[Aztech]

Dear Mr Lai. This is what happens when you try to succeed on the cheap. We've seen poor decision after poor decision. Your cunning plan to sit back and do nothing in the hope we get promoted is going to bite you in the backside. A sensible amount of investment over the summer would have gone a long way to giving the team a great chance.

Investment 12 months earlier would have been better still

[Droitwich Baggie]

Who is this invisible person?

[Maresca Was A Baggie]

Huge month ahead for Mr Lai. If we commit some funs to secure a forward or 2 and maybe a creative midfielder it may be the turning point needed to get automatic promotion. Failure to be promoted may well lead to a very long, and downward spiral for both Mr Lai and the club. Next season would be tough as im sure Norwich will be strong (If relegated) as will any other 2 teams. I fear this is 'Sh*t or Bust' for the club. I will look on with great interest over the next 4 weeks.

[AlbionFan]

If only the £4m (?) that is owed to the club were repaid by the debtor, whoever he, she or it is, that would be very helpful in this transfer window

[Baggies]

Chinese real estate giant Evergrande have suspended trading their shares. It probably has no knock on effect to Lai, but it's worth nothing they are the biggest Guangzhou based real estate company and Lai has made his money in real estate - in Guangzhou.

Depends if the companies relied on each other in anyway, but will be interesting to see if this has any impact.

[AlbionFan]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

[gazberg]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

Interesting. Is that off someone you know or is there a link please?

[AlbionFan]

Interesting. Is that off someone you know or is there a link please?

No links, but it’s kosher and will, no doubt, be reported by local jurno’s soon

[gazberg]

No links, but it’s kosher and will, no doubt, be reported by local jurno’s soon

Ok thanks for the update. I'd prefer it if he paid it now so we could go for a new CM but hey ho!

[baggiejohn]

Ok thanks for the update. I'd prefer it if he paid it now so we could go for a new CM but hey ho!

If it's guaranteed income there's nothing stopping us spending it now, but perhaps it's already been spent on Daryl Dike.

[gazberg]

If it's guaranteed income there's nothing stopping us spending it now, but perhaps it's already been spent on Daryl Dike.

If you are right then things must be much worse than imagined!

[SmethDan]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

£4M? What are the fortune cookies telling you about the bloody interest payments  ?

[overseas baggie]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

Probably using the £4m installment on Pereira

[paulosull]

Thought the £4 million had increased to over £5 million with interest as every penny counts

[AlbionFan]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

“Ken promises £5million loan will be repaid to West Brom in February”

https://www.westbromnews.co.uk/2022/01/22/ken-promises-5million-loan-will-be-repaid-to-west-brom-in-february/

[KnaveofAlbion]

Probably using the £4m installment on Pereira

He can't do that in any legal sense. Obviously

[Adamstv]

Hearing that the £4m owed by Lai will be repaid in February 2022

To late to use in the January window maybe…….unless it’s guaranteed to be repaid

[gazberg]

I know a few people on here have stated at various times they have knowledge of the way Chinese business operates culturally.

If (and I'm not wishing it on us) things went even further downhill and we went into league 1 etc in the next year or 2 and then his investment in us became next to worthless would they normally give up and get out or just hold till their investment is totally worthless?

Frankly I'm struggling to see any positive future for our club while Lai is here.

I'm not advocating or hoping for relegation let me be clear but I'm just exasperated with this guy.

[darbolina]

I think we're heading towards a Venkys situation -  owner(s) who won't cut their losses and hang on too long until things get really toxic and they just have to run. The day Lai took over things began to fall apart and won't improve until he and his dis-interested backers leave.

The best thing Lai and Ken can do is to install some serious football experience quickly at board level and start again by building an actual football structure - and leave them/ us to it.

[lewisant]

I've heard that we have no financial plan whatsoever and that the details of any "financial plan" are so vague and just reliant on us winning. What a state we are in.

[overseas baggie]

I think we're heading towards a Venkys situation -  owner(s) who won't cut their losses and hang on too long until things get really toxic and they just have to run. The day Lai took over things began to fall apart and won't improve until he and his dis-interested backers leave.

The best thing Lai and Ken can do is to install some serious football experience quickly at board level and start again by building an actual football structure - and leave them/ us to it.

Spot on.  There is no rudder.  Paul Scharner wants that job! 

[tommcneill]

I think we're heading towards a Venkys situation -  owner(s) who won't cut their losses and hang on too long until things get really toxic and they just have to run. The day Lai took over things began to fall apart and won't improve until he and his dis-interested backers leave.

The best thing Lai and Ken can do is to install some serious football experience quickly at board level and start again by building an actual football structure - and leave them/ us to it.

Venky's still own Blackburn though, they are now rebuilding and as we can see emplying the right people and are on the up.

[lewisant]

In fairness to Lai and the board...They pulled the trigger on Bilic at the right time, made right appointment in Big Sam and took a risk on Val but one I endorsed at the time and as it seems have now pulled the trigger at the right time really (they had to give him time) so in terms of management they've been ruthless and correct.

To oppose that they probably should've gone for Wilder not Val but at the time it didn't seem like suicide.

I don't have a lot of faith in the board BUT they have proved me wrong a few times, here's to hoping they can again...

[paulosull]

Getting in explayer’s sounds great but in reality doesn’t really work out Big Dave case in point, new our youngsters inside out but instead of blooding them opted for the old age pensioners route. Anyone know what Paul has done since he’s hung up his boots.

[NJS]

I don't expect Guochuan (family name first in most Asian countries) to do anything radical at the moment.  Everybody who has any sort of profile is keeping their head down as the spotlight must only fall on Chairman Xi .  As with the tennis player Peng Shui any sort of dissent is being punished by incarceration in Residential Surveillance at Designated Locations (RDSL) or black jails.  The includes one of the world's richest men Jack Ma who has disappeared after some technical criticism of the leadership's business policy.  Torture and isolation goes on at RDSL places.

Guochuan  won't want to step outside the current currency restrictions.  I don't think he'll want to do anything to draw attention to himself.