When has life ever been simple for Sunderland?

Over the last four and a half years in the north-east, football has not been the usual escape route that Sunderland supporters crave.

Instead, it fills them with enraged depression, falling from the Premier League to League One. Under Jack Ross and Phil Parkinson, they have failed to regain promotion and now it could come down to not only a change in management again, but a change right at the very top too.

That’s because Stewart Donald is reportedly on the verge of selling his majority stake in the club. A consortium led by Juan Sartori and Kyril Louis-Dreyfus have agreed on a deal with Donald which will see them take ownership of the football club. So we thought anyway.

News emerged early this week that new investors were seriously lining up a bid to buy the Black Cats in a fresh twist.

The Shields Gazette issued an update into the thought passage of Washington DC-based businessman Matthew Pauls.

They revealed that he is now preparing a rival bid for Sunderland and sources close to the party shared that he did indeed have the money to finance a proper deal. It’s also thought that Donald would retain a stake if Pauls arrives at the Stadium of Light.

This is obviously bad news for Sartori and Dreyfus. At first glance, it looked as though they had a free run.

However, since having a bid accepted the club could now turn into an auction with Rich Energy CEO William Storey continuing to preach about his efforts on social media.

If Pauls can generate enough funds to usurp the previous bid made to Donald, then it could be curtains for Sartori’s consortium. What this would mean for his current 20% stake in the club is also unknown. Would it also disrupt his ongoing relationship with Donald or would he still have a say in Sunderland?

As is customary with the Mackems, there is a lack of clarity about where things are heading.

Pauls continued interest has the consequence to be disastrous for Dreyfus in particular, who is looking to gain control of Sunderland and then spread his wings to other clubs throughout Europe.

He wouldn’t be able to do that if he can’t even add the first club to his armoury.

The 22-year-old will need to push this deal with Donald through sharply.

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