...Markus Liebherr completed his takeover of Southampton Football Club I look at us now and it's all changed. We look stable, progressive and forward-thinking, whilst playing at the top level. Hopefully this is just the start. But the 5 year plan Markus and Nicola promised us? They did it, for that we will all be eternally grateful for. It's gone quite fast when I look back on it now, but within 3 years we've had two promotions, a trophy win at Wembley and smashed club records left, right and centre. Not forgeting a return to the Premier League after 7 years of absence and we"re back with sensible management, in my opinion, whilst also making a club record signing in the process. Now is a great time to be a fan of SFC, a reason to be proud and hold your head high once again. Thanks Markus...... Gone but never forgotten......... A true Southampton legend. Up The Saints and roll on 2012-13 in the Premier League!
I'll be honest, I had my doubts. And this from 2 men with no past experience in football. I remember Scudamore of the PL saying Cortese's approach would never work or something along those lines. Not only done what was promised but we did it in style in terms of our approach.
For some reason I always believed in what Cortese has said ever since I read his first statement on the club's website and then after a while I realized that this guy had the midas touch,the only time I didn't want him to be at the club was when he sacked Alan Pardew,even though I'm not a big fan of Pardew I didn't want to see my club left without a decent manager again and struggling again,not only struggling but in the 3rd tier of English football,but he knew what he was doing and appointed the then unfashionable and not so well known,Nigel Adkins who has turned out to be a major success and he is my favourite manager of all time. And just look at his incredible drive and ambition,some say it's too far fetched and unrealistic I can understand where they are coming from,as I've never had the same type of ideas for my club as Cortese has,like getting in the Champions league,expanding St Mary's etc,it never even crossed my mind at all and it's a huge ask to realize his vision,but he will try his best to do and all I can say is that we are very,very,very lucky to have someone of his quality running Southampton Football Club and doing it in a professional manner and a forward thinking one too. Without him there would be no takeover of our club because he convinced Markus Liebherr (R.I.P) to buy the saints and invest in it.It's such a shame that he isn't around to see the great works that have been done. This club is going places with Cortese and Adkins in charge.
It was hard to really believe what was being laid out before us back then, but now I believe. I have met the man and asked him questions and listened to his answers; never have I met someone so focused. I want to remind you of a line he spoke in January, "This company will not get relegated frOm any division with me at the helm"
Three years and one day ago, I genuinely didn't know where I would be taking my then nearly four year old to sit and watch games like my dad had done with me. Then Markus turned up....( With Nicola in tow). My little boys first game was the Ajax friendly about a week later, and we are less than a week from his third friendly at the Liebherr Tournament. It's come a little bit too early for my second son who will have to wait till next summer for his first game. Without the vision of these 2 legends, none of this would be happening..... The futures bright, the futures red and white.....
It was strange to have two men with no connection to the club or the city(other than his grandfathers cranes at the docks) to come and rescue us. I questioned the motives but took solace that for them to make money we would need to get back to the premier league and thus we all wanted the same goal. The signing of lambert showed there intent from the off and with my £240 season ticket and trips to local away games I connected with the club like never before. R.I.P to Markus and from his face at wembly I'm confident he had no regrets in buying our little club. We are making long term investments as well as short term. Ticket prices have doubled but I don't mind because watching saints has been an absolute joy. I always felt uefa cup/Europa league football was the glass ceiling for saints but with Cortese I dare to dream.
I cant believe were back in the prem. as im only 18, my first game was when we were in the championship 07-08, i didnt know how much football would mean to me. my dream was to see saints play arsenal, chelsea, man u, e.g. at st marys, But we have done it, with a lot of help from Cortese and Markus. R.I.P Markus
When you look at where we are now, premier league and buying players for millions, it's easy to forget how close we came to doing a Newport and total extinction. Markus you were and always will be a SAINT!!! COYR!
We were most fortunate when Markus bought our club and equally so when Nicola took over the its day to day management. Great things have been achieved and even greater things are to come. What we have to ensure now is that we fans have expectations and aspirations to match Nicola's ambition in other words we have to believe in him. Nobody gets things right all of the time and there will be errors along the way but that is part of the learning process for both Nigel and Nicola. As we progress so the competition will become fiercer and more challenging and it is our role in all of the excitement to continually back Nicola, Nigel and the team. God bless Markus and lets hope God gives him a cake today with red and white icing on it.
On this day three years ago, we became the luckiest football fans in the world. We were just glad to be saved, but had no idea what the future held. We weren't let down as many clubs were (especially one not too far from here), but neither did we have ridiculous money thrown at us. Our club changed for the better. but did not become unrecognisable. I still feel that Saints is ours. Exciting, but also fun.
Three years ago, first match in the third tier was against Millwall. If I as to suggest to anyone attending St Marys that afternoon that we would be in the Premiership three years later I would have been carted off by "men in white coats." The challenges facing Saints now are first to become a stable Premiership club. But, to get to the next level, they need to increase their support in the area. The task is how to get football fans in the south, particularly the youngsters, to buy in to the culture of supporting the Saints at the expense of Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool.
I am a person who tends to question everything before accepting it's veracity, which can be very irritating to those I work/live with but where NC is concerned I have almost reached a position of unquestioning faith in the man. I never question his decisions because I am utterly convinced that whatever he has decided will be in the long term interest of my football club and will be enacted in an honest and proper way. Football is full of barrow-boy chancers. We are so lucky.
Totally agree Channon and what I love is it's all done behind closed doors without playing mind games in the press!
Three years ago I left the country, and the Southampton ownership thing was still open. The Pinnacle deal had just fallen through, and the survival of the club looked touch and go (although, tbh, I always believed somebody would buy the club). After five weeks with no internet coverage, I returned home to discover we had been bought by a Swiss Billionaire called Liebherr. A few days later we signed Rickie Lambert, who had scored 30 goals last season for £1 million. It was at that point that I thought, these guys mean business. The following three seasons have been the best of my life supporting Saints (following on from the worst). I've been to Stockport and see us fail to win, I've been to Gillingham and stood in the heaviest rain i've ever seen outside of the tropics (and seen us lose). I've been to Wembley for the first time, and seen us win, creating the best moment of my life as a Saints fan. I've seen a man call Papa Waigo, the only player in the history of the game who could go from the sublime to the ridiculous in the space of two touches. I've seen us play Hartlepool on a Tuesday evening, and travelling back to London afterwards i've seen other Saints fans changing trains at Tottenham Court Road. I've seen us come back from the dead against MK Dons in a must win game, when our hero that day came on to cries of 'what the **** are you doing Adkins!'. I've seen us string together the greatest end of season run ever, winning game after game under intense pressure. I've seen us lose at home to Rochdale and win away at Leeds. And last season I saw a team that was in the top two all season but was still written off by the 'pundits' at every opportunity, win promotion playing great football. So thank you Mr Liebherr and Cortese for making all this possible.
I would also like to point out that it was Nicola Cortese that suggested the club to Markus Liebherr. ML simply financed it. God bless them both!
May have financed it, but Markus came to love it. Like to think it made his final year more enjoyable. Remember the anniversary of his death was 10/8...so he had just over one year to go.
