It struck me that there is a logic. Any buyer has to deal with the Ashley "loan".
We know Ashley restructured some of the "loan" to make it repayable on demand. We also know that generally, players are bought for a cash price. The club's cash position has been adversely affected by selling players on instalments.
Timing of the cash flows and our trading on loan players means that Ashley has probably taken North of £30 million out.
In very broad terms, there should be a cash surplus of over £50million over a Premier League season but of course if you knock off 75% of the Mitrovic fee for future instalments, that figure is reduced. The flip side is that Sissoko is still generating cash for the club.
Also, the bulk of the TV money comes at the end of the season.
With the various alleged approaches, it has not been clear if the Ashley "loan" is a part of a price for NUFC or is on top.
The likes of Fulham, Brighton, Huddersfield, Palace etc have bought players against future income in the same financial year. By going back to the banks, the value of transfers to the club becomes neutral. If a price has been agreed, let's say with Kenyon and his consortium, it gives more time for the buyer to conclude a deal on the same terms.
It might be wishful thinking but at least the mechanism is in place to be able to agree transfer activity with potential new owners.
We know Ashley restructured some of the "loan" to make it repayable on demand. We also know that generally, players are bought for a cash price. The club's cash position has been adversely affected by selling players on instalments.
Timing of the cash flows and our trading on loan players means that Ashley has probably taken North of £30 million out.
In very broad terms, there should be a cash surplus of over £50million over a Premier League season but of course if you knock off 75% of the Mitrovic fee for future instalments, that figure is reduced. The flip side is that Sissoko is still generating cash for the club.
Also, the bulk of the TV money comes at the end of the season.
With the various alleged approaches, it has not been clear if the Ashley "loan" is a part of a price for NUFC or is on top.
The likes of Fulham, Brighton, Huddersfield, Palace etc have bought players against future income in the same financial year. By going back to the banks, the value of transfers to the club becomes neutral. If a price has been agreed, let's say with Kenyon and his consortium, it gives more time for the buyer to conclude a deal on the same terms.
It might be wishful thinking but at least the mechanism is in place to be able to agree transfer activity with potential new owners.