Chapter 423 Self-Inflicted Sin, Not to Live
Michelle Pastor is a local rich man in Monaco. The family business he and his sister jointly took over is the largest real estate company in Monaco, with a market value of more than 10 billion euros and an amazing influence in Monaco.
And one of the important reasons why their family can have all this is the good relationship with the royal family.
Therefore, ten years ago, when Monaco was in financial crisis, Alberto shouted loudly, and Michel Pat Stoll stood up and responded immediately, and he was very willing to pay and set an example, and he himself once served as Monaco. Chairman of the Board.
It was only later that he was really not good at running a football club, and he didn't have much interest. In addition, as he got older, and the financial black hole of Monaco was getting bigger and bigger, the team's performance was getting worse and worse, which made him gradually lose his mind. Step back behind the scenes.
As soon as he heard that someone was willing to take over, Pastor raised his hands and feet in favor.
It can be seen that he was eager to throw away this hot potato quickly.
Yang Huan didn't care what the rich people present thought.
Maybe Monaco is arsenic in their eyes, but in his eyes, it is nothing but a panacea.
Think about it from another angle, why did Michel Pat Stoll, who was so valuable, obey Prince Albert's call and rescue Monaco?
Doesn't this indirectly reflect the point that football's influence cannot be matched by money?
Isn't buying a football team the most powerful and fastest way to break into Monaco's upper-class core circle?
Of course, the premise is that you have to fight for the benefits you want.
"Mr. Yang Huan, it is a great honor for you to be interested in Monaco Football Club"
After talking about an opening, the topic quickly got to the point.
Prince Albert is also eager for outsiders to invest in the team, but he also has his own considerations.
"Monaco is a team with a long history and has been established for nearly a hundred years. He represents not only all our team supporters, but the crown on the team badge shows that he also represents our royal family. the honor, the fame of the principality"
Yang Huan nodded involuntarily.
He can understand that.
It's hard to imagine people who are not familiar with European high society. If you are not familiar with football, you can't communicate with them at all.
Can you imagine the British Prime Minister sitting with the French President, discussing the results of the Champions League, and even fighting over a foul in the game?
Can you imagine that the boss of a big consortium just missed out on a big deal because he didn't want to do business with the sworn enemy fans?
But all this, in Europe, happens almost at any time.
Compared with football countries such as England, Germany and Spain, France's football atmosphere is relatively weak.
But it's still important
"All of us in the Principality are deeply saddened and humiliated by Monaco's relegation to Ligue 2, and we desperately hope to be able to return to Ligue 1 and return to Europe."
Speaking of this, Prince Albert smiled admiringly at Yang Huan.
"Mr. Yang Huan, although I am in Monaco, I have heard the story of you and Southampton. I admire everything you have done in Southampton. You have created a new business model for Saints."
As the so-called person's name, the shadow of the tree.
Yang Huan is now in the European football world, it can be said to be red and purple, who doesn't know?
"So, we all support your idea of buying Monaco Football Club, because we believe that you have enough ability to lead Monaco out of the current predicament."
Yang Huan still didn't speak, because he knew that all the previous things were nonsense, and the key points were coming later.
Sure enough, when it came to this point, Prince Albert changed his words.
"But, please forgive me, Monaco represents the dignity of the royal family. We cannot accept it anyway. He does not belong to us Monegasques. Therefore, we have no way to accept your carte blanche."
The acquisition plan proposed by Yang Huan through Zhao Yuanfang and Pini Harvey was a 100% acquisition.
This is his usual way of doing things
But now it seems that both sides value this stock very much.
After listening politely to Prince Albert, Yang Huan smiled lightly.
"Thank you His Royal Highness Prince Albert for his appreciation, and please believe that I did not come with a speculative mentality. I bought Monaco because I value this team, including the Principality of Monaco behind this team"
Prince Albert and everyone present nodded in unison.
This is very sincere. If it weren't for the Principality of Monaco behind it, who would want to take over this mess?
"I have analyzed everything that Monaco has experienced in the past ten years. The team cannot be promoted back to the Premier League this summer. It is true that the coach Barnid's level is limited, but it is very important that the team is not very good. Adjust your mindset."
"Originally a big team, in the Ligue 1, the income was huge, and suddenly it was dropped to the Ligue 2. Not to mention the sharp drop in income, the mentality of the players and the club has changed, which has caused the team to carry a heavy burden. Pressure to play."
Yang Huan's statement made everyone present feel fresh.
For Monaco's inability to rush back to Ligue 1, some people think that the strength is not good, and some people think that the club has not invested much.
These are of course some of the factors, but the psychological factors mentioned by Yang Huan are also very important.
Prince Albert was deeply aware of this.
Last summer, as soon as Monaco was relegated, 23 first-team players left, how many were introduced?
twelve people
Among the twenty-three players who left the team, there are many core players and potential rookies like Nkuru.
This dealt a tragic blow to Monaco.
Previously in Ligue 1, at least 20 to 30 million euros were earned from broadcasting rights a season.
But what about French?
Not much
This forced the team to shrink and go on a diet, and had to cut bonuses, and the players were also depressed and aggrieved.
What about management?
Desperately wanting to rush back to Ligue 1, in the formulation of many policies, it is out of the reality of the team.
Eventually lead to the failure of Monaco's rush
"I am very sure, this is definitely not a reflection of Monaco's strength, and it should not appear in Monaco. This team should appear in Ligue 1, or even in Europe. I am very sure of this."
Yang Huan's words undoubtedly won the approval of Prince Albert.
Who said it wasn't?
Eight years ago, Monaco was a team in the Champions League final and finally won a Champions League runner-up
"If I and my team are given full control, I have the confidence to rush back to Ligue 1 next season, return to Europe within three years, and become the strongest contender for the Ligue 1 title again."
Yang Huan's words undoubtedly brightened Prince Albert's eyes.
so tempting
Looking at the Principality of Monaco today, who would dare to make such a promise?
But soon, Prince Albert realized a problem.
What Yang Huan said is that full power operation
In other words, he wants 100 percent ownership of the club
This can not help but let Prince Albert fall into a tangle.
Don't look at the Monaco royal family is no longer the team's largest shareholder, but Prince Albert still has the veto power.
It's his status
But in Yang Huan's view, this is unacceptable.
Who is willing to spend a lot of money to invest in the team, but in the end, everyone is constrained by others. Isn't that asking for trouble?
When Yang Huan spoke, he always looked at Prince Albert and had a panoramic view of the other party's reaction.
"His Royal Highness, I believe you should also be very clear about the crux of the reason why the team has reached today."
These words undoubtedly wake up Prince Albert.
The Prince of Monaco is not an idiot, how could he not be clear?
In 2001, the Monaco Club was transformed into a joint-stock company, managed jointly by seven board members, two of whom were from the royal family, who had veto powers.
Since then, Monaco has been almost mired in management chaos.
Without the approval of the royal family, none of the club's initiatives can be put into practice, including finding sponsors.
The worst years of Monaco's financial crisis were also the worst years for the relationship between the royal family and the management.
It wasn't until 2004, when Michelle Pastor became chairman of the board, that the situation improved.
But even so, the conflict between the royal family and the Monaco board of directors still exists.
Otherwise, how can you explain that such a giant in Ligue 1, which has a strong background and enjoys extremely low tax rates, has finally declined, or even dropped to Ligue 2?
In 2009, the current Monaco board chairman Etienne Francie took over as the club's chairman.
After the former chairman, American financier Jerome de Podin, who cut wages, sold players, and made a profit of 16 million euros for the club with an almost magical ability to operate, Francie is ambitious Reinvigorate Monaco.
As a result, in the summer of 2009, he spent 2 million euros and a high salary to introduce the Icelandic veteran Gudjohnsen, but half a year later, because the Icelanders did not score a single goal in nine games, their performance was sluggish, and Iceland was eliminated during the winter break. Sent to Tottenham.
The same situation happened in 2010, when Francie brought in from Standard Liege, Belgium, for 7 million euros, the African center Mbokani, who scored fifteen goals for two consecutive seasons.
But half a year later, with a goal in ten games, Mbokani left Monaco in despair and went on loan to Wolfsburg in the Bundesliga, but the center is now shining in Anderlecht.
Behind all this, it is actually inseparable from the intrigue of the management.
There is a saying that it is self-inflicted and cannot live. Monaco's relegation is the most painful lesson and blow to this group of management who like to fight infighting.
This is also Yang Huan's foreshadowing
After all, Monaco is someone else's territory. You are an outsider. If you are a gentleman in advance, please make it clear.
Yang Huan would rather not buy Monaco and talk about Marseille instead, and he is not willing to get involved in this troubled water.
Prince Albert did not expect that Yang Huan knew so much about the current situation of the team, but this just proved Yang Huan's sincerity in the acquisition, and he had seen the business plan submitted by Yang Huan's assistant Zhao Yuanfang before.
In this plan, Yang Huan promised that after the acquisition of the team, he would invest 30 million euros to build a brand-new training base, and the existing training base located halfway up the northwest of Monaco City would be developed into a top-level training base. Luxury housing project.
The terrain there is very good, overlooking the whole of Monaco, surrounded by mansions on the hillside, and it is also very close to Monaco.
It's just that it's already in France.
outside the jurisdiction of Prince Albert.
In addition, Yang Huan proposed to buy the Louis II Stadium, or allow him to choose a site along the coast of Port Hercules to build a new stadium.
There are good reasons too.
Today's Louis II Stadium has a total capacity of only 18,000, and the average attendance rate per game is only about 6,000, or even lower, only 3,000 or 4,000, which originally did not require the construction of a new stadium.
But what Yang Huan wants to do is to improve the service and experience of fans after entering the stadium, add a series of high-end consumption venues, and supporting service facilities, which are not available in the existing Louis II Stadium.
This is the only comprehensive stadium in Monaco, with a track and field track, and even the office of the National University of Monaco in the stadium. There is too little space for the management of the club to operate.
At the existing Stade Louis II, Monaco's matchday operations are virtually nil, apart from meager ticket sales.
Therefore, Yang Huan's attitude is very firm.
Monaco is a pit, you either agree to all my conditions or I won't buy it
For this, even Prince Albert felt very helpless.
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