Sheffield Wednesday’s preferred bidder finally named, but huge 25-26 points deduction is happening
Sheffield Wednesday have finally named their preferred bidder as they continue to edge towards a potential takeover.
The Owls have been in administration since October, when controversial owner Dejphon Chansiri was finally prized away from the club.
Wednesday’s takeover situation has been looking up of late, with a number of potential candidates coming forward as options to buy the club.
However, the situation on the pitch has remained hugely difficult for the South Yorkshire outfit, as they remain rooted to the bottom of the Championship table on minus-nine points after being hit with another deduction at the start of December.
Mike Ashley named as preferred bidder as new points deduction imminent
Former Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley submitted a £20million bid to buy Sheffield Wednesday at the end of November, as he thrust himself forward as a leading candidate to take the reins of the struggling club.
The 61-year-old has been battling for exclusivity with an American consortium led by John McEvoy and the Storch family, and he has now won that race to be allowed to pursue a deal for the club.
McEvoy’s consortium have been unable to come up with a non-refundable deposit to buy the club, accoridng to journalist Arif Ahmed via his X account, so Ashley is set to be named as the preferred bidder.
However, the ex-Newcastle chief’s bid is below the £30m mark that McEvoy’s reached, and as a result, Sheffield Wednesday are set to be deducted a huge 15 points by the EFL at the start of next season.
Mike Ashley to be under heavy scrutiny at Sheffield Wednesday
Ashley was a hated figure among Newcastle supporters during his 14-year reign over the North East outfit, as fans regularly directed criticism towards him for the lack of investment in the team.
The Magpies faithful quickly built a villainous reputation for him during his time at the helm, and that doesn’t bode particularly well for Sheffield Wednesday.
The Championship outfit are not in a position to be picky in regards to who buys the club and leads them out of administration, but there will undoubtedly still be an element of concern from supporters that, under Ashley, their situation may not get much better.
He will be under heavy scrutiny from the wider footballing world after the way that his time at St James’ Park drew to a close, and Wednesday will certainly be hoping that he has learned from his previous mistakes.