Soccer Thread : 2004-05 (16 Viewers)

[Benny_]

Since when was Shaun Wright Phillips a keeper

Cole is world class, but a disloyal twat. Having said that I take him over Troare.. just

Guys, there is no reason to get fussed over Torres. He is not better than Michael Owen, especially not in the EPL. Owen is a proven marksman in the Premier League, Torres is inconsistent even in La Liga. What's more Athletico have something like a 50 mil Euro buy out clause on him. The money can be better spent elsewhere.

 

[LMF^^]

I left Wright Phillips there fo you Pool guyz to check out.

I'll take Buffon over all the other keeperz, if only Glazer waz another sugar daddy.

 

[Benny_]

I'd take Frey if he was cheap. He was touted as the next big thing in keepers not so long ago. Seems most of the top keepers are Spanish or Italian. Too bad England can't produce a keeper to save themselves. Hopefully Carson will change that trend.

 

[HeCtic]

I'd take Frey if he was cheap. He was touted as the next big thing in keepers not so long ago. Seems most of the top keepers are Spanish or Italian. Too bad England can't produce a keeper to save themselves. Hopefully Carson will change that trend.

Whenever I've seen Frey on TV he's been rubbish. I don't understand the hype. A Championship Manager player if I've ever seen one.

Reina on the other hand........

 

[LMF^^]

Played CM wit Chelsea and Glen Johnson and Gronkjaer were top playerz. I sold em off totallin 40mil.

 

[HeCtic]

Played CM wit Chelsea

Yuck........

 

[Benny_]

I just watched the goals from the final again and I noticed something hilarious. One of the Milan players was bending down to tie up his bootlaces during the buildup to Smicer's goal! If that's not complacency I don't know what is. Oh well, I'm not complaining!

 

[LMF^^]

Yuck........

I thought CM waz all about money spendin, so hence I chose Chelsea.
Too late to start again now.

 

[HeCtic]

You can actually sit there and want Chelsea to win? At anything? Hope you wash afterwards.

 

[LMF^^]

Shouldn't take gamez too seriouzly, I played FIFA wit Arsenal too, but mostly wit my other love Herenveen.

 

[Benny_]

I agree with Hectic. You oughta be ashamed of yourself LMF

 

[LMF^^]

Meh. Playin gamez iz all about havin fun fo yoself.

 

[AcStyle*]

Owen: no regrets

Well of course he's gonna say that, but i wonder how he'll really feel the next time he visits Anfield and sees all his former team mates w/ their Champions League winners medals...

 

[...]

Whenever I've seen Frey on TV he's been rubbish. I don't understand the hype. A Championship Manager player if I've ever seen one.

Reina on the other hand........

thats cos he has a shit defence to back him up
same could be said bout Robinson when he was at leeds

without a decent line of defence, no matter now good your goalie is, you will concede heaps


as for utd, sif buy another forward
for fuck sake, open your eyes fergie, you need a central midfielder and a fucken goalkeeper...

 

[LMF^^]

We really should get hold of Essien, but it doezn't look good wit Chelsea leadin the way.
And the saga over that 19 yr old Nigerian still continuez...

 

[Benny_]

Baros going to Valencia it seems. £10mil + Baros for Aimar or Vincente would suit me just fine.

 

[HeCtic]

Glazer takeover could leave United with £1.55 Billion debt

United face debt meltdown

£1.55 Billion

By Geoff Sweet

MALCOLM GLAZER could leave ManchesterUnited with staggering debts of £1.55BILLION after his takeover.

The News of the World has seen the American tycoon's proposals, which reveal huge penalties if he fails to pay back on time the massive £645m he has borrowed.

Glazer has taken on the huge debts after paying £3-a-share to take United off the stock market.

And Nick Towle, chairman of action group Shareholders United, said: "Glazer isn't so much tied up with loan sharks — he's got himself involved with a plague of locusts!

"United chairman Sir Roy Gardner resigned saying Glazer had provided no assurances about future debt levels, transfer funds, non-interference in team selection and so on. Now we see the true horror of it all."

Glazer has borrowed £275m from American hedge funds, which specialise in lending money to risky ventures at high rates of interest.

And there are big penalties if he fails to pay back on time. Towle said: "The total debt could easily reach £1.55bn if Glazer does not hit all his repayment targets.

"That's the big fear for all supporters.

"Glazer has already paid £100m more for United than most experts said it was worth — and now he faces another hidden £105m dealing with the hedge funds alone."

Interest

Glazer has also borrowed £265m from JP Morgan and the interest rises to a staggering 20.1 per cent — or £55m — in 2009.

Football finance expert Simon Banks said: "The takeover documents show incredible borrowing. Hedge funds here, £55m there, a £50m credit facility and £40m allowed for capital expenditure.

"It seems that when United told Glazer to put up or shut up they did so after looking at the international finance market.

"They never imagined he'd borrow so much at such high rates of interest. In turn, Glazer was stuck with all the shares he bought up at £3 a go and had to come up with something.

"He has been forced into extremely high risk areas."

Incredibly, United could accumulate staggering debt of £1.65 BILLION if it all goes horribly wrong for Glazer and he fails to redeem the preferential shares sold to high risk hedge funds for £275m.

Other figures show that the potentially crippling repayment schedule on loans totalling £644m mean that:

* Sir Alex Ferguson could have £25m to spend on players this summer-but after that the cupboard is bare.

* By next May alone the cost of redeeming the staggering £275m worth of preferred securities obtained from three hedge funds could cost the club £105m.

* The cost of repaying the £265m borrowed from J P Morgan will have rocketed to £55m year by 2009.

And all this from a club that this year announced pre-tax profits of just £27.9m after paying dividends of £7m to shareholders.

None of this information was contained in the takeover proposal plan sent to shareholders last week. But closer examination of Glazer's plan have emerged after scrutiny of crucial documents at the London office's of his lawyers Allen & Overy.

The problem with Glazer's hedge fund arrangment is that it will cost him as much as £60m to redeem the preferential shares and another £55m of rolled up interest if, as expected, he moves to reduce this debt after May 2 of next year.

And while repayments to J P Morgan begin with two seperate cheques of £8m in January and July 2006, the percentage of the debt repayment rises to a mighty 20.1 per cent in 2009. The amount increases each year, so by 2009 they'll be paying back a massive £55m a year.

All of which will leave Ferguson with no money in the tranfer kitty after this summer. And should Sir Alex call it a day in a year's time the new Old Trafford boss will be forced to sell before he can buy.

"It's crazy and increases our fears that he may sell and lease back Old Trafford to buy back the preference shares."

Fans are certain to vent their fury at that prospect at a public rally at the Apollo Theatre in Ardwick tomorrow afternoon.

I like the bit in bold. 25mill isn't a big kitty for Slur Alex considering how he's been wasting his money recently.

 

[Benny_]

25mil means he'll get Essien and no one else, seeing as Chelsea want him as well. That probably means they won't get him and will pick up a top keeper plus Parker plus a striker instead.

 

[HeCtic]

I like the "could have" rather than will have bit better though

 

[Benny_]

UEFA President gives Liverpool CL Green Light.

I knew it wouldn't take long. See you guys in the Champions League next year. We'll be sporting our brand new 5 time champions badges.