Source: Telegraph
Portsmouth accounts reveal full scale of club's financial meltdown
A 70-page document sent to all the club's known creditors accounts for every penny that Portsmouth owe from the £14 million owed to previous owner Balram Chainrai down to the £1 claimed by Harley Street cancer clinic 108 Medical Ltd. [LNB]Portsmouth are owed a total of £14 million from Inter Milan, Liverpool and Tottenham for the respective sales of Sulley Muntari, Glen Johnson and Jermain Defoe. [LNB] Related ArticlesEx-owners and florists among Pompey debtorsPortsmouth's debt crisis: the experts' viewsPortsmouth to reveal £119m debtsPortsmouth 1 Aston Villa 2Wigan 0 Portsmouth 0Portsmouth 'do not deserve' to win appealBut that money only knocks the stricken club's gross debt down to around £105 million, which is substantially more than the administrators had originally expected. [LNB]The accounts reveal how the club were being crippled by £17.3 million in outstanding transfer fees. [LNB]When Portsmouth went into administration, French club Rennes were receiving over £630,000 a month for John Utaka, Udinese were being paid up to £800,000 a month for Muntari, while Portsmouth still owe Chelsea money for Johnson, who was sold to Liverpool in the summer. [LNB]Portsmouth owe £9.76 million to 26 agents, including £2.3 million which is due to one agent for just one deal, reported to be the transfer of Lassana Diarra. [LNB]Nine players including Muntari, Sol Campbell and Niko Kranjcar who are all no longer at the club are owed a combined total of £3.04 million in image rights. [LNB]Portsmouth also owe bonus payments to 28 players, including England internationals Peter Crouch and David James, totalling £1.86 million. [LNB]The biggest single amount of money Portsmouth owe is the £38.2 million of unsecured loans to former owners, with Alexandre Gaydamak the main claimant though Sulaiman al-Fahim is owed £5 million. [LNB]Chainrai, the fourth and final owner of a turbulent season at Fratton Park, is owed £14 million in a secured loan. [LNB]Portsmouth also owe HM Revenue and Customs £17.1 million in PAYE, VAT and National Insurance. [LNB]Extraordinarily, Portsmouth owe Tottenham £1 million over Asmir Begovic despite the Bosnian goalkeeper having no connection with the London club. [LNB]Begovic was linked with Spurs in January but opted against a move to White Hart Lane and signed for Stoke instead. [LNB]But Portsmouth have been left owing Spurs a £1 million sell-on fee, on top of £500,000 for the loan signing of Jamie O'Hara and £3million from the signing of Kevin Prince Boateng. [LNB]It is a situation which encapsulates the financial mess Portsmouth got themselves into, a mess which has not only led to the club's relegation but has had a wider effect on the local community. [LNB]The dossier includes a remarkable 15 pages of local business creditors which range from an outstanding bill of £87.50 with the Co-operative florists to a far more significant debt of £54,777.93 with TWC Joinery and Shopfitting Ltd. [LNB]The administrator Andrew Andronikou, of Hacker Young, needs at least 75% of the unsecured creditor base to accept reduced repayment terms and agree to Company Voluntary Arrangement. [LNB]Andronikou has invited all creditors to a meeting at Fratton Park on May 6 where he will inform them of his offer, with reports placing it at around 20-25p in the pound. [LNB]An agreement from Gaydamak, al-Fahim and HM Revenue and Customs would be enough for Andronikou to move the club out of administration. [LNB]Portsmouth's plunge into the deep red began in 2006 when, under Gaydamak's control, the club went from a pre-tax loss of £912,397 to a staggering £23.4 million in 2007. [LNB]Gaydamak had plans for a new stadium and wanted to develop revenue streams away from football while establishing the club in the top 10 of the Premier League. [LNB]The wage bill rocketed and by 2009 Portsmouth's overall staff costs - made up mainly of player wages - were an astonishing 109% of revenues. [LNB]
