Ex-Storaksjonær: Massimo Cellino 5/4-14

Started by Leedsfan, January 30, 2014, 22:58:48

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Leedsfan

I scored 24 goals helping my side win promotion back to the Premier League aged just 22. Then in my first season in the top flight I had bagged an impressive 15 goals by the end of January. My form earned me an England call-up. Am I a £35m striker? No. I am Michael Ricketts, February 2002.

Promotion 2010

Endelig en eier med visjoner som også vet at han kan møte på skjær i sjøen. Jeg synes hele teksten bør på trykk her. Jeg vet og i tillegg har jeg respekt for skeptikerne, men Cellino er sin egen mann. Han er vant til å få det som han vil. Han har et fotballnettverk som er formidabelt og et engasjement som utenpå mange! Han vet at hvis han lykkes vil han bli udødelig i West Yorkshire!

Leeds United: The town has a new sheriff says Cellino

Massimo Cellino
Updated on the
18 July
2014
08:23
Published 18/07/2014 00:00

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Leeds United’s colourful owner Massimo Cellino talks to Phil Hay about his first 101 days in charge of the Elland Road club.

This is Leeds and in the words of Massimo Cellino, it’s his town now. Leeds United’s owner is buying a house in the north of the city and his wife intends to move in from Miami. His daughter has chosen to leave university in New York to continue her studies in the north of England.

“The town has a new sheriff,” Cellino says, and in the case of Leeds United he’s right. It is months and years since the city’s only professional football club was run with the authority the Italian exerts. Cellino’s way has shed tears and jobs, deconstructing the business he bought in April, but this way is his and his alone.

And so, 101 days on from his takeover, Cellino thinks he can see “light coming from the sky.” The relief is understandable. Of all the cost-cutting carried out through the summer, no saving mattered more than the deal reached in the past few weeks with Gulf Finance House, the Bahraini bank who sold Leeds to Cellino shortly before the end of last season.

On top of a purchase price of £11m, Cellino agreed to service a debt of £24m built up during GFH’s time as majority shareholder at Elland Road. Much of the money was owed to GFH itself or associates of the bank. Cellino took issue with that debt when the state of the club became clear and his message to the bank’s officials was simple â€" either compromise or prepare for a fight.

Under the terms of a new agreement between them, GFH is understood to be willing to wipe out half of the debt immediately and take repayment of the remaining money if and when Leeds are promoted to the Premier League. It effectively frees United and Cellino of scheduled lump sums originally due to be paid by December 2017, one as high as £6.5m. GFH remains as a minority shareholder with Cellino’s blessing, a potential point of conflict resolved for now.

“We’ve fixed the past with GFH,” Cellino says. “They understand now that their 25 per cent is worth something and they understand too that they have to do something here.

“I told them: ‘I don’t want to fight with you but are we partners or not?’ They’ve realised that we’re partners. I’ll take my money, they take theirs, we start again. I’m very happy.

“With GFH I was ready to fight them but they didn’t want to fight because they’re happy with my work. We found a way to get peace and we’ll work for Leeds. There’s no issue.”

They said at Cagliari, the Serie A club which Cellino owned for 22 years, that he always got his way in the end. Or more truthfully, he always followed his own mind. Leeds have seen the same attitude and the same single-mindedness.

Cellino was briefly rattled by the reaction to his attempt to sack former manager Brian McDermott in January â€" “supporters wanted to kick my arse but we were going down and I wanted to shake the place up” â€" but he has rarely allowed himself to be swayed since: dismissing staff, temporarily closing United’s training ground, appointing the little-known David Hockaday as head coach (an appointment made in the face of fierce scepticism) and looking to the continent for most of his signings.

In all it amounts to major procedural change at a club where Cellino felt change was essential. At the time of his buy-out, he says Leeds were costing £125,000 a day to run, of which £70,000 was essentially losses. A reduced wage bill and substantial cuts are starting to reign the expenditure in.

“This club is going to have more quiet time and less problems now,” Cellino says. “And the people who used to rip the club off, they’re going to stop. I’ll protect the club from everyone â€" including myself.

“For the first time in 12 years, this club wants to go to the Premier League but it doesn’t need to go to the Premier League. That’s my message. We might have to suffer a little bit but in my life I never saw anything good or important without hard work.

“We have to work hard and face pain to get to the Premier League but we don’t need to go there to pay wages or debts. We’re not plagued with that desperation. The debts are paid, or they’re going to be paid.”

Over the weeks, Cellino has counted his victories. In only one situation has he been forced to concede defeat â€" the sale of club captain Ross McCormack â€" and even then he succeeded in pulling in a huge sum from Fulham. Cellino says the fee for McCormack was £10.75m and will be put towards the repurchase of Elland Road, rather than new players for a Championship season which starts on August 9.

“We already had our budget for players,” he says. “We had a £15m budget to buy players and we’re doing that. The money from Ross is not for that. It’s for Elland Road. McCormack’s money, we mustn’t waste. If we buy a few players more because I suddenly feel rich then I can’t buy the stadium anymore. No â€" we buy the stadium. I’ll buy players anyway.”

Cellino maintains that McCormack was an asset he wanted to keep. At the very least, he wanted to avoid selling him to another Championship club â€" “15 goals a season to one of our competitors.”

“I’m still p***ed off about McCormack,” Cellino says. “If I was working just for Massimo Cellino, believe me, I would not have sold for one billion pounds.

“For a while I was keeping him for my satisfaction, to show him I was stronger than him. Then someone asked me ‘are you not selling him for the good of Leeds or just to show that you’re stronger than him?’ I had to do what was right for Leeds. So I told Fulham ‘okay, you say £10m, I say £11m.’ And we sold.”

The fee raised from McCormack’s departure, minus 15 per cent owed to Cardiff through a sell-on clause, equates to around two thirds of the cost of repurchasing Elland Road. The buy-back clause which Leeds hold over the stadium â€" and which increases annually â€" currently stands at £16m. Cellino says he will exercise the clause by November, via a mortgage if a bank will lend to him or in straight cash if not.

“If we have a mortgage, instead of paying £1.6m a year in rent we pay £600,000 on the mortgage,” he says. “But there is no bank in Leeds that will give us a mortgage. What’s the risk? If we’re paying £1.6m in rent, how can we not afford £600,000 a year?

“The money we have we might need to renovate the stadium, to make a new stand, to clean it up or do something else nice. But by November, we’ll buy the stadium. If we have to pay cash then we will. The money is there. And I won’t go to the city of Manchester for a mortgage. I won’t give them the money. I’d prefer to pay cash. Because I’m Leeds, Leeds, Leeds.”

His commitment to owning Elland Road is not shared with Thorp Arch, United’s training ground near Wetherby. Cellino says he has spoken to the local council in Leeds about two or three different pieces of land which could house a new complex in future.

He is rumoured to be looking at an area on Kirkstall Road, a stone’s throw from Elland Road. On one hand, he wants the players closer to home. On the other, he wants to free the club of the £600,000 rent United pay each year to use Thorp Arch.
To sit with Cellino is to watch a man juggling countless balls. He has advisors around him â€" financier Andrew Umbers and Graham Bean, formerly of the FA but no chief executive or managing director. Besides core business matters, he is in the thick of United’s transfer dealings and keenly aware of Hockaday’s day-to-day work. He went to Italy last week to watch the second game of United’s pre-season tour â€" a game which was cancelled at short notice â€" and has sharp, personal views on each of head coach Hockaday’s first team players.

“I didn’t buy a big club here,” Cellino says. “I bought the biggest club in England. You understand? This club has been 12 years in the s**t but I have this chance to do something good. I’m going to die but I’m going to do something good as well. You know how many people have come here asking to buy this club in the last 40 days? Four. Big companies. I told them I wouldn’t sell for 100 billion. They said ‘for 1 billion, you will.’

“I tried to explain to them, what is going to change if I sell for one billion? I don’t have time to drink a glass of water so if I have one billion, so what? One kilo of caviar, 100 kilos of caviar...I’ll work for my soul and the satisfaction of bringing this club back. How much is that worth? There’s no price.”





HAN SIER DE RIKTIGE TINGENE MASSIMO CELLINO!   8)
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

4ever arcticwhite

jeg likte særlig denne:

And I won’t go to the city of Manchester for a mortgage. I won’t give them the money. I’d prefer to pay cash. Because I’m Leeds, Leeds, Leeds.”
The future's so White I've got to wear shades 8)

Promotion 2010

Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Promotion 2010

Man må jo bare elske denne mannen:

http://www.leedsunited.com/news/article/1mhz4mmpb6vsd1o2o5u59cd7uc/title/exclusive-massimo-cellino-talks-to-lutv?

We go to'e Premier League - not because we haf to, then we haf to go'e to Champion-League......  ;D
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Sølvreven

WTF? Jeg kjenner optimisme som sprer seg?  ;D
***************

Leedsoholic. Oppfinneren av "pretting".

Promotion 2010

Fem deler av Cellinos intervju med ITVs Calendar:

http://www.itv.com/news/calendar/story/2014-07-18/cellino-101-days-since-leeds-takeover/

Morsomt å høre: Jeg oppfatter ham som dedikert, ydmyk og målrettet!   :)
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Promotion 2010

Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Kontakinte

Vell!! Hvis disse spillerne med fler begynner og virke så sier det en hel del om McD og hans trenerstab. USELESS ;D

Josch

Quote from: Promotion 2010 on July 18, 2014, 22:33:30
Fem deler av Cellinos intervju med ITVs Calendar:

http://www.itv.com/news/calendar/story/2014-07-18/cellino-101-days-since-leeds-takeover/

Morsomt å høre: Jeg oppfatter ham som dedikert, ydmyk og målrettet!   :)
Dette KAN bli veldig bra, men trolig ikke opprykk denne sesongen. Med suksess vil han bli svært populær i Leeds . Kan være bra med en eksentrisk eier som sier mye "rart" i mediene, så lenge resultatene kommer. Han er en sitatmaskin som skaffer Leeds stor oppmerksomhet. Kontaktnettet (agenter osv) er trolig enormt. Jeg har en god følelse mht spillere som hittil er hentet inn + opprydding av udugelige spillere. RMC er solgt men det ble en MEGET god pris, og Cellino har kommet godt ut av den saken også. En smart eier med klubbfølelse som ble herset med av engelsk presse i januar. 8) 8)

lojosang

I'm Leeds, Leeds osv hadde vært hakket lettere å svelge om han ikke først hadde prøvd å være Hammers, Hammers,
- Leif Olav

Promotion 2010

Quote from: lojosang on July 19, 2014, 18:18:49
I'm Leeds, Leeds osv hadde vært hakket lettere å svelge om han ikke først hadde prøvd å være Hammers, Hammers,

Jeg tror jeg dåner....  ;)
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

sportcarl1

Quote from: Promotion 2010 on July 19, 2014, 18:34:05
Quote from: lojosang on July 19, 2014, 18:18:49
I'm Leeds, Leeds osv hadde vært hakket lettere å svelge om han ikke først hadde prøvd å være Hammers, Hammers,

Jeg tror jeg dåner....  ;)
jag med gäller det tidigareägare, tränare och spelare med,?
 

Barba

Jeg svarer på denne jeg. Hammers var i en langt bedre posisjon og ikke unaturlig mer interessant enn Leeds. Kortere vei til suksess. Leeds derimot har et langt høyere potensial tør jeg påstå, selv om hammers også er en vesentlig klubb. Jeg tolker hans entusiasme slik at hen etter å ha fått oversikt over klubben, fanspotensialet, byen osv er sjeleglad for at det ble Leeds United. Her kan han bygge helt fra bunnen av ( bokstavelig talt) og dermed f det akkurat slik han vil. Derfor ikke noe snakk om opprykk ved første anledning nødvendigvis.
For oss som har fulgt klubben i lang tid, les "ups and downs", er dette en mulighet for en ny æra. Alt vil være bedre enn Bates ( han skal ha for å redde oss fra konkurs, thats it) og Ridsdale ( herregud, økonomiprofessoren).
Derfor er jeg nå mer optimistisk enn på lenge. Penger, visjoner og en dose galskap, I love it.

Barba - det måtte komme noe nytt, helt nytt.
Barba - MOT

Leedsfan

Quote from: lojosang on July 19, 2014, 18:18:49
I'm Leeds, Leeds osv hadde vært hakket lettere å svelge om han ikke først hadde prøvd å være Hammers, Hammers,

Du har heller ikke noen tro på Riise som giftet seg for tredje gang?:)
I scored 24 goals helping my side win promotion back to the Premier League aged just 22. Then in my first season in the top flight I had bagged an impressive 15 goals by the end of January. My form earned me an England call-up. Am I a £35m striker? No. I am Michael Ricketts, February 2002.

arneg

Du er syk, teller  ganger Riise gifter seg...
 

Promotion 2010

I treningskamp mot Guiseley:

Cellino is going mental as he calls for a blatant missed penalty. Hilarious stuff. Certainly passionate.

:)
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Leedsfan

Quote from: arneg on July 19, 2014, 20:02:00
Du er syk, teller  ganger Riise gifter seg...

Leser du ikke Se&Hør?
I scored 24 goals helping my side win promotion back to the Premier League aged just 22. Then in my first season in the top flight I had bagged an impressive 15 goals by the end of January. My form earned me an England call-up. Am I a £35m striker? No. I am Michael Ricketts, February 2002.

arneg

 

lojosang

Quote from: Promotion 2010 on July 19, 2014, 18:34:05
Quote from: lojosang on July 19, 2014, 18:18:49
I'm Leeds, Leeds osv hadde vært hakket lettere å svelge om han ikke først hadde prøvd å være Hammers, Hammers,

Jeg tror jeg dåner....  ;)
Ja, dette har jo virket som et Belieberforum i det siste. :-P
- Leif Olav

Promotion 2010

Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Erik M

Jeg lar meg ikke imponere av dette intervjuet eller av det meste Cellino serverer i pressen.  Ny giv og entusiasme - yeah.  Pengesterk - halleluja! Men ellers er dette bare preik.

Krysser fingre og tær for at Cellinos positive sider slår ut i full blomst og at vi slipper nye epoker med brutale ups and down - ups and down...

Transferaktiviteten og treningskamper har ikke beroliget meg noe særlig.  Og for meg kan han gjerne låne penger i en Manchester bank hvis det gir bedre betingelser...
 

Ian Baird

Quote from: Erik M on July 28, 2014, 13:27:48
Jeg lar meg ikke imponere av dette intervjuet eller av det meste Cellino serverer i pressen.  Ny giv og entusiasme - yeah.  Pengesterk - halleluja! Men ellers er dette bare preik.

Krysser fingre og tær for at Cellinos positive sider slår ut i full blomst og at vi slipper nye epoker med brutale ups and down - ups and down...

Transferaktiviteten og treningskamper har ikke beroliget meg noe særlig.  Og for meg kan han gjerne låne penger i en Manchester bank hvis det gir bedre betingelser...

Enig, bare preik - foreløpig. Billige floskler og peptalk for å skape entusiasme.

Sier som Ken Bates ville sagt: "Put your money where your mouth is, Cellino!"
Cellino 5. April 2014: We will be back in the Premier Leauge by 2016.

Promotion 2010

Fra YEP:

Cellino is due to arrive back in England after two weeks abroad later today and his return to England should finally pull Viviani’s switch over the line.





Endelig kan folk begynne å jobbe igjen. Han har med seg stempel og ikke minst PENN!


;D
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

Erik M

#2634
Som nevnt, veldig spesielt å prioritere ferie i disse to ekstremt viktige to ukene - hvis det stemmer det som er hevdet.  Vi er på ingen måte klar for ligastart.  Det virker som man virrer rundt i transfermarkedet uten mål og mening.  Det som kommer av info fra Cellino er i beste fall totalt forvirrende.

Cellino har lovet at det er neste år vi skal rykke opp.  Kanksje det er derfor han tilsynelatende tar så lett på det nå.  Mulig det renner inn spillere rett før og rett etter ligastart, men vi kommer nok til å henge kraftig etter fra starten.  Jeg frykter Millall nå, må jeg si.

Hvis det er tilfelle at Cellino ikke har hastverk og lar denne sesongen gå til omstrukturering og oppbygging tror jeg dette kan være en fatal feil.  Jeg tror vi må pushe knallhardt for opprykk også i denne sesongen for å kunne slå til neste år.  Vi må lære å vinne - lære å vinne mange kamper på rad.  Det er slik man rykker opp. Kommer vi skjevt ut blir det en kamp i bunn av tabellen og det blir noe ganske annet enn opprykkstrening...

 

Ian Baird

Quote from: Erik M on August 01, 2014, 13:06:32
Som nevnt, veldig spesielt å prioritere ferie i disse to ekstremt viktige to ukene - hvis det stemmer det som er hevdet.  Vi er på ingen måte klar for ligastart.  Det virker som man virrer rundt i transfermarkedet uten mål og mening.  Det som kommer av info fra Cellino er i beste fall totalt forvirrende.

Cellino har lovet at det er neste år vi skal rykke opp.  Kanksje det er derfor han tilsynelatende tar så lett på det nå.  Mulig det renner inn spillere rett før og rett etter ligastart, men vi kommer nok til å henge kraftig etter fra starten.  Jeg frykter Millall nå, må jeg si.

Hvis det er tilfelle at Cellino ikke har hastverk og lar denne sesongen gå til omstrukturering og oppbygging tror jeg dette kan være en fatal feil.  Jeg tror vi må pushe knallhardt for opprykk også i denne sesongen for å kunne slå til neste år.  Vi må lære å vinne - lære å vinne mange kamper på rad.  Det er slik man rykker opp. Kommer vi skjevt ut blir det en kamp i bunn av tabellen og det blir noe ganske annet enn opprykkstrening...



Enig. Pr. nå har vi en stall som er nærmere nedrykk enn opprykk. Da kan det bli vanskelig med prosjekt opprykk-PL-2016...
Cellino 5. April 2014: We will be back in the Premier Leauge by 2016.

Asbjørn

Adam setter skapet på plass - syns jeg



Massimo â€" Mad man or magician?


 Adam Geary
  August 1, 2014

Foreword: At no point in my history of supporting Leeds United have I ever discarded a player, manager or owner without first evaluating who they are, what they’re doing, what they want to achieve and how they want to achieve it. This is the exact same with Massimo Cellino, I have been slated left right and centre for merely questioning his characteristics, business prowess and even his criminal past. I do not hate Cellino, I do not love Cellino, I am simply sat looking on from afar (London, Clapham to be precise) trying to get my head around the events of the past three months.

In this article I will detail some of my thoughts and try to allow you to see that it is completely acceptable to question somebody who owns a valuable asset in our lives (LUFC). This should not draw divisions between fans but instead allow us all to understand both sides of the argument and yes, draw conclusions, but not cause internal battles that destabilised the club under the Bates Era. We’re stronger together, marching on TOGETHER. Remember that.

Transfers â€" Right, first and foremost, Massimo is a difficult man to read on the transfer front, some of his policies are erm, questionable to say the least. Let’s however start with the positives. Ross McCormack’s sale for £10.75m (Leeds received around £9.137m from the transfer after Cardiff’s sell on fee) was simply a masterstroke. He got double the market value price for a player, taking aside captaincy and a very, very good season, who has definitely found his level in the Championship. The savings of around £800k in wages per annum will have been a nice touch too. This alongside with the release of much of Colin’s deadwood has been a ginormous relieving of pressure on Leeds United’s precarious financial predicament as it was pre MC. Happy days for Leeds and for Massimo, a much needed clear out of players happened and to be honest, no one can seriously complain about the efficiency of such.

Now, the negatives. Massimo has put ALL trust in a certain Nicola Salerno. This is okay, we’ve seen scouts and directors of football come and go, like I say, I will not disregard him. It is however laughable that many Leeds United fans (as unknowing as I) have taken it upon themselves to suggest this man is the oracle of all footballing knowledge in Italy and is the scout behind many of the greats in the game, this is a lie. He is not.

Salerno has a reasonable reputation of bringing in some average to good young players, this all seems great, but when you actually begin to look at the finite details you realise we have major issues. Berardi for example, why make a right back a priority signing when Byram has and still is our first choice RB? Silvestri seems a sensible buy, but then there is Bianchi and Doukara, seemingly fitting the bill but both Serie B players (as are Silvestri and Bianchi in fairness) and the latter on a loan deal. These signings will not go down in Leeds’ history as heroes, they’re squad players at best (I would love to be proven wrong).

Cellino promises “5 or 6 new players” yet we snail our way to getting the signatures of the likes of Viviani and Benedicic. Why? Cellino is too busy sunning himself up in Miami, that’s why. Now understandably his life is in the process of change, he is moving home and setting up camp in England, but let’s be brutally honest here. We are 8 days away from the first game of the campaign and we stand undoubtedly weaker as a team that were nearly relegated last season, we have lost our top scorer, we have only two recognised centre backs after losing the long standing Lees and seem incapable of being able to get any players signatures on a Leeds United contract. Cellino should be 110% committed to working hard to get the players in now. Right now.

Cellino suggests we have a kitty of “£15 million” to play with this summer. Again, fabricated figures to excite the fans, would a club with £15m be balking at £475k for Liam Cooper or targeting unproven Serie B players? Or how about even trying to get any kind of proven or experienced striker in? We haven’t got £15m to spend and if we spend more than £5m I will post a viral video of me wearing a scum shirt for a week at work.

Cellino is, in a nutshell, lying to fans about the money we have available and the money we will spend. In a game of poker, he’d be out at the first hand. You don’t reveal amounts received or budgets to play with unless you really want to play into the sellers hands… Questionable business tactics.

Stadium â€" “I will go to the bank and buy back the stadium tomorrow”

Cellino lied. Simple as that. Massimo promised something he could not deliver, even worse, he promised something none of us expected him to promise? “You cannot be a guest in your own house” good thesis, now sort it out. Cellino has given November as a date on the stadium buy back… we will wait, we will see, but please don’t hold your breath because I fear MC is again promising things he will not deliver. If he does use the McCormack money then that is brilliant and I will be a very happy gentleman, but on the basis of his previous ER promises I cannot see a buyout materialising until we return (if ever) to the Premier League.

Cost cutting â€" This is a tough one. I agree wholeheartedly with Massimo that the club was way too unhealthy, employed too many staff and was running at way too much of an unsustainable loss. This does not however constitute the severity of the cuts that Leeds and the staff have been subject to. Just as research, I rang the club a couple of days ago to mock a quote for a wedding. I was passed to three different departments and on the phone for over 90 minutes, this may appear sad (it really is) but there are no chiefs left, only people with no real business know how. I rang the ticket office, 25 minutes I waited until lunch was over, this is too long, and this IS costing Leeds business.

The website is now also seemingly faulting all the time, the ticket site and areas as you will notice are extremely unresponsive. All this is very worrying, it’s like we’re running buses on Boxing Day, we exist, but the service is skeletal.

Thorp Arch is another tricky subject, it’s costly and too far away, point well taken. Where though and when though will we move? Let’s concentrate on buying back ER, getting a team together, then sort out the training ground. Too much too soon, Massimo. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. There is a reason we take new signings to TA to sign… it is world class. Leeds are like a fat pub man with a page 3 model, (TA) we’re punching.

Cost cutting is never bad, but where, how much and how quickly is imperative in ensuring that business can continue and Leeds as a business can still function. At the minute we’re struggling.

If Massimo stops shouting his mouth off and starts to realise that a cult of personality means he is only out to be shot down we’d be better off. I haven’t mentioned his appointment of Hockaday because, as I mention, I will reserve my judgement until the games are underway and real, competitive results are in. Here is the summary though…

• Leeds have a weaker squad than last season.
• The manager needs to prove himself at this level
• We need to see Elland Road bought back or shut up about.
• We need a striker, defender and winger immediately.
• We need experience in the squad.
• We need to ensure we have a functioning business.
• Massimo needs to stop promising what he cannot deliver (or deliver it).

Marching on together, lads.

http://www.thescratchingshed.com/2014/08/massimo-mad-man-or-magician/
Tell me - I've got to know
Tell me - Tell me before I go
Does that flame still burn, does that fire still glow
Or has it died out and melted like the snow
Tell me  Tell me

Dylan

Jon R

Quote from: Asbjørn on August 01, 2014, 23:12:47
Adam setter skapet på plass - syns jeg



Massimo â€" Mad man or magician?


 Adam Geary
 August 1, 2014

Foreword: At no point in my history of supporting Leeds United have I ever discarded a player, manager or owner without first evaluating who they are, what they’re doing, what they want to achieve and how they want to achieve it. This is the exact same with Massimo Cellino, I have been slated left right and centre for merely questioning his characteristics, business prowess and even his criminal past. I do not hate Cellino, I do not love Cellino, I am simply sat looking on from afar (London, Clapham to be precise) trying to get my head around the events of the past three months.

In this article I will detail some of my thoughts and try to allow you to see that it is completely acceptable to question somebody who owns a valuable asset in our lives (LUFC). This should not draw divisions between fans but instead allow us all to understand both sides of the argument and yes, draw conclusions, but not cause internal battles that destabilised the club under the Bates Era. We’re stronger together, marching on TOGETHER. Remember that.

Transfers â€" Right, first and foremost, Massimo is a difficult man to read on the transfer front, some of his policies are erm, questionable to say the least. Let’s however start with the positives. Ross McCormack’s sale for £10.75m (Leeds received around £9.137m from the transfer after Cardiff’s sell on fee) was simply a masterstroke. He got double the market value price for a player, taking aside captaincy and a very, very good season, who has definitely found his level in the Championship. The savings of around £800k in wages per annum will have been a nice touch too. This alongside with the release of much of Colin’s deadwood has been a ginormous relieving of pressure on Leeds United’s precarious financial predicament as it was pre MC. Happy days for Leeds and for Massimo, a much needed clear out of players happened and to be honest, no one can seriously complain about the efficiency of such.

Now, the negatives. Massimo has put ALL trust in a certain Nicola Salerno. This is okay, we’ve seen scouts and directors of football come and go, like I say, I will not disregard him. It is however laughable that many Leeds United fans (as unknowing as I) have taken it upon themselves to suggest this man is the oracle of all footballing knowledge in Italy and is the scout behind many of the greats in the game, this is a lie. He is not.

Salerno has a reasonable reputation of bringing in some average to good young players, this all seems great, but when you actually begin to look at the finite details you realise we have major issues. Berardi for example, why make a right back a priority signing when Byram has and still is our first choice RB? Silvestri seems a sensible buy, but then there is Bianchi and Doukara, seemingly fitting the bill but both Serie B players (as are Silvestri and Bianchi in fairness) and the latter on a loan deal. These signings will not go down in Leeds’ history as heroes, they’re squad players at best (I would love to be proven wrong).

Cellino promises “5 or 6 new players” yet we snail our way to getting the signatures of the likes of Viviani and Benedicic. Why? Cellino is too busy sunning himself up in Miami, that’s why. Now understandably his life is in the process of change, he is moving home and setting up camp in England, but let’s be brutally honest here. We are 8 days away from the first game of the campaign and we stand undoubtedly weaker as a team that were nearly relegated last season, we have lost our top scorer, we have only two recognised centre backs after losing the long standing Lees and seem incapable of being able to get any players signatures on a Leeds United contract. Cellino should be 110% committed to working hard to get the players in now. Right now.

Cellino suggests we have a kitty of “£15 million” to play with this summer. Again, fabricated figures to excite the fans, would a club with £15m be balking at £475k for Liam Cooper or targeting unproven Serie B players? Or how about even trying to get any kind of proven or experienced striker in? We haven’t got £15m to spend and if we spend more than £5m I will post a viral video of me wearing a scum shirt for a week at work.

Cellino is, in a nutshell, lying to fans about the money we have available and the money we will spend. In a game of poker, he’d be out at the first hand. You don’t reveal amounts received or budgets to play with unless you really want to play into the sellers hands… Questionable business tactics.

Stadium â€" “I will go to the bank and buy back the stadium tomorrow”

Cellino lied. Simple as that. Massimo promised something he could not deliver, even worse, he promised something none of us expected him to promise? “You cannot be a guest in your own house” good thesis, now sort it out. Cellino has given November as a date on the stadium buy back… we will wait, we will see, but please don’t hold your breath because I fear MC is again promising things he will not deliver. If he does use the McCormack money then that is brilliant and I will be a very happy gentleman, but on the basis of his previous ER promises I cannot see a buyout materialising until we return (if ever) to the Premier League.

Cost cutting â€" This is a tough one. I agree wholeheartedly with Massimo that the club was way too unhealthy, employed too many staff and was running at way too much of an unsustainable loss. This does not however constitute the severity of the cuts that Leeds and the staff have been subject to. Just as research, I rang the club a couple of days ago to mock a quote for a wedding. I was passed to three different departments and on the phone for over 90 minutes, this may appear sad (it really is) but there are no chiefs left, only people with no real business know how. I rang the ticket office, 25 minutes I waited until lunch was over, this is too long, and this IS costing Leeds business.

The website is now also seemingly faulting all the time, the ticket site and areas as you will notice are extremely unresponsive. All this is very worrying, it’s like we’re running buses on Boxing Day, we exist, but the service is skeletal.

Thorp Arch is another tricky subject, it’s costly and too far away, point well taken. Where though and when though will we move? Let’s concentrate on buying back ER, getting a team together, then sort out the training ground. Too much too soon, Massimo. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. There is a reason we take new signings to TA to sign… it is world class. Leeds are like a fat pub man with a page 3 model, (TA) we’re punching.

Cost cutting is never bad, but where, how much and how quickly is imperative in ensuring that business can continue and Leeds as a business can still function. At the minute we’re struggling.

If Massimo stops shouting his mouth off and starts to realise that a cult of personality means he is only out to be shot down we’d be better off. I haven’t mentioned his appointment of Hockaday because, as I mention, I will reserve my judgement until the games are underway and real, competitive results are in. Here is the summary though…

• Leeds have a weaker squad than last season.
• The manager needs to prove himself at this level
• We need to see Elland Road bought back or shut up about.
• We need a striker, defender and winger immediately.
• We need experience in the squad.
• We need to ensure we have a functioning business.
• Massimo needs to stop promising what he cannot deliver (or deliver it).

Marching on together, lads.

http://www.thescratchingshed.com/2014/08/massimo-mad-man-or-magician/


Glimrende oppsummert. Økonomisk er vi "reddet", men spørsmålet er til hvilken pris?

Stallen er slett ikke der den bør være uten at Cellino & co virker nevneverdig bekymret. Merkelig synes jeg.
Hvor vi står sportslig en uke før KO sesongen 2014-2015, får vi sterk indikasjon på i morgen. Siden resultater ikke teller i pre season er det nesten å håpe på dårlige prestasjoner og resultater slik at hullene i stallen blir enda tydeligere for Cellino & co...

Merk at en god lakmustest på hvor godt strukturen og organiseringen fungerer i "nye" Leeds United, er servicen som ytes til de viktigste kundene, nemlig supporterne. Hvis Adams erfaringer er representative, har klubben et stykke igjen før vi er der vi bør være.

Bli ikke overrasket om vi blir snytt for den annonserte livesendingen på LUTV i morgen ettermiddag... ;)
Jon R.

Promotion 2010

At vi står svakere rustet på spillersiden kan man finne ut ved søke på "squadnumbers" i søkefeltet her på forumet. Da ser man fort hvilke elendige tropper Leeds har hatt de siste årene.


Nå har vi slaktet Bates i en årrekke. Denne skepsisen han skapte vil Massimo slite med i lang tid. Jeg synes vi skal frede ham et års tid til vi virkelig skal kjempe om opprykk.


Begrunnelsen er at han har vist mer mot og handlekraft enn noen klubbeieren de siste 10-12 årene.
Min første Leeds-kamp:
Strømsgodset vs Leeds, 19.september 1973

sportcarl1

Quote from: Promotion 2010 on August 02, 2014, 10:14:22
At vi står svakere rustet på spillersiden kan man finne ut ved søke på "squadnumbers" i søkefeltet her på forumet. Da ser man fort hvilke elendige tropper Leeds har hatt de siste årene.


Nå har vi slaktet Bates i en årrekke. Denne skepsisen han skapte vil Massimo slite med i lang tid. Jeg synes vi skal frede ham et års tid til vi virkelig skal kjempe om opprykk.


Begrunnelsen er at han har vist mer mot og handlekraft enn noen klubbeieren de siste 10-12 årene.
han har mitt fulla stöd och har haft det från dag1,alltså Rom byggdes inte på en dag, ekonomin känns som den  är i balans och det är det viktigaste att inte ha skattemasen jagandes och att spelarna får sina löner, ekonomin var tvungen att ta ett stålbad, den nödvändiga spelarutrensningen har han lyckats bättre än jag trodde, och vi har fått in intressanta nyförvärv och fler är på väg,och mccormack fick vi dubbelt mot vad han är, hock är väl det enda man kan ha synpunkter på men jag är beredd att ge honom en chans, men som jag ser det med så många pessimistiska supportrar  som t o m tror vi kommer åka ur så har han allt att vinna.