Jimbo 175 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 The Newcastle United owner, Mike Ashley, has been hailed as the club's saviour rather than a destructive force following arch-rival Dave Whelan's claims that his regime had rendered St James' Park doomed. By Rob Stewart Saviour? Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley (left) in the stands with Chairman Derek Llambias Photo: PA Ashley was defended by his allies after he found himself in the firing line today after Wigan chairman Whelan renewed hostilities with his business rival by launching a vicious personal attack on the Sports Direct founder and Premier League foe. Whelan claimed that Wigan manager Steve Bruce would never work for Ashley despite his Tyneside roots and insisted that his fellow sports retail tycoon's lack of class by wearing a replica shirt in the boardroom was dragging Newcastle down into the Championship. Wigan chairman Dave Whelan pours scorn on Mike Ashley's regime at Newcastle UnitedBut a key ally of Ashley's insisted that JJB founder Whelan's criticism was way off the mark and was little more than a PR offensive that would be shrugged off by the Newcastle proprietor who bought the club for £134 million in the summer of 2007. "Mike went in there to sort out Newcastle. It was in a bad way financially when he bought it and he has sorted out the financial side and it is going to take him time to sort out the playing side," Ashley's associate told Telegraph Sport. "It would be interesting to consider what would have happened if he had not bought it because the business side of it was clearly in financial difficulties. "So he has saved the club financially and clearly sorting out the football side is taking longer than sorting out the financial side." "As for the replica shirt jibe, I think that Mike would feel that if people are going to go to football matches they should wear their football shirts if they so wish and that wearing a shirt and a tie to football matches is something that should be confined to the last century." The tone of Whelan's criticism may have seemed harsh but they seem unlikely to trouble Ashley. "I think Mike will just take it all with a big pinch of salt because Dave Whelan is going to be competing with him in the retail world again," the associate added. "I just think Mike will laugh it off quite frankly. He certainly won't be taking his comments seriously. "They are old sparring partners and I suspect the he is commenting on the Newcastle business because those guys are about to re-enter competition on sports retailing because Dave Whelan has just bought back the fitness clubs business of JJB. "Dave used to own JJB which is the principal competitor of Sports Direct which has been a lot more successful than JJB over the last ten years or so. So he might still be feeling a bit bruised because of that. "It's no coincidence that the timing of his comments on Mike have reminded people that he is back in the sports retailing ring." Newcastle are currently languishing in the relegation zone and have just eight games to protect their Premier League status, starting with Chelsea's visit to the North-East a week on Saturday. Caretaker manager Chris Hughton has been in charge of first-team affairs since manager Joe Kinnear underwent triple heart bypass surgery last month. Ashley has resisted dressing room calls to appoint a more senior figure to steer the club out of trouble in Kinnear's absence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acrossthepond 878 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 'Ashley's associate.' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitman 2207 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 The good old "let's blame the current mess on the previous owners" defence. I assume the 'associate' is LLambias btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Kenneth Noisewater 0 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Of course, dropping into the Championship is going to do wonders for the financial side that good old mike has 'sorted out'. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kitman 2207 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Of course, dropping into the Championship is going to do wonders for the financial side that good old mike has 'sorted out'. Yes. Also sorting out the football side takes longer than sorting out the financial side. Especially when you're responsible for the mess and don't have a clue what you're doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Park Life 71 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 Complete pile of wank. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Onion 0 Posted March 26, 2009 Share Posted March 26, 2009 The article's no more than a vehicle for a few retaliatory digs at Whelan, with a bit of pathetically unconvincing excuse-making for the mess Ashley's making of the club tagged on. The whole thing's little more than a childish spat between two blokes who don't like each other. Pair of stupid cunts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Richard Kimble 0 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Its amazing how fast a spokesman surfaces when Ashley himself is attacked by a business rival. Our begging for crumbs of information got nowt out of Ashley. He's starting to remind me of Nero. I wonder if he'll burn SJP to the ground before he's finished. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peasepud 59 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 the table doesnt lie Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asprilla 96 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 the table doesnt lie And nor do hips, or cameras. So they say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Face 29 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 All credit where it's due. Paying off the debt in full so there's no repayments/interest payments can only benefit the club, good on him. But it's like saying you can smack your lass around if you've paid off her credit card bill. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renton 22054 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 All credit where it's due. Paying off the debt in full so there's no repayments/interest payments can only benefit the club, good on him. But it's like saying you can smack your lass around if you've paid off her credit card bill. Nice analogy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest alex Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 How did he come in to sort the club out if he didn't know the extent of the debt etc. (according to the man himself iirc) before he bought the club? Utter cobblers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ayatollah Hermione 14094 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 You know, the idea of getting us relegated so he can flog all our better players, recoup most of what has been spent and pay off the debt is rather genius in its own stupid way. I mean, for us, it's horrible and we'll probably not see the Premier League for a good 5 years but he'll be laughing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Park Life 71 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 It worries me that he drove a Vauxhall Cavalier for years while his wife had the DB7. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fop 1 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Of course, dropping into the Championship is going to do wonders for the financial side that good old mike has 'sorted out'. It's a new marketing opportunity. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fop 1 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 All credit where it's due. Paying off the debt in full so there's no repayments/interest payments can only benefit the club, good on him. But it's like saying you can smack your lass around if you've paid off her credit card bill. Or you can just buy someone to let you do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy Face 29 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 You know, the idea of getting us relegated so he can flog all our better players, recoup most of what has been spent and pay off the debt is rather genius in its own stupid way. I mean, for us, it's horrible and we'll probably not see the Premier League for a good 5 years but he'll be laughing. There's no genius in it whatsoever. Ashley spent £134 Million. He's £8M in profit on players so far. Which players in contract are worth anything? Optimistically I'd say... Coloccini - £6M S. Taylor - £6M Harper - £4M Enrique - £4M Beye - £6M Martins £8M Ameobi - £2M Nolan - £3M Bassong - £7M R. Taylor - £3M Gutierrez - £5M Carroll - £1M That's £55M. If he sold the lot and bought no-one he'd be (£134M - £63M =) £71M down on the deal. Unless someone then valued the club at £191M (his loss and the £120M loans) it's the worst money making scheme ever hatched. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Park Life 71 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 Kelmsley told MA to buy Newcastle innit. He also showed him how Spurs make money on players. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snakehips 0 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 the table doesnt lie And nor do Snakehips, or cameras. So they say. FYP. And amen to that, brother. Seriously though, Lardash will not sell until he can walk away without having lost anything. This means that every available penny will be banked by him - including the parachute payments - until he's in a position to have the club as an attractive proposition to would-be purchasers, which will mean him either having already recouped his losses or being able to walk away 'evens' after the sale. God knows how long that will take to achieve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt 0 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 FYP. And amen to that, brother. Seriously though, Lardash will not sell until he can walk away without having lost anything. This means that every available penny will be banked by him - including the parachute payments - until he's in a position to have the club as an attractive proposition to would-be purchasers, which will mean him either having already recouped his losses or being able to walk away 'evens' after the sale. God knows how long that will take to achieve. That will never, ever happen. If he were to trouser all the income, then eventually support will fall away entirely and the club will be worth even closer to zero. His best bet is not to quite while he's ahead, but to get out until he's any further behind. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cid_MCDP 0 Posted March 27, 2009 Share Posted March 27, 2009 The Newcastle United owner, Mike Ashley, has been hailed as the club's saviour rather than a destructive force following arch-rival Dave Whelan's claims that his regime had rendered St James' Park doomed. By Rob Stewart Saviour? Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley (left) in the stands with Chairman Derek Llambias Photo: PA Ashley was defended by his allies after he found himself in the firing line today after Wigan chairman Whelan renewed hostilities with his business rival by launching a vicious personal attack on the Sports Direct founder and Premier League foe. Whelan claimed that Wigan manager Steve Bruce would never work for Ashley despite his Tyneside roots and insisted that his fellow sports retail tycoon's lack of class by wearing a replica shirt in the boardroom was dragging Newcastle down into the Championship. Wigan chairman Dave Whelan pours scorn on Mike Ashley's regime at Newcastle UnitedBut a key ally of Ashley's insisted that JJB founder Whelan's criticism was way off the mark and was little more than a PR offensive that would be shrugged off by the Newcastle proprietor who bought the club for £134 million in the summer of 2007. "Mike went in there to sort out Newcastle. It was in a bad way financially when he bought it and he has sorted out the financial side and it is going to take him time to sort out the playing side," Ashley's associate told Telegraph Sport. "It would be interesting to consider what would have happened if he had not bought it because the business side of it was clearly in financial difficulties. "So he has saved the club financially and clearly sorting out the football side is taking longer than sorting out the financial side." "As for the replica shirt jibe, I think that Mike would feel that if people are going to go to football matches they should wear their football shirts if they so wish and that wearing a shirt and a tie to football matches is something that should be confined to the last century." The tone of Whelan's criticism may have seemed harsh but they seem unlikely to trouble Ashley. "I think Mike will just take it all with a big pinch of salt because Dave Whelan is going to be competing with him in the retail world again," the associate added. "I just think Mike will laugh it off quite frankly. He certainly won't be taking his comments seriously. "They are old sparring partners and I suspect the he is commenting on the Newcastle business because those guys are about to re-enter competition on sports retailing because Dave Whelan has just bought back the fitness clubs business of JJB. "Dave used to own JJB which is the principal competitor of Sports Direct which has been a lot more successful than JJB over the last ten years or so. So he might still be feeling a bit bruised because of that. "It's no coincidence that the timing of his comments on Mike have reminded people that he is back in the sports retailing ring." Newcastle are currently languishing in the relegation zone and have just eight games to protect their Premier League status, starting with Chelsea's visit to the North-East a week on Saturday. Caretaker manager Chris Hughton has been in charge of first-team affairs since manager Joe Kinnear underwent triple heart bypass surgery last month. Ashley has resisted dressing room calls to appoint a more senior figure to steer the club out of trouble in Kinnear's absence. So "fix" is synonymous with "piss all over" then? Well, you learn something new every day. Ta, I'm off to fix the work toilet! Er, Loo! Cheers! Canny! Innit! Car boot! Bassong! Shit, that's french... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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