Niall Quinn says he will not be fronting a consortium planning a takeover at Sunderland.
There is bad news for those hoping that Niall Quinn would be fronting a consortium preparing to launch a takeover at Sunderland.
Reports claimed that Quinn was going to be part of a group involving business people from the Republic of Ireland and the North East getting ready to buy out current Black Cats owner Ellis Short.
Short wants to sell the club and the Irishman was in contact with a group a few months ago who had shown some interest in the Wearside club.
However, recent sightings of Quinn in the city have turned out to be nothing to do with any sort of takeover – which will come as a huge disappointment to many fans.
When asked about the reports, the 51-year-old told Irish outlet RTE: “Not true.
“Sadly someone jumped the gun there a little bit and probably felt I was doing more.
“I was actually in Sunderland a couple of times but it was nothing to do with football and maybe that’s where it came from.
“At the same time I, like everybody else, hopes the situation gets better there very quickly.
“There are one or two people who are meant to be interested in buying the club, I hear all that. I’m the same as the fans but we’ll just see how it plays.
“No, I’ve nothing special to tell you there, I just hope they get out of it.
“I’m gone six years now so I haven’t left anything behind me in terms of my support for the club. I’d like to see it turned around, I just don’t think it’s going to be me.”
Quinn was the head of the Drumaville Consortium which bought Sunderland back in 2006, before selling it to Short three years later.
His affiliation with the club runs deep, having also been a player, manager and chairman there in the past.
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