Buyer bid hope for royal fans

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PROTEST: Reading fans invaded the pitch in January to make their feelings clear
PICTURE: Alamy

READING supporters are ‘optimistic’ that Dai Yongge’s controversial reign as owner will soon come to an end.

Chinese businessman Yongge took over the club, in partnership with his sister Dai Xiu Li, in 2017 and his early years in charge were relatively untroubled.

However, relations with the club’s supporters have hit breaking point over the last few years. The Royals have suffered numerous points deductions, been relegated from the Championship, failed to pay wages on time and had to fend off winding-up petitions from HMRC over unpaid taxes.

It is not only Reading fans who have been frustrated with Yongge’s actions in recent times. The EFL have urged him to either fund the club adequately or to make immediate arrangements to sell his majority shareholding.

It looks as though the latter may now finally come to fruition. On Tuesday, the club announced that ‘Mr Dai has committed to a letter of intent with a potential purchaser of Reading Football Club’.

It is not expected to be a speedy transaction, however, if it goes through.

Exclusive

The club statement added: “The parties will now enter a period of exclusive negotiation to agree the final terms. The completion is expected to take up to two months, at which time the purchaser will be announced.

“The transaction would include the transfer of M

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