Confimred new owners of Raeding Footbal Club

[Mr Angry]

Is there ever a bad time to pocket £70-million or whatever it is?

Depends on who is pocketing it........

The assumption would have to be that the club would benefit in some way as the onus would be on the new owners to invest to a level where we might reasonably be expected to get the same cash handout the next year by staying in the Premier League. It doesn't always work out like that admittedly.

That's my point; there is a possibility that IF we get promoted, AZ may suddenly get interested in little ol' RFC again, the nappy changing loses its appeal, and he chooses NOT to sell up, instead returning to sit in the Directors boxes at Old Trafford, Anfield etc whilst spending sod all on the team and pocketing both the TV cash and - subsequent to our inevitable relegation - parachute money, before sodding off back to Mother Russia......leaving us even more out on a limb than we are today.

Just a thought.

[Hoop Blah]

I'd agree with the idea of promotion now being a bit too soon.

The biggest negative to staying down would be, IMO, that we'd almost certainly lose McCarthy.

...ALF, Pog, Obita, McCleary, etc.

Plus teams coming down get more money a season than us, stronger teams around us, teams such as Watford that can regroup, Leeds if the Italian comes in and puts his money in with the italians/french he had lined up, the teams that miss out on promotion this year. It gets harder year upon year.

Not too fussed about most of the rest of them to be honest.

[grey_squirrel]

Is there ever a bad time to pocket £70-million or whatever it is?

Which is all and well and good, but whenever have we spent more than a fraction of the Promotion (et al) money?!?!

I can't abide Steve Parrish, but at least he puts his (and the Club's) money where his mouth is and in spades and makes a fist of trying to stay up.

[Wycombe Royal]

I'd agree with the idea of promotion now being a bit too soon.

The biggest negative to staying down would be, IMO, that we'd almost certainly lose McCarthy.

...ALF, Pog, Obita, McCleary, etc.

Plus teams coming down get more money a season than us, stronger teams around us, teams such as Watford that can regroup, Leeds if the Italian comes in and puts his money in with the italians/french he had lined up, the teams that miss out on promotion this year. It gets harder year upon year.

It's no all about money.....see Burnley, Derby, Ipswich - not spent vast sums but doing well. And don't forget the FFP rules will prevent clubs owners investing large sums so it is those with the highest revenue streams that will be better placed.

[Norfolk Royal]

That's my point; there is a possibility that IF we get promoted, AZ may suddenly get interested in little ol' RFC again, the nappy changing loses its appeal, and he chooses NOT to sell up, instead returning to sit in the Directors boxes at Old Trafford, Anfield etc whilst spending sod all on the team and pocketing both the TV cash and - subsequent to our inevitable relegation - parachute money, before sodding off back to Mother Russia......leaving us even more out on a limb than we are today.

Just a thought.

You'd hope the ownership issue would have been sorted by then to be honest. If that were AZ's motivation you would think he would just keep quiet and see if we get promoted but the recent possible takeovers suggest he has at least put it out there that his shares are for sale. SJM has never made any secret of that in addition.

[leon]

It's all very well saying it's not right for the club to go up this season. Out players and their admirers will feel very differently.

Failing to get promotion this season could see us lose the players which gave us any chance at all.

LOL @ the idea promotion is just something you can choose when to do at your leisure.

fair point but you could argue that the history of Reading since 2000 is of a team that has consistently competed and been successful - whilst losing both players and managers through attrition.

[maffff]

It's no all about money.....see Burnley, Derby, Ipswich - not spent vast sums but doing well. And don't forget the FFP rules will prevent clubs owners investing large sums so it is those with the highest revenue streams that will be better placed.

Was trying to get at that with the stronger teams around us - settled sides getting into their rhythm..

[Extended-Phenotype]

It's all very well saying it's not right for the club to go up this season. Out players and their admirers will feel very differently.

Failing to get promotion this season could see us lose the players which gave us any chance at all.

LOL @ the idea promotion is just something you can choose when to do at your leisure.

fair point but you could argue that the history of Reading since 2000 is of a team that has consistently competed and been successful - whilst losing both players and managers through attrition.

Aye but I'd say that we've never capitalised on our momentum. We seem to have done okay in spite of club policy rather than because of it.

Maybe we'll be okay losing our key stars (once again) but then it will be a hard slog to get back to where we are now. You'd think it would be better to fire on from here rather than let the water off the boil.

It not being the "right time for promotion" is ridiculous; even if we have a mare next season we will have still profited hugely from both promotion, a season in the top flight, and relegation through parachute payments. Not to mention retained status as a club to play for.

I'd rather go up ill-prepared than not go up at all, lose our best players and take a chance on starting again with any success.

[Schards#2]

I can see Mr Angry's argument but I think second guessing Zingarovich is a dangerous game. If we don't go up, there is the danger he will flog every player that is floggable in a final asset strip and we'll be battling to stay in the division.

There's uncertainty either way but I think it's better to be in a position of uncertainty whilst in the premier league rather than in the championship, given the choice. Hopefully AZ would see it as a selling opportunity and GTFO of our club.

[Agent Balti]

But for arguments sake we do go up (with new owners to boot) they have such a short window of opportunity to change things. Are we not at risk of doing a half-arsed job (some may say "again") of being prepared to go up? The new owners could want to bring in their own manager and screw things up completely.

I don't see the lure of going up ill-prepared, making stupid signings, get humiliated week in week out and come right back down again...albeit with parachute payments. Sure, I get that the players would want to get promoted and will play to that effect. If the takeover doesn't happen AFTER we've been promoted...Then the squad would be altered radically with no time to gel, for us to get turned over, leading to the squad being wrecked again and be where we were at the start of this season. No ta.

If we stay as we are, we can build next year, be a lot more solid on what our goals are (currently, we are winging it, let's face it.) And have a genuine solid plan on how we want to proceed. Crossing our fingers, hoping we go up with no strategy, as we are now, is a crap scenario.

[SPARTA]

If SJM is still here and the club isn't sold by summer then there will most definitely be a sale of 3-4 high earners. SJM followed the same template when we were relegated from the PL the last time. Keep the squad together at an expense and hope we go back up. If we don't, sell to balance the books. It wont be Zingarevich's fault we sell; it'll be the sensible decision!

It may even happen with new owners.

[maffff]

Failing to get promotion this season could see us lose the players which gave us any chance at all.

LOL @ the idea promotion is just something you can choose when to do at your leisure.

+1

I'd rather go up ill-prepared than not go up at all, lose our best players and take a chance on starting again with any success.

+1

[SPARTA]

I'd agree with the idea of promotion now being a bit too soon.

The biggest negative to staying down would be, IMO, that we'd almost certainly lose McCarthy.

...ALF, Pog, Obita, McCleary, etc.

Plus teams coming down get more money a season than us, stronger teams around us, teams such as Watford that can regroup, Leeds if the Italian comes in and puts his money in with the italians/french he had lined up, the teams that miss out on promotion this year. It gets harder year upon year.

Reading would promote a number of youngsters again and hope they can add something. Agree with maffff though, those five would almost certainly go! Sharp will come in as long as Adkins a) sticks around, and b) gets a little bit of money to play with.

[Extended-Phenotype]

But for arguments sake we do go up (with new owners to boot) they have such a short window of opportunity to change things. Are we not at risk of doing a half-arsed job (some may say "again") of being prepared to go up? The new owners could want to bring in their own manager and screw things up completely.

I don't see the lure of going up ill-prepared, making stupid signings, get humiliated week in week out and come right back down again...albeit with parachute payments. Sure, I get that the players would want to get promoted and will play to that effect. If the takeover doesn't happen AFTER we've been promoted...Then the squad would be altered radically with no time to gel, for us to get turned over, leading to the squad being wrecked again and be where we were at the start of this season. No ta.

If we stay as we are, we can build next year, be a lot more solid on what our goals are (currently, we are winging it, let's face it.) And have a genuine solid plan on how we want to proceed. Crossing our fingers, hoping we go up with no strategy, as we are now, is a crap scenario.

It's my reckoning that going up, you get a few decent players in who are then more likely to stick about if you go down, at least for a season to see if they can bump you back up again. In the meantime, you will be a healthy club to join, bit of 'chute money to spend on new players or on existing players wages to keep 'em about, recent prem history to boast of and ambition to return. Promotion is like two steps forward and relegation is one step back - each yo-yo an improvement.

Yet if you fail that bounce, good players get itchier and want out, not willing to waste another season out of the top flight. Operating with less money, you are less likely to be able to keep the good ones or afford decent new ones. Top flight a more distant memory, the club drops from the radar a little more, ambition is questioned, quality is in doubt - not as an attractive prospect any more. Other teams with 'chute money come down and are the new big fish in the small pond. Becomes harder to challenge. Takes more of a miracle/fluke/lucky season/lucky signing(s) to get anywhere. Foot off the gass, the opportunity of reputation, position and wealth well and truly missed.


I'm not sure how you are supposed to sensibly build over time above and beyond a threshold of quality. In my mind, you are more likely to build a decent side bouncing up and down than treading water.

[Vision]

But for arguments sake we do go up (with new owners to boot) they have such a short window of opportunity to change things. Are we not at risk of doing a half-arsed job (some may say "again") of being prepared to go up? The new owners could want to bring in their own manager and screw things up completely.

I don't see the lure of going up ill-prepared, making stupid signings, get humiliated week in week out and come right back down again...albeit with parachute payments. Sure, I get that the players would want to get promoted and will play to that effect. If the takeover doesn't happen AFTER we've been promoted...Then the squad would be altered radically with no time to gel, for us to get turned over, leading to the squad being wrecked again and be where we were at the start of this season. No ta.

If we stay as we are, we can build next year, be a lot more solid on what our goals are (currently, we are winging it, let's face it.) And have a genuine solid plan on how we want to proceed. Crossing our fingers, hoping we go up with no strategy, as we are now, is a crap scenario.

It's my reckoning that going up, you get a few decent players in who are then more likely to stick about if you go down, at least for a season to see if they can bump you back up again. In the meantime, you will be a healthy club to join, bit of 'chute money to spend on new players or on existing players wages to keep 'em about, recent prem history to boast of and ambition to return. Promotion is like two steps forward and relegation is one step back - each yo-yo an improvement.

Yet if you fail that bounce, good players get itchier and want out, not willing to waste another season out of the top flight. Operating with less money, you are less likely to be able to keep the good ones or afford decent new ones. Top flight a more distant memory, the club drops from the radar a little more, ambition is questioned, quality is in doubt - not as an attractive prospect any more. Other teams with 'chute money come down and are the new big fish in the small pond. Becomes harder to challenge. Takes more of a miracle/fluke/lucky season/lucky signing(s) to get anywhere. Foot off the gass, the opportunity of reputation, position and wealth well and truly missed.


I'm not sure how you are supposed to sensibly build over time above and beyond a threshold of quality. In my mind, you are more likely to build a decent side bouncing up and down than treading water.

I'd agree with a lot of that. Whilst I'm no fan of the whole Premier league circus to suggest there's somehow a bad time to get promoted is a little odd. Football is far more "instant" these days and the opportunity to actually build something with the nucleus of the same players over time (as we did to 05/06) is harder than ever.

That said, rather conversely the reason I think promotion can only be a good thing is because we don't really push the boat out too far when we get there thus avoiding the absolutel panic and heebeegeebees that other relegated clubs suffer.

[Norfolk Royal]

To add to that, the idea that an investor or investors might invest tens of millions in the hope that a side gets into the premiership with the pre-decided plan that if they do they will then asset-strip is all very well, but I'd say that was a bit pie in the sky and trusting to luck if you are an investor.

An investor would surely want some sort of sustainable return on the investment than trusting to luck and making a fast buck.

Could be wrong on that but that's the way I see it.

I don't think it likely that AZ, for instance, had the plan outlined above. More likely if there is any weight to the asset stripping theory that he got a lucky strike and then perhaps forced by other financial pressures, decided to cash in.

[Ian Royal]

Failing to get promotion this season could see us lose the players which gave us any chance at all.

LOL @ the idea promotion is just something you can choose when to do at your leisure.

+1

I'd rather go up ill-prepared than not go up at all, lose our best players and take a chance on starting again with any success.

+1

On the assumption that we get new owners, I think the majority of our players could definitely be persuaded to give it another six months at least, providing we make some strong signings.

I've seen what happens when you get promoted before you're ready and have loads of squad maintenance required. Frankly I'd be happier missing out, even if it means a year of mid-table mediocrity in the Chumpianship as opposed to another year of relegation and ultimate failure. But then I enjoy this division loads.

I'm not interested in the odd season of failure in the PL. I want us to establish ourselves there if we're going to be there at all.

[Agent Balti]

I think that's more to my sentiment too, Ian. I'd rather us have 12 months to go for it properly, than 4 months (with no transfer window, loans aside) and hash it. Whether we'll get new owners now before the worth of the club rises or falls, depending on promotion, is another matter. Depends how desperate Anton is to sell.

Bit of a pisser that if E-P is correct that if we do have to stay in the Championship that we lose McCarthy, Pog, McCleary and Alfie though. It's a realistic scenario that we lose some or all of them. Swings and sodding roundabouts.

[Maguire]

Absolute madness to claim it's better not to get promoted. It's so hard to go up that the very idea of picking and choosing when to do so is lolable.

And in what possible way would it be bad? That we get a few beating when we're up there? Boo hoo.

Get promoted ASAP and get on that Premier Legaue gravy train - will make a huge difference to the status of the club.

[royalgrumpy]

Regarding not having a team ready to go up - see Norwich and Southampton. Both went up with a squad made up mostly of a side that won them promotion from League 1. Norwich are perhaps the better of the two examples, as they didn't spend as much as Saints.