The Port Vale owner, Norman Smurthwaite, was so angered by the FA Cup defeat at Exeter City he has put the club up for sale.
According to the Stoke Sentinel, the owner and chairman claimed he had put £800,000 more into the club than he originally budgeted for this season and is no longer prepared to put in any more.
Smurthwaite, who has been in charge for three years, told BBC Radio Stoke: “I think the fairest thing to the club is that, if there is somebody who has the ambition, and maybe has the energy and a team of people instead of me doing it on my own, is to come in and take the club over. So, officially from today, the club is up for sale.”
He added: “I just feel I have let the club down because I have tried to do everything myself which meant cut costs to put every available penny on to the pitch. Clearly that must be wrong because if the players had put the same amount of effort into playing as I do into paying them every month we would have knocked that club for six.”
After the 2-0 defeat by Exeter on Sunday, Smurthwaite went on to supporters’ coaches to apologise before collaring the manager, Rob Page, on the touchline to discuss the performance. Exeter’s reward was a third-round home tie against Liverpool.
With Port Vale 11th in League One, 12 points behind the leaders Burton, Smurthwaite said he was not about to sack Page but added: “I read that Rob says we are punching above our weight. Well Burton’s budget is about 30% less than ours. If I thought for one moment we would be punching above our weight I would have kept the £800,000 and spent it on something else.”
