There is still no clear way forward to overcome the financial difficulties at Ibrox. While it was never expected that everything would be plain sailing, Dave King was disappointed to head back to South Africa after failed to reach an agreement with the Rangers board over his proposed £16m cash injection into the club. However, he remains hopeful of gaining control of Rangers. In return for his proposed investment, King and his partners - former Blue Knight Paul Murray and wealthy supporter George Letham - wanted a 51 per cent stake in the club via a new share offer to be issued after the club's AGM later this year. King also had a telephone conversation with football board chairman Sandy Easdale, who controls around 26 per cent of the club's shares, but said he was snubbed by Newcastle United owner Mike Ashley. This could have something to do with Ashley's own plans for the club. He recently increase his stake in the Ibrox club to just under nine per cent and has upped his bid for increased influence by calling an emergency general meeting to remove chief executive Graham Wallace and Philip Nash from the club's board.
However, King questioned the motives of those pulling the strings in the Ibrox background. He said: "I believe I have made a compelling case for investment and for taking the club forward. I cannot see how a board, acting in good faith, can fail to recommend it to shareholders given the current plight of the club. Let the shareholders decide." Sky Sports News HQ reporter Charles Paterson added: "It appears he (King) is very much in the picture but talks over a cash injection have fallen through for the moment and he has failed to reach an agreement with Rangers board."
Ahead of his return to his powerbase in South Africa, King issued a further statement detailing the events of the last few days. The statement read: "Over the last few weeks Paul Murray, George Letham and myself have constructively engaged the Rangers board and, at the request of the board, Sandy Easdale regarding our proposal to invest £16m into the club as soon as is practically possible. When investing in any public company there are numerous regulatory and compliance requirements that have to be dealt with. There are also SFA compliance issues that arise when investing in a football club in Scotland. Our initial proposal to the board was to invest the full £16m by way of equity at 20p per share. The board requested that we consider a debt/equity mix that would reduce dilution for existing shareholders and allow the debt component to be advanced prior to the extended time frame required for the approval of additional equity. We are amenable to this and to working with the board on the mechanics necessary to ensure that this is achieved provided that the full investment is recognised by way of board representation. We wish to appoint an equal number of members to the board and have the key say regarding the appointment of the chairperson. We will not invest funds and let the existing board determine how these funds are spent. That has not worked well in the past. In any transaction of this nature there are a number of interests to be consulted and considered. The board has apparently engaged constructively on our proposal while advancing its own points as to what it believes is in the best interest of the club and its shareholders. We have a lot of work to do over the next few months to regain the club. I would not be here without the support of the fans and neither would my co-investors. We are going to need to draw on your support again over the coming months.”