The Takeover Thread - Recon Group - NOW WITH NEW POLL

[Louzie0]

I don't see Randy Lerner agreeing to sell to charlatans. He's had ample opportunity before now. Why suddenly decide to do that? I hope that the Xia deal is kosher.

[pauliewalnuts]

I just hope whatever is going to happen happens quick and this Samuelson doesn't have any real involvement. Although him being a director on companies house at this early stage really doesn't necessarily mean anything. If he's part of facilitating the deal and setting up the limited company is part of that then he'll leave as soon as it's finalised.

It takes minutes to set up a limited company, there's no administrative reason for him to be appointed a director.

[pauliewalnuts]

I'm not sure what you're basiing that speculation on, that he's had to borrow heavily. Indications from the good sources in this matter, such as Pat Murphy and the journo from the Mail whose spoken to him suggest nothing untoward.

I'm basing my concerns on the fact that if Tony Xia was loaded he could just wire Randy all of the money. Not have to free it up from other companies/take out loans/look down the back of the sofa or whatever he's doing at the moment. If he wasn't relying on borrowing money to fund the purchase, why does he need fixers who seem to specialise in organising just that kind of deal.

For all his subsequent fuck ups Lerner didn't need these kind of shady people involved when he bought from Doug Ellis.

Just because the deal itself might go through doesn't meant that having these kind of people involved with our club is something to celebrate. Hopefully I'm wrong.

The chap has said the full amount is in a UK bank already - unless you think he's lying, what's the point in worrying? As for looking down the sofa/scraping money - he's said he just sold one of his businesses for £400 million!

I'm concerned about the men he's relying on but I'm not losing sleep about it.

That's the money to buy the club.

Once the club is in their hands, then what? What about the money to run it?

If we re-wound in time to two months ago and said we were linked with a takeover which would involve Samuelson, what sort of reaction do we think we'd have got?

I'm not losing sleep over it, either, I've got enough real-life worries to do that for me, but I am worried that we're being taken over by a person surrounded in total murk, of indeterminate wealth, and that it involves someone like Samuelson.

As for the "Randy wouldn't sell to a charlatan" line we've told ourselves over the years, no, he wouldn't, but that relies on him being able to spot on, and if there's one thing Lerner has proved himself to be over the years, it is a truly terrible judge of character.

[ktvillan]

Indeed Paulie, Lerner has manage to fuck up just about every other decision related to Villa so he's quite capable of fucking this up too.

[ciggiesnbeer]

Lets hope not.

But I agree its hard to look at this guy Samuelson's association with us as a positive.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

If we re-wound in time to two months ago and said we were linked with a takeover which would involve Samuelson, what sort of reaction do we think we'd have got?

Indeed. I was tempted to give him his own thread the moment I saw his name linked with the takeover. We've only scratched the surface on his football dealings, there's plenty of material out there on him and I've yet to find anything positive.

[oswald funkletrumpet]

I don't see Randy Lerner agreeing to sell to charlatans. He's had ample opportunity before now. Why suddenly decide to do that? I hope that the Xia deal is kosher.

i can see lerner doing just that

he has already taken a massive hit and as long as he gets his money he wont give a shit

as mentioned its one thing getting the purchase money together but then where will the rest of the money come from? that is the area for concern

[Clampy]

I don't think he'd purposely sell to someone dodgy either, especially if according to Dr Tony he's going to receive another £40m odd if we go up. Some people just like to think the worst.

[brian green]

I agree Clampy.  There comes a point when you have to stop putting the wind up yourself.  I like what I have seen so far.  Let's take it a step at a time.  I can live with a few black sheep being financial groupies hanging around the club so long as the basic structure and ethos of the club is sound.  What we see on the pitch from August onwards is what really matters.

[oswald funkletrumpet]

I don't think he'd purposely sell to someone dodgy either, especially if according to Dr Tony he's going to receive another £40m odd if we go up. Some people just like to think the worst.

so you're happy with samuelson being involved then given his track record?

[Mister E]

...  What we see on the pitch from August onwards is what really matters.

Agree to a point, Brian, but if by March 2017 the club is mired in scandal and innuendo courtesy of Xia's poor choice of associates we'll have a few 1000 pages on here and a site in meltdown. Not to mention the continuing public embarrassment. And, perhaps searching for a new management team ...

[Clampy]

I don't think he'd purposely sell to someone dodgy either, especially if according to Dr Tony he's going to receive another £40m odd if we go up. Some people just like to think the worst.

so you're happy with samuelson being involved then given his track record?

He's not getting rave reviews obviously, but it dosen't mean Lerner has sold us to a dodgy owner which is what you were implying he may have done. Like Brian said, let's just see where it goes shall we?

[andyh]

Dr X. Savour or shyster?
Europe. In or out?

So many decisions.

[brian green]

That's a long leap Mr E, from fringe figures in the takeover shadows to meltdown next March.  It could happen but the odds are very long against it.  I take the simple view that the breathtaking naivety of an American, English speaking billionaire and his awful business judgement is the root cause of the position we find ourselves in.  The alternative to that child like gaucherie need not be shady dealing by dodgy charlatans but hard nosed no nonsense deal making.

Right from the entrance of Tony Xia I have accepted the distinct possibility that making a profit out of the improvement could well be behind the takeover.  To me the improvement of the club is the core issue.  I will take Villa in the Premiership winning games.

[Mister E]

That's a long leap Mr E, from fringe figures in the takeover shadows to meltdown next March.  It could happen but the odds are very long against it.  I take the simple view that the breathtaking naivety of an American, English speaking billionaire and his awful business judgement is the root cause of the position we find ourselves in.  The alternative to that child like gaucherie need not be shady dealing by dodgy charlatans but hard nosed no nonsense deal making.

Right from the entrance of Tony Xia I have accepted the distinct possibility that making a profit out of the improvement could well be behind the takeover.  To me the improvement of the club is the core issue.  I will take Villa in the Premiership winning games.

I'm with you on this, Brian. I was merely pointing out that, although what happens on the pitch is fundamentally important, what happens off the pitch has a singular impact on the on-pitch outcomes.