EFL does ‘absolutely nothing’ about West Brom owner Guochuan Lai with loans yet to be repaid
The English Football League are doing “absolutely nothing” to help prevent West Bromwich Albion from going down the same path as Bury, Macclesfield or Oldham as the club’s majority shareholder Guochan Lai is still to repay the club’s loans, according to Daily Mail journalist Lewis Steele.
The Times reported on 3 January that Lai had taken out a new high-interest £20 million loan, having missed the repayment deadline for the money he had borrowed for one of his other companies.
This comes after the Chinese owner had promised that the £4.95million loan, plus interest, will be paid back early in 2023 after already missing two repayment deadlines.
Previous reports emerging of a new £20 million loan is said to have further damaging repercussions for the Baggies, and finance expert and football author Martin Calladine previously expressed his dismay at the development, tweeting: “None of this is in the best interests of WBA. The owner has mortgaged the ground in the desperate hope the club gets promoted and, presumably, he can then sell the club and recoup his investment. If this irresponsible gamble doesn’t come off, the consequences will be disastrous.”
Daily Mail journalist Steele has expressed his own concerns at Lai’s actions and has urged the English Football League to take action or the Baggies could follow previous clubs in suffering from financial damage.
Writing for his Daily Mail column [13 February] he said: “West Brom’s story is just another in a growing list of clubs being run into the ground by owners. What are the EFL doing to help prevent the Baggies going the same way as Bury, Macclesfield or Oldham? Absolutely nothing.”
Take action
Something has got to be done about this situation brewing at the Hawthorns. Steele is right, the EFL have got to be proactive and take action before the division loses yet another big club because of financial incompetence.
What has happened to the likes of Derby, Bury and Macclesfield in the past is simply unthinkable when discussing West Brom, but the same could have been said about the Rams before they entered administration.
No club is immune from such a disaster, and the blame, of course, has to be put forward on Lai who has failed to act in the interest of the club and its supporters but for himself.
However, what happens next will be put forward to the EFL, not the club’s board and Lai. They have simply got to take responsibility here, or else the repercussions could be incredibly worse than they’ve already gotten.
All of Carlos Corberan’s good work since his appointment at the helm could be terribly undone in a matter of a few months.
In other West Brom news, Carlos Corberan opens up on the future of winger Karlan Grant after his Swansea January transfer collapsed on deadline day.