Tony Xia (no longer involved with AVFC)

[maqroll]

19 minutes ago, lapal_fan said:

With all these other external business that Tony is involved in, a small question from me;

How much time will he be able to give us? 

The reason I ask, is because obviously with all of these other things on his plate (orbital flights, city design/construction etc etc) - why would he spend most of his time on what appears to be such a small part of his business?

He's already said his plans to move to Bham - but why would he do that?

 

Exactly, Xia out, Lerner Back in!

[Gary Thomas]

30 minutes ago, lapal_fan said:

With all these other external business that Tony is involved in, a small question from me;

How much time will he be able to give us? 

The reason I ask, is because obviously with all of these other things on his plate (orbital flights, city design/construction etc etc) - why would he spend most of his time on what appears to be such a small part of his business?

He's already said his plans to move to Bham - but why would he do that?

I think that is a fair question to ask.  If you read that article in Channel news Asia (link above) he says they intend to make more moves in investing in the soccer industry in China and he believes this purchase can give him the best 'learning opportunity in how to run the business'.  I think that is part of why he wants to be here - to learn the business. I also think he recognizes that there is a massive job to do this year and it is critical to get back into the PL.  That is all motive for coming, along with purported plans to develop an integrated business district and themes parks and God knows what else around Villa Park. If he has 80 odd businesses he will have management teams running those - I imagine he just focuses on the high level stuff, some of which he could manage from his here, flying in and out as and when necessary.  I think he said he will not be at all the games but will try to come to as many as he can - that sounds about right to me. 

 

 

Edited May 26, 2016 by Gary Thomas

[Dante_Lockhart]

His other companies are established and have a (I assume) good hierarchy set up. Villa is a new venture, so it would make sense he wants to oversee a lot of it.

[Gary Thomas]

Just wondering how fans are feeling about Tony now?  I like him and think he is going to be great for the club - might bite me in the arse one day, but I am definitely in the pro Tony camp.  The more I learn about him, his different businesses and his plans the more I am convinced he is genuine and wants to do big things with the club.

[Daweii]

Hell if a man as busy as Xia can make it to at least 5 games this coming season he gets so much respect from me. Lerner barely made it to 5 games in his 10 years here and for like 6 years of that Aston Villa was his only priority. Xia is a busy man I mean we all saw the paperwork in his office and piles of ledgers, he's not going to have lots of time but he's going to make time for this club including moving to Birmingham. Seriously Lerner, this guy hasn't even passed fit and proper yet and he's already vastly more suited to running a club than you were..

[avfcwills10]

This is a Chinese report from last Friday (but as far as i'm aware nobody has posted it). 

I thought it was interesting because it has a quote from Xia saying '75 million pounds is NOT a big investment' 

'China Scores with Aston Villa Soccer Deal'

link http://english.caixin.com/2016-05-20/100946170.html

[rubberman]

1 hour ago, Mic09 said:

It's not the most entertaining of leagues either - all the balls are just floated in the box.

Westwood first name on the team sheet then.

[Daweii]

19 minutes ago, avfcwills10 said:

This is a Chinese report from last Friday (but as far as i'm aware nobody has posted it). 

I thought it was interesting because it has a quote from Xia saying '75 million pounds is NOT a big investment' 

'China Scores with Aston Villa Soccer Deal'

link http://english.caixin.com/2016-05-20/100946170.html

It's not a big investment. He's spending $3.5 billion (£2.5 billion) buying a US Logistics company in the next few months. Our deal is tiny compared to stuff he has lined up. 

[AlwaysAVFC]

27 minutes ago, avfcwills10 said:

This is a Chinese report from last Friday (but as far as i'm aware nobody has posted it). 

I thought it was interesting because it has a quote from Xia saying '75 million pounds is NOT a big investment' 

'China Scores with Aston Villa Soccer Deal'

link http://english.caixin.com/2016-05-20/100946170.html

I think he said it in one of those first couple of interviews.

[osmark86]

He wasn't planning on moving to Bham though was he? If I remember his quote correctly he stated he was planning on buying a house here, but I'm sure this guy owns a lot of real estate considering he's in the business of building entire cities. Beats living in a hotel everytime he's here though innit ;).

[Jareth]

4 minutes ago, osmark86 said:

He wasn't planning on moving to Bham though was he? If I remember his quote correctly he stated he was planning on buying a house here, but I'm sure this guy owns a lot of real estate considering he's in the business of building entire cities. Beats living in a hotel everytime he's here though innit ;).

Tony will be living atop of the Aston Villa theme park fantasy castle, overseeing all below. Gabby will be kept in the dungeon until he agrees to sign for Trabzonspor.

[osmark86]

Just now, Jareth said:

Tony will be living atop of the Aston Villa theme park fantasy castle, overseeing all below. Gabby will be kept in the dungeon until he agrees to sign for Trabzonspor.

oh yeah, that's what he said. thx bruh :D.

[AlwaysAVFC]

Don't think it's been touched on but in the CNN interview with the bloke, when he asks about the mix up about the five  listed companies actually being one. Dr Xia says it was a miscommunication with the language and possibly due to a difference in the business system. He then says they actually control even more than five public companies just indifferent ways.

What do you think this means?

[007√]

40 minutes ago, AlwaysAVFC said:

Don't think it's been touched on but in the CNN interview with the bloke, when he asks about the mix up about the five  listed companies actually being one. Dr Xia says it was a miscommunication with the language and possibly due to a difference in the business system. He then says they actually control even more than five public companies just indifferent ways.

What do you think this means?

"Could" mean that he has shares in the different companies or holds accounts in them whether its financial, accounting, investments, assets. Could mean a lot of things actually, but I'm willing to bet that he has shares in them or investments that his company over see's. Very similar to how consulting firms are ran.

[Gary Thomas]

Highlighted a few interesting bits........

http://www.globaltimes.cn/content/985383.shtml

Aston Villa’s new Chinese owner has bigger goals

The Chinese businessman who bought the British soccer team Aston Villa said Thursday that his company has much bigger, international goals in many sectors, including sports, entertainment and logistics.  Xia Jiantong, chairman of the Recon Group, said more plans for acquisition deals around the world are in the works. "We have a global plan for both Aston Villa and our other businesses in the next eight to 10 years," Xia told the Global Times in an exclusive interview. Aston Villa has a history of more than a century, but it has recently been relegated from the English Premier League. Xia is planning to bring in more investment and make management changes while maintaining the team's traditions. This is a team that has a long history and many traditions, but it has been declining in recent years due to mismanagement," said Xia. "But it has great potential both in the sports and business segments, and that's why we were interested in the team." He said he will put more money into the team and change the management team to be more efficient and bring Aston Villa back into the Premier League. But he declined to disclose further details because the deal has not been finalized.

His company Recon Group, which is in a wide range of businesses including smart urban planning, healthcare and agriculture, is also looking to buy a team in the US and help establish a soccer league in India. His company is also in talks for an acquisition deals with a leading global logistics company, according to Xia. Details of those plans are still under development, he said. Xia, who was relatively unknown even in China last week, made the headlines when British media reported that current owner Randy Lerner had agreed to sell the Aston Villa Football Club for 65 million pounds ($95.5 million) to the Recon Group. This deal is great for both Recon and Aston Villa, Zhang Jiayuan, an analyst with China Investment Consulting Co, told the Global Times on Thursday. Xia's investment in the club will improve the team's competitiveness, according to Zhang. In return, the acquisition may yield publicity for Recon and enhance its popularity among local citizens, Zhang said. Analysts said that's why in recent years Chinese business owners have shown great interest in buying European soccer clubs......

It's part of these companies' strategy to raise their profiles while nurturing Chinese soccer talent, Ji Ning, a sports marketing expert and CEO of Beijing-based Vning Cultural Media Co, told the Global Times on Thursday. Zhang agreed, saying that Chinese companies buying soccer clubs in Europe helps the upgrading and reform of the domestic soccer industry and brings excellent soccer players and traditions into China. But in Xia's case, it's more than that. He said the team itself could be profitable if properly managed. "We believe sports teams can make profit and there are examples of that in the English Premier League already, that's why we bought [Aston Villa] - for its business potential, not as a personal indulgence." But if there's any personal motive, it's his love for the game of soccer and a loss of confidence in the Chinese soccer team, Xia said, noting with experience gained from deals such as that for Aston Villa, he hopes to help the development of the soccer industry in China. "I guess that's the only personal sentiment in this deal, if there is one," Xia said.

Edited May 26, 2016 by Gary Thomas

[Kingman]

Well start looking at Global Managers instead of Bob The Builders, RDM, Pearson etc 

[NurembergVillan]

[sexbelowsound]

Box of tissues next to his laptop? Oh Dr X. You dog!

[AlwaysAVFC]

3 minutes ago, NurembergVillan said:

That tea cup is nearly big enough to be at his theme park.

[Qwpzxjor1]

This guy seems ridiculously open for someone who hasn't even taken control yet. Don't get me wrong, I like it a lot, but he's talked about how the team needs improving, said the scouting team needs to take a lot of the blame (bet that makes the guys signed last summer feel great too), talked very openly about what managers he wants and even shown people bank statements.