Over the past year there has been plenty of rumours around MAF selling the club, so this is really no surprise at all. It also explains why we've spent very little money over the past 12 months. To be perfectly honest, I am glad that once MAF started preparing to sell the club the deal was done quickly. On MAF The Captain is correct that we do sometimes give too much credit to MAF for saving our club. That credit belongs to people like Jimmy Hill, rather than MAF. However the growth in our club over the past 15 years is certainly due to MAF; he brought in several good managers and Marlet aside our transfers in have been generally good and astute. I'll always have fond memories of MAF's tenure, which changed us from a football league club to a Premier League club. That change has been off the pitch as much as on it. So farewell, Mohamed Al Fayed. Thank you for everything you've done for our club and enjoy your retirement. On Shahid Khan There is not a lot to judge Khan on, outside of 18 months in charge of the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Jaguars did just have their worst season in their 20 year history. Honestly, though, he did not inherit a good team so it's not a good comparison. I am a little encouraged that Khan made his own money rather than inheriting it or making it through shares. Only time will tell whether Khan is anywhere near as good an owner as MAF, but I don't have a negative feeling as yet. On our shortterm future I think this is a positive change in the short term. I think Khan is more likely to sanction spending this summer than MAF would have been. Whatever Khan's plans are, us getting relegated in the next few years would certainly stunt them. Given the spending at clubs like Southampton and Swansea, we do need to spend something. The most interesting question right now centres on the future of Alistair Mackintosh. Khan would be well within his rights to look for a new CEO who fits with whatever perameters he would be looking for. But AliMac has done a good job for us and I think it would be to our advantage to keep him in place to manage the transition. I think we should be a little bit more optimistic for the next six weeks. But it is important not to expect a Man City approach: we don't need that to achieve a top half finish and it could be a big long term mistake to try and run before we can walk. I also now hope the statue will disappear during a Riverside expansion. On our longterm future It is not clear what Shahid Khan's reasons are for buying our club. However, I do think it is tied up with the fact that the Jacksonville Jaguars are signed up to play a number of games in London over the next few years. The real question for me is whether Khan is looking to use Fulham to help the Jaguars gain some publicity in the UK or whether he genuinely thinks that the benefits to both teams (Fulham have a decent US profile due to McBride and Dempsey) in expanding the respective markets could give him the profits he'll be looking for. Either way, Fulham being relegated would be a big blow to the plans, so I expect some additional investment. I would expect Khan to look at the potential options for expanding the stadium, either through redevelopment or through a ground move. We just have to hope that Khan is savy enough to explore the feelings of the fans and to factor that in to his plans. Craven Cottage is a key part of who we are, and I think Khan can "grow the brand" of both us and the Jaguars without moving us to a new plastic stadium.
I'm hoping that his first season will be a settling in period, no need to win anything (but would be nice), top 6-10, but no relegation battle. May be 1 or 2 better signing before the transfer window, then we would have been able to get. There are things he needs to sort out. Getting Players, with Central Midfield needing a class player or two. Left back needs sorting. May be take a risk on getting someone like Hooper, Rhodes or Defoe up front. Think he needs to address the building of the New Riverside Stand, so there would be no doubt about us moving soon. May be to get supporters on his side, look in to making safe standing season ticket in the Lower Johnny Haynes Stand and Lower Riverside. This could make Craven Cottage an unique ground in the Premier. We've proved with the neutral zone that things can work. But I suspect he will be knocked back by the FA and Government.
I quite agree with Surly - on all points actually. I read this morning in the Express that he has plans to make us a top 6 club, but I am pretty sure that is just paper talk, although I do think we can anticipate some spending before transfer deadline day as he looks to make a mark with Fulham and to win over the fans. I doubt if Rooney or Messi will be walking through the door but it would be nice to have a few players joining for some kind of fee rather than a collection of free's and loans - whose loyalty and willingness to work for Fulham is questionable at best, Reither apart, of course. I see the supporters club have give him a cautious welcome stating that they think we are experiencing exciting but uncertain times, which is probably true. The real question for me is a bigger one, though. Why are so many Americans buying up Premier League sides? This is the sixth one to do so behind Man Utd, Aston Villa, Sunderland, Liverpool & Arsenal. The Jaguars plan may have something to do with it in our case, but even so, this is about a third of the Premier League in American ownership (and that is a phrase that has started to slip into the Premier League now - it used to be Chairman, now it's owner just like in the NFL). This also doesn't happen abroad. Can't think of any Spanish or German club that has an owner from another country. Is it a good thing? Probably not in the longer term, but it seems to be the Premier League's preferred way. They think it shows how vibrant, exciting and commercial their league is to have owners from all over the world clamouring to buy clubs in it. I'm not so sure it isn't just diluting our game and saddling the clubs with massive debts (although not in our case, clearly). I guess only time will tell.
But unlikely. I think QPR fans said this last year so that should be a lesson to anyone. As Surley said, don't run before we can walk.
There have been a few good points made in recent articles following Kahn buying us. The Premier League and football is a growing brand over the pond and seen as an investment worth making.
Well, it makes sense for Khan to buy a London club. The NFL is clearly targeting London as a growth market and the Jaguars (and Khan) are getting in early. If the NFL makes money through London games, the Jaguars stand to be the biggest beneficiaries. On the more general point, I think a lot of American owners are swayed by the massive TV deals and the common language. However, many of them (specifically Lerner and the Liverpool twins) don't seem to appreciate the amount of commitment required to own and run a Premier League club. There is so much money involved and, much more importantly, other countries with teams, leagues and money. I think many American owners come in expecting it to be like the NFL (where there are just 32 teams and no international competition) and that is why they have struggled thus far. Hopefully Khan is coming in with eyes wide open!
Seems to me there are a couple different kinds of owners, and it will be interesting to see which kind Khan will turn out to be. Some owners, like the Glazers at Manchester United, seem to understand that they know little about football and that the day-to-day decisions are best left to the professionals. I think that, for people like the Glazers, the team is an investment, pure and simple, and that a dispassionate, hands-off approach is best for its long-term growth. On the opposite side of the spectrum, you've got people Roman Abramovich, for whom (IMO) the team is an extension of their own vain persona, the ultimate trophy wife (in team form) to parade around the billionaire's club. And, since the team is to Roman an extension of himself, he feels quite free to meddle in the day-to-day affairs of the team, changing managers at the drop of a hat, getting involved in personnel decisions, etc. Chelsea has certainly benefited from his purchase, but how much more silver would Chelsea have won without his hands-on involvement? And, of course, there are a thousand shades in between. Judging from the fact that a) Khan already owns a bigger sports franchise in the States and b) he's a smart businessman at heart, I suspect Khan will follow a path closer to that of the Glazers. But only time will tell.
Chapeau to Mo! A great owner for us over the last 16 years. Needs to take Jacko back to his home though. Imo! What's next on the horizon for the Whites of W6? Im excited by the sale. Something tells me its going to be a fun ride.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-2363572/Fulhams-new-owner-Shahid-Khan-assured-fans-wont-make-mistakes-QPR.html?ico=sport^mostread Khan has promised against a QPR-style epic fail. He says he's spoken to Stan Kroenke and the Glazers "at length". Sounds promising.
