SJM Interview - BBC South Today (Wednesday)

[Elm Park Pasty]

*SIGH*

1. Just because he may (or may not) have a value of £100M does not mean that he has £100M sitting in a sealed bank vault just itching to be spent. Any net worth for SJM would take into account assets, holdings and property (which probably includes his share of the club, and may even include his loans to it). I'm also pretty certain he took a huge hit in the crash.

2. I have to wonder what many of the people on this board would do if someone related to one of the richest people in the world wanted to buy something they had for sale? I am sure many times, even before the buy out, that the term 'The Zingarevichs' was used quite often. Anyone who thinks AZ bought this club on his own, without at least the implied support of daddy's roubles, are probably a little bit deluded. I don't know why AZ p*ss*d off, we may never know. Chances are the due diligence that they say SJM cocked up, encompasseed BZ's wealth as part of the assessment, and who is going to say no when a billionaire comes knocking? SJM can be grumbled at for a few things, but I seriously can't see this being one of them. On paper this was the perfect purchase for us, shame it turned out to be toilet paper

[Nameless]

*SIGH*

1. Just because he may (or may not) have a value of £100M does not mean that he has £100M sitting in a sealed bank vault just itching to be spent. Any net worth for SJM would take into account assets, holdings and property (which probably includes his share of the club, and may even include his loans to it). I'm also pretty certain he took a huge hit in the crash.

2. I have to wonder what many of the people on this board would do if someone related to one of the richest people in the world wanted to buy something they had for sale? I am sure many times, even before the buy out, that the term 'The Zingarevichs' was used quite often. Anyone who thinks AZ bought this club on his own, without at least the implied support of daddy's roubles, are probably a little bit deluded. I don't know why AZ p*ss*d off, we may never know. Chances are the due diligence that they say SJM cocked up, encompasseed BZ's wealth as part of the assessment, and who is going to say no when a billionaire comes knocking? SJM can be grumbled at for a few things, but I seriously can't see this being one of them. On paper this was the perfect purchase for us, shame it turned out to be toilet paper

Nothing about due diligence would have predicted BZ throwing a wobbly and refusing to fund the deal. Unless you had get Mystic Meg involved....

[Elm Park Pasty]

*SIGH*

1. Just because he may (or may not) have a value of £100M does not mean that he has £100M sitting in a sealed bank vault just itching to be spent. Any net worth for SJM would take into account assets, holdings and property (which probably includes his share of the club, and may even include his loans to it). I'm also pretty certain he took a huge hit in the crash.

2. I have to wonder what many of the people on this board would do if someone related to one of the richest people in the world wanted to buy something they had for sale? I am sure many times, even before the buy out, that the term 'The Zingarevichs' was used quite often. Anyone who thinks AZ bought this club on his own, without at least the implied support of daddy's roubles, are probably a little bit deluded. I don't know why AZ p*ss*d off, we may never know. Chances are the due diligence that they say SJM cocked up, encompasseed BZ's wealth as part of the assessment, and who is going to say no when a billionaire comes knocking? SJM can be grumbled at for a few things, but I seriously can't see this being one of them. On paper this was the perfect purchase for us, shame it turned out to be toilet paper

Nothing about due diligence would have predicted BZ throwing a wobbly and refusing to fund the deal. Unless you had get Mystic Meg involved....

+1 Due diligence (I believe!) only involves them checking the criminal record of prospective parties, and that their actual wealth is comparable to what is claimed. I don't think it involves any sort of check that 18 months in the future you may.....

1. Lose interest when your baby is born
2. Develop a drug habit to the extent that your father grounds you
3. Find that daddy withdraws funding because he is building infrastructure at Sochi
4. Do a moonlight flit leaving your £xxM investment behind
5. Find that daddy has stopped your pocket money because your one off purchase has turned into one of those weekly collectible magazines they advertise on the tv at a much reduced initial price.

I think all these reasons have been speculated about during this season at some point, and none of them are something that anybody could have foreseen really.

[melonhead]

Apparently a very honest insight into how tough things are for him now and why he needs to sell the club.

Wonder whether he will be honest enough to admit that he made a very public commitment to provide transfer funding in the January transfer window and explain why he then failed to deliver on that commitment? Bet the BBC won't have the balls and integrity to ask him about that or pose any other difficult questions. Wouldn't do to put a Knight of the Realm on the spot would it!

so dull

[melonhead]

He actually said there WOULD be funds, not there might be. Out & out liar. Can't wait til he's gone.

Let's feel sorry for a millionaire? P1ss off.

if you believe something at one point, and say so, but then situation changes you can change your mind without being a liar

[melonhead]

He's still got £100 million in the bank. Could still lend us a fiver and not be too fussed

we need ten million

[melonhead]

I've said before that i don't buy the general tale of woe that you don't buy a club to get rich, but i do symphasize with SJM on the funds available to grow message. I think perhaps at the time the gravity of the split was only just emerging. Shortly after the statement, when the funds were needed, why would he commit to a club that he only owned half of. Flip side, if he had 100M, why not get the club valued at the time, invest 5M whether in players or wages (Baird/Sharp was all NA asked for at the time I believe), get yourself over the line and promotion and reap the balance of the profit from the subsequent sale. I can only see our value lower now than a year ago.

because his 100 million is not just sat in a bank to be frittered away. its invested in stuff. mostly shit stuff.

[Z175]

*SIGH*

1. Just because he may (or may not) have a value of £100M does not mean that he has £100M sitting in a sealed bank vault just itching to be spent. Any net worth for SJM would take into account assets, holdings and property (which probably includes his share of the club, and may even include his loans to it). I'm also pretty certain he took a huge hit in the crash.

2. I have to wonder what many of the people on this board would do if someone related to one of the richest people in the world wanted to buy something they had for sale? I am sure many times, even before the buy out, that the term 'The Zingarevichs' was used quite often. Anyone who thinks AZ bought this club on his own, without at least the implied support of daddy's roubles, are probably a little bit deluded. I don't know why AZ p*ss*d off, we may never know. Chances are the due diligence that they say SJM cocked up, encompasseed BZ's wealth as part of the assessment, and who is going to say no when a billionaire comes knocking? SJM can be grumbled at for a few things, but I seriously can't see this being one of them. On paper this was the perfect purchase for us, shame it turned out to be toilet paper

Can I just express a sigh at another incorrect use of "Due diligence".

This is a process done by the buyer i.e. Anton, on the company to be bought, i.e. Reading. Too many people had some sort of faith that the DD would prove things were ok with Anton. Actually, all it does is proof to Anton that Reading's finances were what the accounts said they were.

I'm sure SJM did some sort of assessment of the "deep pockets" but I think he relied on a lot of what he was told. He refused to speak to the Kenwrights at Everton for example. He is perhaps a bit naive and has been taken advantage of. Seems odd but then the fact his £400m wealth has disappeared should also explain how desperate he was. Perhaps without that £25m he would have gone bankrupt with reading being auctioned off anyway.

The only checks performed on AZ were the fit and proper persons tests! I think the only person to fail this was Cellino, passed on appeal as it turned out he had been convicted for fraud (which is ok), as opposed to being on the run from jail?!

[Hoop Blah]

....when the funds were needed, why would he commit to a club that he only owned half of. Flip side, if he had 100M, why not get the club valued at the time, invest 5M whether in players or wages (Baird/Sharp was all NA asked for at the time I believe)

From the rumours I've heard Madejski has had to dip into his own pocket and cough up a couple of million at least to cover the clubs costs over a period of time since Christmas. They may or may not be true but if things are as bad as some would suggest then he's basically already done what you're suggesting Stevie G.

As for spending that bit extra to see us over the line, well there is no guarantee that spendnig another £1m on the likes of Baird and Sharp would've got us up. There was little chance of catching the top three (IIRC) and then you're throwing money at the lottery of the play offs. If money is as tight as it seems then I can totally understand why we didn't do that, especially when we got so close without it.

[Royal Rother]

*SIGH*

1. Just because he may (or may not) have a value of £100M does not mean that he has £100M sitting in a sealed bank vault just itching to be spent. Any net worth for SJM would take into account assets, holdings and property (which probably includes his share of the club, and may even include his loans to it). I'm also pretty certain he took a huge hit in the crash.

2. I have to wonder what many of the people on this board would do if someone related to one of the richest people in the world wanted to buy something they had for sale? I am sure many times, even before the buy out, that the term 'The Zingarevichs' was used quite often. Anyone who thinks AZ bought this club on his own, without at least the implied support of daddy's roubles, are probably a little bit deluded. I don't know why AZ p*ss*d off, we may never know. Chances are the due diligence that they say SJM cocked up, encompasseed BZ's wealth as part of the assessment, and who is going to say no when a billionaire comes knocking? SJM can be grumbled at for a few things, but I seriously can't see this being one of them. On paper this was the perfect purchase for us, shame it turned out to be toilet paper

Can I just express a sigh at another incorrect use of "Due diligence".

This is a process done by the buyer i.e. Anton, on the company to be bought, i.e. Reading. Too many people had some sort of faith that the DD would prove things were ok with Anton. Actually, all it does is proof to Anton that Reading's finances were what the accounts said they were.

I'm sure SJM did some sort of assessment of the "deep pockets" but I think he relied on a lot of what he was told. He refused to speak to the Kenwrights at Everton for example. He is perhaps a bit naive and has been taken advantage of. Seems odd but then the fact his £400m wealth has disappeared should also explain how desperate he was. Perhaps without that £25m he would have gone bankrupt with reading being auctioned off anyway.

The only checks performed on AZ were the fit and proper persons tests! I think the only person to fail this was Cellino, passed on appeal as it turned out he had been convicted for fraud (which is ok), as opposed to being on the run from jail?!

Due diligence is also a process carried out by seller on buyer.

You seem to contradict yourself above but what makes you think no such process was conducted by SJM's team on AZ / TSI & Co?

[tee peg]

[From the rumours I've heard Madejski has had to dip into his own pocket and cough up a couple of million at least to cover the clubs costs over a period of time since Christmas. They may or may not be true but if things are as bad as some would suggest then he's basically already done what you're suggesting Stevie G.

As for spending that bit extra to see us over the line, well there is no guarantee that spendnig another £1m on the likes of Baird and Sharp would've got us up. There was little chance of catching the top three (IIRC) and then you're throwing money at the lottery of the play offs. If money is as tight as it seems then I can totally understand why we didn't do that, especially when we got so close without it.[/quote]

Antons Dad has been paying the wages since the turn of the year.

[loyalroyal4life]

To be fair he did state that he was certain funds would be available for business in January,

[floyd__streete]

Forgot to SKY+ this as I am going to see Ricky Gervais/Dvaid Brent at Oxford New Theatre tonight, but OUT for the exclusive news that SJM has as much ready capital as a Big Issue seller and that RFC are consequently f*cked.

[floyd__streete]

To be fair he did state that he was certain funds would be available for business in January,

Yep, and that was either a total lie or utter media-handling incompetence from the mad old trout.

[SCIAG]

Apparently a very honest insight into how tough things are for him now and why he needs to sell the club.

Wonder whether he will be honest enough to admit that he made a very public commitment to provide transfer funding in the January transfer window and explain why he then failed to deliver on that commitment? Bet the BBC won't have the balls and integrity to ask him about that or pose any other difficult questions. Wouldn't do to put a Knight of the Realm on the spot would it!

Change the record

Fixed.

[floyd__streete]

Apparently a very honest insight into how tough things are for him now and why he needs to sell the club.

Wonder whether he will be honest enough to admit that he made a very public commitment to provide transfer funding in the January transfer window and explain why he then failed to deliver on that commitment? Bet the BBC won't have the balls and integrity to ask him about that or pose any other difficult questions. Wouldn't do to put a Knight of the Realm on the spot would it!

Change the record

Not wrong though is he.

[Royal Biscuitman]

He actually said there WOULD be funds, not there might be. Out & out liar. Can't wait til he's gone.

Let's feel sorry for a millionaire? P1ss off.

Did he say what the funds would be.... £10.75, £50, £10m, £750m, £20k, £100k or 99p

Maybe the funds were inadequate, certainly for signing Billy Sharp.... maybe if we'd discovered the next Nicky Shorey in Leighton Orient reserves he would have pulled the required £25k out of his pocket.

[Silver Fox]

I still wish we'd bought Billy Sharp, he would of got us promoted like he kept Donny up

[Royal Biscuitman]

He's still got £100 million in the bank. Could still lend us a fiver and not be too fussed

I doubt he has that in the bank, more likely it is invested in businesses nobody wants to buy similar to Reading FC...... You can't pay the milkman/buy a new Bentley with shares, it's cash only.

However, having said that he probably does have quite a bit of cash but that's his cash and not the clubs.... The club needs to make more money/save more money, then it will have more money to invest where needed.... although, it does have to pay back loans to TSI as well if called upon to do so.

Businessmen own the club, so if you want them to invest you may as well come up with some business arguments for doing so and perhaps also some ingenious ways they can do this without investing more cash.... You could start by challenging your own employers to sponsor the club or hire a box for some corporate entertaining, that's a positive which will bring the club income, Do your bit, don't just moan.

[MmmMonsterMunch]

He's still got £100 million in the bank. Could still lend us a fiver and not be too fussed

I doubt he has that in the bank, more likely it is invested in businesses nobody wants to buy similar to Reading FC...... You can't pay the milkman/buy a new Bentley with shares, it's cash only.

However, having said that he probably does have quite a bit of cash but that's his cash and not the clubs.... The club needs to make more money/save more money, then it will have more money to invest where needed.... although, it does have to pay back loans to TSI as well if called upon to do so.

Businessmen own the club, so if you want them to invest you may as well come up with some business arguments for doing so and perhaps also some ingenious ways they can do this without investing more cash.... You could start by challenging your own employers to sponsor the club or hire a box for some corporate entertaining, that's a positive which will bring the club income, Do your bit, don't just moan.