Premier League club 'up for sale for £125million' as owner reacts to relegation
All three promoted teams have been relegated straight back to the Championship and Southampton owner Dragan Solak is reportedly ready to cut his losses with a sale
Southampton have been put up for sale, with owner Dragan Solak keen to cash out following their relegation from the Premier League, according to Simon Jordan. Saints are rock-bottom of the league and still need one point from their final four matches to surpass Derby County as the worst side in the division's history.
They have won just two of their 34 matches this season, and with just 11 points accrued, were officially relegated on April 6, with seven games remaining – the earliest a Premier League team has ever been condemned. Saints are currently managed by interim boss Simon Rusk, after Ivan Juric followed his predecessor Russell Martin in being sacked.
The club have found themselves in an almighty mess heading into a crucial summer, when they will be forced to tear apart the squad and start again in the Championship. Southampton are in a state of limbo, with the manager for next season also yet to be decided, amid speculation they are considering Minnesota United head coach Eric Ramsay and Sheffield Wednesday's Danny Rohl.
There is now even more uncertainty off the pitch, with Jordan voicing rumours that Serbian businessman Solak wants to cut and run. Solak provided £100million for Saints to be taken over by Sport Republic in January 2022, buying an 80 per cent stake from Gao Jisheng, but he reportedly has had enough.
'On the basis of performances this season, Ipswich haven't got any more stability than Southampton,' Jordan said on talkSPORT. 'There is a rumour going around that Southampton are up for sale but the fact of the matter is that they have all gone down with no great credit.'
The Daily Echo reports that a figure of £125m was mentioned when they were first made aware of the rumour last week. Mirror Football has contacted Southampton to request comment on the speculation.
Solak became Southampton's chairman earlier this year after Henrik Kraft decided to step down. He has backed Sport Republic's decision to chase a multi-club ownership model, which also includes Turkish side Göztepe and French team Valenciennes, and reaffirmed his commitment in an interview in January.
"I wouldn't say losing is a new experience for me because [anyone] who had certain success knows that the path to success is basically going through defeats,' he told talkSPORT. 'The main thing is to learn and to get better and not to repeat the same mistakes. So I have to say I love Southampton as a football club, as a town.
'I think we have the best fans in the world. We have the colours that I loved from my childhood before even I knew Southampton. I feel completely at home here and I'm as passionate as ever to make this club successful and I will do everything possible. That's why I decided to assume the chair.
'I show everybody that I'm going nowhere and I will do everything I can to make it work. For me, the healing process is thinking longer term. If I see the path and the light at the end of the tunnel, then I feel a bit better. I have to say that I feel quite positive about our future. We have to do some things differently.'
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