By Pranav Shahaney

1st Jun, 2023 | 7:40pm

San Francisco 49ers may ditch Leeds United takeover for good as ties may be severed with Andrea Radrizzani

San Francisco 49ers may now ditch the Leeds United takeover for good after what Andrea Radrizzani has done this past week.

The Athletic revealed on 1 June, that the Leeds owner had used Elland Road as collateral to secure a loan that funded his purchase of Serie A club Sampdoria.

That deal went through this week and the process was ongoing during the time the Whites were fighting a relegation battle and Radrizzani did not even visit the stadium.

This clearly shows that he doesn’t really care about the Whites anymore and all his attention was focused in Italy and getting that deal done.

What’s even more damning is that Radrizzani went behind the backs of the 49ers to put the stadium as security for a loan not even related to the club.

This is surely going to infuriate them as there’s an agreement in place for them to buy the club completely in 2024 and it can happen as early as this summer as well.

However, having the stadium used as a security for a third-party loan, is not a wise business model and this could see them walk away from any deal altogether.

The valuation of the club has already dropped and Radrizzani is unlikely to consider too big a difference which is already something the Americans have been negotiating over.

But, this deal may be the straw that’s broken the camel’s back and they may even look to pull out completely and sell their stake in the club.

They’ll perhaps sell to the highest bidder who may or may not be the right for the club and that definitely stems trouble for the Whites.

An answer to this is needed sooner rather than later.

In other Leeds United news, Phil Hay claims that a Whites senior player is now set to leave the club at a discounted fee post relegation and will not be signing a new contract.