Chris Kirchner's proposed takeover of Derby County appears to be back on - but an apparent tweet involving sexist language from 2013 has appeared.
Kirchner visited the East Midlands club last year as he looked to complete a takeover. Despite watching the Championship side on a number of occasions and even chatting with manager Wayne Rooney, a deal fell through after he withdrew his original offer to buy them just before Christmas.
He then turned his attentions to another second tier side, Preston North End, but after talks with the Lancashire side broke down he has since returned to his interest in the Rams. It is widely expected Kirchner will be named as Derby's preferred bidder later this week by administrators Quantuma.
However, on the morning after that news broke, an apparent historical tweet appeared on Kirchner's account, which has since been removed, along with all other tweets on his account, was allegedly posted in 2013. It said: "Men categorize women in one of four ways --- mothers, virgins, s**** or b******. #factsonly."
A spokesperson for Kirchner told BBC Radio Derby : "The tweets took place nearly 10 years ago... He was quoting song lyrics and movie quotes. It is not his personal opinion. He recognises that the tweets are not suitable content. Which is why they have been deleted."
Speaking following his meetings with Kirchner earlier this year, Rooney said: "He has got some really good ideas and as long as everything is right for the club I can see it being a real positive."
His Twitter account (@cskirchner) then suddenly disappeared off social media.
Mirror Football has contacted Kirschner through his company Slync.IO for comment.
Rooney, speaking on Sky's Monday Night Football , was quizzed on how he is finding it at Derby right now in a season that has presented him with problem after problem off-the-field including points deductions, transfer embargoes and the ongoing takeover saga. He said: "All I want to do is do my job and give the best version of myself as a coach. All this is tough, it is a challenge which I am so proud of the staff and the players for getting through this.
"From the players point of view, you see that we’re selling out the ground every game and getting big crowds every week, and that is down to them players for giving the fans hope. It is difficult for the staff because some of them have been there for a long time and they have bad days, especially when they think something might happen with the football club.
"Of course there are bad days and I have to lift them. It is a big challenge but I am a fighter and will fight right till the end whether we go down or not. At the minute, we don’t know what the future of the club is, we really have to sit down and I am desperate for a preferred bidder to come in and discuss their ambitions and about how they are going to take the club forward."
