'Fans will never accept our owner but he wants success'

This is the headline over a double page spread interview of Karl Robinson by Henry Winter in The Times this morning.

Robinson covers a range of topics from Tony Watt's caffeine consumption to his wife's dress shop. The story starts with the recent meeting with fans in the Greenwich Tavern. Robinson commented on the meeting, 'For me it's more important to heal the club than get promotion.'

Of Katrien Meire he says, 'She's remorseful about some of the things she's said and done at Charlton. She's learning on the job. She's emotionally attached to Charlton, she loves being at Charlton and is desperate to get it right.'

Of Roland, Robinson says, 'He doesn't meddle one little bit. The wage bill is the biggest I have ever had even when I was in the Championship with MK Dons. [Maybe all that does is tell us about penny pinching at the Franchisees]. At no stage in my conversations with the owner or chief exec was this fractious club, this divided club ever hidden from me.'

Of Tony Watt, he says, 'He is so talented it is ridiculous ... Tony is the most complex footballer in England, extremely talented, crazy, unstable, caring, unfit, argumentative. He drinks too much caffeine .... We are trying to occupy Tony's mind.'

Robinson says that the passion at The Valley is 'phenomenal' 'But this undercurrent slightly pulls you back. The players will say it's not troubling them because of the macho mentality, but some have told me they find it difficult at times.'

Nightmeire shock

Charlton Athletic fans were busy checking the date this morning after chief executive Katrien Meire was elected to the FA Council. Read the full story here: Recognition

Peter Varney demands retraction from Katrien Meire

The following statement by Peter Varney has been issued through Voice of the Valley:

'Since August 2015 I have, at the request of a third party who is interested in purchasing Charlton Athletic Football Club, attempted to arrange a meeting with the owner, Roland Duchatelet. Despite several attempts to arrange such a meeting it has been made clear to me on two separate occasions since last August that he has no interest in selling CAFC. That decision is, of course, his absolute right as the owner of the club, as it is to decline to meet me or indeed any potential purchaser.'

'However, what is not right is for Katrien Meire, the CEO of CAFC, to suggest that I have raised the possibility of CAFC leaving The Valley in relation to a potential change of ownership as occurred at the recent press conference announcing the new CAFC manager. Such suggestions are entirely untrue and unsubstantiated and I would ask that Ms Meire retracts the same immediately. If this is not forthcoming, I will unfortunately have no option but to place this matter in the hands of my legal advisers to deal with more formally.'

Cardistas sceptical about verbal agreement

Leading Cardistas have expressed scepticism after new Charlton manager Russell Slade said, 'It's not in my contract about having control over my players, but it's a verbal agreement. One Cardista likened a verbal agreement to a pie crust. I suppose that the proof of the pudding will be in the eating. Slade told the press conference that he had met Roland.

Katrien Meire said that the Slade appointment was not the last roll of the dice and the club was not for sale. She had not been in fear of her job when Charlton were relegated.

Richard Murray was feeling hard done by: 'I was disappointed with the treatment I got last year, considering what I've tried to do for this club.' He admitted that mistakes had been made last year, notably Fraeye staying too long.

The full press conference will be available for customers to watch online later this afternoon.

In town tonight

It is being reported that Russell Slade has cut short his holiday and returned to London. It is also being claimed that he will be named as Charlton manager in the next 48 hours.

Career details here: Russell Slade

There have been no reports of fans celebrating around SE7. The appointment is conditioned by the fact that it is accompanied by a continuation of the regime. What the fan reaction would be in other circumstances is an open question.

The official site has now confirmed Slade's appointment on a three year deal: Appointed

Slade will be giving a press conference at 11 a.m. tomorrow (Tuesday). Charlton chief executive Katrien Meire will be present.

Meire accuses fans

Speaking at the Business of Sport conference in London (from the audience), Charlton chief executive Katrien Meire has accused Charlton fans of 'abuse and criminal offences' against her. 'Sometimes fans cross the line,' she said.

She is very upset at fans' aggression towards the club's owners and feels that owners deserve greater protection. Some might think that fans deserve better protection against wayward owners.

It has also been reported on social media that she said 'the fans are mean.' However, 'experts' at the conference said that Charlton was a 'badly run club.'

She considers that there has been a lack of action to deal with fan actions by the game's governing bodies: Extreme abuse

She has also complained about Charlton fans visiting her home in Belgium: Customer protest

After leaving the venue, where tickets reportedly cost £1,500, she was greeted by a couple of Charlton fans: Pavement summit

CAS Trust is considering taking Meire's comments to the Football Association under the rule about bringing the game into disrepute: Unforgiveable comments

Meire appeared to compare Charlton customers to racists.

VOTV editor Rick Everitt reflects on her behaviour, pointing out that there is no effective oversight from the owner: Off agenda

Louis Mendez has tweeted, 'Katrien has been advised not to speak in public because she really can't help herself. Shame she ignored that advice today.'

Expectations management

Charlton chief executive Katrien Meire says that the club does not want to build up customer expectations about what will happen in League One: Dampening expectations

Well, they weren't very high anyway. But she does claim that we will have one of the six biggest budgets in the division.

Meire likened to Comical Ali

Chris Dunlavy gives it large to Roland Duchatelet and Katrien Meire in his column in today's Football League Paper. Noting Roland's visit to The Valley, he says that he was surprised he could find it, given that 'he is spotted as regularly as Haley's comet.' As for his ownership, 'his policy of hiring cut-rate continentals and no-mark managers has turned Charlton into an embarrassing punch-bag.'

As for Meire 'For much of the last eighteen months she has done her best Comical Ali impression, belligerently lauding the wisdom of Roland while his plans unravelled about her.'

Dunlavy concludes, referring to the chief executive's pledge to learn from her mistakes, 'Only when we get to September and Charlton aren't flooded to the gunwales with Belgian Sunday Leaguers will we know that Meire and Duchatelet really have learned.'

Varney gives it large

Former Charlton chief executive Peter Varney has responded to claims made by Roland Duchatelet in his interview with the South London Press last week: Peter Varney

Not surprisingly, the Ebbsfleet executive vice-chairman is disappointed at a reference to him as a 'billboard salesman'. The investor he wanted to introduce to Roland would have been prepared to meet him in Belgium. He pointedly notes that he arrived at 7.30 am on match days and was fully occupied thereafter. Katrien customarily arrives around 1.30 pm.

One of the most bizarre aspects of this recent development is that Katrien Meire approached VOTV editor Rick Everitt while he was selling the magazine outside The Valley on Saturday. Apparently clutching a Pinnocchio mask, and wearing the accompanying sticker, she apparently suggested to the Rickster that he was frightened to speak to her. It is difficult to envisage the Ramsgate resident being frightened of anyone and I am sure he would have welcomed a fuller exchange of views than occurred.

Roland: I'm not going to sell

In an interview with the South London Press Roland Duchatelet has said that he is not going to sell Charlton Athletic. He says that he and the fans need to work together. He is very dismissive of the approach from Peter Varney which he says was phrased in such a way that it could have been a request for a billboard: No sale

Roland said that he understood that most of the fans were extremely unhappy and he felt empathy for them. In his industry there was a culture of learning from mistakes. Having too big a squad caused problems in the dressing room. No contingency planning was taking place for relegation: Learning from mistakes

Roland defended chief executive Katrien Meire as a 'fantastic lady' with a 'big heart for Charlton.' He also defended Richard Murray against criticism: Katrien Meire

Roland said that he wanted to buy more British-based players as part of a recruitment rethink, but any head coach would have to subscribe to his philosophy of developing the academy: Player recruitment

In a set of four short videos on the official site, Roland says that he is 'extremely sad' to be bottom. He says that he is listening to the fans. He admits that appointing Karel Fraeye was a mistake. A reason for appointing Bob Peeters was that he had lived in London (I suppose at least he knew how to use an Oyster card). Roland says that we need a bigger squad, which contradicts what he told the SLP: Video fun

VOTV editor Rick Everitt comments that Roland has spoken, but has nothing to say: Empty words

Guerilla action struck Meire off

Rumours have been circulating that Charlton's chief executive CEO Katrien Meire had been sacked or at least had given up post. These were based on a Charlton fan accessing the records at Companies House and seeing that she has been removed from one of her group directorships.

It now seems that this is based on a correctly completed form to that effect having been submitted maliciously to Companies House, presumably by a disaffected Charlton supporter.

The club is taking the matter seriously and has started an investigation: Investigation

MPs raise four concerns

Two South-East London MPs raised four key concerns in their meeting with Charlton Athletic chief executive Katrien Meire last week. These included the perception that the club's strategy was imperfectly executed, the chaotic way in which decisions about managers were made, Roland's lack of emotional involvement with the club and poor engagement with fans: MPs' meeting

Apparently, there was a 'full and frank' exchange of views which is a polite way of saying there was a row.

Dunlavy lays into Belgians

Chris Dunlavy lays into the Belgian owners and management of Charlton in a full page article in The Football League Paper today.

He starts by referring to a greeting card which says 'I never make the same mistake twice - I make it five or six times just to make sure.' Dunlavy suggests that one might be sent to Roland.

Of Katrien Meire, he says, '[her] crass comments and embarrassing naivety have exposed a shameful condescension towards supporters.' She has proved 'by word and deed that football is beyond her expertise.'

Of Roland he says, 'the bloke is either willfully ignorant or deliberately neglectful ... [he] is an idealist determined to make his network succeed despite increasing evidence to the contrary.'

Referring to the plan to use the Academy to 'produce the Premier League players of the future', Dunlavy says 'That would undoubtedly be easier without the burden of a Championship wage bill. Not to say he seeks relegation. Simply that relegation would not harm the business plan.'

He concludes, 'if Charlton were a restaurant, trading standards would close it down and kick this pair of comedians out on to the street.'

The Daily Telegraph takes a long look at the situation at Charlton: Toxic yet positive

Not so quiet in the West Stand

Daryl Chamberlain was one of the original Charlton bloggers with 'All Quiet in the West Stand.' He has now written a long but nuanced and informative post analysing the current crisis at Charlton.

He argues that Roland Duchatelet and Katrien Meire have a point in their diagnosis of what is wrong with English football, but one club can't change things. If the Addicks are relegated to League One, they face a fatal squeeze. Read his analysis here: How Charlton is being killed.

I was struck by a quote in today's Times obituary of Brian Lomax who was the initiator of the supporters' trust movement in England and later managing director of Supporters' Direct. A theology graduate, he compared football to following a religion: 'There is a sense of pilgrimage, of going to a sacred place, there is loyalty, sticking with something through good and bad times.'

'A couple of wins and maybe a new manager'

That's Katrien Meire's hope for Christmas: Meire Christmas

Happy Christmas to all our readers and here's hoping for better news at Charlton in 2016. Probably a forlorn hope!

It's not a nightmeire

Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman has leapt to the defence of Charlton chief executive Katrien Meire after meeting her. He reckons she is doing the best she can for the club in difficult circumstances, although she is feeling the strain and the pain: In defence of Meuire

Back from Belgium

I arrived back from a short trip to Brussels to find a statement by Katrien Meire on the official site: Statement

It's full of good intentions and reassurances, but action will speak louder than words. Target 20,000 will go nowhere if performances on the pitch do not improve and what I am particularly looking for is assurances about further strengthening of the squad in the January transfer window, although I appreciate that is not a good window in which to get value for money.

I don't go to Belgium as often as I used to, but I was reminded of what an odd place it is. It was once described as the Italy of Northern Europe. Three regional governments and a weak federal government. Further inefficiencies on top of that: six police districts in Brussels which do not coordinate well with each other, quite a problem in current circumstances. Moreover, a highly bureaucratised environment. One Belgian told me that what we would regard as routine operations on football pitches require 'the validation of the appropriate authorities.'

Roland has done well to make money in such an environment. One can also understand that he wants to spread his wings. But he, and Katrien, need to understand that they are operating in a different cultural context in SE7.

The Supporters' Trust has now met with Richard Murray and Katrien Meire and the fact that such a meeting has taken place is a step forward of a kind. The response of the Trust might be described as cautiously optimistic: Meeting

Where do we go from here?

A thoughtful and in depth analysis of the state of the club from Voice of the Valley editor Rick Everitt: The mess we are in

A central suggestion that Rick makes is that Katrien Meire should be replaced as chief executive. He argues that she is out of her depth in the job and has resorted to gimmicks while failing to communicate with supporters. Her replacement would be a step towards rebuilding trust with supporters.

I don't see Roland replacing her as his representative on Earth as that would be an admission of failure and I don't think that Roland does failure. In an ideal world, Peter Varney would be lured back from Gravesend to resume his old role. Rick could be his No.2: 'Reg' driving the bus and Rick as conductor.

'Roland Out' is an attractive slogan but it is never made clear who is going to come in. There are plenty of clubs on the market at the moment who have not found buyers, including Wolves who in many ways are a more attractive proposition.

In an ideal world Roland would undergo a Ryanair type conversion and realise that it is not a sensible strategy to hold your customers in contempt. But I don't hold out much hope.

Meanwhile I hope that today's demonstration will be kept safe and peaceful.

Halfway house

The intention of Katrien Meire and Richard Murray to meet with a cross-section of fans is a welcome step forward given the concerns about the direction of the club, but it is only a halfway house: Meeting plans

The biggest omission is the absence of Roland Duchatelet. It is his vision and strategy that determines what happens at the club. Many think that he does not have a vision, but I think that he does, but it is flawed. The central weakness was an assumption that financial fair play would kick in and create more of a level playing field in the Championship, enabling prudent financing strategies to be followed. That was never going to happen and it hasn't.

Richard Murray made a substantial historical contribution to the club, and is still owed a lot of money by it. It was a classic case of making a small fortune by starting with a big one and 'investing' in a football club. However, and it pains me to say this, Richard Murray is perceived in some quarters today as a more of an apologist for the current regime rather than an independent figure speaking up for fans. But, of course, we don't know what goes on behind closed doors.

Another doubt is the composition of the meeting. First, it will be made up of the various groups represented on the Fans' Forum. I'm not exactly sure which groups those are (although one appears to be the still operating West Sussex branch of the old CASC). However, I recognise some of the names as those of stalwart, clued up and long-standing Addicks.

Selecting fans at random from the database strikes me as typically Rolandesque. It will be his fault if they end up with the likes of Acworth and the Bloke Behind Me or any other professional moaner lacking any focus or constructive suggestions. It would be nice to see one or two of the awkward squad there, but I suspect that they may get black balled, or perhaps I am being too cynical.

Sign up to our long-term plan, says Katrien

Charlton fans need to sign up to the club's long-term plan, according to chief executive Katrien Meire. It evidently won't bring immediate success in terms of promotion of the Premiership, but 'organic' growth should bring success in the longer run: Long-term plan

The difficulty is that football fans are impatient people and tend to have a very short-term focus. They often pay more attention to the form table than the real table.

Someone once said that the worst thing about supporting Charlton is the other Charlton fans and the negativity and pessimism does seem to get overdone. I saw one fan recently confidently predicting that we would finish bottom. There are some clubs that are worse than us.

Katrien has built up some credibility with fans, although the real decisions are made in Belgium. Some incautious remarks in her recent interview in French used up some of that capital. The fans are often preoccupied with the club's past because it gives them the sustenance to carry on with what is often a rather unrewarding journey. In that spirit, I will be looking at some of our more enjoyable matches in the Premier League days during the international break.