4 hours ago
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Sheffield Wednesday are close to being hit with a winding-up petition – which may force controversial owner Dejphon Chansiri to put the stricken club into administration.
Daily Mail Sport understands that a tax bill to HMRC remains unpaid and that the first steps towards winding up the historic club could be triggered as early as the coming days.
Wednesday, who have paid wages late in five of the past seven months, are currently under five embargoes with the EFL. One of those relates to the unpaid bill, which is thought to relate to PAYE and VAT.
Should the petition be issued and he remain unable to pay the taxman, Thai businessman Chansiri could be left with no option other than to put the troubled Championship side into administration.
While such a move would be likely to trigger a points deduction and make it incredibly difficult for Wednesday to avoid relegation, it could be the catalyst to a much-needed sale that would secure the club's future and ease the desperate fears of its army of supporters.
The size of the bill is unknown but some believe it to be around £750,000. Chansiri who, as a sole director is the only individual who could place the club into administration, has indicated he would be willing to sell up but a deal remains elusive.
Sheffield Wednesday are close to being hit with a winding-up petition that could put them into administration
Daily Mail Sport understands that a tax bill to HMRC remains unpaid and action could be taken in the coming days
Putting the club into administration would impact the sale price - there are concerns that Chansiri is seeking around £40million
Daily Mail Sport revealed that US businessman John Textor, whose company formerly held a majority stake in Crystal Palace, had held initial talks with Chansiri but that there had been no progress.
There are concerns that Chansiri's is seeking an unrealistic asking price for a club he paid around £40m for in 2015. Placing the club into administration would impact any sale price.
As things stand, the club's revenues do not meet their outgoings, despite a drastic reduction in costs following a summer of upheaval which saw the departure of key players and the manager, a young squad currently sits a point from safety having taken six points from the opening nine games under new boss Henrik Pedersen. Wednesday's fed-up fanbase have been protesting against Chansiri on a regular basis.
The EFL declined to comment. Sheffield Wednesday have been approached for comment.
