Topic: Portsmouth FC out of Administration

[Lent§]

The FA/PL must be praying Portsmouth can hang on til the Summer, image the chaos if they folded before the fixtures were completed.  The press and supporters would be on them for their 'fit and proper' owenership rules.  How could they resolve any incomplete fixtures?  Just declaring all matches null and void would spark complaints from teams effectively losing points (and with Man U, Chelsea and Arsenal among them, I can't see it happening.)

I missed this before but i'd stick a bobby on Pompey not making the end of the season.

[rafathegaffa83]

I missed this before but i'd stick a bobby on Pompey not making the end of the season.

That bad, eh?

[Lent§]

That bad, eh?

in a word, yes

[Aristotle]

Could someone please explain to me in a very simple way what a winding up petition is. From what I gather it's some kind of tax thing. Now seeing as I've been into all this tax evasion stuff and according to my social security number I am a 97 yr old woman living in Nebraska, I have no experience in the field of taxes.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

anyone here remember about a year or two ago when david james said that the wages in football were too high and players contracts should be more performance based? looks like he may have been referring to more than we thought and wasnt just a ranting old man at the end of his career pissed off that he's missed out on most of the gravy train

[Alan_X]

Could someone please explain to me in a very simple way what a winding up petition is. From what I gather it's some kind of tax thing. Now seeing as I've been into all this tax evasion stuff and according to my social security number I am a 97 yr old woman living in Nebraska, I have no experience in the field of taxes.

It's not specifically to do with taxes. Basically, if you're owed money by a company and they don't pay you, you go through all the usual steps to get your money back, reminders, court orders. If they still don't pay you can apply to the courts to have the company "wound up" and all their assets liquidated to pay you and the other creditors. It means the company ceases to trade and you probably won't get all of your money, which is why it's always the last resort.

Anyone can do it - we've considered it for some really bad payers but have never had to.

[PaulF]

anyone here remember about a year or two ago when david james said that the wages in football were too high and players contracts should be more performance based? looks like he may have been referring to more than we thought and wasnt just a ranting old man at the end of his career pissed off that he's missed out on most of the gravy train

That made me laugh.

Thanks for the insight on the dire situation at Old Trafford. Could they be heading on a fast downward spiral and overtake us for being stuffed by their owners?
Are Villa seemingly better run?

[BazC]

Thanks for the insight on the dire situation at Old Trafford. Could they be heading on a fast downward spiral and overtake us for being stuffed by their owners?
Are Villa seemingly better run?

The Mancs are probably already as bad as us. Even though they have massively greater revenues, their debt is massive as well (it was £666m last time I saw it, and must be a lot more now- wouldn't be surprised if it's more than £700m.) Even with their massively successful last few years the debts been climing a lot- it's utterly unsustainable by their revenues alone it would seem (and this despite 3 PL wins, a CL win, a League Cup, another CL final and a 70 000+ seater stadium which is filled week in week out)

They're seemingly in a shitter position than us if anything- they're right at the top of the game in terms of revenue generation and success, hell they even raised £80m in the transfer window, they've been tapping the fanbase for all it's worth with their ticketing system. And they're still fucked.

Whereas we have £300m worth of debt but of course, lower revenues. We had our £30m from Alonso's transfer but it was spent by Rafa, even if there was no NET available for him to spend.

The thing with our club of course, is that to boost revenues we'd need to build a new stadium. Building a new stadium would add more debt to the whole operation, and then it could be even worse for us.

G+H and the Glazers have totally fucked the clubs they've taken over. Putting purchase debt on top of the club. In our case it means we now find it hard to manage a new debt which would arise for the stadium. Imagine if G+H had paid for the club like they said they would; without putting the debt burden on the club directly. That would have allowed for £200m or whatever it'd cost of debt for the stadium, and it would be manageable as well. At the moment though, we're at a higher debt burden than that and a spade's not even been in the ground.

On the other hand, Randy Lerner knows how to run a football club. I think he's even turning a profit. But then at the end of the day, Aston Villa faces no pressures to win major trophies so it doesn't have the demands for a couple of £20m players every summer. It's a more sustainable plan because they're not going all out for the major successes at the moment. It looks like their plan is to get into the CL for a few years then use the boost in revenues to hopefully challenge for the major revenues.

With more clubs like Man City and Chelsea though, the only way for a club to be successful it seems, is to hope for a billionaire buyer who doesn't give a shit about the return (did you catch the RA story in the last couple of days? He's wiped out Chelsea's debt which he had and converted it into equity).

But by the very nature of our club, we'd not be an attractive option for an ultra rich investor. It's easier to buy Man City or Chelsea for £100m-£200m plus debt and stick £300m on transfers than it is to buy Liverpool FC for £300m and then build a stadium (another £200m) to boost revenues. Even if they didn't build the stadium and just stuck £200m worth on transfers, it's still more expensive than taking on a Tottenham, Aston Villa, West Ham or an Everton and sticking money on transfers.

That's the problem we're in. No billionaire investor would want to buy us as the price would be too much compared to other, smaller clubs they can buy. But we're not a big enough club to now challenge the Man City/Chelseas who can spend £2-300m on transfers and establish themselves as a successful team.

Perhaps one way we could compete is front loading of transfers. I think it's what Real Madrid have done and it's pretty much what Chelsea have done.

Spend £2-300m in transfers in 1-2 summers then not spend much in the following few seasons after that. It's massively risky, and would probably end up crippling a club who hasn't got effective contingency cash in the billions (as Chelsea and Man City do). To do this, you'd obviously need the financing as well, and of course, need to be able to service that debt as well (as Real Madrid are doing).

Share Liverpool is the most realistic way we can move forward in my opinion, but it doesn't seem to be anywhere near a viable option yet.

By putting the shares of a club into the hands of people who won't require a monetary gain (though they could reasonably expect to be able to get their money back out plus the opportunity cost of putting their money into the club- so a bit like a 'savings account' from a shareholders point of view) you ensure that the club's best interests are taken into account. But of course it'd require a figurehead chairman/president type along with the usual directors to run the club. With the shareholders voting on the major issues.

[El Campeador]

Pay up Pompey.

Pompey pay up.

[jaffod]

Pay up Pompey.

Pompey pay up.

 Remember "Feed the scousers" when we played them the other week? Dead funny. Not laughing now though, the fucking bell-ringing tits.

[Una cerveza, por favor]

Remember "Feed the scousers" when we played them the other week? Dead funny. Not laughing now though, the fucking bell-ringing tits.

I know, wound me up. And I'm not even scouse.

Pay up Pompey.

Pompey pay up.

Haha, can we play that match again!

[ttnbd]

apparently crystal palace have been late on paying wages this season too.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

apparently crystal palace have been late on paying wages this season too.

was on ssn earlier wasnt it? we should probably run a sweepstake on here for how many clubs will go bust this year

[MrGrumpy]

apparently crystal palace have been late on paying wages this season too.

Those are just the clubs you've heard of. Drop in to the lower two divisions the state of  things is shocking.

[SP]

How late do wages have to be before a player's contract is voided? How close are Portsmouth to the situation where players could claim breach of contract and leave on a free?

[Lush is the best medicine...]

How late do wages have to be before a player's contract is voided? How close are Portsmouth to the situation where players could claim breach of contract and leave on a free?

think its 3 months - newcastle iirc got jonas on the cheap because he wasnt paid for a long time and he walked out on them

[SP]

think its 3 months - newcastle iirc got jonas on the cheap because he wasnt paid for a long time and he walked out on them

M_R or whatever he is calling himself these days just posted an article on Victor Moses claiming that it was 14 days for League clubs. Don't know if it is any different for the Premiership...

[SP]

If the players' salaries fail to arrive on Tuesday then the squad will have the option of serving a mandatory 14 days notice to terminate their contracts. For now, there is no suggestion that they are seriously considering this.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2009/dec/31/portsmouth-pfa-players-wages-faraj

[Ed-Zeppelin]

The FA/PL must be praying Portsmouth can hang on til the Summer, image the chaos if they folded before the fixtures were completed.  The press and supporters would be on them for their 'fit and proper' owenership rules.  How could they resolve any incomplete fixtures?  Just declaring all matches null and void would spark complaints from teams effectively losing points (and with Man U, Chelsea and Arsenal among them, I can't see it happening.)

I've a friend who works in insurance and one of the Pompey directors was trying to sort insurance with them for the clubs motor fleet, he'd used the company in question in other businesses. Pompey have yet to pay for the motor insurance.

Whilst they were discussing this he asked them to look into insurance for season tickets in the event that Pompey couldn't fulfill all their fixtures. This was about 2 months ago. They are really in the shit, and no-one seems to be able to offer guidance. At least we know whos to blame.

No matter where the company my friend works for looked they couldn't find someone to agree to insuring Pompey as I understand it. Funny thing was they even went to places that offer insurance for elephants at circuses and bookmakers to see if they'd offer something. Noone was interested!

[Lush is the best medicine...]

M_R or whatever he is calling himself these days just posted an article on Victor Moses claiming that it was 14 days for League clubs. Don't know if it is any different for the Premier League...

thought it'd be a bit more time than that, esp when it comes to lower league teams because lets face it they arent paid great money in league 1/league 2 and nobody can blame players at that level for handing in their notice to get paid

btw on betfair pompey to finish dead last is available at just over 3/2

[Gaz123456]

That made me laugh.

Thanks for the insight on the dire situation at Old Trafford. Could they be heading on a fast downward spiral and overtake us for being stuffed by their owners?
Are Villa seemingly better run?

It's a wonderful thought.

I think financially of the bigger clubs Villa and Arsenal are very well run

[PaulF]

Thanks for the massive answer BazC.
Did the sums EVER stack up. Hindsight of the credit crunch is a wonderful thing  , but even so, did it ever look like they could buy the club, build the stadium, repay existing debts, have a 'reasonable' transfer kitty , make interest payments and take a profit ? I'm guessing there must have been some sort of business plan that stacked up?

[Lent§]

With regards to Pompey, the Premier League are witholding their TV money installment due in Jan to pay to Clubs owed, including Watford and a PL side. I know they were relying on that money!

[rafathegaffa83]

With regards to Pompey, the Premier League are witholding their TV money installment due in Jan to pay to Clubs owed, including Watford and a PL side. I know they were relying on that money!

Yeah, I remember reading that Pompey were looking to use that cash to pay the wages. Considering they only bought Tommy Smith from Watford for around £1.8m, it shows how badly they are in a financial mess.

[Lent§]

Yeah, I remember reading that Pompey were looking to use that cash to pay the wages. Considering they only bought Tommy Smith from Watford for around £1.8m, it shows how badly they are in a financial mess.

Mike Williamson for ~£3m aswell, but your point still stands.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

With regards to Pompey, the Premier League are witholding their TV money installment due in Jan to pay to Clubs owed, including Watford and a PL side. I know they were relying on that money!

can they do that?

and the other PL club could be chelsea who IIRC are still owed for glen johnson

[deadlybuzz]

And another one bites the dust


Notts County served with second winding-up petition

Notts County chairman Peter Trembling has described a second winding-up petition from HM Revenue and Customs, served late in November last year, as "something we could not avoid", but one which will be settled within the next fortnight, revealing that promising investment opportunities have now progressed to “active discussions”.
 

By Sandy Macaskill
Published: 10:51AM GMT 05 Jan 2010

In a statement issued this morning, after the winding-up petition became known, Trembling said that he appreciated that news of the petition from HMRC will “come as a source of concern to supporters, I can reassure them that we are doing everything possible following the management buy-out of the club to ensure that the club’s finances are put on a stable footing.”

The latest petition was served by HMRC on November 27, just 15 days after the club was said to have "resolved the dispute" with HMRC over an additional six-figure tax debt. Trembling has explained that the two petitions are not connected, but even so, County could find themselves in the high court in London on January 27, facing administration.

Trembling, however, insists that it will not get that far. He explained that he has been in negotiations regarding multi-million pound investment, and there are now active discussions which he hopes will lead to fresh funding.

All of the potential investors are aware of the petition, and said to be relaxed. “We are extremely encouraged by these discussions and hope to make an announcement in the near future,” he said.

"We have got money coming in but HMRC pressed the button before Christmas,” he went on.

“We would be worried if we were not going to get funds to sort it out [but] the funds will be in in plenty of time. We are trying to get the release of funds from commitments made in the management buy-out and new investment as well. Investors are aware of the petition. It is a serious issue but one we are aware of. We believe we are in control of it and hope to appease all our creditors by a week on Friday."

Incredibly, Sven-Goran Eriksson is still committed to the club. Asked why he is still involved, the director of football said: "Because of the challenge to take a team from 19th place in League Two up to the Premier League, that is the biggest thing you can do in football, if we can do it. Because of the challenge, it is very easy [to stay].

"The project to get Notts County in to the Premier League in five years is on hold unfortunately for the moment because things went bad," he said. "But hopefully in just a couple of weeks it will take off again. That's what we are hoping and that's what we are working very, very hard for. I still believe it's possible. What is needed is funding. It's money. It's very easy if you want to reach the Premier League from the position we are in: you need money of course.

"When I signed we saw and we believed that everything which was said was true but obviously it wasn't. Of course I feel let down. But you can't talk so much about it you have to find other people, and real people. It's been too many bad things about Notts County during these six months but hopefully in a couple of weeks' time things will change."

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/leagues/leaguetwo/nottscounty/6935573/Notts-County-served-with-second-winding-up-petition.html

[Lent§]

can they do that?

and the other PL club could be chelsea who IIRC are still owed for glen johnson

Presumably yes, i'm sure they've had it checked out. Chelsea are another of the clubs, as are Spurs.

[The Manhattan Project]

Remember "Feed the scousers" when we played them the other week? Dead funny. Not laughing now though, the fucking bell-ringing tits.

I hope they fucking implode.

[rafathegaffa83]

And once again they fail to pay the wages.

Struggling Portsmouth once again fail to pay players' wages

• Players still waiting to be paid for December
• Portsmouth also hit by Jamie O'Hara blow

    * guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 5 January 2010 17.51 GMT
 
Portsmouth have not paid their players today but hope to do so tomorrow, the club have told the Professional Footballers' Association.

Officials from the crisis-hit club stated yesterday that the players' December wages would be paid today but a further delay has now arisen. PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor said: "We were expecting the players to be paid today but that has not happened. We have been told by the club that they are hopeful of paying them tomorrow."

Portsmouth told the PFA the latest delay was due to paperwork needing to be completed after a short-term loan was negotiated to cover the shortfall. It is the third time this season the club have missed a payment date.

In a further blow for the club, the Premier League have told Portsmouth they will not be able to re-register Jamie O'Hara as a loan signing unless the transfer embargo is lifted, and there is virtually no chance of that happening during this transfer window.

The Tottenham midfielder's deal runs out on 15 January but Spurs had indicated they were happy to let him stay at Pompey. A Premier League spokesman said: "If the registration embargo is still in place Portsmouth will not be able to re-register him."

Meanwhile, Daniel Azougy, the Israeli lawyer hired by Portsmouth to restructure their debts, has admitted to the Guardian that the financial mess at Fratton Park is worse than first thought. Azougy has also claimed that owner Ali al-Faraj will have paid £40m to creditors by 10 January.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jan/05/portsmouth-fail-pay-players-wages

I feel sorry for Avram Grant this transfer window. He's lost nearly six dozen players to the African Cup of Nations, he can't re-register O'Hara and with a transfer embargo looking unlikely to be lifted, he can't bring any reinforcements.

Unless a miracle happens, they are nailed on to be relegated. No team or player in their right mind will want to deal with them now under the current ownership. Any financial credit they have is probably shot to pieces.  Given that this Daniel Azougy who has been brought in to help their finances was convicted of fraud in Israel, you have to wonder why the hell the FA or PL haven't stepped in.

I recently read about Belgian side Excelsior Mouscron being expelled from the Belgian First Division (Jupiler League)  nearly two weeks ago for financial irregularities and failing to field a team in consecutive matches. All of their results were annulled and all the players and staff were released from their contracts. The club may return in another form in the Belgian Third Division.

Whether the PL would take such action is another matter. But whatever the outcome, I can definitely see this being a summer of lawsuits, as clubs missing out on European competition or being relegated due to others profiting from Portsmouth will have major greviances against the FA and PL.

[Lush is the best medicine...]

notts county chairman says they need £3-5m investment to stay afloat and they're looking for £25-50m - looks like they're gonna be fucked, who'd invest £50m in a league 2 team?

[rafathegaffa83]

Also makes you wonder how thorough due diligence was applied by Portsmouth's owners.

Portsmouth fire-fighter says club is poised to pay off debt of £40m

• Financial mess worse than owners thought - Daniel Azougy
• Statement to be issued later today 'explaining everything'

    * Jamie Jackson
    * guardian.co.uk, Tuesday 5 January 2010 15.44 GMT

Daniel Azougy, the Israeli lawyer hired by Portsmouth to alleviate the club's dire financial position, has claimed that the owner Ali al-Faraj will have paid £40m to creditors by 10 January, when he hopes the embargo on registering new players will be lifted.

Speaking publicly for the first time, Azougy also told the Guardian that he understands the fans' frustration at the lack of precise information offered by the Faraj regime and that a statement will be released later today which will "explain everything".

Club officials have also stated that the players will be paid today, having missed the due date for a third time this season.

Azougy, who is on a short-term contract with Portsmouth, claimed that the problems are the fault of the previous owners, Sulaiman al-Fahim and Sacha Gaydamak, and that the full scale of the situation is still unknown.

Gaydamak, though, says he is owed £28m by the club and last week demanded clarity relating to who is the "ultimate beneficial owner" of Portsmouth. Fahim, the non-executive chairman, has stated he plans to give his 10% share in the club to the recently formed Pompey Supporters' Trust.

"First of all I hope we are going to pay the players' salaries as promised," said Azougy. "But nobody knows how much [the club] is a mess. When people and the fans of Portsmouth know how big they will appreciate what we trying to do.

"We thought the mess was just £5m or £10m. It is more than £40m, so the figures are not as is assumed. But I can tell you that from the day that the new owners come [5 October] until the 10 January the creditors of Portsmouth football club will be paid £40m. It's not a small amount, and we didn't finish yet.

"We didn't realise how big the problems were - many mistakes were made before the takeover and now we are trying to put piece-by-piece everything back in order, and I hope we will succeed. We are working seven days, all day long to make it good. But it's not easy.

"You will have all these figures later, all the details of how the £40m was paid. Mark Jacob [the club's executive director] will give a statement this afternoon regarding all the situation of the club. We have answers to everything but we didn't give it the right way to newspapers until now, so you will have all the answers there and you can check everything."

The chief executive, Peter Storrie, stated in October – before Faraj's takeover – that £35m had gone to Standard Bank and Gaydamak claimed he paid off £2.5m to Barclays the same month. It is not clear what Jacob's statement about the £40m debt will include.

Although Portsmouth are estimated to owe around £10m to English clubs [the amount required to lift the embargo], previous instalments owed for transfers plus other debts to HMRC — which served a winding-up petition on the club on 23 December — plus the missing salaries of the previous two months may factor in the amount.

Azougy also claimed that despite their difficulties, Portsmouth have some advantages over other clubs. "All the other clubs are very stressed now, they all need money – it's not just our problem," he said. "The good thing is Portsmouth has no bank facility, nothing, zero, not even one penny. There is no club in the Premier League that [doesn't] have [a] bank facility."

Following Saturday's 1-1 draw with Coventry City in the FA Cup third round, around 150 fans gathered outside the directors' entrance to protest the lack of information from Faraj's regime. "We are frustrated also," added Azougy.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jan/05/daniel-azougy-portsmouth-debts

[Something Else]

Portsmouth fail to meet a promise to pay players' wages
Portsmouth

Portsmouth have again failed to meet a promise to pay players their December wages, report BBC Radio Solent.

Having promised to clear the debt on Tuesday, Pompey officials then moved the deadline back to Wednesday, but a further delay has arisen.

PFA chief executive Gordon Taylor is "confident" the wages will be paid by the end of the week, but warned that the long-term position needs resolving.

And Pompey chief executive Peter Storrie hinted players may now be sold.

"If the way to keep this club alive is to sell a couple of players again, we will have to do that - but it will be an owner's decision," said Storrie.

"If you do not sell, then you could well be going into administration."

Storrie also revealed that Portsmouth owner Ali al-Faraj had been unable to address Pompey's cashflow problems by organising new bank finance and bring on board new investment since his arrival in October.

"The new owners have come in almost overnight and to be fair they have put a lot of money in the club," said Storrie.

"They thought they were in a strong position to replace bank finance and bring in a major new investor that was going to come in and be involved.

"But those two things have not happened and although they are working on doing that, time is catching up with them in terms of the debts and the money that is needed to run a Premier League football side."

Storrie added that he did not believe the fans had been misled over al-Faraj's takeover.

"I think deceived is a pretty harsh word to be honest, I don't think they've been that," Storrie told BBC Radio Solent.

"The owners are working hard to find solutions and ways forward."

With the club pondering whether to sell some of their most valuable players, Pompey is considering recalling striker David Nugent from his loan spell with Burnley.

"We are thinking about this," said Pompey manager Avram Grant.

"In the next few days we will know. It depends on many things. But it could happen."

Portsmouth, who are currently banned by the Premier League from signing players, have lurched from one financial crisis to another in a troubled season as they fight to avoid relegation.

It is the third month in which the players' wages have been delayed, although the club did pay non-playing staff their December wages on Monday.
   
606: DEBATE
What do you make of the latest situation at Portsmouth?

On Monday, it was also revealed that the Premier League is set to use Portsmouth's share of the latest television monies to pay off the club's debts to other top flight sides.

Chelsea, Tottenham and Watford are all owed money by Pompey and the Premier League will split £7m between them.

The action is allowed within league rules to protect clubs who are owed money from transfers.

The crisis does not look like easing in the longer term and fans are planning further protests against Al Faraj.

Meanwhile, the Premier League has confirmed that Pompey midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng cannot play for another club this season.

Fifa rules allow players to play for only two clubs in a season and the former Germany Under-21 international has featured for Spurs and Pompey this term.

The 22-year-old Ghana hopeful had been linked with Blackburn.

In another blow for Pompey, the club will not be able to extend Jamie O'Hara's loan.

The midfielder had been due to return to Tottenham on 15 January, and with an embargo in place, Pompey cannot re-register him with the Premier League.



http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/football/teams/p/portsmouth/8444524.stm

[Frank.]

The PL should reveal who the owner is. On SSN this morning a Pompey fan was saying how they passed the owner as fit and propper so they should reveal who it is and sort it out. I feel for them

[rafathegaffa83]

The PL should reveal who the owner is. On SSN this morning a Pompey fan was saying how they passed the owner as fit and propper so they should reveal who it is and sort it out. I feel for them

PL probably don't know either. I think they are just hoping Portsmouth financially hang on until the end of the season, so they don't have to forfeit their games. It wouldn't surprise me if they end up letting them collapse, whilst the World Cup is on when the media's attention is elsewhere.

[Something Else]

PL probably don't know either. I think they are just hoping Portsmouth financially hang on until the end of the season, so they don't have to forfeit their games. It wouldn't surprise me if they end up letting them collapse, whilst the World Cup is on when the media's attention is elsewhere.

I think they will help manage them until its no longer their issue and they are in the championship

[redrockydennis]

I don't run a business, but would someone who does tell me why a business would not set aside money during the course of a year to pay its taxes?

cos i'm a tit and spent all my money in vegas.

[rafathegaffa83]

PFA blasts Portsmouth after failure to pay players again

• Troubled Portsmouth miss self-imposed pay deadline
• PFA's Nick Cusack says club 'cannot carry on like this'

    * Jamie Jackson
    * guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 6 January 2010 20.38 GMT
 
Portsmouth have been accused of threatening the "integrity" of football and the Premier League as the club missed a second, self-imposed deadline to pay the squad their December wages.

Nick Cusack, the senior executive of the Professional Footballers' Association, was outspoken over the club's inability to come up with the money and questioned Ali al-Faraj's ownership of the club.

"When two teams take the field, it's 11 versus 11 and you would expect all 22 players to have been paid," Cusack said. "If one set of 11 has not [been paid] then that can call into question the commitment of that team and therefore the integrity of the game itself.

"That in turn puts into question the very integrity of the league, and this is something we plan to raise with the Premier League and with Portsmouth's officials when I go down to the club to speak to the players."

"After three months of payments being late, I think the players are entitled to ask the kind of questions everybody in football is asking."

The PFA chief executive, Gordon Taylor, said that he expected the salaries to be paid by the end of the week but Mark Jacob, Portsmouth's executive director, said: "It's all sorted today [Wednesday]. If they haven't received it [the wages] yet they'll receive it in the morning." When told of the PFA's claim that the players would be paid by the close of the week, Jacob said: "No, they should have the money tomorrow."

Portsmouth failed to pay September's wages, when Sulaiman al-Fahim was the owner. They have since missed two more monthly deadlines, plus this week's two self-imposed dates.

"Portsmouth cannot carry on like this," said Cusack, on ESPNsoccernet. "I am sure the people we are talking to are honourable and want to sort it out but there is a lack of information about how the club is being run, how the players are being paid and whether they will be paid in the future.

"Our priority is to ensure the players are paid for this month, but because it has been three months now we must find out whether the players will be in this position next month, and indeed throughout the season. I am sure this is concerning the Premier League too, because we all want to uphold the competitive nature of the league and I am not sure it can be [upheld] under these circumstances.

"Contrary to what most people assume, all the players at a club like Portsmouth are not on big money. There is a diverse group there. Yes, there are some hardship cases, which I am not prepared to go into."
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jan/06/portsmouth-pfa-players-wages-cusack

[Something Else]

At the end of the day, I am more worried about the non football staff at the club, those whose monthly wage is far more important to them than the players.

Yes the players should be paid, as they are entitled to it (despite the fact I think they are overpaid). However the fact that a lot of the other staff where only paid their December wage the other day is terrible and I really feel for them, especially as neither the clubs on or off field problems are their fault.

[rafathegaffa83]

A very interesting read. Quite a labyrinthine web of deception and an absence of communication down at Portsmouth.

Conspiracy or cock-up, Portsmouth plot thickens

Portsmouth are starting to look back on Sulaiman al-Fahim's farcical 42-day reign as a golden age

          o Jamie Jackson
          o guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 6 January 2010 20.52 GMT

"Never think it's a conspiracy when a cock-up cannot be ruled out," was one comment offered yesterday from a source connected to the tangle at Portsmouth.

The speaker was offering a potential explanation for decisions taken since Ali al-Faraj's investment firm Falcondrone Ltd bought 90% of the club on 5 October, bringing in a myriad of advisers. Since the Saudi businessman took over, Faraj's regime has failed to pay the players' salaries on time on three occasions. On 23 December it received a winding-up petition from Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs. And it has presented no clear strategy for clearing Portsmouth's debts, which could amount to £60m.

This last point is what has so infuriated supporters, and provoked them into gathering outside the directors' entrance at Fratton Park following the FA Cup tie against Coventry City to ask what has become the prevailing question asked of the regime: "What is going on?"

The lack of clear information means the answer to this is, as the source quoted above alludes to, difficult to establish.

Among supporters' groups much has been made of a conspiracy theory regarding the reported links between some of Faraj's advisers and Arcadi Gaydamak, the father of the former owner Sacha who is wanted in Israel to answer money-laundering charges. These include Roni Maneh, a businessman, Yoram Yosepov, a lawyer, and Levi Kushnir, a business partner of Balram Chainrai who has loaned the club £18m.

In September Chainrai and Kushnir sued Arcadi for £16.5m. According to the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, Gaydamak Sr has also fallen out with Maneh over a failed business deal. The Jewish Chronicle has since stated that Maneh claimed he told Faraj in October to appoint Avram Grant as manager, although Pini Zahavi, who is Grant's adviser – and who introduced Faraj's regime to Gaydamak – may also have had an influence.

Sources close to Gaydamak Jr claimed to the Guardian that any links are a coincidence, and that they are puzzled by the strategy of Faraj's regime.

While any conspiracy theory seems unlikely, then, it has also been pointed out by some Fratton Park insiders that though the former owner Sulaiman al‑Fahim employed Ernst & Young to carry out forensic due diligence on the club ahead of his summer buyout, Falcondrone's financial strategy appears to rely on Daniel Azougy. He is a disbarred Israeli solicitor and convicted fraudster, who drove Faraj's takeover and is charged with restructuring the current debts while raising fresh finance.

Portsmouth fans are unlikely to have been reassured by Azougy's statement on Tuesday that he had believed Portsmouth's debt to be only "£5m or £10m". They might have hoped that the accounts would have revealed to him the full scale of the amount, which has been available in the public domain for some months.

Azougy also stated that Portsmouth have no facility with any bank, after Standard Bank was paid off with £35m by the summer's sale of players. Yet this has actually proved a problem for Portsmouth as football clubs – like all businesses – require credit to operate. Sources also claim that an individual investor who was lined up in November to inject sizeable finance pulled out, though this option may not be completely dead.

Who else, then, may currently have an influence over the chaotic operation on the south coast? While the chief executive, Peter Storrie, was instantly sidelined by Falcondrone in favour of Mark Jacob, Faraj's lawyer who became executive director, it seems he is as close to a public face as can be found at the club. Fahim, meanwhile, is non-executive chairman and owner of 10% of the club, but appears to have no clear communication with Faraj and his advisers.

Yet the paradox is that while Fahim was widely derided for his tortuous buyout of Portsmouth last summer and subsequent 42-day ownership, fans are now glancing back at his tenure with fondness compared to what has developed since.

At least Fahim, Pompey supporters say, was a visible presence, however farcical. The 32-year-old attended games and fans forums, struck up a relationship with the local newspaper, and supporters were confident they could identify him.

Faraj, in contrast, has never been to the club while his public image is based only on a single, widely-circulated photograph. His brother Ahmed, a London-based property developer who sits on the board and has attended games, has also never spoken publicly.

Fundamentally, the key to the Portsmouth puzzle lies with Falcondrone Ltd, but as a British Virgin Islands-based company it is impossible to view its accounts. The Premier League is powerless to force disclosure, yet if it could it might provide all the answers to the Fratton Park conundrum.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2010/jan/06/portsmouth-al-faraj-fahim

At the end of the day, I am more worried about the non football staff at the club, those whose monthly wage is far more important to them than the players.

Yes the players should be paid, as they are entitled to it (despite the fact I think they are overpaid). However the fact that a lot of the other staff where only paid their December wage the other day is terrible and I really feel for them, especially as neither the clubs on or off field problems are their fault.

Exactly