der Berliner

Fair enough. Do you know what was said to Russell and by whom, at the time? Just out of interest. As I said, it might well/simply have been a communication problem between what was said by Jela at the time "to" Russell via Whyte, and to McCoist. Not that these circumstances during the last days/hours of the transfer window can change quickly. Be that as it may, "More lies from the management" is hardly a true story, nor one that should be tolerated. We should keep to certain standards and dignity ... even if there are some things that do not match up. Sidenote: we do not know what fee was agree in total, add-ons, sell-on clause and whatnot. So we likewise should refrain from "assuming" that we sold him on the cheap, or cheaper than other bids.

As I said above, the reporter will turn the words to get his story. We hardly know what was told by whom and to which person. And we do not know how much of said stuff above is actually true or not. But for some reason, which was my point, it appears that with everything that could be regarded as something negative with regard to the chairman and the management, "we" are all too happy to accept it as near fact.

... yep. It was bound to happen though and while we did indeed have a had a few replacements in our sights, apparently time was a factor. All that said, there are still freebies about who can be looked at, and I do believe that there are enough out there who would do a job for us in the SPL (for at least six months). On a sidenote, Lafferty and Hemmings will be back soon and I would hazard a guess that Aluko and Celik will chip in with some goals. Edit: @ Bluedell ... so you take the words of the press for being the truth then?

A pretty bold topical header. All what is in there might just have been a problem of understanding - after all, you do have to keep in mind that Jela does not speak English that good and the odd slip may lead people listening to different ideas. Not - and we always have to keep this in mind - that the press tries to make astory out of this: after all, selling our star striker "has to cause some upset" amongst the management, the support, the players or whatnot: at least according to the press. Hence they milk it to the core. The more important issues with this article is, as I intimated on the day, that McCoist did not have a bust up with Whyte, and that he apparently spoke to him hours before the picture was taken. It could well have been news that none of the targets he had on the day were willing to come ... or that his better half informed him that his mother-in-law was staying overnight.

No dignity whatsoever, nothing unexpected though. Of course, even during these last years of financial restraints, his lot was not good enough and despite having twice as many superstars at his disposal, he hardly gets any great success or runs away with the title. And no matter what, should his lot actually does it this season, it will always remembered as the title we had to relinquish because of troubles off the field, not on it. At least by any sane football supporter.

... sometimes you wonder, though, whether these press people actually think that e.g. McCoist is a newbie who is desperately looking/seeking/wanting advice from ... oh wait ... their former colleagues, who have about as much real experience in management and coaching as I have in cricket. As one German politican once put it: Journalists are a only peripheral figures of the wood-working industry.

No, and I would like to advise people not to look at certain things from a bipolar perspective. There is no black & white here, nor am I asking to look at it in that way. There are limits with what a businessman - whether he is chairman or something else - is going to say. Demanding what has been demanded on the various boards is IMHO far to unreasonable to ask of a businessman. He's come out with a lot (as opposed to other chairmen - Rangers or not) and set a lot of the rubbish being told straight. At least IMHO. He will not, though, go on and tell the whole wide world how he attempts to get Rangers back on track or finance the years ahead. If that is obvious to me, it should be obvious our "business-posters".

Hardly anyone knows how other chairmen go about their business or finance their teams. Hardly any of these chairmen will tell you. No matter by whom or when these - no doubt reasonable - questions are being put forward. I would refrain from using Whyte's obvious and equally reasonable silence about business matters nigh solely against him. He does nothing that suggests that he is any different than any other chairmen who has to look after the well being of the club's and his own money. Today, we do speculate way too much on ifs and maybe and assumptions. No matter what we think or demand or whatnot, at the end of the day, Whyte IMHO will do what he see will benefit Rangers most. The spectrum reaches from administration to waiving 18m of debt in one go. And we can, despite the recent furore, do nothing but expect the best and wait and see what the tribunal decides. On a sidenote ... I did chuckle on Tuesday morning when all the boards run amok about us not signing any player, people haring after Wyhte, asking for fan ownership and whatnot. After a transfer window! Where were all these upset semi-revolutionaries when the club needed them most 12+ month ago, when we indeed stared at the Lloyds abyss - long before any looming tax bill? Way too much hysteria-incited bluster now about the possibility of losing a league title because we did not sign a couple of players. Well, well ...

As I wrote in another thread: Whyte must, Whyte has to, Whyte needs to ... yes. And preferably to the press first and foremost. Does or did Dermond Desmond ever explain anything to the press? Did Fergus McCann? Does any other owner of a football club? Or ever has? The press jumps on that huge HMRC bandwaggon, the support follows suit and cries even louder when Whyte does what all chairmen do: tell them what he has to and keeping the information he thinks no-one has a right to know - himself and some directors aside. People should get real with what chairmen "have to" tell people about what they are doing.

Honestly ... we should show the dignity that befits a club of our stature and pay them this compensation. After all, they groomed him into the star player he will become ...

All I can say that the saying "football Fortune is capricious" has been evident ever since I have started following this game of chance. These last three season we have seen some interesting swings in fortune and as long as it is mathematically impossible, I will not give up on the title. The squad we have is still good enough to beat nigh any team in the SPL handsomly, we need a bit of luck in the OF games and stay clear on the injury front.

Whyte must, Whyte has to, Whyte needs to ... yes. And preferably to the press first and foremost. Does or did Dermond Desmond ever explain anything to the press? Did Fergus McCann? Does any other owner of a football club? Or ever has? The press jumps on that huge HMRC bandwaggon, the support follows suit and cries even louder when Whyte does what all chairmen do: tell them what he has to and keeping the information he thinks no-one has a right to know - himself and some directors aside. On a sidenote, Rangers will not cease to exist, administration or not. Obviously, should something very nasty come to pass, would the support as a whole dig as deep into their own pockets as they cry foul on everything Whyte these days? I harbour my reservations about that ... but will get myself a ticket for the Euro 19m jackpot in the German lottery this weekend!

Maybe a change for the topic headline is appropriate. As for news, the simplest way is to type his name into Google (and add "tax"). Naiive? I did that yesterday and came up with stuff from June about a wine-yard seized by RSA tax chaps.

He has? How do you know? I simply look at this page.

What has Whyte promised and not done? And please do not come up with this 25m over 5 years stuff, for he's done that this season! As he has stated before (and above).

IMHO, no chairman apart from the one of Porto FC will make much money out of a football club. IMHO, I do still believe that Craig Whyte is a Bear and has done what he had to when the chance happened by. I doubt he's in this to make money, rather for saving his club from disaster. At least a greater disaster than losing this season's title. He sure is no white knight either, so much is clear. But there were no others out there to do it ... no billionaires, nor a fanbase able to even agree on the team sheet for the substitutes' bench. Maybe that is naiive. Then again, so is the constant doom-mongering about his background and "games".

IMHO ... the debt with Lloyds was/is something different than something that is definately going to be paid back, e.g., a loan. There was essentially nothing certain (like a certain number of ticket sales that will come in, no matter what) to pay off the standing debt withs Lloyds, bar CL income and player sales. Would you expect him to speak "business talk" each time he goes into any lose detail about the way certain aspects of finance is being handled in the press? I do expect these hard business figures to stand in the annual reports et al, not in each and every daily newspaper he speaks to.

On a sidenote, from a fan's perspective, one of the more important lines in the article with regard to the team is that he wants to tie in Aluko on a longer deal soon.

IMHO, and this very much based on next to no knowledge about how it is being done anywhere else ... - Ticketus deal is being done as we have no other "facility" running (which bank would do this right now, HMRC looming?) to deal with everday costs et al; Ticketus themselves have said that this is usual practise and has been done for years, even with us; Assumption: Ticketus and Rangers assume season ticket sales to be at around at least 30k per season, no matter whether we face administration or not - neither expect that Rangers cease to exist (which IMHO is a ludicrous idea planted by you know who in the press). I wouldn't go so far as to assume that Whyte, Ticketus and Rangers have a good idea about the result of the case, but Thornton et al might (just might!) have told them how the HMRC people wanted to deal with the stuff and what chance they have to pull this off. - Calls for the AGM. Now, call me a simpleton, but I simply cannot undrestand why people demand an AGM when it is clear since last November that there won't be any until we know about the tax case. So keeping on demanding one right now seems to be a touch foolish - no insult intended here, BTW. There won't be results until after the verdict ... and we have time till end of March 2012, have we not? - No money ... IMHO is clear too. He obviously wants to have a neat sum ready should we face a small HMRC bill from the big case, or pay of the small one in one go. - It smacks you in the face that those people criticising Whyte these days also had EBTs running, e.g. Bain, McClelland, and its use only stopped with Whyte. On a sidenote - and the sceptics on here will tell me that his words are just that so far, i.e. cheap words - should he indeed waive the debt he has placed in the RFG, will those snipers and doom-singers really eat as much humble-pie as they have to? IMHO, Whyte has been acting like he had to in these circumstances and much of what has been thrown against him has come from people well groomed and fed by the negative hysteria press and mhedia ever since the Ellis attempt. People should calm down and try to remain on an objective level. No head in sand or the like, but not envisaging the evil business shark at each corner either.

Article in the Scottish Sun Will hopefully calm some nerves and does away with some of the stuff we had to endure these last few days and weeks!

Did Johnston say anything about how he or LBG would have handled the HMRC stuff, which evidently holds the club back just now?

He invested 20m via Ben Nevis, but not directly in Rangers Shares, but via some other business. Wikipedia is very much not up to date. Google yields only tax cases et al ...

No, he will not. Of course! ... or maybe he will. How would we know? It is embarrassing that there is apparently a consensus that he is an even murkier figure than SDM and his deals ever was. As if we ever fully knew what SDM did. Or the chap that is the Hooped Horrors' boss beyond the Irish Sea. IMHO, we have been well groomed and trained by the doomsingers amongst ourselves and the media. As I pointed out above, he will not reveal any stuff that is regarded confidental all over the world at any other club. Full stop. And much of what people want to know falls into this category. And that was the way under all managers we had before.

Did I say so? I do indeed question their dignity as well as the way to conduct this whole "business", and again question their loyalty to the club when it was theirs to guide ... for years. It smacks you right on the forehead if they come out now and criticise Whyte for what he did and does, something they could not pull of by themselves.

Whyte has by now responded (not bad, hey?), the last sentence reads: