If anyone doesn't Twitter, here is the series of Tweets Zaki sent out, tidied up into one:
I fully understand why fans feel frustrated with the recent results and many feel the board should have done things differently in January. I just want to reiterate openly again where we stand:
1. We firmly believe in our squad & the entire coaching team & feel they’re more than capable of achieving what we set out at the start of the season. We must all stick together until the last game of the season.
2. The togetherness within the club has not & will not change & with the support of the wider community I know we can have a strong push towards our objectives.
3. We are absolutely ambitious & have a clear vision for where we want to take this football club. There are many ways to achieve it, but we chose to do it sensibly & incrementally without getting ahead of ourselves & without drowning the club with huge debts which then makes the long term future of the club less certain.
4. When we make decisions, whether football or non football, we do think about the long term future of the club. We have made huge improvements this year by buying assets & working on improving the commercials of the club. Put simply, this will boost the club revenues & reduce its losses allowing us to continue to invest in a more stable organisation.
5. Finally, we believe transparency is key and we are constantly engaged with OxVox and others. We recognise nothing can be achieved if we do not have an inclusive approach. We will continue to operate this way.
Personally I would like to know:
1. What DID we set out to do at the start of the season? What were the targets? Presumably - given the context - these are on-pitch objectives.
2. Again, what are 'our objectives'?
3. What are these ambitions and this clear vision? If we knew, perhaps we would be more forgiving of what seem to be some odd decisions lately.
4. Of course commercial activity is important. An extra sponsor here or there is not to be sniffed at. I would also say that we have also SOLD assets of greater value than we have bought this season, haven't we? But there is a big grey animal in the room here...
5. Well (as a life member) over to you OxVox. Let's hear what they have been telling you. And if it has been told to you in confidence - stop it. You are OUR representative, not the club's. If they are keeping you from publicly questioning them by drip feeding bits of information (true or false) then that has to stop. And also OUFC, who are these 'others' you are also keeping in the loop? IMO an 'inclusive approach' would actually be including the support much more. Yes, I know you make sure we are patted on the head in all the interviews, but let us know what your intentions are.
I don't think this (presumably very considered) set of tweets actually answers anything at all.
1. On pitch objectives were/are promotion. This was stated several times by Tiger, Zaki and Robinson at the beginning of the season and reaffirmed since January. Admittedly, the tone has changed from quietly confident to a little more hopeful, but promotion is still a real target (but not s**t or bust).
2. As above, and this Zaki is saying that the playing squad remain focused on this target. Various comments get twisted to suit, but whilst Eastwood sounded a little downbeat, Mous and others have sounded much more optimistic in recent interviews.
3. Financial management is key, and building sustainable success has to be the most important objective. No one has ruled out promotion, and the idea that the club is actively against it is bizarre. However, that doesn't mean that stupid money would be thrown at promotion now. We all know that there is a limit on how far we can go without owning or fully controlling our stadium. Tiger, Zaki and NMW have all indicated that work is taking place to resolve this (all giving different takes on timeframe immediately). The clear vision is a successful and sustainable club, on and off the pitch and at the highest possible playing level. That would indicate that promotion and the stadium issues are very much part of this vision.
4. Reducing costs and increasing income are massive if we are to become sustainable. FFP only allows us to spend what we bring in, so increased attendance, sponsorship dealers and player sales are all we have. That is why we had to consider all options in January to enable us to continue to grow. Investing in the infrastructure, training facilities, youth development etc are just as important as buying players at the top of their game. So whilst we have sold Whyte and Baptiste (Fosu came and went), we have also invested in Gorrin, Moore, Agyei, Forde and Atkinson, whilst looking to develop further those already with us. The fact that we have brought in more cash than what we've spent is testament to a good business model.
5. This is the one area that I'm not sure Tiger and co. have ever really got right. There has been much better communication but words like growth, sustainable, transparency, vision, objectives etc are very different from having a clear business plan. The counter to this is that the club then becomes a slave to timeframes and every word gets analysed and twisted to be used against them. I would hope that whatever happens this season, the club takes the time to put together a very clear vision moving forward. For example, giving a 5 year plan on becoming a stable Championship team. This may include a bounce between the leagues or more gradual organic growth year on year in league 1, but hopefully the end goal would be the same. Equally, 5 years to take fully financial control over our stadium could mean a better leasing agreement, buying the Kassam or moving elsewhere, but again the objective would be the same.
I think there are plenty of positives to take from these tweets and the general engagement of the board this season. But those wanting action rather than words will always get frustrated with comments at this stage, because this will never be a quick fix.