Nigel Howe CEO statement

[Royals and Racers]

On Reading FC website is a statement- i can’t link it at the moment.

[Nameless]

Nothing to panic about.
Usual end of season rallying call, been tough, worked hard, thanks for support, see you next year.

[LWJ]

https://www.readingfc.co.uk/news/2019/m ... igel-howe/

From the CEO | A message from Nigel Howe
Together, we now look to the next challenge…

1 Hour ago


Since the start of 2019, we’ve achieved the short-term objectives we aimed to achieve. Together.

We managed to get this group of players playing good football as a team, fighting tooth and nail for every point to earn positive results under a manager who has been a real catalyst in uniting everyone within the club.

The players demonstrated that they were willing to adapt, learn, scrap and battle for this club. It’s not been easy, but we now go into the last day of the season secure in our Championship status for 2019-20.

When I resumed the CEO role in December, I inherited a number of significant club issues which urgently needed to be addressed. As a priority, we had to immediately get to grips with the costs and complications of an over-sized first team squad, whilst conducting some shrewd business in the loan market during an extremely busy January transfer window. These were imperative measures to take.

Our owners are ambitious. And they would very much like to invest further in our first team…but, at present, it’s just not that simple under the EFL’s Profit and Sustainability regulations.

I expect this summer’s transfer window will be even busier than the last. Our challenge right now must be to reduce the size and cost of the first team squad to meet Profit and Sustainability targets - so we will see even more player movement in the coming weeks and months than we achieved back in January. Only then can we continue to move this club forward.

José will naturally be at the heart of this process and we will all be working extremely hard in the coming months to balance our figures and secure the stability we need to establish a talented, hungry squad of players ready to tackle 2019-20 head on and challenge in the top half of the table rather than scrapping for survival. We have a big summer ahead of us.

Results are what the club is measured by in the main, but they can never be guaranteed. However, I can commit to some things. Perhaps, recently, as a club we lost our way a little. It will now be our collective aim - myself, my staff and with the help of our supporters - to reinject our identity into all we do.

jasonpix_012_Meet_The_Players howe.JPG

We must continue to connect with our community, actively engage with local business, embrace and celebrate our history whilst aspiring to great things in our future. And it has to be our objective to shout about this great club, its thriving Community Trust, its Category One Academy, its burgeoning Women’s team and our shared values - to tell our story to a wider community, engaging with new supporters and making a positive impact on the town of Reading, its community and beyond.

Our loyal supporters have the very best interests of this club at heart and are also rightly our harshest critics; we will continue to listen and learn from you, our fans.

And, on that note, thank you. The way you have rallied at Madejski Stadium to support the team with such passion…it’s real credit to our fanbase and the whole Reading Football Club community.

From the stands, supporters nor staff can score the goals that will win us games next season, but we can all strive to create a positive environment for those who can - the players out in the middle. The Club 1871 project has been a shining example of that - a modest but defiantly encouraging group of fans setting up camp in our South Stand which has grown and evolved over the last year. The East Stand continued to make its presence felt, loud and proud, while the Eamonn Dolan Stand came alive with clap banners in the Family Area. Encouragement was coming from all four sides of Madejski Stadium as you got right behind your team when times were tough to create a truly positive atmosphere here. Long may that last.

[LWJ]

Good statement.

Feels like we have our club back, and we will push on stronger from this.

[Hound]

fair enough. Not really hiding his feelings towards the Gourlay era

[WoodleyRoyal]

setting our expectations for next season basically. bargain basement on transfers in and some of our 'star' players out the door. If that's what's needed to get this club back on an even keel then so be it.

[RoyalBlue]

A good statement, clearly aimed at managing expectations.

Far better than some of those issued by his first boss at the club who would get over enthusiastic and build expectations up to fever pitch levels, only for them to be dashed by reality.

Under promise and over deliver. I'll settle for that.

[Nameless]

setting our expectations for next season basically. bargain basement on transfers in and some of our 'star' players out the door. If that's what's needed to get this club back on an even keel then so be it.

Not sure that is quite the message. He talks about volume of transfers but doesn’t even hint at us being forced to sell our key players. He talks about ambition and top half of the table, he talks about a wilful and hungry squad. Looking at January I think we’ll see a creative approach, finding ways to get good players without paying huge sums.
The summer will be challenging but other clubs have shown you don’t have to spend millions to build a good squad.

[UpNorth]

'... get to grips with the costs and complications of an over-sized first team squad, whilst conducting some shrewd business in the loan market during an extremely busy January transfer window.'

Basically NH needs to repeat his January trick of reducing squad size and finding good loan players. Simple!

Challenging times ahead but Nigel has done it once and I see no reason why he cannot do it again.

[Nameless]

'... get to grips with the costs and complications of an over-sized first team squad, whilst conducting some shrewd business in the loan market during an extremely busy January transfer window.'

Basically NH needs to repeat his January trick of reducing squad size and finding good loan players. Simple!

Challenging times ahead but Nigel has done it once and I see no reason why he cannot do it again.

I suspect he might do it by getting the person who did it last time to do it again !

[Snowflake Royal]

A good statement, clearly aimed at managing expectations.

Far better than some of those issued by his first boss at the club who would get over enthusiastic and build expectations up to fever pitch levels, only for them to be dashed by reality.

Under promise and over deliver. I'll settle for that.

You can't resist having a pop, can you, get over it. Madejski is a legend.

[Nameless]

A good statement, clearly aimed at managing expectations.

Far better than some of those issued by his first boss at the club who would get over enthusiastic and build expectations up to fever pitch levels, only for them to be dashed by reality.

Under promise and over deliver. I'll settle for that.

You can't resist having a pop, can you, get over it. Madejski is a legend.

Not sure how badly dashed my expectations were by 106 points, or watching us play Liverpool, Man Utd et al as equals.
May my hopes be dashed again to a similar degree before I die !

[Elm Park Kid]

Did no one else read that and get the impression that we will be selling a lot and buying very little during the summer?

[Sutekh]

Did no one else read that and get the impression that we will be selling a lot and buying very little during the summer?

Impression I have is that though a lot will be moved on by various means (both youngsters and established “stars”) the squad is going to be invested in sensibly. You don’t necessarily have to “buy” players, clubs can do a lot by being shrewd in the freebie and loan markets.

Overall next season I think I would expect a squad that sits around mid table never really troubling either end with any purpose. This would then give a solid foundation to kick on and to slightly loosen the purse strings next summer.

As has been said previously Sir Steve produced a miracle with essentially one marquee signing (Lita) and a hotch potch of bargains from various places over 2/3 seasons that melded perfectly as a team.

And, just as under Sir Steve, while some that JG brings in won’t work out, others will. But most importantly I think it’s getting a squad together that plays as one for each other. That sort of mentality is a very good proportion of what makes any successful team.

[Elm Park Kid]

Did no one else read that and get the impression that we will be selling a lot and buying very little during the summer?

Impression I have is that though a lot will be moved on by various means (both youngsters and established “stars”) the squad is going to be invested in sensibly. You don’t necessarily have to “buy” players, clubs can do a lot by being shrewd in the freebie and loan markets.

Overall next season I think I would expect a squad that sits around mid table never really troubling either end with any purpose. This would then give a solid foundation to kick on and to slightly loosen the purse strings next summer.

As has been said previously Sir Steve produced a miracle with essentially one marquee signing (Lita) and a hotch potch of bargains from various places over 2/3 seasons that melded perfectly as a team.

And, just as under Sir Steve, while some that JG brings in won’t work out, others will. But most importantly I think it’s getting a squad together that plays as one for each other. That sort of mentality is a very good proportion of what makes any successful team.

Well no one ever means to be 'not sensible' when investing in the transfer market. This stuff is extremely hard and unpredictable; you usually have to buy 3 players just to get one you actually want.

I'm hope i'm proved wrong, but it seems to me that people are underestimating how much of a change we're going to need to make to avoid FFP problems. I mean, we lost 30m in the 2017/18 season right? We probably lost something similar this season. That's a lot of wages to cut down.

The squad we have at the moment without the loan players is clearly relegation material. If we can't keep them - or have to let our better players go - we could be in a lot of trouble.

[PieEater]

I hope there is some recognition that the club lost touch with its fans largely because of a succession of anonymous and silent owners, who thankfully bankrolled the club but otherwise never said much publicly.

[Royals and Racers]

I hope there is some recognition that the club lost touch with its fans largely because of a succession of anonymous and silent owners, who thankfully bankrolled the club but otherwise never said much publicly.

Whereas our current owners are always in the limelight giving interviews etc

[Royal Rother]

A good statement, clearly aimed at managing expectations.

Far better than some of those issued by his first boss at the club who would get over enthusiastic and build expectations up to fever pitch levels, only for them to be dashed by reality.

Under promise and over deliver. I'll settle for that.

Reality is that he delivered a new stadium, PL football and......

.....Oh forget it.

Just carry on delivering the chuckes.

[paddy20]

Did no one else read that and get the impression that we will be selling a lot and buying very little during the summer?

Impression I have is that though a lot will be moved on by various means (both youngsters and established “stars”) the squad is going to be invested in sensibly. You don’t necessarily have to “buy” players, clubs can do a lot by being shrewd in the freebie and loan markets.

Overall next season I think I would expect a squad that sits around mid table never really troubling either end with any purpose. This would then give a solid foundation to kick on and to slightly loosen the purse strings next summer.

As has been said previously Sir Steve produced a miracle with essentially one marquee signing (Lita) and a hotch potch of bargains from various places over 2/3 seasons that melded perfectly as a team.

And, just as under Sir Steve, while some that JG brings in won’t work out, others will. But most importantly I think it’s getting a squad together that plays as one for each other. That sort of mentality is a very good proportion of what makes any successful team.

Well no one ever means to be 'not sensible' when investing in the transfer market. This stuff is extremely hard and unpredictable; you usually have to buy 3 players just to get one you actually want.

I'm hope i'm proved wrong, but it seems to me that people are underestimating how much of a change we're going to need to make to avoid FFP problems. I mean, we lost 30m in the 2017/18 season right? We probably lost something similar this season. That's a lot of wages to cut down.

The squad we have at the moment without the loan players is clearly relegation material. If we can't keep them - or have to let our better players go - we could be in a lot of trouble.

We can possibly anticipate a loss in the region of 15m this last season. Added to the 21m lost the season before this means we can only lose around 3m in this next season.
With wages at nearly twice our income of 18m the small loss can only be achieved IMO by selling a couple of our best players and getting loan players in.I'm not sure many will take some of our players off our hands due to their high salaries. I think we may try to buy Martinez but Olivera may be too much of a risk.

Very tough season next and survival will be our aim before we can re-invest

[Denver Royal]

Did no one else read that and get the impression that we will be selling a lot and buying very little during the summer?

Impression I have is that though a lot will be moved on by various means (both youngsters and established “stars”) the squad is going to be invested in sensibly. You don’t necessarily have to “buy” players, clubs can do a lot by being shrewd in the freebie and loan markets.

Overall next season I think I would expect a squad that sits around mid table never really troubling either end with any purpose. This would then give a solid foundation to kick on and to slightly loosen the purse strings next summer.

As has been said previously Sir Steve produced a miracle with essentially one marquee signing (Lita) and a hotch potch of bargains from various places over 2/3 seasons that melded perfectly as a team.

And, just as under Sir Steve, while some that JG brings in won’t work out, others will. But most importantly I think it’s getting a squad together that plays as one for each other. That sort of mentality is a very good proportion of what makes any successful team.

Well no one ever means to be 'not sensible' when investing in the transfer market.

Good point. Some say last Summer's window were 'good sensible ideas'. Ok, and? (I actually don't think some of them were, and we don't know all the thinking, discussions and theories anyway, but ok...). You aren't judged on 'ideas'. Our opponents could care less. Most any team making most any signing thinks it's a good idea at the time. What matters will be league table and production, and whether our signings turn out to be better than other teams signings.