God Bless Martin Samuel for being the ONLY journalist who has seen through this whole charade the entire time, and understood that City were not only NOT “buying the League,” but also were running a very successfully sustainable club!
From the outset, Mansour & Khaldoon talked about the 10 year project to create a club (First Team, Academy, Stadia and commercial sponsorships) that was in a position to create the success, both on and off the field, to make it a sustainable (and hopefully, profitable) long-term business…because that is what they do!
CFG is a global business that is sustainable, well-run, and uses Man City as a figurehead “halo” club to both promote and project their success.
That has turned a £200M Man City into a £2-3-4Bn CFG, making it both successful and sustainable.
As a planned symbol of this success and sustainability, the Club has engaged in a community development plan unique in the annals of British football, by regenerating a poverty-stricken, rundown area into a considerably more vibrant community full of homes, schools and destinations that will help it develop further.
Martin Samuel, while being merely a football journalist with some historical perspective, has recognized all of this, while understanding the internal political forces arrayed against it, and been strong enough of character and journalistic integrity to call it out for what it is, was, and should be.
Take a bow, sir. You’ve been on the right side of this from the outset!
