Milan Mandaric is reportedly looking to take over Aston Villa.
According to the Birmingham Mail, Milan Mandaric is interested in taking over Aston Villa – but Tony Xia has rejected his first bid for the club.
Villa find themselves in a financial nightmare having missed out on promotion back to the Premier League with a 1-0 Championship play-off final defeat to Fulham back in May.
With HMRC breathing down Villa’s neck, the club must find money from somewhere very soon, as the likes of James Chester, Jack Grealish and Jonathan Kodjia could all be sold to raise funds.
Some interested parties have attempted to purchase the club from owner Tony Xia and ease the financial woes, but he is refusing to sell – and another man has found that to be the case.
The Birmingham Mail report that Milan Mandaric wants to buy Villa, and has submitted an offer already – but Xia is standing his ground and has rejected the bid.
Mandaric, 79, has had a long history in football, as he bought Genk and Nice before taking over at Portsmouth in 1998, before leaving in 2006 – but he remained around English football.
The Serbian later bought Leicester City and then Sheffield Wednesday, meaning he has a number of promotions under his belt as an owner, and now wants to save Villa by making a return to England.
It remains to be seen whether Mandaric returns with a new bid, but Xia is clearly refusing to sell so far – and it may take a huge offer to convince him to move on.
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