Southampton Sale 'Not Clear' as Chinese Firm's Take Over Halted by Stalling Liebherr
Talks over the proposed change in ownership of Premier League side Southampton have halted as a result of the current owner's indecision on selling the club. German-born Katharina Liebherr currently owns Southampton and talks have been ongoing with Chinese construction firm Lander.
Having acquired ownership of Southampton in 2009 for between £13m-£15m, Liebherr's decision to sell could see the club swap hands for a whopping £210m.
According to a report from Reuters, Lander's founder Gao Jisheng confirmed that Saints owner Liebherr was stalling the negotiations: "It is not clear at the moment. The seller is having second thoughts about selling the club," said Gao, refusing to comment further on the matter.
An external spokesperson for Lander has declined that Gao made these comments to Reuters.
Southampton have made just one signing so far this summer, with 21-year-old Polish defender Jan Bednarek being the only new face on the south coast after completing a £5m move from Lech Poznan. The biggest transfer talk at St Mary's Stadium this summer has been over the future of defender Virgil van Dijk who has been heavily linked with a move to Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool.
