With Ken Bates stepping down from his post as Chairman in the summer and rumours afoot that he is moving to Plymouth we look back at the cantankerous, libellous and borderline racist quotes from the man Alex Ferguson likened to "Chairman Mao"
First up the fans. An integral part of any club, Ken has endeared himself to us by labelling us
"dissidents"
"sickpots" and
"morons"
These fans also have to put up with the most expensive programme in the country, but it's ok because Ken describes it as
"the best in English football"
and Ken never lies does he.
Disabled supporters also came under fire when Ken said
“The disabled get their helper in for free, if they pay for a full-price ticket, which means they get in for half-price. I’m not being funny but if you’ve got a bad back, do you need a helper?"
The supporters trust were worried that their concerns were being ignored leading them to be branded
“an ignorant, illiterate minority"
LUST needn't have worried as behind the scenes Ken listened to our concerns and put new toilets in the West Stand which are
"very significant for those who want them there".
From shit off the pitch, to shit on it. Ken had this amusing rant at hate figure George McCartney
"I see he's rather unwisely been giving an interview in which he says the players are tired, a sense of jadedness among certain players has proved telling.
"Well, I don't quite understand what he means by that because when we play QPR we'll have played 50 games, but everybody at the club will have played at least 48, 46 league games and two cup matches.
"I don't understand what he means by players being 'out on their feet' after playing so much this season. It certainly doesn't apply to him. As far as I can see, looking at the fixture list, as far as I know, he has only played twice in the last six games.
"So I don't think fatigue can contribute to his contribution, which I haven't been particularly impressed with."
"As I understand it, he has been fined more than once for turning up late in training.
"So perhaps if he turned up on time and showed a bit more commitment then he wouldn't feel quite so tired."
Another player who failed to avoid the wrath of Bates was Chelsea legend Claude Makelele who was given this put down
"Makelele? Who does he play for? I've only ever heard of his brother, Ukelele."
From players to managers and Ken had this to say about Sunderland manager, Martin O'Neil after he called Bates a cretin.
"It takes one to know one. I'm surprised Martin O'Neill actually knows a word as big as cretin"
Up into the boardroom now and Ken strays into dodgy territory, stereotyping one Arab investor as
"Sheikh Rub-A-Dub"
But from the view in his Directors box he gets a good view, passing this tactical snippet on to us.
"Hump it, Bump it, Whack it, it might be the recipe for a good sex life but it wont win the World Cup"
From one Sex image to another as Bates discusses his leadership over Leeds
“In an age of instant gratification, Leeds United is having a long, drawn-out affair with plenty of foreplay and slow arousal.
More bedroom chat from Ken, who reflected upon the arrival of Luciano Becchio's baby daughter, that LB
" just can't stop scoring!"
Ken also hints at a career in politics after his spell at Leeds, declaring
"You could… vote for the Icelandic Volcano Party. After all, they have done more to stop immigration in the last seven days than Labour has for 13 years,”
Finally, Ken's favourite timescale
"imminent"
thankfully, whatever he does, Ken neatly summed it all up in 2010, with no libel, racial slur or propaganda
"an ex-chairman is a nobody"
We live in hope
MOT
First up the fans. An integral part of any club, Ken has endeared himself to us by labelling us
"dissidents"
"sickpots" and
"morons"
These fans also have to put up with the most expensive programme in the country, but it's ok because Ken describes it as
"the best in English football"
and Ken never lies does he.
Disabled supporters also came under fire when Ken said
“The disabled get their helper in for free, if they pay for a full-price ticket, which means they get in for half-price. I’m not being funny but if you’ve got a bad back, do you need a helper?"
The supporters trust were worried that their concerns were being ignored leading them to be branded
“an ignorant, illiterate minority"
LUST needn't have worried as behind the scenes Ken listened to our concerns and put new toilets in the West Stand which are
"very significant for those who want them there".
From shit off the pitch, to shit on it. Ken had this amusing rant at hate figure George McCartney
"I see he's rather unwisely been giving an interview in which he says the players are tired, a sense of jadedness among certain players has proved telling.
"Well, I don't quite understand what he means by that because when we play QPR we'll have played 50 games, but everybody at the club will have played at least 48, 46 league games and two cup matches.
"I don't understand what he means by players being 'out on their feet' after playing so much this season. It certainly doesn't apply to him. As far as I can see, looking at the fixture list, as far as I know, he has only played twice in the last six games.
"So I don't think fatigue can contribute to his contribution, which I haven't been particularly impressed with."
"As I understand it, he has been fined more than once for turning up late in training.
"So perhaps if he turned up on time and showed a bit more commitment then he wouldn't feel quite so tired."
Another player who failed to avoid the wrath of Bates was Chelsea legend Claude Makelele who was given this put down
"Makelele? Who does he play for? I've only ever heard of his brother, Ukelele."
From players to managers and Ken had this to say about Sunderland manager, Martin O'Neil after he called Bates a cretin.
"It takes one to know one. I'm surprised Martin O'Neill actually knows a word as big as cretin"
Up into the boardroom now and Ken strays into dodgy territory, stereotyping one Arab investor as
"Sheikh Rub-A-Dub"
But from the view in his Directors box he gets a good view, passing this tactical snippet on to us.
"Hump it, Bump it, Whack it, it might be the recipe for a good sex life but it wont win the World Cup"
From one Sex image to another as Bates discusses his leadership over Leeds
“In an age of instant gratification, Leeds United is having a long, drawn-out affair with plenty of foreplay and slow arousal.
More bedroom chat from Ken, who reflected upon the arrival of Luciano Becchio's baby daughter, that LB
" just can't stop scoring!"
Ken also hints at a career in politics after his spell at Leeds, declaring
"You could… vote for the Icelandic Volcano Party. After all, they have done more to stop immigration in the last seven days than Labour has for 13 years,”
Finally, Ken's favourite timescale
"imminent"
thankfully, whatever he does, Ken neatly summed it all up in 2010, with no libel, racial slur or propaganda
"an ex-chairman is a nobody"
We live in hope
MOT