Source: Team_Talk
Sven: Common sense to leave Notts
The former England manager left his post as director of football on Thursday night after the club's takeover by Ray Trew.[LNB]Eriksson, speaking for the first time since leaving Meadow Lane, joined the League Two club last summer as the figurehead of Munto Finance's ambitious takeover.[LNB]The Swiss-based Middle East consortium promised to inject a level of investment that would propel the world's oldest Football League club to the Premier League within five years.[LNB]Eriksson's appointment was seen as an indication of their intent with high-profile signings Sol Campbell and Kasper Schmeichel following.[LNB]However, after failing to deliver on their claims, Munto Finance effectively pulled the plug on the plan in December to leave County facing an uncertain future with debts of around £1.5 million.[LNB]The club are due back in the High Court on February 24 to face a winding-up petition from HM Revenue and Customs for an unpaid tax bill and Eriksson revealed County's perilous state had forced him to give up on a project he had intended to stick with.[LNB]"Time was short for us and in the end I signed the agreement to leave the club because the alternative would maybe have been for the club to disappear," he said.[LNB]"I don't want to be the man to take Notts County into administration, that's why I signed the agreement yesterday.[LNB]"I am very sorry because I like the club and everyone in the club; they are very nice, very genuine people.[LNB]"I did feel personal responsibility - I know some of the players wouldn't be there if I was not. Of course I feel that. I stayed on as long as I could because of the players, the coaching staff and the fans."[LNB]He added: "I liked the idea of the project. It was like a dream for me.[LNB]"I am deeply sorry for the players, the coaches working in the stadium - hard-working, down-to-earth people and for the fans. It was a dream for them, and they have suffered big problems.[LNB]"I am sorry this happened at the last moment but it's going on as a club, even if it is not in the Premier League."[LNB]Eriksson's goodwill towards the club was reciprocated when he was he handed the role of joint-life president by County after his resignation.[LNB]And the Swede revealed that following Munto Finance's withdrawal he and former chief executive Peter Trembling had scoured Europe in search of investors to keep the club afloat.[LNB]They were in talks as late as Thursday evening, but after failing to convince any interested parties Trembling, who on Friday indicated he would take out legal proceedings against Munto Finance, sold his majority shareholding to the consortium led by former Lincoln chairman Trew.[LNB]"I tried as hard as I could to find people who could help us," Eriksson said.[LNB]"After Peter Trembling took over the club, we travelled all over looking for finance for the club. I have been to Norway, Sweden, Spain, Germany and London many, many times.[LNB]"The last time I was in London was yesterday to meet someone about taking over the club. But the guarantees never came and yesterday at 5pm, Peter sold the club."[LNB]Trembling had remained quiet over Munto Finance's decision-making process but hit out on Friday and revealed he would take legal action against the consortium.[LNB]"I'm angry. I'm more angry than anybody and it is Munto's fault. They left us in a huge hole," he told Sky Sports News.[LNB]"I came in as a representative as their chairman and on the back of the fact that they were going to put a huge amount of funds into this club, and they didn't.[LNB]"To the point where I put money in myself and I probably lost a proportion of that money as well, so I'm incredibly angry.[LNB]"Now that I've left the club in good hands it's time to take recourse against that, against Munto, and I will be doing so.[LNB]"I've not been vocal about what I've thought about Munto and what's happened as a result of that, but now I will be doing so. I want to tell my side of the story."[LNB][LNB] Fulham 4/9, Draw 10/3, Notts Co. 6/1
