tribalfooball.com - February 25,
2007
Manchester City's board will meet today to discuss the prospect of
selling up.
A British-based consortium led by Ray Ranson, a former City player
and wealthy entrepreneur, is rivalling unnamed United States
investors for control of City. The Americans are understood to be
favoured by the club.
City's share price rose from about 25p to 33p to value the company
at about £18 million after an announcement on Thursday that the
club were in "preliminary discussions" that "may or may not lead"
to an offer being made.
The Times says the American bid is believed to be leveraged and
could result in the club, who have existing debts in excess of £50
million, falling deeper into the red, a nightmare scenario for
supporters who fear that the club could be saddled with a debt in
much the same way Manchester United were when the Glazer family
took over at Old Trafford.
That factor may play into the hands of Ranson, whose attempts to
buy the club have been rebuffed and who failed with a £45 million
bid for Aston Villa last summer. City are understood to have
concerns about whether Ranson's consortium has sufficient
resources, but it is thought to be prepared to take on City's debts
and not saddle the club with additional debt.
EPL will be more interesting in 2 years time
