CARDIFF CITY CHAIRMAN WANTS TO PUT THE RECORD STRAIGHT

Cardiff chief Dalman offers his views on a range of subjects in a fascinating interview that is must-read for football fans...

Thursday 8th September 2016

By Paul Abbandonato

Cardiff City's hierarchy have by and large kept a low profile this season as the club have made cutbacks - including the sale of best player David Marshall and fans' favourite Fabio.

During the silence, supporters have speculated in frenzied fashion about the level of commitment of owner Vincent Tan, what the club's ambition is and if further cost-cutting measures will take place.

Here, in a full and frank Q&A with WalesOnline, chairman Mehmet Dalman addresses a number of the key issues and calmly puts across the club's message in what is an unmissable read for Bluebirds fans...

: The transfer widow has closed and the burning question on the lips of fans is why was David Marshall sold? What is the real truth behind the transfer?

Dalman: Let's firstly say that David was a great professional and a fantastic servant to this club. Everyone can at least agree on that.

For background, when two Premier League clubs came in for him the first time, we said 'no' and explained our decision to David. He was disappointed, but being the pro that he is he knuckled down and just got on with the job here.

Then another Premier League club, a third one, wanted to buy him. Again we said no. Once more, David accepted the decision. I told him, 'We really appreciate your understanding and getting on with the job in hand. The Premier League will happen for you at some point'.

Well, it has. On this occasion, the fourth club coming in, we had to change our stance, couldn't stand in his way any more.

Did we want to keep him? Yes. Did we welcome the revenue from selling? Yes again.

Ultimately though, we had to think of the individual and on this occasion couldn't deny him the opportunity to play on the biggest stage any more.

But it's not the greatest piece of business to sell your TWO keepers in one transfer window?

Dalman: Well, we sold Simon Moore first because we expected Marshall to still be here. Of course we wouldn't have sold him if we knew Marshall would be going.

Things happen quickly in football though and Hull subsequently came in. I repeat again, we couldn't stand in the way of David's ambition and career. That would not have been fair a fourth time.

His sudden departure leaves a chasm, doesn't it?

Dalman: Yes and no. Paul Trollope's is the opinion that counts here and he feels we've got a couple of decent goalkeepers in Ben Amos and Ben Wilson.

Amos is experienced, Wilson we have high hopes of.

Okay, they are not David Marshall, but before we had a brilliant goalkeeper yet couldn't score goals. Suddenly we have a very sound goalkeeper and have signed a new striker in Rickie Lambert who can hopefully help mould the whole team together.

I've just come from the training ground and I was greatly impressed with what I saw. It's well disciplined, well run, there is lots of energy and Paul and his coaching staff are turning up the dial on that.

We haven't won as many games yet as we've wanted to, but the team has looked better organised and are playing better football. We're happy with the changes we have made.

What of Lambert, what will he bring to the party?

Dalman : Rickie needs no introduction from me. He was an England player just two years ago, regularly scored 20-plus goals for Southampton, played for Liverpool. His CV speaks for itself.

I firmly believe he will score the goals we need to help improve results, but given the character that he is he will also improve others around him. His influence will rub off on some of the younger players who will become better players as a consequence.

What's your take on the success, or otherwise, of Cardiff's transfer window activity?

Dalman: I don't give plaudits very often, but I must say our chief executive Ken Choo has performed a difficult task very well.

He had to tackle the cost base. It's well known we had expensive players on our books who haven't been on the pitch much for the last two to three seasons.

With regards incomings, the manager identified specific signings and I feel we've brought in some really good young players, as well as Lambert. Cardiff's fans will see the best of them in due course, be excited by them.

Joe Bennett is an example of that. Everyone I talk to in this industry tells me we've got a really good player there. Once he is fully over any injury issues, watch him go.

Given the cutbacks, was there an element of going into the transfer window with hands tied behind your back?

Dalman: I've never understood that expression. Were we prudent in our decision-making? Absolutely. Just as we should have been more prudent three seasons ago.

It's not just about keeping on throwing any old sum of money at it. We need ethos, ethics, style and an identity of play, each of which we're working on.

We have made what I'd call well considered decision making. You talk of handcuffs being on. Were we forced to sell? No.

Could we afford to spend £8m or £10m on another Andreas Cornelius-like figure? Absolutely not.

We work within a sensible budget, don't have the luxury of those sort of signings any more.

How does Vincent Tan view everything. Does he feel let down by the lack of success from some of the signings?

Dalman : Of course he does, enormously so. But we have new processes in place, a transfer committee and we make decisions together.

We have to trust the manager's judgement on players, but have a duty to also make proper checks and look at balances.

If we do the checks and balances and don't sign a player, we're accused of nor signing a player the manager wants. If we do the proper checks and balances and sign a player, we're accused of cutting back.

You can't have it two ways. The manager has a vote on the transfer committee and we move from there. We work well together, it's a successful structure.

So would you describe these as austere times for Cardiff City?

Dalman? No, that's not the word I'd use. I'd call it common sense time. That's where we are.

We are a business and we need to run Cardiff City FC as a more sustainable business model.

Okay, some fans would argue it's a lack of ambition?

Dalman: So is the only definition of football ambition if you don't withdraw money?

Irrespective of who the owner is, you can't just spend X amount of money these days because of Financial Fair Play rules.

What's the most important thing for you as a fan... the team winning games or the club being in a more stable condition, more secure for the future?

Take it from me, the club is much better run today than was the case two years ago. We're creating a more sustainable model for Cardiff City FC.

That doesn't mean, let me stress, that the days of multi-million pound transfers have gone. We're still hugely ambitious. Vincent more than anyone.

But firstly we have to create a proper Cardiff City identity, a way of playing. And stick to it.

We start there and begin to build from that. If the manager comes to us and says he wishes to sign Target X who will cost money, we will do it if that individual enhances the new way of playing we are bringing in.

So it's not a lack of ambition, it's that we have to get the club in order.

I guess what the fans are asking is whether Vincent Tan still has any ambition for Cardiff City?

Dalman: I don't get annoyed very often, but I do get irritated when people say Vincent wants to sell to strip assets, and that sort of thing.

Are you insane? After how much money this man has put into this club, and continues to put in. Believe me, he couldn't asset strip even if he wanted to.

He needs to recoup £200million. What is he going to sell to recoup that sort of figure?

Look, the only time he wants us to sell is to balance the books as well as we can in order to meet Financial Fair Play requirements.

Anybody who makes these asset-strip comments are either flawed when it comes to basic arithmetic, deliberately want to look at things just one way, or are plain wrong.

So is he still fully committed?

Dalman: Absolutely. Okay, I know he's not here at games, but the world has changed in the last two years and he has businesses to run in the far east.

He needs to make money from those businesses to put into Cardiff City FC, which he continues to do.

I find it disappointing people are questioning him like this and I also think it's unfair. If it wasn't for him, where on earth would this club be today? Yet despite the criticism, he has no wish to just dump it and move on.

Let's be a little more fair. The man used to come to games and got stick, even after we changed back from red to blue. If he doesn't come, he also gets stick from some.

He can't just drop his businesses any more and come over here the whole time. But Vincent is up at 4am Malaysian time, watching every Cardiff game. He doesn't miss a thing.

What about the claims he's looking to get the club into shape to sell it?

Dalman: Nonsense again. If we sell players he's asset stripping! If we run the club properly, he's doing it to sell it! If he doesn't come to games, he's not committed!

Come on, is there anything we can do right here?

We've had zero bids to buy this club. Fact. There was a rumour going around about some Sheik wanting to buy it... which had about as much truth as the suggestion that Turkish bloke was going to be our manager a few months back.

What we're doing, and what Vincent wants us to do, is create a more sustainable financial model for Cardiff City FC.

Are you happy with attendances?

Dalman: If there's one empty seat I'm not happy. No, I'm not, is the answer to the question, but I can assure you there is an awful lot going on behind the scenes to address things.

The fans will come back once the football starts to be more attractive. We trust in the manager and will get there.

Vincent Tan has embraced it, pushed it, financed it. When we went to him and said we needed Lennie Lawrence and Ryland Morgans to back up Paul Trollope, he said 'You go for it and create a great management team'.

He trusts them to do things in a transparent way and produce the style of football and results that will win back the fans.

Paul is trying to model things on the Wales way of playing, but well before their success in Euro 2016 Vincent wanted to do things that way, anyhow. Mirror the style of play, have more Welsh players in the Cardiff team. It is one of the reasons we appointed Paul to the top job.

Vincent is a massive fan of the Wales team, even flew to Lyon with lots of people close to him to cheer on the team in the Euro semi-finals. He watches every Wales match really closely.

So how would you sum up the current state of play?

Dalman: We're a more stable, better run club. Funnily enough, I've just had visitors from overseas who said to me 'This is a well run outfit'. Previously, it was more a case of 'This is a funnily run club'.

A more sustainable Cardiff City FC. That's the key phrase.

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Good interview putting things straight again

Funnily enough, I've just had visitors from overseas who said to me 'This is a well run outfit'.

well maybe to a arabian billionaire who is being wined and dined, but not to any neutral observer with half a brain.

we have just paid two players £500k-1m to leave the club for heavens sake. our stadium is about 40% full on match day. we have amassed huge, crippling debts.

sorry, but that is so far from the mark as to be embarrassing.

After the Marshal explanation I couldn't be bothered to read any more of his bullshit

MD is an investment banker. I worked in the industry for years. He will tell you what you want to hear. No industry specific knowledge apart from an exec summary but access to a ton of finance which is usually a recipe for disaster in whatever smooth bet your taking (such as his OGS appointment - conspicuously absent from this 'interview'?!). Engage with the fans directly if you want to be taken seriously and forget about doing it via the parochial joke that is Media Wales. Says it all for me.

After the Marshal explanation I couldn't be bothered to read any more of his bullshit

Nukes, you know that wasn't how it was with DM

Cover your ears and close your eyes.How does he know whats really going on?Any body would think he's a top ITK fella and a trusted member of this forum.You can't trust anything the club says only people on here really know the full story.

Not sure what he said that has'nt been said before. I could have given those answers to the reporter if he had asked me. They are just bog standard replies, most of which have been reproduced on this forum plenty of times before.

There's so much work to be done. Mark my words, we will not see Premier League football for another 10+ years.

So we've signed another injured player in joe Bennett? Or have I read that wrong?

There's so much work to be done. Mark my words, we will not see Premier League football for another 10+ years.

personally I don't see that as a problem, At least you have a club.

see the bigger picture boys

There's so much work to be done. Mark my words, we will not see Premier League football for another 10+ years.

personally I don't see that as a problem, At least you have a club.

see the bigger picture boys

The problem is that we have a chairman who we may owe a fortune to but will eventually write off even if it does take at least 5 more years to do it. They'd much rather have someone like Sam the Sham in charge who spends other people's money or maybe even his own but through a made up company and forgets to pay off such people as the tax man, leading to either a quick sale of our players or regular trips to the court with the threat of being put out of business. Of course that won't matter as he'll let them be part of his inner circle, therefore being one of the lads bankrupting the club won't really matter.

So we've signed another injured player in joe Bennett? Or have I read that wrong?

He's currently injured and was injured for Villa, hopefully we get to see him play soon.

SELL ; SELL ; SELL ; - The corner flags will be gone by the end of the month

There's so much work to be done. Mark my words, we will not see Premier League football for another 10+ years.

personally I don't see that as a problem, At least you have a club.

see the bigger picture boys

And what is exactly the bigger picture, in your opinion?

The bigger picture is the Sam and then the Riddler drove this club to the point where it was going to go bust.

Neither had the resources to dig us out of the shit they put us in.

Tan put his own money in and now we have a club which is surviving.

He's still putting money in ( appx £8m per year) and writing off what the club owes him.


Any more and we break FFP- unfortunately past mistakes made by Tan and the people he employed mean we are having to make difficult decisions, ally this with the fact that 5/6 sides in this division are spending well over the FFP limits and that virtually every other club has s wealthy owner and is trading near the limit and we are back to being a bog standard Championship club with an outside chance of doing something, very much as we were under Sam, but without the threat of closure .

Having gone through all that, and 20+ years of rubbish before then I'm happy with that.

TBH I'm sick of the constant sniping and negativity toward the club on here by prominent posters and need a rest from it.
About time the past was put to bed and people just gave the club their full support, stopped criticising stuff they clearly don't understand and realised that like him or not we rely on Tans goodwill and will be more likely to succeed with a positive attitude and give all at the club our full support whilst they try to put things right.