Mo Chaudry - mannen som vill köpa Port Vale !

 

 
Sentinel columnist and Vale fan Martin Tideswell met Mo Chaudry to put to him the key questions being asked by the club’s supporters in light of his bid to buy the club...
 
MT: Why did you choose Port Valeand why choose to invest at this time? Was Port Vale your first choice and have you looked at other clubs?
 
MC: When I first showed an interest in taking over Port Vale during the early days of Valiant 2001, I decided to step back because I felt that, at the time, a fan-run consortium was the way forward.However, I also realised quite quickly that it would have been the wrong time in my life.
 
I am still young enough and hungry enough to make a success of Port Vale.What's more, now I also have a team of people around me – a very loyal, hard-working and professional team of people who would be invaluable in running the club.I'm simply in a better position to do this. I am very flattered to have been courted by two different Championship clubs – one of which was Hull City – whose owners know me as a successful business person.But I realised quite quickly that I had no emotional connection with these clubs and so I started to look closer to home.
 
MT: Lots of figures have been bandied about. What exactly would your proposed investment entail in financial terms? How would you handle the club's debt and how much money, if any, would be made available to strengthen the playing staff?
 
MC: Let me be clear that I am not prepared to invest in Port Vale to be a bit-part player. I want a minimum of 51 per cent in order to give me overall control of the club. I may buy more – perhaps up to 75 per cent of shares.
 
The club needs a professional executive. Buying 51 per cent of the shares would probably cost me around £1.2m.Now the club has debts. One of my immediate priorities would be to deal with this debt. That would cost me more money, obviously, but it is key to get the club on an even keel financially before we can move forward.
 
MT: What do you think you would bring to Port Vale?
 
MC: I am a successful businessman. I am very driven. I have a good reputation. When I have a mission I deliver it. My life could quite easily have gone in a different direction – I could have been a gangster or a criminal. I saw some tough times when I was growing up. However, I believe that these life lessons taught me to be tough. I'm a fighter. I'm a winner.
 
MT: What do you think of the current Valiant 2001 rule that no single investor is able to own more than a 24.9 per cent stake in the club?
 
MC: It is nonsense. I see it as a barrier to investment. The board are living in the past. I think they are simply trying to cling on to power now.
 
MT: How would you describe Port Vale's financial situation at present?
 
MC: It is pretty grim. Unless the club gets some serious investment pretty soon then, in my opinion, there is a very real danger that Port Vale will go bust – and I'm not talking about the kind of sums other potential investors have offered.
 
MT: How would you describe the way you have been treated by the directors at Port Vale?
 
MC: I am honestly appalled. I thought the board would welcome me. I thought they would act professionally. But I think they have been discourteous and they have insulted me when I am just trying to help.
 
At the annual meeting I was embarrassed because they didn't want to let me in. At the FA Cup game at BurnleyI was invited along by a friend and contact at Burnley – only to be told the Vale directors didn't want me in the same room.

I'm astonished at the way I have been treated and I am at a loss to explain it. I certainly won't be signing any confidentiality agreement because there isn't any need for one. It is simply the board's way of trying to make me keep quiet and hoping I will go away.
 
MT: If you were successful in taking over the club, what would your ambitions be for Port Vale?
 
MC: I see enormous potential at the club. I think that, given the right investment, promotion to becoming an established Championship club is certainly achievable. I believe there is real potential to grow the fanbase at Vale – irrespective of where Stoke City are. I think that I am the man in a unique position to attract a new breed of fan to Vale Park. For example, we should be tapping into ethnic minorities locally. How great would it be if the Vale had an Asian chairman – a role model for that community – who could say to them 'this is your club too'.
 
MT: If you were to invest in Port Vale, it would be a business transaction unlike any other that you have been involved in. No-one seems to make money out of football these days. Are you happy to invest knowing that you are unlikely to get any significant return?
 
MC: No, I'm never happy about losing money! However, I realise that I could lose money with this venture. I may make some, however – it is possible – and I'm an optimist. If I can make a few thousand people happy along the way here then great. This is one of the most important things I will ever do. I want to have fun, but I also want to leave a legacy.
 
MT: What would you say to sceptical fans who are worried about their club being in the hands of a sole owner? Are you in this for the long haul? Can you assure supporters that you wouldn't walk away if things got tough?
 
MC: Contrary to rumours, there is no gold mine at the Vale. In fact, there are pit shafts under the pitch. I'm not going to make a load of money by selling anything off in Burslem. However, I am heartened by the positive feedback I have received from fans. To get 1,600 signatures on a petition in a matter of days is tremendous and it makes me feel very humble, if I'm honest. I need the fans more than ever now because, ultimately, it can only be the fans who force the hand of the board if they keep throwing obstacles in my way.
 
                                                                                                                                                                                   Källa: The Senteniel