As by way of an update, it is frustrating to report that discussions between BluMarble and Dean Holdsworth are still unfortunately ongoing.
I had hoped that this situation would have been resolved a long time ago, but hopefully a resolution will be achieved this week before the next WUP hearing between Sports Shield and BluMarble that is listed for July 10.
I have made offers to both parties and I am optimistic that they will be acceptable, meaning that hopefully the matters will both be resolved this week. As always, l will keep you abreast of what is happening.
This lack of a resolution was the main reason why the bonuses owed to the players were not paid on time as I was reluctant to continue to solely fund the club with still no certainty of an agreement being reached with both parties.
However, as I have solely funded the club with substantial amounts during these ongoing discussions over the last few months, I have agreed to continue to do so for the time being, in the hope that an agreement will be reached with both parties in the short term.
Accordingly, the players will be paid the outstanding monies this week.
Going forward, I will be looking at how and when bonuses are paid in the future as the timing has an adverse affect on our cash flow as we are paying out the bonuses before we have received any monies from the EFL and at a time when little or no funds are being generated.
You can imagine the problem it would cause if we were fortunate enough to be promoted to the Premier League this season where bonuses at most clubs run into millions.
I have to say I thought the comments on social media from Dean Moxey were disappointing and unnecessary, particularly from a player who has been paid handsomely based on the number of games he started last season.
As far, as I am aware, the salaries have not been paid late every month as he has stated.
As regards the tweet posted by Lee, he did this with my full backing and once Dean went public, I see no reason why Lee should not respond.
After all, Dean's and the other players' salaries have effectively been paid through the financial support of Lee and his family.
All in all, it would have been better to have remained a private matter but Dean chose to go public and Lee responded accordingly.
Lee has feelings as well and I can assure you he is very passionate about the club and gets extremely upset when anyone criticises it or me.
That said, the players are entitled to be paid and on time and at the present time that will only happen because of the financial support of myself.
Going forward, hopefully the club will become financially sustainable and not have to rely on funding from its shareholders. That has been my target from the outset and continues to be my aim.
Paul Aldridge, Paul Holliday and myself met with the Supporters Trust last week and we had a very productive meeting where a number of matters were discussed.
We informed them that we have appealed the Asset of Community Value (ACV) which they have applied for.
We believe that the ACV will prevent us from obtaining the necessary future funding for us to reacquire the car parks and office space that were sold to Michael James prior to my arrival at the club.
I believe that it is crucial that Bolton Wanderers Football Club owns these assets going forward.
In regards to an update on the embargo situation, the accounts will be filed this week and these will greatly assist in our efforts to try and come out of said transfer embargo.
Likewise, a resolution of the BluMarble issue and Dean’s shares will also help us in coming out of it.
We were delighted meanwhile to bring in Will Buckley on a two-year deal on Friday.
Will is a very talented player with plenty of Championship experience and will add a lot of quality to our squad.
The manager and our recruitment team have been busy re-signing players on new deals and have also brought in some new faces.
This is still ongoing and we are in discussions with a number of players, agents and clubs. Both Phil Parkinson and I believe we will have a strong and competitive squad for next season and that we will surprise a few people along the way.
With a little over a month to go until the start of the season, season ticket sales and corporate hospitality packages continue to increase.
However, it is important that supporters and customers continue to back the squad. The more people that watch us perform in the Championship next year, the better it will be for the players on the pitch and also improves our financial hand in recruiting quality players to the squad.
I would urge you to consider buying a season ticket as based on the matchday prices, they have been substantially discounted and are excellent value for money in my opinion. For more details, please CLICK HERE.
Also, please keep an eye out over the next week when the club will be launching our new kit for the forthcoming season. Again, your support in buying official merchandise will help our financial position.
I was pleased to see Bolton Kia join our increasing portfolio of well-known blue chip companies associating themselves with Bolton Wanderers and special praise must go to our commercial team for their work over the summer.
As a result, the West Stand will be known as the Bolton Kia West Stand over the next couple of years.
Please keep an eye out on the Whites Hotel website and social media sites for the events which are being held on site over the coming months. Apart from being great events, these generate important revenue for the business as a whole.
Finally, it is not long until that opening match against Leeds United and I for one am excited to see the return of Championship football at Macron Stadium and what better way to kick off a new season than against such an iconic team who no doubt will be there or thereabouts at the end of the season and undoubtedly will bring a large fan support with them?
How good would it be to start the season like we finished the last with a virtually full house too?
I hope you get to see the team during pre-season meanwhile and I shall see you all at Macron Stadium on Sunday 6 August.
Kind regards,
Ken