Football Dynasty

Chapter 152: Manchester City – Post-Season Review

The summer break had officially begun, and most of the players were scattered across different parts of the world—some were on vacation with their families, some were training on their own, and others were simply enjoying the rare downtime after a long, grueling season.

For them, the work was on pause.

For Richard Maddox? It had only just begun.

A week had passed since the players began their vacation. The news of City dismantling their youth team had also started to fade, as the media and clubs shifted their focus to the Copa América and the upcoming transfer for the next season.

Richard arrived at Maine Road.

Usually, there would be a few people passing by—boys in sky-blue jackets coming and going with their parents, handling paperwork for their transfers to other clubs. But now, it was completely empty.

The air was still. The corridor was eerily quiet, the only sound was the steady echo of his footsteps tapping against the floor.

KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK

Richard knocked firmly on Miss Heysen’s door before stepping inside.

"Miss Heysen, what’s the status over there?" he asked, his eyes briefly scanning the paperwork spread out across her desk.

Seven days was more than enough time for concerned fathers and mothers to remove their children from the sinking Manchester City.

"It’s all done," Miss Heysen confirmed. "A total of 44 kids have been moved out, except for John Terry and Paul Robinson. For next season, we’ve already withdrawn from the Central League and Regional Youth Leagues."

The Central League was mainly for City reserve teams, while the Regional Youth Leagues focused on City B teams competing.

Thanks to their bankruptcy issues, the FA isn’t putting up any resistance, but they still want City to have a youth squad.

As a result, the current setup only has City A as their youth squad, with just John Terry and Paul Robinson remaining.

"Currently, City A is still registered in the FA Youth Cup and FA Premier Youth League," Miss Heysen explained to Richard, noticing the hint of caution in her tone.

With only two players in the squad, how could City A compete next season?

Richard understood Miss Heysen’s hidden intention. He then began issuing a series of instructions.

"Miss Heysen, help me draft a new plan for the academy. For next season, we won’t use the names City A and City B anymore—we’ll call them the ’Under-19’ and ’Under-17’ teams."

After a brief pause, he continued, "’Under-17’ will compete in the FA Youth Cup and the FA Premier Youth League. We’ll register the squad under the name City U17. As for the U19 team, let’s place it in inactive status for now since our focus will be on the U17. Once the squad is ready, we’ll register it again in the Regional Youth Leagues."

After finally receiving the verdict, Miss Heysen sighed in relief. She didn’t question Richard’s decision and simply took note of all his instructions, which earned her a thumbs-up of approval from him.

Unlike the previous City General Manager, John, who often asked too many questions and slowed things down, Miss Heysen got straight to the point and took action. That earned her Richard’s favor.

"By the way, Miss Heysen, I’m not quite clear on the YTS contract. With so many parents withdrawing their children, do we need to offer compensation? If so, how much compensation do we need to pay?"

"Of course, we still need to offer them compensation, although we managed to get a reduction in the compensation amount approved by the commission. Since the parents are eager for their kids to join trials at other clubs as soon as possible, they quickly accepted the compensation we offered. In total, we’ll be paying around £6,000." _{𝘯𝑜𝑣𝑝𝑢𝘣.𝑐𝑜𝑚}

Richard was satisfied with how she handled things. After mulling it over for a moment, he sat quietly in front of Miss Heysen. He clasped his hands together and, after a brief pause, spoke up.

"Miss Heysen, what do you think about the current City? Not the football side, how do you see it?"

"What do you mean by that?"

"Do you think the current structure is a bit old-fashioned? Still using a general manager position? Why not change it up a bit, make it more corporate—like having a CEO, CFO, and roles like that? What do you think?"

Miss Heysen was quiet for a moment, clearly weighing his words. "But you’re the owner. You can decide whatever you want."

Richard nodded thoughtfully. "Ah, I see. Well, if that’s the case, Miss Heysen, I believe the club no longer needs a club secretary."

"..."

The silence lingered, and it suddenly became awkward, with Miss Heysen looking at him blankly.

Richard, sensing the tension, quickly clarified, "How about becoming the City Chief Executive Officer instead? It’s basically the same, just a different title, and it comes with better perks. Are you willing to take on that role?"

And just like that, on the second floor of the current Main Road building, once home to the general manager’s office and now the CEO’s office, everyone in the vicinity could hear a mix of crying followed by a burst of anger.

"I thought you were going to fire me!" came the dramatic voice, echoing through the halls. "Why are you telling me this so late? Do you even know how much I love this job?!"

"I-I didn’t mean that, actually!"

After what felt like an eternity, Richard could only helplessly pat Miss Heysen’ shoulder as she sobbed uncontrollably, as if there was no tomorrow.

After sobbing, she raised her head. "Then what about you?"

"...?"

Richard pointed to himself, as if asking, ’Me?’ to which Miss Heysen nodded.

Richard thought for a moment before mumbling, "Sporting director?"

"..."

What kind of bullshit is he spouting now? What even is a sporting director supposed to be?

The next day, after ensuring Miss Heysen’s emotional stability, Richard knocked on her door again.

Miss Heysen, now dressed in a sharp suit, stood confidently, convinced her new role as City’s CEO definitely called for such attire.

To be honest, Richard still found her hilariously stuck on his idea of running City like a corporation, which left him helpless. But he let her be.

"Hello, Miss Heysen," He greeted with a smile of truce as he stepped inside. "Please brief me on the report for the previous season."

Miss Heysen nodded like a pro before dramatically spreading all the folder lists. First is the total revenue of the club. Post-season analysis provides insights into renewal rates and customer loyalty.

A large portion of City’s revenue comes from ticket sales, with average prices during the 1994/1995 season ranging from £3 for the cheapest tickets to £6 for the most expensive.

Another source of income comes from the very minimal broadcasting fees (£100,000 per year), as well as food and beverage sales, and merchandise.

"Overall, the total revenue for the previous season is £3,716,000, including the bonus from the sponsorship deal with Mancunian Transport of £1 million, since we won promotion."

Richard then reviewed the current City sponsorships:

1. Kit supplier Jako: £500,000

2. Mancunian Transport: £500,000 for the sponsorship, with an additional £500,000 if they win. The deal will be doubled to £2 million for the next season. (Chapter 90: Sponsorship issue)

"In other words, our total revenue is actually £2,716,000 alone. Is the three million already net profit?" Richard was surprised by this.

Almost three million net in the third division, to be honest, isn’t bad.

The new CEO shook her head. "No, that’s the gross figure. Once we account for expenditures, our actual profit is only £716,000. On top of that, we’re carrying £37 million in debt — with £700,000 of it due in the next few months as short-term liabilities."

"..."

Only £16,000 net profit...

Richard stared at her, gaping. "So much? So, we might go bankrupt next season?"

"What are you saying? Have you forgotten about the player sales?!"

Ah, it was only then that Richard remembered the players City had recently sold: Rivaldo to PSV for £6 million, along with Campbell and Shaun Goater to Tottenham Hotspur for £8 million.

A total of £14 million.

Richard looked down and then asked, "Miss Heysen, why were the expenses so high? Where did we go wrong?"

"Did you forget about the Kippax Stand renovation that was halted under Francis Lee? Before the season even kicked off, you suggested closing the stands to begin construction. And let’s not forget the control room and training room modernization you requested—those alone have already drained our cash."

"..."

"Look, most of our spending is going into administrative costs and those renovations," she went on. "And when you fired half the staff all at once, we had to pay out a mountain of severance. On top of that, nine of our players are earning close to £100,000—one of them even more when you factor in performance bonuses. And now we have to cover Martin’s fine as well."

Richard felt a bit embarrassed about all the firing, but he was still shocked that nine of City’s players were getting almost £100,000!

"Give me the details."

The players earning £100,000 or more were Ronaldo, Roberto Carlos, Cafu, and Campbell, but what really shocked him were players like Nick Fenton, Steve Lomas, Richard Jobson, Keith Curle, Jamie Pollock, and others who had barely played. Their salaries were outrageous!

Richard cursed his former general manager in his mind, furious. Now, he knew exactly what needed to be done — cut the squad down.

He quickly circled the names of the players who wouldn’t be part of his plans.

"First things first," he said, sliding the list across the table. "Put every name here up for sale. Let’s see if we can get any offers."

Miss Heysen nodded, taking notes.

"Loan or permanent?" she asked.

"Permanent," Richard replied. "We need to free up wage space."

"Curle?"

"Including him," Richard said firmly.

Miss Heysen wrote it all down, then looked up. "Anything else?"

"How long until the Kippax Stand can finally reopen?"

"Only the final work on the roof section remains to be done. The team from Arup has already informed us that the stand should be ready to open next season."

Richard let out a sigh. "Finally," he said. "After half a year, the stand is ready."

"Do you want to take a look at it?"

Richard shook his head. "No, I can’t. And by the way, Miss Heysen, please help me prepare a statement from the club about the future of the City Academy. We need to clear up the confusion—some people still think we’re shutting it down, but we’re actually revamping it."

"Understood."

"Also, what about the sponsor for the next season? Do we have an offer?"

Miss Heysen nodded.

"As per the agreement with Mancunian Transport for the main sponsor, next season they will sponsor us for £2 million for the entire season. Jako has also revised their offer to £750,000 to be our kit supplier. However..." Miss Heysen suddenly stopped as she hesitated.

This made Richard curious, but he did not press her, as he was waiting.

"Sir Humphreys from Umbro contacted me, saying he wants to be our kit supplier for next season."

"Humphreys? You mean John Humphreys?"

Miss Heysen nodded.

John Humphreys, the managing director of the family-owned sportswear brand Umbro, who joined the City board during the Albert Alexander City era in 1966.

"How much is his offer?"

Richard didn’t care about past relationships with anyone from the previous City management. As long as the offer was good, he was ready to say yes.

"It’s only £500,000. But Richard, I suggest you seriously consider Mr. Humphreys’ offer."

Richard raised an eyebrow upon hearing this.

"Why?"

"According to Mr. Rouse, our kit manager, there were several issues with Jako last season. When demand spiked, they struggled to keep up, and there were delays in delivery. In some cases, players had to wear older kits because the new ones didn’t arrive on time."

"..."

Richard was silent for a moment.

"Alright, we’ll go with Umbro. Miss Heysen, please take care of coordinating the jersey design with them. Now, what about the main sponsor? Is Mancunian Transport our only option?"

"No. Brother Industries, has already expressed interest in becoming our main sponsor, replacing Mancunian Transport. They’re willing to offer £2.5 million. Cresta and Carlsberg have also shown interest in renewing their sponsorship for next season."

What could he say? The other party was offering more—of course, Richard would choose Brother over Mancunian Transport.

Having sorted all the issues for the upcoming season, Richard drove his Porsche, already preparing for his flight to the Netherlands next week.

Time to focus on the transfers!