Should he move to Chelsea or Liverpool or stay at Portsmouth?
Peter Storrie has confirmed that Portsmouth have accepted an offer from Chelsea for Glen Johnson, meaning that the England international has a big decision to make. Should he:
a) Go back to Chelsea
Johnson would get to play Champions League football again and settling in wouldn’t be a problem because he already knows the club and many of the players. However, he has said that he fell out of love with football during his first spell at Stamford Bridge and there is a danger that could happen again.
b) Move to Liverpool
Liverpool were the first team to stump up the cash for Johnson and at Anfield he would have the chance to both play in Europe and make Chelsea regret selling him. Rafael Benitez isn’t very patient with new signings though - see Robbie Keane - and full-back is the least secure position at the club, as Steve Finnan harshly discovered last summer.
c) Stay at Portsmouth
He has rediscovered his love of football at Fratton Park and is guaranteed first-team football there, which is a necessity ahead of the World Cup. With a new owner and manager set to arrive, there is potential for the club to grow, although if it all falls through they could face another relegation battle
Let us know what you think he should do with a vote and comment below:
Entrepreneur relieved of duties at company he started
Dr Sulaiman Al-Fahim - the man who was once thought to own Manchester City even though he apparently has nothing to do with them - is facing a spot of bother in the United Arab Emirates.
The man who is expected to take the reins at Portsmouth in a £60m deal has been relieved of his position of CEO of Hydra Properties, one of Abu Dhabi’s leading property developers.
Al-Fahim - pictured above with an old lady and her grandson - has been “promoted” (read: “demoted”) to as directorial position at Hydra, as one of the firm’s biggest projects is on the brink of collapse. The Hydra Village, a project consisting of 2,500 luxury villas, was due to be completed this year, but it is currently two years behind schedule. Understandably, some investors are concerned, including this one who spoke to The Sun:
“The Hydra Village project has been a disaster and I genuinely fear I will never see my money again.
“I would treat anything Al-Fahim says with a great deal of suspicion.”
It doesn’t appear that this messy situation or his links to Manchester City will jeopardise his eligibility for club ownership, but it doesn’t reflect particularly well on Sir David Richards, the Premier League chairman who has given Al-Fahim his endorsement.
Spoiler bonus: Sulaiman Al-Fahim is the UAE’s answer to Alan Sugar, it seems…
Sunderland fans aren’t the only ones trying to make a monkey out of Newcastle Utd at the moment - today, the ailing club appear to have been the subject of a hoax takeover bid.
A press release issued on behalf of a textiles entrepreneur named Rick Parkinson circulated this morning, claiming the Ponteland businessman is leading a five-man consortium which intends to place a £90m bid on the club. Apparently, the prospective owners pledge to sink £30m into restructuring the business and a further £30m into a transfer kitty for Alan Shearer, the man they would install as permanent manager.
It sounds like a dream scenario for the Toon Army, but the credibility of the bid has been called into question. Seymour Pierce - the investment bankers charged with the gruelling task of selling the club - have not heard from Parkinson, and “well-placed sources” in the city know nothing of his proposed consortium.
Parkinson claims his troupe of knights in shining armour will contact the club within the next ten days (although not via the email address on the Newcastle OS - something he calls “undignified and without class”), but a press release from distributed via an unnamed PR agency to journalists has not inspired confidence in the validity of his plans.
“I’m a Geordie through-and-through and it’s been heart-wrenching to see the club, and their long-suffering fans, being put through the Mill (sic) like this.
“This week’s latest developments, with the club trying to sell itself via an e-mail address on the official website, is just the final straw in what has been a wholly embarrassing tenure for Mr Ashley.
“It’s time for him to sell-up, and I believe the time is right for me to step forward. I’ve been
Sorry Toon fans, the rotund cockney ain’t going anywhere just yet
Newcastle fans desperate to see the back of Mike Ashley must have thought their prayers had been answered when clicking on the Sky Sports website this morning and finding the headline “Magpies poised for takeover” as one of the lead football stories.
The sub-heading “Middle East-based consortium have bid accepted” would have whetted appetites even more only for a glance down the page to reveal the story is about League Two side Notts County.
Far be it from us to accuse someone of using a misleading headline to get hits on their site (ahem), but they could have avoided heaping more misery on the Geordie nation by taking Auntie’s approach .
In case you missed it on Wednesday night, Arsene Wenger showed his players that he too can break out some dance moves when celebrating a goal [Youtube]
Sir Alex Ferguson has accused Rafael Benitez of “arrogance” and “contempt”
[F365]
Jose Mourinho taunts Alessandro Del Piero ahead of tomorrow’s Derby d’Italia
[Goal]
West Ham are about to be taken over by a consortium of international banks
[The Guardian]
The FA have assured David Moyes that Mike Riley is not a Man Utd fan
[The Sun]
AC Milan/ LA galaxy star could helpout struggling League One side
Before signing up at Manchester Utd as a fourteen year old, David Beckham had trials at his local side, Leyton Orient. Today, O’s owner Barry Hearn has confirmed he is in talks with Beckham’s agent and trusted confidante Terry Byrne to explore the England star’s interest in buying the club:
“It’s true I’m in discussions with Terry Byrne over the possibility of selling Orient.
“I’ve always said I’m a fan of the club but it doesn’t mean I have to be the owner so long as I can guarantee its long-term survival.
“At this stage we’re only in discussions but it only takes a minute to agree something if it’s in the best interests of the club.”
Last week, we heard that Dr Sulaiman al-Fahim, the tycoon who led the Manchester City buyout, was part of an international consortium interested in buying Chelsea.
Today, it has been reported that awesomely-named German investment manager Holger Heims (the handsome devil pictured above next to the Doc) is part of the eight-person consortium, whose members hail from Europe, the Middle East and Asia.
There have not yet been any formal talks with Roman Abramovich, but the German money man has insisted any takeover negotiations would be ‘friendly’.
According to German paper Bild, the price tag of the West London club could be around €770m (£719m) - more than three times the sum paid for Manchester City, and more than five times the £140m Roman Abramovich dished out to take control in 2003.
Abramovich is said to have spent around £600m on Chelsea football club, so if the £719m price is accurate, the Russian could virtually break even if he decides to sell. In the present economic climate, that would be an absolutely incredible feat, and a very tempting reason to “cash out”.
More foreign money to be poured into the Premier League
According to this morning’s Sun newspaper, Liverpool’s financial chief Philip Nash and commercial director Ian Ayre have been sent to the Middle East to thrash out a takeover deal with the man above, Nasser Al-Kharafi.
The Kuwaiti, who inherited most of his £12bn net worth, is currently the world’s 46th richest man, and is said to be interested in a £400m deal for the Anfield club.
Last November, we suggested the current financial apocalypse would force out the eternally unpopular Hank Hicks and Billy Bob Gillett, and the 64-year-old father-of-five is looking to take the club away from them completely. However, at present, it is understood that Liverpool want the Yanks reduce their share to 25 per cent, with Al-Kharafi claiming the remaining 50.
Liverpool’s debts currently stand at £350m, which they owe to two banks (Wachovia and the Royal Bank of Scotland), and have even been faced with the prospect of selling their biggest stars to balance the books.
Liverpool fans and Jamie Carragher are particularly unhappy that Hanks and Gillett have pulled a profit from the club, while failing to invest in the squad and neglecting to start building the new Stanley Park stadium.
If this deal went through, the Reds could potentially be as well-funded as Manchester City, but nowhere near as laughably unpopular.
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