Takeovers at football clubs are always an uncertain time and it is no different with 49ers Enterprises in talks with Rangers.
A deal between Gers and the 49ers group, the investment arm of the San Francisco 49ers, is very close with discussions at at advanced stage.
An agreement in principle is said to be in place and that will see Rangers promised significant transfer funds ahead of the summer window.
With the Light Blues struggling on the pitch, it was thought the impending nature of the takeover could save Philippe Clement’s skin and keep him in the job a while longer.
That turned out not the be the case and he was sacked, with the 49eers group said to be fully behind the decision.
It could then be assumed they also backed the move to bring Barry Ferguson in to try and steady the ship until the end of the season, but there is no confirmation of that.
49ers Leeds involvement suggests similar at Rangers
However, a look back at what happened at Leeds United back when 49ers Enterprises were on the brink of taking over the English side could back that theory up.
With the Elland Road side threatened with relegation out of the Premier League, they sacked Jesse Marsch and brought in Spanish manager Javia Gracia to try and save them.
It is claimed Paraag Marathe, now Leeds chairman and at the forefront of the Rangers deal, was involved in that decision.
Asked if the 49ers took part in the process, The Athletic’s Phil Hay said at the time: “They were. When Gracia pitched to the board and presented his ideas on the Sunday after the defeat at Everton, Paraag Marathe — Leeds’ vice-chairman and 49ers Enterprises president — was in the meeting.
“Various contacts have indicated that of all the people at Elland Road, Radrizzani was most convinced that Marsch had to be sacked (and Radrizzani first thought about a change after defeat to Aston Villa in January) but because of the setup in the boardroom and the pending takeover, virtually every major decision — on transfers, finances, head coaches — has to be taken by committee.
“Much of it directly affects the current and future value of the club. It was like that with Jack Harrison almost joining Leicester on deadline day. 49ers Enterprises was not convinced by the sense of that deal and it was scrapped at late notice after boardroom talks.”
The Gracia appointment didn’t go according to plan and he was binned within months with the club only precariously just outside the relegation zone.
Sam Allardyce was brought in and the 49ers again had a say.
CBS reporter Ben Jacobs told GIVEMESPORT: “They are heavily invested in the club. There’s no suggestion that if Leeds go down, they’ll try and somehow take a step back.
“It’s always been a full-steam-ahead approach. It’s just a case of exactly when they come in.
“Therefore, any decision around Gracia, Allardyce and Orta will all have had, as I understand it, major input from 49ers Enterprises.”
What Sam Allardyce said about 49ers Enterprises
Alardyce was in a similar position to Barry Ferguson, interim boss while the 49ers takeover was being concluded, and he decided not to hang about and say if they wanted him.
Allardyce told the No Tippy Tappy Football podcast: “They might have said this before, when I got it in the period of time, should have been 12 or 14 games, if the director of football would have been big enough to pick an Englishman to come and do the job.
“And I’m not sure whether he was Spanish or… but certainly the manager they brought in was Spanish.
“But eventually they turned around to me with only four games to go and they did get rid of that director of football. So I always think that with more time I would have kept the Premier League status.
“But I can’t thank the support I got in just that four games from not only the staff but also the fans. They tried, they were behind us, but I was so disappointed that certainly the Tottenham game, because we’d seen such an upturn, even though it was only a loss at Man City 2-1, and then it was… we really threw it away, Newcastle at home.
“And then West Ham, had an opportunity, got in front, but the Tottenham game was a real disappointment in the end. I’ll always think that.
“Why didn’t I stay? Well, I wasn’t staying at that time because I was just thinking about the club changing hands. Was I going to be left with a case of the new owners come in and just get rid of me? And I’d had that happen at Newcastle, I’d had it happen at Blackburn Rovers. And I really didn’t want that to happen again.
“I don’t know whether they would have stayed with me or they wouldn’t. I thought new owners, clean break, San Francisco 49ers, but yeah, fantastic club.”
