Southampton are in BIG trouble.

[Austrian Gull]

It's unfathomable to me how all the money from player sales over the last few years has not prevented them ending up in this position.

Crouch, Bale, Walcott, Kenwyne Jones all went for huge sums - how incompetent must the board(s) have been to end up like this?

 

[severnside gull]

It's unfathomable to me how all the money from player sales over the last few years has not prevented them ending up in this position.

Crouch, Bale, Walcott, Kenwyne Jones all went for huge sums - how incompetent must the board(s) have been to end up like this?

Exactly why the moans of "it's the FL's fault" don't relly wash.
Football clubs are businesses which have to live in the real world, and in the real world wholesale financial incompetence on the scale of Southampton FC means businesses going to the wall. I expect them to esape but somewhere along the line football as an industry has to learn.

 

[Mackenzie]

I'm pro-saints on this, and believe that the FL have let down the club, however thats not to say that Rupert Lowe hasn't f***ed it up. But if they did do the cheat method (which i can realisticly see with the 'big club' menatlity, despite it being on the drop, it will still be there) then the FL will have some answering to and maybe fans will finally say enough and consider taking action. the FL haven't given a toss about the lower leagues in a long time, and leave teams crippled and struggling. As long as they don't stink up their pathetic equivelent of the prem (champo) its all cash for them. Disgrace.

I'm not really sure I follow your reasoning. What have the FL got to do with a board of directors who have grossly mismanaged a thriving football club?

I'm also hoping Southampton get through this btw.

 

[theonesmith]

Pompey fans have been winding them up for years.

Everyones speculating but no-ones said any cut off dates- I'm sure the league impose one, does anyone know when it is? At least then you can assess their chances. How long have they been in administration now? 2 months?

 

[Acker79]

I'm pretty sure that clubs in administration have to have their CVA in place by 2359 on the 30th June to get their share back

My first thought when reading that was "they've got 350 years, why the panic?"

 

[Scoffers]

According to the Guardian, the Administrators are going to consider winding up the club on Friday.

I guess this depends on whether the Stadium and Land is owned by the club, and could be sold to pay the creditors. Anyone know?

 

[Muzzman]

I guess this depends on whether the Stadium and Land is owned by the club, and could be sold to pay the creditors. Anyone know?

Not sure, going by this report back in April, the local council were looking to buy it from the administrators.

Local authority a serious contender to buy Southampton FC's ground From Daily Echo)

SOUTHAMPTON City Council IS in negotiations to buy St Mary’s Stadium, the Daily Echo can exclusively reveal.

Council chiefs have met with the administrator trying to sell Saints to see if the stadium could be sold at a knock down price and then leased back to the club.

It is understood the council is one of four serious bidders for the 32,600-seat stadium, which could be sold for about £10m.

But council bosses have stressed they will not invest any public money in the club itself – it is just seeking to buy the stadium as an asset for the city.

The Daily Echo first revealed the prospect of the council buying St Mary’s ten days ago after the club’s parent c o m p a n y , S o u t h a m p t o n Leisure Holdings Plc, went into administration with debts of around £30m.

There have since been at least 34 separate approaches to buy the club.

Councillor Royston Smith, deputy leader of the council, confirmed he had met with the administrator Mar Fry on an informal basis and discussed the idea.

Finance chiefs from the council will now get involved in talks to see what figures are involved.

Cllr Smith said: “We have not ruled it out and have been looking to see whether or not it’s financially viable. We are asking for the figures and will then look to see what the ground does, or could potentially generate, and will make a decision based on that.

“We want to do all we can to support the club and take it forward, but we have categorically said we will not put taxpayers’ money at risk by putting any money into the club.”

If the council did go ahead with a purchase, the stadium would be leased back for use by the club but would also be used for other events and purposes like conferences.

Cllr Smith added: “We would want it to have as many uses as possible. We would look at protecting and extending our CCTV capability, making more use of the conference facilities and looking at whether maybe the car park could be utilised in other ways.”

It’s thought that one radical scheme to recoup the cost could be to build a multistorey development above the stadium’s car park.

While the ground level car park would remain available on match days, the site could be converted into shops and flats.

The dramatic development could lead to further regeneration of surrounding areas, with the council also looking to sell off the nearby town depot site to private developers.

The council could also boost its coffers by hiring out the stadium for concerts, with the four events it currently has permission for every year capable of generating up to £1m profit annually.

As reported, some of the biggest names in music – including Take That, Rod Stewart and The Eagles – were in talks to stage concerts at St Mary’s this summer, but had to be abandoned because Saints could not guarantee the stadium being open for business.

Norwich Union, who are owed £24m for the mortgage on the stadium, are widely thought to want to cut their losses on the project.

A council source said: “At the moment there is a book price for the stadium, a Norwich Union price and then a realistic market value and that is what we are trying to establish.”

The purchase would be funded either by taking out a loan or by selling council assets.

The development comes after fans last week called on the city council to sell off some of its £150m of artworks to raise cash to buy the stadium.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

Andrew Surman and Kelvin Davies sold today. they'll have no players left, whatever happens...

 

[Garry Nelson's Left Foot]

I blame HARRY REDKNAPP for all the trouble they're in...if only he hadn't got them relegated...

 

[Icy Gull]

Got to feel sorry for them, much as I dislike them, from the Premiership to this in 3 seasons, that is pretty f***ing harsh

 

[Easy 10]

They're going to have to send Bradley Wright-Phillips out pick-pocketing again at this rate.

 

[hans kraay fan club]

They're going to have to send Bradley Wright-Phillips out pick-pocketing again at this rate.

Not their player anymore either. Out of contract.

 

[Psychobilly freakout]

I saw this on 606 saints board

"Thanks Pinnacle for for wasting nearly a month. Leaving the 2 remaining interested no time at all to complete a deal & if they do we'll no doubt be down another 15 points. Michael Fialka has alot to answer for (you can find him on facebook), poor Matty was just trying to save the club.

If we aren't brought obviously anything that isn't nailed down (& possibly stuff that is) will be sold & we'll be relegated to the comference premier, but we then won't have a team, a manager or a ground to call our own. Arrrrghhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

-25 points at the least then !

 

[sten_super]

I saw this on 606 saints board

"Thanks Pinnacle for for wasting nearly a month. Leaving the 2 remaining interested no time at all to complete a deal & if they do we'll no doubt be down another 15 points. Michael Fialka has alot to answer for (you can find him on facebook), poor Matty was just trying to save the club.

If we aren't brought obviously anything that isn't nailed down (& possibly stuff that is) will be sold & we'll be relegated to the comference premier, but we then won't have a team, a manager or a ground to call our own. Arrrrghhhhhhhhhhhhh!"

-25 points at the least then !

... and they'll be relegated a lot lower than what I assume he thinks is the Blue Square Premier.

 

[Easy 10]

Not their player anymore either. Out of contract.

Meh. The thieving toerag will probably do it freelance then.

 

[Not Andy Naylor]

My information is that the Swiss consortium is backed by seriously big money. They were slightly nonplussed, to say the least, when the administrator gave Pinnacle exclusivity when they had put in a lower initial offer.

 

[Acker79]

My information is that the Swiss consortium is backed by seriously big money. They were slightly nonplussed, to say the least, when the administrator gave Pinnacle exclusivity when they had put in a lower initial offer.

They probably were averse to these big spending foreigners, and wanted to ensure we had another British chairman like, say, Mike Ashley, or Rupert Lowe or Bill Archer, y'know, keep it british for the good of the game.

 

[looney]

Got to feel sorry for them, much as I dislike them, from the Premiership to this in 3 seasons, that is pretty f***ing harsh

I take the view theyve been riding their luck/punching above their weight for years. They were bound to be found out sooner or later, in part no longer having a dodgy pitch at the Dell or being able to stay up with a one player team is a big part of it, then theres the continual piss poor management.

Dont want them to vanish as footballs about hating other teams in part ,but a spell in Div 4 old money would do my funny bones a world of good.

 

[rusty redeyes]

"'I'm pro-saints on this, and believe that the FL have let down the club" -

What a load of Betty Swollocks. How have they been let down, they've had parachute payments from the Premier League and they've sold "star" players for big wedges of folding?? The holding company had/has no assets, it's only income is from the football club, the 2 are inextricably linked hence the points deductions and I'm in total agreement with Brovion, if they go out of business like Maidstone and Aldershot they only have themselves to blame. I seriously couldn't stomach it if they did a Leeds or Leicester.

Could turn St May's into a dry dock for another gigantic ocena going liner, they seem to be in demand in Scumhampton....

 

[Icy Gull]

I am staggered at the shoulder shrugging attitude of some on here of the possibility of Saints folding, because they brought it on themselves. My only concern is for the fans as I remember how close we came to going and it was a f***ing shit feeling, maybe some of those who don't seem too concerned weren't around then. I cannot imagine not being gutted for the fans of any league club that goes bust, yeah even Leeds if it had happened.