Chapter 423: You will suffer for your own sins

Michel Pastor is a wealthy local tycoon in Monaco. The family business he and his sister jointly run is the largest real estate company in Monaco, with a market value of over 10 billion euros and an astonishing influence in Monaco.

One of the important reasons why their family can have all this is their good relationship with the royal family.

So, ten years ago, when Monaco was in a financial crisis, Albert made a call and Michel Pastoer was the first to stand up and respond. He readily paid money to set an example, and he himself had served as the chairman of the board of directors of Monaco.

But later on, he was really not good at running a football club and had little interest in it. In addition, he was getting older, and Monaco's financial black hole was getting bigger and bigger, while the team's performance was getting worse and worse, which made him gradually lose interest and retreat behind the scenes.

When he heard that someone was willing to take over, Pastor agreed wholeheartedly.

It can be seen that he has been eager to throw away this hot potato.

Yang Huan didn't care what these wealthy people present thought.

Perhaps Monaco is arsenic in their eyes, but in his eyes, it is like a panacea.

Think about it from another angle. Why did Michel Pais, who was worth so much, obey Prince Albert's call and save Monaco?

Doesn't this indirectly reflect the fact that the influence of football is unmatched by money?

Isn't acquiring a football team the best, most powerful and fastest way to break into Monaco's upper class core circle?

Of course, the prerequisite is to fight for the interests you want.

"Mr. Yang Huan, I am very honored that you are interested in AS Monaco Football Club."

After an opening talk, the topic quickly got to the point.

Prince Albert also hopes that outsiders will invest in the team, but he also has his own considerations.

"Monaco is a team with a long history. It has been established for nearly a hundred years. It represents not only all our supporters, but also the crown on the team emblem. It also represents the honor of our royal family and the reputation of the principality."

Yang Huan nodded continuously as he listened.

He can understand this.

It is difficult for people who are not familiar with European upper society to imagine, and if you are not familiar with football, you will not be able to communicate with them at all.

Can you imagine the British Prime Minister sitting with the French President, discussing the results of the Champions League, and even arguing over a foul in the game?

Can you imagine that the boss of a big conglomerate missed out on a big deal just because he didn't want to do business with fans of his arch-rival?

But all this happens almost all the time in Europe.

Compared with football countries such as Britain, Germany and Spain, the football culture in France is relatively weak.

But it is still very important

"We all in the Principality feel great sadness and shame for AS Monaco's relegation to the French Ligue 2. We are eager to return to the French Ligue 1 and to the European arena."

When he said this, Prince Albert smiled appreciatively at Yang Huan.

"Mr. Yang Huan, although I am in Monaco, I have heard about your story with Southampton. I admire everything you have done in Southampton. You have created a brand new business model for the Saints."

As the saying goes, a person's name is like the shadow of a tree.

Yang Huan is extremely popular in European football right now, who doesn't know him?

"So, we all support your idea of ​​acquiring Monaco Football Club because we believe that you have enough ability to lead Monaco out of its current predicament."

Yang Huan still didn't say anything, because he knew that all the previous parts were nonsense and the key point was coming later.

Sure enough, when he got to this point, Prince Albert changed the subject.

"But, please forgive me. Monaco represents the dignity of the royal family. We cannot accept it no matter what. It does not belong to us Monegasques. Therefore, we cannot accept your full acquisition."

The acquisition plan that Yang Huan had previously proposed through Zhao Yuanfang and Pini ofli Harvey was a 100% acquisition.

This is his usual style of doing things.

But now it seems that both parties value this share very much.

Yang Huan listened politely to what Prince Albert had to say and smiled faintly.

"Thank you Prince Albert for your praise. Please believe that I am not here with a speculative mentality. I acquired Monaco because I value this team, including the Principality of Monaco behind this team."

Prince Albert and everyone present nodded in unison.

These words are very sincere. If it weren't for the Principality of Monaco behind it, who would be willing to take over this mess?

"I have analysed everything Monaco has gone through over the past decade. The team was not promoted back to the Premier League this summer. One reason is that head coach Barnard is limited, but a very important point is that the team has not adjusted their mentality well."

"It was a big team in Ligue 1 with good income, but it was suddenly relegated to Ligue 2. Not only did the income drop sharply, but the mentality of the players and the club changed, which caused the team to play with heavy pressure."

Yang Huan's statement was refreshing to everyone present.

As for Monaco's failure to return to Ligue 1, some people think it is because of their lack of strength, while others think the club has not invested enough.

These are certainly some of the factors, but the psychological factors mentioned by Yang Huan are also very important.

Prince Albert has deeply experienced this.

Last summer, when Monaco was relegated, 23 first-team players left. How many were introduced?

Twelve people

Among the 23 players who left the team, there are many core players as well as potential rookies like N'Kulu.

This was a devastating blow to Monaco.

In the past, in Ligue 1, the revenue from broadcasting rights was at least 20 to 30 million euros per season.

But what about Ligue 2?

I can't get much.

This forced the team to tighten its belt and cut bonuses, which made the players feel depressed and aggrieved.

But what about management?

In their eagerness to return to Ligue 1, many of the policies they formulated were divorced from the team's actual situation.

This ultimately led to Monaco's failure to advance to the Serie A

"I am very sure that this is definitely not a reflection of Monaco's strength, and it should not happen to Monaco. This team should appear in Ligue 1, or even in Europe. I am very sure of this."

Yang Huan's words undoubtedly won the approval of Prince Albert.

Who says it’s not?

Eight years ago, Monaco was a participant in the Champions League final and eventually won the Champions League runner-up

"If my team and I are in charge, I am confident that we can return to Ligue 1 next season, return to the European arena within three years, and become the strongest contender for the Ligue 1 title again."

Yang Huan's words undoubtedly made Prince Albert's eyes light up.

So powerful

Looking at the Principality of Monaco today, who dares to make such a promise?

But soon, Prince Albert realized a problem.

Yang Huan said that he had full authority to operate

In other words, he wants 100% ownership of the club.

This made Prince Albert feel conflicted.

Even though the Monaco royal family is no longer the team's largest shareholder, Prince Albert still has the veto power.

This is determined by his status.

But in Yang Huan's opinion, this is unacceptable.

Who would be willing to spend a lot of money to invest in a team, only to be constrained in every way in the end? Isn't that asking for trouble?

When Yang Huan spoke, he was always looking at Prince Albert, taking in his reaction and knowing what was going on.

"Your Highness, I believe you should also be very clear about the crux of the team's current situation."

These words were undoubtedly a wake-up call for Prince Albert.

The Prince of Monaco is not a fool, how could he not know?

In 2001, AS Monaco was transformed into a joint-stock company and managed by seven board members, two of whom were from the royal family and had veto power.

Since then, Monaco has been in near-management chaos.

Without the royal approval, no action of the club can be implemented, including finding sponsors.

The years when Monaco's financial crisis was the most serious were also the years when the relationship between the royal family and management was the worst.

The situation did not improve until 2004, when Michelle Pastoer became chairman of the board.

But even so, the conflict between the royal family and the Monaco board of directors still exists.

Otherwise, how can we explain that such a powerful French Ligue 1 club, which enjoys a very low tax rate, eventually fell into decline and even relegated to the French Ligue 2?

In 2009, Etienne France, the current chairman of the Monaco board of directors, took over as club chairman.

After the former chairman, American financier Jerome de Portin, used his almost magical management ability to cut wages, sell players, and bring the club a profit of 16 million euros, France was ambitious to revive Monaco.

As a result, in the summer of 2009, they spent 2 million euros and a high salary to introduce Icelandic veteran Gudjohnsen. However, half a year later, because the Icelander had not scored a goal in nine games and his performance was sluggish, he was sent to Tottenham Hotspur during the winter break.

The same thing happened in 2010, when France brought in African center forward Mbokani from Standard Liege in Belgium for 7 million euros. The African center had scored 15 goals in two consecutive seasons.

But half a year later, Mbokani left Monaco in disgrace with only one goal in ten games and was loaned to Bundesliga Wolfsburg. However, this center forward is now shining in Anderlecht.

Behind all this, in fact, it is inseparable from the intrigue of management.

As the saying goes, you will suffer the consequences if you do evil. Monaco's relegation is the most painful lesson and blow to this management team that likes infighting.

This is also a lesson for Yang Huan.

After all, Monaco is someone else's territory and you are an outsider. You should be cautious first and then be a gentleman. It is better to be clear about everything.

Yang Huan would rather not buy Monaco and instead talk about Marseille than get involved in this mess.

Prince Albert did not expect that Yang Huan was so familiar with the team's current situation, but this also proved Yang Huan's sincerity in the acquisition. He had also read the business plan submitted by Yang Huan's assistant Zhao Yuanfang before.

In this plan, Yang Huan promised that after acquiring the team, he would invest 30 million euros to build a new training base, and the existing training base located on the northwest hillside of Monaco City would be developed into a top luxury housing project.

The terrain there is very good, and you can overlook the whole Monaco. It is surrounded by luxury villas on the hillsides and is also very close to Monaco.

But that place already belongs to France.

Not under Prince Albert’s jurisdiction.

In addition, Yang Huan proposed to acquire the Stade Louis II, or allow him to build a new stadium on the coast of Port Hercule.

The reasons are very good.

Today, the total capacity of the Stade Louis II is only 18,000, and the average attendance per game is only around 6,000, or even as low as 3,000 or 4,000. There is no need to build a new stadium.

But what Yang Huan wants to do is to improve the service and experience of fans after entering the stadium, add a series of high-end consumption venues, and supporting service facilities, which are things that the existing Stade Louis II cannot provide.

This is the only comprehensive stadium in Monaco. It has an athletics track and even offices of the University of Monaco inside the stadium. There is very little space left for the club's management to operate the stadium.

In the existing Stade Louis II, Monaco's match-day business is almost zero except for the meager ticket revenue.

Therefore, Yang Huan's attitude was very firm.

Monaco is a trap. Either you agree to all my conditions, or I won't buy it.

Even Prince Albert felt helpless about this.