West Brom fans will be desperate to show Guochuan Lai the door after new takeover update in last 24 hours
West Brom fans can certainly now start counting down the days till controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai’s much-anticipated exit after a new update emerged.
BBC Sport reported on 30 November that an “outright favourite” has emerged to complete the takeover of West Brom.
The broadcaster reported on its website on Thursday (30 November) that of the three reported potential bidders interested in acquiring the Baggies, one party has emerged and is understood to be the “outright favourite” in the race.
It had been reported that three parties from the United States were interested in buying the club, with a takeover now closer than ever before during Lai’s tenure with the price to acquire Albion set at around £60 million [Tom Collomosse, 15 November].
There had also been reports that parties from the Middle East were interested [Daily Mail, 20 September], but talks seem to be progressing positively, with the managing director Mark Miles confirming that non-disclosure agreements were in place (Albion Assembly Meeting Minutes, 12 October).
Things seem to finally be moving in the right direction at The Hawthorns but there is still a long way to go before there is a change of ownership to get the Baggies in a more positive place financially after a difficult few years.
However, whenever a club are undergoing major difficulty behind the scene, its always important fans can start to see a light at the end of the tunnel and the latest development from BBC Sport certainly depicts that image at The Hawthorns.
The Albion faithful have been heavily protesting for much of 2023 for Lai to leave the club as soon as possible, with the money he owes to be paid back to the club plus interest after missing three deadlines to make the payment.
When a club owner promises they’ll do something in the interests of a major football club, they simply have to follow through and show their integrity or else their position comes under major scrutiny, and it was only right Lai’s continued incompetence came under the microscope.
There really is no trust and confidence from the West Brom faithful and the club’s other shareholders in Lai’s ownership and something has seriously got to give.
Lai’s continued lack of communication and transparency in regard to their financial issues has been a huge concern and yet another example of his lack of leadership as a controlling shareholder of such a prestigious football club.
Certainly, a takeover of West Brom could well be miles away but this latest development this week is sure to give fans and those behind-the-scenes at the club plenty of encouragement heading into a busy few months.
Daily Mail reported on 8 November that Lai appears to be edging towards the exit as talks are ongoing with two potential parties.
Fans can certainly now start counting down the days until Lai is packing his bags for good.
In other West Brom news, Guochuan Lai appears to be very close to an exit from the Hawthorns amid a recent development involving a takeover specialist.