Discussions for the takeover of OM are very real, but for the moment they are coming up against an implacable refusal from Saudi Arabia because of Frank McCourt’s greed.
There was no particular announcement on Monday June 12 in the process of the sale of Olympique de Marseille. This does not mean that the lines do not move, since behind the scenes, it is indeed moving. Pablo Longoria traveled to the United States to give the club’s annual health update to owner Frank McCourt. For their part, the Saudis would also be passing through Marseille to test the waters in the heart of the city, with the possible aim of preparing an offer that would put everyone in agreement.
McCourt asks a crazy sum to sell OM
But for the moment, the positions are frozen and Romain Molina has revealed why. Admittedly, Frank McCourt is a seller, but not at any price. The sinews of war would be the amount requested by the Boston businessman, for whom the price bought by OM would rise to crazy heights according to his demands. He had paid 50 million euros to buy the Marseille club, and has since put several hundred million euros out of his pocket to bail it out and allow it to strengthen. His requests to make a sale would be colossal according to the independent journalist Romain Molina, who spoke about it during a space on Twitter.
OM sale: It’s June 12, the day of glory has arrived https://t.co/R6c76jyh0i
— French Football Weekly.com (@Foot01_com) June 12, 2023
” Saudis are not stupid. People think that because they have money, because they are able to put a lot of money on a purchase, they will buy everything, this is not the case. They will undoubtedly buy a club in Europe. But the boss of OM, what he asks, no one is going to buy the club at this price. So I repeat, they are not stupid. If the owner of OM thinks he can sell his club for, I don’t know, millions of millions, nobody is going to buy it. The Saudis will buy other clubs, Newcastle is only the first. They want to buy a club in Belgium, which is called Ostend, in the 2nd Belgian division, they are on it. They are negotiating and they also want a club in France. But it’s not for now, it can happen in a few months, because they want to do like the City Football Group, to own several clubs in the world.underlined Romain Molina, for whom the ambition of Saudi Arabia to invest en masse in European football is not a myth, but that it will not happen anyhow.
Information that risks overwhelming OM supporters, who would dream of a slightly less greedy Frank McCourt to give up his hand and let the Saudis let go with the Provençal club. Especially since, in a communication game that can put everyone on edge, the message has now passed that, if OM cannot be bought at a reasonable price, Saudi Arabia could well turn to another French club in order to build his empire. There is no shortage of clubs for sale in France, and even if they do not have the prestige of Marseille, they can very quickly grow considerably with the investment capacities of the Saudi Kingdom.
