Originally Posted by
Albionic68
Ah, IF...... that mystical word.
So full of possibilities, so fraught with danger, and so often trotted out by people who really don't have a clue regarding the intentions of others. If it rains tomorrow I'll get wet whilst walking through the park, but if it doesn't I probably won't unless I get pushed into a pond.
I don’t have a clue what his intentions are either, but personally I’m quite glad he appears to be taking a closer interest in the club. Why wouldn’t he start to prepare for next season? You state that we’re a shambles so surely sending someone in to complete a thorough review is the right thing to do. Rather than saying goodbye, it could just as equally be a statement of intent regarding the longer term protection of his investment. Albion.
He’s already addressed some issues with the board by sacking some of its more high profile ‘earners’. Pardew will most likely be next, although I’ve a funny feeling Hammond may hang on by the skin of his teeth. Don’t quote me on that though as I’ve as much idea as your good self. But if we’re so ‘pathetic’ and ‘amateurish’ at present then surely you think the first three are a good way to start?
Do I think he paid too much for what he's bought? Yes. Do I think he's sold us short with funds thus far? No, on the advice of the board he actually sanctioned a fair old whack during the summer transfer window and spent high on wages during the January one. He said from the beginning the club was still going to be self-financed by Sky and BT money, so he hasn’t broken any promises there. Do I think that money was invested wisely? No I do not, but then I doubt it's for a want of trying on his behalf. I feel he's been very, very badly advised and let down by members of the board who adopted a very lax attitude regarding our budgets.
Is he looking to address our current failings? I’d say so as evidenced by the fore mentioned sacking of Goodman and Williams, and also with the subsequent appointment of Jenkins. The appointment of Jenkins as our CEO is controversial as he is not a ‘football man’. He loves nothing better than crunching numbers. But then our former ‘football men’ didn’t exactly do a good job did they? Will it be plain sailing next season? Probably not, but I think we'll see a much tighter ship next term which at first glance is a good thing, because we’ll need it to be.
While obviously concerned as to the future of our club I'm not going to worry about what Mr Lai does in the short to medium term. Why? Because there's nothing I can do about it, any other reasons? Because he'd be a fool of epic proportions to asset strip, and then walk away from an investment which has been overpaid for in the first instance. He’d be effectively choosing to cripple his investment group’s portfolio to a point where our club could no longer achieve optimum returns. In fairness I haven't heard of too many billionaires who think that’s good business practice.
Have you?
