This post is part of Football League World’s ‘Terrace Talk’ series, which features personal comments from FLW Fan Pundits on breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings, and more.
Billionaire billionaire John Textor has surfaced as a prospective new Derby County owner, but only if his Sheffield Wednesday bid fails.
This comes after journalist Alan Nixon revealed Textor’s interest in the Rams on Patreon, prompting considerable worries.
Textor once owned a significant position in Crystal Palace before selling his 43% holding to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson for a reputed £190 million; he now chairs Eagle Football Holdings.
His portfolio includes ownership investments in French heavyweights Olympique Lyonnais, Brazilian first-division side Botafogo, and Belgian club RWDM Brussels, where former Rams Luke Plange and Malcolm Ebiowei spent time on loan while at Palace.
Derby County advised to “stay well away” from John Textor.
Shaun Woodward, the Derby County Fan Pundit for FLW, is undoubtedly hesitant about Textor’s involvement with the East Midlands team.
Regarding the American’s reputation in general, Woodward said that after investigating the billionaire’s past, he is worried about the way Textor manages the clubs described earlier.
“The more I look into it, the more I believe he wouldn’t be a right fit for Derby,” Woodward said.
At first, I thought, ‘Yeah, wonderful, he’s got a lot of money compared to Clowes, which may have been a good thing if we did get promoted later,’ after looking at his net worth.
“The more I investigate it, the more I realize that he has a lot of clubs and his fingers in many pies. According to my study, he isn’t well-liked by many members of those clubs, and if we’re the second choice, then I apologize, but please stay away,” the Fan Pundit went on.
Derby supporters are likely aware with this strategy, as well as the numerous transfers that can occur between clubs owned by the same person, since Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis controls both Rio Ave in Portugal and Olympiacos in Greece.
The amount of players who have played in both Greece and England since Marinakis took over Forest in 2017 is rather high, however it was far more common while they were in the Championship.
16 of the 20 players who have played for both teams since 2017 have done so, therefore I doubt Derby supporters would be happy to see something similar take place at Pride Park.
a strong suspicion that David Clowes will not “entertain” Textor, John
Woodward believes that if Derby were to find a new owner, they would need someone with true passion, such as David Clowes, rather than someone who saw it solely as a financial enterprise.
“We want someone that’s going to come in and they want to take us over. Like David Clowes, they’d be passionate about the club and to move us forward, not just a potential to earn money because that can go wrong very quickly,” said Woodward to FLW.
“David Clowes has shown over a few years that, by being really sensible, he’s a fan first and foremost, but he’s also a very intelligent businessman, and he’s done what’s right for the club,” said the manager.
There’s no denying that Clowes’ approach has stabilized the Rams following Mel Morris’ instability – and Hilary Leam, Chair of the Rams Trust, has previously told BBC Radio Derby that he’ll “always act in our best interest.”
Perhaps the most pressing issue facing any potential Textor takeover appears to be Nixon’s report that Derby would be a fallback option, which Woodward is not pleased about.
“I’d rather stick with David Clowes until we find someone he believes is a good fit for us, but we don’t want to be a second choice for anyone.
“I’d probably be inclined to stay well away and I think David Clowes knows what’s best for us, so I don’t think he’d even entertain it if I’m honest,” Woodward told the audience.
In reality, these statements most likely reflect what the majority of Rams fans are thinking about maybe being second choice to Sheffield Wednesday.
Given Clowes’ personal investment in Derby, it becomes unlikely that he will hand over the reins to Textor, of all people – especially if the’second choice’ report is correct.
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