Mar 24
First of all, and importantly, how are we all doing?
We all have a lot to think and worry about and depending on your frame of mind the childish social media spats between Matt Southall and Tahnoon Nimer have either been a welcome comedy gold distraction or a distasteful embarrassing side-show, especially when the world is going through so much torment.
If at all possible!
Looks as if Tahnoon Nimer has got the access to the Official Site, and following on from last night’s virtual ‘board meeting’ the Syrian has told us he’s removed Southall and Heller and appointed two Romanians to the ESI board. One name we have heard before in recent days Claudiu Florica, cleared on a technicality from a bribery and corruption case when at Microsoft and friend of Nimer. The other board member is sports and aviation lawyer Marian Mihail.
Like a drunken and beaten heavyweight fighter slumped on the ropes, Matt Southall took to Twitter today in an attempt to lay one last punch. Jonathan Heller, an apparent turncoat, in his corner dabbing Southall’s bruises co-signed the letter on Charlton Athletic headed paper. Not surprisingly the Official Site did not carry the statement.
Happy Paddy’s Day. Drinking from home today. I need one. Already.
HE Tahnoon Nimer went back to social media today, carefully written running through the extraordinary events of last week and attempting to reassure us that soon he will appoint a new board of directors once the removal of Matt Southall has been legally stamped. Here it is:
What an extraordinary week, unprecedented since the war years, or possibly 9/11 and 7/7, in my lifetime. The week moved quickly didn’t it. The Coronavirus moving across the world like a tidal wave, changing the way we live our lives almost instantly.
Then we just shake our heads at the farcical but possibly ruinous saga going on at Charlton. From whispers to chaos to realization in the space of a week.
The world’s markets crashed taking savings and pensions with them. Then this week I had my own personal work development, which will be transformational and unsettling at the same time.
Brexit…. All is forgiven.
Just when you think it safe to go out.. For me tonight, I had a client dinner – probably the last for a while as COVID-19 almost entirely shuts down travel between Europe and North America and Bermuda – but I noticed my phone flashing texts and messages as the situation developed tonight at The Valley.
The first red flag was a message from the Charlton Live team cancelling their show tonight. What then followed was truly remarkable, even on the scale of Charlton histories of remarkedness.
The absolute senselessness continues in SE7 today. Firstly the absolute nonsense of a statement from Matt Southall, who guess what, has given his full support to.. Matt Southall.
“The Club wish to make it clear that Matt Southall has their full support in his role as Executive Chairman and are looking forward to working with him into the future towards a positive end to this current season and beyond.”
That Executive Chairman crap has always stuck in my craw. It’s so crass and conceited. But what staggering bollocks. Roland-esque in fact. Matt mate, we have been paying attention you know. You are a fraud.
The public spat being carried out between Matt Southall and HE Tahnoon Nimer puts them both in a terrible and embarrassing light. Neither of them will come out of this well, and whilst the two individuals will have reputations damaged, perhaps infinitely, the biggest damage of all is to those that love the club, and those in the dressing room trying to save it from relegation against all the odds. All of us suckered in by the bullshit and lies.
Matt Southall’s public relations machine looks like juddering to a halt, unlike he and his pals’ Range Rovers.
Confirmation that long-time club secretary Chris Parkes has been suspended by Southall, pending an investigation. Parkes, one would assume was behind conversations with Tahnoon Nimer and the EFL as to what is actually going on at the club under Southall’s leadership.
What we do know of HE Tahnoon Nimer is that he is a little excitable, not polished, and with English not his first language, that voice note was a result of a man clearly fired up.
But who here is the fantasist, the liar, the trickster?
Southall issued another statement this morning saying they have accepted HE Tahnoon Numer’s resignation. That was followed by a much more thorough and detailed account from Nimer, which tells a very different story, and a fuller one that Southall is sharing.
Chaos reigns again tonight after HE Tahnoon Nimer announced on social media to fans that he is pulling out of his Charlton investment. He has blamed Matt Southall and the senior management, which is really only Southall and Jonathan Heller of repatriating money for their own good. The voice note is something else. Listen here.
Later on the OS, Southall issued a statement saying that a letter was received today from Tahnoon Nimer which is in the hands of his lawyers for whom he will discuss what actions to take. Threats have been made to other members of the club’s senior management, about what who knows as East Street Investments morphs into a school playground squabble.
The supposed majority owner of Charlton was pictured outside Dinamo Bucharest on Saturday whilst we were losing to Middlesbrough.
There were unproven noises that HE Tahnoon Nimer had invested in Romanian top flight side Dinamo Bucharest in January. Yesterday whilst the Addicks were getting dragged into the bottom three of The Championship, Nimer was pictured outside of Dinamo’s Stadionul Dinamo looking quite pleased with himself. Local media suggest that his takeover of the 18-times Romanian champions is imminent.
Morning Addicks. That was a restless night’s sleep wasn’t it?
A bad, bad week up in Yorkshire for Charlton ended in capitulation and the season’s worst defeat yesterday as Karlan Grant helped himself to a couple of goals and raised anxiety levels to bursting amongst Addicks’ fans.
Funny isn’t it? In the summer we were like ‘jeez Bow loves signing a midfielder’ and then we ended the year playing 19-year old’s in there alongside the Duracell battery that is Darren Pratley.
Bowyer signed three more midfielders today, two very experienced ones and another young prospect ripe for improving.
To much fall out on Birmingham fan sites, David Davis signed on loan until the end of the season. I feel the club was trying to make this permanent but run out of time.
Most thought Matt Southall made a Freudian slip yesterday calling Steve Gallen the “Director of Football,” but nope, today the Chairman unveiled Steve as the club’s Director of Football.
Chicago Addick 