Thames Sports Investment

[dogzbollox]

None quite like RL for flogging a dead horse...

Does that mean she's into Flagellation, Necrophilia & Bestiality...?

[dogzbollox]

So the deal is 6 weeks overdue! Big firkin wow! Hands up if you've ever bought a house......

Totally agree SKB - I did read the whole of your post but didn't quote it all because I read the 1st line and genuinely lol'd... great analogy

[PieEater]

I'm not too fussed about the lack of transfer activity, this is holiday time for most players and staff, they return in time for the end of their contract/start of a new one and then into pre season training.

[Gordons Cumming]

Maybe this delay is some cunning transfer ploy.......................

[Mike Hunt]

Maybe this delay is some cunning transfer ploy.......................

Double

[It's the round thing]

Look at blackburn and the debacle with Venkys. If the PL taking time avoids a similar fate for RFC that is all to the good.

[Pseud O'Nym]

Look at blackburn and the debacle with Venkys. If the PL taking time avoids a similar fate for RFC that is all to the good.

But the tests are only for money and criminality, not competence. There is no reason to believe Venky's would fail them.

[Ian Royal]

Well I do for one, as the questions of if and when this goes through will, presumably, have a direct impact on the budget we can put into the playing and when we can deploy it.

I don't really see why. We've been told we'll operate in the same way as we always have done, just with a bit more cash behind us. We've got a massive increase in income without the takeover, so expect the playing side to be run almost identically with or without the official word on TSI. At worst we'll have just built up some debt which we can cut our cloth to deal with over the next couple of years.

The only thing the deal is likely to affect is whether we can afford to spend as much next summer, and whether we can go ahead with top category academy and the stadium expansion amongst other infrastructure type things.

The club is clearly active in the transfer market, so I don't get what your beef could be... other than this is just an excuse to continue to complain bitterly about everything.

Are you mental? TSI came in and provided the club with the money required to pay Jason Roberts, pay Jimmy Kebe's inflated wages, get Connolly etc..

Without them we wouldn't have done that.

With this season, the club will set out a budget for the year and beyond. Without TSI it would/will be less. Nicky Hammond maintaining that it wont affect transfer dealings probably means he is either supremely confident at this stage that it will go through, or he thinks by the time we have made our priority signings we will know what, if anything, is left.

I didn't say different Rouge. I was talking about the situation now, not 4 months ago. In January we were a Championship club run on the assumption we'd make a decent go of challenging for the play offs. TSI put some money in to help try and ensure we got a decent play off campaign in. Their money got them and us more than we bargained for. Now we're a Premier League club the situation is slightly different.

And I don't see how that really affects my argument, TSI may be willing to pump a bit more in before everything's finalised. Either way, we're unlikely to be significantly held back. We may not be able to make quite the marquee signing we'd like, but we'll do alright regardless.

[Ian Royal]

I'm hardly doomsaying or handwringing you twerp. I'm merely asking who we are to believe - because I was told by different sources and the same as others on here, that the deal was stalling - and that it was something to do with being able to show where the money was coming from. SJM said it would be finalised at the end of March. It wasn't. Then he kept saying "next week". Then people say, well it won't be done yet due to us not officially being a member of the PL. And others are still saying, it's being dealt with now and there are always delays. So for the final time, I'll ask, who are we meant to believe? SJM - who was obviously incorrect with his timings on a number of occasions, my sources, other people's sources or the people who reckon the PL aren't even looking at it yet? It's a right old muddle. That's been the only points I have made. If that's handwringing and doomsaying (whatever doomsaying is meant to be) then gawd help you lot if something ever goes terribly wrong at this club and I dare to offer an opinion on it!

If not handwringing, then what is your constant questioning of everything going on and blowing out of all proportion the delays we are experiencing? You keep asking the same old questions in slightly different ways. People try and give you some decent speculative answers and you just bang on regardless ignoring everything that might be positive.

It's really very simple.
SJM expected the deal to be done by the end of March.
Due Diligence took a little longer, taking us into April.
The FL began their investigations to give everything the go ahead.
We got promoted.
The FL passed their investigations over to the PL because we would shortly become someone elses responsibility. Here is another delay.
SJM believed that this wouldn't delay things significantly, so we get told should go through next week.
This was wrong as the PL's investigation is a lot more thorough.
The PL asked for more info and transparency. Mostly it seems to have been given. Another delay.
With the end of the PL season still going, it had other priorities and probably didn't light a fire under our takeover investigations. Then there's the fact that we aren't officially a PL club yet, so they may want to hold off any annoucement until we officially become one, even if they've already made a decision.

Nothing coming out of anywhere, except - to put it as generously as possible - slightly suspect sources, says there is any problem with the takeover going through eventually. Two of the most reliably ITK posters on here agree that things are close.

So get over it, quit with the asking stupid questions no one can definitively answer, sit back and wait for an annoucement.

[Royal Lady]

"NO-ONE CAN DEFINITIVELY ANSWER" - thank you! So no-one knows for sure, yet people cream themselves over something they're told by a "reliable source". And YOU bang on like you're the bloody RFC oracle or something. Therefore, all the stick I and others have been given for what we have been told is completely unjustified, UNTIL such time as we know DEFINITIVELY what the hell is going on.

[Terminal Boardom]

I'm not too fussed about the lack of transfer activity, this is holiday time for most players and staff, they return in time for the end of their contract/start of a new one and then into pre season training.

Plus there is the minor matter of the Euros taking place this summer.

I hope that a Mod locks this thread until the Club make some sort of announcement or comment. Pointless, unfounded and frivolous speculation helps no-one.

[Simon's Church]

Doesn't hurt anyone either.

[southbank1871]

You could just not click on the thread if upsets you so much.

[STAR Liaison]

SJM believed that this wouldn't delay things significantly, so we get told should go through next week.
This was wrong as the PL's investigation is a lot more thorough.
The PL asked for more info and transparency. Mostly it seems to have been given. Another delay.
With the end of the PL season still going, it had other priorities and probably didn't light a fire under our takeover investigations.

From what I was told yesterday by someone involved the PL have been rather taken up with their television rights negotiations.

That said it still seems very positive and maybe next week!

[philM]

RL, you're a love and all that, but on the last few pages of this thread it feels like you're experiencing a break down.

She's been fishing with her "omg who are we to believe, help me?" shtick just so she could make the above post "nobody knows, thank you, I feel justified"

It's all a bit awkward really.

[ZacNaloen]

SJM believed that this wouldn't delay things significantly, so we get told should go through next week.
This was wrong as the PL's investigation is a lot more thorough.
The PL asked for more info and transparency. Mostly it seems to have been given. Another delay.
With the end of the PL season still going, it had other priorities and probably didn't light a fire under our takeover investigations.

From what I was told yesterday by someone involved the PL have been rather taken up with their television rights negotiations.

That said it still seems very positive and maybe next week!

So they have bigger fish the fry atm?

Big shock.

[Schards#2]

All of your answers have been posted and reposted numerous times, like most of your questions!

The Premier League have been conducting the FAPPT. That goes ahead regardless of whether we are officially a Premier League club yet or not. The Premier League can complete all tests/checks any time they like, but when they choose to make their decision public is anyone's guess.

It's only speculation on here that the announcement will be delayed until we are 'officially' a Premier League club, so the decision may come sooner, or indeed it may come after. Who knows, and what's more, other than you who really cares? It will be done when it is done.

Well I do for one, as the questions of if and when this goes through will, presumably, have a direct impact on the budget we can put into the playing and when we can deploy it.

I don't really see why. We've been told we'll operate in the same way as we always have done, just with a bit more cash behind us. We've got a massive increase in income without the takeover, so expect the playing side to be run almost identically with or without the official word on TSI. At worst we'll have just built up some debt which we can cut our cloth to deal with over the next couple of years.

The only thing the deal is likely to affect is whether we can afford to spend as much next summer, and whether we can go ahead with top category academy and the stadium expansion amongst other infrastructure type things.

The club is clearly active in the transfer market, so I don't get what your beef could be... other than this is just an excuse to continue to complain bitterly about everything.

Due to the investment of TSI, we were able to strengthen the squad in a way that we would not have without them. IMHO, this was the catalyst for automatic promotion which would not have happened without it. Therefore, it seems odd to suggest that, in future, whether TSI is involved or not makes little difference, history would suggest it does.

As for my beef and being bitter, what on earth are you talking about? The guy asked 'who cares' and I explained that I did and why. In what way does that involve any 'beef' or 'bitterness' or in any way amount to a complaint?

[Dare to Dr£am]

SJM believed that this wouldn't delay things significantly, so we get told should go through next week.
This was wrong as the PL's investigation is a lot more thorough.
The PL asked for more info and transparency. Mostly it seems to have been given. Another delay.
With the end of the PL season still going, it had other priorities and probably didn't light a fire under our takeover investigations.

From what I was told yesterday by someone involved the PL have been rather taken up with their television rights negotiations.

That said it still seems very positive and maybe next week!

FL said the proof of funds is done, but he also said there were still questions that needed to be answered.

My take on that from hearing a few things from journos is that it's Samuleson they're not convinced about.

Otherwise it sounds like we're close.

[Gordons Cumming]

Things aren't looking good.

The silence is deafening.

[The Rouge]

"NO-ONE CAN DEFINITIVELY ANSWER" - thank you! So no-one knows for sure, yet people cream themselves over something they're told by a "reliable source". And YOU bang on like you're the bloody RFC oracle or something. Therefore, all the stick I and others have been given for what we have been told is completely unjustified, UNTIL such time as we know DEFINITIVELY what the hell is going on.

+1 to this.

The truth is that (especially if it goes through) we will probably never know the full details.