Derby County urged to 'stay well away' from John Textor if they are 'second choice' to Sheffield Wednesday | OneFootball

FLW's Derby County Fan Pundit has strong reservations about the former Crystal Palace owner

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…

Billionaire businessman John Textor has emerged as a potential new owner for Derby County, but reportedly only if his Sheffield Wednesday takeover fails to happen.

This comes after journalist Alan Nixon revealed Textor's interest in the Rams via his Patreon, which is now being met with strong concerns.

Textor previously held a big stake in Crystal Palace before selling his 43% shares to New York Jets owner Woody Johnson for a reported £190 million - and he currently chairs Eagle Football Holdings.

His portfolio includes ownership stakes in French giants Olympique Lyonnais, Brazilian first division side Botafogo, and Belgian outfit RWDM Brussels - where former Rams Luke Plange and Malcolm Ebiowei spent time on loan when at Palace.

Derby County urged to "stay well away" from John Textor

FLW's Derby County Fan Pundit, Shaun Woodward, certainly has his reservations about Textor being involved with the East Midlands outfit.

Speaking about the American's overall reputation, Woodward stated that following his own research into the billionaire's track record, he has concerns about how Textor operates his aforementioned portfolio of clubs.

"The more I look into it, the more I believe he wouldn’t be a right fit for Derby," Woodward explained.

"Initially, I looked at his net worth and thought - yep, great he’s got a lot of money compared to Clowes, which could’ve potentially been a good thing if we did get promoted eventually.

"The more I look into it, he’s got his fingers in a lot of pies, he’s got a lot of clubs. From doing some research, he’s not highly thought of by a lot of people at those clubs, and equally, if we’re second choice then I’m sorry, stay well away," the Fan Pundit continued.

Given that Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis owns both Greek side Olympiacos and Rio Ave in Portugal, it's fair to say Derby fans are familiar with this approach - and, of course, the many transfers that can happen between clubs under the same ownership.

It was much more frequent when they were in the Championship, but the number of players who have spent time in both Greece and England since Marinakis took over Forest in 2017 is quite a lot.

Of the 20 players listed to have played for both sides, 16 have been since 2017 - and I'm not sure Derby fans would appreciate something similar happening at Pride Park.

Strong feeling that David Clowes won't "entertain" John Textor

Woodward believes that if Derby were to get a new owner, they’d need someone with genuine passion - like David Clowes - rather than somebody treating it as merely a business venture.

"We want someone that’s going to come in and they want to take us over. Like David Clowes, they’d be passionate about the club and to move us forward, not just a potential to earn money because that can go wrong very quickly," Woodward told FLW.

"David Clowes has shown over a few years that, by being really sensible, he’s a fan first and foremost, but he’s also a very intelligent businessman, and he’s done what's right for the club," he added.

There's no denying that Clowes' approach has steadied the Rams following the instability of Mel Morris - and the Chair of Rams Trust, Hilary Leam, has previously told BBC Radio Derby that he'll "always act in our best interest."

Perhaps the main issue facing any potential Textor takeover appears to be Nixon's report that Derby would be a fallback option - which Woodward isn't too pleased about.

"I’d rather stay with David Clowes until we can find someone that he believes is the right fit for us, but we don’t want to be a second option for anybody.

"I’d probably be inclined to stay well away and I think David Clowes knows what’s best for us, so I don’t think he’d even entertain it if I’m honest," Woodward concluded.

In truth, these words probably reflect what the majority of Rams fans are thinking about potentially being second choice to Sheffield Wednesday.

With how personally invested Clowes is with Derby, the likelihood of him handing over the reigns to Textor of all people seems slim - especially if the 'second choice' report turns out to be true.