‘Absolutely evil’ – Sir Jon Madejski speaks out about the current situation of Reading FC under Dai Yongge

Hampered by a deduction of 4 points from the total score, Ruben Selles’s team is at the bottom of the table of the third division of English football with only 6 points available.

The excessive spending of Chinese businessman Dai Yongge, who took over the club in 2017, eventually affected the Royals in recent years as financial sanctions and the transfer window were imposed. applies to the Royal Family, and in recent months, the late payment of salaries due. Yongge’s financial difficulties also hit the team hard.

Although things still look grim at Select Car Leasing Stadium, there was at least some positive news last week when all players and staff were paid in full and on time for September .

Another late payment would certainly trigger another fine and points deduction from the EFL, but HMRC’s tax bill for September remains unpaid, leaving the Royals with a transfer embargo.

In its latest update on the club’s future, The Telegraph reported last week that a number of parties were interested in the possibility of taking over the team from Berkshire, with one party in advanced talks at the time of writing. . However, there have been no further updates on exclusive deals with the groups, but it now appears that Yongge is ready to sell to Reading.

What does Sir John Madejski say about Reading FC’s current situation?

Former Royals owner Sir John Madejski has given his views on the difficulties facing his former club and he supports fan protests over what is happening now , and believes Reading could be worth around £20 million in the near future. a possible acquisition.

“I agree with them. I think it’s absolutely evil and my heart goes out to all the fans and of course all the wonderful people who work at Reading Football Club and have been ve

“Honestly, the whole situation is very serious. And this, is completely without reason or even nonsense, because if Mr. Dai had only listened to the local people at the scene, all of this could have been avoided many years ago – actually In fact it was six years before he took over the club.

“The fact that he invested £600m into the club is no small achievement, the fact that he kept the club going during lockdown is no small achievement, the fact that he built Building a modern training ground is no small achievement. .

“What he did wrong was to take advice from people who had no close relationship with Reading Football Club, from these international agents who had an incredible track record and who had no connection to Reading Football Club. close relationship with Reading, and I think that’s where things went wrong.

“Unfortunately, Dai doesn’t speak English, but here we are, and of course it’s his fault because he’s the club owner.

“I think he’s definitely worried, but the problem is he can’t get the money back to leave China, so he’s a little short of money, as they say. “But I applaud Reading Borough Council and the Reading Trust for trying to turn the ground into an asset of community value, which means, and I think in my understanding, the club is is for sale, it could be a huge opportunity. Good deal for people with deep pockets