THE WOLF'S DEN - Tana dei Lupi II

[Lupa]

Entrepreneur Richard Thomas Di Benedetto, head of the American consortium interested in buying 60% of Roma, arrived in the capital this morning to finalize the purchase of the Giallorossi.

Corriere Dello Sport reports Di Benedetto landed at Leonardo Da Vinci from Boston shortly before 8am this morning. The prospective President of Roma briefly addressed the media: “I’m very happy to be in Rome. Forza Roma.”

As Di Benedetto’s presence in Italy was recognized, professionals around the football community weighed in.

“The arrival of Thomas Di Benedetto is a good thing that demonstrates the attractiveness of Italian football,” exclaimed Jean Claude Blanc, Managing Director of Juventus.

Italian FA President Giancarlo Abete gave praise to the current owners of Roma, the Sensi family, and words of encouragement to their predecessors:

"First a big thank you to the Sensi family for what they have done for Rome. With Di Benedetto, a new adventure begins. We will see his ability to intervene and stabilize the company, with projects and prospects."

At 12:30pm, Di Benedetto arrived at Chambers’ Grimaldi and Associates, the law firm where the deal is being negotiated, and began the meeting with Unicredit representatives for the transfer of ownership of the club.

At the moment, no official notice has been made of the deal being finalized.

http://www.footballitaliano.co.uk/p6_1_ ... redit.html

[ASR1927]

Here is the full interview with DiBenedetto from Gazzetta dello Sport. It's informative and he has obviously done his research on Roma and he certainly is saying the right things. Like all things that are out of our control we will have to wait and see. I have removed any references that may offend the more sensitive amongst us.



Exclusive with DiBenedetto "My Roma with s***** and s******"

The new owner of the Giallorossi club gave an exclusive interview to Gazzetta dello Sport before leaving for Fiumicino, where he landed this morning. "I'm happy to be here. Six signings immediately and a new stadium"



ROME, 28 March 2011 – He quotes Ralph Waldo Emerson, the 19th-century philosopher: "The invariable mark of a dream is to see it come true." "And my dream," he adds, "is exactly the same as that of millions of fans: to turn Roma into one of the best clubs in the world. A team capable of winning the Scudetto every year and finally challenging for the Champions League." Thomas DiBenedetto was speaking from B***** just a few hours before getting on the flight that brought him to Rome this morning. He is here to close the deal that will see him confirmed as the club's new president. "You say 'All roads lead to Rome' over there, don't you?... Well, I hope that one day everyone will travel down those roads to come and see what we have achieved: something important and long-lasting."

Mr DiBenedetto, why Roma exactly? What made you go for this club?
"I've never had any other clubs in mind. I have a long relationship with Rome. The university where I studied and where I am still a member of the council, Trinity College, has organized a campus in Rome for the last 25 years. It's a wonderful city and to be able to represent it worldwide through a business and a passion as important as soccer is a great opportunity for me."

You will be the president but there are others involved in this deal. Can you tell us something about your partners? What part will they play?
"They are friends of mine, all successful businessmen or managers with the financial resources required for this project - and they are all very excited about it. James Pallotta, one of the owners of B***** C******, has great experience working in the world of sport, and he has already carefully assessed the club's potential. Michael Ruane boasts a successful career in investment funds and real estate and he will be mainly involved in the project for the new stadium. Richard D'Amore is an expert in new media and will help develop that area."

Do you already know how the club will be re-organized, in financial, technical and sporting terms?
"We expect to complete the deal with Unicredit in the next few days [the meeting was due to begin this morning and will go on until the two parties reach an agreement – ed.]. I think it's a bit too early to talk about the club's new organization. We fully respect the people who are working at Roma at the moment and we will speak to them. But we have our own ideas as well and we are committed to creating the best team possible, on and off the pitch. We'll bring together people capable of unearthing young talent and building a competitive team. It's in our interest after all: only by being successful will we get a return on our investments. As I said, our aim is to turn Roma into one of the biggest clubs in the world, a team that the city can be proud of, but naturally that will take a bit of time."

What will be your first move as president?
"To get the balance sheet in order and bring the club in line with UEFA's financial fair-play requirements, since we don't meet them at the moment. But that doesn't mean we can't make immediate investments in the team."

So what do you think of the current squad? You've been to see a lot of games already this year...
"We're all hoping they can qualify for next year's Champions League. Up to now they have performed below expectations, and Ranieri's frustration when he left was proof of that. Results have picked up recently but they still need a bit more more consistency. I have trust in Totti's goals and Vucinic's performances."

Do you like Montella?
"He was a great centre-forward. He has brought renewed enthusiasm and energy to the team and from what I've seen he's doing well."



Is there somebody in your team already working on the Roma side for next year?
"My team is made up of people who know world soccer very well. When the time comes, we'll speak to the current management - who are doing a good job - and we'll assess things. I think some players will be sold and others will come in, at least five or six."

What was your first impression of the Stadio Olimpico? It was Roma v Inter, wasn't it?
"Yes and we won it with a great goal from Vucinic. That evening I was swept away by the Roma fans' passion. You don't get anything like that in the States, except for A******* football maybe - some matches between colleges with 100,000 spectators. It's just a shame that all those supporters don't have an adequate stadium: the Olimpico simply just gratify the Romanisti's passion; the stands are too far away from the pitch and the noise from the crowd is not the same at that distance. That's another reason why a new stadium is a must, an *******-style stadium so that it benefits the players too. A modern version of Campo Testaccio."

Do you know something about Roma's history?
"Of course. It has a glorious history, though not always a successful one. I remember the last Scudetto they won, which was fantastic, and the great Roma side of the eighties with Conti and Falcao. We will respect the club's tradition and we will always try to honor it. I say that our future is our past."

Are you aware that Italian football isn't exactly flourishing at the moment?
""I am. It's depressing and worrying that the Italians have lost a Champions League place. I think the main problem is the lack of club-owned stadiums – comfortable, welcoming and set up to exploit other business opportunities. Football's so important for the Italian economy and culture that it often reflects the image of the country as a whole. It's about time the government and the institutions did something practical to enable clubs to build new stadiums. That's the only way to get back to winning in Europe, to attract the best players back to Italy."

Aren't there other ways to get back to competitive levels?
"New technology, for a start. That's why we talk about Roma as a "media company": a club able to harness the new communications technology and the social media. It'll be crucial for us to reach every corner of the world, it'll enable us to sell our merchandise better, increase profits and buy better players."

To finish with, a bit of local rivalry. What do you know about Lazio?
"I'll tell you a story. Last year I attended the anniversary of that university campus I mentioned earlier. I was wearing a Roma scarf, and I met the former students and found out they were all Roma fans; the campus manager was the only one who followed Lazio. I said to him, 'In future I hope to see two big teams in Rome, I mean one big and the other one massive.'" Fair play and a passion for football. Benvenuto, Mr DiBenedetto.


Link to unedited article:
http://english.gazzetta.it/Football/28- ... 1256.shtml

[maro]

ror. You're a stirrer.

[RomaShield27]

What are you two at? Where you editing posts again, Frodo? Why are all the references to the ****** ***** out?

Di Benedetto seems to know what he is talking about when it comes to Roma. A lot more than his son, anyway, but thats not saying much. I've been against foreign ownership from the start but if it has to go that way than I suppose I should be grateful it someone like this and not some oil laden sheik from wherever who just wants to play with his inheritance. Di Benedetto is second generation Italian, knows the city of Rome well, spent lots of time there, is appreciative of the clubs history and passion of the fans, has spoken well of his intentions, and at this early stage the signs are looking positive. There's still a bit to go, and a lot of things which remain unclear, but that wolf in sheep's clothing may be a bit less hostile than first expected.

[ASR1927]

[RomaShield27]

So, with the end of the working day, no rich new owners yet? Looks like we'll have to wait a little longer. What a shame. I can't think of anything else. Oh boy. Show me the money. We should buy Messi and his dog. Yawn. There's meant to be some sort of statement released either tonight or tomorrow morning...

[ASR1927]

Any announcements would have to be made after the Italian stock exchange closes. Because it would affect the price of Roma stock so later tonight most likely. After 19:30PM GMT.

[Lupa]

An agreement has been reached, although the deal hasn't been signed.

http://www.vocegiallorossa.it/?action=r ... izia=15468

[Lupa]

Marco Borriello has admitted all is not well at Roma. “It’s only normal that you can’t always get along.”

The striker has been pushed to the bench after the arrival of Coach Vincenzo Montella and was named by Claudio Ranieri as one of the players who gave him the most trouble.

He was also involved in an on the field spat with teammate David Pizarro over who was going to take a penalty.

“We are together for 340 days a year, so it’s only normal that within a team there are highs and lows. You can’t always get along,” wrote Borriello on his Facebook page.

“In any case, I am happy with both my teammates and the directors. I hope that with the new owners, Roma can return to where they belong.”

American investor Thomas Di Benedetto is in Rome this evening for negotiations to complete the takeover.

http://www.football-italia.net/mar29w.html

[ASR1927]

[RomaShield27]

Is that what they have to do, form a new company in order to buy the club? I'm not quite sure it is a 'company' as such which has to be set up, but more the proposal to acquire the club. And will it be a 60/40 split? 40% for UniCredit seems quite high.

Unicredit said it will grant another seven to 10 days to allow the deal to conclude, which seems like quite a long time. But like Lupa said earlier, there is an agreement in place in principle, it seems, it just needs time to formulate, like everything does in Italy. on tonights proceedings say Paolo Fiorentino (of Unicredit) and Antonio Muto (of Roma 2000) are headin to Turin tomorrow to have the craic or something, so proceedings won't resume until Thursday. Whats the rush like?

Official press release expected later/tomorrow mornin.

[ASR1927]

Posted by AlCapone on RA:

Press release:

JOINT PRESS RELEASE - Italpetroli SpA, UniCredit SpA and AS Roma Di Benedetto LLC announce that the negotiations that took place in Rome in recent days have led to the definition of key terms of the acquisition of controlling stake in AS Roma SpA
Under these agreements, the acquisition should be completed by a company owned 60% by AS Roma Di Benedetto LLC and 40% owned by UniCredit SpA, provides for the possibility that UniCredit will sell part of its share to other strategic investors Italian .
In the coming days we will proceed to the final version of the agreements reached today, which include commitments to strengthening and further development of AS Roma. The signing of the agreements is expected within the next twenty days in order to allow the AS Roma Di Benedetto LLC agreed to provide guarantees with respect to the implementation of negotiated commitments. Until the acquisition of such interests and the signing of the agreements, will not be provided other details about their content.


http://www.vocegiallorossa.it/?action=r ... izia=15468

[maro]

Have we signed Messi and Landon Donovan yet?

[RomaShield27]

[RomaShield27]

Just been watching France v Croatia on the box there, with Mexes and Menez both playing, and playing well. Particularly Menez in the first-half. France have a full team out, too, with Benzema and Nasri and Malouda, but its Menez who's been running the show for them and created several goal-scoring opportunities, which were fluffed. In fact, I can't recall a time when Menez was on the ball and he didn't do something positive with it, unlike when he plays with us, and he seems to take the wrong options sometimes. He looks a much different player, and you have to wonder why he's having difficulties with us at the moment.

On Mexes, he again that he wants to stay in Italy, but would not go into more detail than that. Its clear now (if it wasn't before) he is considering other options to him in Italy and not just waiting to see how things work out at ownership level at Roma. I still believe he will stay, however, and I think the developments of the club being sold and the enthusiasm and positivity that is surrounding the affair going forward will stand to his decision that its best for him to stay at Roma.

[maro]

What position was he playing?

[AlCapone]

... and here's football-italia following up:

Roma and Thomas Di Benedetto have released a formal statement confirming an agreement for the American takeover.
Di Benedetto, who heads a conglomerate ready to buy AS Roma from the Sensi family company Italpetroli and UniCredit Bank, has been in the city for advanced negotiations since Monday.

“Italpetroli S.p.a., UniCredit S.p.a. and Di Benedetto AS Roma LLC announce that negotiations in Rome over the past few days have reached a basic agreement to buy up control of AS Roma S.p.a.” read the statement released late Tuesday night.

“Based on this agreement, the buy-out should be completed by a company made up of 60 per cent Di Benedetto AS Roma LLC and 40 per cent UniCredit S.p.a.

“There is also an option for UniCredit to sell their shares to other strategic Italian investors.

“Over the next few days we will proceed to write out the definitive versions of the agreements reached today, which also include commitments for the reinforcement and future development of AS Roma.

“The signature of this agreement is expected within the next 20 days, allowing Di Benedetto AS Roma LLC to present financial guarantees.

“Until said guarantees and the signatures are finalised, we will not be revealing any further details on the contents of the agreement.”

[RomaShield27]

[maro]

What formation? Right of a midfield three?

[RomaShield27]

No, sorry, right-side of the '3' in a 4-2-3-1, same formation le frogs always play.