Prince Abdullah “struggling to assume responsibility” with Sheffield United sister club in crisis

Sheffield United’s sister club Châteauroux are facing a race against time to preserve their professional status, and avoid losing their famed academy, after being demoted by French’s financial police - with the French club’s president claiming that Prince Abdullah is “struggling to assume his responsibility”.

The decision, to place Châteauroux in the amateur National 2 league, was taken by France’s National Directorate of Control and Management (DNCG), with the club subsequently launching an appeal. The jewel in the Châteauroux crowd, the famed academy that persuaded United World to buy the club as part of their global network, would be lost if the decision is upheld and around €4m is understood to be required.

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Recently, 17 players left the club - 13 who Châteauroux owned, and four loanees - and the funding must be secured before the next meeting with the National Directorate of Control and Management (DNCG) this month.

“I cannot categorically answer that the money has been found,” president Patrick Trotignon told France Bleu last week. “The money exists, since we have an owner, main shareholder [Prince Abdullah and United World] who must respect these commitments.

“At the moment he is struggling to assume his responsibility, I can’t tell you that the money has been found but we are working firmly with the shareholder to find a solution from here [to] the fateful date”.

Fresh financial concern for United owner with sister club in crisis after demotion

Trotignon revealed that discussions are taking place with “potential investors who could join United [World]” and that a threadbare squad has returned to pre-season training amid the uncertainty. “It’s a bit of a blank slate ,” he admitted. “I think it’s an advantage. Obviously we can be worried about the sporting aspect, for which I am not responsible.

“We resumed training with a group of young people, I would say it’s almost more for the beauty of the gesture. For the moment the sporting situation is not very clear indeed.”

The saga is a fresh financial headache for United’s owner, who saw the Blades placed under an embargo last season over unpaid transfer debt. The embargo was eventually lifted, after a combination of season ticket and FA Cup prize money helped settle debts and an arrangement was made with one of the clubs in question - understood to be Liverpool - offering them a first-refusal option on one of United’s players.

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There was also takeover talk at another of the Prince’s clubs, Beerschot in Belgium, before the individual concerned was branded a “fantasist” after trying to buy at least two other clubs. Developments in both Belgium and France will cast fresh question marks over the Blades’ involvement in the United World network and the level of benefits it offers, with the biggest on-field benefit to United so far being the arrival of Ismaila Coulibaly at Bramall Lane.

In United’s latest set of accounts, published to Companies House yesterday, it was revealed that the Blades paid United World just over £1.5m in “consultancy fees” but also received a loan of just over £6m from the UW network, with no interest payable.

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