MacAnthony hits back at his online critics

Peterborough’s chairman Darragh MacAnthony has hit back at supporters who have been criticising how he runs the club.

The 40-year-old, who has been chairman of the club since 2006, is a regular user of Twitter and often discusses footballing matters with fans through his own account.

However, with being the chairman of a football club, and being so outspoken, MacAnthony can attract a lot of criticism and online ‘trolls’, something that infuriates him.

He told BBC Radio Cambridgeshire: “They have no clue how to run a football club.

“No disrespect to them, yes they buy a season ticket, but they’re not in a position where they have to make a decision that affects people’s lives.

“You’re talking about the hundreds of people who work for you, you’re talking about the family of the player, you’re talking about the player himself, the after-effect if you don’t do business.

“It’s all about how you handle that, I’ve always felt I’ve got that right.”

MacAnthony has always been open with fans on social media, after joining Twitter in 2011, and one of the main topics can be the club’s transfer dealings.

Having bought and sold an array of players for large fees and to clubs higher up in the footballing spectrum, such as Dwight Gayle to Crystal Palace, Craig Mackail-Smith to Brighton and George Boyd to Hull, MacAnthony prides himself on his performances in transfer windows.

Nevertheless, the Posh chairman has often faced negativity about the club’s transfer policy from certain sectors, and been accused of selling their best players – something which hurts him most.

MacAnthony said: “I was getting it last year with Conor Washington, they were hammering him, he was one of my favourite players and I thought he would come good.

“When I got £2.8m from QPR for him I felt like tweeting a picture of the agreement and going with two fingers to all the people who had, non-stop, had a go.

“In other words: ‘I know what I’m doing, back off, if you think you know what you’re doing go buy a football club.”