https://www.motforum.com/article.php?page=37950&fbclid=IwAR22WM-f27NSfEDtrniO1dr0DuHaY9gdmOXLyE7bPQJC2CtNSNfTz7dZZV0
Andrea Radrizzani always warned this would be a ‘difficult’ summer in the transfer market but with Jannson, Saiz and Clarke sold and only the loan deals of Harrison, Clarke, White and Costa back in many fans are questioning Radrizzani’s finances and motivation. I get that Leeds United fans want to hold the club’s owners to account, I really do. It is absolutely right that we should do it following the gaggle of narcissistic shysters who have been in charge of the club over the last twenty years. But I do wonder why Andrea Radrizzani is taking quite so much flak from some fans given the last six occupants of that office.
Our decline started with Peter Ridsdale, sure we experienced the highs of challenging at the top of English and European football but Ridsdale gambled the club’s future on the revenues of back to back Campions league qualification would bring, and he lost. The squad was sold of piece by piece for a lot less than players were bought for to cover the losses but it wasn’t enough. By the time he left the club in March 2003 the club was £103m in debt, a debt the club would not recover from for a long time. With the squad sold and no money left to replace them relegation was inevitable.
Professor John McKenzie a long-time fan and investor was made Chairman, part of the old regime he was guilty by association. He quickly made drastic cost savings including redundancies whilst lining his own pockets with £380,000 made up of salaries and ‘consultancy fees’, he stepped down before coming under fire from the shareholders at the 2003 AGM. Trevor Birch was next at the helm, there was little he could do but fight fires, which he did to his credit. He staved off administration whilst keeping player sales to the minimum before finding a new buyer for the club. He is the only one to come away with any credit perhaps.
Next up was the ‘Yorkshire Consortium’ of Gerald Krasner and co. It’s a brave undertaking, buying a football club with £100 million worth of debts when you don’t have a pot to p**s in but that’s what they did. Perhaps they deserve more credit than they get for keeping the club alive and reducing debts to a ‘manageable’ £25m but I will never forgive them for the way they funded the purchase of the club. A £15m loan from Jack Petchey, which the board were personally liable for, was used. The sale of Elland Road to their business associates was needed to pay off the outstanding balance and clear their personal liabilities. This came on top of the sale of Thorp Arch training complex.
Then came Ken bates, what to say that has not already been said? The man who claimed to have ‘Saved the club’ called the supporters ‘morons’, divided the fan base, presided over administration and saw us relegated to League One. There is little doubt Bates skimmed money off the top for him and his investors and wasted much of the club’s revenues on white elephant building projects, court cases and failing radio stations. Radio stations which would be used to harassment former directors. Eight years of stagnation which saw protests and demonstrations. When we did have an opportunity to push on under Grayson the squad was sold from under him; Gradel, Howson and Snodgrass all gone, there was little chance of ever seeing that money being reinvested.
Ken's final parting gift was to sell the club to gfh, the Islamic investment bank that knew f**k all about football. Interested in making a quick buck only debts actually rose during their stewardship, £17m by the time they sold the club to Massimo Cellino. A liability still held by the club in the form of a debenture when Radrizzani’s Eleonora Sports finally took 100% control of the club. The rumours that their transfer targets were based on Football Manager and asking fans on Twitter were sadly and comedically true and they showed themselves to be a lovely bunch of people when they had one of their former colleagues arrested and locked up in a Dubai prison for two years.
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Does Radrizzani deserve all the grief?
posted on 1/8/19
Think that's a poor take, Hay. He's certainly not mellow (Spygate press conference, Villa goal, shipping Jansson out).
Maybe he's just happy with his squad?
He was turning down centrebacks last summer, we had 2 senior centrebacks then and it's the same now. This is his way and he's sticking to it.
He's banking on two things - 1. We won't have as many injuries as last season 2. Addition of Costa and improvement from likes of Harrison, Bamford, Clarke will mean quality in final third is better.
I mean we can all talk about the small squad but we also all want to see youth have a route into the team. And both Clarke and Shackleton made positive impacts last season, if we had a bigger squad, they wouldn't have got their chance.
posted on 1/8/19
After a season we've just had. Top of the league for so long, and with a good coach playing good football. And knowing we were very close....And then AR says this summer will be difficult. Why ?. Why would it be difficult when some owners would have jumped at the chance to be where we are, and were after last season, and would have probably known exactly what they wanted. But it seems AR has not learned anything from last January and prepared to risk the same again. I know books have to be balanced and it's not easy running a football club like ours, but if he can't finance or has the confidence to say "this season we are really going for it" to finish better than 3rd last season, then it's time for him to sell up and move on.If we don't get promotion, finish lower than third or fail in the playoffs again, then it's all over for him and his sidekicks.The fans are expecting improvement, and that means promotion. Anything else is going backwards. He will then know what grief is from the fans.
posted on 1/8/19
I think its fair to say that MB got more from the same bunch of players that failed miserably the previous year. However, there's a limit to how much more you can get.
Equally there are financial restraints in place that make it difficult to spend without limits.
Your logic suggests that if you win the title one year and not the next then your team has failed.
We are weaker this time around and I can't see us getting beyond the fringes of the play offs. If we maintain our financial stability and we see more youngsters coming through then I would see that as progress.
posted on 1/8/19
comment by Stevie "Oso Loco" Dee (U10061)
posted 14 hours, 20 minutes ago
Rob, I guess I'm of an age where reality kicks in!! I'm 55 and still incredibly ambitious in business. However, as a Leeds United fan I've been worn down over the years. I want to see us back in the top tier but recognise that we are probably going to fall short when it comes to the end of the season.
I'm fortunate to have lived through the Revie years and then the flashes of success under Wilko and to a lesser extent under O'Leary.
Modern day football is complex and it needs to be viable off the pitch as much as on the pitch. FFP as it was called has an impact too, huge sums of money injected into the club doesn't necessarily convert into a huge warchest for transfers.
Every element of the club has to be right and it needs a concerted effort over three or four years to achieve that. AR has made mistakes but I see last year as being a huge step forward. The Development squad did well. We'll see players come through the ranks again just like the 60s and again under O'Leary.
I think we are eons behind where we need to be in the off-field commercial activities. Our brand could be more successful generating further revenue to spend on the pitch. I feel we try to exploit the fans too much at the lower end of the scale rather than look more to the corporates.
I like Bielsa but increasingly see him as being too bull-headed to move the club on, I might be wrong. I accept he has performed miracles thus far but we fell short on the pitch towards the end of the last campaign.
We need a number of positions strengthening but he's acquired three wingers with another on the radar. Tells me we're going to see another season like last but without the element of surprise.
I'm grateful for a better brand of football. I'm pleased to see we have youngsters coming through. I'm pleased that we have a future rather than teetering on an abyss.
Not all bad!
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Great post. I agree with this 100%. AR, i think he deep down wont put the money into the club that's needed we had a golden chance to go up, a few signings in jan would have likely done it , but they blew it.
IMO our squad is now weaker than last season's and teams now know how to countervailing the way we play. I think we'll be a 6-10th placed team this year. But I hope I'm wrong.
posted on 2/8/19
I see a few posters stating that "we are weaker than last season."
1) At what stage of last season are we weaker now?
2) Jansson has left, White has come in. Is this a reason we are weaker? Not sure what the evidence of this is.
3) Costa has come in, Saiz has left. I think Costa will be an upgrade?
4) BPF has left. He was clearly going to be second choice. Is this reason we are weaker?
Anything I have left out?
What about the other clubs in the league this season?
1) Relegated clubs - Fulham, Cardiff, 'Udders? Which of these looks stronger?
2) Returning clubs - others who finished top 6 but not promoted; Direby and West Brom. Are either stronger than last season?
3) Other clubs - any that you think are stronger than last season?
Perhaps we can get a better insight into the naysayers' perspectives with answers to the above.
posted on 2/8/19
JLA - do you think we are stronger?
posted on 2/8/19
Time will tell JLA and I sincerely hope that we do well.of the points that you mention the Jansson being replaced by White is the one I am most worried about. It is the lack of height at the back combined with a keeper who hasn't shown good judgement on aerial balls and one or two who shirt pull at times.this may be unfounded but can't shake the feeling we are going to give away a lot of soft goals that could undermine the good stuff further forward.
posted on 2/8/19
We have a keeper who ended last season dismally, he was massive reason we missed out on promotion, and if BPF leaves he now has zero competition for number 1 spot.
We’ve lost an international experienced defender and replaced him with a loanee who has never played at this level.
We’ve sold one out most exciting young players and now only have him on loan.
Pablo couldn’t last whole season and is now even less likely to last a whole season, we have no Sáiz to help out with that creative role as he did early season.
Only positive is Costa, but knowing Orta hit rate he’ll get injured in a warm up, be out for 6 months and then we have to pay 15 mill at end of season.
No way we’re stronger than last season.
posted on 2/8/19
We have sold how many players and bought (bought not loaned) how many? First reason we are weaker.
Second, for me our lack of strength in depth is the reason we didn't go up last season. I feel now the squad is smaller and we have less depth. 2nd reason.
Finally (for now), other teams know how we play from day 1. Last season it took teams half the season to figure out our tactics. Third reason.
Like all of you, I want leeds to go up more than anything. But being honest, the owners have fallen short yet again.
posted on 2/8/19
If Roofe is allowed to go without a proper replacement signing, on top of not adding a dominating CB-type, then I am likely tipped in the direction of not being happy with Rad and the club.
Nevertheless, still the club I support and I will be in the local bar cheering us on at 8:30 am Pacific Time here in LA.