Match Day Thread Newcastle vs Saints, 20th April, 17:30

Cos he’s only just back in training

He will soon ...

Unless he gets a recall to Area 51

 

Just from Ralph's words I think you are right. Maybe the transparent brigade will start to believe in four games time. Something rather fishy going on.

 

For those who moan about all the ‘good’ players we sold over the years, Ralph has confirmed it’s the Southampton way. It will continue and benefits both the club and the player. Personally I’m quite happy with that.

 

The Truth is out there...

 

just a gentleman's bet then? I'll remind you when he sticks one in from 30 yards against Bournemouth!

 

Well it all went tits up when we went against this so pleasing news.

 

There's saying it, and there's doing it.
Ralph is action, not words.

 

It’s also the Ajax way, and has been for decades. So we just need to qualify for the CL, and the sky’s the limit.

 

Which bit are you happy about, all the good to great players we sold or the middling to rubbish players we bought to replace them? For the last two seasons I think it’s fair to say that the player may have benefited from a sale but the club certainly hasn’t.

 

The issue is not in selling, it's in maximizing what we earn from selling and using that to purchase players. The problem was, for a while, we were not only buying badly, but we were using a fair chunk of the revenues from selling players to benefit not the club, but to pay down the owner's loans so that she could maximize her profit when selling the club. Enriching the rich at the cost of on-field results is not nor should it be the Southampton Way, if we want to remain in this division long-term.

 

I'm happy with the philosophy. I don't give a **** about what's gone on in the past - as long as it works well in the future

 

Can't knock it. Without the Leibherrs we would probably not exist. And the loans were interest free. I'm no financial expert buy I believe there is a theory with loans - that eventually you have to pay it back.

 

The loans were absolutely not interest-free. Markus' were; Katharina's were not.

And it's entirely possible to have extinguished the debt without repayment, content in the knowledge that you'd still make a windfall profit; indeed, she did for one tranche. But we accelerated our selling in order to pay her back the loans in time for her to cash in the club, thus making her a heftier profit (and taking about a large chunk of money out of the club).

 

And that was her right. It’s easy to manage someone else’s money.

The really annoying bit is that she clearly has no care for the club and has just fecked off into the distance, never to be seen again.....

Oh hang on...

 

From what I can see....KL inherited a club that her father was interested in and fond of...she also inherited a large tax debt to Germany which wasn't evident immediately....and no doubt other complex business matters. Presumably she also had her own interests and career. We know she shut down at least one of her father's businesses....he was an entrepreneur and presumably some ventures were risky and plans ended with his death. However we view Saints, the club is a large asset which had potential to be even larger as more and more money poured into the PL. KL will have had some sentimental attachment associated with the memory of her father's last year, but I'm sure that didn't extend to stupidity. She sorted out our loan situation so that the training ground could approach completion and then wanted to get out from under....keeping an EPL football club as a souvenir of your father isn't quite like keeping his medals or stamp collection is it? Why she kept 20% is unclear...not wanting to let go completely, wanting to keep the plans on track or because Gao couldn't raise what she thought the club was worth initially...or a mixture of all of those things.

My point is that I don't consider her to have behaved terribly...Saints is a business that was in dire straits when the Leihberrs arrived and is now viable....was in League 1 on -10 and is now an EPL club which has had more good years than poor. The investments that KL and her father made earned them money and we got our club back. Personally I wish she still owed* it 100%, but if wishes were horses etc....

*owned

 

^^^^

As ever, the voice of reason

Now Fran, can you sort out Brexit

 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/47886436
Lawro's predictions v Red the computer. Both are in some agreement....Saints to win and both Brighton and Cardiff to lose. Like the cut of their jib.

RSS has pointed out my error....Saints to lose Obviously both wrong.

 

I’m not happy about selling Martin Chivers to Spurs, Alan Shearer and Tim Flowers to Blackburn, Wayne Bridge to Chelsea, or Gareth Bale to Spurs. Kind of got used to it now though.

 

You must be having a positive morning Fran! Seeing what you want to see, they both have Saints to lose or rather, Newcastle to win!