'Disrespectful' - Ex-Sunderland man Aiden McGeady delivers scathing Charlie Methven helicopter story
The former Sunderland player has delivered a scathing story regarding Charlie Methven during their time at the club.
Aiden McGeady has delivered a scathing verdict on former Sunderland figure Charlie Methven.
Methven took a minority stake in Sunderland alongside his Madrox partners Stewart Donald and Juan Sartori after the consortium bought the club from Ellis Short after the club’s double relegation from the Premier League to League One.
Methven’s antics on Wearside have become immortalised in the Netflix documentary Sunderland ‘Til I Die. And Methven was also forced to apologise to supporters while at Sunderland after suggesting that people in the south had a better understanding of business after supporters questioned a £9million loan made to Madrox by the group FPP. Methven also sparked fury by criticising fans after the League One play-off final loss to Charlton Athletic.
What did Aiden McGeady say about Charlie Methven?
“I wasn't too keen on the way Charlie was about the place, if I'm being honest,” McGeady told the What The Falk podcast. “It was almost as if he was the owner, and then I found out he only had a little bit of the club, he'd had five per cent, because he introduced Ellis Short to Stewart Donald
“I remember saying, because there was a few people who had some issues with Charlie, the way that he conducted himself, the way that he had meetings, and you've probably seen the things on Netflix and stuff, the way that he spoke to people I was like, well, you do realise, if he's only got a certain percentage of shares, you can stop him from coming in.
“They were like, oh no, we can't, he's one of the owners, and I was like, well, I've got shares in Apple, but I can't walk into an Apple building and just take a desk and start conducting meetings. It was kind of like that, a big show, if I'm being honest, a big show, in my opinion. To be honest, I can't really say anything bad, because listen, I understand corners had to be cut, and we had to downsize.
“Unfortunately, people had to lose their jobs, that's the thing about relegation, which was the hardest thing, people end up losing their jobs, people are made redundant, so they do have to save money, so I understand that as well. We were very, very close to getting promoted, we should have been promoted, but we kind of blew it with four or five games to go.
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“I remember having a discussion with Charlie, I mean, people probably know that I'm quite honest, maybe my delivery is maybe quite blunt, maybe to my detriment as well, but it's also probably one of my strengths. I remember we were training, and again, this was Charlie in a bit of a nutshell, everything was kind of for show, and he was always walking into the first team canteen with a pair of shorts on, that he'd just been to the gym.
“Everything was always kind of, look at me. He turned up to training one day, and the helicopter, so the helicopter landed on the training pitch just at the side of the training pitch, and then he comes out, and he comes in, comes away up to the canteen, and he was standing there, and I went, I went, oh, who's paying for the helicopter? And he was like, oh, it's the club, and I went, right, okay, I was like, people are losing their jobs left, right and centre, and you turn up to train in a helicopter.
“I went, I don't think it looks very good, and he was like, oh, well, Stewart's paid for it anyway, and I went, well, regardless, it's still the club that's paying for it, it's not, Stewart's not paying for it, I mean, the club will still be paying for it, I went, I don't think that's a great look, Charlie, and he was like, oh, right, okay, well, you can do what you want.
“It was kind of like that, almost as if, well, I can do what I want. I thought, yeah, I need to say something, because I'm, everybody was talking about it, and I was like, he's just jumped out a helicopter, and people are getting made redundant, and I was like, it's an absolutely terrible look, and it's actually disrespectful.”
Where is Charlie Methven now?
Methven is back in League One and is a part-owner at Charlton Athletic. In June 2023, the Addicks announced that SE7 Partners, comprising Methven and Edward Warrick, had agreed to a takeover of the club and the deal was ratified by the EFL shortly after.
Methven also no longer has any involvement in Sunderland after selling his shares while Charlton Athletic remain in League One where Methven found them.
Where is Stewart Donald now?
Donald officially left Sunderland in May 2023 after Louis-Dreyfus and Sartori bought out his remaining shares. Donald had retained a nine per cent stake. However, Louis-Dreyfus and Sartori shared that between them. Louis-Dreyfus increased his stake to 64 per cent, with Juan Sartori increasing his stake to 36 per cent.
The following month, Donald agreed to purchase a controlling stake in non-league club Eastleigh, five years after he had sold the club initially. Sunderland's former owner now has no association with the Wearsiders anymore and remains with the Spitfires, who compete in the National League.