Derby County have officially entered administration as a points deduction looks set to send the club bottom of the Championship.
The news was confirmed on Wednesday when Derby, managed by former England captain Wayne Rooney, announced business advisory firm Quantuma had been appointed as administrators.
Under EFL rules Derby will now be handed a 12-point deduction, with the club – currently 12th on 10 points – set to go 24th in the table with -2 points.
A further nine-point deduction is in the pipeline too, after Derby fell foul of the Championship’s financial fair play rules.
That would place them on -11 points, 15 behind Nottingham Forest who currently sit bottom of the second tier.
‘Remember those who stand to lose the most’
i chief football writer Daniel Storey:
Some of those involved in the wretched over-spending and desperation to reach the Premier League will pay the cost of administration. Owner Mel Morris claims to have ploughed £200m of his personal fortune into the club and may get little of it back. But then Morris was worth £515m at the last count and it is he who led Derby into this calamity by chasing the Premier League dream.
The players and management will also feel uneasy. Although their wages should be protected through the PFA (and they sit at the top of the list of creditors), administrators will look to raise quick revenue from sales. Historically, offers have been accepted for way below market value and they may have little say over their next destination.
But below them sit a workforce who will spend this week worrying about whether they will still have a job in one week, one month or one year. Unlike players, there is less obvious scope to find another job quickly in a grim Covid-19 financial climate and employment market. While Morris counts the cost of lost investment, these staff members worry about mortgage payments, rising energy prices, putting food on the table and the financial security of their families with Christmas around the corner.
Owner Mel Morris had been looking to sell the club, but a takeover by Spanish businessman Erik Alonso was called off in May, two months after talks with a separate venture, Derventio Holdings fell through.
A Derby statement last Friday said: “This action was made necessary by a number of developments. Last week, it became clear that the process which has been underway to identify a purchaser likely would not be productive over the near term, despite the number of negotiations with credible parties.
“The irony is that the club’s financial forecasts show the emergence of a financially sustainable picture. Absent the COVID-19 pandemic, we undoubtedly would have been able to trade through. However, the impact of COVID-19 pandemic and the unpredictability it has created represents too much of a strain.
“We appeal to the EFL to now assist the club and the Administrators in any way they can in the effort to find a purchaser.”
Andrew Hosking, Carl Jackson and Andrew Andronikou have been appointed as joint administrators.
Hosking, Quantuma’s managing director, said: “I can confirm that Andrew Andronikou, Carl Jackson and I were appointed joint administrators of Derby County Football Club today.
“Covid-19 has had a significant impact on the finances of the club and its long-term ability to continue in its current form.
“We recognise that with the commencement of the 2021/22 season last month, this news will be of concern to stakeholders and fans, in addition to the city of Derby and the wider football community.
“We are in the early stages of assessing the options available to the club and would invite any interested parties to come forward.
“Our immediate objectives are to ensure the club completes all its fixtures in the Championship this season and finding interested parties to safeguard the club and its employees.”
from Football – inews.co.uk https://ift.tt/2XQQfw7
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