Do you feel sorry for Chelsea fans?

[Lush]

(Hooligan element aside, of course)

With all the moaning about the need for more investment in BHA, how exactly would you feel if some mind-boggingly rich businessman came and did an Abramovich on our club?

Quoting from Terence Blackler in The Indy - "What glory is there in winning any league or cup if all that victory indicates is that the billionaire who owns your club has deeper pockets than the billionaires who own the others."

"Surely it is embarassing to invest the true passion of an ordinary fan in an enterprise that has nothing to do with sport and everything with power, conspicuous comsumption, fashion and big business?"

Last time we were in the higher echelons of English football it was nothing like this. I wonder how badly I want to get back there again.

Thoughts?

 

[BrightonBird]

Mmm...actually I would quite like some Russian guy to buy us, and spend lots of money! It depends on how involved they get at the club though.

 

[fatbadger]

Of course I want success for the Albion, but I can't help thinking I am very, very pleased we don't play in the Premiershite. I don't want the circus around my club, thank you very much.

As for Chelsea fans and Abramovich, Chelsea have long been one of the corporate clubs, adding Abramovich changes nothing in that respect, he only brings more money along. They have the highest gate prices, they have to face a high proportion of corporate wankers turning up, and the club caring about them more than the average man in the street. The share price was the number one concern for Bates and his whole 'Chelsea Village' thing is the great prototype of the corporate football club.

 

[REDLAND]

Thats the whole backbone of football clubs (generally), the richer you are the better players you have. I have a couple of Chelsea fans working here who are brimming ear to ear at the moment but are very wisely not stuffing it down everyone elses throat.

I whould prefer to have a chairman that loved the club he owned over someone just using it to make money as in Chelsea case though.. I think

 

[Fluffster]

My uncle is a Chelsea season ticket holder, and was very excited about the new season and the new signings last time i spoke to him, but since then there's been the arrival of Veron, Joe Cole and Mutiu. But he's excited about challenging Man Utd and Arsenal for the Premiership, and so am i. Should make things more interesting rather than the usual 2 horse race, and especially with Arsenal and Man Utd weakened during the pre-season too.

 

[brighton rock]

they all looked happy when they were at the palace last week,

 

[Gritt23]

I would have no problem with it happening here.
"What glory ... ?" the glory would be stuffing it right up Fergie and Wenger, that's the glory you'd feel.

 

[Curious Orange]

Why do Chelsea fans need our sypathy? They certainly aren't getting any from me, though I live with one and am really looking forward to winding him up every time they lose!!!

 

[Icy Gull]

Depends if the club and players were paid for or offset against bank guarantees.

If everything is paid up (unlikely) it will be very exciting to be a Chelsea fan. If not then the whole club could fold like a house of cards if the Russian gets assassinated (apparently not that unusual in ex Eastern Bloc countries) or loses interest and f*cks off.

Jack Walker apparently used loans and guarantees to build Blackburn and didn't actually part with any money. The big difference is that he was a life long fan.

Heady days at Chelsea but who knows in a year or so they could
regret selling out as Ken bates buys them for £1.00 for the second time.

 

[s5.bha]

Might feel sorry for them when he decides in a few years that he can't be bother with the club anymore and it would be better to closed it down and sell off the land it's on !!!
Bet the land is worth a huge amount and never forget he is russian and most importantly what ever the papers say about him being a businessman he is and has always been Mafia,if he can f*** over his own countrymen he is not going to give two sh1ts about a bunch of london football fans..........................

 

[Icy Gull]

Is a football club a good place for money laundering ?

Just curious as to why a foreigner with no ties here is so keen on
buying a football club/village with a massive turnover

 

[Dropkick Turnip]

......the glory would be stuffing it right up Fergie and Wenger, that's the glory you'd feel.

Errr.....doesn't that belong on a different thread somewhere?

But back O/T, there must be some Chelsea fans who are feeling pangs of guilt that their Championship is being bought rather than won. Winning the Premiershite on those terms would never compare to the feeling of our Div3 and Div2 chamionships that were won on hard work and shrewd signings.

Personally, I think it's going to go very wrong for Chelsea when the Russian pulls out as s5.bha has already pointed out.

 

[Seagullsgonnagetya]

Who cares.... Chelsea can make their own bed (champs this year chumps tomorrow)...

keep BHA Russian fairy godfather free I say.... we've been there before (not the Russian bit)... a club owned by a fan and run as business in its own right seems to be working quite nicely for us ta very much...

 

[Storer68]

Not at all. I am looking forward immensley to their "Tottenham-esque" struggle this season - loads of hype, loads of potential, fek all achievment.

and I hate Ken Bates nearly as much as I hat Neil WArnock (but not as muchas I hate Archer and Belooti of course)

 

[NMH]

Would you rather turn back the clock to when little Alf Stubbins from the post office, and Ernie Dobbs, and Ronald Malley etc used to don their football long-johns and hack at the soggy leather 'medicine-ball', risking injury heading the thing in the net?

In those days, you knew the local boys, and could tell 'em on Monday what you thought of their game on the weekend. No money in it, just for the sport, mind, and none of that fancy-pants prima-donna stuff with flashy cars and women.
Aye, the old flat cap would keep the rain off your eyes, and tucking your trousers in the long socks would keep t' mud off 'em.

None of your soft twinkle-toe johnny-foreigners in our team, not one of those blighters (except perhaps that Harold Fairhart, who had a great uncle who was Dutch I think, and spelled it 'Fahrhuit' or summat).

No, this game has gone to the bloody dogs and no messing about. Not like in my day.
They should all be made to join the army, make real men out of 'em, maybe see some action and find out what life is really all about.

 

[Storer68]

That would be SIR Stanley Matthews and SIR Tom Finney, and SIR Bobby Charlton, and the likes of them.

Yes I would mucch rather go back and watch them than Oleg Luzny, Winston Boegard

 

[MRRF 10]

didnt we once have a man like abromavich controlling our club,m well maybe not so rich.
Bill Archer, we wouldn't want a repeat of that.
I'm happy without money, then again i am an albion fan, i'm poor.

 

[JEM]

Would you rather turn back the clock to when little Alf Stubbins from the post office, and Ernie Dobbs, and Ronald Malley etc used to don their football long-johns and hack at the soggy leather 'medicine-ball', risking injury heading the thing in the net?

In those days, you knew the local boys, and could tell 'em on Monday what you thought of their game on the weekend. No money in it, just for the sport, mind, and none of that fancy-pants prima-donna stuff with flashy cars and women.
Aye, the old flat cap would keep the rain off your eyes, and tucking your trousers in the long socks would keep t' mud off 'em.

None of your soft twinkle-toe johnny-foreigners in our team, not one of those blighters (except perhaps that Harold Fairhart, who had a great uncle who was Dutch I think, and spelled it 'Fahrhuit' or summat).

No, this game has gone to the bloody dogs and no messing about. Not like in my day.
They should all be made to join the army, make real men out of 'em, maybe see some action and find out what life is really all about.

A not in my day post! From the days when men were real men, women were real women, and small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri were real small furry creatures from Alpha Centauri.

I used to have one of those old, proper laced stitched footballs. It was true, you had to have Arnie's ankles to kick it around and headering it wet was tantamount to being driven in the mud like a stake with a hammer. These days a goalkeeper can easily score in the opposition goal with one kick upwind. The reintroduction of these would give the nancy Turks and Brazilians something to roll around on the floor for for real if they copped one in the nads.

I still believe though that today the players play through sheer love of the sport. The reason that they got into it in the first place wasn't for financial gain. The money gained through professionalism is just a (albeit very large) bonus, and for some an added spur to succeed. Really it's the agents who should be brought to book, for corrupting the minds of the players into believing that money is the be all and end all of our beautiful game.

 

[Blackadder]

Just want Falmer to come for us. Once that happens, The investment will come and we will get success the proper way!

 

[Rich Suvner]

Don't agree with this concept of "buying" success at all!!! Newcastle never managed it and Wolves failed for years in Div 1. Chelsea, were already in the top 4 in the country and haven't spent much more money than Man Utd, Arsenal and others did in recent years anyway. They still have to do the hard work on the pitch.

Anyway, whilst I would always prefer to have a chairman with the club (not business) at heart, I wouldn't mind somebody investing millions were there an FA clause (which their should be) that ensured clubs can not be disbanded, or assets sold for personal profit. With new, and dubious money beginning to enter the English game this needs to be investigated.