mr kahn and MAF

[Statto]

MAF took us from a poor league one team to, ultimately, a poor PL team. So up two levels. Via a European Cup Final, the best moment in our 140 year history.

Khan has taken us from a poor PL team to, as it stands, a poor PL team.

In my mind it's still 2-0 to MAF.

But Khan's best years are hopefully just around the corner. Building the Riverside could make it 2-1 I suppose. Making us a solid top half PL team could perhaps be the equaliser, 2-2, if you want to be really generous to Khan. But We'd need consistent top 4 finishes, at least, for Khan to surpass MAF.

That's not bashing Khan, just that MAF has been the single most impactful individual in our history and topping that is going to take something amazing, and in fact he may well never be surpassed.

for me the cottage is Fulham. I don't care what league we are in, as long as that is where we watch Fulham. Chairman come and go, as do players and managers. Without the cottage, what are we? Let us never forget that maf came closest to removing us from our home, than anyone has ever done through out our history. If khan gets the Riverside done and ensures that we stay put for a few more decades, then he will be numero uno in my eyes

Can't understand the logic of disregarding all the great things someone actually *did* and judging them on what they "nearly" did. Bit like ignoring Odoi's goal against Derby and saying he "nearly" lost us the play off final by getting sent off. Or ignoring Hodgson getting us to a European cup final and saying he "nearly" got us relegated. Crap manager in that respect. But not nearly as bad as Jimmy Hill who "nearly" oversaw us folding. I'm just glad I don't get judged like that at work, would be a bloody nightmare.

[fulhamben]

MAF took us from a poor league one team to, ultimately, a poor PL team. So up two levels. Via a European Cup Final, the best moment in our 140 year history.

Khan has taken us from a poor PL team to, as it stands, a poor PL team.

In my mind it's still 2-0 to MAF.

But Khan's best years are hopefully just around the corner. Building the Riverside could make it 2-1 I suppose. Making us a solid top half PL team could perhaps be the equaliser, 2-2, if you want to be really generous to Khan. But We'd need consistent top 4 finishes, at least, for Khan to surpass MAF.

That's not bashing Khan, just that MAF has been the single most impactful individual in our history and topping that is going to take something amazing, and in fact he may well never be surpassed.

for me the cottage is Fulham. I don't care what league we are in, as long as that is where we watch Fulham. Chairman come and go, as do players and managers. Without the cottage, what are we? Let us never forget that maf came closest to removing us from our home, than anyone has ever done through out our history. If khan gets the Riverside done and ensures that we stay put for a few more decades, then he will be numero uno in my eyes

Can't understand the logic of disregarding all the things someone did and judging them on what they "nearly" did. Bit like ignoring Odoi's goal against Derby and saying he "nearly" lost us the play off final by getting sent off. Or ignoring Hodgson getting us to a European cup final and saying he "nearly" got us relegated. Crap manager in that respect. But not nearly as bad as Jimmy Hill who "nearly" oversaw us folding. I'm just glad I don't get judged like that at work, would be a bloody nightmare.

was nothing nearly about it. He moved us out and then took a 50 million pound down payment on craven cottage. That's not nearly it actually happened and was only reversed when he was told he had to relocate in the borough. Which thankfully would have cost a lot more to do than he would have made selling the cottage.

[Statto]

"it actually happened" did it? Bloody hell a lot of us are in for shock when we turn up at stevenage Road looking for a football ground next Saturday then. Have you got directions to the new place?

Joking aside, what MAF did is considered the option of moving to a bigger alternative ground but ultimately decided against it. I have no problem with that. I'd be absolutely astounded if Khan hasn't done exactly the same thing. And actually I'd wait a couple of years and see if we're playing home games at Wembley before declaring Khan "numero uno".

[alfie]

"it actually happened" did it? Bloody hell a lot of us are in for shock when we turn up at stevenage Road looking for a football ground next Saturday then. Have you got directions to the new place?

Read the bit that said "it was reversed"

[Roberty]

"it actually happened" did it? Bloody hell a lot of us are in for shock when we turn up at stevenage Road looking for a football ground next Saturday then. Have you got directions to the new place?

Joking aside, what MAF did is considered the option of moving to a bigger alternative ground but ultimately decided against it. I have no problem with that. I'd be absolutely astounded if Khan hasn't done exactly the same thing. And actually I'd wait a couple of years and see if we're playing home games at Wembley before declaring Khan "numero uno".

It was in 2013 an "option to buy" :-
https://www.theguardian.com/football/2003/jan/16/newsstory.sport

The club has already received a down-payment of £15m on the deal from Fulham River Projects Ltd (FRP) and, if planning permission is granted, work should begin on the development by the autumn of 2005.

A club spokesman last night denied the deal meant Fulham would definitely quit the ground for good. "This is a precautionary move in case we reach a point at which we have to sell Craven Cottage," he said, reiterating Fayed's statement of Tuesday. "The chairman has not misled the fans. As we have repeatedly said we are still actively pursuing an option to redevelop Craven Cottage in a more economical way, and that is our genuine pursuit."

On Tuesday the spokesman had said the £15m payment was simply for the option to buy the stadium. The deal, which was struck on September 18 2012, states Fulham must "use all reasonable endeavours to obtain a satisfactory planning permission as soon as practicable". The document's timetable suggests an application ought to have been made to Hammersmith and Fulham council by December 31 last year. There was no record yesterday of an application having been made.

The plans will dismay supporters who have always believed that their team, currently groundsharing with Queen's Park Rangers at Loftus Road, would one day return to a redeveloped Craven Cottage. Five days after the contract was signed, Fayed said: "Redeveloping Craven Cottage remains our preferred option and priority."

The reason it fell through is because the council were never going to give permission for a residential development and as we have seen with the Riverside development they have supported the clubs plans to remain at the cottage.

For me MAF is still Fulham Royalty for what he did to save our great club - BUT sadly his final years did not live up to the high standards of loyalty to our club that we had been lead to expect.

[nose returns]

The post is about trying to get a good song for kahn but not forgetting maf and what he did for us.....

[Roberty]

If your old in the tooth like me you might remember Twiggy and a song she released in 1977: PLEASE GET MY NAME RIGHT

I think of it everytime I see our owners name spelt Kahn (Germanic Name) instead of the correct spelling KHAN

Can we all try harder to get his name right - pretty please

[Roberty]

The post is about trying to get a good song for kahn but not forgetting maf and what he did for us.....

Bottom of the class for you - twenty lines - KHAN, Khan, Khan  :012:

[Statto]

"it actually happened" did it? Bloody hell a lot of us are in for shock when we turn up at stevenage Road looking for a football ground next Saturday then. Have you got directions to the new place?

Read the bit that said "it was reversed"

Read the bit where it didn't happen.
If I contemplate slapping someone on the bus but i don't actually do it, do the police still nick me and say you slapped him but then  it was reversed?

[alfie]

"it actually happened" did it? Bloody hell a lot of us are in for shock when we turn up at stevenage Road looking for a football ground next Saturday then. Have you got directions to the new place?

Read the bit that said "it was reversed"

Read the bit where it didn't happen.
If I contemplate slapping someone on the bus but i don't actually do it, do the police still nick me and say you slapped him but then  it was reversed?

The point being made is that a deal was accepted to relocate, money changed hands, but due to complications the deal was reversed.
Directions to the new place is being kept secret from you, nah just jesting I am sure you will still find it next to the park.
Don't know about you but I can't wait for next weekend.

[Roberty]

Read the bit where it didn't happen.
If I contemplate slapping someone on the bus but i don't actually do it, do the police still nick me and say you slapped him but then  it was reversed?

Not the same at all - if you hit someone you cannot un-hit them it is a physical impossibility

MAF took a £15m down payment from a development company but there was no planning permission and the £15m had to be returned.

If I wanted to point an accusing finger and advance a reason why this happened - I might point out that the property deal was for £50m, which was a good deal less than the reported £200m he sold us to Khan for.

If you do the maths - it seems to suggest that a homeless Premier League club, with few if any players who have a sell on value, is worth £150m. Personally I think not and since MAF is smart I'm sure it occurred to him that, as often is the case, the whole is worth more than the sum of the parts and of course the whole must be a good deal easier to sell.

Of course it could be that none of the above was on his mind at all and he was an honourable and honest man to the end.

[Twig]

Whatever exactly happened regards Craven Cottage (potentially, nearly, actually, reversed, not reversed......), MAF did great things for our club and I will always hold him in the highest regard for that. I am sure many other Chairmen have indulged in some contingency planning and understandably so.  The end result in MAF's case is one of the nicest grounds anywhere in the UK, somewhere we can be very proud of.

I am beginning to warm to the Khans too.  They have stuck with it and turned around their earlier errors of management.  If they continue to improve they should prove to be very solid long term owners.

[nose returns]

The post is about trying to get a good song for kahn but not forgetting maf and what he did for us.....

Bottom of the class for you - twenty lines - KHAN, Khan, Khan  :012:

and bottom of the class for yu because those of us that have been on line sonce the early days we know not to critisise spelling or grammar or typing, the key is to make the point and I  suspect you have forgotten I am dyslexic so really do not know when I am doing it riight or wrong and cannot get the spell check to work on FoF.  049:gif

[davew]

Whatever exactly happened regards Craven Cottage (potentially, nearly, actually, reversed, not reversed......), MAF did great things for our club and I will always hold him in the highest regard for that. I am sure many other Chairmen have indulged in some contingency planning and understandably so.  The end result in MAF's case is one of the nicest grounds anywhere in the UK, somewhere we can be very proud of.

I am beginning to warm to the Khans too.  They have stuck with it and turned around their earlier errors of management.  If they continue to improve they should prove to be very solid long term owners.

Agreed Twig, why are people trying to live in the past, if it wasn't for the last 2 owners we would now be in oblivion!! I might have been suspicious of the new owner but the FFP have prevented him splashing the cash which I think he would have done, MAF rescued the club and hat's off to him!!

[toshes mate]

Whatever exactly happened regards Craven Cottage (potentially, nearly, actually, reversed, not reversed......), MAF did great things for our club and I will always hold him in the highest regard for that. I am sure many other Chairmen have indulged in some contingency planning and understandably so.  The end result in MAF's case is one of the nicest grounds anywhere in the UK, somewhere we can be very proud of.

I am beginning to warm to the Khans too.  They have stuck with it and turned around their earlier errors of management.  If they continue to improve they should prove to be very solid long term owners.

Agree with you although I don't exactly 'warm to' any owners, I just find them more tolerable.  MAF could have been playing politics with planning permissions for all we know - Council will not consider expansion of CC and so how about making them worry about the Club moving somewhere else?  We really do not know everything about everything but we do hope our owners (whoever they are) mean well.

[Woolly Mammoth]

I now feel that we have been lucky with both these owners, I did have doubts about Khans intentions originally but am warming to him. 
Al Fayad took us from a club that was on its knees financially, back to the Premier League on a crest of a wave.
We have a lot to thank him for.