Andrea Radrizzani speaks out on Elland Road controversy after confirmed 49ers Enterprises takeover at Leeds United
Former Leeds United owner Andrea Radrizzani lifted the lid on reports he offered Elland Road as collateral to secure a loan to help buy Sampdoria admitting it was never his intention to risk the stadium.
Leeds United announced on Monday (17 July) that the EFL had approved the sale of the club to American investment group 49ers Enterprises, putting an official end to Radrizzani’s five-year ownership.
And in June, the Italian business now owner of Sampdoria instigated serious controversy in West Yorkshire by when it was reported he had offered Elland Road stadium as collateral when he co-signed an agreement in principle for a £26million loan to help buy Sampdoria, although no evidence emerged it was proposed this way.
And speaking to Sky Sports News (18 July), Radrizzani confirmed the venue is secure under the new owners and it was never his intention to risk the stadium.
He said: “I was involved in trying to find a solution to try to save Sampdoria from bankruptcy – which we did, luckily.
“In conversations with the bank, I offered my own group corporate guarantee as collateral for some financing and they asked about the stadium.
“In the end, we found a completely different solution but it was only part of the conversation. There’s been a lot of speculation around this. I understand the fans’ feelings but nothing happened in this way.”
Asked if Elland Road would be secure under the 49ers, he replied: “Yes, it will. It was never the intention to risk Elland Road at all.”
Time to look forward
There were so many questions that were unanswered at Leeds United during that period, and the one major one was the makeup of the ownership moving forward.
It looked almost impossible for Radrizzani to fall any lower in the estimations of the Whites’ fanbase, but the reports surrounding Elland Road certainly dented his reputation even further amongst the whole club.
Now, with the future of Leeds United secure under 49ers ownership, all parties will be desperately seeking to move forward now and totally forget about what transpired over a month ago.
Radrizzani has his Sampdoria wish, 49ers are now full owners at Leeds United and Elland Road is now secure with the American consortium in full control of the stadium for the long haul.
The Leeds United faithful won’t want to be dwelling on this sorry debacle any longer, with the whole club and new manager Daniel Farke looking ahead to a bright future which starts with promotion back to Premier League for the 2024/25 campaign. That is of paramount importance now.
In other Leeds United news, Wilfried Gnonto is set to meet Daniel Farke today for the first time as he returns for pre-season