ESI has undergone a spectacular implosion

ESI has undergone a spectacular implosion says VOTV editor Rick Everitt in a special online article on recent events: Takeover implodes

The Rickster says that substantial day-to-day funding may not be required in the short term, but there may be doubts about whether the club can trade over the summer, particularly if Southall remains in charge.

Looking to the future, he states: 'The question, ultimately, could be whether Duchatelet will finally hand over the freeholds for a more realistic £25m-£30 [unlikely in my view], whether he is willing to see the club go out of business as a consequence of his intransigence and try to redevelop The Valley, or if someone will pick the club up and potentially call his bluff by moving matches and training elsewhere.'

Everitt concludes: 'The EFL must take its share of the blame for having failed, once again, to intervene effectively, even though it has now confirmed the deal was never ratified. Regardless, it has presided over yet another sorry mess.'

For its part the EFL points out that it is a trade association running a competition and cannot control what happens in individual clubs which are individual privately controlled businesses rather than American style franchises. Sources close to the EFL are indicating an increasing sense of exasperation with Charlton.

Unsurprisingly, Simon Jordan has put his oar in on Talk Sport. Surprisingly, what he has to say is quite sensible: 'The dynamics of what's going on here concerns me. There's a lot of inconsistencies. Nimer has got a significant background. This is not a fool.'