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Takeover talk at Wanderers has stepped up a notch as reports in Northern Ireland claim a multi-million pound consortium led by top businessman Gerry Carlile is seriously considering a bid for the club.
Although played down for weeks from within the walls of the Macron Stadium, momentum now appears to be gathering behind rumours that the Belfast restaurateur and nightclub owner is in talks with owner Eddie Davies and chairman Phil Gartside.
Carlile was unavailable for comment when approached by The Bolton News but a report in Belfast yesterday quoted a colleague, who backed up suggestions he was currently speaking with the club.
“Gerry is not denying it, which has only added to the speculation,” he said.
“Like all important business deals he is saying nothing until it actually comes off.”
To add further weight to the claim, Carlile is known to be a friend of Wanderers boss Neil Lennon, who has been the sole voice confirming talks were taking place in the background over the last month.
Speaking last week the manager admitted investment would be a significant boost in a summer where he was looking to reinforce his squad.
“I think there are talks ongoing, yes, but whether it materialises or not I cannot say at this stage,” he said. “I’ll leave that to the people behind the scenes.
“It would be welcome, obviously, it would be helpful. But we don’t want to go down the road of throwing millions at it and it not working out.”
Carlile has previously worked as a football agent, representing players such as Niall McGinn, Paddy McCourt and Anthony Stokes.
The structure of the consortium he is said to be fronting is not yet known, nor is the size of the potential investment.
Wanderers have made no secret of their desire to find outside investment and it is claimed they have also spoken to businessmen in Israel.
Last year a group of Thai investors spoke publicly about investing in the club only for their interest to come to nothing.
It seems likely that without added investment, Lennon will have little to spend this summer as he looks to refurbish his first-team squad.
Lifelong fan Davies has bankrolled the club through his company Burnden Leisure since becoming the major shareholder in 2003. Prior to that he had been a non-executive director since 1999.
It has been suggested that Davies would have to write off most or all the money owed to him by Wanderers – some £167million – in order for a deal to go through.
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Although played down for weeks from within the walls of the Macron Stadium, momentum now appears to be gathering behind rumours that the Belfast restaurateur and nightclub owner is in talks with owner Eddie Davies and chairman Phil Gartside.
Carlile was unavailable for comment when approached by The Bolton News but a report in Belfast yesterday quoted a colleague, who backed up suggestions he was currently speaking with the club.
“Gerry is not denying it, which has only added to the speculation,” he said.
“Like all important business deals he is saying nothing until it actually comes off.”
To add further weight to the claim, Carlile is known to be a friend of Wanderers boss Neil Lennon, who has been the sole voice confirming talks were taking place in the background over the last month.
Speaking last week the manager admitted investment would be a significant boost in a summer where he was looking to reinforce his squad.
“I think there are talks ongoing, yes, but whether it materialises or not I cannot say at this stage,” he said. “I’ll leave that to the people behind the scenes.
“It would be welcome, obviously, it would be helpful. But we don’t want to go down the road of throwing millions at it and it not working out.”
Carlile has previously worked as a football agent, representing players such as Niall McGinn, Paddy McCourt and Anthony Stokes.
The structure of the consortium he is said to be fronting is not yet known, nor is the size of the potential investment.
Wanderers have made no secret of their desire to find outside investment and it is claimed they have also spoken to businessmen in Israel.
Last year a group of Thai investors spoke publicly about investing in the club only for their interest to come to nothing.
It seems likely that without added investment, Lennon will have little to spend this summer as he looks to refurbish his first-team squad.
Lifelong fan Davies has bankrolled the club through his company Burnden Leisure since becoming the major shareholder in 2003. Prior to that he had been a non-executive director since 1999.
It has been suggested that Davies would have to write off most or all the money owed to him by Wanderers – some £167million – in order for a deal to go through.
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