Ferguson misses point as he hits out at fans and lauds Glazers
Sir Alex Ferguson has once again brought himself into conflict with supporters angry at the Glazer family’s ownership of Manchester United. The Scot, true to this line for more than five years, has defended the Americans while denying that the club’s financial problems have had any impact on the United’s transfer market strategy this summer.
Ferguson, whose sole nod towards protesting fans is to say that every supporter “has the right” to air their views, has consistently backed the Glazer family despite the club’s £716.5 million debt.
Instead, the legendary United manager has blamed a “lack of value” in the transfer market for United’s limited investment over the past two years. Since the club sold Cristiano Ronaldo to Real Madrid for £80 million, Ferguson has bought Antonio Valencia, Gabriel Obertan, Mame Biram Diouf, Javier Hernandez and Chris Smalling for a total investment of just under £40 million.
However, this expenditure falls well short of the Glazer family’s original business model.The Americans promised a net spend of £25 million per season following their 2005 acquisition but figures suggest that United’s activity is significantly below that level. Indeed, the club has invested £192.7 million but recouped £170.95 million over the past five years for a annualised net transfer spend of just £4.35 million.
Despite this fact Ferguson claims that the Glazer family has always supported him in the transfer market.
“They [the Glazers] have done their job well. They support myself and they’ve supported the players. I’ve never been refused when I’ve asked for money for a player,” said Ferguson yesterday.
“What can I do other than carry on the way we’re doing it, and the way I’m allowed to carry on? I’ve no complaints.”
Ferguson also believes that the Glazers remain blameless for United’s financial position, with a leveraged sale inevitable once the club had floated on the stock market in 1991.
“When Manchester United Football Club went PLC, without doubt it was always going to be bought. So it’s unfair that, because a particular family like the Glazers have bought the club, they should come under criticism when anybody could have bought it,” claimed Ferguson in Houston yesterday.
“The debt has come through the club being bought out by an owner. No matter which business is bought nowadays, it’s usually bought with debt. But because it’s a football club, it seems to attract a different type of negative reporting via the media or particularly some of our fans.”
It’s a claim that has almost no factual accuracy though, with PLC status no more a guarantee of inevitable sale than limited company status ensures a club will remain off the market. Indeed, had JP McManus and John Magnier refused to sell their 30 per cent stake in the club at £3 per share in May 2005 United would quite possibly remain a PLC today.
Moreover, the debt-free acquisitions of Chelsea, Manchester City and Aston Villa during recent season belies the claim that almost all buyouts are leveraged in some form. After all, had the Glazers actually been able to raise the price of the club themselves, the family would not have borrowed 100 per cent of the purchase price from the banks and hedge funds.
But Ferguson goes further in explaining his lack of activity in the market, claiming that fans do not want the club to spend large fees on acquiring new players, such as the top class midfielder the squad so desperately lacks.
“The enormous amounts of money that are paid, not just for the transfer fees, but for salaries; I don’t think it rests easy with supporters,”
“But we’re in such a competitive world that you’re hamstrung. Over the years, we’ve bought players for quite high amounts like Berbatov, Ferdinand, Veron and Rooney, but we try to equate how we’re going to get the proper value before we do it.”
It’s an odd statement from Ferguson, who risks being accused of hypocrisy having broken the British transfer record on no less than six occasions during his 23 year tenure at Old Trafford. Even at £27 million, few fans would argue that Rooney, for example, does not represent value. The Scouse striker almost single-handedly kept United in the Premier League title hunt last season.
This is the point Ferguson does not get – at Old Trafford value used to be a factor of success. Today it is about the absolute price.
Yet, it is almost impossible given the club’s heavy spending on debt interest, management fees and the Glazers’ dividends that Ferguson could buy the next Rooney, if the player’s cost is more than £10-15 million, let alone £30 million
Confirmation of this appears to come with United passing on the opportunity to buy the brilliant young Germany Mesut Özil. The player, who Ferguson tried to sign in 2008, surely represents the epitome of value in the market, costing just £12 million at 21 years of age.
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I’d raas that Carol though.
true
Gents,
I will not pretend to know everything about the finances at the club. However, one trhing I do know after 20+ years of ferguson is that he ALWAYS does EVERYTHING for the good of the club. If he is lying (and none of us can seriously acuse him without actual facts, which we dont have regardles of how many papers/accounts/stories we’ve read) then he is lying FOR THE GOOD OF THE CLUB! when have you ever known anything different from Fergie? Things are a lot more complicated than we will ever know. the signing of Ozil for example… you’re all talking like its done and we’re not even bothering. there are WEEKS left of the window and Werder are not just going to sell to the first to come along with a reasonable offer. Why do you think there’s so much activity on the last day of the window when all clubs have had all summer to concude business? They will only sell when they HAVE to and not before. If we show our hand now it could all go tits up because SMART negotiating is not handled like that.
Basically, you all need to grow up a bit. Wingeing that fergie “is lying to us” is quite pathetic. we support the team, we support the players, WE SUPPORT THE MANAGER. After everything he has done and the countless times he has proved us wrong he deserves a lot more from you lot than this. ever heard of benefit of the doubt?? and there is plenty of doubt so dont come back with this ridiculous suggestion that any one of you is trully and actually aware of ALL the facts – you’re not.
we are supporters, how about we SUPPORT??!
Great post, mate!
Good post pal. Say what you want about SAF but he’s united to the core and even if he is fibbing like you said he’ll be doing it for a reason. People should stop doubting the man. This very sight was calling for his head a few years ago over a couple of dodgy seasons and signings, yet here we are 3 league titles and a CL title later. But wait a minute we didn’t win the big trophys last season so the Fergie bashing starts again. How many times do somepeople feel the need to be made a cock out of. Trust the man!!
Your comment that “Ferguson doesn’t get” the relationship between value and success at OT is without doubt the single most ignorant thing I’ve ever read about United on any site.
Eveything Fergie has done over the last 25 years and continues to do is about sustainable year in year out success while building huge value. (Forbes confrm that today MUFC are the most valuable sprting club in the world.)
Pretnding your a United supporter is an embarrsement to all of us who really are.
@ Dave Mack – not sure who that’s aimed at but I’m pretty sick of ‘fans’ like you thinking you have the right to determine other supporters opinions. You don’t. If you don’t like the opinions here you’re welcome to offer an alternative viewpoint but name calling only cheapens your point.
Well said.
United might be the most ‘valuable’ sporting club in the world but they don’t have any money due to debt repayments. Thus, no funds to make the necessary squad improvements.
Fuck me Alfie we often don’t see eye to eye but that was a classic brought a big smile to my face.
Never ever forget that the fans made the club the business it is today.
It’s a reality of life that, whoever was taking over the club was, in the eyes of the
fans at least, going to have to justify that they have the fans’ and the club’s best interests at heart. Without the fans, you can forget about business. If no fans are going to games, buying the shirts (because we dislike the owners) or whatever shit the apologists may masturbate every night over, there is no business. 4000 season tickets being placed on general sale is an example of what happens when you mess with the fans and treat them with disdain and contempt.
Fans measure whether their and the club’s ‘best interests’ are being met by how ownership affects matters on the field (our ability to sign players for example, results). That is true, so there is a financial aspect there.
At the time of the takeover, fans also, quite rightly, questioned ‘what’s in it for the owner?’ – which is a subjective question (not a financial one) that we have been asking since these American scum bags took over. Facts are that the Glazers are businessmen, not United fans, so we have every right to ask this question. When you ask this very simple question, Finance doesn’t even come it. Nothing that has taken place under the Glazers’ stewardship has allayed fears that they are only looking out for themselves.
I completely agree with Alf in that what fucks me off is that Glazer apologists (all of whom come across as smug, pretentious wankers) spend too much time debating the club’s ability to manage the debt when they lose sight of why United fans questioned the takeover in the first place and why they still do. We don’t want the Glazers at our club, simple.
So long as the fans keep going, they will not give a fuck and why should they – they own the shop, fuck you if you don’t want to come in and buy.
As a fan you can huff and puff all you want – the most you can do is vote with your feet and not buy United. Simple as.
It’s a business, a brand, a copyright, a patent, not a football “club” – check out our badge. It’s not been a “club” for a time and neither have any of the big twenty or so clubs around the world.
Money making machines and “fans” are just one of the customers. In the short term they don’t give a fuck about you, they give a shit about Sharp, AIG, Samsung, Stan Chart, Nike, etc.
Fans are too emotional which is why they keep coming back. Fans need excitement outside their working life – for Glazers, this IS their working life – same for Nike, Aon … their job is to make money out of consumers.
Glazers are tryint to stress United to the point at which a material number of fans fuck off. I think there is at least another 10-15 quid on a ticket that they can squeeze out – and then they just keep the cash cow turning.
Fat American cunts, Russian pimp, Arab owner ? Any difference.
The only difference is DEBT. That is it, do you see Citeh and Chavs complaining? No but you do see Scousers and Mancs complaining but – it’s because of the debt. So you do need to sort of understand a bit about it.
Indeed, if you accept that there is essentially fuck all that United fans unless they start a serious movement (which they haven’t done yet) and the Glazers are here for the long haul, then you shld take an interest in the debt – it is here to stay. One solution as some people said above is to convert it into shares – i.e., banks swap the debt for shares, which lowers interest payments and frees up cash to use for improvement.
No fan would give two shits if it wasn’t for the debt – it’s not overseas ownership that is the issue or a fat amercan taking over the club, it’s the debt and the rot that it is causing.
Dannii, that last line is bollocks. There’s two arguments; the debt and the way the Glazers treat the fans.
Thousands of people can’t afford to go to Old Trafford anymore. The ground didn’t sell out once last season. There are thousands of empty seats, and if it wasn’t for the sloping roof it would be glaringly obvioius. A price freeze means fuck all when the price is too high.
Aside from the cost issue, the Glazers don’t consult the fans over any of the decisions they make. They treat us like taxpayers. There’s no line of communication between us & them, it’s a case of shut up & pay.
So if the debt didn’t exist fans would be pissed off with the Glazers because of their day to day running of the club. We want fans in charge, not money men. It is possible to find a balance n all. It doesn’t have to be one or the other. There’s plenty of examples.
i think the vast majority do trust fergie…fuck, with his record how dare we not do?
but at this moment in time, our club is in a precarious situation, nd fergie is spouting shite that he either means or he is playing a game…ffs, fergie nail your true colours tot he mast and lets get the fucking cunting glazers out….and their apologist plastic cunt fans spouting shit on here and everywhere else too!!!!
fucking plastic cunt cunts!!