Lander Sports Development

Not related to the original post but Kevin Phillips was on Talksport this week and said Redknapp would go out on the training ground for the first 20minutes or so then disappear and leave it all to the coaches. Phillips found him in his office one day feet on the desk with a cup of tea and watching horse racing. I suspect Redknapp did that most days.

 

As I understand it, Gao borrowed the money to buy the club as a loan from Kat. Which is all messed up.

As Schad said, all this due diligence crap...she couldn’t really wait to offload.

 

Generally speaking I admire your relentless positivity No 7. It makes sense always to assume the best rather than the worst.

But I am a tiny bit sceptical that “everything is as it seems”, or that people are “being upfront” when it comes to billionaires from former communist jurisdictions; if we’re lucky, Mr Gao might be a Chinese Abramovitch. If we’re not, he could end up drinking a plutonium cocktail on a shopping trip to London; not sure how the latter would leave Saints, which is the important thing.

Behind every great fortune, there is a great crime, and all that.

 

Really? She loaned the money to the buyer of her asset? Blimey that is a little screwed up. I didn’t know that. Is she a second hand car dealer?

 

I *heard* that, yes. Not sure if it’s accurate:

 

It really sounds a bit iffy doesn’t it? Almost as if he couldn’t raise the cash elsewhere, if true...

“Oh ok then, I’ll lend you the money.”

 

But on a positive note win win for Kat - she gets the money off him when he pays it back or she still has the club

 

Fan Mingke

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He always put great effort into winding us up, but this is ridiculous!

 

I think I'll just wait for it all to blow over.

 

I know where to go when **** hits the Mingke

 

Mingke used to support Ipswich Town.


He's an ex-tractor fan.

 

So he sucks, rather than blows

 

I mean, we know that he couldn't raise the money elsewhere, not easily at least. Took something like six months, and ultimately failed to raise it through his business...starting to get a sense of why he struggled, given the downward slope of Lander's valuation.

I'd be a bit surprised if he effectively is buying the club on layaway, though; the reports were that it was financed through Macau, with the money coming from state-backed financial institutions. It'd be an incredibly risky venture on her part, and would cut against the seeming urgency that caused her to go with Gao in the first place. I suppose it's quite possible though that Liebherr lent some of the money, which would i) explain why she retained 20%, and ii) really raise questions about Gao's liquidity, if he couldn't secure loans for the full amount.

A little unsolicited advice for Mr. Gao: a football club might be a useful vehicle to get money out of China, but only if you can get your money out of the football club thereafter. It's much like gambling: never bet money you cannot afford to lose, and it increasingly feels like he may not have the money to absorb a bad year or two. It's never too early to start looking to sell on.

 

Seemed at the time (and even more so now) that KL was just desperate to sell as fast as she could, regardless of the buyer. It's a shame she marketed how it was the best path for the club, as it seems like it is the opposite of that considering Gao's 'fit and proper' test, plus pretty much all the headlines and stories about him being less than complimentary.

Who wanted to buy Newcastle? Amanda Stavely for £300m?? She could have had us with budget to spare!

 

I mean, it was a bit of a red flag when KL and her team went to the PL and argued (successfully!) that the FPP test banned those convicted of corruption, not just those who have admitted to corruption.

 

Long as he doesn't rob money from Saints and sells to a person with actual money I am fine

 

I'd be open to offers, if she came calling. Don't know about the club though.

 

Lander Sports Development

 

Same, sorry everyone. Let me know when that happens and I'll start worrying then.