Our owners have been good owners. In a rules based order I wouldn’t want another owner. Since we don’t have that, do I want another owner?
Maybe, maybe not. But my wishes are irrelevant, as they have decided to seek a sale, in whole or in part, and they didn’t consult me
We have been able to compete at the highest level in the past under FSG. We have been to three CL finals in five years, we have won the league, and we have knocked on the door several other times, amassing a points total as runners up that would have won the Premier League most years.
What we don’t know is whether or not it is reasonable to extrapolate past performance into future expectations. We don’t know what the future will hold, and there is a case both for and against whether or not we would continue to be as competitive, if FSG decided to not sell and instead chose to stay on.
The case for remaining competitive at the top has been eloquently put by Mascot and others. Revenues have gone up. That has been excellent to see. Debt on infrastructure has been paid down, and so now a combination of additional revenue, plus the ability to service some debt for squad building, if that was chosen, is now possible.
So conceivably we could continue to be competitive at the top under FSG, moving forward.
The case against remaining competitive is largely down to the spiraling costs and increased competition, both by fair means and foul. A glance at the revenue table should fill us all with pride at our amazing club, but I can’t help but see Man City ahead of us, by foul means.
Besides cheating on the revenue, the artificially inflated clubs have made costs spiral out of control, even beyond our own revenue progress. Man City will be there for the duration, at or near the top. Newcastle will be a force from this point forward too. Chelsea are doing poorly right now, but their spending continues to baffle. At some point the stars will align for them, either with Potter or another manager, and they will be up there again.
Competition from Arsenal and Man Utd is also getting fierce, and while they are both debt laden, and one is for sale, they look like they will have a good go at the top four for the foreseeable future.
All things considered I’m not sure we would stay as competitive at the top, were FSG to continue as owners. We wouldn’t be no hopers, but I do think we would slip back slightly.