David Prutton has called on the EFL to be decisive as the dispute with Sheffield Wednesday rumbles on.
The Yorkshire club were charged with misconduct by the EFL in relation to the sale of Hillsborough to their owner Dejphon Chansiri to avoid breaking profitability and sustainability rules.
The Athletic has reported that having been charged with an aggravated breach, Wednesday face a severe punishment - with a 21 point deduction one of the possibilities.
The club responded to the charges in a statement released today, suggesting that they "are themselves unlawful and, without prejudice to that fact, are all denied by the Club and the other Respondents".
In the statement, Wednesday claim that they consulted relevant executive officers of the EFL in connection with the stadium sale, that the deal was authorised, and that they acted in good faith.
The Owls have suggested that they're in possession of "numerous emails, letters and other documents in which the EFL gave authorisation to the transaction, and on which authorisation the Club understood it could rely".
But while the dispute looks set to rumble on, Prutton has called on the EFL to be decisive when handling the situation.
Speaking to the Athletic, Prutton said: “The EFL have got to show they are not all the things they got accused of being before — indecisive, incoherent, being a bit willy-nilly when it comes to fines or bans.
“It might just be bad timing if they do decide to make Wednesday the sacrificial lamb to show what happens if you do this kind of thing.
“The legislation is there for a reason and needs to be implemented when something like this happens. The fans are the ones that are going to bear the brunt of this emotionally.
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“Whatever is going to happen needs to happen very quickly. If that is the gut-punch of docked points, then that needs addressing sooner rather than later.
“The fans won’t want that looming for the rest of the season, so they will want the bad news now.
"After that it will be about adjusting the aims and expectations for the season, because Wednesday fans will be there through thick and thin, and Wednesday are too big of an institution to go belly up, I truly believe that.”
The verdict
A potential 21 point deduction would be a huge blow for Sheffield Wednesday.
What is almost guaranteed is that if they're punished, it will likely be the end of Monk's side's promotion push in the 2019/20 campaign.
It's going to be very interesting to see how the situation develops, particularly considering the evidence that Wednesday have eluded to.
