By Sean Fisher

6th Oct, 2023 | 4:40pm

Revealed: West Brom takeover accelerates after asking price drops

The takeover process at West Brom is set to accelerate after Guochuan Lai dropped his asking price, sources have told Football Insider.

The Baggies owner is open to selling the club this season and initially set an asking price of £50million.

It is understood that talks are ongoing with potential bidders from the US and Middle East.

Albion managing director Mark Miles recently revealed that he is now personally working alongside director Xu Ke on the sale of the club.

Football Insider revealed last month (23 September) that West Brom chiefs are growing in confidence that a takeover deal can be struck this year.

The Telegraph report that the Baggies will face a January ‘fire sale’ if a takeover is not done before the opening of the transfer window.

The club is struggling financially and were forced to sell a number of first-team players in the summer, including the sale of Dara O’Shea for a fee lower than his release clause.

The expiration of parachute payments last season has left the club with a strict budget in the Championship. 

Lai has since dropped his asking price from £50million down to £35million in a bid to accelerate the deal.

It means Lai stands to make a loss of £165million on the club after his £200million takeover in 2016.

The Chinese businessman purchased Jeremy Peace’s 88 percent stake for the Premier League club, but the valuation has plummeted since the side’s relegation in 2018.

In other news, Kieran Maguire says Guochuan Lai ‘living in a fantasy world’ as West Brom takeover update revealed