Mike Ashley perfect for Rangers

[ian1964 10,409]

Unloved owner in the North East should concentrate in taking over at Ibrox – it would be perfect for both Newcastle United and Rangers.

 

Given the problems he has had at Newcastle United and the resentment he has caused during his seven years as owner, it may seem curious to suggest Mike Ashley is the ideal man to buy Rangers.

 

Newcastle were a mediocre mid-table club when Ashley bought them and that is all they remain, yet Ashley could still be the ideal person to restore Rangers to its former glory.

 

Most Newcastle supporters cannot wait to see the back of him. Although there is appreciation for the work he has done to improve the club as a business there has – with the exception of one fifth-place finish in 2012 – been little, if any, progress as a football club.

 

There is animosity on both sides, Ashley is still bitter about the way supporters turned against him in the aftermath of Kevin Keegan’s resignation back in 2008, while they are convinced he is content for a proud club to be stuck in a monotonous mid-table wasteland while he uses it to promote his other business interests. The refusal to take cup competitions seriously is a wound that will not heal.

 

Rangers fans also have their misgivings about Ashley’s intentions. So do the Scotland Football Association, who do not like the idea of one man owning two clubs, even if they play in different domestic competitions.

 

Yet, if Ashley wants to buy Rangers, the SFA should let him. I don’t think there is a conflict of interests, just as there isn’t with Manchester City’s owners starting an American franchise, New York City.

 

The opposition of the SFA to him increasing his stake to more than 10 per cent is a major barrier. He would, in theory, have to sell Newcastle first, but he has denied he wishes to do so. At least, he has denied he wants to at the moment.

 

In a statement published on the Newcastle website, it was said Ashley will consider selling Newcastle at the end of next season, which interestingly is the earliest Rangers could be back playing in Europe.

 

Uefa rules stipulate two teams owned by the same person cannot play in their competitions, which is reasonable enough as they could meet in a competitive fixture. That should not matter now if Ashley moves to save Rangers.

 

Ashley would be an unusual fit for the knight in shining armour role. He is more market trader than chivalrous hero, but just because he has made his billions selling cheap sportswear should not disguise he has been phenomenally successful because of his business brain.

 

Just because an idea is simple does not mean the man who came up with it isn’t a genius and few are better at making money than Ashley.

 

Of course, being clever and innovative in business does not automatically mean you will be any good owning a football club and Ashley hasn’t been for Newcastle.

 

The division between followers and leader saps its strength. The bitterness will not go away, there have been too many callous calls from Ashley, too many mistakes and too many perceived insults for Newcastle’s supporters to forgive and forget.

 

Newcastle are paralysed by the lack of ambition in the boardroom. Many believe the only cure is a new owner and a new start.

 

Ashley, though, is able to provide Rangers with exactly what they need, a secure financial footing and stability in the boardroom. He has the money to end the threat of economic meltdown and, as he has shown at Newcastle, he can turn a loss making business into a profitable one within a few years.

 

The crucial difference between Rangers and Newcastle is that being a stable business in the Premier League is not enough to compete with the top clubs. Ashley stopped wanting to put his own money in to sign players and cover losses when he fell out with the fans and you cannot blame him.

 

However, a stable business is all that is needed to return Rangers to the top of Scottish football because they are capable of generating far more income than their rivals. Only Celtic can rival Rangers in terms of gate receipts, sponsorship prestige and media interest, so all Ashley has to do to restore the old order is remove the spiral of debt repayments.

 

Emotionally, no matter how much he tries to put a brave face on, the abuse Ashley receives as Newcastle’s owner must take its toll. There are only so many times you can be told you are overweight and not wanted.

 

Ashley has broad shoulders and claims he is not particularly bothered what people think and say about him, yet he has also shown a thin enough skin to ban all three local papers for offering their supporting for a protest march calling for him to sell up last season.

 

Ashley has still managed to make a project turned sour work for him. The exposure has been good for his retail chain, proving once again that there is no such thing as bad publicity. Even when he changed the name of the ground, provoking fury on Tyneside and beyond, Ashley ignored it and watched his other business interests prosper.

 

Premier League exposure is one of the most powerful marketing tools around and Ashley’s sport shops are undoubtedly better known now than they were when he took over.

 

Yet, although he has described the relationship between his sport shops and Newcastle as extremely beneficial for the former, it is still only responsible for a tiny fraction of its vast profits.

 

He would barely notice if he lost them and there is every chance he can make even more if he buys Rangers. Not only do they have more fans worldwide than Newcastle, they are also far more likely to win trophies and success is a good thing to be associated with.

 

Under his steadying hand, Rangers would almost certainly return to the Champions League, watched by huge television audience across the continent. Europe is the most obvious market place for Ashley’s other business to expand. They look made for each other, but Ashley has not made a move yet.

 

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/sport/football/teams/newcastle-united/11121232/Newcastle-United-owner-Mike-Ashley-perfect-for-Rangers.html

[forlanssister 3,050]

At last we're seeing what we pay Ashley's mates at Keith Bishop Associates £140k a year for.

[der Berliner 3,231]

Newcastle are paralysed by the lack of ambition in the boardroom. Many believe the only cure is a new owner and a new start.

 

That's a view if you are a Magpie-centric. Ashley isn't and has probably acknowledged long ago that it ain't worth pumping millions into a team that will still fall (well) short of the attraction and spending power of ManU, ManC, Chelsea and Liverpool. While you have the odd pretender in the EPL every now and then, be it Swansea or Southampton, at the end of the season the main titles will end up with the usual suspects, not even the "mightier" Arsenal did break that for ages. Which is not toi say that Ashley's reign was perfect or his choice of manager good. Yet, no matter what he had done, the big guns would have barred the way to the glory the Magpies were and are after. For I doubt they were and are looking for the odd cup win here and there.

[compo 6,107]

given a choice what would the fans on here like to have

 

Ashley with plenty of money

 

king with promises

 

or the present mob

 

I old compo will take Ashley .

[der Berliner 3,231]

given a choice what would the fans on here like to have

 

Ashley with plenty of money

 

king with promises

 

or the present mob

 

I old compo will take Ashley .

 

At this moment and time I would agree. No owner will be there forever. I reckon Ashley's aims with us would be somewhat different than what he aims for with Newcastle. He's not a choice you would take lightly, but right now he is business-wise the most sound. The least of all the capitalist evils out there. Once King steps out of the shadows, we can talk again about "much better" owners.

[Rangersitis 0]

Ashley with plenty of money?

 

That must be the money that he takes out via his Sports Direct sponsorship / merchandising deals and through providing tax-efficient loans.

[Bearman 9]

So let me get this straight.

 

Ashley wants to sell Newcastle for £230m because he'll get more of a realistic chance of glory, and in turn, more money with Rangers. If this is the case, would the potential buyers of Newcastle United not be better advised to simply buy Rangers for much less then?

[Scott7 5,132]

I wouldn't under-estimate the potential of United.

[der Berliner 3,231]

So let me get this straight.

 

Ashley wants to sell Newcastle for £230m because he'll get more of a realistic chance of glory, and in turn, more money with Rangers. If this is the case, would the potential buyers of Newcastle United not be better advised to simply buy Rangers for much less then?

 

When it comes to glory, yes. Making money, no. Unless they own a brand that needs to make up ground to Sports Direct et al. It is very much up for debate how much money Ashley would make out of Rangers, compared to the EPL and the Magpies.

 

IMHO, Ashley wants to give his Sports Direct folk as well as his own ego a go at a wider audience than EPL-lands. Even if he's going to sell Newcastle United, it does not necessarily mean that Sports Direct will bow out of town and club as well.

 

As always with these debates ... and a few dozen smokescreens before that from various corners: someone has to step forward first. By the looks of it, that won't happen for quite some time.

[Juancornetto 1]

I have a feeling that Mike Ashley fancies a bit of the Old Firm glamour. I wouldn't be surprised if he ups his stake and tries to recreate the Old Firm of old. The merchandising opportunity in itself is considerable and with BT Sport a UK wide (and then worldwide) audience is there to be exploited. Scottish Football is irrelevant but that fixture does grip people with no connection to either team.

 

I could be wrong and it'll be an omni-shambles of epic proportions and Celtic will trounce is for years to come.