The Takeover Thread - Recon Group - NOW WITH NEW POLL

[Sexual Ealing]

Also, fair play to TBAR, who've called this correctly from the start. Thread of thanks on its way.

[Dave]

Hmmm, very difficult to read this one.  He could be the harbinger of new ownership.  It's unlikely that a high profile exec would move with the uncertainty of a sale hanging over the club.  Also, Lerner hasn't exactly had a great record of working with the more high power types, so it could all point to a deal being a good way towards completion.  On the other hand though, Lerner might have belatedly decided to have another crack at things and is putting in place the building blocks to avoid the mistakes of the past.

Neither of those two possibilities are bad things though - I wouldn't complain about either one or the other.

[Chris Smith]

New owners don't necessarily mean new CEO. The new bloke won't be linked with Randy so he could stay on even if we had a new owner.

But only if the new owners wanted him.

They might want their own management structure in place. If you look at it from the point of view of this guy, I find it hard to believe he'd leave his very-high-up position at Arsenal to come here, if there was even the whiff of a chance of him being out on his arse in the near future due to events beyond his control.

that's my take. It is a massive risk he's taking and I know I wouldn't leave a very good job without a good deal of guarantees and security. You have to believe he would have asked the "what happens to me if we are sold question?" quite early in the interview process.

I'm not so sure it has any wider significance. Chief Exec job at PL clubs don't come up that often so at the very least  he has an opportunity to improve his CV  and at best to make himself indispensable.

[Percy McCarthy]

The key criteria was that he knows nothing about football.

That can't be the case otherwise I would've got the job.

You can say that again.

Kidding.

[old man villa fan]

The question is if the report is true, how did the Telegraph pick up on it.  This type of appointment can be carried out away from the spotlight.  Seems to me that this has been deliberately leaked.  On top of recent signings and possibly others to follow, something is in the wind.  We have gone from free transfers/out of contract players to this.

[ozzjim]

I fail to see a downside here. Essentially we are rudderless somewhat and if there is no buyer for 12 months, it could create a vacuum that would become unhealthy.

If Randy is staying to have another bash then the manner we have operated this summer would point towards a much more measured, and touch wood progressive approach. If we fund say a Holtby and Sinclair before the window shuts, then it will have been a genuinely solid and a little exciting rebuild this summer on a pretty small budget, but giving a platform to build on that has not been there for 5 years. Interesting times.


 Lets hope he is Fantastic. 

[silhillvilla]

He's not CEO at arsenal so on his cv this is a big step up. If the package £££ is right which I'm sure it is then it's a no brainier for him, takeover or no takeover.

[ozzjim]

The question is if the report is true, how did the Telegraph pick up on it.  This type of appointment can be carried out away from the spotlight.  Seems to me that this has been deliberately leaked.  On top of recent signings and possibly others to follow, something is in the wind.  We have gone from free transfers/out of contract players to this.

Percy seems to have become the inside man the last few weeks.

[dave.woodhall]

Hmmm, very difficult to read this one.  He could be the harbinger of new ownership.  It's unlikely that a high profile exec would move with the uncertainty of a sale hanging over the club.  Also, Lerner hasn't exactly had a great record of working with the more high power types, so it could all point to a deal being a good way towards completion.  On the other hand though, Lerner might have belatedly decided to have another crack at things and is putting in place the building blocks to avoid the mistakes of the past.

I'd verge towards the latter, as I don't think someone new would be appointed by 'owners' we haven't had a sniff of yet.

[dave.woodhall]

The question is if the report is true, how did the Telegraph pick up on it.  This type of appointment can be carried out away from the spotlight.  Seems to me that this has been deliberately leaked.  On top of recent signings and possibly others to follow, something is in the wind.  We have gone from free transfers/out of contract players to this.

To what? A £4 million signing and a vacancy being filled is hardly big business. 

[Toronto Villa]

The alternative possibility is that a club with a well regarded CEO might be a better proposition than a club without a CEO of any form, it could be that the lack of a management structure is actually making us a tougher sell.

This.

It appears given our summer dealings so far the Robin Russell has done quite well

Really?

I appreciate the Sanchez deal involved third party ownership so won't have been hugely straightforward, but Richardson, Senderos and Cole were free signings. it's not like we've pulled off a long series of amazing deals somewhere.

given the circumstances I think he's done ok. It's hardly as if he was given a lot to work with. It's not like we didn't sign anyone and if as suggested we get two more in, then yes, he's done quite well. I'm going to assume when Faulkner gave Randy his two week notice (if that even happened) and as a favour coached Russell with any intensity. So to pick up from an awkward position he's not failed the club.

[Fuse]

I'm thinking Lerner is about to make a u-turn and have another crack at things. Also anyone who thinks Fox is coming to improve his Cv need to have a look at his background - no way is this even close to his biggest role, not even in his top 3 - if he is coming it is because he's bought into the strategy he's being asked to carry out

[Risso]

Hmmm, very difficult to read this one.  He could be the harbinger of new ownership.  It's unlikely that a high profile exec would move with the uncertainty of a sale hanging over the club.  Also, Lerner hasn't exactly had a great record of working with the more high power types, so it could all point to a deal being a good way towards completion.  On the other hand though, Lerner might have belatedly decided to have another crack at things and is putting in place the building blocks to avoid the mistakes of the past.

I'd verge towards the latter, as I don't think someone new would be appointed by 'owners' we haven't had a sniff of yet.

Same here. It's also a classic example of leaving a "bigger" company to be in overall charge at somewhere smaller.  If he's as good as his CV looks, he probably thinks he won't struggle for another job in the future, whatever happens.  Also having done the monster kit deal with Puma, he might feel that there's not much else to achieve at Arsenal.

[olaftab]

Hmmm, very difficult to read this one.  He could be the harbinger of new ownership.  It's unlikely that a high profile exec would move with the uncertainty of a sale hanging over the club.  Also, Lerner hasn't exactly had a great record of working with the more high power types, so it could all point to a deal being a good way towards completion.  On the other hand though, Lerner might have belatedly decided to have another crack at things and is putting in place the building blocks to avoid the mistakes of the past.

Fuck me Welcome back. Where have you been?

[PeterWithesShin]

We've still signed 5 players with the minimum of fuss, apart from the 3rd party stuff. Surely someone deserves credit for it?