TUESDAY POLL: Rejection of Cellino takeover sees Leeds in limbo

The governing body’s veto on the Italian taking a 75 per cent majority stake in the Championship club led to owners, Gulf Finance House, releasing a statement suggesting the two parties were working on a way to keep the deal alive.

Cellino, however, then seemed to contradict this by claiming in a subsequent interview that he didn’t “have any energy to react” to the League’s decision immediately due to feeling “very weak and exhausted”.

Later, though, he said: “I have to appeal. I feel a responsibility to the fans, who I am proud to say wanted me.”

Whether Cellino makes good on that vow in the coming days remains to be seen but there can be little doubt that the League’s rejection of his purchase through his family company Eleonora Sport came as a blow to GFH, who had exchanged contracts over a £25m sale on February 7.

Not only has the 57-year-old, who owns Serie A side Cagliari, bank-rolled Leeds for the past two months but his offer is the only one that has come close to matching the asking price of the Bahrain-based bank that bought the club from Ken Bates late in 2012 for around £20m.

Together Leeds, a group led by former Sunderland marketing chief Mike Farnan, did table a bid in November last year but it fell a long way short of GFH’s valuation.

Farnan’s consortium – which also includes former Hull City chairman Adam Pearson and Welcome to Yorkshire chief executive Gary Verity – remain interested and a source has revealed to The Yorkshire Post that the group plan to meet later this week to plan their next move.

However, with United believed to be losing more than £1m per month, the Together Leeds group is likely to want to examine the Elland Road books in detail before revealing their hand.

Other parties have also shown interest but with GFH’s only public utterance being yesterday’s pledge to “continue discussions with the Football League and Eleonora Sport to find a solution that is suitable to all parties”, it is not clear how far these talks have got.

Amid all this uncertainty at the top of the club, the monthly wage bill is believed to be due in the next few days.

Cellino has covered any shortfall for the past couple of months, while before that Andrew Flowers, at a time when the managing director of shirt sponsor Enterprise Insurance was trying to buy the club, loaned United the necessary money to meet their monthly commitments.

If the Italian does choose to fight on, he could again dip into his pocket. If he doesn’t, however, then the responsibility will fall to GFH.

United managing director David Haigh has repeatedly stressed that the club will not go into administration. GFH’s statement yesterday in the wake of the League ruling on Cellino seemed to back this view. It read: “Our shareholders continue to support the club directly or through additional investments, as has always been the case.”

Nevertheless, there is mounting anxiety among supporters as to what will happen next at Elland Road.

The conviction of Cellino last week for tax evasion in a Sardinian court was behind the League’s decision – taken on Sunday night at a meeting of the eight-man board – to reject his takeover.

Explaining the thinking behind the move, a spokesman said: “Mr Cellino was recently found guilty beyond reasonable doubt by a Court in Sardinia of an offence under Italian tax legislation relating to the non-payment of import duties on a boat.

“This resulted in a fine of 600,000 euros (£500,800), an order for the payment of trial costs and the confiscation of the boat in question.

“Having fully considered the matter, the board agreed unanimously that the decision of the Italian court does constitute a disqualifying condition under its owners’ and directors’ test.

“The relevant disqualifying condition being that Massimo Cellino has been convicted of an offence involving acts that would reasonably be considered to be dishonest.”

Cellino, meanwhile, last night revealed his regret at the latest turn of events.

The Italian, who has 14 days to lodge an appeal, said: “I am not a dishonest crook. If I made a mistake, it was not on purpose. I am shocked, I am very shocked. I feel like I will disappear. I am so ashamed of myself, you have no idea.

“It is not about the money at the moment. I didn’t try and do anything bad to Leeds to anyone. I just wanted to do something good. I am so shocked that I feel like I will jump from the window right now.

“I feel so ashamed. Why did they take two months to wait for the decision of the Italian court? I could have delayed the trial for one or two years if I had wanted.”

Lee Peltier’s proposed loan switch from Elland Road to Nottingham Forest last night fell through after Neil Warnock withdrew from the race to succeed Billy Davies at the City Ground.