Blades in America Podcast

[NerdyBlade]

He knows exactly what he is doing.

Of course he does, but (and this is a literal quote) he said Brewster was a waste of money so he can't be doing spin for PA

 

[Ukkonen]

I thought it was a good video, wasn't expecting it to be an hour long when i first saw the tweet, was good to get that much feedback.

We haven't heard anything from them up until now, we now have, be slightly happier or stay mad, I'm 50% happier.

 

[Irv]

Fair enough but if the owners intended to pay the money owed as agreed I very much doubt the whole issue would have got this far and resulted in the reaction and statements being released by the previous owner.

Maybe, as others have pointed out, I don't have all the information and I'm being a little harsh but I also think that anyone of the opinion that everything the owners are doing is morally correct and proper is being very naive.

We'll see.

utb

You accused them of being crooks- that would suggest they’ve done something more than ‘morally’ wrong. I’d be very very careful about some of the language you’ve used- you don’t want to be ‘Dave Allan’d’

 

[Bladesman]

Of course he does, but (and this is a literal quote) he said Brewster was a waste of money so he can't be doing spin for PA

Depends which way you want to look at that, I think he is likely implying it was Wilder who wasted PA's money on Brewster.

With how involved Wilder is with everything and certainly was back then, I doubt it's PA recommending the club sign Brewster and buying him.

 

[NerdyBlade]

Depends which way you want to look at that, I think he is likely implying it was Wilder who wasted PA's money on Brewster.

With how involved Wilder is with everything and certainly was back then, I doubt it's PA recommending the club sign Brewster and buying him.

There's also tweet evidence of him saying "Balogun was an option but we got Brewster instead", so he's not exactly throwing PA under the bus

 

[Bladesman]

There's also tweet evidence of him saying "Balogun was an option but we got Brewster instead", so he's not exactly throwing PA under the bus

Wilder has been recommended players all the time. As we know he hyper focuses on his targets and ignores the rest.

Like I said the other day he had been tracking Hamza for pretty much all of his career.

 

[Sraboys]

Sound like he wants be a another donanld trump sorry for the spelling he’s say we can pay the wages for player eg hammer no they can’t be bothered so say in the USA and leave Sufc alone

 

[HIBGIA]

Wilder has been recommended players all the time. As we know he hyper focuses on his targets and ignores the rest.

Like I said the other day he had been tracking Hamza for pretty much all of his career.

I am hoping that Wilder does not get another contract extension TBH.

 

[Chezzy Blades]

Comes across well, though he'd have been better advised to do the interview with a local journalist or club channels. Presumably he wanted a soft interview with no uncomfortable questions. Keeps referring to us as 'Sheffield'. Didn't get pressed at all by the interviewer over the dodgy business restructure but it sounds like they have simply chosen not to pay PA his money so we can be competitive this season. Doubt his comment that "It's time to look to the future not the past" will appease PA. Convinced we won't get a points deduction but also openly admits he is not an expert on English football.

Also says he's a very private person and wishes that they would take that photo of the new owners greeting fans off the website.

And a moan about YouTube ads. Towards the end there was an ad every 90 sect. They are really taking the piss these days.

Youtube ads are placed by the content creator. It's clearly just a way to try and pay off the prince with ad revenue..

 

[Nick Jansky]

Youtube ads are placed by the content creator. It's clearly just a way to try and pay off the prince with ad revenue..

I watched it on the club app. No ads at all.

 

[CrookesBlade]

As somebody who in the past has said McCabe, The Prince and Ruben Selles have all “spoken well” in interviews I’ll give this one a miss.

FH lot are a strange bunch, seen them walking round town together as a 3 with a behatted Ralph always in the middle. Saw them browsing the pumpkins in M&S together and found it really unsettling.

Never understood Alan Biggs place in the local media either…..did he used to do a column somewhere or something? Seems fairly thin gruel to live off.

 

[Greasy Chap Butty]

Well no, it's manufactured set-up with answers. There is no push back or asking the awkward questions, much prefer a real interview.

What, like local journalists give to Bettis and Wilder???

 

[Dkc]

FH lot are a strange bunch, seen them walking round town together as a 3 with a behatted Ralph always in the middle. Saw them browsing the pumpkins in M&S together and found it really unsettling.

FH presenters can be criticised for many things but 'browsing the pumpkins in M&S' is probably the most leftfield yet.

 

[SwissBlade]

Danny Hall for one is a big Blade and certainly not 'pig favouring'. He'd have done a better job. As would Adam Oxley, and most Blades podcasters.

But Rosen seems to be comfortable doing it with a guy he’s got a lot of history with… nothing wrong with that. He set the agenda and no doubt wanted to show himself in the best way rather than being probed too much on topics he didn’t want to dwell on

As others have said, it’s good to actually hear from him, even after nearly 2 years and with his own agenda

 

[BiggerBladeThanThou]

Probably not the thread for anti-Wilder talk….but, this is a huge problem I’ve talking about for a while.

7. Rosen did not realise the scale of CW's involvement in all aspects of the Club when he dismissed him. One reason for bringing him back.

The great SUFC reset is needed.

 

[BrianTheBlade]

That's like buying a car, scraping the side then saying you don't want to pay full price because it isn't worth that anymore....

What if the person who sold you teh car deliberately mis represented the car ?

That would be grounds for a refund no .........

 

[AWetFlannel]

This.

Fans moan as they aren’t hearing from the club, one of our co owners then comes out and addresses the issues he’s legally allowed to and they moan some more. He can’t win.

Do you know that he's said all he's legally allowed to?

Fans complain that they are worried about their club and the actions of its owners. They want answers, they get a carefully controlled bit of propaganda and they still moan. Poor billionaire bloke can't win!

 

[JohnDenver]

Thoughts on the vid.

It’s troubling how naive they are, but at least they admit to that and profess to want to learn.

They talk about getting the technology and processes correct, which again is good to hear. But that’s two bad summer windows on the spin, and a simple reversion from Selles/Bord back to Wilder. They need to do more and do it better to win people over.

They talk about the legal dispute and holding company shenanigans. Ok they’re limited in what they can reveal, but do they acknowledge the damage it can cause to recruitment and reputation, even if they’re correct about avoiding punishment?

From here the acid test of their era will be academy development and greater professionalism from the top. Clubs who succeed without parachute money are generally stable and intelligently managed. Are they up to that? It’s a long way from how they started…

 

[Revolution]

as ever with Sheffield United owners, ignore what they say and watch what they do.

This guy and his pal have:

- sold 3 of our best players in this transfer window and not allowed them to be replaced.

- concocted a scheme to avoid paying the remaining money they owe for the purchase of the club. It might work, it might not, but irrespective of that it shows them up as amoral arseholes.

- no intention of putting any more of their money into the club, instead looking for other suckers. Classic private equity/venture capital wankers.

- pissed away parachute money because they have no idea what the hell they are doing and have been fooled by the likes of James Bord.

The sooner these clowns get out of our club, the better.

 

[Champagneblade]

That's me out of suggestions then

Could always ask sam

You asked me the other day what was I expecting. This isn’t a dig, it’s a genuine response because we now have some owner communication.

Something like this is what I was expecting.

Engage. Explain some things. It doesn’t mean that you tell supporters what they want to hear, but share your thinking, your motivation, your vision, your plans. Let them know you see them as supporters and you’re a custodian, not that you see them as customers. The positive was also when he categorically stated, after showing he understood the similar demographic between Cleveland and Sheffield, “we can’t raise ticket prices”.

I thought it was a decent interview in so much that I feel a greater understanding of their motivation and some of the decision making and thought processes.

I think clearly part of the problem in this window and where social media has battered us because of sales is SCR. Why are Sheffield United selling their best players? We are unique. We are the ONLY team who had parachute payments last season and who doesn’t this season at the same time as SCR coming in. In that sense we are probably the most stringently penalised club of all the 24 as there is more downward pressure on us than anyone.

I feel a little more philosophical about that. I’m sure when the next accounts come out it will be probably the most revealing.

He’s probably gone some way to humanising himself as an owner and whilst he’s not been in your face like Storch, I’m ok with that. It’s just at the time, saying nothing, when there is unrest isn’t healthy.

I’m still intrigued with the ins and outs of the Abdullah thing though it concerns me if the football league should have been advised of the move to 1919 that Bettis has been Administrator of the club for so long that he didn’t advise this. That’s surely where his expertise comes in?

Overall it was helpful in terms of PR. He probably couldn’t share more on certain things but it hasn’t hurt at all in my opinion.

 

[Champagneblade]

AND ANOTHER THING!

what the hell are the EFL going to think about this flippant dismissal, it's only going to invite more scrutiny or just outright punishment

But it’s at least the first bit of PR the other way.

PA could have just pushed on the funds being needed. But instead he decided to float the idea of 12 point penalty that would ruin the season and obviously use the momentum the media lapping that up would create.

Rosen has at least countered publicly that COH has no ties to United, the football club pays its bills on time (nice subtle if probably unintentional dig at Wednesday) and in no way is it linked to insolvency of a related company therefore it cannot qualify for that area of the rules which attracts -12.

Now he may be wrong in due time and the Regulator or EFL may find some other angle, BUT, at least there is a counterpoint out there where previously there was a vacuum.

 

[Champagneblade]

I do find it funny that all the people feeling jilted by not doing this interview (Staton, Hall, Biggs) are now saying "He may be confident about points deductions but that's not what I've heard" almost on cue

This is what irks.

Not the United dedicated media but those who cover both teams, they couldn’t wait to give a platform to those pushing that there should be no penalty for Wednesday. It wouldn’t be fair. It’s harsh on the fans. Haven’t we suffered enough? Etc.

Same folks doubling down that they think there should be an incoming punishment rather than latching onto this and attempting to push the narrative the other way. Get a lawyer on the show to support that no such event has taken place directly or indirectly with Sheffield United and therefore that part of the rules is not applicable.

But no, they’d rather be driven by the fact they feel jilted than look to help protect the club.

 

[Bladey_blade]

This is what irks.

Not the United dedicated media but those who cover both teams, they couldn’t wait to give a platform to those pushing that there should be no penalty for Wednesday. It wouldn’t be fair. It’s harsh on the fans. Haven’t we suffered enough? Etc.

Same folks doubling down that they think there should be an incoming punishment rather than latching onto this and attempting to push the narrative the other way. Get a lawyer on the show to support that no such event has taken place directly or indirectly with Sheffield United and therefore that part of the rules is not applicable.

But no, they’d rather be driven by the fact they feel jilted than look to help protect the club.

The difference is, Wigfield spoke through them and Rosen is clearly aware of what they can ask so did an edited interview independently, one sold papers and got people tuning in, one got people watching united's YouTube and using their website etc and generating revenue directly to the club, via wigfield they were personal beneficiaries indirectly due to their organisations benefitting too. Ironically this was in a period where a heavily viewed monetised YouTube interview on their official channel could have helped keep the lights on. I'd imagine you're less likely to click an article or buy the star to read an article that you've sat through yourself via youtube etc for free.

 

[bladesmanluke]

FH lot are a strange bunch, seen them walking round town together as a 3 with a behatted Ralph always in the middle. Saw them browsing the pumpkins in M&S together and found it really unsettling.

Can we just circle back to this for a moment. I too find that an unsettling prospect and I can't put my finger on why.

 

[Blade In Flame]

Can we just circle back to this for a moment. I too find that an unsettling prospect and I can't put my finger on why.

 

[Korean Blade]

Kudos on the snout carving. It's the fine details.

 

[S64 Blade]

Brief update from our lord and savour El Accounto:

• he never did any sort of PR for Abdullah
• Yes, he did tweet inside info from the club that may have made PA look better, but that's not PR
• he also tweeted stuff that made him look misguided, but thats "up to the readers interpretation"

I thought he was quitting Twitter/talking about United?

 

[Whiston Blade]

Just caught up with this earlier thanks to insomnia. I quite liked it, Steve Rosen came across quite well imo, nothing ground breaking or revealing but I didn't expect that either. I never expected him to open up and tell all, but what he did say I thought was interesting. I found it nice that he brought his family over for the Playoff Final and wasn't aware CW went to Ohio for talks prior to retuning to us.

Like I said nothing ground breaking but nice to hear from him regardless. Some people are going way over the top about this, just take it for what it is, he's currently running the club so we need to have faith in his ability.

UTB

 

[metalblade]

Interesting interview. Sounds like they want to bring in an investor but the court case over in Delaware was blocking that so they transferred ownership to 1919, maybe the Prince will get his money when that court case is resolved, maybe not.
What the interview showed was they didn't have much of a clue about running an English football club which is why they had to get Wilder back.
Good to hear the academy is seen as a priority to get right otherwise any decent prospects will just be snapped up by Premier League clubs before we see any benefit from them. Looks like it has been a steep learning curve for them, but talk is cheap, it will be interesting to see if they can repair the damage done and move the club forward and modernise it.

 

[ISZA ⚔️]

Accountant was annoying when he actually knew stuff. He’s insufferable now.

Ask yourself how or why he actually knows the Prince and how he got to that point. And he’s no doubt tried the same tactics with the new owners to no avail. Hence the bitterness now.

I wish he’d just fuck off.