Duke of Westminster is pushing Portsmouth to edge

Published: 06 Feb 2010 - 21:54:48

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Duke of Westminster is pushing Portsmouth to edge

The Duke of Westminster has joined the taxman in driving Portsmouth to the brink. The billionaire Duke is the ultimate owner of Grosvenor Properties Basingstoke, the company which has attached itself to the HM Revenue and Customs' £7.5million winding-up petition due to be heard at the High Court on Wednesday. Hard deal: Portsmouth's Richard Hughes chalenges Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov during Saturday's 5-0 defeat GPB claim they are owed £90,000 by Portsmouth because the club, for reasons that are unclear, agreed to guarantee the lease on a shop in the Festival Place centre in Basingstoke. The unit was leased by South Coast Investments Ltd, whose board includes former Portsmouth directors Tanya Robins and Roberto Avondo. Bruce Vandenberg, like Avondo a close associate of erstwhile Pompey owner Alexandre Gaydamak, is a former South Coast director. South Coast went into administration last July, around the time Gaydamak sold Portsmouth. Man United 5 Portsmouth 0: Rooney the catalyst as five-star Reds hit topRolls-Royce Rio: He's the captain players respect, says Jamie Redknapp