For those of us struggling to keep abreast of developments at Charlton Athletic we thought we would try to produce a weekly update of events. This is not an attempt to provide a comprehensive and detailed analysis of every twist and turn. It is designed for those who are looking for a broad and managebale overview:
The main event this week was the news on that the EFL were to conduct an investigation into the take over of CAFC by East Street Investments Ltd. An EFL statement said:
"The EFL have commenced formal investigations to ascertain whether breaches of EFL regulations and or other misconduct occurred in relation to the takeover of Charlton Athletic in January 2020."
The Evening Standard reported that:
"in documents sent to the club, seen by Standard Sport, the EFL allege that the takeover went ahead without sign off from The League and that the EFL warned Charlton they were proceeding at their own risk". Furthermore the Standard claimed that "the EFL asked Charlton's new owners for proof of funds on no fewer than six occasions" before proceeding to open the investigation.
A statement was published on the CAFC website on Wednesday as follows:
Dear Charlton fans,
I am writing to you as you will have seen the news that the takeover of the club, by East Street Investments, is being investigated by the EFL. As Tahnoon Nimer stated earlier this week, we are cooperating fully with the EFL and yesterday afternoon met with the league via video call.
While obviously this investigation is far from ideal for the football club, we are at least pleased that it will shed some light on the behaviour and intentions of various individuals around the process of the takeover and the months following.
At this stage we don’t know how long the EFL’s investigation will take. I understand it is a difficult and uncertain time for everyone connected with Charlton Athletic and we are working day and night to get the club through this.
We will continue to keep the fans updated with what is going on and will continue to work with Charlton Athletic Supporters Trust to answer your questions.
Yours sincerely,
Marian Mihail
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On the separate matter of the former directors' charges Rick Everitt reported via Twitter that:
"the three former Directors have now informed ESI, CAFC and Roland Duchatelet that their legal action to reverse the takeover is proceeding and that only Duchatelet's lawyers responded to the letter before action." He continued "my understanding is that the case is that he sale was not valid in the first place because it involved a contract the seller was not entitled to enter into. Duchatelet could make it go away by paying out £2.65m plus costs, but then other claimants might appear, so potentially £7m+. He continued: "the ex-directors are very confident of their case - the time it will take and what the resolution might be are not things I can usefully comment on, but will hopefully help concentrate some minds"
Meanwhile London News Online reported that Charlton’s players are in talks about taking a wage deferral to help their club survive the lockdown.
https://londonnewsonline.co.uk/charlton-in-talks-to-defer-wages-to-save-club-money-during-lockdown/
CAFC Director Marian Mihail has today provided a response to supporter questions about funding and the EFL:
https://www.castrust.org/2020/04/marian-mihail-responds-to-supporter-questions/
Over 130 people have joined CAST in the last three days reflecting the level of anxiety many fans are experiencing about the future of our club. Together we are stronger. If you are not a member or you know someone who isn't it is simple to join: https://www.castrust.org/join/