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davieG

Leicester City chairman outlines priorities for Premier League season

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5 hours ago, Ric Flair said:

I noticed that too, quite bizarre given how determined they were that we'd be top 4 within 5 years. Perhaps that itch has now been scratched after absurdly winning it after only 2 seasons, but if anything shouldn't their targets remain the same as a bare minimum given the common from them has always been progression. It's not that what we're doing is unsatisfactory, but it wasn't the fans that were genuinely targeting such lofty heights so soon in to being a Premier League team once again. I wouldn't mind if they showed some real due diligence with our youth team, they pumped a fair bit of money in to it a few years back but did nothing to remedy the people in charge of it whom don't match the level we want to get to. It makes even less sense that we are to build the best training facilities in the country but will likely keep the same setup in our academy, but hey ho let them get on with it.

Why didn't they deem it appropriate to under promise when we first got back in the Premier League, it was bordering on embarrassing that they were claiming we'd be one of the top boys in England within a few years. Yet, somehow we were for a season or so and a lot of the footballing world had to shake their heads and consider perhaps being ambitious as a smaller club in football can pay off with tangible success. I think the blueprint right now is a sensible way of going but it's a big shift from their statements they've made previously.

Maybe be they recalibrated their expectations after seeing what a monumental task it will be. I feel luck to be a fan and spectator of the Leicester project.

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2 hours ago, zealot said:

Thanks for input Markyblue. But it's not about money. They don't need to sell our stadium rights anymore. The business is singing so much at the moment and awash with TV cash that naming rights for the stadium are unimportant (as are ground receipts from attendance to a large degree too!)...

At the time The Walkers Bowl & King Power Stadium were sold to the fans as a temporary measure to get us out of administration's dark days.

It's not about money it's about 'class' and pride in your club and what your club represents. I'd rather our stadium related to our unique history rather than some stupid brand. 

Think Goodison, Anfield, White Hart Lane, Old Trafford, Turf Moor and even Bernabeu and Camp Nou if you like. No club with any sights on world domination should sell the rights to the place where their players create history to the highest bidder.

It's sick and represents a sickness within football and cheapens us as a club...

It’s not a sickness.  It’s simply a world that changed at the end of the last millennium and is not changing back.

In today’s game sustained revenue is lifeblood.  No club can leave it on the table and expect to reach its full potential.  Especially an ambitious smaller club.

Filbert Street exists only in memory.  The current ground has never had a name but Walkers or KP.  The name on it isn’t as important as the football played in it!

You can reach a happy medium.  Our ballpark is no longer “Cleveland Stadium”.  But the concourse is full of murals, retired numbers and past titles are displayed, and there’s a circle of monuments.  Meanwhile the outer walls, scoreboard and entrances tout the sponsors that help our small-market club compete with the New York Yankees.

ProgRF.JPG.84dd5514c060e3bbda5a065c03f19033.JPG

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18 hours ago, Markyblue said:

[...]
I'm just trying to be realistic and don't think it's going to happen
[...]

Realistically our club is in a phenomenal financial state for the first time in my lifetime so now is the time to right the things that we did out of desperation just to survive...

19 hours ago, Gerbold said:

[...] 
He purchased LCFC to promote his brand in this sector of the world. I don't see that changing. It's a necessary evil - as fans we've profited from the deal which made him owner and we still appear to be profiting
[...]

I agree with a lot you've said there apart from one point. Ground naming rights are an UNnecessary evil in Leicester's current case in my view.

And he promotes his brand through the front of our shirts and in very many other places (including any hotels or accommodation or leisure space that will inevitably be part of the deal to build on the land next door). King Power is on every single footballing photo taken of our team for goodness sake across the globe we don't need to sell the rights to our ground at all. 

So there really is absolutely no need at all for our stadium, our ground, our haloed turf, our modern-day church if you like (because it is a holy space for me) to be named after that brand too. 

It cheapens our personality as a club in every conversation anybody has about us...

Edited by zealot
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For any owners progress means big profits and rising asset value. Developing young players is the best way to build asset value to deliver forward profits. Rich clubs swap expensive talent with expensive talent. Leicester City goal is to buy youth and sell later for a healthy profit which means anything above 15th is a success.

Edited by Bazly
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3 hours ago, Markyblue said:

I really don't get the obsession with the king power branding. No where I go ,nobody I speak to calls us king power city etc. Our history will not be judged or change because of the kp branding. In a corporate world it's just a necessary evil but to think it defines us is nonsense. Yes a naming of the new training ground or ground expansion with a nod to our past would be great, but the money the owners are investing it's unlikely. 

Well Said.

At the end of the day money matters & getting a company's name on global television means money. I actually think KingPow is one of the better ones out there. Being sustainable is what's important & you know regardless of what our owners say Europe is the target because that's where the money is.

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2 hours ago, Markyblue said:

I very much agree with you and in a perfect world of course I would absolutely love it to be called the ground of the immortals etc. I'm just trying to be realistic and don't think it's going to happen, if it does I'll be as happy as anybody. 

That would be an absolutely terrible name for a stadium. 

We would rightfully get the pissed ripped out of us by everyone.

If, and it's a big IF, they decided to rename it then Filbert Way or Freemens Wharf would be my choice. But I can't see it happening. King Power Stadium has already been "accepted" by the fanbase and it's puts the brand front and centre for them, so from their point of view there's no sense in dropping it.

 

 

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On 19/08/2018 at 15:53, Kitchandro said:

Worrying that the chairman actually seems to like Puel's shit style of play. Long term we look to be in trouble in that case. His intentions are no doubt good but there's nothing 'methodical' about isolating Vardy, passing the ball too slowly and relying on Chilwell for attacking threat. Somebody at the club needs to realise this sooner rather than later.

There is no progression with the sort of managers we are hiring, they can confuse being reactive with a long term plan if they like but it's clear we are not attack-minded enough to consistently score goals and we won't always be able to ride our luck like we did on Saturday.

Sunderland's problem was they kept hiring managers to save them from the drop, safe pairs of hands, which is the same thing we've done hiring Shakespeare and Puel. Fortunately our playing staff is quite a bit better than their's was and that will get us out of jail for now.

 

I don't doubt Puel's transfer acumen, ability to develop youth, and that he knows how to create a solid foundation for a club-- if that is what the club currently values, then he's Vichai's man.

My reservations with Puel stem from his tactics and the way we've been playing. I know it's going to take time to find the right starting XI but he's constantly tinkering with the lineup, and it might take quite a while for the side to settle in this season. Both Mourinho's set-up and Wolves' awful luck have flattered us a bit at the start of this season.

If we can keep and develop Maddison, Ndidi, Mendy, Gray, Barnes, Ricardo, Chilwell, Iheanacho, and the two new CBs, we might be able to dance around opponents en route to the goal for the whole game. In the meantime, I just can't see us picking up as many points as we should if we don't start getting the ball to Vardy more often and in dangerous positions when he starts. We saw quite a lot of that isolation last season, and it was more of the same against Wolves.

All in all, I'm willing to keep the faith in CP and this sort of approach; however, we saw how much of a cash cow European football was for the club (and what an experience it was for the fans!), and we can't make a habit of forsaking those opportunities if they continue to be in reach.

 

Edited by The_77
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Given the way so many of these clubs just throw around money to build and sustain their squads - kind of like buying toys to keep their managers and supports happy - I much prefer watching Leicester trying to build the way they are. Ownership has a vision and seems to be working to achieve it.  Also like they way they've held their ground to retain some of their better players.  That's all you really ask of the guys writing the checks.

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With such large infrastructure investments in the expansion and training ground we’re going to have to be more sustainable. We generate c. £20m profit a year and that’s not enough to fund player purchases and building developments so placing greater emphasis on younger players is key. I’m glad that we look to be breaking the cycle of sacking managers inside 12 months of their contract; it might be slightly boring but it’s more cost effective and less risky. 

We’re going to be consolidating until 2020 given our expenditure but Puel has experience of a training ground relocation and development as well as stadium move so he’s a suitable if uninspiring manager which is what we need. Additionally, as we’ll have less to spend a coach comfortable working with a young squad is necessary as we won’t be able to make several expensive signings each summer unless we sell. The squad will hopefully develop well together as they approach their prime years under a manager with a track record of trust in younger players.

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On 19/08/2018 at 21:22, Deucalion said:

I'm a little cynical about this too.

Dropped is any mention of challenging for European football, and in is talk of sustainability and relying on the youth team.

Last time they stated ambitions of being a top six team they had the piss taken mercilessly.....no point in subjecting themselves the same again.

Edited by PaulW
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5 hours ago, Stadt said:

With such large infrastructure investments in the expansion and training ground we’re going to have to be more sustainable. We generate c. £20m profit a year and that’s not enough to fund player purchases and building developments so placing greater emphasis on younger players is key. I’m glad that we look to be breaking the cycle of sacking managers inside 12 months of their contract; it might be slightly boring but it’s more cost effective and less risky. 

We’re going to be consolidating until 2020 given our expenditure but Puel has experience of a training ground relocation and development as well as stadium move so he’s a suitable if uninspiring manager which is what we need. Additionally, as we’ll have less to spend a coach comfortable working with a young squad is necessary as we won’t be able to make several expensive signings each summer unless we sell. The squad will hopefully develop well together as they approach their prime years under a manager with a track record of trust in younger players.

The training ground and stadium expansion can be funded by our owners without effecting FFP, I'm led to believe. 

Fans are mistaking this summers issue during August of recruiting players on the fact we are tightening purse strings but the main factor was our wage limits from a bloated squad of shit. Nearly all will be gone by next summer and there'll be more room for manouvre. That's not to say we aren't being mindful but we'll still be spending.

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14 minutes ago, Ric Flair said:

The training ground and stadium expansion can be funded by our owners without effecting FFP, I'm led to believe. 

Fans are mistaking this summers issue during August of recruiting players on the fact we are tightening purse strings but the main factor was our wage limits from a bloated squad of shit. Nearly all will be gone by next summer and there'll be more room for manouvre. That's not to say we aren't being mindful but we'll still be spending.

As I understand it your squad wage bill can rise by a percentage each year. Last season we had the seventh highest wage budget so that puts us in a decent place to recruit a couple of big earners if we choose to do so over the next couple summers. 

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Refreshing article to be honest... since we’ve won the league we could be accused of getting carried away, and with the needless spending on, let’s face it, crap... we were in danger of becoming a fallen giant..... let’s reset, and look to sustain, and then build once we’ve got a solid foundation and look to join in with the party again. We will finish top 8 for me, comfortable, with a few bumps and bruises on the way but ultimately we’re building for the future, hopefully a successful future.

 

Unless you’re a world class club, short term changes will never progress you, it will only lead to failure. We will be alright, and I’m actually quite excited for the future. 

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17 hours ago, KingsX said:

[...] Filbert Street exists only in memory.  The current ground has never had a name but Walkers or KP.  The name on it isn’t as important as the football played in it!

[...] Our ballpark is no longer “Cleveland Stadium”.  But the concourse is full of murals, retired numbers and past titles are displayed, and there’s a circle of monuments.  Meanwhile the outer walls, scoreboard and entrances tout the sponsors that help our small-market club compete with the New York Yankees.

The bottom line is wages and gate receipts are pittance nowadays compared to the TV rights money. The club is in a very healthy state. We don't need to sell our naming rights anymore. It is not an essential part of our business model. We don't really need to sell our shirt sponsorship either but I'm content with that as a necessary evil. I'm not saying cross out every reference to King Power.

I don't want Filbert Street back - we couldn't have had the success we've had recently there. I loved it - but it's the past - similar to Lakeside Stadium I guess. That's fine but you're missing the point which is about the importance of language and heritage to any club's persona.

The name on a stadium IS as important as the football played in it because everyone - inside and outside of our club - has to use it. All the millions who don't come to games use that name to describe you, your football and everything else about it too!

Cleveland may well need to sell the rights to 'The Jake' because of a lack of funds - just like Leicester did in the past...

However, right now, Leicester don't need to sell the rights to their stadium but we do it anyway. Why?

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20 hours ago, Bazly said:

For any owners progress means big profits and rising asset value. Developing young players is the best way to build asset value to deliver forward profits. Rich clubs swap expensive talent with expensive talent. Leicester City goal is to buy youth and sell later for a healthy profit which means anything above 15th is a success.

The Chelsea Model: a sad but neccessary evil 

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4 hours ago, Ric Flair said:

The training ground and stadium expansion can be funded by our owners without effecting FFP, I'm led to believe. 

Fans are mistaking this summers issue during August of recruiting players on the fact we are tightening purse strings but the main factor was our wage limits from a bloated squad of shit. Nearly all will be gone by next summer and there'll be more room for manouvre. That's not to say we aren't being mindful but we'll still be spending.

You're right FFP doesn't cover infrastructure investment but I think it's extremely unlikely King Power are going to put spend roughly £100m given their political connections aren't as strong as they were. They want us to be self sustaining and we need to be shrewder - signings like Iborra for £12m will have to be cut out.

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On 19/08/2018 at 20:58, Ric Flair said:

3-4 losses on the spin and all this will change, but it's a nice sentiment to try and get everyone on board at the start of the season. Means now to me.

Totally agree, as he states the fans are key, results are not everything, string of bad results, if the masses turn, the chairman has no option 

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14 hours ago, PaulW said:

Last time they stated ambitions of being a top six team they had the piss taken mercilessly.....no point in subjecting themselves the same again.

We won the league though.  That took the wind out the sails of the piss-takers.

 

?

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13 hours ago, zealot said:

The bottom line is wages and gate receipts are pittance nowadays compared to the TV rights money. The club is in a very healthy state. We don't need to sell our naming rights anymore. It is not an essential part of our business model. We don't really need to sell our shirt sponsorship either but I'm content with that as a necessary evil. I'm not saying cross out every reference to King Power.

I don't want Filbert Street back - we couldn't have had the success we've had recently there. I loved it - but it's the past - similar to Lakeside Stadium I guess. That's fine but you're missing the point which is about the importance of language and heritage to any club's persona.

The name on a stadium IS as important as the football played in it because everyone - inside and outside of our club - has to use it. All the millions who don't come to games use that name to describe you, your football and everything else about it too!

Cleveland may well need to sell the rights to 'The Jake' because of a lack of funds - just like Leicester did in the past...

However, right now, Leicester don't need to sell the rights to their stadium but we do it anyway. Why?

This is a value judgment.  The non-monetary value of a name is subjective and personal.  The money looks like this:

The value of PL stadium naming rights is rising fast (nearly doubled from 2013-2017).  This table shows fees paid last year, and estimates of what the other clubs would realize.  Even in our mid-table neighborhood, it isn’t chump change.

NamingRights.JPG.8f6feed9ec03b9638846bac901b2ca59.JPG

The terms of the KP deal are not public.  However, if this is accurate, I don’t think the club can afford to forego £3m (2% of its existing revenue) and rising, to rename the ground to Filbert Way.  You do, and fair enough.

I understand why Newcastle keep the St. James Park name at a loss of £3.6m/year.  But at the same time, that gives us another leg up against a near competitor.  And LCFC didn’t have to ditch a 100-year-old name.  In fact “King Power Stadium” has gained considerable fame and positive meaning.  If renamed, I bet some would continue to call it "the KP".

https://www.duffandphelps.com/about-us/news/market-rates-of-premier-league-stadium-naming-rights-increase

 

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13 hours ago, zealot said:

The bottom line is wages and gate receipts are pittance nowadays compared to the TV rights money. The club is in a very healthy state. We don't need to sell our naming rights anymore. It is not an essential part of our business model. We don't really need to sell our shirt sponsorship either but I'm content with that as a necessary evil. I'm not saying cross out every reference to King Power.

I don't want Filbert Street back - we couldn't have had the success we've had recently there. I loved it - but it's the past - similar to Lakeside Stadium I guess. That's fine but you're missing the point which is about the importance of language and heritage to any club's persona.

The name on a stadium IS as important as the football played in it because everyone - inside and outside of our club - has to use it. All the millions who don't come to games use that name to describe you, your football and everything else about it too!

Cleveland may well need to sell the rights to 'The Jake' because of a lack of funds - just like Leicester did in the past...

However, right now, Leicester don't need to sell the rights to their stadium but we do it anyway. Why?

The club needs every penny it can get its hand on as it is a buisness.if match day receipts are a pittance of our turnover then why not let everybody in for free.Why haggle over a poxy couple of hundred grand during transfer negotiations.If you told the owner of the company you worked for to give you a quid as they aren’t going to miss it they probably would tell you to f@@k off.

In any buisness every penny counts.

Everton changing Goodson Parks name really would be a move too far,and would be a great way to fall out with their supporters.We are different as the KP is relatively new as was mentioned in an earlier post.

More turnover=more future spending power.Its their ground so they can call it what they like.

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