Twenty one games in and I am starting to become more confident of us achieving this seasons aim of promotion, writes Albion blogger Jarrod Hill.
My question to all Baggies fans is this; if we get promoted can we survive in the Premiership without the investment of a money bags sugar daddy??
One simple fact is the more money you have to spend, the more chance you have of success. Just look at the change in fortunes of clubs like Chelsea, Man City, and Wigan in recent years, all have been taken over by rich business men, and all have received major investment.
Their level of success has also been equal to the amount of investment, and at a time when so many clubs are being linked to new multi millionaire owners should Albion be looking to do the same in the near future?
If we take a look at the Championship, both clubs achieving automatic promotion last season had millionaire investors, and the clubs being relegated from the Premiership were all bereft of a major investor.
It could be argued that Albion should be a prime target for any would be investor, we have little or no debt, good facilities, good gates, money in the bank, and more importantly, an excellent chance of playing Premiership football next season.
The recent acquisition of a number of shares by Mr Peace also means that any future deal could now be completed relatively easy.
So, would we want it to happen??
It has proved a success for many clubs and a disaster for others, (Bhatti Bros).
Many of the clubs being taken over in recent years have been by foreign investors, who have no affinity to the club or fans, and are looking to make money.
The risk is when that investment is not going to plan, what happens then?
There is also room for the argument that success can be achieved without this type of takeover, even if they are becoming few and far between.
If we look at our own situation, we have stable finances, good fan base, and more importantly a manager who is achieving great things within his financial budget.
Yes, we spent a lot of money this summer, but it was money re-invested from the sale of players and not from investing money we did not have.
I am also of the opinion that Mowbray is building a team and squad who will have the style of play to compete in the Premiership. His ability to identify players that offer excellent value for money can not be underestimated; Robert Koren, Filipe Texeira, and James Morrison are proof that you do not need to spend upwards of £5million to acquire good players.
So maybe the question should not be whether we need a money bags owner, but rather, do we want one????
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5 Comments
Jarrod,
Another thought provoking blogg, on a subject that is most probably dear to all our hearts.
A) Are we looking to be a major player at Premiership level one: eg top 6
B) Are we looking to be there at level two: eg comfortable mid table
C) Are we looking to be at Premiership level three: eg in the dog fight to survive, or looking over your shoulder at it too closely for comfort.
We have all to recently gone through the roller coaster of emotion that a Premiership dog fight brings. Compared more recently still to the expansive free flowing football that we are now enjoying. Are we happier coming home having been beaten more often than not, or is it a compensation to win more games but end the season with the disappointment of missing out on the BIG league.
Had we gained promotion last year we would have no doubt struggled to make our way. My feelings are that next season (if promoted) as you say; we are now playing the type of football that you need to play in the Premiership - control of the ball and build, not chase around after it then give it away and then chase around again. I feel we could acheive a grade of B/C
(from the illustration above if we go up… nearer to B though) and survive without the need for a major investor at this time.
My own opinion is that yes we are an attractive purchase for the reasons you state; potentially even more so as a Premiership team; but with the sound fiscal policy we have in place let us await the right suitor and try to weed out and avoid a buyer for the sake of it.
My ideal purchaser would be a joint bid from Adrian Chiles and Frank Skinner who I know love my club as much as me.Although ultimately even in the Championship you may soon need a “Sugar Daddy” to survive.
Boing Boing !!
N.B. it has taken me an age to type this comment on “Breen”, he is really getting on my nerves now.
“Many of the clubs being taken over in recent years have been by foreign investors, who have no affinity to the club or fans, and are looking to make money.”
All i can say is when we get to the golden lands TM. gets the funds to buy good players!…
I would always question the motives
of a multi millionaire/billionaire
who purchases a football club,
that he has no emotional ties to.
These people have not made their
vast fortunes by being ruled by the heart,
on the contrary, they are almost certainly ruthless.
Jack Hayward and Jack Walker were genuine fans of their clubs,
and felt joy and despair on the
same level as the paying public.
I have a feeling, one day one of these wealthy owners is going to pull the plug,
and the ramifications will be
incalculable.
We may survive for a few seasons but eventually would come back down. How do we compete with even a small club like Wigan?! And not being disrespectful either.. we just don’t have the clout. I’d prefer to support a stable club anyway.. Imagine if The Mighty Chelsea lost Roman!! Who would pick up that tab??? Nobody.
Krikey if a sugar daddy come to us and got bored it would be bye bye baggies…
A definate NO to anybody buying our club, too many have been brought and nearly lost, how long till this “fad” wears off ?
Yes it may be nice for a couple of seasons to buy, buy buy, but then what ?, what would happen if roman got bored of playing “football manager” and walked away ? Chelsea would implode. Just like the spiralling cost of wages and tickets the idea of buying a footie team will end with some teams losing out massively.