It's chaos as Leeds sale fails

Despite some of the sorry performances that have taken Leeds from Champions League to League One since the turn of the century, the root of Elland Road's demise is the £78million gamble they lost to build a squad for Europe.

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Since then the club has diced so often with financial meltdown it has scorch marks and is now being sold for a few million by desperate administrators KPMG.

But even that sorry exercise has failed to go to plan. Leeds fans expected to discover yesterday lunchtime who the next owner will be.

Instead, they can't even be sure of how many people are bidding or whether the whole thing will end in chaos.

Last night, hours after their own deadline, the money men were still trying to sort out the club's future.

Two bidders were quickly known when the administrators declared all bets off and invited swift offers for the club after the taxman refused to do a deal over a £7.7m debt.

Chairman Ken Bates, who rescued Leeds two-and-a-half years ago, was straight back in after his improved offer of 8p in the pound was snubbed by HM Revenue and Customs.

The chief competition appeared to come from the 'superbid' of two rivals, Redbus boss Simon Franks and Leeds property developer Simon Morris, two ambitious young entrepreneurs.

But a third bid has come from former Hull chairman Adam Pearson and his wealthy backer Peter Wilkinson, a Leeds fan with an internet fortune behind him.

Pearson, who was commercial director at Elland Road under Peter Ridsdale until leaving for Humberside in 2001, would be the clear fans' favourite if that long-suffering band were allowed a vote.

Morris is remembered for a leading role in the fractured board of Gerald Krasner, which was handed the reins by Trevor Birch only to give up the battle after a year when Bates offered them their money back.

Bates, seen as a saviour for so long, lost the goodwill of the majority of supporters by threatening legal action if he loses his grip on Leeds.

Pearson, apparently, has submitted a bid that compares more than favourably with those of Bates and Franks, although the latter complained that he is not sure exactly what they are bidding for.

Given that the Football League, still to give their blessing, look favourably upon Pearson for pulling Hull up by their bootstraps in a rugby league city, surely he would be the choice to make.

But this is Leeds, where one chairman asked the fans if he should sack the manager and another boss was fired after he mentioned that they had financial problems. You don't say.

Crucially, Pearson's otherwise attractive bid is thought to have conditions attached and it is reckoned that the men in suits were burning the midnight oil to see if a solution could be found.

If Pearson's journey to Hull and back ends with him as Leeds' knight in shining armour, there would still be the question of Bates' determination not to give up without a fight or a lawsuit.

Meanwhile, manager Dennis Wise — whose job would be in danger with Bates gone — prepares for his first match of the season at Tranmere Rovers in a month unable to sign a single player, thanks to a transfer embargo.

One supporter of 40 years standing admitted last night: "What a right club we are. It just never stops."

Maybe, as David Peace's book on Brian Clough's 44-day reign has it, they truly are The Damned Utd.