No signs of positive West Brom change after latest boardroom conflict – Finance Expert
We’re delighted to welcome football finance expert Dr Daniel Plumley as our exclusive West Brom columnist. Each week he’ll be giving his views on the biggest talking points at The Hawthorns...
Dan Plumley has insisted that there are no signs of the boardroom conflict seizing any time soon after yet more negative news emerging from The Hawthorns.
Xu Ke recently jetted out for meetings with Guochuan Lai and refused to answer over 30 questions on the club from Shareholders for Albion.
Plumley admitted that it was just another example of how disjointed the relationship has come between the owner and those below him, including the fans.
“You’ve just got another example of how fragmented the relationship has come between the ultimate owner and the fans,” he exclusively told West Brom News.
“When you’ve got people in a position of shareholding, however little that is, the best practise is to engage with them wherever possible, and try to answer those questions to make it how it should be.
“If you have a stake in a business, you have a right to ask these questions, particularly with football clubs as you have the emotional connection. I just think that relationship has just broken down time and time again, and now you’re at a point where you’re refusing to answer questions and it just doesn’t help an already volatile situation.
“It detracts from the club and what they’re trying to do, as they want to get back into the Premier League. While ever this stuff is going on, it’s bound to have a knock-on effect and it’s another example of how strained the relationship is and it shows no signs of getting better any time soon.”
Lai has so many questions to answer, it has got to the stage where ignoring them is the easiest result for him.
With Ron Gourlay now confirming his impending exit from The Hawthorns, the mess may only grow larger before any more positive signs, with more tough times ahead.
In other West Brom news, one player who is facing an uncertain future at the club has already been named