By Kieran Maguire

23rd Mar, 2023 | 8:00am

Kieran Maguire: Independent regulator told to steer clear of £5m West Brom 'disaster'

It would be inconsistent for independent regulation to intrude on Guochuan Lai’s £5million West Brom loans.

That is the view of finance expert Kieran Maguire, who exclusively told Football Insider that regulators need to discourage unfit owners from investing in football.

As reported by The Athletic, Lai has missed three deadlines to repay the £5million loan debt at The Hawthorns.

The Chinese businessman promised to repay the loan payments “early in the new year”, but he is yet to provide the funds required.

Lai took out £5million from the club in 2021, and his lack of action towards repaying it has caused huge backlash from Baggies fans.

Maguire insists that independent regulation would look hypocritical if it stepped in, but stated that regulators have to do more to ensure unfit owners cannot invest in football clubs.

“West Brom are rightly disappointed and frustrated at Guochuan Lai’s reluctance and refusal to repay the loans at The Hawthorns,” Maguire told Football Insider.

“It seems he is reluctant to repay both the loan his own company took out and the one he inherited from Jeremy Peace.

“Whether the regulator wants to get involved in something which is ultimately an internal matter between an owner and a club is a separate issue.

“The regulator has stayed away from repayments by clubs to owners, so it would therefore be inconsistent if it tried to force owners to repay money to clubs.

“What the regulator’s aims should be is making sure owners such as Lai are discouraged from putting money into football in the first place to avoid disaster like this.“

In other news, West Brom braced for Leeds United approach.