FAN ARTICLES
Is There Anybody Out There?

Being 22, I feel that I have lived and am living through one of the most turbulent periods of football history. I remember the early days of the Premier League, where the money invested was seemingly a great thing for the football in this country. The foreign imports were something of a novelty and teams threw up surprise signings who graced our shores with flair, exuberance and, above all, a greater sense of professionalism.
As fans (not so much Everton I suppose!) we looked forward to the new signings, whether foreign or not, and would gaze only briefly at the activities of the board and where the future finances were coming from. All this has seemingly changed, and in my humble opinion, it's for the worst.
Fans, including myself, are now so preoccupied with the external factors of football, (i.e finances, PR, marketing, etc, etc) that we cannot fully commit to just supporting the team. Don't get me wrong, I am among those who berate the financial fortunes of our truly great club, and when they step over that white line everything is forgotten! However, of course I am jealous of Manchester City, of course it irritates the hell out me when Liverpool, a team barely 100 yards away, is linked with 6 or 7 investors, and of course I hide behind the fact that "we are doing it the right way". Yet, taking the moral high ground is not going to win us cups, leagues or entrance into the champion's league, where the real money is. Football has gone investment mad. It's now not the foreign players who are catching the attention of the fans and the media, its the foreign investors.
I would love to write on here that foreign investment was not an issue in football. Yet I read this morning that Blackburn, yes Blackburn, who give us half their stadium every away day as they can't fill it themselves, have been approached by possible suitors. Ok, it may well be paper talk, however how many papers are talking up our chances of the next sheik/billionaire entering Goodison?
Morally it would rip me apart as I truly believe we are building something here for the future. But, after the Donovan fiasco and the possible imminent departure of Arteta, I feel we will, once again, fall short. We don't have any money to help arguably the best manager in the league. What £50 mil would do for our team. I seriously don't think we need £200-300 million that Man City have had over the last two years. I feel firm investment, of around £50 million would be adequate enough to see us make that next step. I fear without any investment in the next 1-2 years, we will be left in the footballing wilderness, whilst all the fat cats make a monopoly of the league and all the trophies.
Is there anybody out there?
Reader Comments (23)
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2 Posted 04/08/2010 at 16:27:12
3 Posted 04/08/2010 at 16:31:41
The Destination Kirkby documentation clearly stated that none of the Board members were interested in selling their stake in the Club but the whole way through, Kenwright insisted the club was for sale. That may have changed now that DK is over but if you couldn't believe Bill then, what makes you think you can believe him now?
I want to believe him, I really do, and for all his faults and his verbal diarrhoea, I'd welcome him to stay in as Chairman if he could find a billionaire investor willing to sit back and let him run the show but I suspect that's all he's looking for and no one is interested.
4 Posted 04/08/2010 at 16:47:41
5 Posted 04/08/2010 at 16:47:09
6 Posted 04/08/2010 at 18:24:23
Now business men are well known for not taking risks with their own money and are content to use their business nouse and potential to borrow large sums from banks who can't lose. If the investment comes off they get their debt paid with interest, if not the club sells the assets and hey presto the debt gets paid off. Banks 1 club 0. To imagine these Chinatown boys are different is naive.
This could happen to us and Kenwright is aware of this. Bill is not turning people down, Moyes is not stupid and understands the situation. He has built a team the old fashioned way but in our fast food get rich and famous quick society, we want more. Everton is probably the one constant we will have in our lives, friends, family, almost everything passes through at some point. I for one want to know that our club is going strong when i take my last breath.
7 Posted 04/08/2010 at 18:50:50
Blackburn has an almost unique value proposition to some bidders as it has the highest Asian population pro-rata in the UK. Half of the town are Asian/Muslim, so that is a possible attraction to a buyer, but only up to a point.
The club has no catchment area beyond the town's relatively small boundary. At £25m or so it may offer the chance for growth, but it is not in the same league as Everton as a club or institution.
And we can't compare with Liverpool either, as that is the other end of the spectrum, with many observers seeing LFC as a stronger international brand than MUFC.
But regardless of any of this, my view is that clubs should be run under normal business rules and fund their own growth from income & sensible borrowing only. As Arsenal do. I find the idea of sugar daddies or excessive unsupportable borrowing to both be grotesque.
It's frustrating for the vast majority of fans that we are stuck in a rut on the stadium front. And I keep coming back to the idea that the business plan has to be ambitious, water tight and achievable. IMHO the only stadium project that ticks every box for income, investment, prestige, affordability and deliverability. We, and especially the other shower of bastards, are missing the biggest trick of all.
I don't think many Evertonians want our club turned into the circus that Citeh has now become, where players are rescued from Barcelona reserves and awarded over £200k a week. Some financial crisis hey? And apparently they've doubled the cost of their boxes this season, prompting one Ricky Hatton to cancel his this season out of disgust.
It would be great if there was someone, or some fund, out there to buy some/most of the shares, clear the debt, inject about £50m of working capital for squad acquisitions and £100m to part-fund a new stadium. The stadium could then be funded on a low interest mortgage as Arsenal's is. The business plan behind a Merseyside super stadium would be a complete no-brainer and IMHO sail through investment hoops.
It pisses me of in extremis that the bleedin obvious can sometimes be so difficult to acknowledge and achieve.
8 Posted 04/08/2010 at 19:23:05
In a nutshell, anyone that wanted to buy the club or invest significant amounts of money have little or no chance of turning a profit or even breaking even. Therefore we are looking for a gimme rather than investment.
If an investor did buy the club, they would have to sort the ground out, probably pay part or all of the debt, as well as making x amount of money available for new players. So if you know anyone with a spare £200 mill, £300 mill or £400 mill please ask them to phone +44 (0) 871 663 1878 or email everton@evertonfc.com
9 Posted 04/08/2010 at 19:07:36
When your son or daughter comes along will you enthusiastically whisk them off to Goodison like my dad did back in the 60s?
I would'nt blame you if you did'nt, along with many others of the blue faith if our present malaise is not sorted this is where we're going.
The Blackburn news is just another nail in the coffin of the Everton for sale lie, there MAY be some credence in the Man City sale being based on stadium, larger population (no,,, its all bollocks but i'm just trying to be fairminded) but Blackburn Rovers before us don't anyone try and justify this.
I'm going out now because i can feel the vitriol and obscenities rising.
"fuckin blackburn??" (sound of door slamming)
10 Posted 04/08/2010 at 19:37:24
11 Posted 04/08/2010 at 20:45:37
Dan Brierley: pIease, I beg of you, stop embarrassing yourself.
David Price (take a bow son blah bloody blah) let me instruct you. Noone since the 20's went into a football club expecting to make money. It's a social thing; a kudos thing. Be seen in the right restaurant, with the right girl, being driven in the right car. Move in the right circles, shrug the shoulders and say something along th ines of, "Yeah, it's a cross I bear, but, hey, somebody has to do it ...".
12 Posted 05/08/2010 at 02:26:16
A billionaire with prudence and long-term vision? Please God let it be us next time. Imagine, if this guy actually esposes to this approach, how well he'd fit in with Moyes' approach?
The thought 300M is too much for Blackburn is folly. If you a net worth of 800B that's less than 5% of your ledger.
Put in simpler terms, if you had 100K and you could buy a football club for 3K, would you do it? Hell yes, even if you overpaid it wouldn't matter. You never pay too much, you just buy a little early..... The asset will appreciate over time. And the interest on your assets cover the purchase - it's a no brainer.
He's got his eyes on Blackburn and he thinks it's the best investment he can make. Someone with a sales pitch mentality needs to present Everton as a better investment. Problem is, no one's doing that.
It's still not doom and gloom. Envy is one of the 7 deadly sins. Best team in a long while, qualify for Champions League, take that $$
13 Posted 05/08/2010 at 02:44:14
and build on it.
Do it the old-fashioned way and be proud. It's NOT impossible.
Pull up your boot straps and get to fucking work! Let's hope that's what everyone inside Everton FC are doing relentlessly.
14 Posted 05/08/2010 at 07:35:59
15 Posted 05/08/2010 at 07:55:56
16 Posted 05/08/2010 at 08:56:54
17 Posted 05/08/2010 at 10:33:06
David Price, if Moyes is not stupid and understands the situation why has he spoken this summer about leaving? Why does he use the press every summer to have a dig at Kenwright and the board about his lack of funds? Moyes is not stupid in that he realises he is paid very well and has a very safe job at Everton but he'd be delighted if a billionaire came in at Everton and handed him a blank cheque.
18 Posted 05/08/2010 at 10:09:15
However I don't believe for a moment that we are the only club to have not had a sniff of interest (good or bad). Yes we need a new stadium and better players. But so do many other previously bought out clubs in the Premiership.
2) As a kid watching Everton in the 80s collecting trophies. I thought it would always be like that. Now aged 32, not only have I fallen out with the game. I'm getting fed up of forking out big money to watch Everton. Don't get me wrong I still love the club -and always will. But I'm tired of kidding myself we're going to break the top 4. I'm tired of kidding myself we're going to buy top players this summer.
I'm tired of kidding myself that the club and its players really give a shit about any of us. OK some might, but the majority don't.
And I'm tired of all the "I'd rather have slow and steady progress", "Better off with Billy" talk.
Yes none of us want a City type circus at EFC. But surely there's some middle ground between where we are now and what's going on at City? Let's not pretend that having literally no money to buy players is a strong position to be in. Or that it makes us morally superior to other clubs.
19 Posted 05/08/2010 at 11:02:52
It has nothing at all to do with the situation at Everton it is simply a patritic Scotsman dreaming of managing his country.
As for investment, to be honest I do believe that we can make it into CL this time, and I also think that we can do reasonably well once there. This will start to deliver the funds we need to grow, but in the same way we are doing now, slowly and sensibly.
20 Posted 05/08/2010 at 12:06:39
21 Posted 05/08/2010 at 12:54:38
Also, James, the words "do you not think I've asked my chairman to make it happen" in reference to not being able to sign Donovan are a complaint. They are a complaint because he's saying he'd like to sign a player that he can't afford. By mentioning "the chairman" he's making a specific remark about Kenwright not being able to get him the player he wants. Moyes' previous remarks about the "glass ceiling" are also a complaint about his lack of funds.
You lot can kid yourselves that everything is rosey inside Goodison as though having no money is the 'Everton way' but you're totally deluded if you think Moyes is happy with a net spend of £0 every summer.
22 Posted 05/08/2010 at 13:28:00
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/aug/02/liverpool-kenny-huang-tv-rights
But if Chelsea can become abrand; then why not Everton?
Some of the infrastructure is there: The team, large fanbase, member of the PL.
23 Posted 06/08/2010 at 16:26:45
Investment was mooted during the KD fiasco which would have seen BK lose control, he wouldn't take it so you can only assume that was a key stipulation to investment back then. The DK hearings showed none of the major shareholders willing to sell or dilute their shares so again control or a profitable post DK buyout was the stipulation then.
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1 Posted 04/08/2010 at 16:23:12
I didn?t want us prostituting ourselves to the highest bidder ? look where that has got Liverpool (and how happy they are for are Chinese takeaway assuming it must be better than a couple of yanks ? here?s hoping it?s out of the frying pan into the fire for them). But surely there must have be one viable investor out there?
And now Blackburn are the next in line to be taken over. £20mill debt cleared & an investment of £300million!! As I understand it, we have debts of around £60mill, and the club is currently valued at £100million. So these guys in theory could buy the club, clear our debts, give DM £20 ? 30mill and still have over £100mill to upgrade the stadium.
So I go back to the title ? am I missing something? Surely a club like ours is a better investment than Blackburn ? twice the home gate for a start never mind the worldwide fan base. Is BK treating us like his train set ? he doesn?t want anybody else to play with it. Because I feel we are going backwards.
We have the best squad in decades, but haven?t spent anything on players in years (net spending that is). We have 5 or 6 outstanding players ? but they are all vulnerable to poaching from other clubs and there is nothing we can do about (Roger last year ? Arteta, Peanuts, Jags this year maybe). And from a high of finishing fourth, then consistently finishing the best of the rest, we couldn?t even qualify for Europe this year ? and I can?t see us doing so next. We only need 2 or 3 players to be right up there, along with the financial support to stop our best players leaving. As somebody once said, you can fool some of the people all of the time etc ? BK can?t keep fobbing us off.