May 17
This news didn’t get a lot of attention today with most of the Addicks’ atmosphere being taken up by the takeover – who said ‘wouldn’t it be great if we can just get back to concentrating on the football and talk about football stuff’?
Danny Senda has stepped up from the U21’s to being joint assistant manager to Dean Holden with Anthony Hayes.
Please click for moreThat might explain why Ashley Maynard-Brewer wasn’t in Spain, although I think he was spotted in Australia, The Highlands and Tesco in Dartford.
Another transfer move that swung under the radar today with AMB moving to Gillingham for the season, although the Addicks do have a recall option.
Please click for moreI think hand on heart we had all been waiting for this announcement, yet it still hurts all the same.
“Charlton Athletic can confirm the departure of men’s First-Team Coach Jason Euell.” (more)
Please click for moreUnless Jacko signs a contract on Friday, Saturday will be his 58th day and 10th league game as caretaker manager. There’s a been a few additional cup games as well.
Negotiations are clearly happening, but sticking points I presume revolve around control, contract length and salary. Jason Euell is an interesting pawn in proceedings as well.
Please click for moreHappy April 1st, plenty of wind up’s out there but Jason Euell’s promotion is not one of them. Congratulations Jase, well deserved.
During the last few months I wondered if Euell, who has been at the club this time around since 2013, would still be a feature at Sparrows Lane. He applied for the manager’s job at AFC Wimbledon in February before the Dons offered Mark Robinson the job permanently. There were also whispers that he was on Lee Bowyer’s summer wishlist too, that’s if he is allowed to rebuild the coaching infrastructure at St Andrews.
I’ve been watching games on iFollow and Valley Pass for a fair while, we have been allowed to buy live coverage since 2017 as overseas’ fans. Yet while grateful to be closer to the ‘match day experience’ there was nearly always picture, sound, buffering or latency issues and the home viewing experience was mostly perfunctory and not necessarily pleasurable. Taking the emotion out of the result and team performance of course.
I tended mostly to listen just to the commentary, but the live pictures have steadily gotten better, notably last season after lockdown when it simply had to pick up it’s game.
Roland Duchatelet has typed or dictated some scatterbrained old tosh in the past, but yesterday’s beats the lot.
As always blaming everybody and everything other than himself. The man has no shame. Dragging into public consumption details of salaries and negotiations is utterly disgusting. He trashes other clubs and their owners because as we know only Roland has the plan for a sustainable and successful football club.
Duchatelet has dealt with agents broadly since he and Katrien Meire were in charge of the club. We had the third highest agent fees in League One in 2018 and in two seasons RD lined agents pockets to the tune of over £1m. So why the dig at Lee having a representative? The poor bloke has had to deal with Duchatelet’s representative Lievan de Turck for ages. Conflict of interests my arse.
The chairmen of AFC Wimbledon, Shrewsbury Town and Swindon Town have all been busy today.
Dons’ chairman Erik Samuelson removed Neil Ardley from his role at Wimbledon after a hugely successful six years, the Shrews’ very own Roland (Wycherley) moved on John Askey after just five months in the role after he was given the difficult job of rebuilding the side that Paul Hurst built. Hurst was just sacked himself by Ipswich and one would thought he’d be favourite to head back to Shropshire.
Askey’s old team Macclesfield, who are marooned to the bottom of League Two, may offer a route back into management for Askey. Macclesfield have broken the mould of recent promoted National League teams, who have mostly flourished at the higher level, showing what a magnificent job Askey did at the Moss Rose.
It was great to see Ademola Lookman score for Everton yesterday. I was thrilled for the lovely young man. Every Addick can be rightly proud that he was ‘Made in Charlton’. It was equally as good to see Joe Gomez return from his long term injury for Liverpool last week in the FA Cup, and he too was on the bench yesterday at Old Trafford. It can be impossible to keep these players from moving to the next level, particularly when Charlton appears to be low on ambition, and the reality is that we have become a middling League One club.
I think under Robinson, if he is allowed a longer term to influence young prospects, we may see academy players stay to play closer to a century of games. Of course we know Katrien Meire’s view on moving our best young players on, and for Roland Duchatelet, it is just a way to make money for his network project.
Well ok, that’s a bit far fetched even in Pinocchio’s world.
First things first though, thank you to young Ademola, who at 18 at least has a sensible head on his teenage shoulders and thanks to those around him who at least preach patience and reality. Ademola could have gone in the window cheaply and for what? To sit in an academy full of high paid, pampered, appearance-less teenagers? Ademola has come up the hard way, the Jamie Vardy way, let’s call it, so rare that young player’s break into professional football via the back door these days. He comes from a different world than a Cristian Cebellos for example.
Ademola Lookman we will at least get to enjoy for a bit longer. To 2020? Do me a favour. To the end of this season? Probably.
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Who knows who will be taking the team tomorrow. The club aren’t likely to tell us, but it does look as is Wim de Corte and Jason Euell will prepare and select the team whilst Jose Riga will either sit in the stands or be back in Belgium again packing his toothbrush.
Riga’s appointment, much I suspect to Roland Duchatelet’s surprise, hasn’t had Charlton fans doing back flips, but equally, and I include myself in this, Addicks’ fans are almost entirely wanting Riga to succeed, whereas the baying masses just wanted Fraeye to fall over and clear off, such was his ineffectualness.
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January is such an important transfer window for the club. At least it is for everyone I talk to. There is not a lot of evidence that Roland Duchatelet and Katrien Meire think this, but the squad gravely needs reinforcements. Effective ones at that, not any old network rubbish.
But who is charge of this essential transfer window? And who can we trust? Let’s look at the candidates.
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It has not been easy being a Charlton fan in recent weeks, in fact it has been pretty depressing, but my slumber has been awoken by the unification of Charlton fans, those who remember Sam Bartram, those that remember Derek Hales, those that remember Clive Mendonca, those that now cheer on Johan Berg Gudmundsson. All Charlton fans coming together to claim the football club that we love back.
I was today at my daughter’s first ever swimming meet. I was nervous for her, but those nerves turned to an upside down stomach when on my phone I watched footage on Twitter of around a 1,000 fans gathered in the West Stand car park demonstrating against the leadership of our club before the game.
This had a poignant effect on me as I watched video clips, saw photos and read on the ground comments from those Addicks amongst them. This was a very significant moment for Addicks as all ages came together, men and women, and protested peacefully, pointedly and loudly.
And this is only the beginning.
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Cynicism comes easy when you have been a Charlton supporter for 40 years and sadly I read this morning’s announcement of a planned meeting with fan’s representatives through a lens of mistrust. No sign of his lordship getting on the Eurostar of course, but I am sure he will send his apologies with a message to like it or lump it.
It seems strange to me that the CEO continues to avoid direct communication with the Supporter’s Trust. I know it doesn’t represent everybody, but what would? But it is the largest organised group of supporters that has over 1,000 paid up members. It will contain a broad mix of supporters and includes many bright minds that can only contribute to the future well being of the club.
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You can spin it through Google Translator, but if you allow me to paraphrase it for you, Peeters says he was “idolised” by fans, and he thought he had a good relationship with Katrien Meire, but they ended up in conflict. The supporters could see we needed better players, but the owner thought he was exaggerating.
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Chicago Addick 