Everything Jim Rodwell said about the proposed takeover at Sunderland and alarming financial claims

Jim Rodwell says there is a will on all sides to conclude the proposed takeover of Sunderland AFC.
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A consortium led by Kyril Louis-Dreyfus and current minority shareholder is expected to assume the majority shareholding from Stewart Donald, though it is not yet known what stake the individuals concerned will eventually hold.

Talks have been ongoing for a number of months, with supporters concerned at the pace of developments.

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Rodwell addressed the subject for the first time since October, when he confirmed that the club were in a period of exclusivity.

Sunderland CEO Jim Rodwell says there is a will on all sides to conclude a takeover dealSunderland CEO Jim Rodwell says there is a will on all sides to conclude a takeover deal
Sunderland CEO Jim Rodwell says there is a will on all sides to conclude a takeover deal

Since then, planned meetings with supporter groups have been postponed, leading to the Red and White Army to repeatedly call for clarity.

Rodwell said the deal was 'complex', but confirmed that there has been some dialogue with the EFL, suggesting an advancement in negotiations.

"We've been in contact with the EFL and certain documentation has been lodged with the EFL," he said.

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"It's a process that you go through and some documentation has been lodged.

"We're just working through it.

"It just takes time, it is seriously complex. There are so many moving parts to it.

"There's a will to get it done but these things are never done until it's done."

The uncertainty has been compounded by the significant changes to the football operation in recent weeks, with Kristjaan Speakman arriving as Sporting Director and Lee Johnson replacing Phil Parkinson in the dugout.

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Sunderland supporters have also seen a number of takeover bids fail to come to fruition since Madrox took charge in 2018, most recently when the FPP group ultimately opted against taking a majority shareholding, and instead loaned funds into the club.

Rodwell said he understood the concern in the fanbase but insisted that there

"The fans have my absolute sympathy," he said.

"They've been down this road before haven't they, I think it's fair to say.

"It is just a process and I get it, but there is not a lot we can say other than that we're working through the mechanics of it. We're all bound by various confidentiality agreements.

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"There's no great mystery to it, it just takes a lot of time.

"I've done a couple of these and this is undoubtedly the most complex one because of the size of the business, the property you own, loans in place that need to be dealt with.

"Everybody is working coherently and professionally."

Rodwell said that the recent changes to the club structure were utimately decisions taken by the current board.

The Echo understands that the potential new investors were kept informed through the process and ultimately had an involvement.

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The Sunderland CEO said he would be 'amazed' if new ownership did not progress with the structure and personnel now in place.

"The decision to remove Phil was taken by the Sunderland board and the new appointments were made by the board," Rodwell said.

"We'd tried for a while to keep plates spinning but sooner or later you've got to make some decisions.

"I think the calibre of people we brought in speak for themselves, to be honest.

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"I would be astonished if any new ownership group [did not agree], I would be amazed."

Rodwell spoke in the aftermath of national newspaper reports that Stewart Donald had told a meeting of League One bosses on Thursday that the club could be in danger of going into administration.

He insisted that the club was not in immediate financial jeopardy.

The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the terms of the EFL bailout from the Premier League.

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As it stands, League One clubs are set to be handed £375,000 each, with a further £15 million distributed based on lost gate revenue.

A further £20 million is available in 'monitored grants', but any club who takes that funding will be subject to spending restrictions.

Rodwell said Sunderland were simply 'fighting their corner' in arguing that their significant gate losses should be reflected in the final distribution.

"Nothing has been determined yet, we're giving our feedback to the EFL at the moment," he said.

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"It hasn't been set in stone yet. One or two of the methods don't work in the way that we think is fair and equitable, but other people will see it is, and that's the quandary that we're all in at the minute.

"If you look at the combined losses for League One and League Two clubs, it's going to be about £100 million. At the minute we have a £30 million with a £20 million hardship fund.

"The maths don't stack up. We're grateful for it but we wish it was bigger, that's the reality of it.

It's like everything, you've got to fight your corner.

"I think our fans would expect that myself, the board, the owners, will fight for the biggest chunk and that's what we're doing.

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"We're meeting our obligations, there's been movement with the managerial situation, we've brought in a Sporting Director, things are starting to gather pace and it feels as if we are coming out of hibernation.

"But we've got to fight for what we think is fair and is in the best interests of the football club.".

On the administration claims, he said: "We’re not in any danger at all, so everybody can rest easy in that regard. We’re in the same boat as everybody else.

"The owners are funding the losses to around £1million-a-month at the moment, which they have done consistently. That is where we are.”

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Rodwell also paid short shrift to repeated claims from William Storey on social media.

The Echo has consistently reported that he is not deemed to be a credible buyer

“There’s a lot I’d like to say, but I’ll let people make their own minds up,” Rodwell said.

“We’ve made it a policy not to talk about anyone but at the right time… when things come to fruition, I think people will understand.”

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