CONFIMRED - The 2nd final countdown

[Snowflake Royal]

The only way for Reading FC to move forward is for Dai to be gone.

The announcement by the EFL of the granting of the extension enabling Dai to complete a sale to 22/4 is a positive step to seeing Dai gone, as it strongly implies there is a genuine impetus to selling the club; after all, if there wasn't, why wouldn't the EFL have announced that Dai WASN'T close enough to the sale of the club, and that they were beginning the process to "take whatever sanctions necessary" accordingly?

Additionally, the date of 22nd April appears to have been specifically requested by Reading FC; that again implies that on or - presumably before - that date, Reading FC are confident that Dai would have sold the club.

Alternatively, it could all be a massive smokescreen; the EFL knows that Dai is nowhere near selling the club but in order to maintain the integrity of the competition, they are spinning everything out until the end of the season (thus preventing potential disruption - even postponements - of Reading games by disgruntled fans) and will expel us after the season has ended.

I guess we will only know the truth no later than 22nd April; if Dai hasn't sold us by then, we are fukced.

Because it makes a right mess of the end of the season.

[Extended-Phenotype]

It’s not down to the FL to tell us things esp. as they could compromise any negotiations in so doing. The FL are on the side of wanting any club’s take over negotiations to be out of sight and there to be no talk so as not to build up hopes if proposed new owners then fail the O&DT.

Quite correctly at this point all we know is that the club are in negotiations with someone and that that someone is rumoured to be Robert Platek.

We may all want to have someone involved give us the old “comical Ali” daily update scenario but that is prevented from happening by the NDAs everyone signs so we just have to sit and wait, like a load of mushrooms.

As with anything though, no news just means the silence will get filled with a load of speculation, rumour, paranoia and have everyone worrying unnecessarily about something over which they have zero input and even less control. So just sit back, what will happen is going to happen whatever but at least the end of it all is now in sight.

The EFL seemed able to tell us "btw we aren't to blame" in their statement, so I don't see why they couldn't have also thrown in a "we appreciate the fans and staff at RFC will be anxious, but we can assure you that negotiations are still underway, making progress and approaching the final hurdle." I mean, that seems like such an automatic thing to do, there would have to be a good reason NOT to do it: they don't know anything, and it's entirely possible there isn't anything going on at all.

Given they said earlier that they would extend the deadline if there was seen to be movement towards selling the club, then the fact the deadline has been extended suggests that they have seen movement towards a sale of the club being completed. Therefore something positive can be taken as going on behind the scenes, might all fall through later, with Dai involved of course, but it hasn’t at the moment so back to the waiting game for another 3 weeks...

I wish I had your confidence, but either the EFL have actual evidence that this movement exists (then why not share that they do?), or they don't (and they are extending it in desperation on the meager words from the club just going "yeah, sure, we totally are moving on this, cor, loads of movement, it's been a whirlwind tbh").

[Extended-Phenotype]

It’s not down to the FL to tell us things esp. as they could compromise any negotiations in so doing. The FL are on the side of wanting any club’s take over negotiations to be out of sight and there to be no talk so as not to build up hopes if proposed new owners then fail the O&DT.

Quite correctly at this point all we know is that the club are in negotiations with someone and that that someone is rumoured to be Robert Platek.

We may all want to have someone involved give us the old “comical Ali” daily update scenario but that is prevented from happening by the NDAs everyone signs so we just have to sit and wait, like a load of mushrooms.

As with anything though, no news just means the silence will get filled with a load of speculation, rumour, paranoia and have everyone worrying unnecessarily about something over which they have zero input and even less control. So just sit back, what will happen is going to happen whatever but at least the end of it all is now in sight.

The EFL seemed able to tell us "btw we aren't to blame" in their statement, so I don't see why they couldn't have also thrown in a "we appreciate the fans and staff at RFC will be anxious, but we can assure you that negotiations are still underway, making progress and approaching the final hurdle." I mean, that seems like such an automatic thing to do, there would have to be a good reason NOT to do it: they don't know anything, and it's entirely possible there isn't anything going on at all.

Because the former involves the actions of the FL and the latter does not. It's not their place to update us on the progress or otherwise of the sale.

It IS there place to justify their actions. "As there is clear evidence of progress, we are extending the deadline". They don't have to fcking dox the buyer's children or share snaps of his wife sunbathing in Gran Canaria.

[Silver Fox]

I wish I had your confidence, but either the EFL have actual evidence that this movement exists (then why not share that they do?)

While Mr Yongge is yet to divest his interests, as is required following his disqualification, discussions for him to do so remain active and ongoing

Covers that doesn't it?

[Extended-Phenotype]

I wish I had your confidence, but either the EFL have actual evidence that this movement exists (then why not share that they do?)

While Mr Yongge is yet to divest his interests, as is required following his disqualification, discussions for him to do so remain active and ongoing

Covers that doesn't it?

Oh come on, that's blatant Daiwang

[Snowflake Royal]

I wish I had your confidence, but either the EFL have actual evidence that this movement exists (then why not share that they do?)

While Mr Yongge is yet to divest his interests, as is required following his disqualification, discussions for him to do so remain active and ongoing

Covers that doesn't it?

Oh come on, that's blatant Daiwang

It's pretty much what you asked for. It's certainly as much as they can reasonably say.

[Extended-Phenotype]

While Mr Yongge is yet to divest his interests, as is required following his disqualification, discussions for him to do so remain active and ongoing

Covers that doesn't it?

Oh come on, that's blatant Daiwang

It's pretty much what you asked for. It's certainly as much as they can reasonably say.

I personally think there is a world of difference between what I asked for and what we got, else I wouldn't be pissing about it. But we got what we got. I just think it's more an indication that fck all is happening with this mystery buyer.

[East Grinstead Royal]

It doesn't breach confidentiality to confirm a buyer is real, the deal is alive and progressing, and it isn't giving "false assurances" to say a deal is x% complete.

Without knowing the terms of the NDA, we can’t know if that is true. Over the course of my career, I signed literally hundreds of NDAs - the majority were based on one party’s standard template, but those that were placed in anticipation of a really big deal could take weeks to negotiate as each party tried to ensure it had whatever protection it needed. It was often the case that disclosure of the very existence of an NDA would be a breach of its terms.

[Hound]

Tbh not worth reading much into the EFL statement at all. Can look for clues all we like but it’s not going to help a lot. Only impt thing was the new deadline (which will likely get extended again)

[Sutekh]

The only way for Reading FC to move forward is for Dai to be gone.

The announcement by the EFL of the granting of the extension enabling Dai to complete a sale to 22/4 is a positive step to seeing Dai gone, as it strongly implies there is a genuine impetus to selling the club; after all, if there wasn't, why wouldn't the EFL have announced that Dai WASN'T close enough to the sale of the club, and that they were beginning the process to "take whatever sanctions necessary" accordingly?

Additionally, the date of 22nd April appears to have been specifically requested by Reading FC; that again implies that on or - presumably before - that date, Reading FC are confident that Dai would have sold the club.

Alternatively, it could all be a massive smokescreen; the EFL knows that Dai is nowhere near selling the club but in order to maintain the integrity of the competition, they are spinning everything out until the end of the season (thus preventing potential disruption - even postponements - of Reading games by disgruntled fans) and will expel us after the season has ended.

I guess we will only know the truth no later than 22nd April; if Dai hasn't sold us by then, we are fukced.

Or not - at least for a little while longer.

[morganb]

How come previous potential buyers were not covered by an NDA as Couhig was swanning it about like Lord of the Manor around the ground and down the Turtle when he was in negotiations, and William Storey was posing for ZZ Top-style pics at Bearwood?

[tmesis]

The only way for Reading FC to move forward is for Dai to be gone.

The announcement by the EFL of the granting of the extension enabling Dai to complete a sale to 22/4 is a positive step to seeing Dai gone, as it strongly implies there is a genuine impetus to selling the club; after all, if there wasn't, why wouldn't the EFL have announced that Dai WASN'T close enough to the sale of the club, and that they were beginning the process to "take whatever sanctions necessary" accordingly?

Additionally, the date of 22nd April appears to have been specifically requested by Reading FC; that again implies that on or - presumably before - that date, Reading FC are confident that Dai would have sold the club.

Do we know who requested that date?

I wouldn't have thought they would kick us out without a final warning, so it could be that RFC have said they will know if the deal is a goer or not by that date, or if could be the date the EFL will give us a final warning.

I can't see us being suspended so late in the league programme though, but if we were that would make it all but impossible to finish our fixtures before the end of the season, which would see our results wiped out and have us relegated with 0 points.

From there though, with Dai still at the helm and expulsion a high probability, who would buy a season ticket?

[tidus_mi2]

The only way for Reading FC to move forward is for Dai to be gone.

The announcement by the EFL of the granting of the extension enabling Dai to complete a sale to 22/4 is a positive step to seeing Dai gone, as it strongly implies there is a genuine impetus to selling the club; after all, if there wasn't, why wouldn't the EFL have announced that Dai WASN'T close enough to the sale of the club, and that they were beginning the process to "take whatever sanctions necessary" accordingly?

Additionally, the date of 22nd April appears to have been specifically requested by Reading FC; that again implies that on or - presumably before - that date, Reading FC are confident that Dai would have sold the club.

Do we know who requested that date?

I wouldn't have thought they would kick us out without a final warning, so it could be that RFC have said they will know if the deal is a goer or not by that date, or if could be the date the EFL will give us a final warning.

I can't see us being suspended so late in the league programme though, but if we were that would make it all but impossible to finish our fixtures before the end of the season, which would see our results wiped out and have us relegated with 0 points.

From there though, with Dai still at the helm and expulsion a high probability, who would buy a season ticket?

Aren't most clubs already selling STs at this point? It would be a much welcome financial boost for the club right now but totally makes sense why they wouldn't entertain starting the sale process right now.

[rabidbee]

At the end of the day, the EFL wanted to reassure themselves that the sale was progressing, they have no obligation to reassure us of anything - once again, we're not really a party to any of this, we're just interested observers. Perhaps we can infer that they did receive good evidence of progress, but who knows. They can't put a percentage on progress, obviously - it's not like the status bar on a Windows update. And just suppose they make a statement saying they have been given good assurances of progress, and then the deal collapses again - they'd be called out for having given false hope, or for being stooges taken in by Dai, or whatever. Why put out a hostage to fortune? Frankly, why ever say more than is necessary? We wanted a statement on possible suspension, we got a statement on possible suspension, the rest is not on them.

[Whore Jackie]

How come previous potential buyers were not covered by an NDA as Couhig was swanning it about like Lord of the Manor around the ground and down the Turtle when he was in negotiations, and William Storey was posing for ZZ Top-style pics at Bearwood?

Assume those previous NDAs were at the (potential) buyers’ request? Wording from the Club has generally been more vague:

Reading Football Club can confirm it has committed to a letter of intent with a potential purchaser of the club. The parties will now enter a period of exclusivity to complete final due diligence and legally complete the transaction. Whilst timelines cannot be guaranteed, the structure of the deal should allow for a quick completion, which would be for the benefit of all concerned. Whilst we understand our supporters' wish to know the purchaser’s identity, at this stage, confidentiality is preferred to complete at the earliest opportunity.

Presumably the instigator of the NDA can break it unilaterally? Although Couhig’s maintained that he was encouraged to do the Bearwood and Purple Turtle shots by people from within the Club, so perhaps both parties were happy for him to go public. Shame no-one bothered to check with Dai!

[MartinRdg]

The only way for Reading FC to move forward is for Dai to be gone.

The announcement by the EFL of the granting of the extension enabling Dai to complete a sale to 22/4 is a positive step to seeing Dai gone, as it strongly implies there is a genuine impetus to selling the club; after all, if there wasn't, why wouldn't the EFL have announced that Dai WASN'T close enough to the sale of the club, and that they were beginning the process to "take whatever sanctions necessary" accordingly?

Additionally, the date of 22nd April appears to have been specifically requested by Reading FC; that again implies that on or - presumably before - that date, Reading FC are confident that Dai would have sold the club.

Do we know who requested that date?

I wouldn't have thought they would kick us out without a final warning, so it could be that RFC have said they will know if the deal is a goer or not by that date, or if could be the date the EFL will give us a final warning.

I can't see us being suspended so late in the league programme though, but if we were that would make it all but impossible to finish our fixtures before the end of the season, which would see our results wiped out and have us relegated with 0 points.

From there though, with Dai still at the helm and expulsion a high probability, who would buy a season ticket?

Aren't most clubs already selling STs at this point? It would be a much welcome financial boost for the club right now but totally makes sense why they wouldn't entertain starting the sale process right now.

Anyone here knows someone who works at the club and whether they are preparing ST promotions? That would be some sort of indicator that a sale is going through.

[East Grinstead Royal]

How come previous potential buyers were not covered by an NDA as Couhig was swanning it about like Lord of the Manor around the ground and down the Turtle when he was in negotiations, and William Storey was posing for ZZ Top-style pics at Bearwood?

Assume those previous NDAs were at the (potential) buyers’ request? Wording from the Club has generally been more vague:

Reading Football Club can confirm it has committed to a letter of intent with a potential purchaser of the club. The parties will now enter a period of exclusivity to complete final due diligence and legally complete the transaction. Whilst timelines cannot be guaranteed, the structure of the deal should allow for a quick completion, which would be for the benefit of all concerned. Whilst we understand our supporters' wish to know the purchaser’s identity, at this stage, confidentiality is preferred to complete at the earliest opportunity.

Presumably the instigator of the NDA can break it unilaterally? Although Couhig’s maintained that he was encouraged to do the Bearwood and Purple Turtle shots by people from within the Club, so perhaps both parties were happy for him to go public. Shame no-one bothered to check with Dai!

Again, it depends on the terms of the NDA. Normally, the obligations apply to both parties, but a one-way NDA would only place obligations on one party.

[Snowflake Royal]

How come previous potential buyers were not covered by an NDA as Couhig was swanning it about like Lord of the Manor around the ground and down the Turtle when he was in negotiations, and William Storey was posing for ZZ Top-style pics at Bearwood?

Storey was always horseshit. And Couhig's deal was past negotiations

[fred sharpes nose]

Wonder if Dai, being the gambler he is, is trying to drag this out until the Playoffs are done..

Maybe he has negotiated a League 1 price and a Champonship price with the prospective buyer so he is stalling until its clear one way or the other.

Maybe the buyer is in chaoots with this

None of us have a scooby !

[themwasthedays]

It's like an army of ants watching 'piggy in the middle'. The supporters are the ants, Dai is the 'piggy' and Couhig and Platek are the players. The ants can't affect the outcome of the game and any of the three can trample on the ants and walk away unscathed.