Oldham Athletic fans call for owner Abdallah Lemsagam to go

Three and a half  years after taking over at Oldham Athletic, many of the club's fans are now calling for owner Abdallah Lemsagam to go.

They want the Dubai-based businessman out and say that under his ownership there's been decline on the pitch and mis-management off it.

Matt Dean, Oldham Athletic Supporters Association continued:

"The supporters have had enough. The club's been in a bad way for a long time and it's all come to a head really. We're very much afraid of our football league survival and the survival of the football club."

With supporters now allowed into games many have been voicing their anger at the owner inside stadiums. 

But with many boycotting home matches this Saturday they want to send their biggest message yet with up to one thousand protesting outside Boundary Park ahead of the kick off with Hartlepool.

A number of Oldham's games have been interrupted by pitch invasions this season.

And while their manager backs the fans right to protest he believes they must do it in the correct manner.  

All this unrest is a long way from a club that was a founding member of the Premier League in 1992 and enjoyed memorable runs to the final of the League Cup in and FA Cup semi final in 1990.

Fans still believe the good times can return with the right ownership. 

"We know that there are people out there. We're trying to get those people to come forward to come back to to the table. The issue had been the owner's valuation of the football club and what he sees as a viable figure to sell it for. Some of the pressure we want to apply is on the club to say you need to start entertaining these offers because everyday you're still here the valuation of the club goes down."

Despite our request for an interview Oldham's owner was unavailable however responding to fans criticisms on social media last week admitted to making mistakes but said he has no intention of selling and will release a new three year plan to take the club forward next month.

In an open letter to the Supporters Foundation, Lemsagam broke his silence on the recent protests, telling fans he has no intention of 'walking away from his investment.'

"I am aware of the protests at my ownership and the anger and hatred that many fans have for me and my brother," he said.

"I receive emails and texts, and so do those close to me, on a daily basis calling me all sorts of names and asking me to “go home”; many of them are outright racist. Since I took over in 2018, I accept that mistakes have been made... But each mistake has been made honestly, and with an intention to help the club.

"I have never done anything intentionally to hurt the club, I never would. What I find hard to understand is the strength of reaction against me compared to when the previous ownership stripped a key asset from the club and neither you as a supporters trust, nor any of the fans, did anything at all."

But many fans won't be convinced and believe the only way to move on is for him to move out.