Morning all.
Times are tough. Covid-19 has hit big companies, small companies and its hit hard. It’s hit Arsenal. We knew the finances were struggling a while ago when players/staff agreed to take a pay cut. Now it appears that 55 redundancies are next.
I can remember Arsene Wenger once saying that Arsenal’s employment numbers had jumped from something like 100 to 500 since he’d been manager. That’s a lot of money going out of the club to a lot of people dependent on the club for their wage.
What really frustrates me is knowing Mesut Ozil is earning £350k a week for doing bugger all. Matteo Guendozi on £50k ish a week for doing less than nothing. £400k a week handed out for nothing in return, £400k a week which would be better spent saving those 55 jobs.
Of course it’s not that simple, or at least I doubt it is. I’d imagine the club has budgets within departments within the club. Footballers seem to be a law unto themselves though. Accepting a pay cut might sound tough but heck, look how much they earn in the first place. They sign a contract and they’re safe for the duration of that contract yet Joe Blogs in the post room has no such security in his position.
We do not make these proposals lightly and have looked at every aspect of the club and our expenditure before reaching this point. We are now entering the required 30-day consultation period on these proposals.
We know this is upsetting and difficult for our dedicated staff and our focus is on managing this as sensitively as possible.
These proposed changes are ultimately about ensuring we take this great football club forward, creating the right organisation for a post-Covid world, and ensuring we have the resources to return to competing effectively at the top of the game here and in Europe.
Raúl Sanllehi, Head of Football
Vinai Venkatesham, Managing Director
But, imagine if Raul and Vinai released a statement today which said that the club wouldn’t signing three quality players this summer needed to help us defend our FA Cup trophy and really challenge for the League title, instead, the club were concentrating on retaining staff behind the scenes and therefore any free money will be paid to non playing staff.
Yep, we’d all go bonkers!
Meanwhile, in the ‘real world’ people are being made redundant all over the place. Who’d have thought BA would ever be in trouble or John Lewis. Travel companies are struggling, high street shops in general have been hit hard because without the customers walking through their doors, they are not selling stock. Yet still they have to pay overheads. Arsenal, along with every other club have had no fans at the stadium since the beginning of lockdown. They’ve had to refund money to ticket holders and it doesn’t look as if ticket sales revenue is likely anytime soon.
It’s sad for those soon to be out of work, but it’s a reflection of what’s going on all over the world and football isn’t immune to the affects this pandemic is having. Three of the fifty five rumoured to be leaving are Peter Clark, head of UK scouting, Brian McDermott and perhaps the biggest surprise in Francis Cagigao who is head of our international scouting. The guy who the Mail online report found Cesc Fabregas and Gabriel Martinelli among others.
Still, it’s all in it’s infancy right now so we’ll have to wait and see how this unfolds. It doesn’t look good though…
See you in the comments guys.
While it’s not nice to be made redundant, Arsenal Football Club is 1st and foremost a business. Any business that wants to be successful, can not be run on sentiment. On the grand scheme of things 55 redundancies. Although horrible for those 55, in a business the size of Arsenal are small figures. At the end of the day I’m pretty sure 90% of fans, wouldn’t be very happy. If the club sold Abua and made no signins, but said hey we stopped 55 people losing there job.
Hi Rico and every one This virus has done some damage for sure in Victoria were I live we are now in stage 4 lock down so one but emergency workers are allowed out between 8pm to 5am and during the day only food shops and petrol stations are aloud to open and some big hardware stores but they are only allowed to serve trade customers. as a father of 2 disabled kids who miss scope ( formally the spastic society ) its hard to explain why they can not go out and yet our football teams in another state are allowed to play,
This is why I find it hard to believe that football clubs like Arsenal do not have a back up plan in place to look after back ground staff and for some players on high wages not only at our club but other clubs a well can not give say 20 thousand pounds to help keep some of the workers in the back in a job, makes me mad it seems that they forget or do not care that the fans make a club with out there support and the un known workers at the club then there would not be a club.
Sorry for the long rant all
Orny saying that the players are not impressed with Kroenke over these job losses.
This is the tip of the Iceberg imo, the government may try and paint a rosy picture because they have to, but I bet they have basically given up and put their eggs in the one basket of a vaccine as at the moment there is no way it`s going away, Dennis help us once the furlough ends in October!
There will be unemployment on a scale never seen because epople just cannot properly social distance and most of the young will not give a shit.
In my own family I have seen my nephews wife post on facebook a group of her and her 7 friends all together in a selfie at a dog walking exercise!……was it really neccessary?………….no!………..I put on her page….” are you all living together in your own private bubble?”
Youngsters want their social drink time and alcohol and social distancing to not go together!
Like most/some I have a mortgage and had to take a 3 month holiday on it, my only hope is that I and wife are a year and 3/4 away from our pension age(if we make it!) and could probably pay a year and 3/4`s mortgage off now so that I will be Ok when we retire. That puts me in a position of luxury compared to those who will lose jobs and homes if no vaccine is found!
I honestly think and hope that there is a vaccine around the corner as if there isn`t then most are going to be in shit street!……………….never wanted to wish my life away, but being a pensioner with no need to work is something I would bite your hand off for right now.
On the relevant post of the moment, what will get most peoples goat is Kroenke has made £300M in this crisis…………I need to say no more!
Good morning Rico, Geoff.
No worries mate, we’re all allowed a rant now and again. 😉
From what I’ve read KSE have restructured the stadium building loans thus freeing up some dosh for transfer fees, wages etc.
The redundancy plan must be a good thing as our celebrity fan has come out against it. Who is that I hear you ask? Why Jeremy Corbyn of course!
The Willian transfer seems to be gaining momentum, a three year dealt at lower wage than his current rate but with incentives for games played, goals scored and competitions won. I’m still not convinced that his position is a priority for us.
A difficult subject Rico, good on you for addressing it.
It’s difficult as a fan because we want the club to buy players and give others new contracts, but at the same time we see the possibility of people losing their jobs and you somehow have to find a balance to your feelings on the matter…
British Airways are shedding staff, John Lewis are closing stores and losing staff and Virgin Airways are on the brink of bankruptcy. It’s happening everywhere. How many sandwich bars, restaurants, coffee shops, pubs, clubs, theatres, night clubs, shops etc will close over the next few months, meanwhile our politicians play their stupid games and the mob march.
All this is thanks to the CCP…
A glance at Beirut may help to put our troubles into perspective. The countries only major seaport has been totally destroyed along with 85% of it’s stores of grain. Almost all of Lebanon’s food supplies are imported through the devastated port. A 100,000 people have been made homeless, the number of dead and injured is rising daily. The hospitals have been damaged and are overwhelmed by the number of casualties needing medical treatment.
The future for Lebanon’s population Is stark.
Hi Cicero shame what happened in Lebanon, personal issues and with dam virus our only chance some times to get away from every thing for 90 minutes is to watch the team we all love win or loose as long as the tried there best but when you see them not trying or giving up during the match, and at they end of there contract turn around and say I want over 150 thousand pounds per week or I will leave make my blood boil. I know a lot of players give money to charities and say nothing but some times you would like to see the players give some thing back to the club.
Sorry Rico got a bit side tracked back to football, has any one herd if we are close to signing any players. or selling players I believe Unai Emery may be interested in Guendouzi hope that true as we need to sell some unwanted players to help Arteta get new one’s in
Hi Rico.. I don’t like this at all… one moment 55 people are being made redundant… then the next moment it’s all about Willian and how he’ll earn 100k a week for the next 3 years!! And how he’ll have taken a pay cut to join us!! Oh that poor sod, just bringing in 100k, how my heart bleeds!!
Hasn’t got a mortgage, probably has multiple properties all over the world.. god knows how many cars, doesn’t have the worry of where his next pay packet comes from While those 55, that are more than likely on a pittance compared to our players etc, are shown the door!
I get what others have mentioned about the hoo-ha there’d be if no one came in and Auba didn’t sign etc.. but it just doesn’t sit well with me… if there’s enough to pay all of them millions each month, there’s enough for the 55. Didn’t we just get 3.6m for the cup win as well as around 40m for EL qualification??
I remember ripping it out of the spuds and pool for wanting to use the furlough scheme and now this… they reversed their decision after a fan backlash.. I wonder if we will…
Rico.. Brian McDermott – is he the guy that used to manage Reading??
By getting rid of our European scouts sound to me that Kroenke wants us to buy American Soccer players only
It’s time there was a fan backlash. How come Ozil is on an “untouchable” contract but these 55 aren’t. Dont workers at Arsenal get contracts or are those contracts worthless. Why could ozil not take £250000 a year and these 55 could have employment for next 12 months. Makes my blood boil. Poor Willian only 100,000 a week. How will he manage!!
According to reports online, we’ve agreed personal terms with Gabriel Magalhaes… just a fee to agree on now.. Lille want €30m .. I feel terrible just by even looking at our transfer news right now!!!
Hi Sue, that’s him.
Afternoon to you all, too many to mention. Lol
Had to be done Kev, none of it sits well really, not when certain overpaid players are stealing off the club. But yes, Arsenal are not alone in the financial battle against the impact of Covid…
Compared to other clubs, I’m pretty sure we have a vastly higher number of staff working behind the scenes.
3.14 Geoff. To me it suggests the club will be doing more work with agents instead of scouts. Or performance data perhaps.
Sky sports reckon Aubameyang deal close.
Where is he going ?
Alexis Sanchez has signed for Inter Milan, his Old Toilet nightmare is over at last. I wish him the very best of luck with his new club.
The Canaries Potter? 😉
As I recall we can have a squad of 25 players of which 17 are the maximum of non home grown. So if we are bringing in any of Partey , Willian , Upamecano , Dembele , Coutinho , Fernandes , Edouard then as we have a full squad of non home grown then for every one that comes in someone has to go to make room.
Of interest Martinez is classed as home grown where Leno is not.
Still we can all perm our ins and outs , something to think about.
Aren’t they in lockdown Cicero . Hoiw are things in Aylsham ? I had to drive from Coltishall through Wroxham back to Potter today . Apart from there being no available moorings for boats , cars were parked on grass verges everywhere and the grass near the two riverside pubs at Coltishall was packed . This morning the queue for day boats was over 400 yards long at Herbert QWoods and on the Repps side nearly as bad .
Norfolk is going mad with tourists it’s just us locals that are staying in . Still we will be able to enjoy our surroundings when the rain and snow comes.
Morning all,
Guys, if every player in the squad dropped 2k a week, that’d easily cover the 55 staff I dare say and in the majority of cases, wouldn’t even be noticed.
Stop making this all about Ozil and Willian (how he’s copping criticism when he’s not even at the club is strange) as the club is full of multi millionaire players.
Arsenal FC are a club.
It’s not Ozil FC and certainly not Willian FC.
To add, someone pointed out Kroenke fortune has grown by 300 million this year and we want Ozil coughing up?
Rather he just did what he could to try and earn his wage or leave.
Ha ha Potter.
Scott, it’s opinions and Ozil, Guendouzi, William etc and even Aubameyang will be in the firing line as one is getting a huge pay rise, the other being potentially signed just after we hear about the redundancies and the other two can’t even be bothered to tow the line. Of course Kroenke’s name will pop up too. We all use our own examples and that doesn’t have to stop. Nor should anyone be told to stop.
One thing this situation has done is stick Arsenal on the back pages again for negative press.
Whenever we get a positive there’s a negative around the corner
Seems as if Ainsley Maitland Niles will have to sacrificed as we can’t shift the players we want rid of, that’s a shame but it is what it is…
He performed really well vs Man City and Chelsea so he is hot to go, but not for £20m and not after playing 100 games for Arsenal…
You look at the stupid prices demanded for English and non English players from Norwich, Bournemouth and Watford, the three teams relegated. They won’t be selling their players for £20m etc, so why should Arsenal. If Brighton want him then £35m and see what happens?
according to the mail Granit xhaka is leading the players in a revolt against the sacking of 55 employees.
Arteta wants to keep AMN but the board has said no sell him.
is this the start of the board promising arteta one thing to get him to sign on as coach and now he has signed show there true colors and refuse his request to buy or keep certain players.
Potter I make only rare visits to Aylsham nowadays, the doctor’s surgery, to collect medication for both my wife and I, as well as the occasional blood test and to the builders merchants just off the by-pass.
However the A140 through my village is a constant stream of caravans and motor homes heading in both directions, much busier than a normal August. The fishing lakes around us and their campsites are busy as is my local although I haven’t been in it since lockdown started, they are offering the “Eat out to help out” discount so maybe I’ll walk round there for lunch on Monday.
Rico, of course you’re right, it’s about opinions, and my opinion is that Stan is a tight arse scum bag 🙂
Geoff.. Good for Granit!!! I hope this can be reversed!
I was only using Willian as an example, Scott.. as he’ll be our first signing since news of the redundancies broke…
And you’re soooo right, he is a tight arse scumbag 🤣
Hahahaha Sue,
Players are employees just as much as office staff and the like.
I just don’t see one responsible for the others plight.
Saying that, it’d be a brilliant gesture if they did take a relatively small pay cut to helps those in need, but they shouldn’t have to-thats my line of thinking.
Can you guys believe we have Rugby League up and runnings and yet players and coaches are being caught breaking Covid-19 protocols?
What’s wrong with these fools???
Since we are having to sell players before we can buy, it is surely sensible to look closely at the value of paying £100,000 per week to a thirty year old on a three year contract with the option of a fourth year, Willian. Whilst selling an England U21 midfielder who has been at Arsenal since the age of five, AMN in order to fund Willian’s deal.
My eldest son who was on his way to visit his German in-laws, has been turned back at Folkestone this morning as if he does not return through Belgium before 4am tomorrow he and his family would have to go into quarantine for two weeks.
Don’t think we should sacrifice AMN for an ageing Brazillian just because Joorabchian is looking for a last pay day out of him .
And I fear that there will be many more quarantine problems before this all comes to an end . The drawbridge should have been drawn up much harder than it was and we should have lived off of our own resources . However after looking at the situation , the government suddenly realised what most of us already knew , that we didn’t have any , having consistently sold off the family silver in the last 50 years.
Spot on Potter.
Morning all.
New post up now