Sport
Local consortium confirms Leeds negotiations
By Nick Harris
A representative of the secretive Yorkshire-based consortium that hopes to save Leeds United confirmed yesterday that his group is in "serious negotiations" with the club about a £20m rescue deal.
"I can confirm there's a consortium that I have been asked to represent," said Gerald Krasner, who specialises in corporate recovery, restructuring and insolvency for Bartfields Chartered Accountants in Leeds.
"We know what we have to do and they know where we are coming from. Our objective is to avoid administration at all costs."
Leeds' chief executive and acting chairman, Trevor Birch, will spend the rest of the week in negotiations, seeking a way out of the financial mess that sees Leeds with gross debts of more than £100m. The latest extension to the "standstill agreement" with the club's major creditors runs out on Friday.
Although administration remains a real threat, Birch will not agree a deal with Krasner's group unless he is convinced it is the right long-term move for Leeds. It is thought Birch would still prefer to persuade the players to take a 30 per cent wage deferral, allowing more time to seal the best deal.
A deferral would allow Leeds to trade until the end of the season. It would also mean any buyer would be sure of what kind of club they are getting - Premiership, and thus more buoyant, or Nationwide, and drowning. Senior Leeds executives are planning a "do or die" meeting with the players tomorrow to make another appeal for wage deferrals.
Birch also has the option of asking three former managers - David O'Leary, Terry Venables and Peter Reid - to defer severance payments, with all three confirming they would do so if approached. He could also raise funds by selling the England defender Danny Mills, who is likely to make his move to Middlesbrough permanent.
Krasner, 54, a Leeds fan for 30 years, has refused to identify the other members of his consortium. "There are confidentiality issues and I can't tell you," he said yesterday. "I've had 23 names suggested to me already today, but until it's done I won't be saying any more."
Geoffrey Richmond, the former Bradford chairman, continues to be linked to the bid but reiterated that he has "nothing whatsoever to do with it". The former Huddersfield chairman, Terry Fisher, has also ruled himself out.
Two other names to have been mentioned are Simon Morris, a local property developer, and Melvyn Levy, a local entrepreneur.
Local consortium confirms Leeds negotiations
By Nick Harris
A representative of the secretive Yorkshire-based consortium that hopes to save Leeds United confirmed yesterday that his group is in "serious negotiations" with the club about a £20m rescue deal.
"I can confirm there's a consortium that I have been asked to represent," said Gerald Krasner, who specialises in corporate recovery, restructuring and insolvency for Bartfields Chartered Accountants in Leeds.
"We know what we have to do and they know where we are coming from. Our objective is to avoid administration at all costs."
Leeds' chief executive and acting chairman, Trevor Birch, will spend the rest of the week in negotiations, seeking a way out of the financial mess that sees Leeds with gross debts of more than £100m. The latest extension to the "standstill agreement" with the club's major creditors runs out on Friday.
Although administration remains a real threat, Birch will not agree a deal with Krasner's group unless he is convinced it is the right long-term move for Leeds. It is thought Birch would still prefer to persuade the players to take a 30 per cent wage deferral, allowing more time to seal the best deal.
A deferral would allow Leeds to trade until the end of the season. It would also mean any buyer would be sure of what kind of club they are getting - Premiership, and thus more buoyant, or Nationwide, and drowning. Senior Leeds executives are planning a "do or die" meeting with the players tomorrow to make another appeal for wage deferrals.
Birch also has the option of asking three former managers - David O'Leary, Terry Venables and Peter Reid - to defer severance payments, with all three confirming they would do so if approached. He could also raise funds by selling the England defender Danny Mills, who is likely to make his move to Middlesbrough permanent.
Krasner, 54, a Leeds fan for 30 years, has refused to identify the other members of his consortium. "There are confidentiality issues and I can't tell you," he said yesterday. "I've had 23 names suggested to me already today, but until it's done I won't be saying any more."
Geoffrey Richmond, the former Bradford chairman, continues to be linked to the bid but reiterated that he has "nothing whatsoever to do with it". The former Huddersfield chairman, Terry Fisher, has also ruled himself out.
Two other names to have been mentioned are Simon Morris, a local property developer, and Melvyn Levy, a local entrepreneur.