Blue Pitch Holdings chief wants control of Rangers

Mazin Houssami is keen to gain a controlling stake in Rangers. Picture: Complimentary

Beirut-based Mazen Houssami told the Daily Record that he is keen to increase his current holding of 6.14 per cent - in order to help ease the infighting at Ibrox.

Houssami said: “I am happy for Blue Pitch to invest more money in Rangers because I believe in the club. I am hoping today to buy more shares and to become the biggest majority or to get a more substantial minority to be able to control or to influence the decisions a bit more.”

The lawyer insisted that he would prefer to buy more shares in order to have more say in the day-to-day running of the club, rather than surrendering his current holding to someone else.

Claiming to be the sole power behind the Blue Pitch group, Houssami also said that he had sacked former chief executive Charles Green from the board, along with Imran Ahmad - adding that he has severed all ties with the pair.

“Actually, Green and Imran Ahmad were two people we ended up firing from the board because they were very destructive for the team and the company,” he revealed.

“If Charles Green saw me walking on the street today, he wouldn’t recognise me.

“I know him because his face has been in every newspaper. Other than that, this company is not related to Charles Green at all.”

And Houssami admitted he was the driving force behind the bid to oust ex-chairman Malcolm Murray and director Phil Cartmell last summer, shortly before James Easdale joined the board.

And the legal chief is now set to deal a blow to Dave King’s attempts to gain control of Rangers by bidding for more power.

Houssami added: “We haven’t received any interesting offers from anyone to buy our shares. Obviously the price we paid for these shares was much higher than the price today, so I don’t think anyone will come and buy our shares at this point.

“But we have made many offers to buy more shares and we have not been able to do that at this point. I think everyone is keeping their position for the time being.

“Today, what we are offering on the table is to buy more shares, to work hand in hand with other big shareholders, to find a reasonable solution so that the club can move forward.”

The Record are also reporting that a rift between Sandy and James Easdale and chief executive Graham Wallace has left the Ibrox board in a state of flux.

Houssami said that he is hopeful of putting Rangers ‘back on the right track’.

The Lebanese lawyer’s involvement in Rangers emerged in October 2012, when he was described as Blue Pitch’s ‘legal beneficiary’ by Green - but Houssami denied acting as a frontman for other investors keen to keep their identity secret.

He told the Record: “I am a director, I am the sole owner, the sole holder of the shares. Blue Pitch is me. To describe Blue Pitch as ‘mysterious shareholders’ is newspaper rubbish.

“What can I tell you? I am Blue Pitch Holdings. I control it. I’m actually behind a lot of companies around the world as an investor.

“I understand that Rangers is an emotional investment for the fans. When I came in, the team was having a very bad time – I’m sure you remember all the financial problems that Green was having.

“I and other investors were the people who stepped forward. It’s a business venture for us.

“Don’t get me wrong – we like the team. Part of the advantage of buying a club like Rangers is to have all the history and the background that the team has.”