The Takeover Thread - Recon Group - NOW WITH NEW POLL

[Dave]

The longer this questioning of his credentials goes on the more and more uneasy we will get about the sale of the club.I would think Steve Hollis must be having some concerns about how his reputation is being affected. I also think we are all beginning to wish Dr Zia had pointed his magic wand elsewhere. Well at least I am!

I can't recall any other potential buyer for a club getting this level of scrutiny before. What the hell have we done to the press/media to merit this level of attention?

Decided that our takeover was going to happen during gap between the season finishing and the Euros starting when there is little else for them to talk about.

[robbo1874]

The mid-April date on that bank receipt suggests to me that this deal's been in the making for at least a couple of months and quite possibly longer.

You'd have to expect that Randy's people have been thoroughly scrutinising it for a considerable time now. I suspect it was largely done a while ago, probably when relegation was mathematically confirmed and it's just been announced to coincide with the end of the season.

We are going to look like an absolute bunch of numptys, much more so than we do already, if this all goes tits-up due to him failing the PL & FL fit and proper test. That's my main worry now.

As laid out under the criteria, which have been quoted several times, he's not going to fail the O&D test.

well until he passes it, I reserve my right to remain concerned, if that's ok with you?

[Clampy]

The longer this questioning of his credentials goes on the more and more uneasy we will get about the sale of the club.I would think Steve Hollis must be having some concerns about how his reputation is being affected. I also think we are all beginning to wish Dr Zia had pointed his magic wand elsewhere. Well at least I am!

I can't recall any other potential buyer for a club getting this level of scrutiny before. What the hell have we done to the press/media to merit this level of attention?

Decided that our takeover was going to happen during gap between the season finishing and the Euros starting when there is little else for them to talk about.

Hopefully Man Utd getting a new manager might put us on the backburner for a while.

[Stu]

I welcome the scrutiny. As I said earlier in the thread, at least the national press are asking difficult questions - the local press here in Birmingham is fucking useless.

[Steve R]

The longer this questioning of his credentials goes on the more and more uneasy we will get about the sale of the club.I would think Steve Hollis must be having some concerns about how his reputation is being affected. I also think we are all beginning to wish Dr Zia had pointed his magic wand elsewhere. Well at least I am!

By absolute coincidence, Dr Zia is actually my GP.

[mr underhill]

one at our surgery too - which is the imposter?

[Percy McCarthy]

I welcome the scrutiny. As I said earlier in the thread, at least the national press are asking difficult questions - the local press here in Birmingham is fucking useless.

Absolutely (the last bit).

[peter w]

I think the big issue is that we're all new to this. This is how football ownership is run throughout many parts of the world. We are only coming out of the old relic football where the rich businessman would be the Chairman, and pump some money into the club. Our first venture down being owned lock, stock and barrel was exciting to begin with but turned sour. Nothing disastrous in terms of stripping club assets, running us into the ground, just bad decisions leaving us on a bad footballing footing that would affect income.

Now, we are in uncharted territory. Selling to another person who owns us lock, stock and barrel and we are nervous. I think it's a natural reaction because we are slightly freaked out and out of our comfort zone. Obviously questions will be asked but I think once we get used to Our Tone we will feel more positive about him and his intentions.

[LeeS]

That bank statement thing is hilarious. How would something like that, belonging to a serious businessman, get into the hands of a journalist? Either it is fake or he isn't a serious businessman. My money is on the former.

[aev]

That bank statement thing is hilarious. How would something like that, belonging to a serious businessman, get into the hands of a journalist? Either it is fake or he isn't a serious businessman. My money is on the former.

I think it was framed and hung up outside trap 1.

[Stirchley Villain]

As for whether Dr X really has a doctorate, Ive worked with hundreds of proper doctors during my long career. I wouldn't want many of them running The Villa.

[peter w]

As for whether Dr X really has a doctorate, Ive worked with hundreds of proper doctors during my long career. I wouldn't want many of them running The Villa.

That Dr Foster was a bit of a fuckwit so I think I agree.

[robbo1874]

It's not hilarious in my view, it's a bit worrying (more than a bit, actually for me). I want this deal to go through as much as anyone, but I won't relax until the fit and proper tests for both leagues have been satisfied, the money is deposited in Randy's bank account and we stop hearing from him (randy).

Can do without this extra stress on top of a shambolic season. If it's good and the money is there and it's clean, get it done and move on. If there are still major uncertainties, fuck it off quickly and move on with Randy still trying to sell to a credible buyer.

Best case is, everything's kosher, but until the PL and FL are satisfied, there's still a big risk and uncertainty with this deal. I won't be happy til it's all properly sanctioned and verified at the relevant levels in the respective leagues.

The old saying of 'if it seems too good to be true, then it probably isn't true' never held more weight than in this situation. I've got fingers and toes crossed for the club.

[Toronto Villa]

I welcome the scrutiny. As I said earlier in the thread, at least the national press are asking difficult questions - the local press here in Birmingham is fucking useless.

Agreed. And what exactly determines scrutiny vs the time it actually takes to conduct the proper investigation? It's only been a few business days since this was announced. And the quality of reporting and writing at the Birmingham Mail is diabolical. They cannot write on thought provoking piece and to compound matters Kendrick and especially Evans come across as thick divs on those videos they do.

[paul_e]

That bank statement thing is hilarious. How would something like that, belonging to a serious businessman, get into the hands of a journalist? Either it is fake or he isn't a serious businessman. My money is on the former.

It would get  into his hands because they had a face to face meeting at his house and the journalist mentioned that there are worries about how wealthy he is, he responded by showing him something that proved he has money behind him.  Given that a reply of "I've got loads of money, trust me" would've been seen as bullshitting and he won't be able to prove to the fans how serious he is about his spending plans until he actually starts buying people I don't really see how else he could answer that question.