West Ham have been the topic of takeovers since 2015, just before they moved into the London Stadium in Stratford, making it the longest takeover saga ever.

In 2016, the Daily Mail started the speculation with a report suggesting the Qatari Investment Authority were planning to spend up to £1 billion to buy the Hammers. This was quickly followed by a rumour that Red Bull had made a £650m bid for the club, which was rejected, according to the board at the time.

In 2021, a strange but doomed bid from PAI Capital came and went.

A plethora of reports have been published over the last decade involving Middle Eastern and American suitors, but nothing has come of any of it.

In the year before his death, I spoke to David Gold, who explained he and other shareholders regularly received barmy offers by email almost weekly, but the vast majority were time-wasters and unable to provide proof of funds.

In 2015, David Sullivan said:

“We have zero desire to sell the club unless the King of Saudi Arabia or the Sultan of Brunei comes along. We’re...