Vincent Tan has no plans to sell Cardiff City, says chairman Mehmet Dalman
Thursday 8 September 2016 20:38, UK
Cardiff City chairman Mehmet Dalman has labelled claims Vincent Tan will sell the club "nonsense", but says David Marshall had to be sold despite a desire to keep hold of the goalkeeper.
Malaysian businessman Tan has previously said he would be open to buying another football club in the UK, but wrote off £68m of the club's debt in February in a bid to get the club debt-free within five years.
Dalman defended Tan after claims he has lost interest in the club and is absent from too many of the Sky Bet Championship side's fixtures, insisting the Cardiff owner needs to look after his businesses in the Far East in order to help recoup money invested in the club.
"He needs to make money from those businesses to put into Cardiff City FC, which he continues to do," Dalman told Wales Online.
"I find it disappointing people are questioning him like this and I also think it's unfair. If it wasn't for him, where on earth would this club be today? Yet despite the criticism, he has no wish to just dump it and move on."
A lack of summer transfer signings has frustrated Cardiff supporters and prompted fears Tan is looking to strip assets ready to sell the club, but Dalman refuted the claims and confirmed there have been no bids for the club.
"Nonsense again," said Dalman. "If we sell players he's asset stripping! If we run the club properly, he's doing it to sell it! If he doesn't come to games, he's not committed!
"Come on, is there anything we can do right here?
"We've had zero bids to buy this club. Fact. There was a rumour going around about some Sheikh wanting to buy it... which had about as much truth as the suggestion that Turkish bloke was going to be our manager a few months back.
"What we're doing, and what Vincent wants us to do, is create a more sustainable financial model for Cardiff City FC."
Dalman denied the club were now operating a strategy of austerity, but admitted Cardiff now need to stick to a "common sense" approach in order to balance the books.
Cardiff, who have won just one of their opening five league games this season, sold goalkeeper David Marshall to Premier League side Hull City during the transfer window and Dalman revealed the club were left with no alternative but to allow the player to leave.
"For background, when two Premier League clubs came in for him the first time, we said 'no' and explained our decision to David," Dalman added. "He was disappointed, but being the pro that he is he knuckled down and just got on with the job here.
"Then another Premier League club, a third one, wanted to buy him. Again we said 'no'. Once more, David accepted the decision. I told him, 'We really appreciate your understanding and getting on with the job in hand. The Premier League will happen for you at some point'.
"Well, it has. On this occasion, the fourth club coming in, we had to change our stance, couldn't stand in his way any more.
"Did we want to keep him? Yes. Did we welcome the revenue from selling? Yes again."
