are no doubt available. We also have the experience of January, which was insightful if not conclusive.
We have been burnt too often with crap owners and most start off with people going far too over the top in praising them and trying to interpret actions and thoughts. The evidence will always be shown by what happens in front of our eyes, on the pitch.
They are owners not players or managers, those are we do support
Did any of that cost money? I presume so.
Was the club profitable back then?
Was football as a whole a complete basket case like it is now, 20-25 years ago?
Does turnover mean anything at that time when turnover in football as a whole was growing exponentially as a result of increasing sponsorship, TV Rights deals and money overall coming into the sport? Arguably he orchestrated us losing our premiership status at the worst possible time, with the big bucks coming into the sport the very next season, with us having never recovered from that, but we'll gloss over that part of the story I guess
Anyway, give yourselves a pat on the back
Twats
That did not mean that when we were there we should not have chanted it was a load of shit and the owners called out for their actions. There were parts of the supporters base (including the Supprters Club) who thought we needed to accept it, that was wrong.
Other than that though what good did he do for Charlton?
My only caution is CM while saying all the right things, does seem to have said what we all wanted to hear which you can interpret that as both a positive if he's genuine with his words or as a negative if people feel he's just taken his research from here and told us all what we wanted to hear to get us onside. Personally I am on the optimistic side based on our transfer activity so far this summer and with the names that pop up as reported targets in the rumours thread.
Not sure who is putting the money in exactly although with Bremer and Friedman you would assume them to be putting in the most as it appears they have the highest stake between them. If it seems they're happy to fund the losses because it won't make a dent in there pockets then again there has to be caution if we find ourselves still in league one in a couple of seasons could they turn off the money tap just as easy if they lose interest in the project and maybe find ourselves in another Slater/Jimenez etc situation.
So as simple as it sounds, we really do need results on the pitch for this ownership to work, for all his faults on Netflix I do think CM will like to think he can execute a plan to make this project work and I do feel a top six finish is achievable even with CM on board.
At present all we can really see is we are clearly shopping for better players than we have done the last two pre-seasons, and equally i'm not too sure what else this group can have done at present, only time will tell, I am personally optimistic but also remain cautious of supporting previous incoming owners but also shouldn't be a reason to doubt new owners.
I'm not saying he should come back, but its a bit rich to start pulling him apart when no one since has done anything like the job he did
Personally I won’t be standing in the covered end singing ‘we’re fucking rich’ or chanting ‘we want Methven out’ anytime soon.
What causes me unease is that we have had so many new dawns over the past few years that have all ended up in relative failure. Why will this lot succeed where others have failed?
Some things do give me hope. For a start the more stringent EFL checks in place now, would have prevented an ESI style takeover and also that business afterwards where Southall pretended to be trying to get transfer deals done while we were under an embargo with the EFL saying nothing. Also the complicated ownership structure with Jimenez and Slater and hidden Cash, would not fly now.
Another plus it seems for us as well as TS is the new owners have spent money to acquire the club, they will not have done that with a view to losing it at least in the short term.
It may be that they have been over sold the club and the plan to take it forward or they may think they have a good chance of some medium term success and are prepared to stump up the money to do it.
One thing that is for sure is that we will see how it pans out, and every action and inaction will tell us something. I think most people had got to the stage where it felt rolling the dice of a new owner would be a good thing in itself. Let’s hope they land in our favour, but at least the dice are rolling and we can at least enjoy the possibility of some improvement.
But how has this thread descended into ‘open season’ for some on Rick ??
I’m willing to see how this takeover pans out, but, like Rick, I have been a Charlton for a very long time (since 1976 - me, not Rick), and I have lots of scars as a result, so I get his reservations
If any of those who have had a pop at him today can produce a book better than ‘Battle for the Valley’ or decades of VOTV - go on then, but you will fail
Shameful behaviour
My ST hasn’t arrived yet, but has been bought, and I’ll be at as many home and away as any other season. If the owners need ‘direction’ they’ll get it, but for now, COYA!