#LUFC: Leeds United Ownership

A link to a basic visualisation of the current ownership situation at Elland Road:

http://infogr.am/Leeds-United-Ownership/

#LUFC: Mills back on Whites Radar While Major Sponsor Deal Looms

It has emerged this morning that Leeds united have made an enquiry for Bolton Wanderers central defender Matt Mills

The player is thought to be available after Boss Dougie Freedman sealed a deal for Striker Jemaine Beckford. Mills’ 25k a week contract is thought to be surplus to requirements, to try and balance the books after the Beckford deal. It remains to be seen whether Mills is the long term target that boss Brian McDermott has been tracking for weeks. An enquiry for Mills could also mean that any other deal for a defender has fallen through.

Meanwhile, news has broke today that talks have taken place between Leeds and drinks company Red Bull regarding a major sponsorship deal. It is rumoured that a stadium name change is on the cards. Red Bull would provide a significant increase in club revenue, which would have a big effect on FFP regulations. In a similar way to the likes of Manchester City and Arsenal, big sponsorship agreements mean the club can techically afford to live within their means. Any deal with Red Bull would be a first in English football, although the company actually own clubs such as the NY Red Bulls and Red Bull Salzburg. Much has been made about how Red Bull has ruined the tradition of football clubs by changing almost everything to suit the company rather than the club. It seems, however, that GFH Capital remain the dominant party in negotiations. GFHC have been looking for outside investment since aquiring Leeds to finance deals to buy back Elland Road and Thorp Arch. Red Bull have the means to support GFH Capital in any possible buy-back, with naming rights a possible wager in the deal. It seems Leeds’ owners are thinking big with the future of Leeds United. More recent sponsorships such as Bet 365 and Enterprise Insurance will not offer anywhere near the amount of exposure that Red Bull can offer, let alone the cash. Until more details emerge regarding the true nature of negotiations, it currently seems that Red Bull have no intention of wholly owning Leeds United, but rather a high value sponsorship agreement. 

#LUFC: Slovenia tour a Fitness Success

The tour of Slovenia has both improved fitness and togetherness in a squad that still needs a little more work.

The searing heat has provided the squad with a difficult test on the training ground, with McDermott putting his players through their paces. The games themselves act as more of a fitness test rather than a win or bust situation, but the players have reacted in a professional way. Balancing the mindset of winning matches and improving fitness is something that is difficult to achieve, but when Leeds lost in the dying minutes on saturday against a match fit side, McDermott offered no excuses.

Fans find it difficult to watch their team lose, whether it be a pre-season game or a play-off final. McDermott is no different to that. The team he fielded in the final 30 minutes against FC Domzale leaked two goals which cost the match. After the game, McDermott revealed he had kept the players in the dressing room for longer, to drill in the idea that winning needs to become “a sin.” many previous managers of Leeds would agree, none more so than Neil Warnock. Should we read into pre-season results as a gauge for the season ahead?

Pre-season often has little effect on the season ahead. The players themselves would like to knock in a couple of goals, and get back to high fitness levels. What is less important, is an actual result, when in reality, it doesn’t matter. None the less, McDermott sees games where his team lose as a talking point, an area to focus on to get things right. In the championship, the teams that go up seem to be able to win games when really they shouldn’t. Cardiff are a prime example.

When the team fly home back to Leeds, there will be work to be done in the transfer market. McDermott remains bullish about a long term target of his, his identity still a secret. The boss will be meeting with club owners to try force through a deal, but it’s not just incomings on McDermott’s mind. Players need to be moved on from the wage bill, and players such as Danny Pugh and Michael Brown are earning a wage while (hopefully) getting nominal game time next season.

#lufc: Offloading players key to Wabara Deal

Leeds United target Reece Wabara remains keen on a move to Elland Road.

The versatile defender is attracting interest from a host of championship clubs, after Manchester City revealed their plans to move Wabara elsewhere. A move to Leeds is still on the cards, but it now seems that the deal depends on players leaving first, to free up space in the squad.

Wabara is seen by many as a potential star, who has already represented England at U20 level. To date he has made just one fist team appearance at City, and it seems they are willing to let him go, to secure Wabara more game time. A move to Leeds would be quite expensive, but as his contract expires in 12 months, the sum would be set lower. McDermott has tracked the young defender for some time, but recently his priorities remain focused on one “crucial” signing. Any deal for Wabara is dependent on players leaving the current leeds squad, which gives other clubs opportunity to steal him from our grasp. According to the players father, Leeds still remains his sons first choice.

LUFC: Owners Plan Majority Stake Sale

It has emerged during an interview that Leeds United owners GFH Capital remain committed to securing investment, while relinquishing a majority stake.

Hisham Al Reyes remains confident that GFH will retain a minority stake which still gives them power in the boardroom. GFH also stated in the interview that new investment will not only come directly, but also through GFH themselves.

News has been scarce in recent weeks regarding investment, although it is widely thought that extra funds came in through GFH investors, to finance the significant singing of Luke Murphy. What is unknown, however, is who or which companies plan on purchasing a stake in LUFC.

In other news, boss Brian McDermott remains confident that he will secure a long term target, but only after he and the squad return from Slovenia. The target, unknown to most if not all of the media, is likely to be of high importance to McDermott’s plans. The fact that McDermott remains bullish on the prospects of signing the player, means that the fans will only have to wait a little longer, for what is seen as an important deal for both club, and manager.

LUFC: Rowe Deal edges closer

Since LUFC manager Brian McDermott suggested he was close to securing a long term target, hundreds of fans began speculating about who the possible player was. It is now speculated that the player is winger Tommy Rowe.

Even before the news broke of Leeds’ interest in the player, McDermott had already been in talks with Rowe himself. At the time an agreement between both Leeds and Peterborough was far off, with the valuation of Rowe more expensive than first thought. Even though Posh chairman Darragh MacAnthony strongly denies any update on the situation, it is now believed that Leeds have, or plan to submit a bid. Posh face losing him on a free transfer next season if the player decides to finish his contract.

Rowe is a self confessed Leeds fan, and although he seems happy enough at Peterborough, a concrete offer from Leeds could tempt him. Wingers remain a rarity in the current squad, who are now training in Slovenia for the pre-season tour.

Quite an appropriate photo at the moment…

LUFC: The Ken Bates Legacy Continues

It’s been a long 24 hours for Leeds United fans.

Any wild possibilities about 8 figure spending sprees were dashed when Brian McDermott revealed that it was likely he would have to create his own transfer fund. His comment enraged fans, a lot of hate has been shaped toward Salah Nooruddin, who on the night before claimed the board would back McDermott in the transfer Market. 

Brian will be backed no matter what happens with the board over the course of the summer, but you can’t help thinking that something is wrong at the very core of the football club. That core is still Ken Bates. 

Many of us have been quick to judge GFH Capital on the basis of McDermott’s comments. People have even labelled them as “worse than bates” and in my opinion that cannot be further from the truth. For a start, this season’s transfer kitty was virtually wiped out by Bates’ mortgage on season ticket sales, to pay for the East stand development. £3.5 million of all sales to be precise and current sales figures stand marginally above that. Then we go on to the massive overlays GFH have to pay. The club does not own either Thorp Arch or Elland Road, substantial rent fees have to be paid by the club simply to use them. These overlays contribute to a large cash shortfall. GFH will have been aware of these costs, but the sheer cost of running LUFC, coupled with a lack of investment from other investors, has meant GFH have struggled to keep their promises. 

It is reported that GFH in the long term want to buy back Elland Road, which seems to be a wise move considering it would reduce running costs massively. So should we blame GFH for the lack of funds? The blame should partly be shouldered by GFH but only because they still have the cancer that is Ken Bates looming over them until July 1st. Only then can we truly judge GFH and their capabilities. 

Another major talking point was that a “sell to buy” strategy MAY have to be implemented by McDermott to fund transfers. Obviously this sparked talk of Sam Byram leaving, nobody really seemed to notice that McDermott stated he “wasn’t interested” in selling his top stars. The fact that every time Bates sold a player. The funds went straight to the back pocket. We must not forget Ken Bates will hold no power from July 1st, GFH can state how they want any surplus funds to be used.

I’d also like to address a point I’ve been really interested in finding out. A lot of fans on twitter seem to say “we’ve got no money.” what did we expect from GFH? Did we expect a Man City type spend? McDermott will have a small budget to work with. Rumours stated that McDermott was promised £3million and yet some still argue that even if he did have that figure to his disposal, we still had “no money.” if you follow me on twitter, anyone who would like to answer me this question feel free: what foes the term “no money” mean to you? 

I appreciate any feedback, tweet me @jakerleedsblog 

                

LUFC: McDermott closes in on more deals

Brian McDermott will tonight hold a meeting with Shaun Harvey and GFHC representative and  deputy CEO David Haigh, to force through a number of transfer deals.

Speaking to Yorkshire Radio and BBC Leeds today, McDermott suggested that a number of deals were close to completion, but not “rubber stamped.” The deals need the seal of approval from the club owners, which is why David Haigh is also at the meeting. The meeting comes at a crucial time for the club, as pre-season is less than two weeks away. McDermott is keen on getting deals done as soon as possible, preferably before players report back for training, so expect more action in the coming days regarding transfers. 

The latest player linked to Leeds is young Hearts defender Kevin McHattie. The left back is highly rated at the club, but will be available at a cut price because of the current financial situation at the club. There may not be much legs in this rumour however with 3 LB’s currently at the club, so any move for McHattie could involve a player leaving the club, most likely to be Adam Drury. 

GFH Capital: 6 Months In

It’s been more than 6 months since GFH Capital officially took over the Elland Road reigns. In that time, a lot has changed, some of which has been largely successful, while others have been less so.

After a grueling summer, where most Leeds fans were left frustrated at the length of the takeover negotiations, the hand over was complete on the 21st December. The process had already hindered Neil Warnock’s attempt at promotion. Ken Bates was ousted from his roll as chairman (officially on the 30th June) and a new board took shape. from then on, it looked like our new Dubai owners would splash the cash and push us back to the big time.

It now seems that much of what fans expected of GFHC never fully materialised. At the end of the day, who could be worse than Ken Bates? The bar was set high for the new owners, and even though company CEO David Haigh and Salem Patel were quick to say that they weren’t going to be spending “silly” money in January, fans were still left underwhelmed by transfer dealings, none more so than Neil Warnock. A large shortfall in cash left the owners limited to what they could offer the then Manager. Failing to capture Birmingham winger Chris Burke was thought to be because of the cash shortfall.

Then came the confusion surrounding GFHC’s future intentions. At first the parent comapany, GFH, stated that the club was for sale. GFHC then suggested that their philosophy was to create a group of like-minded investors to take the club forward. This strategy was put to practice when they announced a 10% sale of the club to a Bahrain company IIB, their founding member is now on the board at Leeds. Another 3% was sold to now vice-chairman Salah Nooruddin. After a disappointing run of results, Neil Warnock was relieved of his duties, and Brian McDermott took over the reigns a couple of weeks later.

So, have there been many good points about the takeover so far? For a start, prices for season tickets, matchday programmes and other things have decreased substantially, which is a refreshing change from the Bates era. Student prices have been introduced, and the whole system of buying the actual ST has been reworked. Hospitality has also been refreshed. Most of the current ST holder have renewed, and more have since bought them, making the numbers climb above 11,000. Averaging all of the prices in each section of the stadium, sales figures so far will be around the £4.2 million mark. A large chunk of that will be used to pay back a loan on the East Stand development.

Another positive point not noticed by the majority so far this summer, is transfers. Under Bates and Warnock, the club brought in many new faces, most of which were above the age of 30, and most had an air of pit worker rather than brazilian samba dancer. What we have been linked with so far, whether it be free agent or under contract, has been much more exciting. Players like Tommy Rowe, Reece Wabara, Matt Smith (signed), David Wotherspoon and Matt Mills are of a higher class than those signed last season. Fans may moan that £3million signings aren’t being made, or lower league players simply aren’t good enough for us, but we have to remember that GFHC employed Brian McDermott for a reason. Not only is he a good manager, he also has a good eye for players who have the potential to succeed. They are hungry, determined to better themselves. The transfer policy has been changed completely by GFHC and McDermott, and there certainly won’t be any Journeymen singed by McDermott this summer.

The question looming over us however, is the age-old question.Do GFHC have the funds to succeed? This forms part of one of the negative points surrounding GFHC. A lot of fans have been voicing their despair at the apparent lack of funds our owners have. Nobody truly knows the financial situation, except the owners themselves, and Brian McDermott. From rumours gathered so far, a lot of people believe we will only sign free transfers this summer, and we “can’t even afford Tommy Rowe.” The lack of communication between board room and fan base is partly to blame for this. An open board could certainly dampen wild expectations, but it can also make us more realistic to what we can look forward to. The recent story about Barry Fry’s comments regarding an approach for Peterborough captain Tommy Rowe has enraged fans, only because his comments have been taken out of context by the media. Fry said that Leeds would not be able to afford him, in reference to his own valuation of the player. Speaking to Radio Leeds, Fry said he had “no idea” about the financial situation at Elland Road. This should have been the end of it, but unfortunately when something gets out of hand, it snowballs. A statement from the club, or even a quick chat with Brian McDermott would have sufficed. I suspect the next time McDermott is on the radio or on LUTV, he will be quick to tell us all straight about the situation.

We will all have to wait and see about what the summer will bring for out great club, but overall we can be satisfied that the right Man is in the job, Brian McDermott.