Ron Gourlay reacts to rumours of West Brom selling The Hawthorns
Ron Gourlay has ruled out the possibility of West Brom selling The Hawthorns or the club’s training ground.
As reported by the Express & Star on 26 July, Sandwell Council are backing a move to get ACV (Asset of Community Value) status for The Hawthorns, which would make it harder to sell, with fans concerned by Guochuan Lai’s recent behaviour behind the scenes.
However, CEO Gourlay has been quoted in the Albion Assembly minutes on 23 September saying that there’s no truth in rumours about selling The Hawthorns.
Speaking to the Albion Assembly on 25 August, Gourlay was quoted in the minutes as saying: “Rumours the club is looking to sell the training ground and/or The Hawthorns are categorically untrue and would not happen.
“[Gourlay] added the club would not object to a group applying for the stadium to become an Asset of Community Value (ACV).”
Believe it when we see it
At the last Albion Assembly meeting, Gourlay told fans that there were no issues with the accounts for 2020/21.
However, as we all know, once those accounts were published, they detailed how Lai had taken a £4.95million loan out of the Baggies in order to help one of his struggling businesses back in Asia.
He missed one repayment date for that but has promised fans it’ll be repaid before the January transfer window, with an extra £50,000 of interest.
No one trusts Lai. And Gourlay has also shown himself to be untrustworthy too.
West Brom are in complete disarray behind the scenes.
From unpaid loans, to doubts about the future of the stadium, to ignoring Shareholders4Albion, to not stocking enough home kits for the club shop.
We’re in need of a massive change and it all starts at the top.
The buck stops with Lai.
He’s got to go.
In other West Brom news, Albion are struggling to sell tickets for a match this weekend with fewer than 10,000 sold.