Adam Blackmore

Retweeting , tweets (Is that even English?) that the Club must be up for sale.

Haven't wet the bed over player sales because quite frankly there is nothing a club can do once the top four come calling, however he is as close to the Club as any journalist and seems a very strange thing to retweet given where we are.

We were speculating earlier about this and IMO it's what makes the most sense. Play the kids and get a few players in. Make a huge profit, pray we stay up, play loads of the kids and sell at a reduced rate with less players.

a few people on here have been saying they have seen tweets about this

if anyone cant see we are literally open for business for anyone worth a few bob then they need their eyes testing

after morgan goes, we hit the more fringe players (chambers) and those injured (rodriguez)

makes sense why fonte and cork have NOT been offered new contracts. as they would be worth a fair bit in wages

IMO, the club is ripe for sale, we will sell circa £135m+ worth of players, throw in the huge TV deal, pay off the transfer liabilities owed this summer and the remainder of the training ground, spend about £40m more on players, say the right things, continue to make the old boss look bad and placid saints fans will love it

that is ny view from what I have read and info off people ITK

Clear the debts, remove the liabilities. Put the club up for sale with it's own stadium, own training ground - all paid for. If there is a positive to swing, that is an amazingly attractive proposition for any mega rich person to be offered. A PL football club with no debt and top class facilities.

We need to stay in the PL though, enormous gamble what we're doing.

He often retweets a selection of fan reactions. When it's among a series of retweets like this I wouldn't give it much thought.

Retweeting , tweets (Is that even English?) that the Club must be up for sale.

 

Haven't wet the bed over player sales because quite frankly there is nothing a club can do once the top four come calling, however he is as close to the Club as any journalist and seems a very strange thing to retweet given where we are.

Trouble is that is all he does re-tweet ,as a local journalist he has yet to write or broadcast anything meaningful in regard to the goings on at Saints- Solent don't come across as independent more like part of the media team.

The tweet isn't just about that though. The point he seems to be making is that we need a statement from the club. He also said in another tweet he doesn't think the club is for sale. And logically points out that the club is a far less attractive purchase now.

a few people on here have been saying they have seen tweets about this

 

if anyone cant see we are literally open for business for anyone worth a few bob then they need their eyes testing

after morgan goes, we hit the more fringe players (chambers) and those injured (rodriguez)

makes sense why fonte and cork have NOT been offered new contracts. as they would be worth a fair bit in wages

 

IMO, the club is ripe for sale, we will sell circa £135m+ worth of players, throw in the huge TV deal, pay off the transfer liabilities owed this summer and the remainder of the training ground, spend about £40m more on players, say the right things, continue to make the old boss look bad and placid saints fans will love it

 

that is ny view from what I have read and info off people ITK

Who says you can't make money from football!

Clear the debts, remove the liabilities. Put the club up for sale with it's own stadium, own training ground - all paid for. If there is a positive to swing, that is an amazingly attractive proposition for any mega rich person to be offered. A PL football club with no debt and top class facilities.

 

We need to stay in the PL though, enormous gamble what we're doing.

All possible but not necessary in order to sell the club.

The tweet isn't just about that though. The point he seems to be making is that we need a statement from the club. He also said in another tweet he doesn't think the club is for sale. And logically points out that the club is a far less attractive purchase now.

Actually it's illogical.

If Katrina was going to sell, why would she intentionally make us less valuable?

The tweet isn't just about that though. The point he seems to be making is that we need a statement from the club. He also said in another tweet he doesn't think the club is for sale. And logically points out that the club is a far less attractive purchase now.

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

Who says you can't make money from football!

dont forget, she inherited all this money so its all free to her so to speak.

take a large cut of the transfer fees and TV money and sell the club, job lot for £100m

easy....

hasnt all the other businesses she got from her old man now all gone?

The tweet isn't just about that though. The point he seems to be making is that we need a statement from the club. He also said in another tweet he doesn't think the club is for sale. And logically points out that the club is a far less attractive purchase now.

I disagree. From a financial perspective it's much more attractive and debt free.

All the players that have moved on made it clear they wanted to better themselves at clubs better and bigger then ourselves. They can earn more than Saints can pay. Every one other than Lambert have gone for transfer fees in excess of normal market for those type of players. The club have looked at this realistically. It hurts. It is devastating to us supporters and the club but that is football life. It certainly is not about selling up.

Football stinks at the moment!

Yesterday he was moaning that we hadn't gone stateside to do preseason games. He has always seemed like a very tabloid local journalist.

All the players that have moved on made it clear they wanted to better themselves at clubs better and bigger then ourselves. They can earn more than Saints can pay. Every one other than Lambert have gone for transfer fees in excess of normal market for those type of players. The club have looked at this realistically. It hurts. It is devastating to us supporters and the club but that is football life. It certainly is not about selling up.

 

Football stinks at the moment!

so, when chambers and/if rodriguez go?

morgan will be good as gone soon

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

Avoiding the drop after losing this many key players would be an extraordinary achievement.

All the players that have moved on made it clear they wanted to better themselves at clubs better and bigger then ourselves. They can earn more than Saints can pay. Every one other than Lambert have gone for transfer fees in excess of normal market for those type of players. The club have looked at this realistically. It hurts. It is devastating to us supporters and the club but that is football life. It certainly is not about selling up.

 

Football stinks at the moment!

Great post

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

I don't know. Feel they think they can keep extracting value and endless line of academy players supplemented by the odd purchase will fill the gap.

I hope my gut is wrong and she wants to sell up.

The Blackmore retweet is from someone asking if the club is for sale. We are selling players at ridiculously high fees, from a team that finished 8th last season.

The problem on here is that due to the lack of any formal update from the club, too many are becoming amateur journalists looking for the angle on any minor quote / media comment.

Koeman is too globally well known for the club to fob him off, and until confirmed otherwise maybe he is clearing the decks for building his dream team- he certainly is accumulating the funds.

Selling the club would suggest a plan and a thought process. I don't believe this board has one.

Is this the point where NC gallops over the horizon leading the cavalry to save Saints ...again?

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

An incredible proposition to lose a load of money, yes.

If some Chinese/Arab/Russian gazillionaire nutcase wanted to buy a provincial club with limited brand potential to waste millions on then yep, Saints is an incredible proposition.

Beyond that, I'd advise that nutcase to buy Leeds United instead. Maybe Newcastle.

If Katrina was going to sell, why would she intentionally make us less valuable?

Not saying this is what is happening but if someone wanted to sell the club, the usual route would be to sell the most valuable assets individually, rather than bundling them. The market for individual players is deeper and more liquid and thus more likely to cause a bidding war than the market for football clubs.

Of course, there's a fine balance to strike -sell too much, and you threaten it's ability to retain its prem status -and it's accompanying income streams without significant restructuring/reinvestment.

Is this the point where NC gallops over the horizon leading the cavalry to save Saints ...again?

LOL....there's a thought

All the players that have moved on made it clear they wanted to better themselves at clubs better and bigger then ourselves. They can earn more than Saints can pay. Every one other than Lambert have gone for transfer fees in excess of normal market for those type of players. The club have looked at this realistically. It hurts. It is devastating to us supporters and the club but that is football life. It certainly is not about selling up.

 

Football stinks at the moment!

That's not true though is it. If that was football life then it would happen to every club. But it doesn't.

If Katrina was going to sell, why would she intentionally make us less valuable?

I doubt shaw as an asset at saints would be valued at £30m (or what ever we got for him) and so on

An incredible proposition to lose a load of money, yes.

 

If some Chinese/Arab/Russian gazillionaire nutcase wanted to buy a provincial club with limited brand potential to waste millions on then yep, Saints is an incredible proposition.

 

Beyond that, I'd advise that nutcase to buy Leeds United instead. Maybe Newcastle.

Just trying to find something, anything, even a smidgen of something to be positive about right now.

Struggling.

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

Absolutely, but it's remarkably easy to make finances seem fine to a potential purchaser. Not very easy to pretend we haven't sold 4 of the first team.

Just trying to find something, anything, even a smidgen of something to be positive about right now.

 

Struggling.

Koeman will build a great Saints team just like his ginger haired predecessors, Bally and the Wee Man.

If Katrina was going to sell, why would she intentionally make us less valuable?

She could conceivably pocket 70 million and sell the club for another 70. Probably make more that way than selling with the players.

An incredible proposition to lose a load of money, yes.

 

If some Chinese/Arab/Russian gazillionaire nutcase wanted to buy a provincial club with limited brand potential to waste millions on then yep, Saints is an incredible proposition.

 

Beyond that, I'd advise that nutcase to buy Leeds United instead. Maybe Newcastle.

I agree with the sentiment, but regardless of whether they cash in or not, The Liebherr's investment has shown an incredible return.

I may be completely wrong on this, but when you sell a club it is effectively the golden share that you buy. So regardless of what players you do or don't sell the value doesn't actually change that much. Now of course in this instance it's a bit different given the volume of players that have left, but I think it is a fairly safe argument that the clubs value hasn't decreased more than the outgoing players transfer fees.

All the players that have moved on made it clear they wanted to better themselves at clubs better and bigger then ourselves. They can earn more than Saints can pay. Every one other than Lambert have gone for transfer fees in excess of normal market for those type of players. The club have looked at this realistically. It hurts. It is devastating to us supporters and the club but that is football life. It certainly is not about selling up.

 

Football stinks at the moment!

One correction. Lambert is about the 7th highest fee for an outfield player of all time.

But absolutely agree with you.

Just trying to find something, anything, even a smidgen of something to be positive about right now.

 

Struggling.

I think the fact that KL obviously doesn't want to sell the club is positive. She and her father have provided financial stability. With the state of money and football at the moment, this has to be admirable.

We might struggle a bit next year but as a club that isn't at the top table, that must be expected. And we are safe in the knowledge that our finances are sustainable.

She could conceivably pocket 70 million and sell the club for another 70. Probably make more that way than selling with the players.

So why bother spending on Tadic and Pelle?

Can't see anything remotely newsworthy about Blackmore retweeting stuff. If he had something of substance to say himself then that might be a bit more interesting.

Why would she put herself into the public eye if she just wanted to oversee a quick, fast sell-off? Doesn't make sense.

She won't be here forever, but I don't think these sales are linked to selling the club.

An incredible proposition to lose a load of money, yes.

 

If some Chinese/Arab/Russian gazillionaire nutcase wanted to buy a provincial club with limited brand potential to waste millions on then yep, Saints is an incredible proposition.

 

Beyond that, I'd advise that nutcase to buy Leeds United instead. Maybe Newcastle.

Saints probably cheaper than both of those though, in the prem and with the best academy in the country. I could think of worse clubs to buy. If Wigan can get a buyer then we can.

If these transfers clear the debt and any liabilities, then I'd say a PL football club with it's own fully paid for 32,000 seater stadium, and fully paid £30m training complex is an incredible proposition for someone. That's my positive swing on it.

Thats nonsense, clubs with debt are more attractive because a) they're cheaper b) It gives access to credit lines to purchasers who wouldnt otherwise be able to open them. There are thousands of people who will take on a £150m club with £160m debts for £1 in the hope of pulling a fast one or getting lucky. Not so many can stump up £150m to buy a debt free club outright.

Wonder if Adam's going to get anymore interviews with board after latest tweets describing them as rudderless

dont forget, she inherited all this money so its all free to her so to speak.

take a large cut of the transfer fees and TV money and sell the club, job lot for £100m

easy....

 

hasnt all the other businesses she got from her old man now all gone?

I agree with the sentiment, but regardless of whether they cash in or not, The Liebherr's investment has shown an incredible return.

 

I may be completely wrong on this, but when you sell a club it is effectively the golden share that you buy. So regardless of what players you do or don't sell the value doesn't actually change that much. Now of course in this instance it's a bit different given the volume of players that have left, but I think it is a fairly safe argument that the clubs value hasn't decreased more than the outgoing players transfer fees.

That's why I would advise my theoretical gazillionaire nutcase to buy Leeds not Saints. The return on investment comes entirely on promotion to the PL. Once you're up it is increasingly difficult as your wage bill sky rockets and fans demand more and more "investment" that is almost guaranteed to not pay back.

The next SFC owner if he took over tomorrow is not going to grow at the same rate that the Leibherrs achieved because they're starting from the top already. Just impossible.

It's no accident that Randy Lerner has given up - finished sixth three times in a row only to see average attendances actually go down in that time, and they ain't making any money, are they?

The only thing I can see is whoever out next owners are, they will have the most thankless of tasks, and will probably be book balancers just like this lot are now.

Thats nonsense, clubs with debt are more attractive because a) they're cheaper b) It gives access to credit lines to purchasers who wouldnt otherwise be able to open them. There are thousands of people who will take on a £150m club with £160m debts for £1 in the hope of pulling a fast one or getting lucky. Not so many can stump up £150m to buy a debt free club outright.

Hopefully that means we would get a proper buyer and not some chancer.

The tweet isn't just about that though. The point he seems to be making is that we need a statement from the club. He also said in another tweet he doesn't think the club is for sale. And logically points out that the club is a far less attractive purchase now.

Why? if the club makes a statement no one believes it anyway...It's all perceived as lies. I'm pretty sure they have tried to de-bunk the club is for sale angle before but people don't believe them. Also If I was trying to flog the club I'd be telling everyone in order to get the word out (like the bloke at Villa) trying to flog the club quietly don't make much sense. If the club is for sale it might not be the golden ticket some think it is we could end up with an owner that is even worse with even less cash.

So why bother spending on Tadic and Pelle?

And talk about Forster, Clasie and de Vrij (which may or may not happen). That is why I am so bloody confused. Of course it could be because the board is so faffing incompetent at fending off offers and communicating what direction the club is going in to the staff. If they can't do that, then there is little wonder that us fans have no ****ing idea what is going on.

Why? if the club makes a statement no one believes it anyway...It's all perceived as lies. I'm pretty sure they have tried to de-bunk the club is for sale angle before but people don't believe them. Also If I was trying to flog the club I'd be telling everyone in order to get the word out (like the bloke at Villa) trying to flog the club quietly don't make much sense. If the club is for sale it might not be the golden ticket some think it is we could end up with an owner that is even worse with even less cash.

I agree, right now the club need to sign players. Nothing else (aside from maybe stopping the sales).

I was just pointing out that blackmore was saying they should make a statement.

Saints probably cheaper than both of those though, in the prem and with the best academy in the country. I could think of worse clubs to buy. If Wigan can get a buyer then we can.

I didn't say we couldn't get a buyer. I said we are not an opportunity for anyone, unless the opportunity they are looking for is to lose money. Our next buyers will most likely have a Jeremy Peace type CEO and we'll be balancing the books again.

We're owned by a billionaire and people are complaining, much like Villa fans. But let's not kid ourselves that yet another billionaire is going to fly in and start paying six figure weekly salaries. They ain't.

Why? if the club makes a statement no one believes it anyway...It's all perceived as lies. I'm pretty sure they have tried to de-bunk the club is for sale angle before but people don't believe them. Also If I was trying to flog the club I'd be telling everyone in order to get the word out (like the bloke at Villa) trying to flog the club quietly don't make much sense. If the club is for sale it might not be the golden ticket some think it is we could end up with an owner that is even worse with even less cash.

People would believe the club if their statements weren't directly contradictory to their actions.

Hopefully that means we would get a proper buyer and not some chancer.

No it means we're much more likely to get a buyer when loaded up with debt, but that buyer will more likely be a potless chancer. Selling a club debt free is much harder because you need someone with big assets and a great credit rating who wants to turn real money into football never never money.

The most deafening thing at the moment is the silence.

And I'm rapidly coming to the conclusion that the only credible explanation for it is that some time after the end of the season Katharina pulled a 180 and decided that football isn't for her.

I really believe that she had the best of intentions to honour what she knew to be her father's wishes, but the starting point had to be re-taking ownership of the Club from Cortese.

She came to games and by all appearances enjoyed them. She put her own people in - good people, honourable people - and they have been eaten alive by the sharks who infest the game these days (which include her own manager and players). And the only one of the inner circle who knew anything about football didn't have the skills to hold things together - and might even have been a root cause of the problem. That's when she realized she'd lost control.

I'm sure she wishes us nothing but the best, and will do what she can to leave us in good hands, but for me her deafening silence is the loudest statement of all.

Unless Katharina speaks up within the next few day, I'd say she's a goner.