Kirchner won’t be put off

CHRIS Kirchner will not be put off buying Derby County by the club’s likely fall into League One, it has been claimed.

Derby look set to be hit with an additional nine-point penalty, on top of the 12 for entering administration, making relegation to the third tier almost inevitable.

Administrators Quantuma have challenged the administration penalty and the case has been adjourned. It has been claimed the appeal will be dropped.

The extra nine-point deduction, for breaching Financial Fair Play rules under Mel Morris’ ownership has reportedly been accepted by the club.

American businessman Kirchner has made no secret of his intentions, visiting Pride Park, meeting manager Wayne Rooney and writing an open letter to fans.

According to Sun reporter Alex Nixon, Kirchner will not be be deterred by the prospect of League One football at Pride Park.

Nixon tweeted: “Chris Kirchner will not be put off his bid by the imminent 21 points. That’s official ... they were expecting the extra nine on top of the 12. So that’s a major plus.”

Football finance expert Kieran Maguire has given his take on why Quantuma tried to fight the administration points penalty.

“My understanding from doing a bit of ferreting and talking to journalists was that originally, what the administrators and the EFL wanted to do is to effectively bundle together all of the points deductions,” he said on the Price of Football podcast.

“Because it’s absolutely critical, if you want to buy a football club, the first thing you want to know is a) What am I getting? and b) How much money is the club going to be generating?

“Now, on a 12-point penalty, Derby County have a chance of avoiding relegation – 21 points, I think we can say it drops to pretty close to zero.

“And therefore that would impact upon what a prospective owner is willing to pay. Would you be happy paying £60m-plus for a club in League One? Probably not, especially as Derby County don’t own their stadium and we don’t know what the position of Mel Morris is.

“He’s the person whose financial mismanagement has caused the club to go into administration. He will say that’s not the case, that it’s down to the EFL and Covid.”