Old Plan or New plan?

When the takeover happened, there was the 5 year plan, the Southampton Way, and this set a target for Saints to become a stable, secure Premiership club, playing attractive football and Run in a sustainable manner using a high proportion of Academy players. It is almost quaint to think how NC was putting pressure on Pardew to make the play-odds having spent 300k on Puncheon! We have achieved the footballing targets in record time, it's been great to watch. The only thing which perhaps has been overlooked is the sustainable bit. £27M of transfer fees due because we have actually been one of the highest spenders in every division on the way up.
Markus Liebherr was introduced to Saints as an investment , albeit one which he clearly enjoyed for other than financial reasons. Now that the plan has been achieved, the investment successful, usually business people sell and realise a profit. In all the agonies we are going through at present, remember that things could be far more unsettling!
Then there was the talk of another 5 year plan to reach the Champions League . Was this ever part of ML's plan? Certainly NC wanted to push on but it seems that KL is not comfortable with the racking up of debt that this would entail. Saints want to achieve European football, but still living sustainably and this is why there has been the emphasis on the commercial stuff which is of little interest to the average fan. Have we lost sight of the original vision and are now upset because of the refusal to put the future of the club into hock? Some have suggested that they want the club sold. I think that would be really risky. We need to keep the faith as I do not see any sign of asset-stripping here, far from it. If we are putting brakes on it's going to be an uncomfortable process for many, but it maybe in the best long-term interest of the club.

 

It's annoying that he was so adamant about raising the commercial prospects of the club only to settle for a minimal deal with new sponsors and now looks like he's going to sell some of our biggest assets before they can even represent us at the World Cup.

Still, the Championship can be considered European football, right?

 

Top Top post IMHO .

 

Thanks for the kind words, Jasper.
I was expecting lots of folk to disagree vehemently, still early days.

 

I don't think Katharina believes a CL push is in her best interests because it would involve taking risks with a lot of money. Money which can be hers (and isn't yet). Markus would have been more likely to take the risk because he wasn't in it for a profit. He was in it for fun. A man worth billions who may not have long left in the world, throwing some of his money at a vanity project of sorts.

Also a sale wouldn't be that risky. Certainly for the woman who owns the club, there is no downside. She makes millions. For us, getting a Tan or Allam figure would be a nightmare but the most likely scenario is a change of hands in which very little actually changes.

 

They may well do . But if Corteses plan in anyway put the long term future of the club at risk , then it's a big no thanks from me .

 

New plan, old plan.....a plan would do.

 

Oh, I think there is a plan. I think that the club have been setting it out. It's just that at present it can't be heard above the siren voices of the press. Not saying everyone will like it though.

 

Great OP but surely you agree that selling out stars before a World Cup (the biggest event on the planet) is at odds with a desire for commercial growth and/or the globalisation of our name?

 

Fair comment , but as has been mentioned before , nobody else has actually been sold ( yet).......

 

I find the asset-stripping comments to be quite laughable all round. If you are intent on asset-stripping, you purchase something that's practically dead but still has valuable assets and sell them straight away. What has actually happened here is quite different. When we were purchased we had no assets. The stadium was mortgaged and you cannot sell an academy. Therefore, any assets that have accrued since the takeover have come about as a direct result of investment in the club. This is the exact opposite of asset-stripping.

We have apparently sold one player in a deal that anyone with a pulse could hardly begrudge. The £27m in outstanding fees is well within our budgets and all of the noises coming out of the club are of continued growth and ambition. I think that many on here need to go out and enjoy the weather.

 

Yes but the lack of a denial from the club is worrying given the circumstances. We could have just said we won't listen to any offers pre-World Cup surely?

 

Markus' investment, not Katharina's. Even now it's his money she's using. I'm not going to go as far as to call it "asset stripping", though I do feel there has been/continues to be nowhere near enough fight to keep our prized assets. She didn't invest personally in this club. Every penny she ends up pocketing will be profit.

 

Now I am confused Joe. Didn't Markus leave all his shares to Katharina? She therefore owns Saints, including all the assets and liabilities? Surely if she has agreed to borrow money to fund transfers then it's her money she is spending. Or is the club in a trust of some sort of which I was ignorant?

 

for clarity KL owns 50% of the holding company

one of two shares.

 

Yeah it's a trust.

 

As far as I'm aware, Katharina did not sanction Cortese to get that loan. This was one of the main issues that led to him leaving the club.

Now, from Cortese's standpoint, he probably thought he had power of attorney to make decisions on behalf of the club, as per his agreement with Markus. Of course, unless all this was written down, then you are into verbal agreements and whether they are binding in law, which is always a grey area.

 

does anyone have a proper copy of the annual return? does it just say Markus Liebherr as the owner of the other share?

I'm not wasting a quid on it.

 

You can't have deceased people as owners of companies.

 

The other share shows up on all free information sources as Markus Liebherr.

Either that's another Markus Liebherr or it could be Markus Liebherr trust

the companies house record of the share register is always sparse though. there's no requirement so share any information more than the name and number of shares owned.