Ex Owner Gets Pompey Parachute Payments

The next four Premier League parachute payments for Portsmouth FC will go straight to former owner Sacha Gaydamak, according to Portsmouth administrator Trevor Birch.

Birch told BBC Radio Solent: ‘Gaydamak was assigned £2.2m of parachute payments to satisfy part of his debt.’

‘I was hoping to get some money from the Premier League, but the next four payments are all assigned to Gaydamak.’

The Company Voluntary Arrangement failed, but was agreed during Pompey’s last spell in administration.

In a statement on the club’s official website, Birch vowed that he and accountancy firm PKF will do all they can to secure the money to ease the club’s financial plight.

‘We have instructed lawyers to challenge this, but the process may take time. The club is also still owed nearly £300,000 by the CSI administrators and their lawyers, who are withholding the funds as payment for their work in applying to court for administration. PKF is talking to its lawyers to see if this money can be returned to the club.’

Birch also reinforced fears that the club may not survive the season.

‘We’re down to the wire now, I’ve got a meagre amount of money to try to get us to the end of the season,’ he said.

‘It puts another hole in my cash flow, I’m very worried. I need to turn to other revenue-raising issues and projects but I’m not confident.’

‘We can look at loaning players out to get some of the costs away but things are pretty limited at this stage of the season.’

According to media reports, it is also likely that any advantage accrued by other teams in games against the stricken south-coast club, including points and goal difference, would be wiped out by the Football League if the side do not fulfill their remaining fixtures.