Takeover collapses, what now? Is there still hope?

LUST have confirmed today in an official email to members and to followers on Twitter that the proposed takeover of Leeds United has collapsed. After more than two months of confirmed due diligence the deal has broken down for whatever reason. There are many rumours circulating as to why the breakdown has occurred, but the one that has the most substance is that Bates has changed his demands at the last minute. Adam Pope of BBC Radio Leeds claims that LUST have told him that Bates is an ‘unwilling’ seller and that he has ‘moved the goalposts at the last minute’. I for one firmly believe that this will be the case, with Bates no doubt wanting to still earn out of Leeds after he has gone. Remember that this is what he tried to do at Chelsea, and he is rumoured to still own shares in the hotel at Stamford Bridge.

Well as I am writing this Leeds have released a statement that to me says that takeover talks could still continue but they are willing to listen to other offers. They say the exclusivity agreement is over and that ‘the club remains happy to continue discussions, but not on an exclusive basis, so as not to prevent other options passing’. This could of course all be more spin from the club. Either way I think this takeover saga is far from over. As for what this means for our season, it could very easily all go downhill from here. Crowds will no doubt drop even further and the Bates out chants that players admitted affected them last season, will no doubt be chanted with more venom. The atmosphere at Elland Road could soon get even more venomous if results don’t go our way. The players will feel it and this season could all very soon go down the pan that is League 1.

This is of course one of many scenarios, but with Leeds, it’s the most likely as everything seems to always go against us, especially when we are down. The support has been fantastic these past seven years but I feel that we’ve all finally had enough, and if the truth be told, Bates has taken a chunk from the hearts of all Leeds fans. We seemed to have lost some of that ‘never say die’ attitude, some of that ‘us against the world’, ‘up and at them’ philosophy that has driven this great club on for decades. I for one cannot wait for the day I can just support a football club again and not worry about, what’s happening in the board room. I want us to spend reasonably and within our limits, is that too much to ask? Well I think we all know the answer to that with Bates in charge.