Fresh reaction given to £100m Sheffield Wednesday takeover update - "it'll weed out timewasters" | OneFootball

FLW's Owls fan pundit doesn't think that the new revelation about how much it'll cost to run Sheffield Wednesday will deter potential buyers

This article is part of Football League World's 'Terrace Talk' series, which provides personal opinions from our FLW Fan Pundits regarding the latest breaking news, teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

It's been over four weeks since Sheffield Wednesday were placed into administration on October 24, meaning serious bids can now be made to buy the South Yorkshire side.

11 interested parties were able to show proof of £50 million in funds to oversee the short-term process of the takeover, and now it's time for those people to up their interest further ahead of a reported two-week negotiation period.

However, the i revealed that, unsurprisingly, it'll cost the future owner around £100 million over the next three years when taking into account investments in the squad and infrastructure around the club.

This number has reportedly proven too much for a Middle East consortium, as they withdrew from the bidding process due to these costs.

With that news, it can be easy to spiral as a Sheffield Wednesday fan, believing that the vast majority of the other interested parties may be put off from ramping up their interest in a purchase.

However, FLW's Owls fan pundit, Patrick McKenna, feels this development is a good thing, as it'll show fans who is truly interested in investing in the future of the club.

Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit unsurprised at £100 million running cost update

It's been over 25 years now since Sheffield Wednesday were last in the Premier League, and over that time, they've had to sit back and watch as teams around them improved their standing whilst they stagnated, and thus, regressed.

Therefore, McKenna wasn't surprised at all when he found out that potential buyers would need to invest nine-figure sums to run the club and get them back to the point where they are challenging for a spot in the top flight once more.

"It's obvious that whoever wanted to take over Sheffield Wednesday and get them back to the Premier League was going to have a big job on their hands," he said.

"You could never swoop in and make a quick fix, as the club has basically been a shell, way behind the times with an outdated infrastructure and no sensible strategy whatsoever.

"So, there's obviously a lot of money needed to be spent if they want to bring Wednesday into the modern era."

McKenna believes that this update will sort the wheat from the chaff when it comes to who is truly serious about taking the club on.

With 11 interested parties providing proof of £50 million to fund the club, this will be a real test to see how many of those felt that this could have been a way to buy a football club for a cut-price, or whether they're truly invested in the future of Sheffield Wednesday.

"There could have been people who came in when we went into admin and thought they could get us on the cheap, without realising the task which is ahead," McKenna continued.

"Basically, if people are concerned about the running costs and the repair costs, then they clearly aren't the right people for the club. They can't just leave that process.

"So I think this will weed out the time wasters, because if they were serious, they'd have fronted £50 million. The administrators set a high bar, so if the size of the task isn't for you, then you're not the right person."

Sheffield Wednesday fan pundit confident that interest will remain, despite running costs

McKenna ultimately isn't stressing that the hefty costs to not only get Sheffield Wednesday back on their feet, but also to get them further up the pyramid, will scare off anyone who has already provided the £50 million proof of funds to the administrators.

And, even if one or two do back out, there's still enough reportedly interested to build up a bidding war over the coming weeks.

The fan pundit believes that, despite the initial hit it'll have on their purse strings, an investment in Sheffield Wednesday will reap massive rewards.

"Clearly, there are a lot of serious bidders for the club if 11 people have met the £50 million threshold," McKenna said.

"Everyone knows that it will be a tough task, but whoever takes us on, there are a lot of rewards in getting Wednesday back to the Premier League.

"But yes, there is going to be a lot of hard work along the way."

Evidently, whoever does take over at Sheffield Wednesday will be undergoing what could potentially be one of the biggest projects in English football to date, given the amount of financial strain the club had when Dejphon Chansiri departed.

However, if they can take the Owls to the next level, they'll be heralded as a hero at Hillsborough.

If all goes smoothly, a preferred bidder may be chosen by December 5. So, these next couple of weeks will be filled with anticipation among Wednesday fans, as they wait impatiently to see who will be the person to undergo that task of getting the club back to where it belongs.