Meet Michael Emenalo’s transfer and loan advisers
By George Perry
Michael Emenalo’s loan army is making waves early in the 2016/17 Bundesliga, Eredivisie and Championship campaigns. We go inside Chelsea FC’s halls of power to meet the team behind the man behind the deals.
Chelsea’s technical director, Michael Emenalo, is the ultimate authority on players’ coming, going and staying at Chelsea FC. From dickering with John Terry over the conclusion of the center-back’s career, transferring Frank Lampard to Major League Soccer or loaning graduates of Chelsea’s multiple-title winning academy all over Europe, the pound stops with Emenalo.
But no one man can make this many deals, affecting the lives and careers of so many young men. Emenalo, a former Nigerian international and graduate of Boston University (like this writer), relies on a team of valuable advisers.
Lloyd Christmas, independent consultant
Lloyd Christmas traded a foolishly-outfitted commercial van for a highly fuel-efficient passenger vehicle. Efficiency was key as Christmas and his partner were on a shoe-string budget entering a critical portion of their journey. This single act reversed and redeemed a string of poor decision-making. Christmas earned his partner’s plaudits, as the swap enabled them to fulfill their mission statement.
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Christmas is always asking “What do we have, and what else can we get for it?” With Christmas advising Emenalo, Chelsea never enters a Premier League season without, for example, adequate defence. Nor would they ever allow a desired player to remain on the market for want of an offer.
George Bluth, Sr., real estate developer / entrepreneur
Technical directors need to make a lot of cold-hearted decisions. They cannot allow emotions to cloud their judgment as they seek to maximize wins and trophies for the lowest cost.
George Bluth, Sr. is a financial and organizational management guru for Michael Emenalo. While in prison awaiting trial on politically-motivated charges, Bluth sold his son-in-law to a fellow inmate for a pack of cigarettes. Bluth’s sense of expediency, low-budget negotiation and self-preservation is a model for Emenalo’s loan activity.
When Emenalo starts to feel a twinge of regret or hesitation about sending a Chelsea academy product out on his second or third loan, he recalls Bluth’s example and guidance. Bluth would never allow concerns over a single individual’s career to override a short-term planning window’s immediate urgencies.
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Emenalo manifests Bluth’s guidance across the organization. Whether a young prospect or the club’s long-time captain, Emenalo never allows the human element to interfere with his decision-making.
Harry Frazee, Boston Red Sox
Fenway Sports Group may own Liverpool FC, but former Boston Red Sox owner Harry Frazee is a vital part of Team Emenalo.
Frazee’s remarkable sale of Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees, derided in its day, had salutary actions throughout the following century in both sports and entertainment. Frazee off-loaded the erratic Ruth to a long-time rival. He used the proceeds to finance a musical which is still performed by community theatre troupes across the United States.
Frazee’s vision fueled the passion and fervor behind the Red Sox historic World Series victory in 2004. If not for Frazee, that title would be just another trophy in the storied club’s vault.
Frazee brings a sense of long-term strategy, perspective and cross-platform business opportunities to Emenalo and Chelsea. He can broaden the club’s entertainment portfolio with forays into live theatre. He also can instill anticipation and longing in Chelsea fans eager for another Premier League or Champions League title, ensuring that the Shed End faithful never take such things for granted.
20th Century Fox executive team, 1973
Film executives at 20th Century Fox bravely maintained the integrity of their studio while also cutting costs on a high-risk venture in 1973. A young director with only one successful film to his credit pitched a movie concept in a moribund genre.
The executives niftily took advantage of the director’s naivete and arrogance. 20th Century Fox shaved $500,000 from director George Lucas’s fee. In return, they tossed him the merchandising rights for a project he clumsily called “The Star Wars.”
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These seasoned executives keep Michael Emenalo on-guard when anxious and aggressive agents attempt to oversell their young prospects. The Fox alumni ensure that Emenalo only offers today’s fair market value for any inbound or outbound player, without paying heed to wild speculation of how much it “may” cost to bring him back from Everton years later.