Krasner: Battle for control of Leeds isn't over Former Leeds chairman Gerald Krasner believes the battle for control at Elland Road is only just starting.
The club went into administration yesterday and administrators KPMG immediately agreed to sell the club back to a new company, Leeds United Football Club Limited, headed by current chairman Ken Bates, chief executive Shaun Harvey and director Mark Taylor. KPMG sanctioned the sale to "maximise the possibility of survival of this major football club" but a Company Voluntary Arrangement (CVA) has yet to be approved by United's creditors at a meeting later this month and the Football League must also sanction the deal. Meanwhile Krasner, whose consortium rescued Leeds from almost certain administration back in March 2004, has urged KPMG "to consider all available options", insists seven other consortiums are queueing up to launch takeover bids. Krasner, a specialist in corporate insolvency and director of Leeds-based solicitors Bartfields, told PA Sport: "The Bates deal is not a done deal because it has to be approved by creditors and I know of seven other consortiums who are interested in making a bid for Leeds. "I know there are seven other interested parties because over the last three weeks I've received phone calls from representatives asking me for technical advice. "It's certainly not for me to name names, but they know I know a bit about Leeds. "I must stress I'm not part of any of these consortiums. I have no financial interest in any of this." By placing the club in the hands of administrators from accountancy firm KPMG, Bates hopes to wipe out at a stroke the majority of current debts of £35million and start next season with a clean slate. If that happens the club will become a more attractive proposition for would-be investors. The Football League immediately imposed a 10-point penalty on Leeds yesterday in keeping with their rules on clubs who enter administration confirming their relegation to Coca-Cola League One. Bates was keen to ensure the points deduction was incurred this season as Leeds were almost certain to be relegated anyway after tomorrow's final match at Derby. Krasner added: "This latest strategy has been worked out under the assumption that there are no other people in town. "But the truth is there are people in town, they just don't want to work with Ken Bates and have been waiting to work with the administrators." Richard Fleming, joint administrator and KPMG Restructuring partner, said: "We were asked by the board of directors to advise Leeds United on Monday April 30, 2007. "The club has experienced significant financial difficulty for some years and was burdened with historic debt and wage structures. "It was necessary for the club to enter administration as its balance sheet dated March 31, 2007, indicated debts totalling approximately £35million, with a cash injection of approximately £10million required to continue trading. "Further, Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs recently issued a winding-up petition for approximately £5million. If this debt had not been paid by June 25 2007, the club may have been forced into liquidation." Among those parties interested in launching takeover bids is Leeds-based property entrepreneur Simon Morris. The 29-year-old, worth a reported £69million and recently installed on The Times' rich-list as the 10th wealthiest person aged under 30 in the UK, is a former director at the club. Morris was part of the Krasner-led board that slashed the Leeds' debts from a reported £103million to £20million, but without the backing of heavy investment handed the baton on to Bates in January 2005. It has also been reported that two Irish-based consortiums have approached recently-retired Leeds defender Gary Kelly about fronting their potential bids for the fallen Yorkshire giants and a report today claimed former West Ham chairman Terence Brown was also interested. _______________________________________________ the Leeds List is an unmoderated mailing list and the list administrators accept no liability for the personal views and opinions of contributors. Leedslist mailing list [email protected] http://list.zetnet.co.uk/mailman/listinfo/leedslist The Leeds List - "where never is heard a discouraging word..."
