Time to get back to reality
New Hull City chairman Adam Pearson will set about slashing spiralling costs at the club when he returns to the helm on Monday.
And despite the Tigers staring the possibility of relegation from the Premier League in the face – team strengthening will not be one of his priorities.
The Mail understands Mr Pearson has been staggered by the state of finances at the Tigers ahead of his return.
And, with the club he sold as a profitable business less than three years now having to raise around £18m to stay at, Mr Pearson will set about tackling a wage bill which is presently way beyond the club's means.
Sources say the Tigers – despite struggling at the wrong end of the division – have one of top 10 annual wage bills in the English game, at around £40m.
That has accumulated as City have recruited a squad of more than 40 players to tackle the Premier League.
However, while new faces have arrived, highly paid stars who rarely feature in the team have failed to be off-loaded.
It has left an alarming amount of money being bled from the club week after week.
And with that in mind, football finance expert Stephen Morrow says the time has come for the club to tighten the purse strings with immediate effect.
Head of the Department of Sports Studies at the University of Stirling, Mr Morrow said City, under previous chairman Paul Duffen, had taken a big gamble in loaning £22m and spending future Premier League payments early.
Now, he says, the time has come to stop "chasing the dream".
"There comes a point when a club has to stop following the dream and ensure it runs on a sustainable basis," he told the Mail after studying City's accounts.
"Looking ahead to January I think, given the concerns raised by the auditors earlier this month, it is unlikely that Hull will buy many new players."
However, while unlikely, it is not an impossibility.
Mr Pearson, 45, continues to seek investors to aid him in both preventing the club from spiralling into financial meltdown, and, possibly, recruiting the man to keep the Tigers in the top-flight come January.
Whether he secures such backing is yet to be seen, but Steve Nicholson, chief football writer for the Derby Telegraph, says that in Pearson alone, Hull have turned to the right man, as they did in back in March 2001.
The task in hand now at the Tigers has many similarities to that Mr Pearson faced in his first spell at the club and when taking on the role of chairman at Derby in October 2007.
Mr Pearson left Pride Park earlier this week with the club having fallen from grace in the Premier League, and struggling at the foot of the Championship.
But with major new investment having been secured through American backers and prudent financial procedures firmly in place, he slashed the squad size and wage bill, securing the club's long-term future.
"Adam Pearson has left a legacy at Derby whereby he's made the club financially viable again," Mr Nicholson told the Mail.
"As he did with Hull before, he's shown that he understands that football clubs must live within their means.
"He reduced the club's wage bill, he reduced the debt and that prudent approach has left Derby on a financially sound footing again."
When Mr Pearson returns to the directors box today at Burnley, Hull City will certainly be a very different club to that he joined eight years ago and the one he left behind in 2007.
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by Phil, Hull
Monday, November 02 2009, 12:03AM
“Dave, Anlaby, your definitely one of lifes optimists. But is it blind optimism. You say things are not all that bad, yet Pearson is allegedly staggered by just how bad the finances are. Massive debts, even more massive unsustainable wage bill, don't own our stadium, and no real saleable players. And at the moment Hullare massive news for all the wrong reasons. Dave, you need to take a reality check, luckily for this club Pearson has, and maybe, just maybe he can do something about it, but no guarantee at all.”
by robert, Hull
Sunday, November 01 2009, 10:59PM
“Yo certainly don't seem to know much, Gerald. What building companies of Duffen's are those you refer to.
He was chairman of a media group before taking over as chairman at Hull City.
He was paid a wage as chairman. The only one losing any money in all this is Bartlett. And he is the one with property companies.”
by robert, Hull
Sunday, November 01 2009, 10:56PM
“Is Cliff an egg-chaser or just daft (most likely both)?
City were getting 19,000 in division 3 so where does this 6,500 in the championship come from. I wonder how many FC would get in the Second Division of rugby if the mickey mouse sport of Rugby League had relegation? Would they get more than the 2,000 HKR were getting before they won promotion to the Super League?”
by Gerald, In The Know
Sunday, November 01 2009, 11:43AM
“I posted on here when Michael Turner was sold off, saying that I was aware Paul Duffen was up the creek without a paddle - his building firms about to go belly up, and Turner had been sold to make some cash - and I got shot down by a few fools saying I didn't know my ar5e from my elbow.
Well, looks like I knew what I was talking about, eh?”
by kevin, e yorks
Sunday, November 01 2009, 10:33AM
“i welcome adam pearson back to the club,the fans trust him,paul duffen has not kept control of the clubs outgoings and its a complete mess,i dont expect any new signings and us the fans shouldnt,untill we offload 10 players,which should of been done over the summer,phil brown also should take a lot of blame,as its him who has brought a lot of avarage players to the club,it will be difficult to off load a lot of them,as no one will pay a fee for them,also bullard is a major financial worry to the club,ill be surprised now if we ever get 90 mins out of him,i hope he can prove me wrong,and also adam pearson must look at the clubs expenses,money been blown on rented houses,travel,and wining and dining for the management ,i agree the whole club needs a reality check,please sort this mess out adam.”
by Dave, Beverley
Sunday, November 01 2009, 10:02AM
“AS STATED PREVIOUSLY
YOU CAN'T MAKE A SILK PURSE OUT OF A SOW'S EAR
Doesn't take a brain surgeon!”
by Merlin, Hull
Sunday, November 01 2009, 1:33AM
“Clearly, on today's showing, we need to off-load virtually the entire playind strength. Without doubt, we must slash the number of players but at least 35-30% . This ticking bomb is Bulard and I can see his remaining time being negotiated if his injury flares up again. New investment is key - not least because no manager worth his salt will come here without a transfer chest. On view today was a grim indictment of a manager past his sell-by date. Inept tactics, ineffective signing s - in particulat JVOH who took 3 touches to mess-up a clear goal chance. Players playing lazy percentage balls upfield and no joined-up attacking football until it was too late. Amd Burney were hardly a force but we made them look good. Starly we saw the truth of what the previous chairman called incremental improvement. The reality is the side has been the subject of controlled demolition. The club was heading for the rocks and Bartlett had to wressle the wheel from Cap'n Duffen. His first mate is still on the bridge and there is no sign yet of any change in course. That may change very soon when the Admirable Pearson is piped aboard. Ps This Mail feature is utter guesswork and formulated by reading between the lines.”
by Paul, nhe
Sunday, November 01 2009, 12:23AM
“Dave Anlaby, We have no ground to mortgage and pay the Council an exorbitant rent every game we play. So the problem is a lot bigger than for any other Premier League club.”
by Paul, nhe
Sunday, November 01 2009, 12:18AM
“Oh no, just read article in todays papers. Turner move investigated after complaints from Brentford and Charlton. It says we sold Turner for
£3.5 mil !!! If not, we lied to the taxman. Hold on to your seats !”
by San Diego Tiger, Sunny SoCal
Sunday, November 01 2009, 12:14AM
“I'm all for cutting down our 40 player roster - 25 to 30 should be plenty.
Unfortunately, the players who need to go are probably not going to make much of a difference financially.
It's going to be a tough job to decide who goes and who stays - bearing in mind staying up should be the number one priority.”