‘It beggars belief’ - Simon Jordan responds to Laurence Bassini Birmingham City interview

British businessman Laurence Bassini is reportedly close to completing a takeover of Birmingham City.

The former Watford owner is hoping to complete the £35 million takeover of Blues in the coming days.

The club’s current owners, Birmingham Sports Holdings (BSHL), confirmed in a statement to the Hong Kong Stock Exchange on Tuesday (14 June), that 21.64% of the club has been sold by the biggest shareholder, Vong Pech.

However, BSHL also said in the statement that it has not entered any agreement to dispose of its approximately 75% stake in the club.

Bassini went on talkSPORT yesterday (June 16) to disucss the deal during an interview with Simon Jordan.

He revealed that he expects his purchase of the club to go through in the coming days.

‘Birmingham fans are very nervous’

Speaking to the former Crystal Palace owner on talkSPORT, Bassini said: “People say a lot of things and a lot of things that have been said are untrue.

“This morning I had a call to tell me the Birmingham fans are very nervous. Obviously they read what goes on in the media and they only know what they’ve been told, and I want to correct that.

“We exchanged contracts on Sunday night, we’ve signed, so providing there’s no problem with the stock market in Hong Kong.

“There’s an issue with a majority shareholder, so we don’t know what the situation is with him at the moment, who actually owns the club.

“It’s quite true that I did serve a three-year ban, where I was accused of dishonesty and lying.

“There will be a press conference where I will be producing all the things that went on in the past at Watford and Bolton that will show all the skulduggery.”

Jordan responded to Bassini by saying: “It beggar’s belief mate, why you want to come on and say these things, I don’t understand.”

Bassini then revealed he only aims to return to football for a short spell.

He told Jordan: “I’m only going to come back to football for three years. Win or lose or go up, I will leave football forever in three years’ time.

“One thing I can tell you is I will be better than the regime that is there now.”

“That’s fine, but that’s a low bar, Laurence,” Jordan said “That’s not much of an encouragement, is it?”

Bassini continued: “For five years that club has been run into the ground, it’s in a place of disarray at the moment, it’s absolutely a mess. If that club gets infrastructure and you change the management going in, as well and the backroom, that club is a Premier League club.”

Bassini’s first season aims

Discussing his plan for Blues, Bassini then said: “After we buy it [the club] for the £35million about £30million [will be invested] in the first season.

“We have a plan. We think the first season we will struggle but we hope to be playing in the top six or top ten in the first season.

“I love football and I will go onto football one last time to prove what I can do, more to myself and also to the people out there who had a lot of things to say about me, the critics who made up lies and stories about me.”

Following the interview, Jordan said the whole interview was ‘bizarre’, and that he doesn’t think it’s a ‘great move for Birmingham’.

You can watch the full intrview in the Twitter clip above.

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