© EuroFootball.com
Former Chelsea boss Ken Bates on Friday bought 50 percent of shares in the financially troubled Leeds club and became its new owner.
The 73-year-old Bates, who previously ran London's Chelsea for a long time, purchased the second-tier English league club with the help of the Geneva-based Forward Sports Fund company and now hopes to bring the Leeds club back to the country's elite.
"I am delighted to take over such a great football club. I see Leeds as a good club in a difficult situation. Now, in order to return the club to where it belongs, which is the Premier League, we will have to work hard, and with the support of the team's fans we will do everything possible," Bates said.
Three decades ago, Leeds was one of the strongest clubs in English football, and in 2001 they reached the Champions League semi-finals, but later had to sell their best players one by one due to million-pound debts, and last season Leeds dropped to the first division.
Recently, the club's management managed to reduce debts from £100 million to £25 million after selling the Elland Road stadium. By taking over the club's management, Bates hopes to reclaim this stadium where the Leeds club has been playing since 1919.
This is not the first time Ken Bates has taken on the task of restructuring a club in a difficult situation - in 1985, he acquired London's Chelsea for a symbolic £1 and turned it into one of the most powerful clubs in England over 22 years.
However, having spent a lot on Chelsea, the club accumulated £80 million in debt, so in 2003 Bates had to sell the club to Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, and last March the Englishman stepped down from his role as club president.
