Murray assured

Richard Murray did his stuff again this evening in front of 100 or so Addicks in a city tavern. He sat up front and answered questions for an hour and a half before scrambling off for a drink with old pal Martin Simons.

So, what did we learn? First and foremost for me was that the Zabeel deal has not been all bad for the club by any means. Richard pretty much acknowledged the story as laid out in the press. The people he was dealing with were called off at the last minute by the "King" and he has no reason to suspect it was for any other reason than the current global economic situation and the precariousness of where Dubai finds itself as a result. Indeed, he received a "lovely" letter of apology and regret from Zabeel. The up-side from this is that it would appear to have put us very much in the global shop window. Clearly he couldn't elaborate but the fact that we are available for purchase and that we have passed due diligence with Zabeel under the respected guidance of Rothchilds has not gone amiss. Richard returned to the theme of a sale a number of times during the evening and was candid enough to say that substantial new investment would be the only way we are likely to return to the Premier League. He isn't convinced by the longevity of US interests in British football and sees the Middle or Far East as much better prospects....

His comments on the liquidity of British football were also eye-opening and he appears to be even more convinced than he was in July about the uncertainty of the current viability of a number of clubs. West Ham are obvious candidates here but he outlined the situation that Crystal Palace find themselves in whereby current operating losses will obviously affect any offer price of the club. I guess the logic of this is that Simon Jordan might end up giving Palace away to cut his losses. With an ego that size I'd be amazed if he sold or took a major loss but I guess if he's truly lost interest then who knows.

The key question of the evening about Alan Pardew's future was well worded by someone "AFKA" and answered with the anticipated diplomatic aplomb. There was absolutely no side to the way this question was answered and Murray spoke up on Pardew's behalf about the unexpected financial restrictions he's faced this Summer and the practicalities of replacing him. His only criticism of SAP, if you could call it that, was that he's maybe bought players who might not be best suited to getting you out of the Championship. By this he meant more of an emphasis on skill as opposed to strength. If this is the case, then it's an added disappointment bearing in mind Pardew's success in promoting Reading and West Ham from this league already. Having said that, I do recall Alan Pardew acknowledging changes in this division since he was here with them, so maybe that's a fair observation. I remain convinced, however, that Alan Pardew now has an expiry date and that he will be sacked sooner rather than later without a significant change in fortunes.

It was very interesting to hear how Murray first got involved in Charlton (whilst we were playing at Selhurst) and how he first purchased a minor interest from Mike Norris and Roger Alwen. Norris had financial problems within days of the deal and there was a wrangle with Hill Samuel (liquidators) that followed. In typical gentlemanly fashion, Roger Alwen honoured Norris's end of the bargain and I was immediately reminded of the debt of gratitude we owe him. It's high time Roger Alwen's contribution to Charlton Athletic was properly recognised and something that the newly elected Fan's Forum could take up on our behalf (there will be time for Richard Murray yet).

No questions on CAFCTV or the Fans Forum but I guess they don't prioritse in the current environment. Towards the end, a question was asked about how many new (loan) players we might see in the coming weeks. "unlikely any before Birmingham but possibly four before the Sheffield United game." All spare cash is being thrown at this but we were cautioned that they won't necessarily all be household names....