Leeds United takeover update as ‘genuine fears’ emerge on total 49ers Enterprises deal collapse
There are “genuine fears” at Leeds United that relegation will see 49ers Enterprises abandon their takeover of the club, The Guardian reports.
The long-awaited transfer of power from Andrea Radrizzani to the US-based outfit is expected this summer if the Whites succeed in reaching safety in their second consecutive relegation battle, with the Italian reportedly eyeing a bid for Inter afterwards [Bloomberg, 13 April].
But while the agreement has always been at risk of going back to the drawing board if Premier League status is not secured, there are apparently real doubts that it would not survive at all if the club go down, making the contrast in potential fortunes over the next few weeks huge.
Louise Taylor writes in The Guardian: “Throughout it all the San Francisco-based 49ers Enterprises is edging closer to the point when it will finally decide whether to complete a long-mooted, and potentially transformative, takeover of Leeds.
“That buyout could facilitate the start of currently delayed but desperately needed reconstruction work on the increasingly dated Elland Road, but there are genuine fears that relegation might preface an unwanted sliding doors moment, with 49ers Enterprises walking away.
“In contrast, survival would enable them to maximise the record £189m turnover revealed in Leeds’s latest accounts, which thanks to the sterling commercial work of the chief executive, Angus Kinnear, already eclipses those commanded by most rivals outside the Premier League’s top six.”
Pressure
It is no secret that the club’s short-term future relies heavily on top flight safety and this deal going through in the next few months.
Elland Road needs work and the finances required to remain a going concern in the English Premier League have reached such high levels that getting back anywhere close to where the club was operating before the last time they fell from the top table needs more backing that the current regime can provide.
Having been involved with the club for five years and inched closer and closer to a full takeover for so long it would be a shock for the 49ers to abandon those plans entirely.
But if there are genuine fears behind the scenes that such an eventuality is possible they won’t have come from nowhere, and at the very least everything will need to be re-drafted and pushed possibly years down the line.
Javi Gracia has given the Whites a fighting chance with 10 points recorded since taking over from the win-averse Jesse Marsch.
But the 5-1 hammering at home to Crystal Palace (9 April) ahead of a visit from the Jekyll and Hyde version of Liverpool (17 April) has seen doubts creep back in.
Now, a much-improved performance is the absolute least that needs to be on display against Jurgen Klopp’s men, even in defeat, to lift confidence ahead of the crucial run in.
In other Leeds United news, a furious Sky Sports pundit has accused a Whites ace of cheating after what he saw him do.