Exclusive:Takeover intermediary lifts lid on ‘unrealistic’ Dejphon Chansiri amid Sheffield Wednesday future fear

An intermediary who has spent the last weeks attempting to stimulate a takeover of Sheffield Wednesday has spoken to The Star about his experience of the process - choosing to do so in no small part due to a growing concern for the welfare of the club going forward.

The Star has been in regular contact with the UK-based businessman, with conversations having taken place several times a week over recent months. The intermediary, who has chosen to remain publicly anonymous for privacy reasons, has been involved in a number of high-profile, multi-million pound business acquisitions previously.

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He is not a Sheffield Wednesday supporter and has been transparent in describing his motives behind approaching potentially interested parties in an effort to broker a takeover deal; in that it would represent an exciting business opportunity in an industry he takes great interest in. For the purposes of this article, we’ll call him Mr Smith.

Wednesday are in a state of disarray at current with ongoing financial problems continuing to dominate the discourse around the club. A failure to meet its basic monthly salary obligations to employees in a number of sections of the workforce comes just two months on from similar issues, leaving the Owls slapped with EFL sanctions and both club and owner Dejphon Chansiri the subject of charges.

Chansiri’s ownership has come under increasing pressure in recent weeks, with fan unrest having risen to its highest levels to date. Speculation over a proposed takeover has been made public and with many player wages still unpaid as of Friday morning, the clock is ticking on the possibility of notice periods being tendered should two sets of full payments not be fulfilled on their June payday.

With further financial obligations to come in the coming weeks and with matchday revenue not forthcoming for several weeks - not to mention uncertainty over the football side of things and further historic issues - it makes for an unsettling future.

The Star has seen evidence to suggest Mr Smith has had discussions with a number of high net-worth individuals and groups with regard to the possible acquisition of Wednesday, with responses believed to have been positive on the basis of what is widely seen to be a fair market value of between £40m and £50m. But on contact with Owls chairman Chansiri, made through an associate, it has become clear to Mr Smith that the likely asking price and proposed method of business does not lend itself to any likelihood of a deal being reached.

Discussions with Chansiri - seen by The Star - have not managed to nail down a specified asking price. But in those discussions the Owls chairman appears to claim to have rejected big-money bids previously; including one as high as £160m. It was also claimed by Mr Chansiri he has received a number of offers in the recent past, some of which were in excess of £100m. In the early stages of the discussion, Mr Smith’s associate was bluntly told ‘not to waste time’ if their approach was not genuine and that the chairman may look to retain a minor share in the club even in the event of a deal being agreed.

“It’s been challenging,” Mr Smith told The Star. “I’m a big believer that the club has a rightful place at the top table and while many clubs in the EFL will think that, I think it’s fair to say Sheffield Wednesday in terms of their history as a top-flight club, with its fanbase, its pull, it should be up there. So the last couple of weeks have been challenging, with a realisation that the powers that be simply aren’t willing to play ball at a realistic valuation.

“What’s been especially difficult is that I’ve had positive conversations with people that at a reasonable valuation would like to proceed. But for whatever reason, the representation from the club - be that the chairman or advisors - have got a figure in their head of double and beyond that realistic number. At this moment in time their valuation is an unrealistic and astronomical figure.

“He (Chansiri) was very responsive and one thing I would say is that in my opinion he absolutely does want to sell the club. I say this genuinely, I do believe he wants to find it a good home. That said, we’ve had exchanges detailing alleged offers that he says have already been put in. Those alleged offers would value Sheffield Wednesday alongside Premier League clubs - if you are inclined to believe the offers exist. We’re talking big, big money.”

Mr Smith has told The Star he believes he could stimulate interest from potentially interested parties if an asking price was to drop considerably. But conversations through his associate with Chansiri have given him little hope of realistic numbers being considered. He describes a feeling of ‘hitting a brick wall’ with the project.

The identities of the potentially interested parties he has spoken to will remain confidential, though The Star has strong reason to believe some major players of high net-worth have been spoken to and showed promising initial interest. The parties are based in the US and elsewhere.

The intermediary said: “We had three or four interesting conversations with different parties, two of which were very interested. One of those conversations was with people who were extremely well-versed within football and have huge experience of acquiring clubs, selling clubs and have an extremely large family office fund purely set up for this sort of thing. They have deep pockets. But because they are knowledgeable within sport and football, they know that any valuation in excess of £100m is absolutely unrealistic. It would have been a good home.

“There have been other conversations with people that the general public may well know or may have heard of, but the next question always comes down to valuation. While the chairman has an unrealistic valuation, none of this is going to go any further.

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“I’ve gone back to two parties with that sort of number and the response was hysterical laughter on both occasions. I spoke with another person in this space who is an ally and a friend, we’ve worked together previously. He told me he wouldn’t touch this with a bargepole due to unrealistic valuations. And he’s been proven right.”

In his most recent interview at the time of late wage payments for March, Chansiri was unable to guarantee cashflow issues would not continue to blight the club and so it has proven just two months later. Though a truly forensic look at his personal finances would prove a near-impossible task, The Star has reported a clear slowing in the performance of some of Chansiri’s business interests in recent years. Two weeks on from their expected payday, it’s understood that a number of Wednesday employees have now been paid in full but that a delay on the payment of players goes on.

Recent weeks have seen mass public conversation over the prospect of a takeover and an end to the Thai’s decade-long reign in charge of the club, with two rejected approaches previously reported by The Star and further interest known. Information has made its way into the public domain, digital screenshots of conversations with the chairman have done the rounds and the identities of some potentially interested parties have been disclosed - either willingly or via internet rumour.

While going about his own discussions, it’s a whirlwind Mr Smith has followed closely. The way things have been handled by the Owls owner privately is one thing - but the nature of such public discourse is something he feels could serve to dissuade further interest. He describes it as ‘the most unusual’ business acquisition attempt he has been involved in.

“My fear is that unless things are done quickly, there’s a strong chance Sheffield Wednesday will go in reverse rather than move forward,” Mr Smith told The Star. “And that’s a sad state of affairs. It’s been interesting to see how someone like this (Chansiri) operates. I’ve never come across anyone like this before at that level of business.

“And it’s interesting to see how all of this has played out in public. There will always be speculation in football but I have been shocked about how all of this has been played out in detail on social media, on forums, in the media. I think that has caused more damage than good.

“To make it absolutely clear, that’s not me highlighting any particular person or party. Messages from the club side have been posted on social media, stuff from interested parties have been played out on social media. I can honestly say that in all my time in this space and being around this sort of thing, I’ve never seen a deal pan out so publicly and as negatively as this. It’s bizarre.

“My humble opinion is that it has been detrimental. It 100 per cent makes it a harder sell. There is potentially a fear that someone comes in, puts a bid in and within 24 hours everybody in the world knows who the bidder is. Who does that serve?”

The Star has spoken to Mr Smith over recent weeks on the condition of public anonymity - a status that will remain. Having recently spent time at an event at which a great number of Sheffield Wednesday supporters were present, he feels now is the time to speak out on his experiences and his concern over the future of the club - and what he feels is an unlikely possibility that any takeover will progress with things in their current state.

Having taken a close look at the club, he describes a requirement for large-scale investment in facilities, in the stadium, in the playing staff and in club infrastructure, describing a committed but ‘lean’ workforce that ‘is being run on a shoestring’ by Championship standards. All this would have to be taken into consideration when pricing-up a potential deal to buy the club, he said.

“We don’t know the debt situation at this moment in time,” he said. “There are a number of rumours flying around about how much debt there is beyond the financial issues that are known publicly. Based on the conversations we have had and the contact we have had with the Chairman, we believe the number he wants to sell to be in excess of £100m. That doesn’t work. But as intermediaries, we would happily revisit this at the right valuation.

“It may always come down to ‘It’s my train set and I’ll sell it for what I sell it for’. The worrying thing would be that nobody offers what he wants and the club just rots. Right now, if you were to ask me my honest opinion? That’s where I’m at.”

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Following their deflating back-and-forth with Chansiri, Mr Smith has taken a step back from attempts to stimulate interest in the purchase of Wednesday for the time being and is concentrating on other projects.

“The reason we’ve kept anonymous in all of this is that I’m not a big believer that this should play out in social media land,” he continued. “Having been involved in big business deals both commercially and in sport, nothing is really printed until the deal is near-done. That’s how people tend to prefer it. Why would you do otherwise? I’ve watched social media and the forums very closely in the last few weeks and the reason I’m having this conversation is for the good of Sheffield Wednesday and because it’s about time some truths were mentioned.

“It should not be an open forum. And I’m yet to see a direct quote from the chairman saying ‘The club is up for sale and I want this much money’. Everything is just being played out publicly and indirectly. Maybe he’s doing it in the right way, maybe he’s doing it in the wrong way. Maybe it’s just the way he goes about things. But it’s bizarre to me and I know it’s bizarre to other people.

“There are some interested parties. Some may have the cash, some may not have the cash. But until the chairman has a realistic valuation, nobody will be able to scratch the surface. It’s been challenging and it’s sad above all else, because there’s an opportunity for someone to come in and really take on the club and put their stamp on it.”

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