The Guardian’s media commentator, Roy Greenslade, has sought to distance himself from the paper’s reports on the proposed takeover of the London Evening Standard by Russian billionaire Alexander Lebedev – a story he has described as “clouded in confusion”.

Greenslade wrote on his blog: “I am beginning to wonder if the story [which Guardian.co.uk published on Wednesday night] is quite as strong as we have been led to believe.”

The former national newspaper editor, who writes a weekly media column for the Standard, said the paid-for London evening paper’s editor Veronica Wadley had been “particularly bruised” by the leaked story, which claimed that her job was on the line.

“May I take this opportunity to distance myself from the Media Guardian description of her as ‘old fashioned’, a totally unjust description, given the way in which she has sought to rejuvenate the paper several times during her six years at the helm,” Greenslade added.