Dear Shaun… The letter GFH should have sent

-
Scratching Shed 20/3/14
Dear Shaun,
As a long-serving employee of a tyrannical dictator whose ethics and financial competence made a mockery of the Football League Owners’ & Directors’ test, you must surely recognise the insanity of allowing you the power to determine what constitutes a fit and proper owner?
The three administrations of football clubs you’ve personally been involved in should disqualify you from a position on the Football League board, but when you factor in your involvement in the rigged administration process which allowed Ken Bates to hold Leeds United to ransom and retain control of the club, the whole thing seems destined for a Parliamentary select committee.
I understand that you’re between a rock and a hard place with the media breathing down your neck, constantly highlighting Massimo Cellino’s history while demanding the Owners’ & Directors’ test be properly enforced, but you and the rest of The Football League have no one else to blame. Systematic incompetence led to this situation.
The test itself was nothing but a distraction introduced to relieve political pressure. Since the test has been in place, The Football League has largely ignored it’s requirements, allowing owners to simply tick a few boxes so the League can argue they properly consider each takeover attempt. It was only a matter of time before a situation like the one at Birmingham City arose and the effectiveness of this pointless box-ticking exercise was brought into question.
While The Football League’s attempts to tighten up the testing process are necessary if the test is to be of any use whatsoever, it appears you hesitated to make a decision on Massimo Cellino, dragging the whole process out for weeks because you had no valid reasons to fail him and feared the media backlash. Then came the court case in Italy which has left you all flustered, unsure whether the conviction should apply, whether you’ll be challenged from a legal standpoint if you do fail him and giving the media plenty of ammunition to ridicule your organisation no matter what the outcome.
The whole situation has been a farce. You yourself, as CEO of Leeds United, played a pivotal role in our own takeover, would we have received the same treatment as Cellino if you were in this position then and Ken Bates still owned Leeds United? No one expected you to check the information provided, far less consider the financial means of the potential owner and the club’s activities these last few months.
It’s the inconsistency of it all which beggars belief. It seems The Football League only act when the media pressures you to do so and even then, you’re too scared to make a decision because you fear one option will lead to a legal challenge and the second will have the press tearing you to pieces. You’re too cowardly to face the outcome.
But while you try to find a way to cover your own backs, I hope someone at The Football League stops to consider how paralysing this has been for Leeds United. So far, the only thing the Owners’ & Directors’ test has protected Leeds United from is the chance to move forwards.
I find it almost criminal that someone with your background in football has been given the power to determine the future of Leeds United Football Club, but this is the situation we’re in. No one has been fooled by the continued stalling of The Football League, the test has been too inconsistently applied for anyone to believe you’re acting in the best interests of the club, this has been nothing but a face-saving exercise for The Football League. The future of Leeds United has never been your concern.
If the media hadn’t exerted pressure on The Football League, Massimo Cellino would have ticked a few boxes and passed the test weeks ago. Whatever decision you make, no one is going to think The Football League is any less incompetent, your own inconsistencies and ludicrous hiring policies will see to that. So instead of delaying further and leaving Leeds United to suffer from the uncertainty of it all, please put your back-covering policies to one side for a minute and make a god-damn decision.
Regards,
GFH Capital

Popular posts from this blog

The huge initial fee Leeds are set to receive for Crysencio Summerville’s move to West Ham — Leeds United News 31/7/24

-
Will Butcher West Ham United are closing in on a deal to sign Crysencio Summerville from Leeds United, and Ben Jacobs has shared how much Leeds will receive for the Dutchman. The 22-year-old has been strongly linked with the Elland Road exit door all summer and was targeted as the one big sale Leeds needed to make before the Profit & Sustainability Rules deadline this month. But instead, Leeds sold Archie Gray for £40m to Tottenham. Leeds have since sold five more players in the form of Diego Llorente, Marc Roca, Kris Klaesson and Charlie Cresswell – raking in around £60m in total. But more exits were always likely and Fabrizio Romano reported on Wednesday afternoon that West Ham had agreed personal terms with Summerville, and talks for a fee were ongoing with the Yorkshire side. Now, the story has moved on with multiple sources claiming a deal is done between Leeds and Angus Kinnear’s old club. The Dutchman is expected to sign a five-year at the London Stadium, until Jun...
Read more

Leeds United board break silence after transfer window with statement on upcoming Elland Road development — YEP 2/9/24

-
By Joe Donnohue Leeds United have confirmed supporters' commemorative stones at Elland Road's Centenary Square will be replaced free of charge in a bid to improve their longevity. Beginning next month, Leeds supporters' personalised stones will be replaced with exact replicas, courtesy of a new company, to ensure of a 'much better quality' installation. The work is expected to take around two months to complete. An official club statement confirmed 'three larger stones dedicated to former managers Don Revie, Howard Wilkinson and Marcelo Bielsa' will also be installed, 'similar to those located in Bremner Square', while additional space for supporters to purchase new stones has also been factored into the project. “The club have taken on board recent feedback from supporters on the stones at Centenary Square, and we are really happy that we can now announce that all of the stones will be replaced," chief executive Angus Kinnear confirmed,...
Read more

Leeds United transfer state of play as Whites knock back low bid and assert wing pair stance — YEP 3/7/24

-
By Graham Smyth Leeds United are not actively looking to cash in on Crysencio Summerville and Willy Gnonto and believe any further outgoing transfer business will be done on their terms. The Whites, who sold Archie Gray to Tottenham Hotspur on Tuesday for £40m, expect that there will be continued interest in wing pair Summerville and Gnonto as the summer transfer window progresses. Summerville has been a target for Premier League side Brighton and Hove Albion but their interest has not yet materialised into a bid. The Albion did, however, send a £30m proposal for Georginio Rutter, which Elland Road chiefs rejected. Rutter is not expected to try and force an exit this summer and appears settled at Leeds after a far more positive second season in English football. The sale of Gray has helped put Leeds into a position where they do not need to sell star players and can dictate any moves that do happen. Club sources say they are not actively looking to sell the likes of Summerville o...
Read more