High Noon in Portsmouth All Week
Posted on | August 10, 2009 | No Comments
I’m not even going to try and predict the outcome of the Portsmouth takeover, which has now reached epic proportions, but surely something has to give this week?! With that in mind, today’s blog outlines some of the recent and potential developments without pretending for a second to have the faintest idea how things will turn out!
First, the timescale. Of course, most people believe Sacha Gaydamak has now set a deadline for Sulaiman Al Fahim to complete the deal, which will expire some time at the weekend. If true, we will obviously have a resolution one way or the other before then, but typically nothing is clear with the Al Fahim camp denying the existence of this time limit. The reason I believe that something must happen this week is because of the twin pressures of Gaydamak’s debt to Standard Bank and the ever tightening transfer window.
Even if no such deadline has been formally set by Gaydamak, in essence it exists. Despite an encouraging win over Glasgow Rangers at the weekend, the squad is at tipping point, both in terms of quality and depth. If he cannot be sure of completion, Gaydamak will have to begin selling more players next week in order to keep the club out of administration. This would be the worst case scenario for him as it would see him losing even more than most people believe he already stands to lose from the deal, quite apart from the fact that he would have no choice but to act to avoid a ten point deduction. Equally, Al Fahim cannot possibly want this to happen as the squad would then be so damaged as to be unable to compete, even over half a season. Al Fahim is believed to be planning to attend the match against Fulham at Fratton Park on Saturday. Should be very interesting!
I referred to the team itself earlier. That win against Rangers has given us all hope, especially as our star close- season signing, Frederic Piquionne, showed that he can score goals (good goals too). More than that, the whole team played well with Kranjcar putting in an impressive shift and Marc Wilson looking good. I just hope we don’t get too carried away. It did show that we have a team that can still compete, but it was still just a pre season friendly, and the squsd needs more depth for the long season ahead. This needs addressing NOW and I hope Al Fahim realises this.
Titbits? Well, the latest seems to have come from Peter Storrie, who seems cast in an ever more heroic light at the moment, given the circumstances. In an aricle in The News today, he said, ‘just wait and see’, twice! I would find that a strange comment for someone who just a couple of days ago emailed a fan to say that he knew nothing about the progress of the takeover or how long it would take, and was at pains to point out that it was between the two protagonists. In the same interview he attacked the national press for printing rubbish. Very bold for someone who had seemed so downcast a couple of days ago. Come on Peter, spill the beans!
Even if Storrie does know that the takeover will go through, the question still remains as to what kind of takeover it will be. We are not so sure now of a bright new future with riches to spend on a new stadium, training ground, and players. But surely a prospective new owner would not go through all this trouble, only to struggle to even add to an already depleted squad? If the takeover happened tomorrow and we were only able to buy a couple more modest players before the end of the month, I would expect this squad to get through to January competitively while more permananet foundations for the club were laid. This has to be his intention, doesn’t it? Something approaching his original vision for the future? Only time will tell. This Week.
Tags: Fratton Park > Frederic Piquionne > Fulham > Glasgow Rangers > Marc Wilson > Niko Kranjcar > Peter Storrie > Pompey > Portsmouth takeover > Sacha Gaydamak > Standard Bank of South Africa > Sulaiman Al Fahim
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