Laudrup Meeting

[swanselona]

As can be seen on wales online.

Laudrup is here and we're off..

Laudrup saying he is a “little sad to sit here” he would “love to be in a job and finish that job,” he says.

Says last season was “best ever” with a trophy. He says he could have said something before.

"Two weeks have gone and that’s a lot of time. I was advised it’s best like that because I needed letter from the club and reasons for my dismissal. It took nine days to receive letter," he says.

"When I arrived, I was told most important thing was to stay up and stay there because there was a new deal with the television as well.

"I had my ideas about the team and players coming in.

"I had my ideas about the team and players coming in. Especially the Spanish market, which I know very well. Because of the economic problems in Spain I knew there was a possibility to get quality.

"I try to get players I knew with a good impact in squad and ability. Chico, Pablo, De Guzman and especially Michu - players who came because I asked if they wanted to play for Swansea."

Laudrup continues....

"That season was the most successful ever in history of the club, including the first trophy in 100 yrs and a top 10 position in the league. The word historic was used a lot in that season - winning at Emirates, Anfield and Stamford Bridge and beating Chelsea over two legs.

"After that season, we had to plan for next season. It was agreed, if you just want to maintain your position,you have to improve because if you don’t others will. We agreed on a number of players in general needed to strengthen squad to maintain position in league."

"After the season ended, we said goodbye and I tried to get players to Swansea in the summer like I did before.

"Some didn’t want to come wanted to go to big clubs. Others agreed, we want to come and play for you so we can talk.

"I moved these names onto the chairman. I make a contact, try to talk to players through agents, try to convince them. The negotiation part is not mine, that’s the chairman or the board’s. For a reason I don’t know, none of these players came through."

"At this stage, the media started to talk about internal problems and the relationship. I was sure the club would stick to their word and we were going to strengthen the squad.

"At the same time, I was still looking to start again to look to Spain because I know the quality.

"During the summer I saw a lot going on in the press here and in Denmark on problems with chairman Jenkins and my agent Bayram. There comes a point where the connection stops because of a problem between them."

"People said I was “caught in middle”. I said it didn’t change anything of my relatonship with the club.

"I said, for me, it’s important to keep my word that I won’t walk away from that. It should have been a great summer with a lot of positive things. Instead there were a lot of articles, headlines in the papers."

"Then we come forward to the start of the season.

"I knew this would be very difficult for a lot of reasons. Expectations after last season would be huge. On top of that a team like Swansea was never used to playing in Europe.

"We have seen clubs not used to that struggling. Huge clubs like Newcastle really struggled last season and saved themselves two or three games from the end from relegation."

"We go into the group stage, go through it into last 32 of the Europa. We’re still in FA Cup, in the league have a bad run of two wins in 10 but in a group of 11 teams. Come into January, mid January, we play some big sides, lose some tight games but win a big one at Old Trafford.

"Mid Jan, I’m told they’re not satisfied and that’s that. The want to change the coaching staff. We talk about it, I always want to listen but don’t agree with what’s said. After that we play a cup game, which we win, we play a league game, we win, and we have the last game against West Ham we lose...."

"After that I get another message.... I should really, really, really change staff!

"My answer is we already discussed that but we agree to a meeting on the Tuesday.

"I had a personal matter on Monday morning. I wasn’t in Paris. It was a personal matter and the chairman knew about it."

"On Tuesday, we had a meeting again about staff and changing staff. I say we have already talked about it and think it’s a big mistake to talk about it because it’s in the week of one of the most important games - the Cardiff game. However, what surprised me was I had a meeting and already things I spoke to chairman about were in papers."

"I shake hands. They say thanks for the work you are doing. Then, Tuesday afternoon, I receive mail that due to breach of contract it will be terminated just a few hours after the meeting.

"I’m very, very confused so I call and ask what’s going on. It was a little difficult to hear what was said on the phone. I said, by the way, what does breaches mean. They didn’t really know. While I was on phone, my wife said the things were already on the internet that I had been dismissed."

"The day after I was talking to a worker from the club, who was bringing me my things. I was a little sad I couldn’t talk to players and staff. I was leaving, he called me back and said chairman thinks it’s a bad idea because of big games coming up.

"I still haven’t said my goodbyes."

Important figures like Sir Alex Ferguson and Gary Lineker have shown support, Laudrup reveals.

They said: “Unfortunately, Michael, some clubs are using these things you are not a special case.”

"Lawyers are talking to see if we can find a solution now. If not unfortunately it may have to go legal way."

That’s the end of Laudrup’s statement. We now have questions

 

[swanselona]

Question time

What did the club say in letter received after 9 days?
“I have a letter but there are still things I can’t answer because of legal reasons. We are still in that process.”

How do you think you’ve been treated?
Pick a feeling. Not that good.

Were there cultural differences in dressing room?
There are good relationships between players. In football when things are going well, there’s never any problems. There are always rumours when you are not winning games. It’s exactly the same as last season. It’s not just this club, it is any club. Look at Man Utd this season.

90% is rumours. There are good journalists and bad journalists but there has to be a cause why they are not winning. Sometimes there are reasons.

You were asked to change training style. Your refusal to do that led to decision?
“I don’t know. A lot of things, I can’t say anything. Unfortunately because there’s an ongoing thing I can’t answer. Hopefully in near future I can answer.

Were the seeds sown for this outcome in what happened to your agent and summer last summer?
“That’s not a Q for me but for the chairman and Bayram"

Are you satisfied with reasons that have been given?
"I don’t know what word to use, silly or credible, but I can’t go into details.

"The chairman’s statement gives more questions than answers.

“He (Huw Jenkins) said at some point he wanted to find a position for Garry Monk but he said that two or three years ago”

Laudrup says he would have stayed beyond the summer despite assumptions he was leaving...
"It wouldn’t be fair to UK to say it’s soured my relationship with British football. Of course I would like to work in Premier League and win more trophies.

"“There’s never been anything said I would move on. I was planning on staying next season as well. I had one more year.”

Do you know why the players you put forward last summer weren’t bought?
"I can’t comment on players. What I want to speak is facts. Opinions are another thing. It’s not my thing today.”

Do you thnk reasons for your sacking have been manufactured?
“That’s a question I have to wait to answer”

Are you concerned issues with backroom staff have now led to you being sacked more than once?
“I’m very pleased with my staff. I have been a player myself. That’s one thing. To be a manager is different. When you’re a manager, it’s a smaller group, important you consult them and stick together.

“Why get rid of them? If they are not doing their job, that’s another thing.”

Do you think Huw Jenkins is grateful for the job you did?
“You'll have to ask him.”

Did you want Wilfried Bony?
“I don’t want to sit here and talk about players. I still consider them my players.”

How many players did you miss out on?
“It’s not important. I don’t want to go into opinions. Your opinion is as good as mine”

"I wrote to players to thank each of them. I can keep the messages I have had from my players.”

“It hurts me,of course, that I won’t be there on Thursday and that I wasn't there against Everton and Cardiff. It would be nice to go through there and every time make a step and make history.”

"Sometimes time needs to pass to realise how lucky you are.

“Sackings can always happen. I saw Meulensteen the other day. But football is so many times about what happens with ball at feet. Sometimes a couple of results can change everything. Look at West Ham."

Do you believe there has been a deliberate attempt to smear you in the media?
Laudrup remains unresponsive

Have you had any other job offers?
No.

What is the next step in the legal process?
"We have plans for that and wait and see what happens.

“I don’t think I can talk about my contract. Don’t want to compromise myself, though I would like to talk.

..."I had to wait nine days for a letter that says a lot of silly things."

Do you think you would have kept Swansea up?
“Of course. I agree the West Ham game was not good but the two games before we won. I know the players. These are things you have to accept when you don’t win games, you come up with the same things (ie journalists).”

"I will never forget that last season. To stand there in that special atmosphere with the trophy and in top 10 when I had been told top 17 was the target."

Did you have misgivings over timing of today 48 hrs before Napoli?
“I would have preferred to speak to you guys earlier but it wasn’t possible.”

How will you remember your time?
"I will remember Swansea on the pitch, particularly Wembley. Historic has been mentioned. By you and others.

"To beat Chelsea over two legs, it was such an achievement to explain - they didn’t even score in 180 minutes. Plus, the top 10 is so difficult and competitive.

"It was the first time I lived in a small city compared to Rome, Madrid, Barcelona, Copenhagen, Amsterdam. It was a fantastic experience and people on the street were so nice. Even in difficult moments, you never had the impression people were unhappy.”

Have the players contacted you to say they’re unhappy you left club?
"I have received messages but it’s between me and them."

Do you wish Garry Monk luck?
Yes. I wish him luck, of course.

 

[ValleyGraduate12]

Club citing a breach of contract.

FFS this statement poses more questions than answers

 

[Jack Uzi]

He says we missed out on players in the summer but refuses to name any. I smell BS.

 

[swanselona]

He says we missed out on players in the summer but refuses to name any. I smell BS.

I can name 1 from the off, he plays for liverpool. Aspas.

Just because he is not naming them, does not make it BS.

 

[daimungeezer]

What was the point of this? He evaded all the pertinent questions.

 

[Nottage Jack]

Ignoring most of the waffle that seems to be ML publicising his CV, I get the impression from ML himself that he refused a request by the board on three occassions to change the coaching set up. In normal business, one of the standard employment contract terms in most organisations is that refusal to carry out what is deemed to be a ' reasonable request' by your 'Line Manager' is grounds for termination of contract. So the main discussion point is , was the request for a coaching set up change 'reasonable'? If this is considered 'reasonable' then there may be grounds, in legal terms anyway, for a 'breach of contract'. My own opinion is that whilst this may be a valid point on principle, for the sake of avoiding negative media, the Board should just pay up ASAP just to put and end to this, just in case it affects the players and thus the results.

ML: "Mid Jan, I’m told they’re not satisfied and that’s that. The want to change the coaching staff. We talk about it, I always want to listen but don’t agree with what’s said. After that we play a cup game, which we win, we play a league game, we win, and we have the last game against West Ham we lose...."

First refusal by ML to a request for coaching set up changes.

ML: "After that I get another message.... I should really, really, really change staff!"
"My answer is we already discussed that"

2nd refusal by ML

ML: "On Tuesday, we had a meeting again about staff and changing staff. I say we have already talked about it and think it’s a big mistake to talk about it"

3rd Refusal by ML

ML: "Then, Tuesday afternoon, I receive mail that due to breach of contract it will be terminated just a few hours after the meeting."

 

[PaGaNsWaN]

Pointless... Absolutely pointless.

 

[swanselona]

Pointless... Absolutely pointless.

Its more than what the board have given us, at least we can kind of see there may be something to do with the training staff as the reason, rather than just poor performances, or a rift in the dressing room, or other rumours.

If the board think they are not breaking any rules, then surely they don't have to worry about telling us the truth, as they have nothing to fear, right?

 

[Sbulby]

No breach of contract as stated in previous thread, they were merely observations that were made by ML as stated the coaching regime was discussed in operational meetings. No grounds for B of C there I'm afraid.

 

[LIBERTARIAN]

I can name 1 from the off, he plays for liverpool. Aspas.

Just because he is not naming them, does not make it BS.

Did Swans' "miss out" on Aspas? Once Liverpool showed interest,he was surely only going to one place,and that wasn't The Liberty.

 

[KieranDaviesSCFC]

So is he suing us? Yes or no?

If not then good luck and God bless.

If he's suing us he can f*ck off, I'd say the same if my mammy was suing us. I care about SCFC, not Michael Laudrup or even Garry Monk at the end of the day.

 

[Nottage Jack]

Very similar to the aftermath of his time at Spartak and Mallorca, where he provided the excuse to anyone who would listen that ' it wasn't his fault' why he left or was sacked. This just smacks of a PR exercise to try to get back on the wanted list' of the bigger clubs rumoured to have wanted him last summer.

 

[swanselona]

Did Swans' "miss out" on Aspas? Once Liverpool showed interest,he was surely only going to one place,and that wasn't The Liberty.

Thats not the point, the point was just because he didn't name any players did not mean we didn't fail to sign anyone. Yes Liverpool came in for him, but we still "failed" to sign him.

 

[swanselona]

So is he suing us? Yes or no?

If not then good luck and God bless.

If he's suing us he can f*ck off, I'd say the same if my mammy was suing us. I care about SCFC, not Michael Laudrup or even Garry Monk at the end of the day.

Don't know it seems, after all it is still going on behind the scene's hence why some questions he couldn't elaborate on, such as what was in the letter.

 

[LIBERTARIAN]

Thats not the point, the point was just because he didn't name any players did not mean we didn't fail to sign anyone. Yes Liverpool came in for him, but we still "failed" to sign him.

I don't see not signing Aspas as a failure. Liverpool are a much bigger bet than Swansea. Now if he had signed for a lesser Club,then yes,I agree,that would be a failure. We cannot compete with the likes of Liverpool.

 

[Ramblin'Jack]

Obviously the whole "changing of staff demand" was a plot to get rid of Laudrup.

It seems that the reason for the firing of laudrup can be boiled down to a disagreement of ambitions between him and the board. That's fine if that's what they want, but to smear Laudrup like they did is just pathetic.

 

[swanselona]

I don't see not signing Aspas as a failure. Liverpool are a much bigger bet than Swansea. Now if he had signed for a lesser Club,then yes,I agree,that would be a failure. We cannot compete with the likes of Liverpool.

define fail
"be unsuccessful in achieving one's goal."

ML's goal was to sign Aspas, agree?

Did we achieve ML's goal? No, right.

So what does that mean, we failed to sign Aspas.

define failure
"lack of success."

Did we succeed in signing Aspas? No, right. So it was a failure. You can put the spin on it that we lost out against Liverpool, and you have a point, but it doesn't deter from teh fact we were unsuccessful in signing Aspas. So therefore, failed.

ITs understandable that we failed, because Liverpool beat us too, but we still failed regardless.

 

[Nottage Jack]

I cannot see that ASPAS signing for Liverpool instead of Swansea can be attributed as a fault on the part of anyone at Swansea , whether that is ML or HJ.
So fans arguing about this is a bit of a wasted effort methinks.

It should be quite simple: Either:
A)The Board sacked Laudrup because they are unhappy with results and / or training methods....Fine, but this is not breach of contract, so we need to pay up ML contract.
B) The Board sacked Laudrup as he was not co-operating with reasonable requests made by the board. Well this all depends on the wording of his contract and how it is can be legally interpreted. But for my pennys' worth, even if the Board think this is the case, they should still just pay up just to end this.

 

[swanselona]

I cannot see that ASPAS signing for Liverpool instead of Swansea can be attributed as a fault on the part of anyone at Swansea , whether that is ML or HJ.
So fans arguing about this is a bit of a wasted effort methinks.

It should be quite simple: Either:
A)The Board sacked Laudrup because they are unhappy with results and / or training methods....Fine, but this is not breach of contract, so we need to pay up ML contract.
B) The Board sacked Laudrup as he was not co-operating with reasonable requests made by the board. Well this all depends on the wording of his contract and how it is can be legally interpreted. But for my pennys' worth, even if the Board think this is the case, they should still just pay up just to end this.

Your right, my point being though is that just because ML did not name names of targets, does not make the claim bogus. And Aspas was just the first name that came to mind of a player we, with a perfectly good reason, failed to sign.

I would like the board to come out with a proper statement too now.