Ashley may have had a reputation as a shark and a wideboy, but how does that really pertain to his ability to own a football club? He's not a corporate raider, he isn't trying to liquidize NUFC. His business plan itself wasn't bad, it was just horribly, horribly executed.
But yes, Hall's bullshit about ambition was just that. He saw the club's debt and waited for the high bidder