Live Bar January 8, former Milan executive director David Han Li recently gave an interview, he revealed some of the things that happened behind the scenes between Li Yonghong and the Elliott Group. He also said that things in Milan were like nightmares before and would not trust anyone in Milan now.
Li Yonghong's holding company acquired AC Milan from Berlusconi in May 2017, but due to the failure to repay the loan of hedge fund Elliott Management in a timely manner, Li Yonghong's holding company, including AC Milan Club, was recovered by Elliott Group, and the whole incident caused great confusion. For more than a year, Mr. Li remained completely silent until he suddenly opened a Twitter account. Han Li confirmed this in an interview with Forbes magazine.
Han Li said: "There are several reasons why we remain silent. First of all, now we don't trust anyone, including the media. He outlined several key financial details, board minutes and investor lists that were leaked hours after an agreement was reached. He emphasized: "Who has all this important information? Li Yonghong invested more than 500 million euros in Milan, and in the end everything was recovered, only because a small part of the loan he used to buy the club was not repaid, but Li Yonghong did not protest against this.
"We have a responsibility to the club and to the many Milan fans, it is not easy. As club owners, we are not involved in day-to-day management decisions, but we listen to the advice of management and discuss important issues with them. In the end, everyone is responsible for their own decisions, so I've worked very hard to adapt to them. Unfortunately, as owners and managers, there is nothing we can do about many things. ”
"The problem is not with the fans, but with the people at the top of the club and with those important people who have the right and just want to protect their own interests. Then things changed, and they did everything they could to stay away from us and exclude us. ”
The blame appears to have been directed at directors such as Marco Fassone and Massimiliano Mirabelli, while Berlusconi initially accepted the position of honorary chairman but resigned a few days later.
Han Li continued: "When it comes to managing a football club, you're not managing a machine, you're managing thousands of people. Your vision must be aligned with you for everyone to work. We must understand this, because it is accompanied by a fusion of cultural and philosophical aspects. But unfortunately, we don't have enough time to achieve this. ”
Elliott Management, an American hedge fund company also known as the vulture fund, is known for its history of acquiring financially troubled assets. Han Li also hinted that when funds began to dry up, Li Yonghong was surprised by the lack of cooperative support from the Elliott Group.
Han Li said: "I think in the end their attitude towards us has also changed. I remember in February 2018, I asked a guy in the Elliott Group directly if they were responsible for orchestrating a media news attack and if they wanted to take the club for themselves, which of course he denied. ”
"We've heard of the Elliott Group's reputation, but until you really get to know a person, you never know if these reports are true. These stories may have been written by competitors, and these stories exist for different reasons. I wasn't sure if these stories were true... Until later! If they can fully cooperate, all we need them to do is debt refinancing, but things are not going as we expected. ”
On the contrary, Li Yonghong defaulted on the repayment of loans, and Milan Club was repossessed by the Elliott Group in the summer of 2018.
Han Li concluded: "When I woke up, I found that the nightmare was real, it was not a dream. We don't want the fans to think we stole their stuff, we don't want them to feel anything bad about us, and that's why we appoint italians as directors. But this has been taken advantage of by some people because of our kindness and kindness, and some have taken advantage of this against us. I was under too much pressure, and I still had a scar on my thumb, a scar I had left by breaking my thumb with my fingernails because of these things in Milan. ”
Li Yonghong wrote on Twitter today: "My friend and colleague, David, talked about some of our acquisition of AC Milan, Milan fans need to hear this, thank you David for saying these things!" ”
（Eagle）