The Rumours Thread!
- Thread starter Al the Hornet
- Start date
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I still do not know what sources Kevin Affleck might have within the club if any, but he is certainly keeping the pot bubbling.
Kevin Affleck‏@affers1178
Latest #watfordfc information I'm told is that Elton John is 'likely' to sever remaining connections with the club.
Kevin Affleck‏@affers1178
Latest #watfordfc information I'm told is that Elton John is 'likely' to sever remaining connections with the club.
Not sure why SEJ would do that at this stage.
I'm no cheerleader for Bassini, but only one owner in our history has always made the necessary money available. Sir Elton John. If he wasn't happy with anything less, he wouldn't have agreed to reprise his life president role in the first place.
I'm no cheerleader for Bassini, but only one owner in our history has always made the necessary money available. Sir Elton John. If he wasn't happy with anything less, he wouldn't have agreed to reprise his life president role in the first place.
Im sorry but i cannot believe anything he is saying. He said that if Bassini did not sort things out he would be outed on weds, that was yesterday and nothing has been done, now there is news of Bassini trying to clear the clubs overdraft and pay off the bonds.
I think this Affleck is just bitter and knows very little.
That's what everyone said last time. And we very nearly went extinct when it later emerged that each and every word he had printed was correct.
That may be so, but this time he has said that Bassini had till Wednesday to sort it out or he would be out, and that Bassini would not be able to sort it so would be out on his heels. Its simply not happened and the Owl and Moose are saying the opposite. Plus, i trust Sir Graham Taylor would never let the club come to harm, so why step down.
Let's consider two possibilities. Firstly, absolutely nothing is wrong. In that case, GT has always made clear that he is eager to get out of the chair, and now is undeniably the least worst time in the year for him to do so. Secondly, that Affleck is right and that we are in for a "messy" ownership struggle. How on earth would the club operate with a chairman contractually obliged to spend a month in Eastern Europe?
I'm not happy that GT has left, but it makes sense in either instance.
I'm with BHD on this one. And while I am no great fan of Bassini, it looks to me like the 'anti-Bas' faction have been getting up to mischief and Kevin Affleck has fallen for it.
Sad to see Sir Graham go - but all good things come to an end.
Sad to see Sir Graham go - but all good things come to an end.
None of what I have read changes my sit on the fence position. I hope that Baz turns out to be the real deal, but having been taken in some years ago, and the company I worked for almost going bust because of it, I see similar patterns all over again. One day I might tell the story in detail, but for now I will just keep watching.
Two things strike me from the WO article. 1. Why would you need to negotiate with the bank to clear your overdraft? You simply pay it off, but leave the facility in place should you need it again. 2. Under the terms of the bond repayments, if Baz wished to sell the club, the first thing he has to do is repay the bondholders.
My suspicion is that the WO have been spurred into action after all of the speculation, but I do wonder if they should be leading rather than following.
Two things strike me from the WO article. 1. Why would you need to negotiate with the bank to clear your overdraft? You simply pay it off, but leave the facility in place should you need it again. 2. Under the terms of the bond repayments, if Baz wished to sell the club, the first thing he has to do is repay the bondholders.
My suspicion is that the WO have been spurred into action after all of the speculation, but I do wonder if they should be leading rather than following.
You would do this if you were trying to turn the banks more profitable income stream into one that was less favourable to them, turning an overdraft into a loan. I have tried it and the banks don't like it. Conversations generally go like this...
"We can't lend you the money because of your debts."
"But I wish to consolidate everything into one place with a lower interest rate so I can pay my debts off faster."
"That sounds like a good idea, but as I said we cannot lend you that sort of money because of your debts: pay them off and we can think about the loan."
"When I've paid them off I won't need a loan."
"But you'll be in a better position to pay the loan back."
"I won't need a loan."
"There's no need to take that attitude."
The implication of what Affleck has said so far is that Bassini has technically breached a condition of the takeover agreement, and that as a result things will get messy from here. Assuming Bassini doesn't want to sell, the easiest way to takeover the club would be to attempt to render his control over the club null and void, and give Ashcroft a more favourable offer.
It's not for me to say that he's right or wrong, but given his track record it would be stupid to simply dismiss what he says out of hand without at least considering it. One glance at the Owl's Twitter feed and it's obvious that if there is any bitterness, it's two-way.
It's not for me to say that he's right or wrong, but given his track record it would be stupid to simply dismiss what he says out of hand without at least considering it. One glance at the Owl's Twitter feed and it's obvious that if there is any bitterness, it's two-way.
It's interesting to note that Bassini pro-actively contacted the Wobby today, rather than the usual practise of Frank Smith or Anthony Matthews securing an interview and managing to get something out of him. When was the last time Bassini went out of his way to go to the media?
I'm not always even-handed when it comes to Bassini, but I think it's important to do so in this instance, so I'll keep on looking at both scenarios. If Affleck is right, it could be a roll of the dice in an attempt to get fans on his side should things get "messy". And if Affleck is wrong and the likes of me have been wrong all along, what a fantastic time to come out and set out his stall for the next year or two.
I'm not always even-handed when it comes to Bassini, but I think it's important to do so in this instance, so I'll keep on looking at both scenarios. If Affleck is right, it could be a roll of the dice in an attempt to get fans on his side should things get "messy". And if Affleck is wrong and the likes of me have been wrong all along, what a fantastic time to come out and set out his stall for the next year or two.
On Wednesday, Bassini went to the banks to try and sort it out...makes sense to me...though your last comment i do agree with
I think the guy taking us over is Pozzo Udinese boss, yep the same guy that was rumoured last feb in the wobby.
Hoping that a journo based in the middle east has had too much sun and is well off the mark. Jury out until see something concrete and binding from the lawyers, it does make sense to clear the debt early, we're ahead of the curve on transfers so can't see the reason for any default on the terms of the last takeover. As a business WFC still doesn't make sense without restructuring (cut the costs in the payrole), I've not yet seen the full plan about how we're going to redress this without a premioership excursion but thats too big a gamble and nothing a bank will bank on! In Fransen I trust, I'll keep looking for a statement from that quarter before any judgement.
You can find reference to this on Wiki.
"On 10 February 2012, a report in Gazzetta dello Sport states that Giampaolo Pozzo is interested in buying Watford F.C.. Giampaolo Pozzo is keen on stepping into English football with Watford on his radar."
Aberdeen, I have as much respect for David Franson as you do, but when was the last time we actually heard anything from him?
OK - here's a summary of the latest situation as gleaned from various websites and twitter feeds and put together by myself in an imaginative fashion.
1 Approach made by Italian consortium to buy club
2 Baz does not want to sell (reasons later)
3 Ashcroft and Simpson see a profit and a quicker return on cash if they can force Baz's hand and retake control, so they start pressing various clauses in takeover agreement
4 In order to stave off such pressure Baz starts negotiations to settle debts and eliminate clauses
5 Baz does not want to sell because it's not his baby.
6 The real man behind Baz is Sir Philip Green, who sees Watford FC as the cornerstone of a huge development covering a large chunk of West Watford
1 Approach made by Italian consortium to buy club
2 Baz does not want to sell (reasons later)
3 Ashcroft and Simpson see a profit and a quicker return on cash if they can force Baz's hand and retake control, so they start pressing various clauses in takeover agreement
4 In order to stave off such pressure Baz starts negotiations to settle debts and eliminate clauses
5 Baz does not want to sell because it's not his baby.
6 The real man behind Baz is Sir Philip Green, who sees Watford FC as the cornerstone of a huge development covering a large chunk of West Watford
That sounds like a possible scenario Harrow..
Seeing as we don't have any kit for next season, it will be difficult for BHS to have their name on our shirts.
Seeing as we don't have any kit for next season, it will be difficult for BHS to have their name on our shirts.