There must be something in the water on the South Coast. Either that or just a long series of catastrophic business decisions.
Last week saw the spectacular fall from grace of Portsmouth FC who, after months of speculation and a season of terrible results, finally entered the dreaded realms of administration - the first Premier League team to suffer this fate.
Almost a year after the similar decline of fierce local rivals Southampton, Pompey have paid the price for a string of questionable financial moves. A multitude of inflated player wages and expensive signings have piled on the misery for the Hampshire club and the arbitrary nine point deduction has effectively sealed their relegation to the second tier of English football.
Their demise is eerily reminiscent to what Southampton suffered from last season. Administration brought about their relegation to League One and only a new owner and a mid season flourish have seen them partially recover. Fellow south coast club Bournemouth also entered administration two years ago. Now, with debts of over £60 million, Portsmouth have gone the same way.
So with whom does the blame lie? With their 2008 FA Cup success came the demand from the fans for further improvement. Then manager Harry Redknapp was told he had money to spend and promptly spent it. The likes of Jermain Defoe and Peter Crouch were signed for tall fees and proportionally tall wages. Having a succession of unsuccessful owners can’t have helped matters either and all the promise of investment couln’t paper over the fact that staff weren’t getting paid.
Relegation will almost certainly see the departure of the handful of decent players Portsmouth have at their disposal. Fans will be praying that their club can recover quickly.
(Solent Speaker, 2010)
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