#9 v3 | Page 7

Kinnear; well nobody knows why he was here, what he did or what he brought to the roll. His words were a joke, his position even more laughable. Words other than that fail me when it comes to Joe Kinnear. !and I’m sure many others believe that Ashley I is no longer interested in Newcastle United as a going concern and hasn’t been for at least five seasons. He is maneuvering for a sale. The signals are all there; the lack of any incoming transfer activity; the cash being banked from player sales; the accumulation of signings only on loans and easy to get off the books for a new owner. ! was told earlier in the season about a firm I offer that was made to buy the club but Ashley wanted to wait until after the January transfer window before concluding. It wasn’t a conversation in a pub or something picked up from some far away forum. It was information regarding a genuine bona fide offer but Ashley’s insistence on waiting killed it. The potential owners walked and that deal seems dead, but who knows what’s round the corner in the world of Mike Ashley. ! the 5 year plan that was spouted so Perhaps flagrantly by Llambias is coming to fruition. Perhaps the plan was simply to recoup the debt accrued from his misguided purchase. Perhaps it was nothing to do with performances but simply an asset strip. Net transfer profit, repayments of loans, Cabaye money, and Television revenue. They soon add up. And after all, the Board tells us that we are in a healthy financial position. Sell a cash rich club and you are hardly going to leave a nice nest egg in the bank account for the new owner are you. For a man who utters nothing his actions appear louder than words. I hope I am right and a sale is close at hand. Our club is too good and our supporters too loyal to have to put up with him much longer. Asset Strip! The news that the bidding process for the club owned land on and around Strawberry Place that is currently utilized as the Metro carpark is entering the next phase, brings home how ill thought out commercial decisions can jeapordise all future potential growth of the football club. ! As NUST state, these plans to sell the land for development puts a cap on the capability of future owners of the club to develop the club further. ! “None of this looks like being part of a strategy to have a growing, sustainable football club that is doing everything it can to increase its own income and thus its sporting competitiveness. “It looks very much like part of a plan to asset strip NUFC and make short-term decisions that are in the interests of the owner, rather than the long-term future of the club.” ! As a football club we should be looking at past mistakes made in the name of commercial expediency and for that you need to look no further than Chelsea and Stamford Bridge. The Chelsea Hotel complex has completely stymied any possibility for Chelsea increasing their capacity at the Bridge. We should not allow the club to sleepwalk into a similar situation. Enough is enough Mr Ashley; stop asset stripping and if you have no plans to build this club then sell it as a full package, not as pieces at a car boot sale. 7