PLC status was the wrong goal for Manchester Utd Chelsea-bound chief is well advised
Tuesday September 9, 2003 The Guardian Notebook Maybe we should read nothing into Peter Kenyon's departure from Manchester United to Chelsea other than the obvious: that most chief executives offered a broadly similar job on twice the money would take it, particularly if one of the perks is spending Roman Abramovich's millions. Clearly money is a factor, but it is hard to resist the thought that Kenyon's departure also says a lot about the state of Man Utd as a public company. Under Kenyon, it strove to become respectable in the City, even though 95% of fund managers think the football industry is a bad financial joke. To prove Man Utd was different, Kenyon refused to pay silly money for big transfers and demonstrated his love for the shareholders with a special dividend. All very commendable, but respectability has not followed. The shareholder register is still dominated by wealthy individuals and the takeover speculation has not stopped. In those circumstances, walking away from the glamour to throw your hat in with a Russian newcomer with no track record in football suddenly doesn't look so silly. Man Utd was so taken aback that it couldn't get its act together to confirm the move, despite the listing requirement for board changes to be announced "without delay". Suspicious minds will sense further change. In truth, there is very little point in Man Utd being a public company. It has no need to access the capital markets and sooner or later one or more of those wealthy individuals - three Irish multi-millionaires, the Big Brother creator and a couple of Americans at the last count - will surely want some fun. With that little lot in the background, maybe Kenyon's move has not just financial, but strategic, logic: at least with Abramovich you know who you will be working for this time next year. ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Buy Ink Cartridges or Refill Kits for Your HP, Epson, Canon or Lexmark Printer at Myinks.com. Free s/h on orders $50 or more to the US & Canada. http://www.c1tracking.com/l.asp?cid=5511 http://us.click.yahoo.com/l.m7sD/LIdGAA/qnsNAA/tsUolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> *************************************** Reply to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Subscribe to the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Unsubscribe from the list: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
