Portsmouth...a simple solution

[Pete]

Portsmouth have to find something like £11million pretty soon or they are going out the window. If this happens then all points will be taken off teams gained played against Portsmouth.

If this happens then Man City will be the big losers and Liverpool will be the big winners in all of this due to their results against Portsmouth...They would leapfrog them.

The owner of Man City would probably find a sum like £11million down the back of his sofa. Why don't they just find a way of bailing pompey out for this season? The prestige of champions league football and the money raised as a result would be worth far more than the cash outlay when bailing out Portsmouth.
Even Villa, who have an owner who could afford that, might find themselves in that situation where the money to bail them out is a small price to pay.

Is it not just common sense?

[Liam89]

Very true, that's quite a good idea but, i can't see it happening.

[ScottB]

Rather like Gretna I suspect a way to have them limp along till the end of the season will be found. At which point the club will most likely cease to exist.

[Gatecrasher]

IMO - HMRC will put them out of business next monday

sad to see fans lose their club

[weecounty hibby]

Get it up them and I hope they fold. Clubs like that make me sick. Living off other peoples money, spending beyond their means, taking the piss out of the tax man. These are things that ordinary punters or businesses don't get away with so why should they. I hope the others in the same boat follow as well, Cardiff, Palace, Hearts, Rangers etc etc.

[JE89]

Get it up them and I hope they fold. Clubs like that make me sick. Living off other peoples money, spending beyond their means, taking the piss out of the tax man. These are things that ordinary punters or businesses don't get away with so why should they. I hope the others in the same boat follow as well, Cardiff, Palace, Hearts, Rangers etc etc.

Do you not feel for their supporters/players/employees though? They've don't nothing wrong so for that reason I hope they find a solution

[weecounty hibby]

Do you not feel for their supporters/players/employees though? They've don't nothing wrong so for that reason I hope they find a solution
Supporters- have gone along with all that has happened. Players- some of them will be taking in excess of 50-80k per week. No sympathy at all. Employees who could lose jobs, ok a degree of sympathy but it's like the guys who have been working for the banks, happy to take huge wages until it all goes pear shaped.

Sorry but for me they deserve no more help than the many many businesses who have gone to the wall recently

[blackpoolhibs]

I heard on the radio last week, that some of the players Portsmouth brought in during the last window, were still being paid better money than a lot of the teams in the EPL. Some on as much as £60k a week. How can this be?

[MrSmith]

Get it up them and I hope they fold. Clubs like that make me sick. Living off other peoples money, spending beyond their means, taking the piss out of the tax man. These are things that ordinary punters or businesses don't get away with so why should they. I hope the others in the same boat follow as well, Cardiff, Palace, Hearts, Rangers etc etc.

Have to agree with this!

Teams in this position have no sense of responsibility nor ownership of the unfolding situation. In France teams who spend outwith their capabilities are relegated to leagues bottom division.

Times need to change the ongoing nature of buying success is killing football on all levels and those who continually do this need to be prosecuted on behalf of and by the support staff, players and fans who are affected by the greed of so-called owners!

[Scorrie]

Hasnt David Gold at West Ham offered them a loan of £10m to keep them going as they would suffer if the points were expunged? For the supposed best and richest league in the world, it's a shambles. I follow Everton who havent had any money for years but they live within thier means; dont pay nowhere near top EPL wages but in Moyes have a manager who picks decent hard working players and moulds them into a team within a strict budget. Why dont other EPL teams as well? Trouble is if one goes, could others follow as banks etc get nervous?

[weecounty hibby]

Hasnt David Gold at West Ham offered them a loan of £10m to keep them going as they would suffer if the points were expunged? For the supposed best and richest league in the world, it's a shambles. I follow Everton who havent had any money for years but they live within thier means; dont pay nowhere near top EPL wages but in Moyes have a manager who picks decent hard working players and moulds them into a team within a strict budget. Why dont other EPL teams as well? Trouble is if one goes, could others follow as banks etc get nervous?
I hope others do follow. Everton is a great example of how a club should be run. If you don't have the income you can't and shouldn't be allowed to spend the kind of money some of these clubs have been.

I am a bit biased being an Evertonian myself!

[surreyhibbie]

Can't see this being allowed. Are there not rules in place to prevent owners having a financial interest in two teams in the same league?

:confused:

[Haggis Hibby]

Whilst i agree that clubs should be more finacally via-able and live within there budget but you have got to feel for the fans who are fanatical in Pompey for their club....

Remember what nearly happend to us in the 80's... fans have no influence over who buys a club.... i think the governing bodies should take more responsability in the ownership of clubs..

SO to say get it up them is really harsh.... a great club with a fanatical following doesnt deserve to go out of exsistance...

and i include the mob over the road in that....:devil:






Have to agree with this!

Teams in this position have no sense of responsibility nor ownership of the unfolding situation. In France teams who spend outwith their capabilities are relegated to leagues bottom division.

Times need to change the ongoing nature of buying success is killing football on all levels and those who continually do this need to be prosecuted on behalf of and by the support staff, players and fans who are affected by the greed of so-called owners!

[NadeAteMyLunch!]

IMO - HMRC will put them out of business on monday

sad to see fans lose their club

very sad

















until it happens to the yams!!!

[Gatecrasher]

very sad

















until it happens to the yams!!!


too right! :smokin

[iwasthere1972]

Supporters- have gone along with all that has happened. Players- some of them will be taking in excess of 50-80k per week. No sympathy at all. Employees who could lose jobs, ok a degree of sympathy but it's like the guys who have been working for the banks, happy to take huge wages until it all goes pear shaped.

Sorry but for me they deserve no more help than the many many businesses who have gone to the wall recently

Of course they will go along with it - Not much they can do when the club want to overspend. They are not exactly privy to what cash is coming in and going out and like any normal fan wants to see good players at their club.

I would feel extremely sorry for the Portsmouth fans if their club do go to the wall. They are amongst the most vocal supporters in the UK.

[GraniteCityHibs]

I heard on the radio last week, that some of the players Portsmouth brought in during the last window, were still being paid better money than a lot of the teams in the EPL. Some on as much as £60k a week. How can this be?

John Utaka- £80k a week! That's what went wrong at portsmouth! Deals like that for average players. Pat Nevin was on 5 live the other night insinuating that he thought there was something illegal going on with the amount of owners, and that they were trying to make the paper trail harder to follow by continually selling the club on. I feel for the fans as i genuinely believe they are a unique club.

[Viva_Palmeiras]

The OP's Suggestion would set a (bad) precedent.

I think some tough action needs to be taken. There needs to be a "correction" in the world of football - just like in finance. Football is afterall a business.

Otherwise where is the deterrent - effectively if you over-speculate on the never-never and for arguments sake a well run club is relegated where's the fairness in that?

The FA needs to step in but it wont it should have stepped in long before now if it is custodian of the game. Surely has an interest in the longterm sustainability of the league.

The way the millions (billions?) generated by the EPL is distributed should be looked at.

Would be interesting to see the breakdown
- to players (sign-on/transfers/salaries)
- to agents
- to youth
- to grass roots

And consider what amount could/should be set aside as a bond to ensure that clubs can complete the season (much like ABTA do in the travel industry) - why is such a scheme not in place?

Clubs need to start acting more prudently and if they wont the regulators (FA/EUFA/FIFA) should grow some and step in.

As an aside the more desperate the clubs get financially the more they will have to dance to the tune of Murdoch. Could a broadcaster take shares in a club - carlton/Ntl already did previously no? Interesting...

[MacBean]

The OP's Suggestion would set a (bad) precedent.

I think some tough action needs to be taken. There needs to be a "correction" in the world of football - just like in finance. Football is afterall a business.

Otherwise where is the deterrent - effectively if you over-speculate on the never-never and for arguments sake a well run club is relegated where's the fairness in that?

The FA needs to step in but it wont it should have stepped in long before now if it is custodian of the game. Surely has an interest in the longterm sustainability of the league.

The way the millions (billions?) generated by the EPL is distributed should be looked at.

Would be interesting to see the breakdown
- to players (sign-on/transfers/salaries)
- to agents
- to youth
- to grass roots

And consider what amount could/should be set aside as a bond to ensure that clubs can complete the season (much like ABTA do in the travel industry) - why is such a scheme not in place?

Clubs need to start acting more prudently and if they wont the regulators (FA/EUFA/FIFA) should grow some and step in.

As an aside the more desperate the clubs get financially the more they will have to dance to the tune of Murdoch. Could a broadcaster take shares in a club - carlton/Ntl already did previously no? Interesting...


the players must be making a mint with thier inter-transfers between pompey and spurs! the signing on fees as well!
there have been loads of transfers with players going to and fro every season!!

[SidBurns]

It'll never happen but what do you guys think of the following:-

A wage cap at say £30k per week (still a cracking wage) then addition payments of say £20k for a win, £10k for a draw etc etc. Per player say £10k per goal, £5k per assist, £10k per clean sheet, £10k per penalty save etc etc. Would certainly get any team playing although on the downside, players could get even greedier with the ball if it meant an extra £10k for a goal etc etc...

[MrSmith]

When the average man and woman in the stands are paid, on average, £15k per year then something has to be done to stop the madness!

[Viva_Palmeiras]

When the average man and woman in the stands are paid, on average, £15k per year then something has to be done to stop the madness!


And at in the midst of a prolonger recession (or are they saying its officially over) you'd think if any fan revolt or guilt to kick in then it would be now.

People go on about fat cats. Well for what they do (do they generate wealth?) then football players must be up there with the biggest fat cats around - (players V execs) would be an interesting comparison.