Charlton Athletic have once again been linked with a takeover with a Belgian businessman the latest to be linked with the club.
This is what Charles Sale reported in the Daily Mail:
“Charlton are the latest English club to come under foreign ownership with a deal agreed on Friday night with Belgian millionaire and political activist Roland Duchatelet.
The business tycoon who made his fortune in electronics is understood to have paid a cut-price £14m for the London club who are currently lying sixth from bottom in the Championship.
The takeover follows the collapse last month at the due diligence stage of a proposed purchase of Charlton by American sports franchise owner Josh Harris.
There was considerable urgency for a new owner to be found as London property developer Kevin Cash, who has been bankrolling Charlton, was no longer prepared to put in further funding.
Duchatelet is a high profile figure in Belgium where he owns Standard Liege, the current leaders of the Belgian Pro League, as well as founding a small social liberal political party Vivant who believe in a basic minimum wage for all.
He paid around £35m to buy Standard Liege in 2011. But fans were furious with his policy of selling the club’s best players leading to pitch invasions and demonstrations in the streets of Liege.
But Duchatelet’s appointment of unknown 38-year-old Isreali coach Guy Luzon last summer has helped turn around supporter opinion of the owner with Luzon leading Liege to the top of the table.
And Duchatelet said last month that Liege’s star striker Michy Batshuayi, a January transfer window target for Arsenal, is not for sale.”
Sale reported the proposed deal with Harris a few weeks back but gave the price as £43m rather than the widely quoted £18m asking price.
The rumour was that the deal with Harris broke down over the price. Whether the new interest, or the the reduced price of £14m, renews Harris’ interest remains to be seen.
Any new owner would want to make changes to the squad in January, so it is likely that a deal will be completed quickly.