Birmingham takeover saga draws to a close as US investor Tom Wagner and Knighthead Capital assume 46 per cent stake in Championship club
- Wagner and Knighthead Capital have acquired a significant stake in Birmingham
- The American and his investment group have also bought St Andrew’s outright
- Former Man City chief executive Garry Cook is likely to be installed at the club
Birmingham‘s protracted ownership saga was finally set to move forward on Thursday with American investor Tom Wagner assuming a significant stake in the Championship club.
Wagner and investment group Knighthead Capital were due to take a 45.64 per cent stake in the club, where Real Madrid and England star Jude Bellingham started his career, as well as buying the club’s stadium St Andrew’s outright.
Former Manchester City chief executive Garry Cook was likely to be installed in a similar role with Blues, after leaving his post as executive president of the Saudi Pro League.
Birmingham finished 17th in the Championship last season and manager John Eustace is again likely to be operating within a tight budget. As reported in Mail Sport on Tuesday, midfielder Tahith Chong has been allowed to leave and is due to join Luton for about £5million.
Birmingham’s protracted ownership saga was finally set to move forward on Thursday
US investor Tom Wagner (left) has assumed a 46 per cent stake in the Championship club
Blues also earned a windfall of about £5m from Bellingham’s move from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid and £3m when his younger brother Jobe joined Sunderland.
Greater investment is expected to arrive in due course but in the meantime, Eustace will be expected to deliver improved results despite the strict financial circumstances.
‘I’ve had brief conversations,’ said Eustace. ‘We haven’t really been able to sit down and nail things out. There’s a lot going on at the football club at the moment.
‘I would like to think they are trusting me to get on with my side of it and when the time is right I’m sure we’ll sit down and bang out the plan for the future.’
