Is Ashley finally getting it right?

No, they apply to any team who finishes in the European qualification places/wins a Cup/fair play table - if we haven't stayed within the rules set-out, we will not be allowed to compete in European competition.

 

All the players that I mentioned were signed before Nolan, Barton and Enrique left ( ok we knew that Jose was going)
you can ignore the fact that these players fit the clubs player profile and ignore the fact that we have a sensible recruitment policy.
As I have already said, Ashley has made loads of cock ups and at the time I slagged him off, but I am adult enough to give him credit when things go well

 

Good article. I make no bones about it I dislike Ashley immensely. I find it hard to forgive him for the shame he has brought on the club with his behaviour and actions during his early tenure with us. I'll never thank him for bankrolling us either. He bought us and took on whatever responsibility came with it. He shouldn't have got involved if he wasn't going to take a serious interest and run it efficiently.

However it would also be silly to dismiss the fact he has finally grasped what is required and started to do his job properly. And it is a job before someone says he is the owner not the chairman. He has a role to play the moment he buys it for me. To me we're not a play thing for the rich, its disrespectful to the fans. If that connection with a football club is lost then I want no part of it. I don't thank him for doing his job properly, I've always believed things can be achieved here if things are run correctly off the pitch. He's no saint but at least he is doing his job. I don't always agree with their decisions but as long as we progress, its wrong to moan. I don't like him the character but I don't really know him, only the media persona we are fed. How many billionaires are loveable characters afterall? They tend to be that rich because of either genius or ruthless business practices! Money changes just about any man. He has made some cracking decisions over the last two years and I won't let my dislike for him cloud that.

 

of course, everyone knows that!! But if Ashley just wanted to asset strip and was content for us to be a mid table team like some people think, it wouldn't matter.

 

I'm ignoring nothing - if you look at the number of players we have this season it is almost the same as last. We haven't moved forward in terms of numbers no matter what the exact date of the signings were.

Yes, Pardew has now put together the players HE wanted and it's going fantastically well - fair play to us!

I will not give Ashley any credit until I think he deserves it - right now I just don't believe he deserves it.

Make all the insinuations you like about my maturity - I couldn't care less...

 

Everyone knows that? It's not what you said before.

Asset strip? ... who said anything about that?

I certainly didn't.

 

I suggest you read my post regarding teams playing in European competitions again. I thought it was pretty obvious that this means teams wanting to play in the champs league and Europa league, maybe not.
As for those players being Pardew's choices, Ashley brought Pardew in and gave him the brief on the type of players that would reflect the clubs recriutment policy.
If Pardew ****s up, Ashley will also get some stick, if Pardew does well does Ashley get no credit?

 

As I said earlier, Ashley made good, if not a little fortunate appointments in Pardew and firstly Hughton. He deserves credit for that or the board does - how can either of us say exactly how much direct input the man has in final decisions regarding management appointments? Should we just give him praise for hiring Joe Kinnear? .

 

What a stupid thing to say You obviously have not read my OP properly. Read the 2nd paragraph

when he hired Joe Kinnear we gave him shedloads of abuse, and rightly so.

 

I'd argue he's been getting it right from the moment we were relegated, with the only really contentious decision being swapping Hughton for Pardew. Looking at raw facts when Ashley bought us we had been on a steady decline for years, haemorrhaging money only to finish 13th. Early decisions and the legacy he inherited saw us relegated, but since then we've been promoted, finished 12th (stupidly!) and have built a squad far better than that early Allardyce one at a fraction of the price. Current league position is probably a bit optimistic, but I can't remember a run like this and an exciting team like this for a very long time.

Obviously there's always opportunity for another ****up, but given the positive noises about getting proper advice finally, and player scouting being handled by Graham Carr rather than Dennis Wise(!) I'm confident. He's no saint, but he's certainly just got above Freddie Shepherd on my chairman trust league...

Final point, those of you saying 'I'll tell you on Feb 1st', are you the same people who were saying 'I'll tell you in September' last transfer window? Get off the fence!

 

When you've been let down by somebody big time sometimes it's hard to commit to trusting them again. I'm very much of the belief that Ashley knows what he wants to do now and is headed in the right direction, but some aren't sure because we've been baffled and gutted by some of his choices before - even just last season. I think people just want to have two nice transfer windows and a season of stability then they'll start coming round to him.