Mail On Sunday article....

[changingman2000 35]

Article in yesterday's "Mail on Sunday" regarding Kenyon and Chels. Highlighting the fact that it was Kenyn who led the team up for the medals in Moscow, etc. I do think its a pretty fair piece of writing sadly.

Deep down, all football clubs just want to be like Chelsea

Last updated at 6:00 PM on 03rd August 2008

As we recover from Edgbaston's dramas and savour the prospect of a stunning Olympics, we find summer's splendours punctuated by a small, sour voice from the bleak midwinter. Peter Kenyon is lecturing the poor relations of English football.

Main men: Chelsea owner Roman Abramovich and Chief Executive Peter Kenyon

Asked for his thoughts on the chronic absence of competition at the summit of the Premier League, Chelsea's chief executive wagged a censorious finger.

'Other teams in England should be knocking on our door, teams like Tottenham, Newcastle, Villa, Everton,' he said. 'It's more about them getting their houses in order rather than us coming down to their level.'

Now, we should forgive him his pomposity, since pomposity is Pete's default mode. Likewise his arrogant condescension, another of his minor foibles.

But we must have no truck with the extraordinary notion that the Kenyons of this world have got it right, that what he and his chums have done these past few seasons has set an example which the English game might profitably copy.

The facts are simple and unchallenged. Roman Abramovich bought the ailing football club in July 2003. In the financial year 2003-04, the club posted a loss of £87.8million. In the year 2004-05, they lost £140.4m, the biggest deficit in football history. In 2005-06, the loss was £80.2m - 'We're moving in the right direction,' remarked Kenyon. And in 2006-07, the last figures available, they lost £74.8m.

Abramovich is estimated to have spent £578m up to June 2007, with several millions more over the past year. In 2006-07, their wages bill was £133m, which represented 71 per cent of turnover.

To understand that kind of spending, we might consider a story published elsewhere in these pages, telling of how the Brazilian defender Alcides - a player currently 'on loan' to PSV Eindhoven but who insists he has a contract with Chelsea - is wondering if the London club seriously intend to use his services.

He has never kicked a ball for them, never worn their shirt, yet still they are said to be paying him up to £75,000 a week - or around £4m per year - to play for another football team. IT may be that Abramovich made so much money that he can treat such sums with disdain.

He may well be the kind of man who wouldn't quibble over half a billion. After all, it's only money, and as the cringingly loyal Kenyon explains: 'When he bought Chelsea he wanted it to be not just a successful football team but a force for good. He recognises how powerful sport can be in changing the social aspects of life and the influences it has on youth.'

That's Roman for you, a Gandhi in Gucci. Yet even as we boggle at his altruism, we look again at those staggering losses. And we wonder about the long-term security of a club whose prosperity is entirely dependent upon the benign whim and personal generosity of a Russian oligarch. Which brings us back to Kenyon.

The football world cackled at the close of the Champions League final in Moscow, when he led the defeated Chelsea team up to the dais, then lowered his gleaming skull so that a meaningless medal might be hung around his sodden collar. Why, some even felt a stab of pity, so ludicrous was the sight.

But now he forfeits any sympathy. 'Get your own houses in order . . . we're not coming down to your level.' It is worse than arrogance, it is wildeyed, chest-thumping self-delusion.

Essentially, he is saying: 'Find your own oligarch. Get him to empty his pockets. Don't worry about losses, there's millions more where that lot came from. And when you've spent your way to the top, don't forget to look down on the rabble who weren't so lucky.'

It is the depressing philosophy of a rather sad man. You see, he really believes this patronising tosh. He actually believes that he and his loadsamoney club represent what the rest of English football would secretly love to become.

And here is the most depressing thing of all. Peter Kenyon may just be right.

[Kez 2,727]

I can't stand Peter Kenyon, in Moscow when he went up to collect that medal he had a big smile on his face and i couldn't help agreeing with the Man utd fans that were singing Peter Kenyon what a wanker.

Losing £140.4m in a year is worrying, Roman wont be around forever and i just worry whats gonna happen when the money goes

[changingman2000 35]

Kenyon was brought in to Promote the Chelsea "Brand" around the world. Instead, He is seemingly doing evrything possible to rubbish whatever brand were supposed to be. Whoever dreamed up the incredulous idea that he should lead the players up must have been on the columbian marching powder as that made us a complete and utter laughing stock around the world. Ronnie Harris, Peter Bonetti, Kerry Dixon you name it, But no, we get an ex Man Ure Scavaging fuck pig.

Nice one Roman

The article is depressing reading, But unfortunately, Its pretty much bang on.

[Aesthetic Relic 301]

All this crap about us buying the league and whatever has run its course. Manure have been spending shed loads of money for years and they didnt get the same level of scrutiny we have. Liverpool, Man City, Spurs and now possibly Newcastle will be following in our footsteps at trying to break to dominace of Manure and the Arse of the Premiership.

We already had a decent side before Abramovich came to SB. The few years we had before his arrival saw us lift quite a few trophies which backs that up. You need money to be consistently successful. They know it and would give their left bollock to be in the position we're in. They can put whatever spin on it they like, but in reality we know its envy.

We've recently signed some of our most important players on long term contracts. Cech, Essien, Carvalho, Bridge and Lampard and Drogba are "due" to sign extended deals. Add JT, Ferreira, Bosingwa, Alex, Ash, Anelka, Kalou, Joe Cole, Deco and Ivanovic to the mix and you have a very good squad for the coming seasons. Ballack, Malouda, SWP and Shevchenko will only be around for another few years at best imo, so we only need a tweak here and there each season. So the money being lossed every season will gradually decrease.

The emergence of Di Santo this season also shows we're moving in the right direction to finally bring on the talent the academy is producing. Scolari has said so himself, he wishes to bring the reserve team players who he feels are capable of holding their own into the first team.

If the day comes when RA decides he's had enough, then hopefully by that time we'll be in the position to look after ourselves. But I'm sure if he does go that somone will come in who'll maybe not be as generous with his cash as RA was, but will help us on the steady route to long term success we are aiming for :thumbsup:

[EskWeston 696]

Oh boo bloody hoo....

Another bitter journo just wanting to but the boot into us. "Look how much Chelsea have spent" blah blah blah - we have heard it all before. The debt that Man you, Arsenal and Liverpool are in is a far worse situation than what we are in and yet they can do no wrong.

Failing to notice the fact that our spending has gone down over the last couple of seasons, last season and so far this season our spending on players has been small in comparison and i believe it will continue that way.

The club has been set up in the right way, a lot of money and time has gone into building the academy and that will eventually reap rewards also and save us on money.

How dare we have someone own our club who is passionate enough to dig into his own pockets and set us up as one of the biggest clubs in the world!!! We should be ashamed of ourselves.

[changingman2000 35]

Oh boo bloody hoo....

Another bitter journo just wanting to but the boot into us. "Look how much Chelsea have spent" blah blah blah - we have heard it all before. The debt that Man you, Arsenal and Liverpool are in is a far worse situation than what we are in and yet they can do no wrong.

Failing to notice the fact that our spending has gone down over the last couple of seasons, last season and so far this season our spending on players has been small in comparison and i believe it will continue that way.

The club has been set up in the right way, a lot of money and time has gone into building the academy and that will eventually reap rewards also and save us on money.

How dare we have someone own our club who is passionate enough to dig into his own pockets and set us up as one of the biggest clubs in the world!!! We should be ashamed of ourselves.

Fuck me, talk about going on the defensive. No opinion on Kenyon then? In general or his comments, or his actions at the CL final?

Alcides? no comment's?

[EskWeston 696]

Fuck me, talk about going on the defensive. No opinion on Kenyon then? In general or his comments, or his actions at the CL final?

Alcides? no comment's?

Same thing we have all read before.

Kenyon? Does what he is paid to do. His comments don't really bother me! Not exactly saying anything groundbreaking. And as for his actions at the CL final, should he have been up there? No! Was it his descision to go up there? I doubt it.

Alcides. What are doing wrong? Most of the time it is to get around work permit issues. We did the same with Alex, we did similar with Mikel (although that went tits up) we are doing it with Raijkovic. OK maybe Alcides won't work out, but not every single one will. And we are not the only club that do it. And the figure of £75k a week we are supposed to be paying him is without doubt utter garbage.

What is our big crime here that is up for debate? We are too rich for our own good? It's not fair that other clubs run up huge debts and we have Roman to save us from that?

[changingman2000 35]

Same thing we have all read before.

Kenyon? Does what he is paid to do. His comments don't really bother me! Not exactly saying anything groundbreaking. And as for his actions at the CL final, should he have been up there? No! Was it his descision to go up there? I doubt it.

Alcides. What are doing wrong? Most of the time it is to get around work permit issues. We did the same with Alex, we did similar with Mikel (although that went tits up) we are doing it with Raijkovic. OK maybe Alcides won't work out, but not every single one will. And we are not the only club that do it. And the figure of £75k a week we are supposed to be paying him is without doubt utter garbage.

What is our big crime here that is up for debate? We are too rich for our own good? It's not fair that other clubs run up huge debts and we have Roman to save us from that?

No, Our main crime is Kenyon. He's isnt a football man, he is a business man, Which in itself isnt his fault, But he should speak out about business matter's if he see's fit. However, when it comes to Football, he should keep his mouth shut, firmly shut.

This article is aimed at Kenyon mainly, and, it shows him up to be the cunt that he clearly is. His is mouthing off about things he knows fuck all about. Most people already think he's a prick, and he has only enhanced that general opinion.

Trevor Birch anyone?

[EskWeston 696]

No, Our main crime is Kenyon. He's isnt a football man, he is a business man, Which in itself isnt his fault, But he should speak out about business matter's if he see's fit. However, when it comes to Football, he should keep his mouth shut, firmly shut.

This article is aimed at Kenyon mainly, and, it shows him up to be the cunt that he clearly is. His is mouthing off about things he knows fuck all about. Most people already think he's a prick, and he has only enhanced that general opinion.

Trevor Birch anyone?

Not a fan of Kenyon then?

Personally i don't have a problem with him. And what he has said isn't too far wrong either, if you want more competition it is up to the clubs below us to make a go of it, not much we can do about it.

Roman doesn't speak to the press, and never will. So Kenyon has to be the mothpiece of the board, yes we all hate that the club is talked about as a "brand" and we take the team to places like China and Malaysia to play pointless friendlies to sell some shirts but that is his job, and anyone in his place would do the very same thing.

[misschief 24]

Fuck me, talk about going on the defensive. No opinion on Kenyon then? In general or his comments, or his actions at the CL final?

Alcides? no comment's?

Truth hurts. It still amazes me that the vast majority can't open their eyes to the fact that Roman and Kenyon arent god's gift to the footballing world tbh.

We are in debt to the tune of over £500million, to one man - and that really isnt the safest position for any football club to be in. We were going out of business before Roman turned up and yet we didnt have anywhere near the size of debt we have now.

United might well spend but they were a big enough club in their own right, having earned their money through football way before the Glazers turned up. Arsenal have certainly spent on a shiny new stadium but they'll make their money back eventually and they don't persist in throwing money around they dont actually have in the meantime. As for Liverpool, if their spending really rivalled ours, wouldn't the Barry deal have been done and dusted already?

We might not be splashing as much cash in the transfer market the past couple of seasons, but we're still maintaining the same players - on ever increasing salaries, as all the 'new deals' are signed to keep the players at the club. Add to that the fact that whether we like it or not, these players are heading towards a less than desirable age group whilst we're paying £75,000 a week for younger players to play elsewhere, and you've got to start thinking there's better ways of doing business.

As for Kenyon, he's got to be the slimiest, most arrogant, two-faced prick ever to get involved in the football world. From the minute he walked into Chelsea, our reputation hasnt stood a chance.

I read an interview with Ranieri - Kenyon's first victim - apparently where Roman was concerned, Ranieri didnt have a problem yet the moment Kenyon's name was mentioned, the reporter reckoned Ranieri actually flinched at the mere mention of his name - and little wonder. Didn't he then break his arse to bring in Mourinho, only to stab him in the back as well? Hardly a surprise given he came to us off the back of stabbing United in the back anyway really. He'll think nothing of doing exactly the same thing to us.

Oh, and someone shouldve pushed the fucker down them steps in Moscow imo.

[EskWeston 696]

Kenyon was the one pushing to keep Jose and Jose always refers to Kenyon as a friend.

As for the "debt" we have, you can't even compare it to the situation the Mancs and the Arse are in. It is interest free and the only reason it is done as a loan is for tax reasons. Roman owes the money to himself.

I don't see any problem with the situation we are in. We have a very rich owner who owns the club personally and is willing to spend money to make us a massive club which he has done. And now the outrageous spending is winding down to normal levels and we will eventually become self sufficient.

A lot of people hate Kenyon, personally i can see any reason to get worked up about him. He does a job that none us can relate to as football fans. As for him ruining our reputation, our reputation never stood a chance once we became winners who were a threat to the big boys.

Financially i cant see any reason why a Chelsea fan would be unhappy with the situation we are in.

[misschief 24]

Financially i cant see any reason why a Chelsea fan would be unhappy with the situation we are in.

Are you kidding me? One man, who has been around for a mere five years could potentially decide to walk away at any time, and you can't see why some supporters would fine that unnerving?

And if you honestly believe we can become self sufficient, you are seriously kidding yourself.

[bombayblue™ 55]

Are you kidding me? One man, who has been around for a mere five years could potentially decide to walk away at any time, and you can't see why some supporters would fine that unnerving?

And if you honestly believe we can become self sufficient, you are seriously kidding yourself.

when you look at those numbers they do seem large, but compare them to the numbers of united, arse and pool, and you just might heave a sigh of relief..

the interest free loan and growing profits symbiotically moves us closer to breaking even, 2010-11 may not be year but we are sure in hell moving faster than the rest 3 clubs towards breaking even, while not sacrificing on other areas..

arsenal are paying some 32million pounds as interest every year, thats one star signing and his wages every year..

[warnie_666 1,081]

Are you kidding me? One man, who has been around for a mere five years could potentially decide to walk away at any time, and you can't see why some supporters would fine that unnerving?

And if you honestly believe we can become self sufficient, you are seriously kidding yourself.

A Man who invests millions in a venture wouldnt ever walk away in such a short time. Its obvious that Roman is here for a long time and hence he decided to build the cobham academy and spend million. Its a no brainer. People invest huge sums for long term and not for short term.

And I also read somewhere that he has reserved some 400 million pounds for the future of Chelsea incase he plans to quit or something unnatural happens to him.

I have also heard that his son is a huge Chelsea fan and would want to take over the reins of the club from his father.

I am not worried at all about the situation.

[nikno 1]

Are you kidding me? One man, who has been around for a mere five years could potentially decide to walk away at any time, and you can't see why some supporters would fine that unnerving?

And if you honestly believe we can become self sufficient, you are seriously kidding yourself.

Do you honestly think Roman bought the club expecting it to break even within 5 years?

He first needed to buy players to make it a world class team so it could start winning trophies before he could even think about breaking even. He's done that now, and he'll spend a bit every year as maintenance by buying new players, but we are spending less every season because we don't need to be spending as much anymore. We already have an incredibly strong base.

You don't buy into a company, pay off all of its debts and think you can break even immediately, Chelsea is probably a 20-year + investment for Roman. I seem to remember Kenyon mentioning something about a 10-year plan when he first joined, I doubt we'll see it that soon.

The fact of the matter is, he won't walk away, because he's invested too much money and he'll leave at a loss, it won't affect his bank account much but will certainly affect his business credentials, he's in Chelsea for the long run. The only thing that would separate him from the club is his death.

[changingman2000 35]

Are you kidding me? One man, who has been around for a mere five years could potentially decide to walk away at any time, and you can't see why some supporters would fine that unnerving?

And if you honestly believe we can become self sufficient, you are seriously kidding yourself.

Sadly no, I dont think he is kidding to be honest. At this rate, we'll be self sufficient by 2525 (at the very earliest).

Trouble is, there is a minority, and a very small one at that, Who thinks that whatever Roman and Kenyon do is fine by them, as long as its under the blue "Branded" flag that is Chelsea. They could Pistol Whip a war hero and still be hailed as messiah's by this minority.

Remember, This was also the minority who were happy to give Grant his chance. Why I hear you ask? Well because Roman and Kenyon blessed it. Cant be wrong can they? Well, no, because its all in the "brand" name of Chelsea.

This is the minority who would welcome Christian Gross as manager...........as long as it was endorsed by messers Roman and Peter.

I know JUST what your thinking :thumbsup:

[misschief 24]

I know JUST what your thinking :thumbsup:

Y'know what? You totally do, lol.

I'm flogging a dead horse here eh? I just won't hold my breath on seeing us become self sufficient in my lifetime - and before you insult me, Im really not THAT old.

[Fulham Broadway 16,392]

Kenyon is a prize tit generally. The brand of Chelsea is now touted through a veneer of merchandise, meaningless 'tours' and aggressive marketing. Much preferred the brand when it was through aggressive supporters, humour and sheer number of away fans.

When it comes to finances. Chelsea are a special case. The clubs losses run at a level unsustainable anywhere else, and even though Kenyon has mooted the club will be self sufficient by 2010, we all know that is marketing speak.

The other thing is this target can be waived by Abramovich at any time.

Kenyons arrogance is breathtaking at times, -telling other clubs to catch up, as if billionaire oligarchs are two a penny. He also didnt mention that Chelseas losses are bigger than any clubs income excluding the top four -last year for instance, Chelseas losses matched Liverpools wage bill. This is all fine and dandy as long as Abramovich keeps on side. Kenyon isnt just two faced when it comes to loyalty though, he has no qualms about being multi-faceted when money is flying about, and will cunt anyone off if someone else pays him enough.

Fans of other teams mocked Chelsea saying it was just Abramovichs plaything -and I think they're right in their jealous way. Money for players sold is irrelevant to Abramovich -just pocket money, and Chelsea will continue to pay silly money for players.

The 'credit crunch' seems to have hit top flight football as well though with the 'top four' all spending substantially less than previous years. Financially top flight football appears to have peaked -unless you're Abramovich though.