Kitman

Moider x 2!

Bath or Barth? Pronunciation is lercal, innit, there's no right or wrong. The good folk of Birmingham are convinced the rest of the world "talk funn-ay". My old English teacher told me the English of the Canterbury Tales sounds very much like Glaswegian. If he was telling the truth then it's the rest of us who are out of step.

My overdraft feels very real, Parky

West Highland Terrier? Shouldn't it support a Scottish club? Bloody OOTs/Hughton Bandwagon Jumpers!

No they're not. We now have Barclays dictating whether we can or cant appoint a manager. That doesnt happen when you owe yourself. Yes, there is the overdraft of course. I was talking more about the structural debt, which will now have to be accounted for in any share sale - anyone buying Ashleys shares is going to value them on a net-of-debt basis (which he would have done if he'd bothered to do any due diligence) Can you explain that in layman's terms? When valuing the shares the buyer is going to ask what is the net value of the club - ie, assets = x, less debts = y, total value of the shares = 3 shillings ha'penny Isn't the value of a company typically fixed by reference to its operating income rather than its net asset value?

I'd be surprised if these were Hughes's signings as such, although obviously he's not going to say no to any of them. I reckon it's a race between Hughes and Ancelotti to be the first PL manager sacked. Hughes seems more likely to me as he was in situ last season so will be expected to do the business immediately.

Can't blame him, what sort of players was he able to get in at Blackburn? Don't suppose his wages are too bad these days either. You reckon he's got the minerals to pull this off? I think he'll be a canny bet for first PL manager to be sacked

Joe has delusions of adequacy

Well it's not as if the dead fella needed his legs anymore. Should have gone to High and Mighty for his coffin.

Eh? I'm being a bit slow here but we haven't sold Bassong yet have we? And who's McLovin?

I think it was against the Kiwis too, something which they haven't forgotten or forgiven

If you know any necromancers, now is the time for a hefty down payment Mr P.

Did you listen to his post match interview on the ground at all? The interview where he congratulated England and Collingwood for holding out? Your physio needs to lose his manboobs as well. No. But then I was watching the Aussie Sky coverage, which just had Ponting whingeing over and over again at his press conference.

Surely assurances in the short term wouldn't be massively essential, because being able to do anything right now would be a big improvement on what is currently going on. He can kick and scream about assurances and budgets etc, but in perspective, just some leadership whilst this is ongoing would be beneficial for both the club, and Shearer if/when he is finally appointed full time. I assume Shearer would want to be successful if he took the job. And I'm guessing he couldn't rely on getting appointed full time, anything could happen with the club in the next 3 weeks.

Big deal, big fees innit?

You'd have to wonder whether Shearer would trust Ashley given what's happened since the end of the season.

He'll be too busy having his bum hair woven into his scalp by the Advanced Hair Studio to achieve a youthful look. Not that you'd notice the difference on the pitch.

But it's only an issue if we don't get any decent players in to replace them. tbh I'd have thought most of those would be ill suited to championship football and we can't afford their wages anyway. Maybe Taylor, Bassong, Taylor and Duff could form the nucleus of a championship team but I'd have thought the rest could go. If we get any one in, it'll be a Taylor/Nolan situation in the last few days, no doubt about it. Unless we're sold we'll be playing with at least 3-4 kiddies in our team every match until at least Jan Oh I'm not pretending it's a good situation JG, I'm just not too deflated to think some of the players might go. tbh we might be better off with some fresh legs and a bit of hunger over some jaded old pro who's turning up to take a bloated wage packet. Of course what we need are some decent new signings that will get us out of the CCC. What we'll get is Dean Windass on a free. Probably

But it's only an issue if we don't get any decent players in to replace them. tbh I'd have thought most of those would be ill suited to championship football and we can't afford their wages anyway. Maybe Taylor, Bassong, Taylor and Duff could form the nucleus of a championship team but I'd have thought the rest could go.

It must be time for Shola to make an appearance. It'll be interesting to hear what his plans are for the number 9 shirt and how his England career's going under Capello.

Its ok Ive had my 5 weetabix now I am chilled Having complained about the state of the kitchen, no doubt you'll now go and pebble dash the toilet and wipe your arse up and down the wall for good measure. Then walk out without flushing (or washing your hands, to infuriate Gemmill)

http://www.shieldsgazette.com/nufc/39I-did...-bit.5455682.jp Well at least he admits it, not that it's any comfort. Perhaps he was more England prone than injury prone.

I still don't get it though. How can these things drag on for so long? I'm not surprised the potential buyers looked at the books and saw that a lot about the finances was wrong, but that was more than a month ago, maybe even two months. What can possibly take the parties so long? To be fair due diligence involves more than a quick look at the books. Financial due diligence will look at all the clubs income flows, all its contractual liabilities (players, property, suppliers etc), bank financing and security arrangements, and the viability of the business, including modelling future cashflows and considering whether the asking price is reasonable; I imagine for a large club like NUFC the dealings are quite complicated and take somne unravelling. In addition there's legal due diligence and there may even be environmental stuff associated with the ground. Plus tax and accounting due diligence. If there are financiers involved like banks that hold security against assets, that might involve additional work. Then there will be negotiations around the offer based on the due diligence, maybe an agreement in principle which has to be turned into a contract. Supposing things get that far, then there's the sale and purchase agreement to be prepared and finalised, which has to be pored over by lawyers for all the parties, and warranties and indemnities which protect the purchaser, and any disclosures the vendor wants to make against these. The sale agreement may go through many drafts. There may be stumbling blocks and ultimatums, and the logistics of bringing all the different advisers and interested parties together can be time consuming. I've probably missed something out. If you're doing it properly it can take quite a bit of time. Unless you're Mike Ashley buying a company, in which case you conclude the deal on the back of a greasy napkin by all accounts in between courses.

Crikey. You need to relax.

You have to laugh. Otherwise you'd cry. I hope they're taking notes on how not to structure contracts, in case we ever sign anyone ever again. They'll need a big notebook, mind.