Lawyers instructed as dispute between Championship club's owner and executive chairman Matt Southall escalates
Tuesday 10 March 2020 21:06, UK
Majority shareholder Tahnoon Nimer has denied Charlton's statement that he resigned as a director amid a dispute among the club's hierarchy.
The Sky Bet Championship strugglers' executive chairman Matt Southall issued a statement on Monday saying he will meet with his legal representatives to "discuss an action for defamation" over an alleged letter Nimer sent to the club's senior management team.
Charlton are backed through Nimer's corporation Panorama Magic General Contracting LLC, which is the majority shareholder in East Street Investments (ESI) who completed the purchase of the club in January.
However, Nimer announced his intent to pull out of the club on Monday in an Instagram post, that has since been deleted, which read: "Unfortunately, I discovered that the club's financial resources were exploited in a wrong and immoral manner, and that is why I announce that I will withdraw the club's purchase, I wish you all the best."
A statement issued by Charlton on Tuesday read: "It is with regret that the board of Charlton Athletic Football Club accepts Tahnoon Nimer's resignation as a director with immediate effect. Following the events of March 9th, his position is now untenable and the board has no option but to accept his resignation."
However, Nimer denied he had resigned via a statement from his lawyer which read: "The statements that Mr Southall has made recently on the club's website are defamatory, inaccurate and designed to be deliberately misleading and damaging to Mr Tahnoon Nimer.
"We can confirm that Mr Tahnoon Nimer has not resigned nor offered his resignation. He has however instructed lawyers to investigate the financial irregularities at the Club and in particular Mr Southall.
"We have been forced to issue this statement in response to Mr Southall's earlier statement and to ensure that fans are aware of the true position."
Nimer's legal representative later confirmed he will be seeking Southall's resignation and will pursue legal action against the executive chairman.
The English Football League (EFL) has issued a statement on recent events at the Valley, confirming it is working with the club to help resolve the ongoing ownership dispute.
The body also indicated Charlton remain under a registration embargo, meaning the club are unable to sign any new players for the time being.
"The EFL notes the concerning developments, including a number of unhelpful media comments, emanating from Charlton Athletic over the past 24 hours," an EFL statement read.
"The League has been working closely with the relevant parties since an initial application for a change of control was made.
"The relevant parties were notified in January that they were eligible under the provisions of the Owners' and Directors' Test in accordance with EFL Regulations.
"In parallel, the EFL had also made clear the requirements in respect to the source and sufficiency of funding necessary to fund the Club until June 2021. Those matters remain outstanding.
"As a result of not receiving the required information the Club was placed under a registration embargo and that position remains as the EFL seeks assurances that the necessary funds are available and for that funding to be placed in the Club.
"The EFL's position has been reserved and it is considering with its external advisors what further action should be taken under its Regulations. The EFL will make no further comment at this time."
The club's executive chairman Matt Southall hit out at Nimer late on Monday night for his recent conduct, and also confirmed that he intends to take legal action over the majority shareholder's actions.
"I want to let Charlton fans know and understand what is happening before rumours and speculation run completely out of control," he said.
"On Monday, Tahnoon Nimer sent an incredibly damaging letter on behalf of Panorama Magic General Contracting LLC to members of the club's senior management team. In the letter, he made allegations about me and my conduct, which my lawyers immediately rebutted.
"It has been brought to my attention that he has repeated and indeed expanded upon the malicious falsehoods made in the initial letter. As a consequence, I will now be meeting with my lawyers to discuss an action for defamation. However, my immediate priority is to protect the club and its staff from these damaging statements.
"Also contained in that letter were claims he had appointed a chief executive officer, an action that I am advised by the club's lawyers would be outside the parameters of Panorama's influence. Even more worryingly, the letter also threatened members of the senior management team with legal action if they did not comply with his demands.
"This is completely unacceptable and detrimental to the morale of such a loyal and dedicated staff and the smooth running of the football club.
"One of the claims in the letter was that 'disadvantageous contracts' had been authorised by me. I can only conclude that the majority shareholder disagreed with my decision to give Lee Bowyer a new contract on the terms agreed as that is the only major contract signed in my time as executive chairman.
"For the avoidance of doubt, both Jonathan Heller and I have passed the EFL's Owners and Directors Test. However, the majority shareholder has yet to satisfy the EFL in respect of the source of his funds, despite numerous requests made by the EFL and a number of deadlines that have been ignored by him.
"This failure obviously limited our ability to deal in the transfer window although I liaised closely with the EFL and made sure they were aware of every deal we were planning so that they could be sanctioned appropriately. I continue to be in close contact with the EFL who are also aware of the dispute between me and the majority shareholder.
"It is a crucial time of the season and it would seem appropriate that all the stakeholders direct their efforts in support of the team and the club. Therefore, it is disappointing that the majority shareholder should act in such a manner and be attempting to purchase Dinamo Bucharest to the point where he pictured himself in Romania during Saturday's fixture.
"The Board and the Senior Management team are determined that Charlton Athletic be run in a sensible, responsible and sustainable manner, but this is being made very difficult by the majority shareholder's actions and his failure to provide either the necessary satisfaction to the EFL or the funds that he has consistently promised to invest.
"To date, not a single penny of the promised funds has been provided. The board will continue to make decisions in the best interests of the club, its fans, its players and its staff with the full support of the dedicated and loyal senior management team. We look forward to a successful conclusion this season."
