Derby County’s prospective new owners enquired about buying Premier League clubs West Ham and Bournemouth last season, Sportsmail can disclose.
There is now significant doubt over the protracted takeover at Pride Park by a branch of the Abu Dhabi royal family following a three-month delay in completing the £60 million transaction, and news that the group have now failed to complete deals for at least three other clubs will heighten those apprehensions.
The EFL ratified the proposed purchase of Derby by Sheik Khaled bin Zayed al Nehayan, the cousin of Manchester City’s billionaire owner Sheik Mansour, in November.