Post by Macmoish on Nov 12, 2011 8:24:57 GMT
And none of this whining about "he saved the club" - although he seemed to have a done of lot of incredibly-dumb things, financially
Guardian/Jamie Jackson
Mark Goldberg: I am not embarrassed about my time at Crystal Palace
After his battle to save the club he loves, Goldberg is plotting the downfall of Leyton Orient in the FA Cup as Bromley manager
Only now does Mark Goldberg believe football can understand how he squandered £40m on Crystal Palace, and took them close to oblivion during an ill-starred ownership that caused "a lot of pain and embarrassment" for his family and now ex-wife. Goldberg takes Bromley to Leyton Orient on Saturday in the FA Cup first round in his second coming in football. In this incarnation he is a manager, not an executive. A chirpy character in his third spell in the Bromley dugout, Goldberg, reflecting on his experience at Palace, points to the frequency with which clubs now dice with liquidation.
"How many has it happened at since? How many clubs have entered administration? I mean even Simon Jordan has lost more than me," says Goldberg of his successor at Palace, whose ownership ended in the club entering a second administration in 2010. "It happens. And the Palace fans have realised now it wasn't a Mark Goldberg problem, it was a football problem. If I could go back I would make sure the people who said they would put their money in put their money in with me.
"The aim was that it would become a public company, I would have a small shareholding and I would end up becoming the chairman of the club that I loved. When I agreed the deal we were in the Premiership, and when I took it over in the Championship, and it was the first year where there was a massive gulf in turnover. I had Premiership wages at £7-8m and turnover had fallen from £14m to £4m and I didn't see that coming.
"How could I shout and scream at the time? Nobody was interested. It's actually taken 10 years before I could tell the story because it's happened to everybody, not just me. I ended up going bankrupt to save the club. I think a lot of people know that now. I'm not embarrassed about Palace."
Goldberg paid Ron Noades £22m for Palace in 1998, in a deal which included a £5m loan from the outgoing owner but did not buy him Selhurst Park, which Noades leased back him. When Steve Coppell was moved sideways to become director of football Goldberg puzzlingly appointed Noades as caretaker manager.
Then came the agents who took Goldberg for at least £1m in fees, and the three Argentinian players, Pablo Rodríguez, Cristian Ledesma and Walter del Río, who cost £187,500 though only the latter actually signed, and would make just one first-team start.
Then there was the hiring of Terry Venables, who left his post as manager after seven months in January 1999. Venables' deal had been memorable. He accepted a tax-free, £750,000 salary, impressive for a manager in the old First Division, and signed a five-year contract worth £3.5m. There was a £650,000 house, share options of £2m, along with a Mercedes car, a 10% pension contribution, and £20,000 relocation expenses.
Has Goldberg seen him since? "I've bumped into him a couple of times and we give each other a hug. There's no bad feeling there, I have no blame for anyone other than myself. I brought him. I lost and I had to pick myself up.
"I actually did start a business at the age of 20 that became the fastest growing IT contract company in the country for five years. You can be knocked down, you can lose all the money, but I was able to draw strength from the fact that I had young kids: I couldn't allow them to see what a big mistake I made [though] you have moments when you're angry at yourself. I drew strength that I was genuinely as happy in my local pub as I was in any boardroom. That's where I'm lucky. And I had knowledge. In my opinion that's worth more than the money."
Goldberg's latest business scheme is in contract jobs. Could he ever see himself as the owner of a club again? "No. I don't want anything to do with running or owning," he says. "My true love is management."
He is optimistic about where the game could still take him. "I'm 48 now and in any other job you're old but in football management you're actually quite young. I feel that I'm really learning a lot and this is a great platform for me. I'd love to do this full-time but I want to get my track record here. I don't for a minute believe that anyone else will take me on. But I do believe that potentially I could earn a living doing what I love doing."
Goldberg ended his first season in charge of Bromley in 2005-6 with promotion to Conference South via a play-off win over Billericay, and a loss to Gillingham in the FA Cup first round. Why is he now in a third stab at the job? "I've had a lack of a vote of confidence from the owner, Jerry Dolke who is an old friend, each time. Finally I've come back on the basis that for the first time that there is no conflict."
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/nov/11/mark-goldberg-crystal-palace
Guardian/Jamie Jackson
Mark Goldberg: I am not embarrassed about my time at Crystal Palace
After his battle to save the club he loves, Goldberg is plotting the downfall of Leyton Orient in the FA Cup as Bromley manager
Only now does Mark Goldberg believe football can understand how he squandered £40m on Crystal Palace, and took them close to oblivion during an ill-starred ownership that caused "a lot of pain and embarrassment" for his family and now ex-wife. Goldberg takes Bromley to Leyton Orient on Saturday in the FA Cup first round in his second coming in football. In this incarnation he is a manager, not an executive. A chirpy character in his third spell in the Bromley dugout, Goldberg, reflecting on his experience at Palace, points to the frequency with which clubs now dice with liquidation.
"How many has it happened at since? How many clubs have entered administration? I mean even Simon Jordan has lost more than me," says Goldberg of his successor at Palace, whose ownership ended in the club entering a second administration in 2010. "It happens. And the Palace fans have realised now it wasn't a Mark Goldberg problem, it was a football problem. If I could go back I would make sure the people who said they would put their money in put their money in with me.
"The aim was that it would become a public company, I would have a small shareholding and I would end up becoming the chairman of the club that I loved. When I agreed the deal we were in the Premiership, and when I took it over in the Championship, and it was the first year where there was a massive gulf in turnover. I had Premiership wages at £7-8m and turnover had fallen from £14m to £4m and I didn't see that coming.
"How could I shout and scream at the time? Nobody was interested. It's actually taken 10 years before I could tell the story because it's happened to everybody, not just me. I ended up going bankrupt to save the club. I think a lot of people know that now. I'm not embarrassed about Palace."
Goldberg paid Ron Noades £22m for Palace in 1998, in a deal which included a £5m loan from the outgoing owner but did not buy him Selhurst Park, which Noades leased back him. When Steve Coppell was moved sideways to become director of football Goldberg puzzlingly appointed Noades as caretaker manager.
Then came the agents who took Goldberg for at least £1m in fees, and the three Argentinian players, Pablo Rodríguez, Cristian Ledesma and Walter del Río, who cost £187,500 though only the latter actually signed, and would make just one first-team start.
Then there was the hiring of Terry Venables, who left his post as manager after seven months in January 1999. Venables' deal had been memorable. He accepted a tax-free, £750,000 salary, impressive for a manager in the old First Division, and signed a five-year contract worth £3.5m. There was a £650,000 house, share options of £2m, along with a Mercedes car, a 10% pension contribution, and £20,000 relocation expenses.
Has Goldberg seen him since? "I've bumped into him a couple of times and we give each other a hug. There's no bad feeling there, I have no blame for anyone other than myself. I brought him. I lost and I had to pick myself up.
"I actually did start a business at the age of 20 that became the fastest growing IT contract company in the country for five years. You can be knocked down, you can lose all the money, but I was able to draw strength from the fact that I had young kids: I couldn't allow them to see what a big mistake I made [though] you have moments when you're angry at yourself. I drew strength that I was genuinely as happy in my local pub as I was in any boardroom. That's where I'm lucky. And I had knowledge. In my opinion that's worth more than the money."
Goldberg's latest business scheme is in contract jobs. Could he ever see himself as the owner of a club again? "No. I don't want anything to do with running or owning," he says. "My true love is management."
He is optimistic about where the game could still take him. "I'm 48 now and in any other job you're old but in football management you're actually quite young. I feel that I'm really learning a lot and this is a great platform for me. I'd love to do this full-time but I want to get my track record here. I don't for a minute believe that anyone else will take me on. But I do believe that potentially I could earn a living doing what I love doing."
Goldberg ended his first season in charge of Bromley in 2005-6 with promotion to Conference South via a play-off win over Billericay, and a loss to Gillingham in the FA Cup first round. Why is he now in a third stab at the job? "I've had a lack of a vote of confidence from the owner, Jerry Dolke who is an old friend, each time. Finally I've come back on the basis that for the first time that there is no conflict."
www.guardian.co.uk/football/2011/nov/11/mark-goldberg-crystal-palace