Thaksin could lose City if he's convicted of corruption
08-AUG-2008 Intellasia | Daily Mails
Aug 8, 2008 - 7:00:00 AM
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Manchester City owner Thaksin Shinawatra faces a fight to keep direct control of the Barclays Premier League club if he is convicted on corruption charges in his native Thailand.
As revealed by Sportsmail yesterday, Thaksin's future at the City of Manchester Stadium is already in doubt after it emerged that he has spoken to two mystery parties about selling all or part of the club he bought last year.
And now it appears that he is likely to fail the Premier League's 'Fit and Proper Person' test if he is found guilty on the charges he faces in Asia in the coming weeks.
Premier League rules state that individuals found guilty of corruption charges in the UK or abroad cannot sit on club boards. It is understood that the Premier League are keeping an eye on Thaksin's situation -especially in light of his wife Pojaman being convicted last week. Thaksin remains bullish about his chances of escaping conviction and has assured City executives he will not be selling up.
Meanwhile, manager Mark Hughes is still trying to strengthen his squad and is considering a loan move for Marseille's former Liverpool striker Djibril Cisse.
Hughes is aware he needs more balance, particularly as City face four games in eight days at the end of the month after being ordered to play their Carling Cup second-round tie as scheduled.
Eight clubs involved in Europe are automatically given a bye into the third round of the Carling Cup but because City qualified after landing a UEFA Fair Play prize, they must enter at the second-round stage.
It means the club will be in Carling Cup action 48 hours after a League game with West Ham. They then head to Denmark for the second leg of their UEFA Cup qualifying round tie with FC Midtjylland on August 28 before finishing 72 hours later at Sunderland.
Hughes said: 'We are an English club trying to win a European trophy to show the Premier League in a good light but unfortunately we have become the victims of circumstance. We have been told the dates are non-negotiable.'
City full back Vedran Corluka, who has been linked with a UK pound 7m move to Tottenham, was given a warm reception by the visiting fans in last night's 1-1 friendly draw at Celtic. Martin Petrov scored for City with Paul McGowan equalising.
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