WHEN Bill Foley’s takeover at Cherries was confirmed in mid-December, it was greeted largely with excitement on the south coast.

After the incredible decade of Maxim Demin, the time felt right for a change, with investment clearly needed to give Cherries a fighting chance of Premier League survival.

Foley swooped in, bringing with him Hollywood star Michael B Jordan as well as the glitz and glamour of a new pre-match hype video and pyrotechnics.

Things fell flat on the pitch, Cherries beaten 2-0 at home by Crystal Palace, but anticipation remained with promise of investment in the January transfer window.

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And Foley stuck to his word, committing to around £75million in transfer fees, bringing in six players to significantly bolster the options available to boss Gary O’Neil.

Of course, how it all pans out is still far from certain. Cherries sit in the relegation zone and face three of the traditional ‘big six’ in their seven fixtures before the March international break.

Thrown in there also are clashes against two of the most in-form teams in the country in Newcastle and Brighton, as well as potentially defining trips to Wolves and Aston Villa.

Despite Foley’s insistence Cherries will not be relegated, that is far from guaranteed, regardless of the business done in the January window.

But one thing is for sure, Foley has done all he can in a short space of time to try and keep Cherries in the top flight.

The final two deals of deadline day probably typified the dawn of a new era as much as anything else. Midfielder Hamed Traore, one of Europe’s bright young prospects, arrived from Sassuolo on a deal which will turn permanent in the summer for around £21million.

Out went Ben Pearson, a player who showed he can offer something at this level, but has, for the majority of his career, been a regular in the second tier. To boot, Traore swooped to snatch Pearson’s number 22 shirt, just hours over the combative midfielder had made the move to Stoke.

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As excited as Cherries fans are with their new era, with players such as Illia Zabarnyi, Antoine Semenyo and Dango Ouattara also arriving for significant fees, it has been a slightly different picture at FC Lorient.

A month after his takeover of Cherries was ratified by the Premier League, Foley completed the acquisition of a minority stake in Ligue 1 outfit Lorient.

It is all part of the American billionaire’s long-term plans for a multi-club structure.

While the focus at Cherries has been on strengthening the squad to avoid relegation, at Lorient, they are enjoying a fantastic season, sitting seventh in the top tier in France. They are looking to equal or better their best-ever top-flight finish of seventh in the 2009-10 campaign.

However, in the past month, two of the players who have played a huge role in getting Lorient to that position have been sold. As well as Ouattara joining Cherries, days after Foley’s arrival at Lorient was confirmed, the club also allowed star striker Terem Moffi to join fellow French side Nice.

Cherries were also interested in Lorient midfielder Enzo Le Fee, but he opted to stay put.

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Asked what Lorient fans have made of Foley’s arrival, journalist Arnaud Huchet, who has covered the fortunes of the club for Ouest-France for around eight years, told the Daily Echo: “Some of them are worried, because some of them are waiting to see what happens. Maybe Lorient gets richer, so can have more money and buy more players and good players, so strengthen with money.

“But some others are concerned about the identity of the club. You get bought around 40 per cent by an American, who has an English club, which is 18th in the Premier League, so might go in the Championship next year.

“Normally, when you have a multi-club (structure), you are the satellite of a big one like Man City, Man United or Arsenal.

“But when you are the satellite of Bournemouth, you think okay, but people think how are Bournemouth better than Lorient? Because they are seventh in French Ligue 1. That is the feeling.

“Of course, now the president of Lorient (Loic Fery) works in trading and lives in London, he is still owning the club, but people think maybe he could leave in a few years and Bill Foley could take 100 per cent of the capital.

“Selling the club to an American owner is always strange, because it is a little club, a family club. A club from Brittany, so that has local history.

“There is a feeling that globalisation strikes this Brittany football club. It’s so strange. It’s happening, so now people are concerned about what will happen in the future.”

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That concern from some became clear for all to see on January 19. The Merlus Ultras, a group of passionate Lorient fans, used Twitter to post an open letter to Fery to their following of more than 3,000.

The message, which was released just as Ouattara was moving from Lorient to Cherries, expressed their displeasure at Foley’s involvement.

It questioned how having Foley on board could damage the club’s identity and historical family values, adding further concerns about links to Cherries, including them looking to buy Lorient’s star players and querying how they can be a ‘parent’ club to a team sitting in the top half of Ligue 1.

In response, Fery issued a lengthy official statement to supporters.

In it, he said: “I read with attention the reactions of some of you, in particular those of Merlus Ultras, after the entry into the capital of a new minority shareholder at my side.

“I have never hidden the possibility of reviewing our shareholder model to share the risks and above all increase the chances of making FC Lorient more solid by continuing to develop it.

“I understand that timing breeds confusion. The transfer of Dango is singled out, as if this sale meant that we gave up all ambition and as if our player had signed at Bournemouth under duress.

“Dango will be able to express why he and his agent made this choice rather than another. Even if FC Lorient opens the door to a departure, I prefer to conclude with the club which offered us the best offer, the amount of which will allow us to better arm our workforce.

“The partnership with our new shareholder from the United States seems demonised. However, his arrival opens doors for us without closing those of our management autonomy and without compromising our values ​​or our identity. I understand that you express concerns about what still represents the unknown in your eyes; we will do what is necessary to enlighten you and reassure you.

“I repeat that FC Lorient will not become a ‘branch’.

“During our discussions with Bill Foley, I also noticed that he was ready to learn from the history of the Merlus. And his presence by my side is therefore not the result of chance.”

Discussing his plans for a multi-club structure himself, during a round-table with media, including the Echo, at Vitality Stadium, Foley explained: “It’s to control our destiny. It’s to develop players in other locations through buying clubs that have great academies, that are developing their own players.

“We believe we’ve settled on a really interesting opportunity in Ligue 1.”

He went on to explain how he would like to add two more clubs to his portfolio.

“A lot of people are coming at us with a lot of different ideas, but they have to realise we are calculated in the way that we buy clubs, we don’t overpay,” said Foley, who bought Cherries for £100million, potentially rising to £120m.

“We want to be careful about that. And there’s lots of opportunities.

“We’ll have a European third club that will be maybe a level below Ligue 1 and then we’ll take a look in South America and start really investigating that.

“Because that’s the feeder system. A Uruguayan club that can feed in to a Belgium club, that can feed in to a French club that can feed in to a Premier League club. And we’re controlling our destiny, with Bournemouth at the top of the pyramid.”

Asked why Lorient have performed so well this season, which has ultimately led them to being an attractive proposition for Foley, journalist Huchet told the Echo: “They have a new coach, Regis Le Bris, who has a ‘hype’.

“He is one of the most trendy coaches in France, because he is young, he has ideas, he speaks very well, he is clever. He has made zero mistakes so far, so it is good.

“The team plays good, although it is a little bit harder since before the World Cup.

“But the beginning of the season was fantastic, so there is like a new wind and a new hope. That’s why also Lorient’s boss is selling the club now.

“It is because it has value, it is seventh, there are 20million euro players. So it is logical.”

Discussing the sale of star players in January, Huchet explained: “It is a good moment to sell, because they are sure to stay in French Ligue 1.

“It is also a good moment to sell, because the three players we are talking about, which are the three most valuable players of Lorient, their contracts end in June 2024.

“If you want to sell them expensive, it is now. It won’t be next summer, because next summer it will be only one year left and you lose maybe half of the money. That’s why they are selling.”

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There certainly seems to be a lot of logic to the way Foley operates, even if this is his first ventures into football.

But successfully operating a multi-club model in football, especially with fanbases like those at smaller clubs such as Cherries and Lorient, is likely to throw up plenty of challenges around maintaining club identity and culture.

Results on the pitch will be the obvious measure of success, for any of Foley's clubs.

But communication, something Foley seems good at, will be key to appeasing and reassuring fans, potentially in four different countries at once, along the way.

Ultimately, Foley has arrived at two clubs at a time when they are in almost as good a shape as they have ever been in their combined 200-plus years of existence.

A lot of supporters at both Cherries and Lorient have sat through the dark times.

Both clubs have suffered big financial difficulties in the past 25 years. To now be run by an American billionaire will take some getting used to.

It is a new era for everybody.

(Pictures: Richard Crease & AFC Bournemouth)