Aussies eye up Coventry City
MEDIA REPORTS DOWN UNDER CLAIM AN AUSTRALIAN CONSORTIUM IS CONSIDERING A TAKEOVER BID
COVENTRY City is one of six English clubs being eyes up by an Australian consortium, according to media reports Down Under.
Aussie newspaper the Herald Sun is reporting that the consortium has ordered financial experts Deloitte to conduct a feasibility study into Coventry City and five other English clubs ahead of launching a takeover bid.
The consortium is headed up by Gerard Murphy, a renowned business consultant who specialises in work with professional sports organisations.
He is reportedly aiming to raise in excess of £30million from investors in a bid to secure an English club for the consortium.
Mr Murphy is understood to be working alongside Philip Aiken, a fel- low Aussie who is currently the chairman of building firm Balfour Beatty and Cambridge-based business consultancy firm Aveva.
The group is said to be confident of securing a team by the start of next season.
Speaking to the Herald Sun, Mr Murphy said the consortium would probably look to appoint its own manager if it secures a club.
But he added the investors would not want to upset supporters by making wholesale changes to the club in the early stages.
He said: “What we don’t want to do is what so many owners do and that’s alienating the fans early.
“English football fans are so passionate, in the initial stages at least, we would not appoint anything but a coach or manager that had an appeal to local supporters.
“We’re really conscious of, if we can get it up and running, rebuilding the club so we’re looking at one that’s not travelling well.”
Mr Murphy has sought advice from former Middlesbrough and Fulham goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer as well as Australia’s national team manger Ange Postecoglou.
But he ruled out looking to appoint an Aussie to the manager’s role in the immediate future.
He said: “I’ve spoken to Ange a few times, but we have never spoken about him being manager of the club.
“I’ve known Ange for some time, he loves football and he’s seen our feasibility study and thinks it can work.
“Ange has agreed to take a phone call, but it’s about covering as many bases as we can and having those trusted people you can call to seek advice from and his football advice has been invaluable.
“We need to appoint a manager who’s going to appeal to the fans, so that automatically disqualifies any Australian manager initially.
“Down the track it could be a completely different scenario.”
Coventry City has been the subject of two bids from former CCFC vice chairman Gary Hoffman in recent weeks.
The chief executive of the Hasting Group has indicated he will return with a fresh offer after having both bids dismissed as “derisory” by the club’s London hedge fund owners Sisu. His latest bid could have been worth in excess of £10million - but came with an initial up front payment of £1.2m. CCFC supporters’ group the Sky Blue Trust has expressed an interest in a supporter-led takeover of the club. It has approached Sisu chief executive Joy Seppala over talks twice - but has been snubbed on both occasions. The group wanted to undertake exploratory discussions with a view to starting fundraising activities if it was given an indication a deal could be possible. Last week, the Sky Blue Trust expressed a desire to meet with Mr Hoffman and discuss whether the group could support Mr Hoffman’s consortium of local businessmen.