Cortese V Lowe

[dune]

Why the witch hunt?

 

Finally we get someone to lead the club, make tough decisions, improve every aspect from playing staff to facilities and you tossers on here are still not happy??

 

What do you want? Sometimes the attitude of people on here beggar belief.

 

Unhappy when we were borderline going out of business and now unhappy when we enter our most exciting period since the early 80's

 

Since when did a football chairman have immunity from discussion?

[RonManager]

You seem quite confident there...

 

1) How do you know there is a 5 year plan?

 

2) How do you know that he is on a massive bonus for reaching the Premiership?

 

I'm not saying both these things don't exist. It is entirely believable that they do. However I suspect you have stated these with no foundation other than rumour on here and elsewhere. I can't remember seeing any quotes from Cortese mentioning a 5 year plan, nor would his bonus structure be made public.

 

Direct quote from the Echo interview of July 9th 2009 -

 

Q, It has to be sustainable?

Yes it does. Markus, like

me,believes in promising less and

trying to deliver more.

We don’t want the expectations to

be too high because we are going to

start the season with minus ten

points so otherwise the expectations

would not reflect the reality,

that it would be very hard to challenge

for promotion in the first

year.

It is clear our first step is the

Championship and it may take one,

two or three years.

 

 

 

 

Q, Does Markus have timeframes in

mind for his ambitions?

 

There is a plan in his head but he

won’t go and distribute that plan.

His plan is not to need ten years to

go back to the Premier League.

[Matthew Le God]

Direct quote from the Echo interview of July 9th 2009 -

 

Q, It has to be sustainable?

Yes it does. Markus, like

me,believes in promising less and

trying to deliver more.

We don’t want the expectations to

be too high because we are going to

start the season with minus ten

points so otherwise the expectations

would not reflect the reality,

that it would be very hard to challenge

for promotion in the first

year.

It is clear our first step is the

Championship and it may take one,

two or three years.

 

 

 

 

Q, Does Markus have timeframes in

mind for his ambitions?

 

There is a plan in his head but he

won’t go and distribute that plan.

His plan is not to need ten years to

go back to the Premier League.

 

Backs up my point then.

[tommi]

Since when did a football chairman have immunity from discussion?

 

When said Chairman convinced a Swiss billionaire to save our football club from extinction 12 months ago and the embarked on an improvement program to get us back to where we as fans believe we belong (the promised land!)

 

In all seriousness though he is certainly not immune but I think we have to give him some credit and time to prove himself - the same argument for keeping Pardew on I guess?

[stevegrant]

Backs up my point then.

What actually was your point? You seem to change it at every possible opportunity...

 

I've come to the conclusion that you're just a WUM.

[dune]

When said Chairman convinced a Swiss billionaire to save our football club from extinction 12 months ago and the embarked on an improvement program to get us back to where we as fans believe we belong (the promised land!)

 

In all seriousness though he is certainly not immune but I think we have to give him some credit and time to prove himself - the same argument for keeping Pardew on I guess?

 

I think a lot of people are forming an opinion of Cortese now, both as a person and as chairman of the football club. I think the honeymoon is over.

[Matthew Le God]

What actually was your point? You seem to change it at every possible opportunity...

 

I've come to the conclusion that you're just a WUM.

 

My point that you have based your opinion on rumour(Dune does the same), when the interview above shows that only Liebherr knows the time frame.

 

There is a plan in his head but he

won’t go and distribute that plan.

Edited 1 June, 2010 by Matthew Le God

[John B]

My point that you have based your opinion on rumour, when the interview above shows that at the time of writing only Liebherr knows the time frame.

 

I think Steve knows more about what is going on than most on this Forum

[Matthew Le God]

I've come to the conclusion that you're just a WUM.

 

Just because someone has a different opinion to yourself, doesn't make them a wind up merchant.

Edited 1 June, 2010 by Matthew Le God

[tommi]

I think a lot of people are forming an opinion of Cortese now, both as a person and as chairman of the football club. I think the honeymoon is over.

 

I think you have hit the nail on the head - football is all about opinions, it seems chairmen, players, managers et al are included in this now.

 

I'd disagree that the honeymoon is over though and I also disagree that he is only here for a bonus. You don't move your family to foreign country on a whim or leave an extremely well paid job as a banker to have a go at being a football chairman.

 

Time will tell, I think we need to cut him some slack for a while longer. People in power have to make decisions that not everyone will like - after all, It's not a popularity contest

[stevegrant]

Just because someone has a different opinion to yourself, doesn't make them a wind up merchant.

No, but I generally take a dim view of those who make a point of being obtuse with their comments and arguments, which you do without fail.

[Matthew Le God]

No, but I generally take a dim view of those who make a point of being obtuse with their comments and arguments, which you do without fail.

 

All I do is counter opinions which are solely based on unsubstantiated rumour. If those people are reasonable we can have a healthy discussion. After all this is a forum.

[dune]

I think we need to cut him some slack for a while longer. People in power have to make decisions that not everyone will like - after all, It's not a popularity contest

 

He had slack when he joined us. I will continue to judge him on his actions. I was very impressed with him at the start, but now the alarm bells are starting to ring in the distance.

[Micky]

I think Steve knows more about what is going on than most on this Forum

 

Thats fine but not a lot of good to others if he is unable to share it.

[sadoldgit]

Since when did a football chairman have immunity from discussion?

 

Indeed. Given the amount of time spent discussing the likes of Lowe, Wilde, Crouch, Hoos, and Hone I don't see why Cortese should be spared the microscope.

[Matthew Le God]

He had slack when he joined us. I will continue to judge him on his actions. I was very impressed with him at the start, but now the alarm bells are starting to ring in the distance.

 

Should we start the protests and get him and Liebherr to leave? I think we'd regret it.

[stevegrant]

All I do is counter opinions which are solely based on unsubstantiated rumour.

And yet you continue to believe the unsubstantiated rumour that the Echo just make stuff up, and refuse to take up their offer of a tour of the newsroom so you can see exactly what goes on there for yourself.

 

Something of a hypocrite, wouldn't you say?

[Saints Warrior]

I actuallu thought Rupert was back when I looked at the saints site and couldnt belive the increase in season ticket prices and booking fee.

 

It like all the concert ticket sites and venues that now just fleece fans of money.

 

have i missed the boom in th recovery? or is Southampton still an area with a high proportion of unemployed.

 

£27-24 plus booking fee thats premiership prices.

 

I am not happy with a £40 increase in a Northam Season ticket at all, and that changes my outlook on those running saints.

[dune]

Should we start the protests and get him and Liebherr to leave? I think we'd regret it.

 

I've not mentioned Markus Liebherr, this thread is not about the clubs owner, it's about Nicola Cortese.

[sadoldgit]

Should we start the protests and get him and Liebherr to leave? I think we'd regret it.

 

That's a bit strong. There is no need for any protests, but it doesn't hurt to keep an open mind about these people. Be honest, we still don't really know what we have here and won't for a while yet. The first change of manager (timing etc) will tell us more.

 

We had a decade of Lowe. We have had one season of Cortese.

 

One thing I await with great interest. Is he going to employ a DoE as was said before, or does he now fancy that job himself?

Edited 1 June, 2010 by sadoldgit
spelling

[Matthew Le God]

And yet you continue to believe the unsubstantiated rumour that the Echo just make stuff up, and refuse to take up their offer of a tour of the newsroom so you can see exactly what goes on there for yourself.

 

Something of a hypocrite, wouldn't you say?

 

Not at all.

 

How would a tour of a newsroom help in anyway?

 

The Echo doesn't help itself by running stories with no detail.

 

For example they opened a story with...

 

"Alan Pardew has targeted a new central midfielder as one of his summer transfer window priorities."

 

They then failed to state how they know this. It is public knowledge they aren't on good terms with the club. Pardew hasn't given them an interview where they used quotes in months. They just lift Saints news and Pardew interviews from the OS.

[dune]

One thing I await with great interest. Is he going to employ a DoE as was said before, or does he now fancy that job himself?

 

When I failed to receive my JPT final tickets I rang the ticket office to find out what was what and was told that Nicola Cortese had personally taken charge of the selling arrangements. So he clearly fancies being the ticket office manager...

[CB Fry]

Not at all.

 

How would a tour of a newsroom help in anyway?

 

 

Being that everything you have ever written on this forum about the Echo (which is a hell of a lot) is uninformed, uneducated but at the same time teeth achingly pedantic drivel, I think it would help a lot.

 

Go on, tell us about the time you didn't get through a job interview at the Echo. Everything you post about it screams of a failed and frustrated journalist.

[Windmill Arm 2]

The feud with the Echo, the stories of club staff not being allowed to talk to him, the way he had a dig at MLT and Lawrie, the Pardew speculation, and now the season ticket prices/lack of an installment plan/booking tax on tickets.

 

Take away Markus's money and I see very little difference between Cortese and Lowe.

 

Rearrange the following to make a well known and very apt phrase : YOUR GO HEAD SHYTE TAKE A FOR .

[miserableoldgit]

The feud with the Echo, the stories of club staff not being allowed to talk to him, the way he had a dig at MLT and Lawrie, the Pardew speculation, and now the season ticket prices/lack of an installment plan/booking tax on tickets.

 

Take away Markus's money and I see very little difference between Cortese and Lowe.

Grow up.

[Matthew Le God]

Everything you have ever written on this forum about the Echo (which is a hell of a lot) is uninformed, uneducated but at the same time teeth achingly pedantic drivel.

 

Care to elaborate with examples?

[SaintNeil90]

God you just cannot please some people!

[alpine_saint]

When he gets through 10 managers in as many years, gets rid of a decent manager and employs 4 useless dutchmen, wastes money on failed radio stations, insurance companies and sees attendances drop by more than 10k then maybe we can compare.

 

Indeed. This thread is a f**king joke and is frankly embarrassing.

[Colinjb]

Lowe - Mouth and no trouser.

 

Cortese - Mouth and the trouser to go with it.

 

Cortese wins it easily based on things so far.

If you think it's bad right now, my god you must have a short memory. I couldn't care less if Cortese is a total bastard he is working to get the job done and he has the means to do it. Let the roughwer edges of his administration go and enjoy the positives that have already happened and will follow.

[oxfordshire_saint]

To be honest, in his previous job Cortese could probably be a real bastard and nobody but a few people would care because it's not as public as being chairman of a football club and he was damn good at what he did.

 

This has been his first season in football, so let's see how he adapts to it over time, because let's face it, Lowe never understood it.

[dune]

Rearrange the following to make a well known and very apt phrase : YOUR GO HEAD SHYTE TAKE A FOR .

 

Indeed. This thread is a f**king joke and is frankly embarrassing.

 

Perhaps the pair of you could for once try debating the issue. You clearly disagree so try to articulate why you disagree.

[miserableoldgit]

I have been supporting Saints for over 50 years and have had a ST for 35 years. I have seen the highs and the low(e)s. Last season was one of the best that I have experienced in all of that time. I have seen better but I have seen much worse. I genuinely believe that NC & ML are the immediate (successful?) future of our club. Whilst I respect everyones opinion, mine is that although they may have made a few mistakes, culture-wise, they will really put Saints back on the map. It`s up to you whether you want to come along for the ride or not.

[Matthew Le God]

Perhaps the pair of you could for once try debating the issue. You clearly disagree so try to articulate why you disagree.

 

But then Steve will accuse them both of being WUM's.

[NickG]

why are we still talking about Lowe?

[dune]

I have been supporting Saints for over 50 years and have had a ST for 35 years. I have seen the highs and the low(e)s. Last season was one of the best that I have experienced in all of that time. I have seen better but I have seen much worse. I genuinely believe that NC & ML are the immediate (successful?) future of our club. Whilst I respect everyones opinion, mine is that although they may have made a few mistakes, culture-wise, they will really put Saints back on the map. It`s up to you whether you want to come along for the ride or not.

 

That will depend on who can afford the petrol and the booking fee. The impression I get is that Nicola Cortese is following the Ken Bates model of chairmanship. I believe that over the coming years many more fans will be priced out of supporting Saints if Nicola gets his way.

[miserableoldgit]

why are we still talking about Lowe?

It is strange. People nowadays do not seem interested in history but can`t stop talking about the past & Rupes.

[dune]

It is strange. People nowadays do not seem interested in history but can`t stop talking about the past & Rupes.

 

If you want to understand the future you need to understand the past.

[Matthew Le God]

why are we still talking about Lowe?

 

I think its because he did so much to the club in a decade that it has made alot of people overly cautious about any other person in charge of the club and they think it might happen again.

 

Cortese/Liebherr have been at the club for 11 months and have already invested far more than any other chairman since the club was formed.

[miserableoldgit]

That will depend on who can afford the petrol and the booking fee. The impression I get is that Nicola Cortese is following the Ken Bates model of chairmanship. I believe that over the coming years many more fans will be priced out of supporting Saints if Nicola gets his way.

As and when we climb through the leagues, the cost of supporting Saints will increase . It is your choice as to whether you are sufficiently committed to pay the price.

[NickG]

some fans seem more interested in Cortesse than Lambert.

 

I appreciate that Cortesse will have a significant impact on where we go as a club, but ffs its a sport - watching 11 players in red and white trying to score more than the opposition. Pay your £14 a match up front, or £25 for each game - cos thats what it costs - enjoy it!

 

Feel better now!

[miserableoldgit]

some fans seem more interested in Cortesse than Lambert.

 

I appreciate that Cortesse will have a significant impact on where we go as a club, but ffs its a sport - watching 11 players in red and white trying to score more than the opposition. Pay your £14 a match up front, or £25 for each game - cos thats what it costs - enjoy it!

 

Feel better now!

Hooray! +1

[PokingFun]

Having taken a look at Colchester and Charlton ST prices, I would suggest the pricing is realistic.

 

Prices are around £400-£425 for the best seats as far as I can see at those clubs.

 

I suspect that the time it has taken to release figures is down to Saints taking a full look at the pricing elsewhere (competitor benchmarking happens in most industries) and then coming up with some prices that are at the upper tier (as we should expect due to the product on offer being higher quality than most of it's competitors can offer).

 

In addition, they have rewarded existing customers with lower prices than new customers and I think that remains a positive message. I can't see any issue with them trying to maximum revenue based on a competitive pricing structure.

[miserableoldgit]

If you want to understand the future you need to understand the past.

A cliche maybe, but it nis absolutely true.

[Scudamore]

You seem quite confident there...

 

1) How do you know there is a 5 year plan?

 

2) How do you know that he is on a massive bonus for reaching the Premiership?

 

I'm not saying both these things don't exist. It is entirely believable that they do. However I suspect you have stated these with no foundation other than rumour on here and elsewhere. I can't remember seeing any quotes from Cortese mentioning a 5 year plan, nor would his bonus structure be made public.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/southampton/8268510.stm

 

40 minutes onwards: "if you tell me is 5 year reasonable...i would say yes"

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/s/southampton/8565161.stm

 

3 minutes onwards: "i've been always talking about the five year plan...obviously the five year plan is resolved on the pitch but again finance it involves finances .../... this the five year plan that is approved and fully funded from Markus so today we're running based on that business plan which is obviously based on my judgements and my decisions" so that five year plan is still in place "well yes of course...we have possibly been a bit more spending on the transfer window than initially planned but it's still based on the five year plan and i'm still very much focussed on that plan"

 

--------------------------

 

The five year plan is the five year plan. It hasn't just been magicked up...

Edited 1 June, 2010 by Scudamore

[dune]

A cliche maybe, but it nis absolutely true.

 

It's a shame Gordon Brown didn't research the Wall Street crash.

 

But i digress.

[La BoIS Saint]

I've had a bad feeling about all this from the start. How many other clubs have thought they had their saviours then got royally ****ed. Chickens coming home to roost.

[NickG]

I've had a bad feeling about all this from the start. How many other clubs have thought they had their saviours then got royally ****ed. Chickens coming home to roost.

 

you are right. Its going terribly.

[Matthew Le God]

I've had a bad feeling about all this from the start. How many other clubs have thought they had their saviours then got royally ****ed. Chickens coming home to roost.

 

Did the owners at these other clubs wipe out £30m of debt, build a new training facility and invest heavily in the first team squad? There is clear evidence of investment at Saints that goes further than just promises.

[saint_stevo]

this thread just re-iterated my thoughts on MLG

[Big John]

I seriously doubt if Lowe was chairman in league 1 we would have seen 1 million spent on a striker

 

..and failed to reah the play-offs eh? Even under Branfoot we had a day out. We surely can't judge anyone in the corrridors of power by how much we spend/speculate. Who was at the hel when we brought in our record signing (and won **** all)?

 

 

NB

Is our record signing STILL RD!!!!