Randy Lerner has millions to spend. It shouldn't be automatically assumed that Villa have millions to spend.
I'd be very suprised if we spent more than £40 million from january till the start of the next season.
Randy hasn't got money that expandable, with a fortune of around 800 million, minus the club purchase it soon starts eating away.
I'd say Randy has set asside an initial £100 to £200 million to spend on the club to get it turned around (including the purchase)
You think Lerner would be happy to see a quarter of his personal fortune spent on Villa? If he's envisaging that amount of initial outlay, how long would it be before he could expect to see a return on his investment? Even if we post profits of £20m a season for ten seasons, with all of that cash flowing into Lerner's account, he'd still only be breaking even. He'd get a better return on investment by leaving the money in a current account!
My assumption has always been that, after this coming window, our new management will be hoping to fund everything else from some hefty long-term sponsorship deals, increased TV money, higher league finishes and higher gates. At the time of the merger, I guessed that Lerner might be willing to spend a further £30 million of his own money to get the ball rolling - I still think that figure will prove about right.
One thing you aren't taking into account in this summation is the club value. If he gets us to a position where we are posting profits of £20 million + then I think the club would be valued in the hundreds of millions which would ensure he sees a return on his investment.
Exactly. The money he used to pay for the club has been converted to an asset, which is the club itself from an economic point of view. Plus, if we are making $20 Mil a season and Lerner wanted to sell the club he could sell if for absolutely bucketloads.
The money he paid for the club isn't just gone, it's just been converted into an asset for now, hopefully one which gains some significant value.