Mike Ashley: "I've loved owning Newcastle"

[Greg]

MIKE ASHLEY: I'VE LOVED OWNING NEWCASTLE

By ANDY DUNN, 13/12/2008

 

HOUNDED away from the club which has drained him of the best part of £300million, Mike Ashley should be a bitter man.

 

Embroiled in a legal battle with a living Tyneside legend, Ashley should be regretting the day he wrote a cheque to the Halls and Freddy Shepherd.

 

Squeezed by the credit crunch and unable to sell a prime Premier League asset, Ashley should be wondering why he ever got involved in football.

 

But he is not.

 

“I’ve made mistakes, sure,” he says. “But do I regret buying Newcastle? Absolutely not.

 

“I had a fantastic year owning a fantastic club. It really was like someone fulfilling their boyhood dream.

 

“Up to a point, I enjoyed every minute of it.”

 

That point, of course, came when Ashley decided he was no longer welcome at St James’ Park.

 

Or, indeed, no longer safe.

 

That is why he was in Barbados last weekend rather than in the directors’ box watching the latest stage of Joe Kinnear's salvage mission.

 

He texts Kinnear after every game and is impressed with the job he is doing.

 

When I saw Joe recently, he told me of his desire to see Ashley back up in the St James’ stands.

 

“I would love to see Mike back here for a match. He is a man who is passionate about football and passionate about this club,” Kinnear said.

 

And in the past couple of weeks, there have been conciliatory noises from supporters' groups who realise that selling Newcastle in these trying economic times is not going to be a formality.

 

When I caught up with Ashley in the Caribbean, he was non-commital on returning to watch the team he bankrolls.

 

But privately, he has told friends that he cannot see a day when he is welcomed back in Newcastle.

 

In the wake of Keegan’s resignation, some of the letters and e-mails from outraged fans were so threatening that Ashley was genuinely concerned about his family’s safety.

 

And that is why he believes he has no option but to press ahead with the sale of the club. But it is not proving easy.

 

“I have not had a single credible bid,” he told me.

 

There has, of course, been interest from various consortiums from different parts of the globe — but none of it concrete.

 

And on the day we spoke, Ashley had heard the whispers of a Pini Zahavi-led group being keen to get round the negotiating table.

 

“Someone told me they had been interested in Portsmouth and West Ham,” Ashley said. “Why would we be third on the list? We are a much bigger club than those two.”

 

Ashley won’t publicly discuss the asking price but he is prepared to leave without a profit.

 

In the meantime, he has given his backing to Kinnear, who now has a contract until the end of the season.

 

Masterplan

 

And he could even personally intervene if discussions with stars such as Michael Owen and Nicky Butt — both out of contract at the end of the season — do not show any signs of reaching a positive conclusion.

 

“I’m still desperate for the club to succeed,” insisted Ashley.

 

But that is unlikely to extend to a massive transfer fund for Kinnear when the transfer window opens at the start of next month.

 

But lavish spending on big-name players was never part of Ashley’s masterplan when he took over back in June of 2007.

 

“That was never going to be the way we would do things,” he said. “We had a long-term strategy.”

 

Some people clearly didn’t understand the scheme.

 

And whatever the strategy, it went awry when Keegan walked out and Ashley — along with Dennis Wise — became the biggest villain in Toon, with angry mobs demonstrating against him outside St James’ Park.

 

I was one of Ashley's harshest critics but talking to him over a drink, you realise that he is just a very rich enthusiast who got into football for pure and simple fun.

 

“I loved it,” he said. “Of course, I’ve made mistakes but we all have.”

 

Keegan is claiming huge compensation from Newcastle and it appears that Ashley will fight it.

 

But he will not say a bad word against Keegan.

 

Instead, he will support Kinnear as best he can as the interim manager tries to stave off the nightmare prospect of relegation to the Championship.

 

Kinnear takes his team on the long trip to Portsmouth today knowing that he needs to start turning draws into victories if they are to secure some breathing space in the lower half of the table.

 

Difficult

 

And he needs to sort out the future of Owen in particular as a matter of urgency.

 

It now seems certain that the striker will let his contract run down and would be free to move on a free transfer next summer.

 

Indeed, he is free to talk to other teams next month.

 

The England striker will want to know the direction of the club before he considers committing himself to it.

 

And that could mean that Owen’s future is linked directly with Ashley’s ability to sell the club.

 

In the current climate, that might prove difficult but it is clear that even if he has to hang on to Newcastle, Ashley will still strive to make sure it regains its place as one of the Premier League’s top clubs.

 

Even if he never sets foot in the place ever again.

 

Click here to read the original story at the News of the World website

[Dave]

What a load of wank.

[Guest]

How come? Don't see a lot wrong with it tbh.

[TRon]

What a load of wank.

 

Unfortunately there isn't any alternative to this wank. Unless you count wankers who are having a wank about buying Newcastle without having two pennies to rub together. They must be rubbing something else.

 

 

[Guest]

People have been whinging at his silence, I bet they still have something to have a sulk about at that interview.

[TRon]

How come? Don't see a lot wrong with it tbh.

 

Ashley will still strive to make sure it regains its place as one of the Premier League’s top clubs.

 

[Robster]

People have been whinging at his silence, I bet they still have something to have a sulk about at that interview.

I am not quite sure I would class that as an interview

 

[Dave]

People have been whinging at his silence, I bet they still have something to have a sulk about at that interview.

I am not quite sure I would class that as an interview

 

 

Precisely.

[fredbob]

People have been whinging at his silence, I bet they still have something to have a sulk about at that interview.

I am not quite sure I would class that as an interview

 

 

Precisely.

 

Fuck me, who cares if its an interview or not? Its still a reflection on his attitude and feelings towards the club.

 

Does anyone think he's truly scared to return the club?

[S.S.R.]

Ashley: "What a shame I've been forced to sell the club - I was going to spend loads of money and everything."

 

Aye, whatever. Get it sold, collect your thirty pieces of silver and fuck off you slimy cunt.

[Guest]

Ashley: "What a shame I've been forced to sell the club - I was going to spend loads of money and everything."

 

Aye, whatever. Get it sold, collect your thirty pieces of silver and f*** off you slimy c***.

 

He didn't say that at all.

 

But lavish spending on big-name players was never part of Ashley’s masterplan when he took over back in June of 2007.

 

“That was never going to be the way we would do things,” he said. “We had a long-term strategy.”

 

[Guest The Libertine]

Ashley: "What a shame I've been forced to sell the club - I was going to spend loads of money and everything."

 

Aye, whatever. Get it sold, collect your thirty pieces of silver and fuck off you slimy cunt.

 

But lavish spending on big-name players was never part of Ashley’s masterplan when he took over back in June of 2007.

 

“That was never going to be the way we would do things,” he said. “We had a long-term strategy.”

 

but dont let a direct quote stop you. fire away.

[Tooj]

Ashley contradicting himself again it would seem. 

[fredbob]

Ashley contradicting himself again it would seem.   

 

How so?

[Rich]

He's still not the big, bad villain that people are painting him out to be. I was as angry with him as anyone for the way the Keegan thing unfolded, but after taking a few steps back from the situation it has been hard to completely change my opinion of him after one single event like a lot seem to have done.

 

Aye he's made a huge mistake that has been massively detrimental since it happened to the football club and to the lives of all the fans that follow it with a passion, but I hardly think he's sitting around somewhere smiling about how things have gone wrong - and not just because he could potentially lose money because of it.

 

I suppose we'll see if he stays in how he does things or we'll see with the price he sells the club at, but even before this interview I've been hesitant to paint him 100% as the villain. I don't think there's any excuse for the silence before now though, but I am glad he's finally spoken in public about the current situation (even if it's just a little bit.)

 

More can be read outside of the quotes, to be honest, and this Dunn bloke has obviously had a face-to-face chat with him so it can't all be idle speculation.

[Syrette]

People twisting stuff to suit their beliefs and agendas again it would seem.

[Tooj]

Ashley contradicting himself again it would seem. 

 

How so?

 

He said in that wonderful interview with the official magazine that the money was there for Keegan to spend if he wanted it.

[Yorkie]

If you love the club and are desperate for it to succeed, then i'd much rather you knuckled down, brought out the old blueprints and gave it another bash. But get someone in who has a fucking clue, like your mate Chris Mort, and try and re-build some of the bridges you've burnt down. You had the right ideas but the execution was piss-poor without the likes of Mort there. Appoint a fucking manager, get a fucking clue, and take the club out of this constant limbo because we'll go nowhere but down the way things are.

[Syrette]

He's still not the big, bad villain that people are painting him out to be.

 

He can't say a single thing without getting a negative response, regardless of what he's actually said. See Dave's post at the top of this thread for starters.

[Kasper]

Ashley: "What a shame I've been forced to sell the club - I was going to spend loads of money and everything."

 

Aye, whatever. Get it sold, collect your thirty pieces of silver and fuck off you slimy cunt.

 

But lavish spending on big-name players was never part of Ashley’s masterplan when he took over back in June of 2007.

 

“That was never going to be the way we would do things,” he said. “We had a long-term strategy.”

 

but dont let a direct quote stop you. fire away.

 

You couldnt make it up

 

 

Anything to have a dig....

[Syrette]

If you love the club and are desperate for it to succeed, then i'd much rather you knuckled down, brought out the old blueprints and gave it another bash. But get someone in who has a fucking clue, like your mate Chris Mort, and try and re-build some of the bridges you've burnt down. You had the right ideas but the execution was piss-poor without the likes of Mort there. Appoint a fucking manager, get a fucking clue, and take the club out of this constant limbo because we'll go nowhere but down the way things are.

 

It's not going to happen is it? I agree that's what I'd like now but I just don't see it. You know some of our lot can't see the bigger picture and won't even consider the thought of him coming back even if it'll benefit us in the short term.

[Guest The Libertine]

Ashley contradicting himself again it would seem. 

 

How so?

 

He said in that wonderful interview with the official magazine that the money was there for Keegan to spend if he wanted it.

 

and clearly it was as plenty was spent. (before the milner deal too, which was a fairly last minute deal so its not like he was looking to make it all back in the way it worked out)

[Tooj]

Ashley contradicting himself again it would seem. 

 

How so?

 

He said in that wonderful interview with the official magazine that the money was there for Keegan to spend if he wanted it.

 

and clearly it was as plenty was spent. (before the milner deal too, which was a fairly last minute deal so its not like he was looking to make it all back in the way it worked out)

 

[Dave]

If you love the club and are desperate for it to succeed, then i'd much rather you knuckled down, brought out the old blueprints and gave it another bash. But get someone in who has a fucking clue, like your mate Chris Mort, and try and re-build some of the bridges you've burnt down. You had the right ideas but the execution was piss-poor without the likes of Mort there. Appoint a fucking manager, get a fucking clue, and take the club out of this constant limbo because we'll go nowhere but down the way things are.

 

[S.S.R.]

I could get sucked into an argument, but why bother?

 

Just expressing a genuine belief and ignoring the contrary fuckers.

 

"I've paid the debt... ....I haven't paid off the debt... ...Keegan's in charge... ... never said he was..."