West Brom shareholder hits out over EFL points deduction saga, reveals email to Rick Parry

West Bromwich Albion are facing a potential points deduction, which could seal their relegation from the Championship.

The Baggies could be deducted up to three points, with the charges reportedly linked to interest payments on loans taken out by former owner Guochuan Lai.

The controversial Chinese businessman sold West Brom to Shilen Patel’s Bilkul in 2024, ending years of financial mismanagement at The Hawthorns.

Minor West Brom shareholder David Piesing has now claimed on social media that his emails to the EFL regarding a loan taken out by Lai – and former colleague Xu Ke – during the coronavirus pandemic were ignored.

West Brom sit just two points clear of the relegation zone and will fight the potential points deduction.

David Piesing reveals West Brom emails

Former Everton and Aston Villa chief executive Keith Wyness exclusively told Football Insider this week that West Brom’s case will likely be solved behind closed doors.

The Baggies insist that they have not done anything wrong, with Bilkul having taken responsibility for the repayments of the loans taken out by Lai.

Several loans were taken out by the former owner, who funded his other businesses using the club’s money.

The Baggies were then forced to borrow money to cover the funds taken out by Lai and keep the club afloat, with the charges relating to the payments on these loans.

Piesing took to X on Wednesday, claiming that he had made the EFL aware of these ongoing practices.

The shareholder claims that he sent several emails to former West Brom director Xu about a loan made to Lai’s company, Wisdom Smart, and to the club’s auditors, Azets.

Piesing also communicated his concerns to the chairman of the EFL Rick Parry, and CEO Trevor Birch in 2023, and had video calls with CCO Mark Rowan and COO Nick Craig later that year.

The West Brom fan claims that he still has copies of all of the emails and has described the decision to charge the club in the circumstances, of which they were aware, as a “gross injustice”.

“The EFL has had an absolute stinker here on multiple fronts (as did the Premier League before them) and they need to recognise that and immediately dismiss any charge against the club,” Piesing wrote on X.

EFL must do the right thing

The EFL’s charges against West Brom appear to clash with the very idea behind the financial rules.

Sheffield Wednesday were struck with point deduction after point deduction when staff went unpaid amid the final months of Dejphon Chansiri’s ownership.

But West Brom’s potential points deduction relates to their efforts to continue paying staff by taking out a loan to cover financial shortages.

Loans that the EFL were well aware of at the time, it appears. Wiser heads should prevail in the coming days, with the Baggies’ Championship fate surely to be left in their own hands.

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