Latest Transfer Update at 02-03-2012

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Latest Transfer Update at 02-03-2012

Stuart Pearce: Avaliable for Euro 2012 role

PEARCE UNSURE WHAT THE FUTURE HOLDS

Stuart Pearce has admitted he has no idea whether he will ever get the chance to manage England again.
The under-21 boss took charge of the senior team for Wednesday night's friendly with Holland as the Football Association felt there was insufficient time to bring in a replacement for Fabio Capello from outside the organisation.
In the build-up to, and then immediately after the 3-2 defeat at Wembley, Pearce has stuck to the same line, namely that he does not feel he has enough experience to be the full-time England boss but is capable of leading the team at Euro 2012.
Yet, Pearce realises that by sending out such a confused signal, he may be hampering the best chance he will ever have to get a job he would regard as one of the highest honours in the game.


"I've no idea if I will manage England again," said Pearce.
"I certainly will at under-21 level, I hope. I am getting fed up with saying this spiel but, if needed, I am available for the summer."
The problem is that Pearce's statement is clearly flawed.
Should England confound their detractors and actually win the European Championship in Poland and Ukraine this summer, or even reach the final or semi-finals, that would normally be enough to extend employment.
However, in such circumstances, Pearce would have us believe he would turn the job down because he felt under-qualified to guide his country through September qualifying matches against Moldova and Ukraine.
"I don't think I am ready enough experience-wise, simple as that," said Pearce.


"I just feel at this time in my development I am not ready for the senior international job and all that comes with it.
"But there's no doubt in my mind I feel more than comfortable preparing to take a team to a major tournament."
As the FA insist they have made no moves to enquire about anyone's services - Harry Redknapp remains the overwhelming favourite - and could hold off naming Capello's successor until after the domestic season is over, Pearce will carry on making "tweaks" to the preparation programme laid down by the Italian.
"All I have done is bought my employers some thinking time," said Pearce.
"If they have got someone in place all well and good. If they haven't and need someone to fill in, and think that someone might be me, I am there and available.


"It's an ideal situation for the Football Association to be in, I believe."
And Pearce does not feel much should be read into the defeat to Holland, which almost became a glory night as England fought their way back from two goals down, only to fall to Arjen Robben's second goal in stoppage time.
"How I get viewed on what I've done over these last few days is difficult," he said.
"People from the outside have not been in our training camp.


"Ask the players, ask the staff how they feel about the mood of the camp and the professionalism of the place.
"The bottom line is I have not been given this chance. The FA has not said anything of that nature to me.
"I just wanted to clear things up before there are any grey areas.
"That's how I negotiate life and management, by giving an honest answer to an honest question."

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Damien Comolli: Expects quieter summer

COMOLLI SEES LITTLE TRANSFER ACTIVITY

Liverpool's director of football Damien Comolli is not expecting a new wave of signings when the window transfer reopens at the end of the season.
Last summer manager Kenny Dalglish brought in seven players to add to the two, Andy Carroll and Luis Suarez, who were signed the previous January.
About £120million was invested in the squad, although almost £60million was recouped from departures, but Comolli does not anticipate there being major changes this time around.
"It is early days. We will probably make some adjustments in the summer but nothing that we've done before," he said.
"We signed nine players since Kenny came back so there will be a few adjustments but nothing massive.


"We have done the hard work and now it is a question of making some adjustments in certain positions.
"Kenny has said it several times that we have a very competitive squad and all positions are covered by two or three players, quality players, and we have a lot of young players coming through as well."
After lifting the Carling Cup last weekend, the club's first trophy for six years, matters now turn to the Premier League.
Comolli believes Saturday's visit of Arsenal is a match the Reds have to win to boost their hopes of a top-four finish.
The Gunners' stunning 5-2 win over Tottenham last weekend, having been 2-0 down, means Arsene Wenger's side are currently in pole position for the final Champions League qualification spot.
However, Chelsea are only below them on goal difference and Liverpool need to claw back a seven-point gap - although they do have a match in hand, against Everton.
"We have a massive game against Arsenal at the weekend," said Comolli.


"The next priority is to win the next game. When you see the results at the weekend with Arsenal beating Spurs we definitely need to win on Saturday." Comolli believes victory in the Carling Cup on Sunday, securing the club's first trophy for six years, can only positively impact on the club and the players.
"It is a fantastic statement and also we are back in Europe early in the season," he added.
"We know it will bring us positive dynamic for the rest of the season.
"It is a fantastic way to end February with a trophy already but we know we have a lot to play for until May."

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Dave Jones: Expected to be the new Owls manager

DAVE JONES IN OWLS TALKS - REPORT

Sheffield Wednesday are reportedly in "advanced talks" with Dave Jones to replace the sacked Gary Megson as manager.
Owls chairman Milan Mandaric dismissed Megson on Wednesday evening, just a few days after the club's Steel City derby win over Sheffield United.
Mandaric told Sky Sports earlier on Thursday that he was keen to make a quick appointment and hoped to finalise Megson's replacement within 24 hours.


It is now understood that Jones, who was quickly installed as the overwhelming favourite for the job, will take charge at Hillsborough.
Jones has been out of management since leaving Cardiff City at the end of last season following six years at the helm of the Welsh club.


He has previously managed Stockport County, Southampton and Wolves, and was recently linked with a return to Molineux following Mick McCarthy's sacking.
The 55-year-old will take charge of a Wednesday side currently sat third in the League One table, five points adrift of the second-placed Blades.

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Carl Ikeme: Back at Doncaster

IKEME RETURNS TO DONCASTER

Doncaster have re-signed Wolves goalkeeper Carl Ikeme on an initial one-month loan deal.
Ikeme moved to the Keepmoat Stadium for a proposed two-month spell in November but was restricted to five appearances before a serious thumb injury suffered in training curtailed his stay in south Yorkshire.


The 25-year-old returned to Wolves following surgery to undergo his rehabilitation, while Rovers boss Dean Saunders brought in Tottenham youngster David Button as veteran keeper Neil Sullivan was also sidelined.
Button played the last of eight games for Rovers in Saturday's 1-1 draw with Peterborough before his loan expired, clearing the way for Ikeme to return in time to face Brighton this weekend.

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Coventry City: Transfer embargo

SKY BLUES HIT BY TRANSFER EMBARGO

Coventry have been placed under a transfer embargo after failing to file their club accounts on time.
The npower Championship club missed the February 29 deadline and as a result they are temporarily banned from any activity in the transfer market.
However, the Sky Blues have moved to ease fears of financial problems at the Ricoh Arena.
In a club statement, chief executive Tim Fisher said: "We want to be 100 per cent transparent and open about the situation so our supporters are left in no doubt about what is happening.


"Our accounts were due on February 29. As part of the accounts submission process then we have to be able to show committed funding out for the next financial year and, at this stage, we could not do this as we, the board, are still in the process of agreeing and negotiating budgets with the owner.
"There is nothing untoward about this and it is perfectly normal to be negotiating funding with the owner. We would hope to secure funding commitments in the very next few weeks.
"The owner has previously funded the club for a period of more than four years and is currently reviewing our budget proposal for the coming year.


"We totally understand and appreciate that supporters might be concerned, but while the situation is far from ideal, we are confident it will be resolved very soon."
Coventry, owned by SISU, have had a history of financial problems in recent years.
They avoided going into administration by just over half an hour when former Manchester City defender Ray Ranson took over the club in 2007, while they needed a cash injection from SISU last March to avoid a similar situation.

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Redknapp: Remains favourite for England role

FA: NO APPOINTMENT UNTIL END OF SEASON

The Football Association will wait until close to the end of the season before appointing a new England manager.
FA general secretary Alex Horne said a list of potential candidates to succeed Fabio Capello has been drawn up but that they did not want to disrupt clubs' seasons.

Horne, speaking on his arrival at the International FA Board meeting in Bagshot, said: "We've got a list. Long, short.... there's definitely a list. It's a back-end-of-the-season decision for us.
"We recognise that a lot of the managers on the list are employed and we don't want to interrupt anyone's season.
"We're not rushing this and we are expecting something at the back end of the season."
He added that there was no problem waiting until just before Euro 2012 before making the appointment.


"That's perfectly realistic," said Horne. "We've got all of our operational plans in place. We can deliver a squad into Poland so it is perfectly possible."
Tottenham manager Harry Redknapp remains the overwhelming favourite to succeed Capello but the FA have not made any approaches to any candidate.
England Under-21 boss Stuart Pearce, who was in charge of England for the midweek 3-2 defeat by Holland, has said he is prepared to take charge of the side for the European Championships if necessary.

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Birmingham: Placed under transfer embargo

BIRMINGHAM UNDER TRANSFER EMBARGO

Birmingham have confirmed the Football League have placed them under a transfer embargo after they failed to submit their club accounts on time.
The npower Championship club missed the March 1 deadline and consequently are now banned from any activity in the transfer marker until further notice.
They are the second club to have a transfer embargo imposed on them following midlands rivals Coventry earlier.
A Birmingham statement read: "Birmingham City Football Club can confirm that it has been made subject to a transfer embargo by the Football League. This is due to not hitting a 1 March 2012 deadline for submission of the company's June 2011 financial statements to the League.
"Blues LogoAs has been widely reported, Birmingham International Holdings Limited is expected to publish the financial statements by the end of April 2012.


"The delay in filing the financial statements is occasioned due to the delayed audit processes, with both the club and the group holding company having to handle a series of audit issues, together with the financial issues thrown at the club due to the arrest and freezing of the assets of the club's main benefactor and changes to banking arrangements.
"The draft financial statements are prepared and it is understood that these will be finalised and published by the end of April (as previously announced through the Hong Kong Stock Exchange).


"This short period of delay in submission, and the resulting transfer embargo, does not affect the business of the football club at this present time. Having captured the signatures of several more players in the last couple of weeks, the club is satisfied with the strength and size of the playing squad, which has been sufficiently reinforced to assist with our end of season push."
Birmingham signed three players on Thursday, with Peter Ramage arriving on loan from QPR while Caleb Folan and Cian Hughton joined as free agents.

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SOUTH AMERICANS DOMINATE TRANSFERS

The tidal wave of South American players that has engulfed European football has been illustrated by FIFA statistics showing 20 per cennt of all international transfers last year - some 2,300 - involved a Brazilian or Argentinian.
FIFA's Transfer Matching System (TMS) which monitors international transfers recorded £1.89billion spent in 2011 - but that does not include domestic transfers such as Fernando Torres' £50million move from Liverpool to Chelsea.
Clubs paid agents £82million in total but again that sum does not include payments made by players to their agents, or for any domestic transfers.
Of the 11,500 international transfers in 2011, 1,500 were Brazilians and 800 of the players involved were from Argentina. Surprisingly, only 10 per cent of all transfers were a permanent move from one club to another, as the vast majority of players signed by clubs were out of contract.
FIFA launched the TMS in 2010 and the unit's chiefs say the system limits - but does not eliminate - practices such as the third-party ownership of players by individuals rather than clubs, and clubs being used as vehicles for money-laundering.


Clubs have to tick a box in which they declare that the entire transfer compensation is paid to a club and not to anyone else.
Isabelle Solal, the TMS department's head of integrity and compliance, told reporters today: "It does reduce the risk of third party influence. It means we are able to limit the ability of third parties to exploit a lack of transparency in the market.
"The department does aim to ensure that the money is being paid from club to club and we do run investigations on that."
FIFA are investigating one South American agent Juan Figer, who was reported by Bloomberg to have traded players - including Porto's Brazilian forward Hulk - to European clubs via a Uruguayan team, Club Atletico Rentistas, for which they never appear.
FIFA said in a statement: "We can confirm that the FIFA disciplinary committee will look into one transfer related to player agent Juan Figer as we were informed about potential irregularities. At this stage, however, no official investigation is open and therefore, also the disciplinary consequences are speculative."


Mark Goddard, TMS's general manager, said the transfer of players in Brazil was now "an industry" but that the system allowed some regulation.
He added: "It is really quite a phenomenon - we have 400 clubs who have had training on using TMS.
"It has also certainly tightened up the movement of minors and the loose approach to transferring players outside of windows.
"That has created a different dynamic, no one was respecting the rules."


Goddard admitted that the system was not a "silver bullet" to solve all of the issues which surrounded transfers but did act as a permanent record of clubs' declarations surrounding the movement and signing of players.
Last year the TMS opened disciplinary procedures against 700 clubs over irregular transfers but their sanctions are limited to a 14,000 Swiss franc fine (equating to just under £10,000). Any serious infractions have to be sent to FIFA's disciplinary committee to be dealt with.
The TMS report states that more than half of all the players transferred last year earned less than 43,000 US dollars (£27,000) annually. The small number of extremely high salaries however means that the average salary was 244,000 US dollars (£153,000).

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Lawrence: Eases Pompey's cash problems

CARDIFF SEAL LAWRENCE LOAN

Cardiff have signed Portsmouth captain Liam Lawrence on loan for the remainder of the season.
Pompey will receive a loan fee for the 30-year-old and the Bluebirds will pay his wages in full.
The Fratton Park outfit's administrators have agreed to the deal in order to raise cash to prolong the club's survival.
Lawrence, who has made 58 appearances for Portsmouth since his move from Stoke - initially on loan - said: "I'm really sad to be leaving Pompey behind for the rest of the season, but if my move can help the club carry on then it's something I'm willing to do.


"Despite all the off-the-pitch difficulties I've had some fantastic times here, playing for the most amazing set of supporters in the country.
"I'll miss everyone at Pompey, and just hope that under the leadership of Michael Appleton the boys can pull through and stay in the Championship."

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Ferguson: Impressed by Spurs

SPURS MEAN BUSINESS - FERGIE

Sir Alex Ferguson believes Tottenham's refusal to let Luka Modric join Chelsea last summer proved to be the catalyst for their best season in decades.
It is only in the last few weeks that Spurs' Premier League title challenge has faded following away defeats at Manchester City and Arsenal, plus a home draw with relegation-threatened Wolves.
Yet, they entertain Manchester United this weekend currently safe in third spot and with only a replay against League One Stevenage blocking the path to an FA Cup quarter-final against Bolton.
The key, according to Ferguson, was the positive message Tottenham sent out in keeping Modric.


A one-time target of United, the Croatian seemed destined for Chelsea and pleaded to join the Stamford Bridge outfit.
Spurs chairman Daniel Levy said no, and then manager Harry Redknapp cajoled Modric into a series of outstanding performances upon which Tottenham's quest for honours has been built.
"The fact they decided to hold on to Modric against what everyone thought was a big Chelsea bid swung the players around," said Ferguson.
"That was an indication that they mean business and it has worked because they have had a great season.
"Up until three weeks ago they were playing the best football in the league."
Tottenham's present hiccup seems certain to ensure they do not end their long wait for a championship.
It does not make them any easier to beat though.
Having kept the gap to leaders Manchester City to a couple of points thanks to Ryan Giggs' last-gasp winner at Norwich, Ferguson views this weekend's encounter at White Hart Lane as a pivotal encounter in the season.
United certainly have a run of fixtures after Tottenham which should bring maximum points and allow them to exert maximum pressure on City.
So a 25-match unbeaten record against Spurs bodes well.


Ferguson is wary though, particularly as this Tottenham side, despite throwing away a two-goal lead at Arsenal on Sunday, look far stronger than most.
"He (Harry Redknapp) has added a lot of exciting players," said Ferguson.
"He has changed them right round in the last few years.
"(Kyle) Walker has been a tremendous full-back for them this season. He has great pace going forward. And they have pace from the other side from (Gareth) Bale.


"They have really clever players and everyone recognises what a terrific player Modric is.
"Overall, they have had a great season.
"They have hit a plateau but we know Sunday is an important game for us. The most important game so far."