Why There Was No Parkin At Elland Road

Last updated : 08 November 2006 By Kevin Markey
The lifelong Leeds fan, 45, said he also had former Crystal Palace boss Iain Dowie poised to take over as manager.

Parkin says in the Yorkshire Evening Post however that the deal collapsed as his consortium were not allowed to look at the club's finances before an offer was in place.

He said: "I'd love to one day put something into Leeds United."

Parkin, who is chief executive of Brighouse-based logistics company Clipper Group, added that could be either as owner, director or "just a beneficiary".

"You can never say never," said Parkin. "I would like to think I could put something in to enable it to thrive again."

Parkin says the deal fell through after his consortium discovered the cost of taking control from former chairman Gerald Krasner could have been as much as £50m.

"I put together a consortium and we had a fair amount of wealth within that to do a deal," he said.

"We were willing to take it on and be the guarantor for the debt, but we needed to look at the books.

"They weren't releasing the information to us. What they were saying was show us your funds and we'll show you the books.

"But I was saying if you don't show me the books, how do I know how much money I need. Until you see the books, how do you know?"