Mike Ashley

[colinmk]

What an enjoyable day it will be when he finally sells up. Just imagine it for a few moments.

 

This place would go absolutely mental. Would be legendary and infamous day for all of us.

 

Add to that the day Ashley walks and eventually Kinnear & AP get sacked as well. Epic.

 

Not sure I want an "infamous" day. We've had enough of them. Would much rather we had a 'famous' day, when a decent owner takes control and starts about rebuilding the club back to where we could and should have been with proper investment and decent management.

 

[Kanji]

What an enjoyable day it will be when he finally sells up. Just imagine it for a few moments.

 

This place would go absolutely mental. Would be legendary and infamous day for all of us.

 

Add to that the day Ashley walks and eventually Kinnear & AP get sacked as well. Epic.

 

Not sure I want an "infamous" day. We've had enough of them. Would much rather we had a 'famous' day, when a decent owner takes control and starts about rebuilding the club back to where we could and should have been with proper investment and decent management.

 

That's what I meant mate. Sorry for the poor word choice, the moment of bliss thinking about it fucked my word choice up.

[mofo]

http://www.themag.co.uk/the-mag-articles/mike-ashleys-transfer-window-suggests-sale-of-newcastle-united-is-imminent/

 

Mike Ashley’s Activity Suggests Sale Of Newcastle United Is Imminent

 

I have been tremendously heartened by the way Joe Kinnear spent the whole transfer window clinging to a branch, upside down and asleep. I am not in the least upset at the club’s relative inactivity in the international market for player purchases.

 

In my view, and I have no special knowledge but do have an obsessive fascination in the bizarre mental make-up of the Toon’s glorious owner, as well as being impervious to wishful thinking, I believe Mike Ashley is already waving us goodbye.

 

The most interesting fact about this boring yet unpredictable billionaire, and this story has been in several newspapers, is that, after his parents mortgaged their house to borrow money which they then provided to young Mike to get going as a sports retailer, the ungrateful upstart fell out with them so badly he stopped speaking to them. They still live in the same house they mortgaged for him, while he has at least one very large house in a plutocratic corner of north London, a larger pile of money, and, as we know, a yacht moored in the Med. Having been beholden to close relatives and not having liked it, he has decided, I believe, not to take orders from anyone ever again.

 

The structure of his highly successful business is very unusual. As is well known, he took Newcastle United private when it had suited Sir John to operate through a public company. Sports Direct is a PLC, but Ashley’s own shares in Sports Direct are held by a private company, MASH Holdings. It is rare for a large chunk of a public company to be owned by a private one.

 

The payment of dividends, the valuation of debt, and, crucially, the shuffling of cash become opaque if certain accounting techniques peculiar to private companies are used. It would be much harder, for example, to use profits on player sales (which technically are capital gains, and therefore not taxable as trading profits) to pay wages if the company were public. Mike Ashley, I believe, does not like people second-guessing him, and does not regard himself as being accountable to anyone – he sees no reason to give interviews, for example.

 

Yet this man who knows best, takes no orders, and refuses to be accountable, appoints a loose cannon with a dicky heart to be his executive for incoming transfers, putting the nose of Derek Llambias thoroughly out of joint and prompting his resignation. We have no evidence that Pardew was upset about Kinnear, but he will have been, I have no doubt. At the same time we know that Ashley regards outgoing transfers as so important that he does them himself. He asked Arsenal which part of Cabaye they wanted to buy when they didn’t offer what Ashley thought he was worth. Nobody else thought Cabaye was worth that much, but Ashley did, and as a result he wasn’t sold. Indeed he allowed, or forced, Cabaye to listen to a phone conversation in which Cabaye was humiliated.

 

In relation to Cabaye, the easy and logical thing for Ashley to have done would have been to sell him for £10m. It would have produced a profit, and he could have blamed the sale on the player, as he did with Andy Carroll. He could then have used half the money for a couple of incoming transfers. This was exactly what I believe was discussed on the yacht – who to buy if Cabaye were sold. But he didn’t do that. Why not? Was it just because he had dreams of repeating the Carroll coup? Not if he had been listening to the lukewarm reaction of the Arsenal executive. No. He kept hold of Cabaye in order to keep Pardew, and indeed Graham Carr, on board.

 

Not everyone will agree with this. And I share the view of many that Kinnear was appointed precisely in order to destabilise Pardew, and to call off the many transfers lined up by Carr and Pardew (Gomis, Thauvin, Aubameyang) which Ashley did not want to conclude. Ashley, correctly in my view, distrusts Pardew’s judgement of players. He also trusts Carr’s judgement, but doesn’t see Pardew as manager for much longer. His next manager, who will not be Kinnear, will be someone whose judgement Ashley trusts, and who will be allowed to make his own decisions.

 

But some time in the last few weeks a buyer – I would bet a lot of money on this – has hoved into view. I don’t know who it is. It might be this Ukrainian chap who looks like a skittle. It might be one of those Americans we were all talking about a few months back.

 

But someone is talking to Ashley about a sale. And Ashley might not understand much about football club management, but he understands the value of stability. After all, he rewarded Pardew, and virtually everyone else, with an eight-year contract.

 

I’m guessing. I might be wrong. But wouldn’t it make sense for Ashley to steady the ship pending the sale of our club to an unknown billionaire who could then do something popular early doors and sack Pardew? Wouldn’t it make sense for the next manager to be the appointee of a dashing new owner? Sacking Pardew and appointing George Graham or Glenn Hoddle or Lee Clark or someone, frankly, dun- coloured and disappointing would simply bind the hands of the new owner. This would jeopardise the sale. And Ashley will know the next owner will want to appoint a top-rank manager who will cost a lot of money and will want to spend a lot of money. A Ukrainian oil billionaire of Newcastle United would want to compete with Sheikh Mansour and Roman Abramovich, I would have thought.

 

 

And Ashley is desperate to sell. He’s not in this for the long haul. He wants a quick route into the Champions’ League with Rangers. Can’t you just smell it?

 

Thought it was worth a post.

 

Nonsense.

[GM]

What an enjoyable day it will be when he finally sells up. Just imagine it for a few moments.

 

This place would go absolutely mental. Would be legendary and infamous day for all of us.

 

Add to that the day Ashley walks and eventually Kinnear & AP get sacked as well. Epic.

 

Not sure I want an "infamous" day. We've had enough of them. Would much rather we had a 'famous' day, when a decent owner takes control and starts about rebuilding the club back to where we could and should have been with proper investment and decent management.

 

That's what I meant mate. Sorry for the poor word choice, the moment of bliss thinking about it fucked my word choice up.

 

No problems. Guess we're all feeling a bit on edge/grouchy generally.

[Dinho lad]

http://www.themag.co.uk/the-mag-articles/mike-ashleys-transfer-window-suggests-sale-of-newcastle-united-is-imminent/

 

Mike Ashley’s Activity Suggests Sale Of Newcastle United Is Imminent

 

I have been tremendously heartened by the way Joe Kinnear spent the whole transfer window clinging to a branch, upside down and asleep. I am not in the least upset at the club’s relative inactivity in the international market for player purchases.

 

In my view, and I have no special knowledge but do have an obsessive fascination in the bizarre mental make-up of the Toon’s glorious owner, as well as being impervious to wishful thinking, I believe Mike Ashley is already waving us goodbye.

 

The most interesting fact about this boring yet unpredictable billionaire, and this story has been in several newspapers, is that, after his parents mortgaged their house to borrow money which they then provided to young Mike to get going as a sports retailer, the ungrateful upstart fell out with them so badly he stopped speaking to them. They still live in the same house they mortgaged for him, while he has at least one very large house in a plutocratic corner of north London, a larger pile of money, and, as we know, a yacht moored in the Med. Having been beholden to close relatives and not having liked it, he has decided, I believe, not to take orders from anyone ever again.

 

The structure of his highly successful business is very unusual. As is well known, he took Newcastle United private when it had suited Sir John to operate through a public company. Sports Direct is a PLC, but Ashley’s own shares in Sports Direct are held by a private company, MASH Holdings. It is rare for a large chunk of a public company to be owned by a private one.

 

The payment of dividends, the valuation of debt, and, crucially, the shuffling of cash become opaque if certain accounting techniques peculiar to private companies are used. It would be much harder, for example, to use profits on player sales (which technically are capital gains, and therefore not taxable as trading profits) to pay wages if the company were public. Mike Ashley, I believe, does not like people second-guessing him, and does not regard himself as being accountable to anyone – he sees no reason to give interviews, for example.

 

Yet this man who knows best, takes no orders, and refuses to be accountable, appoints a loose cannon with a dicky heart to be his executive for incoming transfers, putting the nose of Derek Llambias thoroughly out of joint and prompting his resignation. We have no evidence that Pardew was upset about Kinnear, but he will have been, I have no doubt. At the same time we know that Ashley regards outgoing transfers as so important that he does them himself. He asked Arsenal which part of Cabaye they wanted to buy when they didn’t offer what Ashley thought he was worth. Nobody else thought Cabaye was worth that much, but Ashley did, and as a result he wasn’t sold. Indeed he allowed, or forced, Cabaye to listen to a phone conversation in which Cabaye was humiliated.

 

In relation to Cabaye, the easy and logical thing for Ashley to have done would have been to sell him for £10m. It would have produced a profit, and he could have blamed the sale on the player, as he did with Andy Carroll. He could then have used half the money for a couple of incoming transfers. This was exactly what I believe was discussed on the yacht – who to buy if Cabaye were sold. But he didn’t do that. Why not? Was it just because he had dreams of repeating the Carroll coup? Not if he had been listening to the lukewarm reaction of the Arsenal executive. No. He kept hold of Cabaye in order to keep Pardew, and indeed Graham Carr, on board.

 

Not everyone will agree with this. And I share the view of many that Kinnear was appointed precisely in order to destabilise Pardew, and to call off the many transfers lined up by Carr and Pardew (Gomis, Thauvin, Aubameyang) which Ashley did not want to conclude. Ashley, correctly in my view, distrusts Pardew’s judgement of players. He also trusts Carr’s judgement, but doesn’t see Pardew as manager for much longer. His next manager, who will not be Kinnear, will be someone whose judgement Ashley trusts, and who will be allowed to make his own decisions.

 

But some time in the last few weeks a buyer – I would bet a lot of money on this – has hoved into view. I don’t know who it is. It might be this Ukrainian chap who looks like a skittle. It might be one of those Americans we were all talking about a few months back.

 

But someone is talking to Ashley about a sale. And Ashley might not understand much about football club management, but he understands the value of stability. After all, he rewarded Pardew, and virtually everyone else, with an eight-year contract.

 

I’m guessing. I might be wrong. But wouldn’t it make sense for Ashley to steady the ship pending the sale of our club to an unknown billionaire who could then do something popular early doors and sack Pardew? Wouldn’t it make sense for the next manager to be the appointee of a dashing new owner? Sacking Pardew and appointing George Graham or Glenn Hoddle or Lee Clark or someone, frankly, dun- coloured and disappointing would simply bind the hands of the new owner. This would jeopardise the sale. And Ashley will know the next owner will want to appoint a top-rank manager who will cost a lot of money and will want to spend a lot of money. A Ukrainian oil billionaire of Newcastle United would want to compete with Sheikh Mansour and Roman Abramovich, I would have thought.

 

 

And Ashley is desperate to sell. He’s not in this for the long haul. He wants a quick route into the Champions’ League with Rangers. Can’t you just smell it?

 

Thought it was worth a post.

 

Nonsense.

 

And we should be trusting this guy's claims because... ?

[GM]

Personally, I think a lot of that is wishful thinking on the part of the author. I can't blame fans for becoming rather fantastical when the reality of their club is as it has latterly become here, but there's nothing to suggest this is anything more than just so much conjecture. As such, it's worthless.

[TRon]

Although there's no chance anyone wants to buy us, it is an absolute fact that he wants to buy Rangers (ITK).

 

It does make you wonder, if he's so disillusioned about Newcastle and wants to sell up, why he is wanting to buy another football club with equally partisan supporters? If he gets called a cockney cunt here, I doubt the jibes will be any less cutting if the Scots take a disliking to him.

[Shearergol]

Although there's no chance anyone wants to buy us, it is an absolute fact that he wants to buy Rangers (ITK).

 

It does make you wonder, if he's so disillusioned about Newcastle and wants to sell up, why he is wanting to buy another football club with equally partisan supporters? If he gets called a cockney cunt here, I doubt the jibes will be any less cutting if the Scots take a disliking to him.

 

I think he was attracted by the transfer embargo, but now it's been lifted he doesn't see the point.

[ikri]

Although there's no chance anyone wants to buy us, it is an absolute fact that he wants to buy Rangers (ITK).

 

It does make you wonder, if he's so disillusioned about Newcastle and wants to sell up, why he is wanting to buy another football club with equally partisan supporters? If he gets called a cockney cunt here, I doubt the jibes will be any less cutting if the Scots take a disliking to him.

 

No hidden debts + he could spend a pittance in Scotland & easily qualify for the Champion's League

[Matt]

No hidden debts + he could spend a pittance in Scotland & easily qualify for the Champion's League

 

Given some of the characters involved with Rangers over the last couple of years, there will be plenty of unexpected surprises awaiting whoever owns the club. Certainly no more than all these debts we had which were in fact in plain sight for anyone to see.

[BONTEMPI]

This twat needs chinning!  Which chin is up to you.

[Wilson]

the mike, the.

[quayside]

No hidden debts + he could spend a pittance in Scotland & easily qualify for the Champion's League

 

Given some of the characters involved with Rangers over the last couple of years, there will be plenty of unexpected surprises awaiting whoever owns the club. Certainly no more than all these debts we had which were in fact in plain sight for anyone to see.

 

True. Although the bank calling our debt in on a change of ownership clause seems to have surprised him. It shouldn't have but he was in new territory and the right to a due diligence process was waived it seems.

[Hughesy]

I just don't understand that.  Pretty much every bank loan contains a change of control clause as a mandatory prepayment event.  His lawyers would have told him that.

[Matt]

I just don't understand that.  Pretty much every bank loan contains a change of control clause as a mandatory prepayment event.  His lawyers would have told him that.

 

That assumes he talked to his lawyers before committing to a deal. Everything about the deal suggests it was a complete impulse from someone who had recently found himself on the right end of about £800m.

 

It might be that the club use the 'hidden debt' line as a bit of deliberate misinformation, but I think in this case we really were purchased without so much as a glance at the financials.

[quayside]

I just don't understand that.  Pretty much every bank loan contains a change of control clause as a mandatory prepayment event.  His lawyers would have told him that.

 

Yes it does and yes they should. He may have thought the bank would be delighted that he (a man of means) was taking over and they would agree to continue their support. The bank though had had enough of their exposure, thought it was Christmas, and called the whole lot in.

[Robster]

the mike, the.

[biggs]

Something a bit more lighthearted in our hour of need

[Parky]

Interesting insight into Mash there. It's logical that he's been looking to sell for a long time now....I mean he's already tried early doors...NUFC has massive potential and sells itself to anyone who knows whtat they're looking at.

[madras]

Interesting insight into Mash there. It's logical that he's been looking to sell for a long time now....I mean he's already tried early doors...NUFC has massive potential and sells itself to anyone who knows whtat they're looking at.

except those who looked before ashley.

[Zero]

I don't think selling Cabaye for 10m and buy Thauvin for 12m is a good business in Ashley's eyes.  The reason why cabaye was not sold is purely because no one pay 20m.  Moreover, Ashley would not keep Cabaye in order to ask Pardew to stay. Non sense.

[merlin]

Although there's no chance anyone wants to buy us, it is an absolute fact that he wants to buy Rangers (ITK).

 

It does make you wonder, if he's so disillusioned about Newcastle and wants to sell up, why he is wanting to buy another football club with equally partisan supporters? If he gets called a cockney c*** here, I doubt the jibes will be any less cutting if the Scots take a disliking to him.

 

World wide exposure due to Scottish diaspora - loads of Scottish families/descendants in Oz, US, NZ etc etc.

Rangers have a MUCH bigger world-wide fan base than NUFC currently.

Also, less spend due to lack of serious competition in the SPL, only Celtic to worry about, CL football amost guaranteed every year...fans up there happy as long as they don't finish second EVERY year.

 

Plenty of business reasons for him wanting Rangers.....

[Optimistic Nut]

I hope this Ukrainian bloke is Donetsk owner.

[huss9]

http://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/sport/football/football-news/ten-questions-want-ask-newcastle-5835966

 

The Chronicle has inside put ten questions to the man who holds the hopes and dreams of ever Toon fan in the palm of his hand

 

Share on printShare on email 

Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley 

Dean Mouhtaropoulos/Getty Images

Mike Ashley wasn’t available for interview yesterday.

 

Meanwhile, in other news, night followed day, followed night

 

The man who owns Newcastle United doesn’t do interviews. He doesn’t even have a right-hand man at the club any more to act as his mouthpiece.

 

Football journalists whose job it is to cover the club – and this newspaper in particular – are constantly criticised by supporters for not asking the hard questions.

 

They, quite rightly, demand to know what is going on at St James’ Park during these troubled and peculiar times.

 

But who do we ask these hard question to? Alan Pardew, with the best will in the world, is only the manager. He can’t say what his boss is thinking.

 

As for Joe Kinnear, the director of football, he can’t sign anyone or pronounce the name of existing players, never mind anything else.

 

No the buck – and he has almost three billion of them – stops with Ashley and we can’t get near him.

 

But after the summer transfer window closed without the club spending a single penny on a permanent player – which might be a first for any Premier League outfit – we need to ask the owner these hard questions.

 

Even if there is little chance of receiving any sort of reply.

 

1. Do you actual like owning Newcastle United?

 

Let’s start with an obvious one. It seems to me that you bought the club on a whim because it looked like jolly larks having your own Premier League team.

 

You drank pints with the fans, stood with the travelling support and enjoyed the adulation for a bit.

 

But then it went sour. Bad decisions, bad results and an awful relegation.

 

You wanted to sell and nobody wanted to take the club off your hands.

 

We are now a few years down the line and there is not the smallest hint that you take any enjoyment of being the owner of Newcastle United.

 

You seem unwilling or at least incapable of strengthening the playing squad, which leads everyone to think that the club is a tool to promote Sports Direct and nothing else.

 

Do you feel as if it’s a burden.

 

You are a fantastically rich man. It’s not like being left with a mortgage you can’t pay. You can walk away any time you like. Just a thought.

 

2. Are you actively trying to sell the club?

 

If so, do you have an asking price or anyone lined up as a potential buyer? From the outside looking in, that would appear to be your plan.

 

Can I even go one further and enquire whether Rangers is next on your list? That is certainly the strong rumour doing the rounds in Glasgow since you became the third biggest shareholder.

 

It would make a lot of sense because Rangers might be in the grubber now, but they will recover soon enough and that club has the potential to be a real cash cow.

 

Will you only walk away if the next man is willing to pay over the odds?

 

3. Please explain Joe Kinnear.

 

Honestly, at least try.

 

If I were being a cynic, I would suggest your friend is only there to put pressure on the manager.

 

His job was to sign players. He didn’t sign anyone – Loic Remy can hardly be described as his bit of business.

 

In any other walk of life, this would surely mean at worst a sacking, or at best a severe reprimanding.

 

As a successful and hard-nosed businessman, it seems odd to keep on a man who has quite obviously failed.

 

Or is Kinnear there for another reason?

 

4. Are you deliberately ostracising Alan Pardew?

 

Because that’s what it looks like.

 

In public he has spoken time and again about getting players over the line. He has been left high and dry.

 

Is this a tactic or incompetence on the part of Kinnear? Is the manager being forced out the door?

 

If the DoF has done nothing wrong, then you are obviously happy with going into the rest of the season with a weaker squad than ended last season.

 

Managers gets sacked for bad results.

 

If Pardew goes, is Kinnear his replacement?

 

5. Do you care whether Newcastle win or lose? Does a result, good or bad, affect your mood?

 

This is important. The fans live and breath this great football club. They are suffering right now.

 

Did you sleep after last season’s derby defeat? Did you go in a bad mood after the humiliation at Liverpool?

 

Or does it not make a blind bit of difference?

 

6. Why do you believe Newcastle supporters don’t deserve to know what you are up to?

 

Rich men are not known for their empathy, this is true.

 

But there are 50,000 people who pay good money, many of them who can ill afford it, into your coffers every home match.

 

If they all disappeared, Newcastle United would be nothing.

 

Surely to goodness they should be kept informed.

 

I don’t mean revealing every minute of every meeting, but a bit of transparency would not hurt.

 

Unless you have something to hide, of course.

 

7. What’s that website all about?

 

You know, the Sports Direct News one that had Manchester United buying Yohan Cabaye on Monday night, and Newcastle in for Wayne Rooney a while back.

 

It does you no service at all. It’s an embarrassment, in case you didn’t know. Shut it down.

 

8. Is annoying the supporters something you enjoy?

 

Wonga, changing the name of the stadium, the appointment of Kinnear.

 

Surely you knew what the reaction would be when those decisions became public. Many fans believe these are deliberate ploys to anger them. If that’s the case, it’s working.

 

If not, then who told you that any of these choices were good ones?

 

9. Have we got this all wrong and in fact there is a grand plan?

 

The thing is, Mike, nobody knows what you are up to. We can guess, but that’s really all it is, a guess.

 

And when there is a vacuum, it tends to be filled with nagativity.

 

Maybe you can see the way English football is going. Perhaps you have worked out that the bubble is about to burst and the other rich owners are getting bored and will leave the clubs with huge debts. And then Newcastle rise to the top.

 

Do you know something we don’t? Is the club strategy in place because all your competitors are teetering on the brink?

 

If so, well played. If not, please see points one to eight.

 

10. And finally, how much do you pay the North East Press pack to write nice things about you?

 

This is one straight from the websites and social media.

 

The fans would like to know what it costs to ensure us lot don’t criticise you, although I personally can’t remember one piece appearing that has praised you.

 

If you could come out and admit that, in fact, you have no influence on the written media at least, then that would be nice.

 

 

[NG32]

How can no one get near him, go to his local boozer where him and kinnear get lashed and ask him questions.

 

If he leaves, find the next place he drinks in and ask questions.

 

He has to be somewhere. 

 

Who was that jouno that used to get in deep and ask awkward questions of real bandits, he had death threats the works.  He used to have aprog on ITV I think in the early mid 90s.

 

Get him on the case.

 

Dont sit and write atricles, do some serious digging.