There's something gone on and the fans of other clubs aren't worth listening to.. They wanted it to fail, so of course it's all been proper
But then everything is speculation. 100% blaming the Premier League is based on speculation. Basing everything on what Amanda has said could be speculation. The Premier League dont need to come clean, particularly as the Saudi's have supposedly pulled out. Maybe the Saudis dont want the Premier League to come clean. Maybe the reason for the delay and eventually pull out was the Saudis problem. Just cos they said there were no problems dont make it neccessarily so. Maybe the Premier League didnt want a man who allegedly sanctions murder (speculation) as the head of one of their teams. Maybe there was dodgy financial reasons on the Saudis part. Maybe if the Saudis didnt have such clout the Premier League would have failed it months ago. Maybe if the Premier League do come clean then heads would roll (literally?). I certainly wouldnt like to rummage through the Saudis dirty laundry. Did they allow the Premier League access to their dirty laundry? Personally I just think the whole thing is so complicated that the average bloke on the street wouldnt understand. Premier League may be partly to blame, but to fully blame them for not wanting an organisation more powerful than them to rock the boat is mad. If the deal is dead then it wouldnt surprise me that both parties will be settled with this outcome.
Ciro Immobile: "During the period in which there was talk of the possible purchase of Newcastle United by the Sheikh's fund, they called my agent. "I know they were also looking for an Italian coach, Allegri or Spalletti." What could have been eh!
Bit rude. All I'm saying is that things simply wont be as black and white as simply blaming the Premier League. Wouldnt surprise me if the following happened..... Premier League find something unacceptable where they simply cannot pass it. Premier League inform Saudis Saudis cant work their way around it and dont want this info to be made public. Premier League and Saudis agree that takeover wont/cant happen. Saudis pull out in order to save face, keeping their dignity. Premier League keep schtum and take whatever is thrown at them and wait for the whole thing to blow over. Like many team takeovers, there are possibly many reasons as to why certain folk are not deemed fit and proper. It all hinges on whether they are worthy enough not to turn a blind eye to. A Saudi bid, rightly or wrongly, is always likely to cause problems for everyone involved.
Simple really. If the PL had grounds to fail the consortium they would have done so. They didn't. No grounds = no reasonable excuse for not passing it.
Tbh you're OK I'm just saying there's no harm in an investigation or requesting one given the allegations... Quite why fans of other clubs care so much is beyond me... Let's see what unfolds..
Not sure why it is being overthought. Not providing information can be construed as dishonesty - a ground for failure. The application did not fail so the natural assumption is that the Saudi's provided everything required. The PL sitting on it (if proven) with no grounds to fail is evidence of unreasonableness. It is simple. All the PL has to do is confirm that the consortium failed their test. They can't because they haven't.
It's because they're so pleased it hasn't gone through thst they are unable to question anything because ultimately they don't want to..
But I dont think things are that simple. The amount of money involved coupled with the politics, the whole thing would have been mind blowing.. Maybe the Premier League didnt want to fail it and embarrass the Saudis. The Saudis didnt want to be embarrassed. They concoct an outcome where the Saudi's blame financial climate/with a thinly veiled show of anger and disappointment toward the Premier League. Saudi's walk away with their heads held high. Premier League keep schtum and instead of some angry Saudis on their case they, for now, have angry Town fans instead. Whole thing eventually blows over. If it is 100% all of the Premier Leagues fault and the Saudis bid was whiter than white then I wouldnt like to be part of that team that put the mockers on the takeover. Putting a block on the deal and pissing the Saudis off for nothing but selfish reasons? I wouldnt be able to sleep at night.
Maybe they had grounds for failing it, but rather than embarrassing the Saudis they sat on the fence and waited for the Saudis to save face and walk away. Would you like to be the person who would tell the Saudis, then the whole world, that their bid had failed? That their bid was not fit and proper?
The problem is with this is that all sounds very simple and the simply solution would be to give a reason why it can't/won't pass. I for one would understand if they came out and went balls deep on KSA saying something akin to "these ****ing jurno murdering, pirating, human rights abusers aren't coming near our league, **** the ****ing lot of them" or something slightly more professional... The reality is this is THE most difficult takeover any sports team in the world has faced. Not only is it upsetting the status quo at the top of the richest league in the world (e.g. the bin dippers and spuds to get their panties in a twist over it) - there is also the geopolitics, the piracy, the human rights etc. etc. etc. aspects to consider. If it is off, there is no reason not to give a reason why it isn't going to happen - from the leagues point of view at least, they are being spammed and all their sponsors targeted with allegations of corruption, it's easier for them to say something than nothing at present - which is why I believe it is on. The only thing we know is that AS has come out and explained that the league have said "we aren't going to say yes or no and we are prepared to wait month after month until we get what we want" (this is near enough a direct quote from AS) which from what I understand is KSA listed as a director - no country in the world is director of a sports team so why are they asking it on this particular deal? Is this boarding on blackmail? I think a lot of fans only want clarity and if it's a no its a no and if there is a fair and just reason for it people would accept it but the fact is there is no clarity and only suggestions of very underhand tactics being used from the EPL, the Top 6 (who should have nothing to do with it) and foreign influences like Qatar.
Come on, man - embarrassment comes into it?!? This is major money, emotion has no place whatsoever at that table. For me, whilst I wondered whether the Saudi's had been up to something, the silence from the PL is telling. They are accused of deep-rooted corruption - a simple "we asked for clarity which wasn't provided" would be sufficient to point the finger, particularly if it's a) true and b) the Saudis couldn't argue it. But the PL remain silent, which doesn't make any sense with the accusations. What people seem inexplicably unable to keep in their head is that the PL is NOT a governing body. It is just a sales & marketing tool representing 20 member clubs so it seems utterly obvious to me that the O&D test shouldn't take into account the other clubs, but it naturally will. I don't think it's about "corruption" as such, just a case of the majority not wanting it to pass. I don't buy the comment that other clubs want KSA money in the league - there's plenty going around without them. Most tellingly, there are 4 CL places and it's already hard enough to secure CL football - pretty clear Arsenal, Wolves, Villa, Everton and Spurs don't want KSA money at Newcastle, on top of Man C, ManU, Chelsea, Leicester and Liverpool. So you've probably got 10 clubs AT LEAST opposed to it. The issue the PL have got is they can't say to KSA "we're not having you here, cos we don't feel like it". They'll re-write their test to put it to club votes next time, that way clubs can just oppose places like KSA on "moral" grounds, but allow Henry Mauriss and his unknown band of merry tax dodgers to take control.
If the premier league came up with something and made public something that would not only put a definite block on this deal but also hinder any future deals that the Saudis have their eye on, then I think embarrassment would come into it. A Premier League failure could be a yardstick which could be used to beat away any future dealings that the Saudis wish to indulge in.
