It would appear that Roland Duchatelet's deadline for the Aussie consortium to find the extra investment needed to make his asking price won't be met and that they will shortly call it a day.
Duchatelet has clearly been trying to get the remaining Directors who are owed money to settle, in order for him to be able to try to cut a deal with the Aussies whereby he could still sell the club at a price they could afford but he would have retained the Valley and Sparrows Lane assets. Bravo to those who held-out and, I believe, to the Aussies who realised that they had to get the club lock, stock and barrel if they were to have any chance of succeeding.
If you follow the line from Duchatelet and Murray, then there is a second 'British' consortium waiting in the wings who may now come into play. Let's hope this is true but I have always assumed it was wishful thinking on Duchatelet's part and an attempt to keep the pressure on the Aussies. If there really is a credible second consortium, then it's hard-to-believe that a name hasn't already emerged and you have to accept that they were clearly second-best to the Aussies.
You also have to ask why Duchatelet hasn't used them as a bigger lever before now? He reacted very strongly to news that there was hitch with the Aussies when here because he promptly sold his biggest saleable playing asset in a matter of few hours and got busy lining up other player sales and cutting club running costs. If he did have a second buyer in the wings, why not engage directly with them then?
No doubt we will learn more in the next couple of days but it would be the latest in a long, long, line of false dawns which continue the agony and suffering of supporters as the club continues to stagger forward in the worst condition it's ever been in.
You also have to steel yourself for the likelihood that any new takeover is likely to be months away at the earliest and probably into 2019 if the last two years are anything to go by. There also remains the inconvenient truth that Duchatelet is still asking too much and that no-one will pay it and the saga will go on even further.
Next season is looking like a car crash in slow motion. The club desperately needs investment so we have enough appropriate skilled employees to operate it but Duchatelet won't put a penny in and debt will build to £70m which will put his valuation on the club into even sharper focus. Frankly, desperate as I am to see us shot of Duchatelet, I really want to see him take a whacking great loss which will humble him and ram home the undeniable facts of the complete arse he has made since taking over.
I will content myself with another season at Park View Road where the new manager has been busy making a rash of promising looking signings as Mark Goldberg prepares for a throw of the dice. The contrast couldn't be more apparent.
Duchatelet has clearly been trying to get the remaining Directors who are owed money to settle, in order for him to be able to try to cut a deal with the Aussies whereby he could still sell the club at a price they could afford but he would have retained the Valley and Sparrows Lane assets. Bravo to those who held-out and, I believe, to the Aussies who realised that they had to get the club lock, stock and barrel if they were to have any chance of succeeding.
If you follow the line from Duchatelet and Murray, then there is a second 'British' consortium waiting in the wings who may now come into play. Let's hope this is true but I have always assumed it was wishful thinking on Duchatelet's part and an attempt to keep the pressure on the Aussies. If there really is a credible second consortium, then it's hard-to-believe that a name hasn't already emerged and you have to accept that they were clearly second-best to the Aussies.
You also have to ask why Duchatelet hasn't used them as a bigger lever before now? He reacted very strongly to news that there was hitch with the Aussies when here because he promptly sold his biggest saleable playing asset in a matter of few hours and got busy lining up other player sales and cutting club running costs. If he did have a second buyer in the wings, why not engage directly with them then?
No doubt we will learn more in the next couple of days but it would be the latest in a long, long, line of false dawns which continue the agony and suffering of supporters as the club continues to stagger forward in the worst condition it's ever been in.
You also have to steel yourself for the likelihood that any new takeover is likely to be months away at the earliest and probably into 2019 if the last two years are anything to go by. There also remains the inconvenient truth that Duchatelet is still asking too much and that no-one will pay it and the saga will go on even further.
Next season is looking like a car crash in slow motion. The club desperately needs investment so we have enough appropriate skilled employees to operate it but Duchatelet won't put a penny in and debt will build to £70m which will put his valuation on the club into even sharper focus. Frankly, desperate as I am to see us shot of Duchatelet, I really want to see him take a whacking great loss which will humble him and ram home the undeniable facts of the complete arse he has made since taking over.
I will content myself with another season at Park View Road where the new manager has been busy making a rash of promising looking signings as Mark Goldberg prepares for a throw of the dice. The contrast couldn't be more apparent.
The question I keep asking myself is, does Roland actually want to sell? If you are proposing a deal that makes no financial sense to any would be buyer, you are effectively saying 'not for sale'.
ReplyDeleteI know we are talking about millions at stake but we are lead to believe he is a very wealthy, astute man. In business you have highs and lows, wins and losses. I guess he's too stubborn to accept this one hasn't worked out.
I tell you what mate, I see more and more people going over there who wouldn't have gave Welling a second look a few years ago.
ReplyDeleteAs you say, you can have a beer, get treated with dignity, and the players and supporters walk home together.
Just how football used to be.
The rumblings are that the players brought in are all of a good standard.
The new manager also appears to know this league well.
We will see eh?