West Brom takeover ‘clock is ticking’ after new MSD loan taken as £26m cash may already be spent
With parachute payments already finished at West Brom the previous £20million loan and the fee received for selling Dara O’Shea to Burnley may already be gone, according to Action for Albion.
The Baggies campaign group reacted on Twitter (30 November) to news that the club has taken out an additional loan from MSD Holdings, having also borrowed from the last December, to point out the “clock is ticking” on a pending takeover.
Without the benefit of the parachute payments which helped West Brom record a small profit on the previous accounts it is now “not inconceivable” that last year’s loan and the £6m from O’Shea’s summer exit may already be used up, hence the need for more borrowing.
Action for Albion wrote: “Just to add, with regard to why money is required. In the last accounts we made a small profit. That was with £28m parachute payments.
“We don’t have that this season, so it’s not inconceivable that the £20m plus £6m for O Shea has now been used. The clock is ticking.”
Holding out
Evidently West Brom are currently needing repeated cash injections just to continue functioning throughout the season, with no prospect of the financial burden being eased by majority shareholder Guochuan Lai.
There is at least now light at the end of the tunnel with the prospect of a takeover now appearing to be genuinely serious.
The Telegraph’s John Percy reported on 29 November that the intention is to have a deal “concluded” by the New Year, which would clearly be extremely helpful in terms of the January transfer window.
While it is hardly a positive for more and more debt to be built up against The Hawthorns and the training ground it is probably the lesser evil, compared to gutting a squad that Carlos Corberan has challenging for promotion.
In theory, if the club can just hold on with the current playing staff in tact until one of the multiple interested parties take over to ease a perilous financial situation then the borrowing won’t have to continue and the operation on the pitch can be maintained.
A return to the top flight and the riches that entails, on top of a secure ownership situation, should give the Albion a valuable platform to pay off their debts while remaining competitive.
The stakes are high right now without a takeover sealed but if one can get over the line then perhaps there is a brighter West Brom future now not far away.
In other West Brom news, the Baggies are chasing the possible transfer of an EFL “assist king” in the upcoming transfer window.