Gao Away! protests

I think, sooner or later we are Gaoing down with Gao. There has been not one single indication since the takeover that he has any clue whatsoever about what to do with the club, no plan other than creating some photo ops in China and no money to invest.

The fact that he has allowed Kat to dictate the status quo remains in place tells you all you need to know about his vision and capability.

When we do go down, with the current regime in charge, we are going to be fecked a la Rupert's second coming, where everything will be for sale to the highest bidder.

It's time for a protest.

#GaoAway!

Who's in?

I will refuse to order Chinese takeout until he is replaced.

when are we marching?

when are we marching?

Don't forget the obligatory flyby protest.

Perhaps it's time for the 'Open Letters to..' to begin as well

On the Yacht Watch thread SaintIQ wrote:

Are there any rich Americans who dislike the Pompey owner Michael Eisner. Could be fun

Made me think that it's a shame we couldn't find a Chinese investor (or indeed any other) who wanted to go toe-to-toe with Fosun.

Supposedly he was up at Wolves doing his Thunderbirds wave - good chance he’ll be at SMS on Sunday with his half-and-half.

Pointless bloke so far got to say. Doesn't say anything, no noticeable difference apart from a few bits which seem to be for his personal gain...

#GaoOut

#ReedOut

#KrugerOut

#HughesOut

#HoedtOut

Pointless bloke so far got to say. Doesn't say anything, no noticeable difference apart from a few bits which seem to be for his personal gain...

 

#GaoOut

#ReedOut

#KrugerOut

#HughesOut

#HoedtOut

I’d say the protracted takeover added to the uncertainty hanging over Puel’s season. Agree with Adam Leich that the manager and who plays CB aren’t necessarily the biggest problems when there is a huge vacuum in leadership and accountability at the club. Listening to Ralph, the ceremonial gob on a stick, you get the sense that hes basically in the dark about Gao’s intentions and treading water. That might be OK when times are good; but it’s a recipe for disaster when things aren’t working and change might be required.

I’d say the protracted takeover added to the uncertainty hanging over Puel’s season. Agree with Adam Leich that the manager and who plays CB aren’t necessarily the biggest problems when there is a huge vacuum in leadership and accountability at the club. Listening to Ralph, the ceremonial gob on a stick, you get the sense that hes basically in the dark about Gao’s intentions and treading water. That might be OK when times are good; but it’s a recipe for disaster when things aren’t working and change might be required.

Abso-ruddy-exactly.

Realistically what do you want Gao to say?

"Hello fans of the club. I have seen other Chinese businessmen invest in football in England and I became aware that Southampton may be for sale. Unfortunately the seller wanted me to pay more than I had in my bank for the first 80% so I have had to borrow some money which I need to pay back to the bank first. I am still saving up to buy the other 20% and hope to one day be able to complete the deal. I want the club to be the bestest it can be, to beat all the other clubs, but I have no more money. Because I didn't have enough money, the seller made it a condition of sale that I keep the current management structure for a period of time. That is fine by me, as I don't know much about running a football club. I hope to see you on Saturday. Love Chairman Gao."

It has all gone pear shaped since Gao got involved. Unless something changes at the top it's a case of when not if we get relegated. Not sure if protesting will make any difference though.

It has all gone pear shaped since Gao got involved. Unless something changes at the top it's a case of when not if we get relegated. Not sure if protesting will make any difference though.

It went pear shaped before Gao got involved, but it's a much bigger pear now.

Realistically what do you want Gao to say?

 

"Hello fans of the club. I have seen other Chinese businessmen invest in football in England and I became aware that Southampton may be for sale. Unfortunately the seller wanted me to pay more than I had in my bank for the first 80% so I have had to borrow some money which I need to pay back to the bank first. I am still saving up to buy the other 20% and hope to one day be able to complete the deal. I want the club to be the bestest it can be, to beat all the other clubs, but I have no more money. Because I didn't have enough money, the seller made it a condition of sale that I keep the current management structure for a period of time. That is fine by me, as I don't know much about running a football club. I hope to see you on Saturday. Love Chairman Gao."

I don't want him to say that but as that appears to be the reality I question the extent to which I want to prop up a state of affairs which I find depressing, disingenuous (on the part of Kat and her glove puppets) and far removed from the notion of a community football club.

You could say that this notion is out of step with the modern game, and to some extent it is, but clubs do manage to engage with their support and cultivate a sense of togetherness. We are cultivating a sense of alienation. I don't see why I should give a dime to someone who is only here to boost their persona on the other side of the world.

At least with the likes of Lowe and the local businessmen who bookended his tenure, their motives were not so abstracted from what the club is fundamentally for.

Before we act we must wait for the battle plan, it is currently being worked on from a secret bunker north of Hadrians Wall but

it is only in its infant stages and just consists of us being bombarded about how weak we are as fans etc and suggestions of what we should be doing, a bit like

a soap box protester stood in the local village centre telling us how we must stand up for our local bus service but with little sensible ideas of how to go about it.

I`m sure a full action plan will be ready soon though.................... Perhaps

I don't want him to say that but as that appears to be the reality I question the extent to which I want to prop up a state of affairs which I find depressing, disingenuous (on the part of Kat and her glove puppets) and far removed from the notion of a community football club.

 

You could say that this notion is out of step with the modern game, and to some extent it is, but clubs do manage to engage with their support and cultivate a sense of togetherness. We are cultivating a sense of alienation. I don't see why I should give a dime to someone who is only here to boost their persona on the other side of the world.

 

At least with the likes of Lowe and the local businessmen who bookended his tenure, their motives were not so abstracted from what the club is fundamentally for.

Great post.

I don't want him to say that but as that appears to be the reality I question the extent to which I want to prop up a state of affairs which I find depressing, disingenuous (on the part of Kat and her glove puppets) and far removed from the notion of a community football club.

 

You could say that this notion is out of step with the modern game, and to some extent it is, but clubs do manage to engage with their support and cultivate a sense of togetherness. We are cultivating a sense of alienation. I don't see why I should give a dime to someone who is only here to boost their persona on the other side of the world.

 

At least with the likes of Lowe and the local businessmen who bookended his tenure, their motives were not so abstracted from what the club is fundamentally for.

Very well put..

Shurlock and Always in agreement about something **** me never thought I'd see the day. Next job Benjii uniting North and South Korea...

The whole takeover process stunk to high heaven from the start. Gareth Rogers doing a runner under a cloud, the PL rejecting the 'FFP' test initially and then it drags on another 6 months until they seemingly reluctantly agreed. It seems to me as if KL was so desperate to sell to 'Lander' as it was for her benefit, with hindsight now you can see that. It made her the quick buck she was looking for, I don't think any other party was willing to pay the figure she put on the table.

In terms of the purpose of the takeover for us, as a football club, it means zilch. Gao is just there as an owner listed on the records, he will be happy to sit there and allow the club to pay for its self with the PL money and transfer fees. I think it's pretty clear now that he has no intentions or plans to do anything with us, maybe a token gesture is creating 1 or two academies in China, but even that hasn't got off the ground.

As a club we have lost our entire identity and that all stems from the top because we are owned by someone who doesn't have the knowhow or interest to put an identity on it himself.

Ralph's answers in the fans forum about him 'keeping quiet in the background' and letting things 'run themselves' is bull****, and a real **** take to the fans. He has no interest in making a difference and no interest in making decisions, he just saw it as a little bit of a money maker for him and a bit of a profile increase for his company. No more than that.

The continuing to run us ‘sustainably’ is also complete bull****. You don’t get success in the top 2 leagues by running a sustainable money in/money out model – you have to gamble and speculate to accumulate, else you will just be left way behind. You could say that staying as a sustainable football club requires you to gamble a little these days – as Fulham showed, and even Bournemouth.

It's truly depressing, and I didn’t think she’d do it to us, but KL has sold us up the river for her own benefit. We're a dead club now, just breathing on the final scraps of PL money whilst we stay in it. Once that goes, it's all over unless someone else comes in and buys us from Gao.

I don't think the owner is the big issue here.

It's not like he's selling players and pocketing the £'s

The investment has been there, it's just how it's been spent/wasted.

A squad that's cost c£300m and millions spent on managers and management changes / pay offs. We have wasted a criminal amount of money and show no signs of improving.

The other worry is that our youth / academy options have now also nearly dried up so while we waste big money on **** players we no longer have the academy to bail us out. Mess

It's the management of the club (Les, Wilson, Ralph) not the owner that needs to change IMHO

I don't think the owner is the big issue here.

 

It's not like he's selling players and pocketing the £'s

 

The investment has been there, it's just how it's been spent/wasted.

 

A squad that's cost c£300m and millions spent on managers and management changes / pay offs. We have wasted a criminal amount of money and show no signs of improving.

 

The other worry is that our youth / academy options have now also nearly dried up so while we waste big money on **** players we no longer have the academy to bail us out. Mess

 

It's the management of the club (Les, Wilson, Ralph) not the owner that needs to change IMHO

But the man agent of the club is the responsibility of the owner. If he was any use, he would have kicked out the likes of Ralph and Les and replaced them with people who can be effective and make a difference. Being the owner isn't just about the money, it's about having a vision and putting things in place to turn the vision into reality. Gao seems to lack that vision or any idea how to fix the club and ultimately that's his problem, compounded by the stupid decision by our previous and still part owner to maintain the status quo with regards to our pathetic management.

It went pear shaped before Gao got involved, but it's a much bigger pear now.

Yeah but he was sniffing about for quite a while before he actually became owner, failing the fit and proper test etc. NO doubt it created uncertainty and hindered investment.

I would like to see us get rid of the following

Gao

Reed

Wilson

Kruger

JWP

But the man agent of the club is the responsibility of the owner. If he was any use, he would have kicked out the likes of Ralph and Les and replaced them with people who can be effective and make a difference. Being the owner isn't just about the money, it's about having a vision and putting things in place to turn the vision into reality. Gao seems to lack that vision or any idea how to fix the club and ultimately that's his problem, compounded by the stupid decision by our previous and still part owner to maintain the status quo with regards to our pathetic management.

This gets to what I believe is the hub of the matter. If you look at any successful organisation, from a corner shop to the real world giants like Microsoft or Exxon, you will find ONE person setting the standards and delivering a sense of purpose to all the members of that organisation. Ferguson did it at Manchester United. He may not have been nominally the top man, but he set the agenda. Saints need something from the ownership to do this. Cortese did it here once; he wasn't the owner, but you can bet a pound he was driving things.

Yeah but he was sniffing about for quite a while before he actually became owner, failing the fit and proper test etc. NO doubt it created uncertainty and hindered investment.

Didn't stories about the take over surface while Koeman was still manager?

The take over was protracted as well. The club went into a holding pattern while the take over was on going and never really came out of it.

A lot of people didn't like NC but at least we knew who was in charge, what his plans were and that he had an ambitious vision. What have we got now?

I would like to see us get rid of the following

 

Gao

Reed

Wilson

Kruger

JWP

And keep Hoedt...

And keep Hoedt...

Cheers Fats

I wondered when you would respond to one of my posts, surprised it took this long as you normally follow me and sadoldgit around...

Weve been totally stitched up when it comes to the club being sold 'only for its benefit', that's not happened and the club now seems to be some 'western' bling alongside burburry scarf and gucci bag for Mrs Gao.

All this talk of marketing SFC in china is just pure fanstasy as all the top six clubs have that signed and sealed.

Still no chinese representation on either of the boards, its a total farce.

I don't think the owner is the big issue here.

 

It's not like he's selling players and pocketing the £'s

 

The investment has been there, it's just how it's been spent/wasted.

 

A squad that's cost c£300m and millions spent on managers and management changes / pay offs. We have wasted a criminal amount of money and show no signs of improving.

 

The other worry is that our youth / academy options have now also nearly dried up so while we waste big money on **** players we no longer have the academy to bail us out. Mess

 

It's the management of the club (Les, Wilson, Ralph) not the owner that needs to change IMHO

Keep on with the Campaign. Les' plants will be fed up reading our regular stance. Reed and Prof Unwin are Amateur conniving nerks and need sacking.

I also write to the Saints website asking for them to be sacked. Takes 5 mins. My opinion is that Reed gets people to monitor Forums as he is a narcissistic amateur.

TUI don't like any criticism of Reed which seems a mite suspicious. Nick gets a free Season Ticket has been opined by A N Other.

Keep on with the Campaign. Les' plants will be fed up reading our regular stance. Reed and Prof Unwin are Amateur conniving nerks and need sacking.

I also write to the Saints website asking for them to be sacked. Takes 5 mins. My opinion is that Reed gets people to monitor Forums as he is a narcissistic amateur.

TUI don't like any criticism of Reed which seems a mite suspicious. Nick gets a free Season Ticket has been opined by A N Other.

Where is this "campaign" you blab on about.... its just internet bluster

Shurlock and Always in agreement about something **** me never thought I'd see the day. Next job Benjii uniting North and South Korea...

I do a cracking Kim Jong Il.

anyone up for wearing some crazy 'Lets GAO wild(e)' t-shirts?

"Let's Gao ****ing Mental!"

I often wonder if Puel was sacked because of poor ST sales in the weeks leading up to the sale and therefore impacting price and negotiating power, rather than because of the poor quality football. As countless commentators said at the time, we looked daft getting rid of a bloke who got us 8th and a cup final (even more so given his success, to date, with leicester). That decision also seems to go against the clubs usual approach which is to be resolute on sticking with what hey believe is the right person or plan and not giving in to fan forum demands.

You could add to that hanging on to VVD to maximise value.

Saints of previous years would have stuck with Puel, sold VVD, reinvested and then gone from there - #wemarchon as the mountee used to say.

The actual result was we ended up with a disgruntled player, possibly the worst manager we've ever had and the start of a seemingly rapid decline whilst I'm sure the board walked away with a rather fat cheque.

You ok mate?

 

 

 

 

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/45634934

Who the hell takes a cabbage to a football game?

How are the massive protest plans going.... i need to know when to act...

How are the massive protest plans going.... i need to know when to act...

Still working on it.

Maybe some sort of outfit?

As of right now, I don't actually have much of a problem with Gao. I know all that guff about taking us to the next level was just Kat trying to smooth her exit and make it look like she had the clubs best interests at heart but to me he is just a generic foreign Premier League owner, like everyone else seems to have. Strangely, the clubs who are doing alright never seem to have a problem with it but the ones who are struggling do.

It all comes down to what's on the pitch. Gao hasn't done what I feared, which is sell everybody, try to build a team out of Gallagher, Sims, Targett and Stephens and spin it as some exciting young English team. We've spent money which is pretty much par for a club of our size. If we can't get some decent performances out of Vest, Moi, Gunn and Ings, then Gao isn't the problem.

As of right now, I don't actually have much of a problem with Gao. I know all that guff about taking us to the next level was just Kat trying to smooth her exit and make it look like she had the clubs best interests at heart but to me he is just a generic foreign Premier League owner, like everyone else seems to have. Strangely, the clubs who are doing alright never seem to have a problem with it but the ones who are struggling do.

 

It all comes down to what's on the pitch. Gao hasn't done what I feared, which is sell everybody, try to build a team out of Gallagher, Sims, Targett and Stephens and spin it as some exciting young English team. We've spent money which is pretty much par for a club of our size. If we can't get some decent performances out of Vest, Moi, Gunn and Ings, then Gao isn't the problem.

I think I would have prefered it he had sold everybody, if I'm honest, rather than watching the same culprits doing the same stupid things week after week.

I haven't had the impression that Gao is preventing the club being run well, or withholding transfer funds, messing around with first team affairs. It seems that the problems have been with unsuccessful managerial appointments and poor choices for where the money goes.

We could complain that he's not more hands-on and being more visibly involved, but if he had been, we'd probably be blaming him more.

Still working on it.

 

Maybe some sort of outfit?

I'd like to see A4 banners on white paper and quite possibly a bed-sheet at either end. Written on with semi-permanent marker, which begins to smudge by kick-off time. That'd show them.

Has he made any statements yet? Apart from the initial corporate rhetoric spewed at the start of his tenure. I just want to know what his vision is for the club. Its worrying knowing its difficult to get his money out of China. The whole situation is a mess. Is there anyway we could make ourselves an attractive prospect for usmanov?

I haven't had the impression that Gao is preventing the club being run well, or withholding transfer funds, messing around with first team affairs. It seems that the problems have been with unsuccessful managerial appointments and poor choices for where the money goes.

 

We could complain that he's not more hands-on and being more visibly involved, but if he had been, we'd probably be blaming him more.

It's the fact that he has done nothing, said nothing, shown nothing and seems to have had his hands tied by our minority owner that is the concern. Making bad managerial appointments is because he has done nothing to change the incompetents that we had before he bought the club. In the end it is his responsibility, albeit with the shackles in place that the previous owner seems to have put in place. The incompetent management put in place constraints to protect their positions. Gao needs to ac to protect his investment but shows no signs of doing so or having the nouse to do so.

I'd like to see A4 banners on white paper and quite possibly a bed-sheet at either end. Written on with semi-permanent marker, which begins to smudge by kick-off time. That'd show them.

I've put you down for that. Nice one, mate.

I'm working on media strategy.

I've put you down for that. Nice one, mate.

 

I'm working on media strategy.

Liaise with the protest HQ in Glasgow, they have flyers printed i think

Why do we hate him again?

Why do we hate him again?

Because he bought the club and we are not very good on the field at the moment...... well something like that...

It's the fact that he has done nothing, said nothing, shown nothing and seems to have had his hands tied by our minority owner that is the concern. Making bad managerial appointments is because he has done nothing to change the incompetents that we had before he bought the club. In the end it is his responsibility, albeit with the shackles in place that the previous owner seems to have put in place. The incompetent management put in place constraints to protect their positions. Gao needs to ac to protect his investment but shows no signs of doing so or having the nouse to do so.

This, in a nutshell. It boggles the mind that the morons who kept the clown on for as long as they did, and on top of that bought him a £20 million donkey, are still with us.

It's the fact that he has done nothing, said nothing, shown nothing and seems to have had his hands tied by our minority owner that is the concern. Making bad managerial appointments is because he has done nothing to change the incompetents that we had before he bought the club. In the end it is his responsibility, albeit with the shackles in place that the previous owner seems to have put in place. The incompetent management put in place constraints to protect their positions. Gao needs to ac to protect his investment but shows no signs of doing so or having the nouse to do so.

Agree. And the vacuum at the top of the club sends off all the wrong signals to the rest of the organisation.