TalkSPORT pundit Simon Jordan has warned Sheffield Wednesday owner Dejphon Chansiri that an independent regulator could force him out of the club if he doesn’t accept a bid from potential buyers.
It’s been yet another miserable week for the Owls, who have had to contend with a another round of missed salary payments. This is the fifth time in the last seven months that players have found themselves in this predicament, which has led to reports claiming they could be deducted as much as 15 points.
A host of first team players departed Hillsborough during the summer due to the situation, whilst a transfer embargo limited Wednesday’s dealings in the transfer market. This led to them beginning the season with a vastly inexperienced squad. Therefore, it is no surprise to see them languishing in the relegation zone.
Jordan Warns Chansiri
Despite constant pressure, Chansiri remains steadfast in his belief that he won’t sell the club unless any interested parties meet his valuation. That is said to be a staggering £100 million. Former Sky Sports host Jim White told talkSPORT this morning that he had spoken to the owner, who had said there were currently no update. This led to co-host Simon Jordan issuing a warning to the businessman that he could be forcibly removed by an independent regulator:
“What happens in the short-term is more painful for Sheffield Wednesday fans until such a time as the owner is taken out one way or another by someone meeting his price or an administrative intervention. The independent regulator will have the bandwidth to do it. The man is breaching his covenant as an owner, he will be held and will be seen as not a fit and proper person by the independent regulator and they will take action.
“That will probably extend beyond the remit of the EFL and they’ll be able to do things that the EFL aren’t able to do, they’d want to do it because the EFL don’t want to run a football club – but it would be interesting to see if they do take it off Chansiri and put their own people in, who they’ve got to do that at independent regulator level. It won’t go on, it’s not going to be allowed to turn into a situation where Sheffield Wednesday don’t exist and as I said earlier on, and I know it’s a trite statement but I’ll say it all the same, football clubs don’t go bust, owners do.
“Whilst he’s not going bust, his ownership model is going bust, he isn’t bankrolling the football club, he isn’t acting in the best interest of the football club, he is doing anything but that and there may be good reason behind it, maybe he has run out of money. But he’s going to have to accept that Sheffield Wednesday is no longer a going concern for him and he has to accept a price in the same way the fella at Reading accepted it, sooner rather than later.”
Writer’s View
This is an increasingly desperate situation for Sheffield Wednesday and one that needs to reach a conclusion quickly. This has already dragged out far too long and it is players, staff and supporters caught in the crossfire. Hopefully Simon Jordan is correct that an independent regulator could intervene, but there still doesn’t appear to be any light at the end of the tunnel just yet.
