British taxman accepts Portsmouth administration

Troubled Premier League club Portsmouth received a boost in their attempt to avoid liquidation on Thursday as the British tax authority accepted the team’s move into administration.

Officials at HM Revenue and Customs had insisted Portsmouth’s owner Balram Chainrai did not have the legal right to put the club into administration, but they have now abandoned that claim.

Chainrai appointed Andrew Andronikou as the club’s administrator last month and he cut 85 jobs at the club on Wednesday.

FA Cup semi-finalists Portsmouth, currently bottom of the Premier League, now face a nine-point deduction for entering into administration and the punishment is almost certain to lead to their relegation at the end of the season.