A bit optimistic title, but in support of #IfRafaGoesWeGo let's imagine that this year's utter lack of ambition presages the downfall of Mike Ashley, or is simply him pulling as much money out of the club as he can before a sale. I'd say the fact that he isn't pretending to be looking for buyers, for once, is a good sign that it might be on this time. Meanwhile the protests against Sports Direct shops and at St James' will likely make this season rougher than a year in the Championship. Could we possibly be fortunate enough to get him out before Rafa is gone?? Post all your #AshleyOut news here. One day we'll be a low-budget club trying to win a cup and qualify for Europe, but for now, 17th place will do.
Yah, Ashely's MO has always been "good enough to stay up but don't get too good or we'll have to spend money on European stuff." Sigh.
And right on cue, Ashley is letting it be known that he's dropped his asking price to £300m. Year after year he tries to tell everyone that there's no use protesting, because he's already trying to leave. It's just that nobody will meet his fair asking price - oh and how can he be expected to invest, when he's about to sell?? If someone is truly interested, I would think they'd come in sooner rather than later. If we don't hear anything more by December, then it's yet another smoke screen.
And this year's potential buyer is... Peter Kenyon and Rockefeller Capital Management. It's a good sign that there are rumors of three other bidders. If he's going to fake interest, he would only need one buyer. Still plenty of time for Ashley to be impossible though. It's not done until it's done. It's a shame they couldn't have concluded a bit earlier, because we're about to go through another transfer window in limbo. That's not good for anyone.