Portsmouth fans set to eye new owner Rob Lloyd with caution

By Paul Kelso 1030PM GMT thirteen March 2010

Cup passion Frederic Piquionne shares his pleasure with Portsmouth supporters Photo AP

A nerve-racking deteriorate has already seen 4 Portsmouth owners pass by the revolving doorway of the chairmans bureau at Fratton Park, withdrawal the bar the initial in Premier League story to pass in to administration department department department and accountants probing a black hole in the accounts.

In one apply oneself however the fans might take a little heart. While the exchange and in one box even the temperament of his predecessors were opaque, at slightest they will know who they are traffic with today.

Portsmouth on margin of new takeover Liverpool v Portsmouth preview Peter Storrie stairs down at Portsmouth Portsmouth administrators examine blank millions HMRC accepts Portsmouth administration department department department Storrie stays as Portsmouth pouch 85 staff

Lloyd, 44 will never be described as shy. A skill and racing entrepreneur, he has published an journal (Raising the Bar - The Story of One Mans Vision and Dedication) and progressing this year appeared on Channel 4s Secret Millionaire. The contrariety with Ali Al Faraj, the last-but-one owners who was never seen at Fratton Park or the Premier Leagues offices and warranted the soubriquet "Al Mirage from supporters who still disbelief he exists, could not be some-more marked.

Lloyds background, minute on his personal website, appears classical entrepreneur. He grew up on a plantation in Cheshire and was prepared at the eccentric Rydal School in Colwyn Bay, where it took him 7 attempts to pass his English Language O Level. He worked in estate group and contemplating prior to environment up his initial skill business, that rose and fell in 3 years. He set up his stream association Eatonfield Ltd in 1998 with rather some-more success, and it was listed on Londons delegate batch exchange, the Alternative Investment Market, in 2006.

Alongside Eatonfield he runs Rob Lloyd Racing, that trains a fibre of primarily Flat horses in Cheshire.

Like majority in the skill commercial operation he has been strike by the retrogression however, and new announcements from Eatonfield lift questions about the strength of the business.

Last week the association concluded a �900,000 appropriation understanding with one of the partners, Jenard Properties, to safeguard it had enough operative collateral to go on trading. That understanding came only days after a share issue to the same financier lifted �100,000. At the finish of last month, Lloyd suggested Eatonfields bank appropriation had been cold and was forced to find an puncture loan to go on in business.

While Lloyds past is well-documented Portsmouth supporters will be some-more meddlesome in his plans for the future, and the temperament of his backers.

Lloyd has done it transparent that he is the front-man for a consortium that includes await from a New York-based sidestep account and a rich investor, presumably the South African investment residence Old Mutual.

His credentials in skill suggests that Lloyds consortium will find to pull together the jigsaw of land around Fratton Park to capacitate redevelopment, or a new stadium.

To do that Lloyd will have to infer former owners Sacha Gaydamak, who owns majority of the land compulsory for growth but is due �30m. Current owners Balram Chainrai, who is due �13.5m and sits in front of Gaydamak in the reserve as a cumulative creditor, will additionally need satisfaction.

So as well will Her Majestys Revenue and Customs, that is due �18m and sought a winding-up sequence opposite the bar progressing this year. The taxation debt might nonetheless infer the majority consequential to the clubs fortunes underneath new owners. If HMRC does not determine with the conditions of the clubs exit from administration department department department Portsmouth could find themselves starting subsequent deteriorate in the Championship with a outrageous points deduction.