It it seems just too good to be true, it probabaly is.
Derek Llambias – no interest from Profitable Group
And after yesterday’s news that the Profitable Group were all ready to buy Newcastle, Derek Llambias played down talk of contact between the group and the club.
There seem to be three or four groups interested, but Llambias said Profitable Group were not one of them, as he said today:
“We know who this Profitable group are because we had some dealings with them last summer regarding some business in the Far East,”
“But we have had absolutely no contact with them since then.” “There hasn’t been a bid and there hasn’t been an enquiry.”
“They have claimed they have met Mike and myself to discuss things and they haven’t. It’s total rubbish.”
“There are three or four interested parties who we are talking to but these aren’t one of them.”
So this is very disturbing because the news was broken wide open yesterday by the Evening Chronicle, so whether they were hoaxed is a good question.The big question now is who was their source, but he was probably a Newcastle fan saying what he hoped was going on.
But we thought, like many of our readers, it was just too good to be true, and it seems it was. So it’s back to reality today, and it still doesn’t look too good.
The Profitable news was reported all over Sky Sports News and the BBC yesterday – so we have to now dismiss this one, but why people do this is a mystery to us.
It’s disappointing, but we suppose we have to move on and still hope Ashley sells quickly.
There are still three or four valid groups pursuing the club, but things had better hurry up, as transfer bids start rolling in for our players, and as expected there is significant interest now in Seb Bassong.
Comments welcome.
55 comments so far
stk85
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:40 AM
Comment #1i suggest we all write mr llambias a nice email to explain that inaction is not iun the best interests of the club and that we cannot wait a month for ne w owners for someone to start doing work to the team that needs doing urgetly
stk85
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:41 AM
Comment #2This was my email:
Dear Mr Ashley and Mr Llambias,
I would like to take this opportunity to try to communicate with you both directly since I have been presented with the chance. I suggest you both read what I have to say.
I have supported my beloved Newcastle United since the age of 8 and during the last 16 years I have experience the roller coaster of emotions watching my team. Never before in my 16 years have I ever been so gravely concerned about the running of the club and for the life of me I cannot understand the situation we find ourselves in. One of our previous managers, Graeme Souness, pointed to the potential of the club to be one of the biggest clubs in the land if the conditions were right and the correct decisions were taken. “This place could take off if someone comes in and gets it right” were his words. He isn’t wrong.
I never like to level critisism at individuals and I firmly believe the clubs relegation was due to a myriad of factors but since relegation I cannot understand your actions regarding the sale of the club. I defended you to the hilt when you bought the club, susequently saving us from certain administration, when you sacked Sam Allardyce (his style of play was not working – simple as that), I even defended you during the transfer market season when we were percieved to not be spending as much as was required. I defended you because I thought you always acted in the best interests of the club.
However, I am very upset by your behaviour and even though this effort may turn out to be fruitless, you need to know how people feel. This situation mirrors the events of early September in that your unwillingness to listen to others has shone through again and you are only thinking for yourself and I’m led to believe that you are not acting in our best interests.
If only you had abit of self respect Mr Ashley and conducted yourself as a gentleman and not an adolescent you would possibly do these few things differently:
– If you choose to sell the club, could you please go through the right channels without making us all seem like a complete unprofessional laughing stock. This has been highlighted by placing the club for sale notice on the official website and asking for bids via email.
– We need someone in charge in the managers role straight away. We have no time whatsoever for indecisive behaviour, especially when Alan Shearer commented in his final interview after the Villa game that there is alot of work to do before the new season kicks off on 8th August. Three weeks have passed since our relegation and no progres has been made whatsoever in the recruitment department. We need to keep certain individuals to form the spine of the team for next year and by plunging us into limbo by deciding to sell the club, you have made us easy targets for potential suitors to pluck our best hopes away for peanuts.
– To further cement my turning opinion of you is your timing of your decision to sell and reluctance to put a manager in place to oversee important changes during this transitional period. To this, you have entrusted an entertainments company to sell our players. This is a dangerous tactic and leaves us open to wide criticism and vulnerable to unwelcome bids for certain indivduals. I can only assume this is due to your bitterness towards a club you have treated with disdain as your plaything?
– You cannot stand still and wait until you are out of Necastle. You need to appoint Shearer, NOW, not tomorrow, NOW. Even as an interim unpayed role and let him negotiate a contract with new owners, just for God’s sake man, this club means so much to so many people that you don’t understand, we’d love you to understand but you seem completely unable to listen to advice or opinions, but it is of the utmost important that someone who loves the club with the best interests at heart comes in to oversee the drastic changes needed. I cannot understand why Alan isn’t around to help these changes occur. You want new owners to bring in their own man, ok, but in the meantime we cannot be allowed to stand still with so much work to do.
– Your communication with the lifeblood, the fans, has been nothing short of shocking. I can maybe understand you have reclused further due to criticism and your decision to initially sell back in September seemed to stem from your inability to take any other views on board. We needed a leader then, we need one now. Now is not the time for a tantrum, you are the owner of a proud club, act with some self respect and be a man. Swallow your pride. You are bound to critisized when you refuse to talk in public about the club. When you do that, that will breed rumour upon rumour and ultimately contempt for the board.
– We needed and now need you both to stand up and we all need to work together and pull together for the future of Newcastle United Football Club.
Please heed my advice. Do not wait until it is too late. Ask Alan Shearer to oversee the clubs running for free as interim manager until the new owners decide if the would like him as their manager. Do not leave us in this crisis, rudderless. You accepted responsibility for some of decisions over the previous two years. Now is the time to do the same and accept your responsibility as owner of our proud club until a new owner is found.
I’d like to think you are heeding advice and are still acting in our best interest despite the evidence to the contrary. You are the owner. You or Derek need to stand up and be our leaders. We are all better off through communication.
Please heed my advice.
If you are looking for someone on the cheap as an interim, I can act on behalf of many hundreds of Newcastle fans as someone to oversee the club until a new permanent manager is found. I run a team in a well diciplined office environment and also have experience in running a local football team. For God’s sake, I’d run the club for free in the meantime until new people come in. WE CANNOT DO NOTHING AND STAND STILL, THIS IS THE TIME FOR ACTION, NOT INACTION.
Thanks for your time
Stephen King
Stevo
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:47 AM
Comment #3So the monkey speaks. For weeks they keep the fans in the dark about everything that’s going on but mega responsive and straight out to make a statement the next day to quash rumours of a take over. What are these guys playing at?! They really are starting to boil my p*ss now.
stevep
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:52 AM
Comment #4League 1 here we come!
Micky Toon
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:55 AM
Comment #5Note to Ashley – Check your spam folder. The profitable groups e-mail might have been wrongly filtered and is currently sitting in your spam folder waiting to be deleted.
That’s why you’ve had no contact from them. 🙂
Big Dave
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:57 AM
Comment #6stk85 For someone your age 24 you speak with an older cool head. well done mate
lesh
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:58 AM
Comment #7Stephen, a pleas form the hear and perhaps an open letter might just shame them into action.
Can’t see it though, they seem totally indifferent ney contemptuous towards its customers and other interested parties.
batty
Jun 10, 2009 at 9:59 AM
Comment #8Micky Toon // Jun 10, 2009 at 9:55 AM
Note to Ashley – Check your spam folder. The profitable groups e-mail might have been wrongly filtered and is currently sitting in your spam folder waiting to be deleted.
That’s why you’ve had no contact from them.
<<<< yeah your right m8 and knowing ashley he,s most probaly i talks with the guy who offerd 2 oasis tickets and a curly wurly lol
roscoe
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Comment #9Profitable group refuse to comment!!!
I smell something going on here!! They would have just rubbished it if there really was nothing!
Please buy us!!!!!!!!!!
http://uk.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUKTRE55910820090610?rpc=401&&pageNumber=2&virtualBrandChannel=0
batty
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Comment #10http://www.sportspromedia.com/notes_and_insights/_a/newcastle_attracts_serious_sale_bid/?utm_source=Feeds&utm_campaign=Notes+And+Insights&utm_medium=rss
Ericles
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:05 AM
Comment #11Once again the incompetent wrecking crew of Ashley and Llambias have shown their colours.
They stagger from day to day in a state of denial
as they fritter away chance after chance of resurrecting this club of ours. So what is the situation with the Profitable Group? There is no smoke without fire – as Shearer points out as every day Ashley burns a room down. The email was very accurate. Ashley has nothing but contempt for us fans – as well his sneering puckered gob shows only too well.
roscoe
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:07 AM
Comment #12sorry that was page two..
http://uk.reuters.com/article/sportsNews/idUKTRE55910820090610?rpc=401&&pageNumber=1&virtualBrandChannel=0
Micky Toon
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:10 AM
Comment #13Ericles – Agreed. I’ve seen this behaviour before. They are completely out of their depth. They are blundering around without a clue on what needs to happen next. I’ve said it before Ashley obviously made his money through luck rather than any astute business decisions.
cicero
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:11 AM
Comment #14I still think there is more to this than meets the eye. The comment the PG CEO doesn’t deny it out-of-hand “We are aware of the reports but we have no comment at the moment,” John Gaunt, Chief Executive Officer, Profitable Group, told Reuters when contacted at his Singapore headquarters on Wednesday. Obviously someone has very carefully crafted the leaked statement; everything that was in the article hit the right spot, so whoever wrote it intimately knows what the fans want. Could it be a way of the PG putting pressure on Ashley in the negotiations. Just a thought.
Micky Toon
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:12 AM
Comment #15roscoe – never mind that, just who is Adam Lambert? Apparently he’s gay according to that link.
ian
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:14 AM
Comment #16I am for once impressed with Llambias’ response to this group’s interest.
That is what it takes a good clear message, they havent approached them but others have, that is as much as we could ask for.
I usually get annoyed with them, but that was one professional act, stops the fans getting false hope and means a real purchaser will get fan support, the ball is in the profitable group’s court to put their money where their mouths are and put in an offer, I doubt if they will.
Big Dave
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:17 AM
Comment #17I just hope that we are not being used by the Profitable group as free exposure
Macas35
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:21 AM
Comment #18It’s all smoke and mirrors. There may well be no other interest from any other groups but the club make out they aren’t bothered about the Profitable link in order for them to feel they need to act quickly in making a bid. Who knows, but I don’t believe a word that comes out of Llambias’s mouth.
batty
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:21 AM
Comment #19i truley beleive freddy sheperd is 1 of the intrested partys and will do every thing he can to get the club
Rangerman
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:22 AM
Comment #20Profitable group refuse to comment!!!
I smell something going on here!! They would have just rubbished it if there really was nothing!
Please buy us!!!!!!!!!!
……
Why would they?
I bet they can’t believe how much free publicity they are getting.
Oleg G
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:24 AM
Comment #21Big Dave – r u serious ? Who is newcastle for these people? use us for exposure? do you think these people play with poop? these are serious people (not like mike assley).
Why after all this time, this idiot speaks? now? after not talking for a year.
And the news he brings are only bad. without any hope. and saying “Rubbish”. its like – if there is any interest from them, them Mike want to kill this interest.
In the end he will sell us to some poor company.
just to get back at us calling him names hhh… (not funny !!!)
cicero
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:25 AM
Comment #22The Telegraph is reporting
“Sources at the Profitable Group initially insisted that talks had already started with Newcastle owner Mike Ashley and managing director Derek Llambias over a £100 million deal, but the sports retail tycoon’s camp were understood to have been taken by surprise by the announcement.
“This is news to us,” a reliable source close to Ashley said. “No one from Singapore has spoken with anyone involved and there has been no contact. “Talks with three groups who want to remain anonymous for now are ongoing.”
The source added: “They don’t want to be known just yet. That is how we are trying to do business. That is the proper way to do it, not by talking through the media.”
Quite right too; it’s a business deal not a media circus. All parties will probably have signed a confidentiality statement, so everyone is going to deny involvement at the moment. As I posted earlier the PG haven’t dismissed the report just have no comment.
Big Dave
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:26 AM
Comment #23Rangerman as you said and I ( I bet they can’t believe how much free publicity they are getting). there name all over the place.
Rangerman
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:29 AM
Comment #24Big Dave – From past experience it’s the ones shouting the loudest that won’t be buying the club, we had all this last year with the Nigerians and South Africans.
Big Dave
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:33 AM
Comment #25Oleg G // Jun 10, 2009 at 10:24 AM
Big Dave – r u serious ? Who is newcastle for these people?
as I allready said there name was all over the place is that not free publicity ?. If they had been in touch why didnt silence of the lambsass just do what he does best and stay silent
Macas35
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:34 AM
Comment #26From past experience the ones who didn’t shout didn’t buy the club either. I guess all we can do is sit and wait, it’s like a form of torture…
cicero
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:36 AM
Comment #27Vinay Bedi, divisional director at Brewin Dolphin in Newcastle, says there are no similar companies to the Profitable Group in the UK.
The extensive range of fields in which it operates makes it unique and with, no profit figures available, it is difficult to determine its strengths. It operates by attracting investment funds from wealthy individuals.
Mr Bedi said: “It appears to have hundreds of wealthy clients and would most probably buy Newcastle by asking these to contribute. It looks capable of raising the money needed to buy Newcastle.”
Whumpie
Jun 10, 2009 at 10:46 AM
Comment #28I have no idea what to make of this. It may be a scam put together by a journalist to sell papers, who knows? If both sides had denied it, I’d assume that – but “no comment”?
Really odd. I think the ‘free publicity’ theory is the only one that fits at the moment.
As for Llamearse’s statement – what is wrong with an update like that every couple of days?? Does he not realise that if he says nothing, the press will publish fiction and he’ll always be on the back foot, denying stories.
Absolute idiot. I hope he never gets another job that doesn’t involve the phrase “would you like fries with that?”.
Billy Bunter
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:00 AM
Comment #29STK – you kna – some people take stupidity to a new level – that includes you.
You made a long letter, and it was rubbish, too long, why didnt you just say – look Ashley get oot, sell to an Arab and we will be happy.
But nah ye tried to make yourself look clever and ended up making us all look stupid.
cicero
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:02 AM
Comment #30Whumpie, I’m afraid you may be right about Lee Ryder. If the Journal/ Chronicle have any integrity they should come out and say their source was verified and the comments and the plan are accurate.
stk85
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:12 AM
Comment #31selling to a cash rich arab is not an answer billy! money is cause of all these problems, why should you or i pay 30 quid a time to go see a pathetic football game? no footballers worth more than 30k a week. the games lost all meaning, and perspective. who cares if you make an emotional appeal by email. im not gonna stand by and watch nothing happen.
maybe i felt i had some things i needed to express and by writing them down, even if the bugger never sees my words, i feel better for letting it out instead of punching a wall or being a grump with my mates later on.
bowburnmag
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:21 AM
Comment #32stk85 – div not wast your breath nor your obvious common sense and intelligence on BB. He’s on a wind-up.
Regards Derek’s statement – it really begs belief. The only time he/they’re quick to release statements is to quash our hopes. Progress updates like “there has been no further progress” leave you feeling fairly empty but at least we’re kept in the loop that way. I find it hard to think of a face I hate more than his.
Angryman the Angry fan
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:21 AM
Comment #33Look I hate to P*** on anybodys parade, but it is my belief that Cashley does nto want to sell NUFC!! I have been wrong before but on the Majority of occasions I have been right, I predicted KK wouldnt last the distance, I predicted As long as Cashley was in charge we wouldnt sign any decent players of note, he is in it for profit profit only, I predicted he wouldnt sell the club the last time it was a sham, just so he didnt have to invest any money in the club, (He didnt he has made a profit in every transfer window) i predicted that if the incompetent buffoons (trying to be polite)policies would get us relegated, and that was over a year ago.
i am currently predicting, that before this season starts, a statement will be released that there has been no concrete offers, or an agreement with such and such could not be reached so we will go forward together and try and return to the premiership where this great club belongs…blah blah blah….
Nothing that is coming from the club so far makes sense….fpr sale for 100m, why when he paid 130m and then 150 supposedly paying off the debt?? I wouldnt sell for almost a third of what i paid, F*** this cut my losses mallarky!!..
The problem is they have the typical southerners attitude that us Norverners are all thick as pigs, and that we will once again buy into the “I am doing the best for this club trying to sell” when what e really means is ” i am gonna scam as much as i can by selling all the players, buying cheap versions and still milk and cream you mugs that pay the money to watch such dross” This IMO is nothing but yet another tall tale, excuse, whatever so that he does not have to invest a bean of his own money into the club, for a maximum return…..when better to do this than the transfer window!!
This is just my opinion, and if anyone wants to shoot me down, so be it, but you’ll need to use a very big gun………..
Stevo
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:22 AM
Comment #34Billy Bunter – is a fake. Just here to wind people up. It’s probably AO/Bennytoon/Beamish/reetpetite
Tom_Toon
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:23 AM
Comment #35LOOK AT LLAMBIAS FACE AND READ HIS QUOTES AT THE SAME TIME. DO YOU REALLY BELIEVE ANYTHING THAT COMES OUT OF HIS GOB? I DONT!
ALSO THE BBC HAVE A REVISED ARTICLE ABOUT THIS ON THEIR WEBSITE SAY PROFITABLE GROUP ARE STILL INTEREST BUT HAVE NOT CONTACTED ASHLEY YET.
Whumpie
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:24 AM
Comment #36Sorry, Billy – but I think it’s the other way around. Stk’s letter showed some thought and balance, whereas your post shows the standard knee-jerk, naive, shout-and-demand-money reaction that helped to get us here in the first place.
This is not about money. A lack of money didn’t cause this (although it’s killing us now we’re here). This is about good management; plain and simple.
Billy Bunter
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:26 AM
Comment #37Stevo
Read my comments from a year ago.
I mean it I want an arab, as for STK saying that money is the problem its not. Its a fact of life, I want someone who can blow the rest of the clubs oot the water, the world is goin to have a new league man, can ye not see it, man u, milan, madrid, barca, and the toon needs to be there. We need an arab now. noone else is acceptable as far as I am concerned, they are big spenders and like to be flash.
Whumpie
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:27 AM
Comment #38Angryman – nice theory, but I can’t see any logic in it. How would Ashley’s current actions – or any of his previous ones – make him money?
He’s currently £150m down on his investment/bet. All he’s doing right now is getting dangerously close to losing another £100m by crashing the club altogether.
Billy Bunter
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:30 AM
Comment #39Whumpie – its a new football world order – we need big cash to compete. I couldnt care about building slowly, I want money, money money. Its the only way we can turn this around. If we do it nwo we could win the FA cup man.
All we need is the cash to compete and a geordie manager and geordie football man in charge and a geordie coach – people who kna whats its like to be from the city man.
I cannit believe yous cannot see it.
Whumpie
Jun 10, 2009 at 11:34 AM
Comment #40Billy, if you want to do that, then I really don’t see why you bother following sport at all. Why don’t you go off and ‘win’ the Tour de France on a motorbike while you’re at it? Or just have a replica of the Premiership trophy made? It would mean just as much.
Ask a true, pre-Abramovich Chelsea fan how he views their 2007 FA cup win compared to the one in 2000.
I want nowt to do with that rubbish. Let the arabs play with their toys, but I want to win knowing we did it by being a better-run club, not with a cheque book.