quayside

He's obsessed with the past. The title of this thread was intended to be provocative and make us think about the post Ashley era now he has been hounded out. Even NE5 has to realise that whether FFS and Co gave us courageous and successful leadership or whether they gave reckless leadership leading towards oblivion, it doesn't really matter any more. They are not coming back. It would be good if he could tell us what he wants post Ashley in specific real world terms rather than continuously using abstract expressions such as its gaining success on the field that matters, and thats his main requirement which he must do to the best of his ability. We ALL know that and we ALL want that, it's just that a lot of us thought that's what Ashley was doing until Keegan walked and he may just still be our best chance. If you want him out then specify what will improve our situation, but with specifics please not just "Ashley's s****, Keegan's a messiah, the old board were great" type remarks which frankly any retard can spout. Even if you think he might have been our best chance there's no way he's going to do anything positive with the club now. He will sell to the highest bidder (as yet unknown) and will try to tick it along keeping losses at a minimum until that happens. A quick sale has to be preferable since at least there's some chance of something constructive happening. In terms of what I would like to see - something along the lines of what Lerner has done at Villa would do for me. Sadly that's exactly what I was thinking as I watched all the insults and threats about his roots, body size etc being gratuitiously hurled post Keegan's walkout and during the Hull game. The mob got what they wanted and now we'll all suffer. P.S. With the present financial turmoil do you think there's any chance of a Lerner being out there and ready to invest ? There's still plenty of money about. It depends on the buyers motives. I'm really not sure you can buy a lower midtable Premiership club and achieve success on the pitch as well as run it along what might be called normal best financial practice. To get a competitive squad together there has to be speculation and if the investor isn't in it for the love of the game the risks of the speculation not coming off can be a total turn off. If the investor gets a kick out of the club and hasn't extended himself too far in buying the club then there's a chance the fans will get what they want. As for Ashley, apart from a failure to fully understand exactly what he'd bought and how to run it, he simply isn't rich enough to own a Premiership club and make it work. He would have been better off buying someone like Brentford or MK Dons and he could have implemented his strategy of targetting bargain young foreign talent and implementing the continental management structure and no one would have given a toss. I'd have thought Ashley was about as close as you're gonna get to that description right now. I was led to believe he was rich enough, indeed one of very few Brits who would be rich enough and inclined to own a Premiership team. That letter he stuck on the official website basically confirms that he over extended himself on the purchase and can't afford to fund it properly going forward. Out of his depth in so many ways.

He's obsessed with the past. The title of this thread was intended to be provocative and make us think about the post Ashley era now he has been hounded out. Even NE5 has to realise that whether FFS and Co gave us courageous and successful leadership or whether they gave reckless leadership leading towards oblivion, it doesn't really matter any more. They are not coming back. It would be good if he could tell us what he wants post Ashley in specific real world terms rather than continuously using abstract expressions such as its gaining success on the field that matters, and thats his main requirement which he must do to the best of his ability. We ALL know that and we ALL want that, it's just that a lot of us thought that's what Ashley was doing until Keegan walked and he may just still be our best chance. If you want him out then specify what will improve our situation, but with specifics please not just "Ashley's s****, Keegan's a messiah, the old board were great" type remarks which frankly any retard can spout. Even if you think he might have been our best chance there's no way he's going to do anything positive with the club now. He will sell to the highest bidder (as yet unknown) and will try to tick it along keeping losses at a minimum until that happens. A quick sale has to be preferable since at least there's some chance of something constructive happening. In terms of what I would like to see - something along the lines of what Lerner has done at Villa would do for me. Sadly that's exactly what I was thinking as I watched all the insults and threats about his roots, body size etc being gratuitiously hurled post Keegan's walkout and during the Hull game. The mob got what they wanted and now we'll all suffer. P.S. With the present financial turmoil do you think there's any chance of a Lerner being out there and ready to invest ? There's still plenty of money about. It depends on the buyers motives. I'm really not sure you can buy a lower midtable Premiership club and achieve success on the pitch as well as run it along what might be called normal best financial practice. To get a competitive squad together there has to be speculation and if the investor isn't in it for the love of the game the risks of the speculation not coming off can be a total turn off. If the investor gets a kick out of the club and hasn't extended himself too far in buying the club then there's a chance the fans will get what they want. As for Ashley, apart from a failure to fully understand exactly what he'd bought and how to run it, he simply isn't rich enough to own a Premiership club and make it work. He would have been better off buying someone like Brentford or MK Dons and he could have implemented his strategy of targetting bargain young foreign talent and implementing the continental management structure and no one would have given a toss.

He's obsessed with the past. The title of this thread was intended to be provocative and make us think about the post Ashley era now he has been hounded out. Even NE5 has to realise that whether FFS and Co gave us courageous and successful leadership or whether they gave reckless leadership leading towards oblivion, it doesn't really matter any more. They are not coming back. It would be good if he could tell us what he wants post Ashley in specific real world terms rather than continuously using abstract expressions such as its gaining success on the field that matters, and thats his main requirement which he must do to the best of his ability. We ALL know that and we ALL want that, it's just that a lot of us thought that's what Ashley was doing until Keegan walked and he may just still be our best chance. If you want him out then specify what will improve our situation, but with specifics please not just "Ashley's s****, Keegan's a messiah, the old board were great" type remarks which frankly any retard can spout. Even if you think he might have been our best chance there's no way he's going to do anything positive with the club now. He will sell to the highest bidder (as yet unknown) and will try to tick it along keeping losses at a minimum until that happens. A quick sale has to be preferable since at least there's some chance of something constructive happening. In terms of what I would like to see - something along the lines of what Lerner has done at Villa would do for me. Villa have Martin O'Neal A proven manager backed Lerner style then. Keegan could be that man - if not there are others who would take it on if they were assured of the new owners intentions.

He's obsessed with the past. The title of this thread was intended to be provocative and make us think about the post Ashley era now he has been hounded out. Even NE5 has to realise that whether FFS and Co gave us courageous and successful leadership or whether they gave reckless leadership leading towards oblivion, it doesn't really matter any more. They are not coming back. It would be good if he could tell us what he wants post Ashley in specific real world terms rather than continuously using abstract expressions such as its gaining success on the field that matters, and thats his main requirement which he must do to the best of his ability. We ALL know that and we ALL want that, it's just that a lot of us thought that's what Ashley was doing until Keegan walked and he may just still be our best chance. If you want him out then specify what will improve our situation, but with specifics please not just "Ashley's s****, Keegan's a messiah, the old board were great" type remarks which frankly any retard can spout. Even if you think he might have been our best chance there's no way he's going to do anything positive with the club now. He will sell to the highest bidder (as yet unknown) and will try to tick it along keeping losses at a minimum until that happens. A quick sale has to be preferable since at least there's some chance of something constructive happening. In terms of what I would like to see - something along the lines of what Lerner has done at Villa would do for me.

Well I don't know about anyone else but I read the £20 million comment by Ashley as meaning that is what he was prepared to allow the club to lose as a trading loss each year. This is light years away from saying that he was prepared to invest £20 million in the squad each year. If he doesn't sell the club by 1st January just prepare youselves for him starting to make inroads into that loss - Given and Zoggy are now on the books at nowt, and Owen and Oba at next to nowt. Most of what we get would be profit. I'm really not saying our best players are all gone in one window but we now have a regime that looks at players as financial assets as opposed to what they deliver on the park. I don't know if the quote about the club looking at the "residual value" of players was real or not, but it seems to be what has been going on. Up for debate is what the residual on someone like Xisco is - he looks ordinary to date but plenty of foreign players take time to adapt, trouble is they need class and confidence around them . We haven't got a squad that can allow for the learning process - maybe Keegan knew that all along.

Owen is and always has been a great professional. He'll work his arse off for whoever he plays for - whether he's in form or not, recovering from an injury etc. He has always been totally committed on the pitch when he's played for us. Consider what's happened in his time at the club and ask yourself what you would do in his situation next summer.

I hate saying this when its only late September - but can anyone name the 3 sides they think are going down without even thinking about us?

Yes it may be. Different agendas and massive conflicts of ego not to mention personality conflicts just could get in the way.

Would a manager currently working give up his job to come to a club in turmoil that may be about to change owner? Can only be a prospect of any interest to someone out of work - no?

- Ashley promising a WOW signing, - every player for sale in the transfer window - Ashley making any public statement at all about Joey Barton There have been rumours about some of that but I haven't seen much of any substance - you have sources? Also I don't think the £20 million is the amount he was prepared to spend on players I think it was the extent he was prepared to bankroll the club (ie how much he was prepared to accept as a trading loss each year).

No sympathy for Ashley. Assuming we believe that he did not buy us to make a quick profit as he says, it seems to me that he bought the club without a clue what he was buying into. Apart from the lies, lack of communication, shambolic PR and Wise and co the simple fact is he didn't understand what makes the place unique. Also he may be a rich man, but he isn't rich enough to own a club of our size. He cannot provide the essential funding thats needed to keep pace with other clubs of similar size. So he's completely out of his depth on all counts imo.

basically correct, yeah...ashley isn't spending enough of the clubs money, but i'm yet to be convinced he won't spend EVER unlike some people using the milner sale to justify the maximise profits stuff is truly incredible - i can't think of a better financial deal for a player we've ever had given his level of ability and end product on the pitch, they'd have been mental to turn it down...keegan obviously agreed with that as well given he sanctioned the sale lets see who they bring in and lets see what happens in january - you have to assume they'll ensure the new guys sings from the same sheet player-wise (pardon the pun) therefore if they don't spend in january it's really time to wonder, although it'll likely be explained by lack of time or some s*** for me the allardyce window and last can be "conveniently" explained away by a number of factors - if they get a new guy now i can see no excuses anymore... The Milner deal was too good to turn down, but the benefit of it was simply that it helped balance the books on our transfer activity for the summer and left Ashley having invested no new money in the squad. I could well believe that the issue of the Milner money was the last straw for Keegan. I can't see that there were any excuses for lack of investment this time tbh.

There are some who assume he is. I would like to know more about what happened, I think its highly unlikely he is 100% without blame.

Despite all that has happened it's great to see there is still a wonderful lack of cynicism amongst our fanbase.

If we are to believe what we read KK thought so, but the club thought otherwise.

Ashley is a chancer. He made much of his money by floating about 50% of his chain of retail sports shops on the Stock Market and trousered £0.9billion in the process. Credit must go to him for building up a business to the point of being able to float it. But since Sports Direct floated on the Stock Exchange it has been a disaster. Results have been poor, the share price has plummeted, the PR of the company is shambolic and Ashley continues to rely on people close to him who are proven to be not up to the job. Attempts to improve the PR side have failed as people brought in to do the job find Ashley and his people impossible to work with. No one should be surprised by what we are going through right now. There are many cases of billionaires who make their money in a particular industry and think they can simply launch themselves into a new business using the same principles. You do not need to be a business guru to work out that there are many fundamental differences between a chain of retail shops and Newcastle United. The acid test is whether Ashley is intelligent enough to learn from his experiences of owning us, or indeed whether he even wants to learn...

It might have worked better if the people doing the scouting and negotiating were so obviously not chosen by Keegan. And btw what was the real reason behind Arthur Cox leaving?

Its been written to try and cover their own backs so when Keegan does leave they can say 'we always wanted him to stay' etc'. A bit like the statement that was put put about Owen's contract negotiations. Clowns are running the day to day business imo.

It's not at all good but Spurs when Jol was on his way out wasn't too clever either.

Agree but it could be Owen's people who are really doing the leaking. No?

Smith and Ameobi playing together up front for us has been a recurring nightmare of mine since Shola's Stoke deal fell through.

It's a piss take column that appears about once a week in the Guardian.

irritable as f*** the day it would seem! (me) anyway back to topic; we're both looking at the same situation and reading it different ways...i refuse to believe that we haven't identified an available player we want in the 6-7 months since kk & wise etc... arrived at the club assuming we have we're either not willing to pay the fees/wages being quoted or are in the middle of a giant transfer logjam that once one deal goes through they'll all start (seems to be convential wisdom at the moment that one) the former is the more likely to me personally, that's it really There is another possibility - the involvement of Wise, Jimenez and Vetere in the club's transfer structure isn't working.

Where does it go from here? Is it down to the lake I fear?