Watford owner Guy Pozzo has rejected an offer from a New York-based media company which wants to buy a third of the club. Prolific Media Holdings values Watford at £350m and offered £125m for a 37.5 per cent stake, but talks broke down at the due diligence stage.

It is interesting to contrast the valuation of Watford, a surprise package so far this season, with the price tag of over £2bn put on Chelsea and Liverpool, while Arsenal is valued at £1.8-£1.9bn.

If the sale had gone ahead it would have meant a huge profit for Pozzo who paid £500,000 to buy the club from Laurence Bassini six years ago, as well as committing £10m to clear existing debts.

The negotiations stalled this summer because of the EFL's investigation into the forgery case involving Raffaele Riva, the former Watford chairman. The club eventually pulled out of the deal due to doubts about Prolific's funding.

The majority of Prolific's investments are in the film and music industries: Prolific