Icelanders to freeze out Ridsdale at Barnsley

Barnsley are set to become the second Football League club to be taken over by an Icelandic consortium after a bid from the former Leeds United chairman Peter Ridsdale hit a last-minute snag.

The Barnsley owner, Peter Doyle, met with a group of Icelandic businessmen at the weekend who made an approach to buy the impoverished Division Two club. Doyle had previously set up a deal with Ridsdale and his takeover was expected to proceed this week.

The former mayor of Barnsley will remain as a leading shareholder after selling around £1m worth of shares, but the Icelanders will wrest overall control from Doyle.

Stoke City were the first club to be snapped up by Icelandic investors four years ago and the former Stoke manager Gudjon Thordarsson is set to take charge at Oakwell with the former Barnsley striker Ronnie Glavin as his assistant.

"As far as I'm concerned the deal with Ridsdale is done," Doyle said. "But there are other people interested and I can't hang around forever.

"I took a big consortium round the ground on Saturday. I gather they liked what they've seen and will be getting something together within the next 48 hours."