Sport Republic

[Patrick Bateman]

48 minutes ago, Miltonaggro said:

One other clear motif of the Sport Republic era is their dithering, procrastination and time wasting. Lack of leadership resulting in lack of urgency has always been clear. With this latest avoidable mother of all shitstorms they have to act decisively and fast, no excuses, no safety blanket of bullshit and lies. I have little faith. 

That's so true. Reading Neil Warnock's book on his time in Management (*), he was talking about trying to sign players before Tony Fernandez got the club and the chaos he has to go through with sign off from the CEO (name escapes me) then Bernie Ecclestone, then Flavio Briatore. Flavio was often unobtainable and so he missed out on many players.

But given how slow we seem to be when making key decisions, it's obvious we decide by committee and some of that committee may not be easily obtainable.

(*) Warnock also talks about a dislike of dealing with Saints when Cortese was here. Said he couldn't stand him and he was a nightmare to deal with. Puncheon loan fee of £200k suddenly increased from £150k, just "because" as an example. Good book.

[Miltonaggro]

18 minutes ago, Patrick Bateman said:

That's so true. Reading Neil Warnock's book on his time in Management (*), he was talking about trying to sign players before Tony Fernandez got the club and the chaos he has to go through with sign off from the CEO (name escapes me) then Bernie Ecclestone, then Flavio Briatore. Flavio was often unobtainable and so he missed out on many players.

But given how slow we seem to be when making key decisions, it's obvious we decide by committee and some of that committee may not be easily obtainable.

(*) Warnock also talks about a dislike of dealing with Saints when Cortese was here. Said he couldn't stand him and he was a nightmare to deal with. Puncheon loan fee of £200k suddenly increased from £150k, just "because" as an example. Good book.

Whatever Cortese was, and for all his shortcomings (lol!) as a human being, you always had the impression that he was in charge and the buck stopped with him - club first, fuck anyone outside of the tent. If the current mob dither or muck about now in making immediate refunds and a huge show of contrition and action to the supporter base they will lose more than they could imagine. It’s pathetically obvious they don’t understand English football. 

[Turkish]

1 hour ago, StrangelyBrown said:

-4 points in the championship from mid table in the premier league.

This is what we have achieved.

Coming soon, Rasmus' new ted talk: If it isn't broke, break it.... then fuck it up and turn it into a collosal pile of shite

You just dont get it do you.

This is a 10 year plan, we are only 4 years into it.

When a navy seal joins the military during training they are stripped down, tested to the very limits of their capability, they want them to quit they want them to walk out, but they stripping them back and building their resilience to deal with EVERYTHING thrown at them to turn them into ELITE WARRIORS. Consider we are in the training phase. The club is being tested, stripped back, so we can rise into a robust, elite warrior like club capable of going to heights we never thought imaginable. This is a deliberate, planned de-construction of SFC to shift the loser mentality or the last 130 years before Rasmus, to turn us into the greatest footballing machine on earth. Now the rebuild starts. Rasmus will carry us kicking and screaming and in the end we will thank him

[Midfield_General]

20 minutes ago, Turkish said:

You just dont get it do you.

This is a 10 year plan, we are only 4 years into it.

When a navy seal joins the military during training they are stripped down, tested to the very limits of their capability, they want them to quit they want them to walk out, but they stripping them back and building their resilience to deal with EVERYTHING thrown at them to turn them into ELITE WARRIORS. Consider we are in the training phase. The club is being tested, stripped back, so we can rise into a robust, elite warrior like club capable of going to heights we never thought imaginable. This is a deliberate, planned de-construction of SFC to shift the loser mentality or the last 130 years before Rasmus, to turn us into the greatest footballing machine on earth. Now the rebuild starts. Rasmus will carry us kicking and screaming and in the end we will thank him

To build on your analogy if I may:

When patrolman Alex Murphy had his arms and legs all shot off by Clarence Boddicker and his gang and was left in a pool of his own blood on the ground of an abandoned steel mill, did he give up? Did ambitious junior executive Bob Morton of OCP give up? 

No, they did not. They had Murphy's corpse converted into Robocop, a heavily armed cyborg with no memory of his former life, who went on to be hailed by the media for his brutally efficient campaign against crime. 

And if I know Dragan like I think I do, I think he will be taking some lessons from that. 

We're in safe hands, gentlemen. It's 4D chess. The long game. The club has been playing it all along.

Matt Le Tissier knows. 

You just wait. You'll see.

Edited yesterday at 08:27 by Midfield_General

[Osvaldorama]

12 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

To build on your analogy if I may:

When patrolman Alex Murphy had his arms and legs all shot off by Clarence Boddicker and his gang and was left in a pool of his own blood on the ground of an abandoned steel mill, did he give up? Did ambitious junior executive Bob Morton of OCP give up? 

No, they did not. They had Murphy's corpse converted into Robocop, a heavily armed cyborg with no memory of his former life, who went on to be hailed by the media for his brutally efficient campaign against crime. 

And if I know Dragan like I think I do, I think he will be taking some lessons from that. 

We're in safe hands, gentlemen. It's 4D chess. The long game. The club has been playing it all along.

Matt Le Tissier knows. 

You just wait. You'll see.

Who needs limbs anyway?

 

We are the football club that say ‘ni’

[Turkish]

5 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

To build on your analogy if I may:

When patrolman Alex Murphy had his arms and legs all shot off by Clarence Boddicker and his gang and was left in a pool of his own blood on the ground of an abandoned steel mill, did he give up? Did ambitious junior executive Bob Morton of OCP give up? 

No, they did not. They had Murphy's corpse converted into Robocop, a heavily armed cyborg with no memory of his former life, who went on to be hailed by the media for his brutally efficient campaign against crime. 

And if I know Dragan like I think I do, I think he will be taking some lessons from that. 

We're in safe hands, gentlemen. It's 4D chess. The long game, and the club has been playing it all along.

You just wait. You'll see.

Not the long game, the INFINITE game. No one wins the sport of football. Okay you might win the match, a cup or a title, have a brief period of success which is followed by periods of failure. These actually deceive fans into thinking their club is achieving things. You learn far more when you fail than when you win. You learn about the people around you, the resilience they have, the desire to keep going when everything is against you. We are building more than a club, we are building a dynasty of strong, powerful, resilient people who will fight, forever.   I would swap being kicked out of the play offs for cheating every single day over say, a short term dopamine hit like Aston Villa had last night. Sure they celebrated and enjoyed their moment in the sun, but are they winners of the infinite game? Good times create weak men, weak men create bad times, bad times create strong men, strong men create good times. We are the real winners here.

[Miltonaggro]

Just now, Turkish said:

Not the long game, the INFINITE game. No one wins the sport of football. Okay you might win the match, a cup or a title, have a brief period of success which is followed by periods of failure. These actually deceive fans into thinking their club is achieving things. You learn far more when you fail than when you win. You learn about the people around you, the resilience they have, the desire to keep going when everything is against you. We are building more than a club, we are building a dynasty of strong, powerful, resilient people who will fight, forever.   I would swap being kicked out of the play offs for cheating every single day over say, a short term dopamine hit like Aston Villa had last night. Sure they celebrated and enjoyed their moment in the sun, but are they winners of the infinite game? Good times create weak men, weak men create bad times, bad times create strong men, strong men create good times. We are the real winners here.

Beautiful Turkish, poetic. I actually felt sorry for Aston Villa last night, knowing that their model is so deeply flawed.

[AlexLaw76]

It is more an soldiers of fortune with SR

 

This morning, still wanted by the football authorities, the Saints survive as players of fortune. If you have a playoff problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find them… maybe you can support Southampton FC.

[Osvaldorama]

Leaked footage from the EFL hearing: 

[Whitey Grandad]

11 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Not the long game, the INFINITE game. No one wins the sport of football. Okay you might win the match, a cup or a title, have a brief period of success which is followed by periods of failure. These actually deceive fans into thinking their club is achieving things. You learn far more when you fail than when you win. You learn about the people around you, the resilience they have, the desire to keep going when everything is against you. We are building more than a club, we are building a dynasty of strong, powerful, resilient people who will fight, forever.   I would swap being kicked out of the play offs for cheating every single day over say, a short term dopamine hit like Aston Villa had last night. Sure they celebrated and enjoyed their moment in the sun, but are they winners of the infinite game? Good times create weak men, weak men create bad times, bad times create strong men, strong men create good times. We are the real winners here.

Hell yeah!

Dopamine is for Dopes.

[Midfield_General]

15 minutes ago, Turkish said:

Not the long game, the INFINITE game. No one wins the sport of football. Okay you might win the match, a cup or a title, have a brief period of success which is followed by periods of failure. These actually deceive fans into thinking their club is achieving things. You learn far more when you fail than when you win. You learn about the people around you, the resilience they have, the desire to keep going when everything is against you. We are building more than a club, we are building a dynasty of strong, powerful, resilient people who will fight, forever.   I would swap being kicked out of the play offs for cheating every single day over say, a short term dopamine hit like Aston Villa had last night. Sure they celebrated and enjoyed their moment in the sun, but are they winners of the infinite game? Good times create weak men, weak men create bad times, bad times create strong men, strong men create good times. We are the real winners here.

Exactly. It's like William Blake said in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, his philosophical satire of 1790:

"If the doors of perception were cleansed, every thing would appear to man as it is: Infinite. For man has closed himself up, 'til he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern."

As you'll remember, Blake uses prose, poetry and vivid illustrations to challenge traditional morality, arguing that opposing forces — such as reason and energy, or good and evil — are both essential for human progress. 

Which I'm pretty sure is what Mark Dennis was alluding to in that video. 

Edited yesterday at 08:50 by Midfield_General

[Miltonaggro]

4 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

Exactly. It's like William Blake said in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, his philosophical satire of 1790:

"If the doors of perception were cleansed, every thing would appear to man as it is: Infinite. For man has closed himself up, 'til he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern."

As you'll remember, Blake uses prose, poetry and vivid illustrations to challenge traditional morality, arguing that opposing forces — such as reason and energy, or good and evil — are both essential for human progress. 

Which I'm pretty sure is what Mark Dennis was alluding to in that video. 

Mark Dennis is more of an Andrew Marvell man.  Also, like Blake and Marvell, a right handful after six pints.

[benjii]

6 minutes ago, Midfield_General said:

Exactly. It's like William Blake said in The Marriage of Heaven and Hell, his philosophical satire of 1790:

"If the doors of perception were cleansed, every thing would appear to man as it is: Infinite. For man has closed himself up, 'til he sees all things thro' narrow chinks of his cavern."

As you'll remember, Blake uses prose, poetry and vivid illustrations to challenge traditional morality, arguing that opposing forces — such as reason and energy, or good and evil — are both essential for human progress. 

Which I'm pretty sure is what Mark Dennis was alluding to in that video. 

Thanks Chat GPT.

[Midfield_General]

1 minute ago, Miltonaggro said:

Mark Dennis is more of an Andrew Marvell man.  Also, like Blake and Marvell, a right handful after six pints.

Marvell's good too. 

Captain America - brilliant 

[Miltonaggro]

Just now, Midfield_General said:

Marvell's good too. 

Captain America - brilliant 

Base, yet again...

[skintsaint]

Someone get on the blower to Klopp and get RB to take over Saints. Can't get much worse.

[Gloucester Saint]

9 hours ago, skintsaint said:

Someone get on the blower to Klopp and get RB to take over Saints. Can't get much worse.

SR’s ability to own and run the club without a senior football consultant such as Hodgson being installed to ensure compliance over the next 12 months and then reviewed over the following 24 to ensure they’ve carried on sufficient progress has to be seriously examined by the FA and EFL. 

SR need to be under some form of probation by the authorities. 

[Badger]

10 hours ago, Midfield_General said:

Which I'm pretty sure is what Mark Dennis was alluding to in that video. 

Seen previous reference to this video but have missed it. Can you post a link please ? 

[Badger]

10 hours ago, skintsaint said:

Someone get on the blower to Klopp and get RB to take over Saints. Can't get much worse.

RB was a regular annual rumour a few years ago but long gone.

[Midfield_General]

9 minutes ago, Badger said:

Seen previous reference to this video but have missed it. Can you post a link please ? 

https://www.instagram.com/p/DYjo8xFsFli/

[benali-shorts]

How has Dragan made money? He appears to be a total fucking idiot. 

[S-Clarke]

Just now, benali-shorts said:

How has Dragan made money? He appears to be a total fucking idiot. 

''It's not his fault, honest. He's put money into our club. It's just those under him''

Doesn't wash anymore. Hasn't washed for a year or so to be honest. Blokes as much of a buffoon as the rest.

[Willo of Whiteley]

I want them all gone.

[trousers]

15 hours ago, benali-shorts said:

How has Dragan made money? He appears to be a total fucking idiot. 

Probably better to put this on this thread rather than the new manager thread... old news admitedly, but perhaps more relevant now than it was last year...?

https://www.eureporter.co/lifestyle/media/2025/10/21/european-media-dragan-solak-loses-control-of-united-group-in-court-defeat/

Dragan Šolak’s (pictured) turbulent bid to regain control of United Group, the telecom conglomerate in Southeastern Europe where he remains minority shareholder, has ended in decisive defeat. Media outlets across Europe report last week’s ruling by the Amsterdam Enterprise Chamber as the final chapter in the billionaire’s struggle to cling to influence over the company he once dominated.

As Bloomberg reported, “the ousted founder of… United Group BV failed to convince Dutch judges he could bring an unfair dismissal lawsuit.” The court in Amsterdam ruled his case inadmissible, rejecting his attempt to initiate an investigation into the company’s governance and leadership. The decision, Bloomberg noted, represents “the latest legal salvo stemming from a management fallout at the European telecom and media firm.”

Šolak - who still owns 36% in the Group - had asked the court to appoint an independent investigator into what he described as alleged “abuse of governance” by the company’s new management. But the judges found that the dispute was not within their jurisdiction, as United Group’s parent company is registered in Luxembourg.

Leading Dutch title Het Financieele Dagblad reported that Solak “has failed in his attempt to involve the Enterprise Chamber in the conflict surrounding the company.” The article pointed that Solak has tried to “involve Serbian politics in his campaign” and emphasised United Group’s position that there is “no management crisis whatsoever, but rather a fabrication by Solak to regain his influence and income at United Group.”

 

The Times of London column section, entitled ‘Dragan roars in vain’, also covered the “failed bid to install a court-appointed representative to investigate” the company Solak was ousted from in June. The paper added that the ruling leaves Šolak “unsuccessful in his legal action against the European media conglomerate United Group”.

According to Mobile Europe, earlier this summer the court rejected Solak’s attempt to fast-track his action, denying him an urgent intervention in July 2025.

Greek business daily ProtoThema  called last week’s outcome “a judicial victory for United Group,” signalling a stabilisation of the group after months of internal turbulence and legal drama. The outlet underlined that the decision “marks a clear end to the founder’s influence” and “confirms the strength of the company’s governance under new leadership”.

 

United Group, in a statement quoted by Bloomberg, said the verdict “confirms what has been clear all along: this was never a genuine governance dispute, but another in a long line of distractions orchestrated by Mr. Šolak for his own ends.” The company added that “the court was able to see through it,” an apparent reference to a campaign by Šolak to regain his influence through litigation and media pressure.

For Šolak, the loss is more than legal - it represents a dramatic decline in both his corporate and personal influence. Once hailed as the Balkan media mogul and self-styled defender of press freedom, he now finds himself shut out of the company that made his fortune. Solak’s insistence to the Times that “this has no impact on Sport Republic or Southampton” - the football club he owns - did little to shift attention from his mounting setbacks.

Whether Šolak will pursue “other competent jurisdictions,” as his family office told Bloomberg, remains to be seen. It does appear to be contradicted by a subsequent statement issued by Solak and covered by N1, where he expressed his “hope that the new management delivers the same exceptional results for all stakeholders, as we did for all those years.” Perhaps this statement is a recognition that each successive defeat further isolates him while strengthening BC Partners’ position and reinforcing the legitimacy of United Group’s current management.

For a company that has spent the past year under intense scrutiny, the ruling offers closure and the chance to move forward. For Šolak, it may mark the start of a more uncomfortable chapter: that of a founder-turned-outsider, decisively shut out from the empire he built.

Edited 5 hours ago by trousers

[Osvaldorama]

2 hours ago, trousers said:

Probably better to put this on this thread rather than the new manager thread... old news admitedly, but perhaps more relevant now than it was last year...?

https://www.eureporter.co/lifestyle/media/2025/10/21/european-media-dragan-solak-loses-control-of-united-group-in-court-defeat/

Dragan Šolak’s (pictured) turbulent bid to regain control of United Group, the telecom conglomerate in Southeastern Europe where he remains minority shareholder, has ended in decisive defeat. Media outlets across Europe report last week’s ruling by the Amsterdam Enterprise Chamber as the final chapter in the billionaire’s struggle to cling to influence over the company he once dominated.

As Bloomberg reported, “the ousted founder of… United Group BV failed to convince Dutch judges he could bring an unfair dismissal lawsuit.” The court in Amsterdam ruled his case inadmissible, rejecting his attempt to initiate an investigation into the company’s governance and leadership. The decision, Bloomberg noted, represents “the latest legal salvo stemming from a management fallout at the European telecom and media firm.”

Šolak - who still owns 36% in the Group - had asked the court to appoint an independent investigator into what he described as alleged “abuse of governance” by the company’s new management. But the judges found that the dispute was not within their jurisdiction, as United Group’s parent company is registered in Luxembourg.

Leading Dutch title Het Financieele Dagblad reported that Solak “has failed in his attempt to involve the Enterprise Chamber in the conflict surrounding the company.” The article pointed that Solak has tried to “involve Serbian politics in his campaign” and emphasised United Group’s position that there is “no management crisis whatsoever, but rather a fabrication by Solak to regain his influence and income at United Group.”

 

The Times of London column section, entitled ‘Dragan roars in vain’, also covered the “failed bid to install a court-appointed representative to investigate” the company Solak was ousted from in June. The paper added that the ruling leaves Šolak “unsuccessful in his legal action against the European media conglomerate United Group”.

According to Mobile Europe, earlier this summer the court rejected Solak’s attempt to fast-track his action, denying him an urgent intervention in July 2025.

Greek business daily ProtoThema  called last week’s outcome “a judicial victory for United Group,” signalling a stabilisation of the group after months of internal turbulence and legal drama. The outlet underlined that the decision “marks a clear end to the founder’s influence” and “confirms the strength of the company’s governance under new leadership”.

 

United Group, in a statement quoted by Bloomberg, said the verdict “confirms what has been clear all along: this was never a genuine governance dispute, but another in a long line of distractions orchestrated by Mr. Šolak for his own ends.” The company added that “the court was able to see through it,” an apparent reference to a campaign by Šolak to regain his influence through litigation and media pressure.

For Šolak, the loss is more than legal - it represents a dramatic decline in both his corporate and personal influence. Once hailed as the Balkan media mogul and self-styled defender of press freedom, he now finds himself shut out of the company that made his fortune. Solak’s insistence to the Times that “this has no impact on Sport Republic or Southampton” - the football club he owns - did little to shift attention from his mounting setbacks.

Whether Šolak will pursue “other competent jurisdictions,” as his family office told Bloomberg, remains to be seen. It does appear to be contradicted by a subsequent statement issued by Solak and covered by N1, where he expressed his “hope that the new management delivers the same exceptional results for all stakeholders, as we did for all those years.” Perhaps this statement is a recognition that each successive defeat further isolates him while strengthening BC Partners’ position and reinforcing the legitimacy of United Group’s current management.

For a company that has spent the past year under intense scrutiny, the ruling offers closure and the chance to move forward. For Šolak, it may mark the start of a more uncomfortable chapter: that of a founder-turned-outsider, decisively shut out from the empire he built.

So he’s been kicked out of the playoffs and kicked out of his own company. 

What a guy

[Willo of Whiteley]

27 minutes ago, Osvaldorama said:

So he’s been kicked out of the playoffs and kicked out of his own company. 

What a guy

You can take the man out of Southampton….

Doesnt work I suppose, either way! 😂

[skintsaint]

36 minutes ago, Osvaldorama said:

and kicked out of his own company. 

Not really, still owns 36% of it I think.