https://www.motforum.com/article.ph...DtrniO1dr0DuHaY9gdmOXLyE7bPQJC2CtNSNfTz7dZZV0 31 Jul 2019 10:51am, by YorkshireSquare please log in to view this image Andrea Radrizzani always warned this would be a ‘difficult’ summer in the transfer market but with Jannson, Saiz and Clarke sold and only the loan deals of Harrison, Clarke, White and Costa back in many fans are questioning Radrizzani’s finances and motivation. I get that Leeds United fans want to hold the club’s owners to account, I really do. It is absolutely right that we should do it following the gaggle of narcissistic shysters who have been in charge of the club over the last twenty years. But I do wonder why Andrea Radrizzani is taking quite so much flak from some fans given the last six occupants of that office. Our decline started with Peter Ridsdale, sure we experienced the highs of challenging at the top of English and European football but Ridsdale gambled the club’s future on the revenues of back to back Campions league qualification would bring, and he lost. The squad was sold of piece by piece for a lot less than players were bought for to cover the losses but it wasn’t enough. By the time he left the club in March 2003 the club was £103m in debt, a debt the club would not recover from for a long time. With the squad sold and no money left to replace them relegation was inevitable. Professor John McKenzie a long-time fan and investor was made Chairman, part of the old regime he was guilty by association. He quickly made drastic cost savings including redundancies whilst lining his own pockets with £380,000 made up of salaries and ‘consultancy fees’, he stepped down before coming under fire from the shareholders at the 2003 AGM. Trevor Birch was next at the helm, there was little he could do but fight fires, which he did to his credit. He staved off administration whilst keeping player sales to the minimum before finding a new buyer for the club. He is the only one to come away with any credit perhaps. please log in to view this image Next up was the ‘Yorkshire Consortium’ of Gerald Krasner and co. It’s a brave undertaking, buying a football club with £100 million worth of debts when you don’t have a pot to p**s in but that’s what they did. Perhaps they deserve more credit than they get for keeping the club alive and reducing debts to a ‘manageable’ £25m but I will never forgive them for the way they funded the purchase of the club. A £15m loan from Jack Petchey, which the board were personally liable for, was used. The sale of Elland Road to their business associates was needed to pay off the outstanding balance and clear their personal liabilities. This came on top of the sale of Thorp Arch training complex. Then came Ken bates, what to say that has not already been said? The man who claimed to have ‘Saved the club’ called the supporters ‘morons’, divided the fan base, presided over administration and saw us relegated to League One. There is little doubt Bates skimmed money off the top for him and his investors and wasted much of the club’s revenues on white elephant building projects, court cases and failing radio stations. Radio stations which would be used to harassment former directors. Eight years of stagnation which saw protests and demonstrations. When we did have an opportunity to push on under Grayson the squad was sold from under him; Gradel, Howson and Snodgrass all gone, there was little chance of ever seeing that money being reinvested. please log in to view this image Ken's final parting gift was to sell the club to gfh, the Islamic investment bank that knew f**k all about football. Interested in making a quick buck only debts actually rose during their stewardship, £17m by the time they sold the club to Massimo Cellino. A liability still held by the club in the form of a debenture when Radrizzani’s Eleonora Sports finally took 100% control of the club. The rumours that their transfer targets were based on Football Manager and asking fans on Twitter were sadly and comedically true and they showed themselves to be a lovely bunch of people when they had one of their former colleagues arrested and locked up in a Dubai prison for two years. It’s amazing to think that the next owner, Massimo Cellino, was possibly not even the worst we had had in recent years. Not the worst but definitely the craziest, a madman who made Leeds a laughing stock. Being chased around Elland Road by fans after sacking Brian McDermott, appointing a manager from non-league and inviting Mini-Me to games may have been some of the more amusing stories from his reign but the less amusing side was that he ripped the heart out of the club. Dogged by court cases from the day he arrived he was never fit to run the club. please log in to view this image Under Cellino’s tenure wages were not paid, long-term, respected employees sacked, facilities at Thorp Arch closed, players were forced to bring in their own lunch and the Academy run down. The squad was filled with second rate players from second rate Italian clubs coached by second rate coaches, all who were being spied on by a former furniture salesman from Miami. A former club employee once described Cellino as ‘The most disrespectful man I have ever come across’ and that was proved true. He did not respect the fans or the club, as Bates and Ridsdale before him he cared only for himself. Of course, Andrea Radrizzani has not been perfect, the trip to Myanmar and the proposed new club bade obvious errors of judgement but so far he has been a good custodian of the club. He has paid off Cellino and gfh and bought back the ground. Yes, the ground is owned by the holding company rather than the club but I don’t see an issue with that, it’s pretty common practice these days, just ask Mel Morris. Radrizzani has constructed a good team around him in terms of off the field management, scouting and coaching. Improvements have been made to the ground and facilities at Thorp Arch recommissioned. Player have been sold but money has been reinvested in the team. Radrizzani may not be one of the richest owners in the Football League but with a personal fortune of around £450m he is 15th in the list. He has already put significant money into the club, whether his or other investors, but he is a businessman and he has to balance the investment with the potential rewards. Getting that balance wrong is what got us into this situation in the first place. Whilst the transfer policy of having to sell to buy may be frustrating the club is in the best situation both financially and on the pitch than it has been for a long time. It is right for us as fans to question the custodians of our club and hold them to account but before we start clamouring for Radrizzani to leave and for us to be turned into PSGs feeder club let’s just remind ourselves of the ghosts of Chairmen past and how far we have come in the last twelve months.
Forgot about Yorkshire Radio. Or was it Radio Yorkshire? Were they the same thing? Still in existence? Used to be Bates' platform to criticise the club after he left, wasn't it?
I think Rads is doing a decent job. There are plenty of fans who’d swap their chairman for ours. Bielsa and his entourage and Orta and his scouting system must drain the pot, Rads brought the ground back add these all up and we’re now a proper run club who will look attractive to outside investors when it becomes time to sell. He isn’t perfect, he will always be businessman first but at least he isn’t reckless. Transfers this season have confused me, I wish we’d brought in a couple more players but I only assume Bielsa is calling all the shots in who’s in and out.
He came in with a mission to scout young talent and sell at a profit. Done that this summer. Splashed some cash too, but never enough for football fans, not just LUFC.
We have a well run club We have an owner who cares The post I did yesterday shows we are valued 4th highest in the Championship behind relegated clubs with parachute money. That just doesn't happen from a club with nothing and being milked. We have an academy with vast investment and paying off in spades, our U16s are in Ireland playing against clubs like Man Utd and all points Europe as we speak. Our U16s won cups as did the U18s and the U23s won everything. We have a proper scouting system finding some gems and selling for profit some who fail or fall short. We have one of the best football coaches the world has seen But we dont have loads of cash. So because we have failed to do what some other clubs have done and basically cheat and spend huge money, our owner gets slated by a section of fans. I have seen the accounts and have spoken to people who have also seen them and know what they are talking about. I see an owner who has spent his own money in a huge way and hasn't started taking money out. He will at some stage but that will be either from selling the club to a bigger owner or from taking profit after promotion. I want success like everyone else and get peed off when I see small clubs earning a fortune in the Prem and detest these clubs like Derby, Villa, Swansea, Wednesday, Fulham, WBA, Hull, Birmingham who bent rules and spent cash they didnt have to get promotion, and then given millions in parachute payments for being shyte But I am seeing some of the best football I have ever seen in all my years following this club. I almost threw up when we failed last season because I expected autos. Was that Radz fault though? We have a coach who dictates everything to do with the players and that includes who comes and goes. So again not Radz fault. If Radz had more money I think we would be in the Prem but he hasnt and he doesn't deserve the crap My opinion
Only able to give 1 like on this system. Deserves a lot more. Excellent statement, excellent detail, & brevity that I'll never achieve in my lifetime. Possibly your best ever, Doc.
I think we are in an unusual position in that we come from a position of years of crap hoisted on us. Consequently, anything is an improvement. Radz is clearly an improvement, but is that what you judge him on? Better than bates, gfh, cellino? I agree with a lot of doc’s post above, though some is pure supposition but that’s fine, we’re here to give opinions. Doc is one of the positive posters, I genuinely wish i was able to share such an outlook in life but have always been a bit of a cynic. For example, if Orta hadn’t encouraged radz to take TC, and spunked loads of cash on players and contracts who haven’t worked out and haven’t all been sold at a profit, maybe radz would have had more cash to do stuff last January or going forward. I haven’t seen the accounts, but what i do hear (and it makes sense, radz has inferred it himself previously) is that problems with 11 sports have restricted his ability to invest in the club. Jansson, Clarke and bpf have gone for hard cash, players brought in have been loans or on the never never. This is the ‘difficult summer’ promised and it isn’t just about FFP. Contract discussions with Phillips, Roofe and bpf have failed to be resolved and have unsettled players. IMO had Radz sought investment in Jan, we would have been promoted but he didn’t want to dilute his share and managed by hope not sense. He blew it.. or bielsa blew it... or both. What i’m pointing out is that there are counter arguments to a lot of the positive spin. Not a case of being negative in my view.... I prefer to think of it as realistic. But is it Radz’ fault he doesn’t have more money? no. (Well you can argue that it is if you think how he manages his businesses is worthy of blame). Do I think he deserves flack for it? No (Apart from not getting investment last jan). It is what it is. I’m sure he’d like it to be different. However, he’s a football chairman, fans have expectations at every club, and for every popular chairman i’ll Show you a stack of unpopular ones. It goes with the territory. However, on the football front, we have a manager that has delivered a brand of football that was a breath of fresh air last year... guilty only of naivity in it’s execution at times. Radz and orta deserve real credit for bringing bielsa in. We’re producing good youngsters, there is a plan and a philosophy at the club. As for next year. We’ve kept most of the team together, i hoped for more, but I think we’ll be in the mix again. I’m not going to hang radz out to dry for being skint, but i understand the frustrations of fans who had one hand on promotion.
I can assure you that Radz was indeed looking for investment - and not only in January. The lad that sits 2 rows in front of me has a mate that's in the (extended) company of Radz on match days. He reported that he & loads of other 'monied' supporters were being collared by Radz looking for cash - investment, loans, gifts, anything. He reported that there was more than a hint of desperation, & it actually became embarrassing at times as Radz was almost begging. But the great & good in Yorkshire seemingly ignored him as he got no takers. Bottom line is that he left no stone unturned looking for investment.
The bunch with "deep pockets and short arms" as the thieving Bates lovingly (?) liked to refer to them.
Interesting WJ. I’m staggered that no potential investor offered decent terms wouldn’t have bought a stake in January, given our league position.... and the likelihood of a return on promotion Maybe ‘offered decent terms’ is the key in that... but i’ll take at face value that he gave it his best shot
Makes you wonder about the 49ers why didn't they offer to put more cash in? Guess they wanted a bigger slice of the cake.. but as they are from the investment arm of the biz how come they weren't throwing cash which would help promotion which in turn would see the value of their shares triple?
They way it was put to me, he got the brush-off immediately he asked for interest. Never got as far as terms.
Exactly doc... to me, they were the obvious first port of call. ‘Guys another 10m now would make all the difference and pretty much guarantee you a return’ My assumption was always that radz thought he could get away with not doing it and/or didn’t want to dilute his shares... but maybe they just weren’t buying it. Or maybe everyone was too complacent... after all... if you’re top at Christmas...
Or perhaps there is a long term escalator agreement already in place? Or perhaps he did ask? The tone of desperation that was conveyed to me suggested that he had explored all available avenues. Whatever happened, it seems that he's now steered us round whatever obstacles were in the way, so it's time to look forward.
So in other words WJ, you fell off a cruise ship for a while and was rescued at last minute by rads and his buddies hauling you aboard
Aye & it was bloody sore! You can't begin to imagine the pain involved when they use those big bloody boat hooks!
