Hoffman/Elliott? (1 Viewer)

Platt_The_Donkey

New Member
So why have Mr Elliott and Mr Hoffman gone so quiet, is it the calm before the storm or are they sleeping with the fishes?
 

Maybe they are seeking new investment as SISU won't accept their offer. Maybe they are looking for new Board members to avoid conflict ala Big Sam. Maybe they have given up or maybe, just maybe, they don't want to work in the media spotlight.
 

ashbyjan

Well-Known Member
I think Hoff will be back one day, possibly when SISU have finally decided they have had enough or someone else calls in the receivers, but SISU have made it clear with their rejection of the Russian interest and their out of hand dismissal of Hoff's offer that they, for whatever reason, don't want to sell at a price that any sane business would be prepared to offer. They seem determined to cling on and continue to ruin the club on the pitch - seemingly believing that someone is going to give them back whatever trumped up figure they claim to have invested in the club for a club that is basically as worthless as when they took over. And by the end of the season it will be worse off as if things continue as they are the team will be in the 3rd Division.
 

DazzleTommyDazzle

Well-Known Member
Still showing their faces needlessly at away games though...

Would you prefer them to go in disguise or perhaps wear the burqa (always assuming we play no friendlies in France of course), or do you have some objection to two long standing CCFC supporters watching their teams' matches?
 

ccfctommy

Well-Known Member
I know Hoffman is Elliott are City fans but I find it a bit wierd to pull out of a takeover bid and still sit with the fans at away games.

I mean, before Hoffman leaving us did he sit in the away end then? And before he had any involvement with CCFC?

End of the day, they can both pay thier money and sit where they want: free country. Just that part of me thinks they they are seeking attention.
 

lordsummerisle

Well-Known Member
That was part of the problem with the bid. Hoff was trying to drum up support, but not make the bid public. SISU went against his wishes and made it common knowledge.

Did you not notice Hoffman stories in the Telegraph virtually every day before the actual bid(though no actual substance behind his stories)?

When his bluff was called, his bid, like his backers melted away like a wicked witch after a bucket of water has been poured over her.
 

SkyBlueScottie

Well-Known Member
Hold on Rich, Hoffman was in the Casino every week holding court telling all about this upcoming bid....

Then there were the repeated stories and interviews in the Telegraph....
 

Grendel

Well-Known Member
Another Fake Sheike

Sadly you have to be suspicious. I think it is Jo Dinsah or Richardson's Middle East chum all over again. Real bidders do not behave like him. Elliot's a nice guy but 3 years ago he told us SISU were the saviours so he is not a reliable judge.
 

musicmanskyblue

New Member
I might be wrong, i usually am.. but i can't see why Hoffman is to blame for Sisu choosing not to sell..

The way i understand things are.. If You own something and someone else wants to buy it,the owner is not obligated to sell. It's their choice and decision not the prospective buyers.

If.. as some are saying.. Hoffman is just attention seeking.. then why were there other people involved and attending at the meeting?... surely not high profile figures just tagging along for the sake of Hoffmans ego..
 

derbyskyblue

Well-Known Member
Sadly you have to be suspicious. I think it is Jo Dinsah or Richardson's Middle East chum all over again. Real bidders do not behave like him. Elliot's a nice guy but 3 years ago he told us SISU were the saviours so he is not a reliable judge.
We cant blame J E, his remit at the time was to find investors, sisu were the only ones available. Not his fault.
 

TommyAtkins

New Member
I think Hoff will be back one day, possibly when SISU have finally decided they have had enough or someone else calls in the receivers, but SISU have made it clear with their rejection of the Russian interest and their out of hand dismissal of Hoff's offer that they, for whatever reason, don't want to sell at a price that any sane business would be prepared to offer. They seem determined to cling on and continue to ruin the club on the pitch - seemingly believing that someone is going to give them back whatever trumped up figure they claim to have invested in the club for a club that is basically as worthless as when they took over. And by the end of the season it will be worse off as if things continue as they are the team will be in the 3rd Division.

I think it is possible that Hoffman will be back, perhaps if administration occurs. He has alluded to remaining interested.
However, there is little evidence to suggest that the Russian investors had a real interest in CCFC. They wanted a club in the South, owning 100% of the stadium and didn't want to invest in players/wages.
 

valiant15

New Member
What's the point in owning a football club then? It's like running a car but not wanting to put fuel in. Totally pointless.
 

Godiva

Well-Known Member
I might be wrong, i usually am.. but i can't see why Hoffman is to blame for Sisu choosing not to sell..

The way i understand things are.. If You own something and someone else wants to buy it,the owner is not obligated to sell. It's their choice and decision not the prospective buyers.

If.. as some are saying.. Hoffman is just attention seeking.. then why were there other people involved and attending at the meeting?... surely not high profile figures just tagging along for the sake of Hoffmans ego..

The Hoffman/Elliot take over attempt was serious enough - they actually really wanted to do the deal and they had the backers.
Of that I have no doubt.

But the way they conducted the business was ... erhm ... 'unusual'.

They have both been on the board working with sisu for three years, so they know their counterpart very well. I would expect a much better chance of success landing a deal with someone I've known and worked with for years than landing a deal with strangers. Knowing the oppositions thinking, priorities, positions and way of communication makes a world of difference. Yet it seems that Hoffman/Elliot did everything to push the wrong buttons.
And that raises the question: Did they really - seriously - work to land the takeover? If they did, they look completely foolish and naive now and thank god they didn't succeed.
If their intentions were not serious, then what the heck was it all about? Was it really a simple attempt to 'get even'? We all know there was no lost love between the parties and ever since the break up Hoffman has used every opportunity to tell the fans through the press and on the stadium how incompetent sisu are, how close the club is to administration and how much better the club will be in the hands of someone who really loves the club - ie himself.

As the deal is dead in the water it is time to move on and in the aftermath one thing keeps puzzling me: As Hoffman is so devoted to the club and want us to be successful, why has he not done anything to calm people down? It's not that he is shy of the media so he could easily get a message through saying that now is the time to get behind the club and use the energy to cheer AT and the players. He should tell us that he knows from the experience last winter that without unity inside the club and with the fans then results will be hard to get. That we should not distract the players but keep them focused.

It really wouldn't cost him much to do that.
 
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valiant15

New Member
Godiva,the fans are all behind thorn and the team. Theres too much bad blood between the fans and sisu now im afraid.
 

TommyAtkins

New Member
That will never work cos ccfc doesn't make any money.

That because it has been run badly for years, well before SISU. This is part of the problem with the new financial rules about to implemented over the next few years.

Football clubs are going to have to be self-sustaining. SISU might be using this as an excuse but sooner or later, CCFC will have to generate income.

And that means cutting costs - primarily wages.
 

AFCCOVENTRY

Well-Known Member
Reality is Hoff and co no longer want to deal with SISU.

We are stuck with the current militia regime dictatorship sisu and orange making facility for now. :pimp:
 

Skybluetracy

New Member
In reply to Godiva. My dad spoke to Hoffman. He said to him that the last public statemen he made was exactly that. Get behind the team. Thorny deserves our support. He obviously fell out with SISU but it was all about decisions he thought not in the short or long term interests of the club.
As you say, you need two parties for a deal. A willing buyer and a willing seller. The antics of SiSU show they were not willing to even sit down and discuss an offer
Hoffman thinks he let people down by raising exoectations. I suppose he did. But at least he tried.
 

shmmeee

Well-Known Member
Hoffman's a chancer. Time to move on and stop holding him as some great white hope. Was never serious about it, if he was he wouldn't ahve made the litany of errors of judgement he did when putting the bid together (non-official offer, doing business through the press, not stating his business plan to anyone, etc. etc.)

Tommy is right, SISU, Hoffman or Warren Buffet, makes no difference until this club starts paying it's own way we're never going to get out of this situation (at least aside form the trap-door of relegation/admin)
 

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