Unbelievable

In my view we could conceivably have been where we are today without the new owners’ spending post takeover if Ashley had allowed the club to grow commercially in line with our competitors at the time he took over. We were in the CL more often then not the years before he took over and our revenue was only slightly lower than some of the “big six” at the time. We are only a doped club now insofar as the new owners have us sponsored at a level that would be seen as normal for a club of our statute and potential, as opposed to the free advertising that Mike Ashley arranged for SD. The reason we were a yoyo club performing at well below our potential is because for 14 years we had an incompetent, petulant piece of shit consistently running us into the ground. Our potential was always there though. Keegan saw it, some fans did and luckily for us, Amanda Stavely did too.

See, I was and still am of the opinion that the potential of this football club we support is as high as that of any other club regardless of who owns it. We went from a penny-pinching leech to the “richest owners in world football”, but in either scenario our potential was for us to challenge at the top of the (domestic) game for titles, European football qualification and cups. I think the first three years of this ownership bear that out, because we’ve not even really had to tap into the unthinkable wealth of our owners to achieve 2/3 simply by being very well managed and united. That is not beyond the likes of Villa, and indeed they are also demonstrating this. As I’ve argued before I will happily accept a form of FFP that prevents owners such as ours to simply outspend the competition tenfold and thereby compete by default, such as PSG are doing in France. That would feel hollow to me. I much prefer beating the “big six” by being smarter than by simply being richer and I also respect our owners even more for taling on this challenge without flashing cheque books left, right and center. They are building us up to be a sustainable top club rather than a flash in the pan. Your view may differ and that is ok, but for me the owners are extracting potential that was always here rather than taking the club places no “normal” owner could have.

Considering the Aston Villa owner’s wealth is around 10b, they seem willing to spend at least as much as these regulations allow and they’re consistently voting with City, Forest and us to get the shackles removed I’m not sure I agree out potential is all that different to ours. Still, I’d rather them in the CL than any of the “big six”. At least we’d be competing on an even playing field with them and both teams doing well should eventually start hurting the finances of the likes of Spurs, Man U and Chelsea.

It’s good to have the option, but with how good Burn has been this season I’d give Botman a full season this time before hoying him back in, unless in case of an emergency.

Great news. First summer signing in the bag.

Suspected that might be it. Fits with the feeling unwell and having trouble breathing rumours. Get well soon boss!

Get in

Tonali might just be the best midfielder to have ever lived you know

Tino and Barnes on the left is every bit as good as Hall and Gordon

Harvey Barnes take a bow son, take a bow

YES!!!

Burn should have left it

YES!!!

Much improvement needed second half

How are we fucking this up so badly?

Pen please

Joelinton

We've wasted so many chances, aargh

ffs

Burn close

Damn, close again

How does Isak not score there?

Isak and Tonali, world class

Fucking hell what a goal

YES!!!