Dalman dismisses Cardiff takeover talk as ‘fiction’

Mehmet Dalman, the club’s chairman, has dismissed the notion that it is close to being sold as “fiction.”

Gareth Bale, a former Wales and Real Madrid forward, has made it known that a consortium he is leading has made offers to buy the Bluebirds, despite reports of takeover offers from a South African-based company.

Although Dalman acknowledged that potential suitors had made informal inquiries, only one of them, who they are “seriously,” said club owner Vincent Tan was not interested in selling.

The chairman also refuted rumors that he was thinking about buying Cardiff from Tan.

The Bluebirds return to League One action on Saturday against Peterborough United, after being eliminated from the championship last year.

This is a fantastic piece of fiction. No one from a South African consortium came to see me, let me be absolutely clear, Dalman said.

“We don’t want anyone to look at this club around.” We have never spoken to the authorities, the English Football League, or anyone in between.

I’ve never attempted to form a group to take over this. I have never expressed an interest in acquiring this club. I traveled with Vincent, and I’m going most of the way.

“A number of groups are attempting to buy this club on the cheap, so they’re pulling these stories out.” We simply need to [kill] the stories. Promoting is what we’re trying to do.

The takeover discussion has gotten more heated when Bale revealed in June that his consortium had approached the Bluebirds about buying his home club, for the first time ever by anyone on the board of Cardiff.

The group claimed in July that a second offer had been made, and Gary Otto, a legendary former Welsh captain, was rumored to be leading a rival bid.

Dalman expressed his appreciation for their interest, but he questioned whether it was serious.

Every team that is relegated receives calls because some people are looking for value purchases, he said.

We have approaches all the time. The majority of them are pitiful. Some of them are convincing.

We did, of course, make approaches, but that is not a bid. When people rung up, you’d be surprised at how low some of the numbers were.

I need to know who they are in their entirety in order for me to take anyone seriously. I require reliable financial institution proof, preferably from a credible source. I need to know their accountants and attorneys, as well as their accountants. I don’t have an offer until they give me those four things.

Tan may be sold at the appropriate price, according to Dalman’s previous statement.

The owner of Cardiff would prefer to sell in the Championship or, ideally, return to the Premier League, where they have spent two seasons while they have been in charge, after their relegation last season.

Two seasons ago, when Cardiff was in the Championship, a “cast-iron” offer was on the table, according to Dalman, but Tan was reluctant to sell even then.

Dalman remarked, “I would not want to sell at this level.” I want to see this team compete in the Championship, which is where they should be.

Two seasons ago, when we were in the Championship and offered a cast-iron offer, things were very close. And that was the closest we could get to selling.

“We recently completed a valuation of about £40 million. Because this is a Premier League catchment area and stadium, I believe you can ask for a premium.

“If you stretch it, it could be worth £50 million. Do you want to sell a Championship club if it is worth $100 million? It could be worth $400 million in the Premier League.