Has McCabe mugged us?

[beightonblade]

got fed up ? , cash flow problems ?, or what ?

Why do the Blades always get stuffed ?

 

[alcoblade]

He's loaded us with £50M of debt

He's burdened us with a Chinese club losing £2M per year

He appointed a corrupt board at Chengdu who got the club relegated with more cost to us

He tied the club's fortunes to the property market, right at the peak of one of the biggest property bubbles in history.

He failed to back the manager in the premiership

He appointed Bryan Robson

He backed Robson AFTER relegation, who blew the budget, and some, on old players with no resale value.

He was prepared to load us with a further £20M to £30M of debt, just to secure a WC bid. And for what? We're now spending more cash on legal advice after squandering untold thousands on the unsuccessful bid, losing out to a fag packet design.

When the fans really needed leadership and vision, he gave them silence.




I'm sure many will respond with a list of positives, and they'd be right too. But let's just remember there's a royal list of fuck ups attached to him that we'll pay the price for for many a year to come.

UTB

 

[Highbury_Blade]

Only quibble with that is that I never heard Warnock moaning about lack of cash when we were in the premiership.

The rest of it is sadly very true.

 

[Houso]

Exactly. I must have imagined the money spent on Davis, Shelton, Kilgallon, Hulse and others.

But yes, I think since the Premier, he's made lots of mistakes sadly.

Edit to say: a rough 11 million is hardly not backing the manager is it?

 

[alcoblade]

Exactly. I must have imagined the money spent on Davis, Shelton, Kilgallon, Hulse and others.

But yes, I think since the Premier, he's made lots of mistakes sadly.

The backing came too little too late. And what there was, admittedly warnock blew on rubbish. We'll have to disagree if you think that the money we spent was a serious bid at premiership survival, given how little the existing squad had cost.

UTB

 

[beightonblade]

The lack of serious investment in the squad for the Premiership was a BIG opportunity missed.
It told me all i wanted to know about McCabe.

 

[Houso]

The backing came too little too late. And what there was, admittedly warnock blew on rubbish. We'll have to disagree if you think that the money we spent was a serious bid at premiership survival, given how little the existing squad had cost.

UTB

How do you know that the money spent throughout the season wasn't available at the start?

Besides which, 3 million on Claude, 2 million on Hulse, 600k on Legsofwood, 250k on Kazim, 1.2 million on Horsfield... that for me was a fair old whack to be spending.

Then in the January there was 1.75 for Killa, 750 for Fathi, 1.75 for Shellton and 750 for Stead.

McCabe provided the dough, Warnock spent it for the most part on dross. David Sommeil anyone?

 

[Houso]

The lack of serious investment in the squad for the Premiership was a BIG opportunity missed.
It told me all i wanted to know about McCabe.

Spent more than most promoted clubs do. Particularly that season we spent well in excess of Reading and Watford did.

Nevermind that though eh BB, at least it's got your daily McCabe thread out of the way.

 

[beightonblade]

Spent more than most promoted clubs do. Particularly that season we spent well in excess of Reading and Watford did.

Nevermind that though eh BB, at least it's got your daily McCabe thread out of the way.

this is a serious thread......be have yersen.

 

[mickle-blade]

No BB he's not mugged us.
Warnock had plenty and wasted a lot of it
Robson had plenty and completely wasted it
Blackwell has had plenty - even this season - and wasted it. (Unless all these loan players play for free)
McCabe has supported the managers.
What he has done now though is dropped us in it by bailing out these stupid overseas 'investments' and insisting that SUFC has to stand on it's own two feet, while a the same time having to fork out something like £2m per year (It may be more) for the privelege.

 

[alcoblade]

How do you know that the money spent throughout the season wasn't available at the start?

Besides which, 3 million on Claude, 2 million on Hulse, 600k on Legsofwood, 250k on Kazim, 1.2 million on Horsfield... that for me was a fair old whack to be spending.

Then in the January there was 1.75 for Killa, 750 for Fathi, 1.75 for Shellton and 750 for Stead.

McCabe provided the dough, Warnock spent it for the most part on dross. David Sommeil anyone?

Horsfield was already her wasn't he? Davis was £2.5M. I reckon a £5M investment at the beginning of a £40M premiership season, on what we already knew of our squad, was a piss poor effort. We can disagree on this. It doesn't alter my point that McCabe has badly let us down, in many ways.

UTB

 

[Houso]

Horse was in the squad but paid for in the close season and most news outlets have Claude as signing for 3 million with a possible 500k after that based on possible appearances.

Despite this, even if it's 2.5 million, there is no evidence to say that Warnock wasn't told that he had around 12 million to spend and he saved some for January. And as I say, McCabe gave Warnock more money to spend than most chairman give their managers to do the same.

As you say, we can disagree on this, and we can disagree on other things in your list. For instance, you slag him off for backing Robson with cash. If he'd not given him money, he would have been slagged off even more.

Robson was an awful decision, backing him to sign players like Beattie was not.

 

[alcoblade]

Despite this, even if it's 2.5 million, there is no evidence to say that Warnock wasn't told that he had around 12 million to spend and he saved some for January.

There is no evidence either way. And aside from up front transfer fees we were clealry playing "second division" in terms of wages.

As you say, we can disagree on this, and we can disagree on other things in your list. For instance, you slag him off for backing Robson with cash. If he'd not given him money, he would have been slagged off even more.

The decision to appoint Robson is thus directly linked to Robson's subsequent decisions. We burdened the club with ageing overpaid players. This happened under McCabe's watch, with a manager he appointed.


We've aquired £50M of debt, a bunch of businesses that are losing money, can't fill a team with our own players come the end of the season, and are expected to buy seson tickets based on not one detail of what the vision for the club is, other than presuming we'll manage to field 11 fit players. I'm not sure if this isn't one of the worst states we've ever been in, and we're greeted with silence.

UTB

 

[blades1889]

i think so. Why did we need the loans in the first place if we was in the black? Did we really need that chengiu blades (or whatever). He failed to give funding to warnock when we was in the prim, we was crying out for a creative midfielder. 20m from parachute payments 4 which raised to 8 from jags. 1m from nade. 2m from shelton. 2m from kazim. 8m from both kyles. 2m from killa. 25m from tevez so if we didn't recieve any of these we would be over 90m in debt "/ . Personal i think McCabe been taking some money for him self but does he really need to if hes a billionairre. And he call his self a blade.

Thats what i heard and think above so...

 

[Houso]

I'm not going to continue the argument on Claude, nor Robson as you seem determined to do on both.

I'll end with agreement that the silence is a little troubling... if not particularly surprising considering there's little to say at this moment in time.

Additionally, as many more intelligent posters than me have argued, specifically those who are good with accounts; our debt is not as bad as it seems. The oinkers may love the subject as it makes their debt seem small by comparison, but it certainly isn't.

All of us are dealing with the troubling malaise at the Lane differently. Some, like BB, get all hot and sweaty at the mention of McCabe, others still store their ire for Robson.

Personally, I lament the day that McCabe made the decision to employ Kevin Blackwell. I don't dislike the latter; I just wish he'd fuck off and leave my club alone. There are far more worthy clubs for his undoubted talents.

 

[alcoblade]

I'm not going to continue the argument on Claude, nor Robson as you seem determined to do on both.
.

I was just responding to your points......

However we got here, we aren't in a very good place now. That's happened under McCabe's watch.

UTB

 

[TAMUS]

I wonder what McCabe thinks about it all ,he will lose millions , because of cheating council Bias and a bent FA

 

[Bladesman]

nope I still have my wallet

 

[grafikhaus]

The way I see it is this:

The 'money men' (McCabe, Glazers, Hicks etc.) obviously move in different circles to us. They rub shoulders with like-minded people, visit the City institutions and generally benefit from info and tips not available to the rest of us.

Around 3 years ago, they would have sensed that dark clouds were looming for the economy. It could have been the aforementioned insider knowledge, it may have become a self-fulfilling prophecy or maybe having Gordon Brown in charge of the purse-strings set alarm bells going.

Whatever, they knew that traditional homes for their money were unlikely to provide the best return on their investment.

"I know," they probably thought "football is booming and where else will you get thousands of people flowing through the doors every other week, regardless of the quality of the product? Plus Sky is willing to filter money down to even the most hopeless cases."

So they re-invented themselves as knights in shining armour, coming in to bestow riches on clubs (something they've been well-versed at when taking over 'failing' businesses). Which football fan would argue with that? Man. City? Chelsea? Even those at Portsmouth who are now wise after the event didn't question the spending of countless millions on players. Backed by 19k crowds.

The payback? Interest payable on their loans far and away more than they could expect elsewhere. But whose arguing? They have put millions into the club and so deserve some recompense.

In our case, instead of investing in the squad (always a risky proposition), K. McC decided property was the best option. After all, it's what built his empire, wasn't it?

Except, as it turns out, these Masters of the Universe knew about as much as we did. Oh sure, they'll escape the full effects of the recession - the politicians will look after them in the hope of a place on the board when it's all blown over.

So have we been mugged? Personally, I don't think so. McCabe has just done what's worked for him in the past. They really can't help themselves and what do we know? Have we got a private jet? Do we commute to Belgium?

Unfortunately, as has been proved time and again, the dynamics of football are totally different to other businesses. Even the almighty barrer-boy Sugar had his fingers burnt at Tottenham.

McCabe, in employing both Robson and Blackwell at enormous expense - both financially and morale-wise - has done something he never would have done when employing the lowliest sales manager in any of his other businesses. He totally disregarded CVs littered with almost total failure, and gave the job regardless.

And now we, the fans, will be left to pick up the pieces. Starting at Hillsborough.

 

[raul]

Failed in every single objective? Yes. Mugged us? I don't think that was ever his intention, but you don't get that rich by not looking after number 1, first and last.

Better to have tried and failed than never tried at all, but it's the fact that having failed, he's still making sure he's handsomely rewarded, that's a little galling.

I think he's looked at the wage demands of decent players, worked out that 18000 x £350 (an average) doesn't buy them and has no interest in making up the difference, when he's got a nice little income stream without any further bother. Can't fault it to a degree neither.

 

[beightonblade]

an owd mate of mine used to say:

yer have to rob yer friends cause yer enemies won't let yer

 

[Micalijo]

got fed up ? , cash flow problems ?, or what ?

Why do the Blades always get stuffed ?

I thought Scarborough was in deep shite, I thought McCabe had serious cash flow problems, but they bought that £38m shopping centre in Blackpool recently.

No idea what he's thinking but it is hard to blame someone for wanting their money back. Cash is available and he's taking it - it's his company so fair enough. It doesn't help us fans though and the speed with which the quality of the squad has diminished is frightening, but even last summer Blackwell was splashing cash on players that other CCC clubs could only dream of so it hasn't been a total failure on McCabe's part. Main problem for me is Blackwell - it is perfectly possible to run a decent CCC squad playing half decent football on 20k crowds (with minimal cash investment from top brass) but KB has not got the ability to do it.

 

[LouTheBlade]

I always get the impression with United that when this inevitable period of decline rolls around again, its all because we have staked too much, but not enough.

As a club we have always seemed to be run by those with big ambitions, but no gumption or courage to back it up. Always we seem to spend a little more than we have and enough to put us in financial trouble, but not enough to keep us in the upper echelons. It's like being brave at first and then backing out when it gets too hot and too much is at stake.

If we have such a half-arsed mentality all the time why bother taking such risks at all?! A perfect example was when we came back down. We bought Beattie, Naysmith, Hendrie and loaned the likes of Bardsley and Cahill. I thought at the time, very nice but we could have really used these players LAST SEASON! WHEN WE WERE IN THE PL!!!

United have historically always made bad decisions when it comes to the crunch. Any decent ones they have made have always come to late. That is why we always end up in the same predicament. No one shows any bottle at the right time. Poor management at board level, it's always been the same. But I suppose a lot of clubs can testify to that.