By Andrew Warshaw
April 9 – Italian entrepreneur Massimo Cellino has completed his takeover of iconic English club Leeds United, according to his lawyers, in a deal worth more than £30 million – much of it used to pay off the Championship club’s debts.
Cellino clinched his 75% takeover following a protracted saga during which the English Football League attempted to block his buyout based on his past business background.
Cellino, who also owns the Serie A club Cagliari, was quoted as saying: “I want to be in the Premier League as soon as we can … if not by the end of the 2015‑16 season it is a failure. I want to transform the club. None of my companies have ever gone into administration.”
The Football League board will consider Cellino’s takeover at a meeting in London on Thursday but the deal appears to be done and dusted after an independent QC ruled in his favour last weekend following an appeal against the original decision to disqualify him.
Cellino, who heads Eleonora Sports, agreed to buy the 75% stake in Leeds from Gulf Finance House Capital in February but the takeover was put in doubt when he was found guilty in March of tax evasion.
In a further twist to the saga, reports suggested Cellino could still be disqualified under the League’s “owners and directors” test within three months if a Sardinian court rules he was dishonest in respect of the recent tax evasion claim which he strongly denies.
Whoever manages Leeds under Cellino, however, looks set for an unsettled time. Diego Lopez last weekend became the 36th manager to be fired by Cellino in his 22-year reign at Cagliari.
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