Takeover (Covid-19/20)

Yes mate, if he picks lead legs Shelvey you’re ****ed. You need some bite and energy in the midfield against this lot. They ain’t all that.

 

I agree, but we are just dreadful.

I have very little hope we will survive this season, hopeless at the minute.

 

Statement from NUFC confirming their legal action against the PL. They named PIF in that statement.

 

From memory it didn’t state their future interest. Just in the past tense.

 

The arbitration is nothing to do with compo.

If it was they would have hired that type of lawyer and not the two that they have.

 

They, like the PIF themselves, stated previous interest, not ongoing. The only "ITK" folks have access to people like Staveley, who has also said it a number of things that turned out to be wrong in the past. She's quite the optimist.

The whole things an embarrassment; we've got Geordie morons sending Twitter messages to the world's wealthiest investment fund. We've had imminent news for the past 12 months and now we're saying "oh, it'll DEFINITELY be this year, just need to survive". I just don't buy it. Seems pretty simple to me; this club isn't worth what Ashley wants. He won't lower his price and nobody out there is stupid enough to pay what he wants. In the meantime, he'll keep it running on a skeleton crew with lowest possible costs so that it's ready for a takeover that won't happen. It's almost identical to the situation with Ellis Short. Eventually, probably this season, we'll go down. Bruce will remain and he's already proven he can't get out of the Championship. We'll sell the only two or three players who are any good and languish down there like our illustrious neighbours. At some point, 3-5 years down the line, Ashley may accept he's ****ed up and then try to sell for lless but then we're potentially at risk of being sold to BZG style chancers.

Basically, the gravy train has left the station.

 

I think it's pretty telling that they represent NUFC. Not Mike Ashley, not PIF, the two entities that would constitute a sale, but NUFC. I would have thought that trying to force a sale would have been legal action from either of the people trying to sell/buy the club, not the club itself. Every arbitration case online - be it Fulham vs West Ham, or players vs league, or players vs agents, is all about claiming damages. Make of that whatever you want, but I just cannot see how an arbitration case with the PL vs the club is about enforcing a sale.

 

You're forgetting that the prem offered arbitration at one point, so why would it be unusual?

 

“The Club has previously not commented on the arbitration it is pursuing against the Premier League (‘EPL’) with respect to its conduct relating to the proposed takeover because of the confidentiality clause in the EPL's rules.

"However, the Club is aware of public reports which state that, on 17 November, the EPL referred to legal proceedings with the Club (e.g. social media posts referring to the “Club’s own legal case”) in a letter to Newcastle supporters.

"The source of some of the reporting is said to be the EPL. It appears, therefore, that the EPL has leaked the contents of their letter to some of those commenting in the public domain.

"The Club understands that these will be matters of great concern to its fans and therefore considers that, in light of the information disclosed by the EPL, it has no choice but to respond and update its fans in response to this coverage.

"The Club makes no comment on the substance of the arbitration, but it can confirm that it has issued arbitration proceedings against the EPL.

"It is unclear when those proceedings will be resolved, given the approach of the EPL and its lawyers, Bird & Bird. Nevertheless, the Club will continue to use its best efforts to press for a fair, full and timely hearing of its claim.”

 

Yes I agree with this aswell.

 

I don’t see any mention of PIF or any other entity other than the PL and their lawyers.

 

If they represent NUFC then that confirms that it has nothing to do with Ashley seeking compensation. A private company would bring a claim for restraint of trade causing financial loss. PL arbitration does not have legal jurisdiction and that would be heard in the High Court under Civil Procedure Rules.

 

How are the PL restraining NUFC from trading? The missed opportunity of investment? There’s nothing stopping PIF investing in NUFC via commercial trading.

Is the arbitration ONLY to get the decision made? If so the PL offered this to PIF and they walked away! I don’t understand why they would do that?

 

You're just guessing one way, just as I'm guessing the other. I think if everyone stops ignoring the **actual** facts, we might be on the same page:

1. Ashley's a self-serving, pig-ignorant arsehole with zero regard for this club, its' wellbeing or the wellbeing of its' fans.
2. Ashley has a deep and detailed history of somehow not being able to sell the club somehow spanning 13 years. There have been multiple, multi-million pound takeovers of a number of clubs during this time, both in the PL and abroad.
3. The club have somewhat conveniently chosen to make "no comment on the substance of the arbitration". Funny, that - the only constant from NUFC is that it's "business as usual" and they will never, ever reveal the context of this stuff.

These are facts, no? You could make other suppositions, about the desire of a buyer to purchase a club with such awful facilities and on course for relegation, for example. But I'm of the mind that even if this legal challenge is somehow about separation of state - which in fact is impossible to prove - then the outcome doesn't guarantee the PIF will acquire the club, because the only evidence we have suggests they pulled out due to global uncertainty. And the state of football at the moment, with Euro league threat and open arguments with FIFA, plus Covid, suggests football is not a good long term investment whatsoever.

 

The thing is, there is dome conflation here. Arbitration can give binding rulings on issues of fact and/or law.

On that basis, arbitration may be focusing on teo points.

1. Separation of PIF from the state.
2. PL conduct

If 1 is confirmed then the PL is obliged to carry out of the ODT. They will have all information requested. Point 2 then comes into play. They have to abide by their own rules.

The issue of PIF. The noises are that they never left but took a backseat. Depending on the outcome of arbitration, it has been suggested that they would be back.

 

They are preventing an agreed sale of a private company. The club cannot be sold to the buyer because of the PL's rules. It is basic contract - Nordenfeldt v Nordenfeldt.

PIF appear to have taken the view that the ODT did commence so arbitration should not have been offered. The issue is the PL sitting on information as per Amanda Staveley.

 

Again Roland I’m on your page on this. But I’m negative. As already stated.

However the PIF need a means to promote themselves on the global scale to “double” there value of their fund. What better way, especially after all the attention this takeover has had, is there than to buy a PL football club with all the exposure it would create for PIF.

The legal separation is in my mind difficult to prove. I means MBS has literally just chaired their 5 year plan to double value.

 

Legal separation concerns the level of state control. MBS approves investments but does he then run these investments? Would he control NUFC himself, or would there be separation.

 

Mate, there's a thousand ways around it. PIF set up a shell company with directors not on the Saudi government. For investment to go via a number of companies before settling on Cantervale. For the Reuben's to acquire it outright, then subsequently sell shares after becoming the owner but retaining top level control.

I'm not even a lawyer or accountant, and this **** is pretty easy to work out. If I can afford Nick De Marco, I could simply hire him to work around the rules rather than **** around with arbitration. Just change the deal and try again. But, for some reason nobody knows, we're not doing that - instead we're seeking an arbitration decision which, as I've said, is typically related to compensation. I think NUFC racked up some hefty legal fees AFTER the PL said it should be a formality and Ashley is simply trying to claw that back to improve the NUFC cashflow - which of course he doesn't fund. He could pay the going rate on advertising, which would help, but he doesn't do that. He could employ a decent CEO instead of looking to Graeme ****ing Jones, but he doesn't do that.

None of this will come to light - it very much suits Ashley to have Bruce as a bodyshield for the shambles on the pitch, and it very much suits Ashley to have the PL as a bodyshield for the shambles off it. We know he's a sensitive ****er - the middle finger a couple of years ago shows just how childish this idiot is. He likes deflection from his stupidity. But all we'll get, somewhere around late Feb, is that the PL were wrong to suggest it would go ahead, they owe around £4m in compo, but "unfortunately" PIF have walked away but Ashley will be "determined" to sell the club. Again.

 

I sometimes think you're just on the wind up

Playing devil's advocate just for ****s and giggles.

Nice work