Leeds United's Championship promotion rivals 'in talks' for £175m takeover after Everton failure
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A second of Leeds United’s Championship promotion rivals have been given hope of a takeover with reports claiming John Textor and Watford have held ‘preliminary talks’.
Textor is currently attempting to sell his 45 per cent stake in Premier League outfit Crystal Palace following a stand-off with fellow owners and is hoping to raise around £230million. But the American businessman is not done with English football and is keen to reinvest that money and grow his own multi-club network, which includes clubs in France, Belgium and Brazil.
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Hide AdA takeover of fellow top-flight club Everton was mooted but fell through earlier this season, with Textor now turning focus to the EFL in search of investment options. The Sun report on interest in Championship outfit Watford, adding that talks have been held between the prospective buyer and current owners, the Pozzo family.
Chairman Gino Pozzo put a 10 per cent stake up for sale last summer and is thought to be open to offers of a full purchase. The Italian is thought to value his second-tier promotion hopefuls between £150-175m, with Textor reportedly approaching potential investors with a view to forming a consortium.
Any takeover isn’t likely to move quickly, however, with Textor first needing to offload his stake in Crystal Palace. Those shares have been up for sale since February and a bid has been made, albeit a conclusion is not thought to be close.
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Hide AdIt is highly unlikely Watford will be under new ownership when the January transfer opens, but positive news of a takeover could breathe fresh life into the surprise-package promotion contenders. Tom Cleverley’s side weren’t tipped by many to be in the race but sit fifth as things stand.
The Hornets have struggled to find consistency across the campaign but came flying out of the blocks with three straight wins. A rocky period has followed and they were well beaten at Elland Road last month, but victories over Blackburn Rovers and Sheffield Wednesday - the latter a 6-2 thumping - are evidence of the quality on offer at Vicarage Road.
One of Leeds’ promotion rivals does look set to be refreshed by new owners before January though, with reports this week claiming a deal has been agreed for the purchase of Sheffield United. A US-based consortium has been in talks for several months and confirmation of a £105million deal is expected this week.
The purse-strings were tight at Bramall Lane over the summer but incoming chief Steve Rosen could look to splash the cash ahead of Sheffield United’s promotion push. Chris Wilder’s side are already well in the mix and leapfrogged Leeds into second after beating Bristol City 2-1 last night, albeit Daniel Farke’s side can reclaim their place in the automatic promotion spots with victory at Millwall this evening.
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Hide AdBoth Sheffield United and Watford could soon join Leeds in receiving significant investment from the USA, a growing trend across English football. 49ers Enterprises, the investment arm of NFL outfit San Francisco 49ers, became majority owners at Elland Road after buying out Andrea Radrizzani last summer.