Telegraph | Sport | Sainsbury ready to seal �25m Leeds takeover
Sainsbury ready to seal £25m Leeds takeover
By Mark Ogden
(Filed: 10/11/2004)
The financial nightmare that has taken Leeds United from a Champions League semi-final to the brink of extinction in just three years may, finally, be about to end with the latest in a long line of takeover bids set to be completed at Elland Road by the end of this week.
Leeds supporters have heard the phrase, 'it will happen by the end of this week', more often than they have seen `Leeds star sold' on the news stands. An Arab Sheikh, a Ugandan businessman, a Yorkshire-based tycoon and a mysterious Chinese group have all attempted to acquire the fallen giants.
However, the Anglo-American consortium led by Sebastien Sainsbury is now within days of wresting control of the Championship club from the current board having succeeded in persuading chairman Gerald Krasner that his Nova Financial Partners group have the funds to seal a £25 million takeover, which will finally wipe the slate clean at Elland Road.
Should the deal go ahead, manager Kevin Blackwell's position could be in jeopardy.
The club's solicitors, Walker Morris, are sifting through documentation from HSBC Bank which gives the go-ahead for Sainsbury's group to complete a deal with Adulant Force, the holding company formed by the Leeds directors when they took control of the club in March.
"Sufficient documentation has been received that we can now progress," Krasner said. "A deal has not yet been concluded. That will only be the case when contracts have been signed. Before then there will be more meetings and negotiations."
A successful deal between club and consortium appeared distant earlier this week following a row between Sainsbury and the Leeds financial director, Melvin Helme, during a phone-in on the local radio station, Radio Aire. However, with Leeds now accepting the financial strength of the bid, Sainsbury is confident of completing the takeover by Friday. The deal is also expected to see the Brighouse-based haulier and lifelong Leeds fan, Steve Parkin, awarded a place on the new board.
Sainsbury said: "The documents show the money is sitting in a London bank and waiting to be verified by the lawyers of Leeds United. We are confident that even the current board can have no problems with this proof of funding.
"We're hoping for a quick response and we're still confident that the deal can be completed by Friday. It has to be completed by Friday because there is an issue over the loan due to Jack Petchey."
Petchey, the former Watford chairman, loaned the board £15 million in March. He is still owed in the region of £9 million, with a payment of £2.5 million due by the end of the week, but Sainsbury is hopeful of negotiating the terms of the repayments with Petchey.
Sainsbury said: "Providing everything goes to plan this week, we plan to sit down with Petchey and discuss paying the balance back."
Should the financial future of the club be secured by Friday evening, attentions are likely to turn to Blackwell's prospects of holding on to his position. Despite last Saturday's 4-2 victory against Preston at Deepdale, Leeds remain just six points above the relegation zone.
Blackwell has already voiced his frustration at having to operate on a shoestring budget at the same time as offloading high earners to reduce the wage bill, saying: "It's been a real battle. There hasn't been any real investment within the team."
Sainsbury has pledged to provide money for team strengthening in an effort to trigger a rise into the play-off positions in the second half of the season, but only time will tell whether it is Blackwell or a new manager who will have access to those funds.
Sainsbury ready to seal £25m Leeds takeover
By Mark Ogden
(Filed: 10/11/2004)
The financial nightmare that has taken Leeds United from a Champions League semi-final to the brink of extinction in just three years may, finally, be about to end with the latest in a long line of takeover bids set to be completed at Elland Road by the end of this week.
Leeds supporters have heard the phrase, 'it will happen by the end of this week', more often than they have seen `Leeds star sold' on the news stands. An Arab Sheikh, a Ugandan businessman, a Yorkshire-based tycoon and a mysterious Chinese group have all attempted to acquire the fallen giants.
However, the Anglo-American consortium led by Sebastien Sainsbury is now within days of wresting control of the Championship club from the current board having succeeded in persuading chairman Gerald Krasner that his Nova Financial Partners group have the funds to seal a £25 million takeover, which will finally wipe the slate clean at Elland Road.
Should the deal go ahead, manager Kevin Blackwell's position could be in jeopardy.
The club's solicitors, Walker Morris, are sifting through documentation from HSBC Bank which gives the go-ahead for Sainsbury's group to complete a deal with Adulant Force, the holding company formed by the Leeds directors when they took control of the club in March.
"Sufficient documentation has been received that we can now progress," Krasner said. "A deal has not yet been concluded. That will only be the case when contracts have been signed. Before then there will be more meetings and negotiations."
A successful deal between club and consortium appeared distant earlier this week following a row between Sainsbury and the Leeds financial director, Melvin Helme, during a phone-in on the local radio station, Radio Aire. However, with Leeds now accepting the financial strength of the bid, Sainsbury is confident of completing the takeover by Friday. The deal is also expected to see the Brighouse-based haulier and lifelong Leeds fan, Steve Parkin, awarded a place on the new board.
Sainsbury said: "The documents show the money is sitting in a London bank and waiting to be verified by the lawyers of Leeds United. We are confident that even the current board can have no problems with this proof of funding.
"We're hoping for a quick response and we're still confident that the deal can be completed by Friday. It has to be completed by Friday because there is an issue over the loan due to Jack Petchey."
Petchey, the former Watford chairman, loaned the board £15 million in March. He is still owed in the region of £9 million, with a payment of £2.5 million due by the end of the week, but Sainsbury is hopeful of negotiating the terms of the repayments with Petchey.
Sainsbury said: "Providing everything goes to plan this week, we plan to sit down with Petchey and discuss paying the balance back."
Should the financial future of the club be secured by Friday evening, attentions are likely to turn to Blackwell's prospects of holding on to his position. Despite last Saturday's 4-2 victory against Preston at Deepdale, Leeds remain just six points above the relegation zone.
Blackwell has already voiced his frustration at having to operate on a shoestring budget at the same time as offloading high earners to reduce the wage bill, saying: "It's been a real battle. There hasn't been any real investment within the team."
Sainsbury has pledged to provide money for team strengthening in an effort to trigger a rise into the play-off positions in the second half of the season, but only time will tell whether it is Blackwell or a new manager who will have access to those funds.