Mike Ashley, the former owner of Newcastle United, has been connected with a Sheffield Wednesday takeover, but fans are divided on whether he would be beneficial for the club.
Sheffield Wednesday fans are on tenterhooks about who will be the club’s new owner, and one name has regularly been linked to them since they went into administration.
It has already been reported that former Newcastle United owner Ashley has had a £20 million bid for the club rejected, but he is now reportedly mulling a larger bid to assume possession of the team.
However, Ashley has a checkered record in terms of his engagement with football teams in this nation, and the topic of whether he would be the appropriate owner for a post-administration is sparking heated debate online.
Fans were divided on whether Mike Ashley is the correct guy for Sheffield Wednesday.
Mike Ashley’s bid to buy Sheffield Wednesday has been supported by the Wednesday fan account on the social media platform X, South Stand Pies, which claims Ashley is “a potential owner who’s got his own sports brands and money ready to go”.
They argue that “Mike Ashley knows he needs to invest in this club to get something out and get into the PL and that takes serious money” and that “all those saying “anyone but Ashley” need to have a serious think about it, because he’s one hell of an upgrade on DC” – referring to the club’s much-hated, soon-to-be former owner Dejphon Chansiri.
However, this message has received considerable backlash from Wednesday supporters. One remarked that “the point is that there appears to be much better than Ashley around,” citing Ashley’s £20 million proposal for the club as evidence that he would have accepted a 15-point deduction for the start of next season, when £30 million bids would be required to avoid this scenario.
Others, meanwhile, pointed out that while just about anybody would be better than Chansiri, Ashley’s previous record is a cause for concern:
However, not all of Wednesday fans’ remarks were unfavorable of Ashley. Some fans recognized advantages in having someone run the team who had previously managed a football club in England.
While others believe that the negative aspects of his engagement in the game may have been exaggerated by fans of other clubs:
Others simply want someone who can turn the club’s fortunes around, and are unconcerned about Ashley’s lack of excitement:
Mike Ashley has been a controversial figure in British football since 2007
Mike Ashley’s previous football record has not made him popular with the clubs where he has previously worked.
He purchased Newcastle United in 2007, and his purchase was originally well received, though there was criticism of his later admission in an interview that he did not undertake due diligence on the club’s accounts when he purchased them.
However, after boosting his popularity with fans by rehiring Kevin Keegan as Newcastle manager, he destroyed that good work by ending Keegan’s second spell with the club in acrimonious circumstances, following a disagreement with Keegan over the club’s transfer policy.
Protests against Ashley’s management of Newcastle United remained a regular occurrence until he sold the club to the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund in 2021.
Ashley has not only caused controversy at Newcastle. There were also protests against him over his participation with Rangers in Scotland, and he sent an eviction notice to Coventry City after purchasing the CBS Arena in 2022 due to a disagreement over the club’s term of tenure there.
Of course, Sheffield Wednesday fans have no influence in who the club’s future owner will be. The club’s administrators must follow certain rules in order to provide the best possible outcome for both the club’s creditors and the club itself.
However, it is troubling that Ashley made a £20 million bid for the club, presumably knowing that this would result in a 15-point deduction for next season, and his previous involvement at three separate clubs left fans dissatisfied with him.
Despite the agony, Sheffield Wednesday’s current situation presents an opportunity. However, once a new owner is chosen, the decision is finalized. It’s a one-time deal, and whoever the club’s new owner is, they’ll be stuck with them, for better or worse.
And, while anyone could be a better owner than Dejphon Chansiri, Mike Ashley’s previous football record should be enough to make fans wonder if he’s the ideal man to lead them forward. To find out how Newcastle United, Rangers, or Coventry City fans perceive him, Sheffield Wednesday fans just ask them.
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