Well this is a turn up for the books! http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/sport/9128587.Bassini_has_rejected___10m_and___15m_offers_for_club/ I will await the 2nd installment with interest.
What I don't understand is that he claims to have been offered £10M then £15M which he could have 'walked away with' as profit, but at the same time says he's invested about £10M of his own money into the club... Am I getting it horribly wrong or does that not add up?
It makes quite an interesting read, he seems to be taking a long term approach that we will one day go back up; perhaps when other financially unsustainable clubs go under or are hit by new regulations? Granted he may be being economical with some of his comments (no doubt some will accuse him of this) but that seems to be the only way he is going to make money out of it all. Still leaves a few questions but these may come out later on.
Good point Toby, I read it though that the offers included the bonds, so what he would have made as profit was nowhere near those figures. I may have misread it though.
Great article, and i have to agree with the comments there, the more he speaks the better things sound. Debt of 8mill down from the reported 10mill a few months ago is great news and the fact that he is openly stating he takes no working salary shows a bit of honest and truth to his word. There is another nail in the coffin of the conspricies. I eagerly await the second installment.
Yes very interesting a definite case of watch this space! Will be interested to hear what comes out of the rest of the interview!
As one of Baz's critics may I say some of these claims seem far fetched? Funny but Ashcroft has been trying to sell the club for a few years and then all of a sudden Baz turns up and then another 2 "knights in shining armour" turn up offering dozens of million pounds. I'm sorry but I just cannot believe that.
Is it far-fetched though? A football club that is the owner of one of Europe's best football academy's, that has been having rave reviews over the past few months? An academy that is proposed as a model for success for the England national team?
Fair enough, but there is more to come and hopefully bit by bit nail by nail we can bury the rumours of him being a front man, or ripping the club up and selling it on.
This is bizarre. As Elixir says, it seems very strange that Ashcroft, with all his various tentacles, couldn't find an appropriate buyer for years but as soon as Bazzini turns up two come along immediately, offering him a significant return on his investment. Are we to believe that buyers of football clubs are like London buses? Further, it is said that he has invested over £10m in the club already, from his own resources. Forgive me for being sceptical. He must be a very rich man indeed, if he can spend that much on a football club (usually tantamount to pouring money down a drain) and also turn down two bids which would realise an immediate profit. He says that as the sole shareholder 'whatever money [he] put in is [his] money'. Perhaps this is so, but companies are commonly funded by debt also. Clearly we can't expect an owner to publish his personal accounts but it's only natural to wonder how Bazzini has this much money. If what he says is true, then he's clearly much richer than any of us had dreamed and something of a philanthropist (he says he's not taking a salary and that he personally pays his team, so that not a penny comes out of the club). The interview raises more questions than it answers, in my opinion, so, as before, we'll just have to wait and see.
A little more on the plans for the redevelopment of the ground here, again he is saying the right things, lets hope the actions reflect that. http://www.watfordobserver.co.uk/spo...nths_/ref=twt/
I'm with Elixir on this one. I suspect that at best the £10m or £15m offer included the debt so his "profit" if any would have been minimal. If there were really investors out there with that sort of money then why were they not found by Simpson and co? And of course the debt is down to £8m - I'm surprised it is not less considering we have about £6m of sales This interview does nothing to make me less suspicious of Baz and in fact does the opposite as it seems to me he is "spinning" things so that he looks great whereas in fact he has done nothing other than let people go. I will be won over only by positive results not words from a former bankrupt - he has shown nothing yet to demonstrate he has any financial nous. For me it is still wait and see.
Well dont forget there were rumours of there being 2/3 groups wanting to buy the club when Bassini came around. Who is to say that the other two were still interested and the fact that they missed out has not spured them on to re-bid?
As I posted earlier but it must not show up on your screens he says he could have walked away with profits in excess of £10M, it doesn't mention him paying the bonds off with that. Doesn't that seem a bit weird seeing he says he has invested £10M in the club?
The more I read about Bassini and the goings-on at Watford, the more my opinon of him increases and the more comfortable I feel about the club as a whole. So far, he has said and (most importantly) done the right things. Like everyone, I was sceptical when he was announced/fell into the position as Chairman, and yes, there are still some questions about his own finances. But, things are looking positive and he does appear to be doing the right thing (admittedly, "appear" is the key word). It does seem that some people are really clutching at straws, desperately pointing out his previous faults and waiting for him to make even the most minor of slip ups, to over analyse the "hidden agendas" that will "bring the club to its knees". It is very tideous contantly hearing about his past (did you know he went bankrupt?!). I know this, and everyone knows this. Let's just look at what is happening as we speak (which is looking very positive) and look forward to the future with some very talented youngsters coming from our own academy.
maybe the offer was for £10m to Bassini and another £10m. But i doubt that. We wont know the exact details, but conspiricy theories like these wont help anyone. The guy stepped in when he was needed and is now saying he is investing his own money into the club, we should be gratefull he is, or there would be no club to invest in let alone rip off!!
It's been stated by many sources that he is not a front man...i really don't understand why people keep insisting that he might be lol
