Home
What threatened to be a Wanderers fire sale in the wake of an embarrassment at Bristol City turned out to be anything but as the loan window closed without incident yesterday.
An expected exodus, predicted on so many occasions in the last couple of years, failed to materialise as the Whites’ new ownership got an early sample of just what hard work lies ahead this summer as they rebuild.
Though Liam Feeney did depart to Ipswich Town last week, the likes of Mark Davies, Darren Pratley and Jay Spearing did not take advantage of an open offer to move elsewhere for the final eight games, and potentially set themselves up for a permanent deal.
That news may come as a relief to Jimmy Phillips, who at one point this week must have wondered what he would have to work with when the team next takes the field against Reading.
But while Wanderers hoped to get a jump on restructuring their top-heavy wage bill, the lack of movement tells its own story.
The message was laid out quite clearly last week when Feeney was shipped out to Portman Road and midfielder Spearing was told bluntly that the club would not be stumping up another £100,000 to Liverpool for him to feature again in the league this term.
All signs pointed to a cull in the final week of the loan window. And that was backed up further when representatives of several senior players were reminded on Monday of the club’s need to cut costs considerably, with one eye on League One.
Dean Holdsworth and Ken Anderson have inherited a raft of problems from the previous regime, the most pressing of which is the need to sustain salaries that continue to act like a millstone around the neck.
This month’s wage bill chips another £750,000-or-so from the block and with concerns already sky high among supporters that club assets are being loaned against in order to raise funds, the lack of outgoing deals heaps that little bit more pressure on the new ownership in the months to come.
The new regime have had their hands full in their first couple of weeks. Quite apart from the decision to part with manager Neil Lennon, there has been a thorough review of the club’s finances, which will have filled in any remaining gaps missing from the whirlwind takeover.
They also found out first-hand that moving players on at Wanderers is not an easy task.
Big contracts handed out in recent seasons may have seemed like a necessary evil as the club tried in vain to return to the Premier League but those gambles are now adding heavy ballast to a slowly sinking ship.
While David Wheater, Neil Danns and Liam Feeney can be cut adrift in the summer when their contracts expire, the likes of Jay Spearing, Mark Davies, Darren Pratley, Dean Moxey, Ben Amos, Liam Trotter and Dorian Dervite all carry with them contracts that appear unsustainable in League One.
And though the right noises were made in the last few days that big earners could be moved on, the club finds itself in a familiar position this morning as their last opportunity to lighten the load before the summer passes by.
For all the talk of shock exits, Stephen Dobbie ended up being the most sought-after Wanderers player of the lot, with League One clubs Millwall and Port Vale both vying at one point to sign him on a short-term loan.
The Scot is out of contract in the summer and has started just two games for the Whites all season. But he joined last summer on a free transfer as one of the lower earners in the first-team squad and has proved a useful asset on occasion from the bench.
Another striker who had some interest was Tom Eaves, now back fit again after several months of injury torment.
The former Oldham Athletic man was attracting interest from League Two Stevenage but a move did not materialise in the end.
Source
An expected exodus, predicted on so many occasions in the last couple of years, failed to materialise as the Whites’ new ownership got an early sample of just what hard work lies ahead this summer as they rebuild.
Though Liam Feeney did depart to Ipswich Town last week, the likes of Mark Davies, Darren Pratley and Jay Spearing did not take advantage of an open offer to move elsewhere for the final eight games, and potentially set themselves up for a permanent deal.
That news may come as a relief to Jimmy Phillips, who at one point this week must have wondered what he would have to work with when the team next takes the field against Reading.
But while Wanderers hoped to get a jump on restructuring their top-heavy wage bill, the lack of movement tells its own story.
The message was laid out quite clearly last week when Feeney was shipped out to Portman Road and midfielder Spearing was told bluntly that the club would not be stumping up another £100,000 to Liverpool for him to feature again in the league this term.
All signs pointed to a cull in the final week of the loan window. And that was backed up further when representatives of several senior players were reminded on Monday of the club’s need to cut costs considerably, with one eye on League One.
Dean Holdsworth and Ken Anderson have inherited a raft of problems from the previous regime, the most pressing of which is the need to sustain salaries that continue to act like a millstone around the neck.
This month’s wage bill chips another £750,000-or-so from the block and with concerns already sky high among supporters that club assets are being loaned against in order to raise funds, the lack of outgoing deals heaps that little bit more pressure on the new ownership in the months to come.
The new regime have had their hands full in their first couple of weeks. Quite apart from the decision to part with manager Neil Lennon, there has been a thorough review of the club’s finances, which will have filled in any remaining gaps missing from the whirlwind takeover.
They also found out first-hand that moving players on at Wanderers is not an easy task.
Big contracts handed out in recent seasons may have seemed like a necessary evil as the club tried in vain to return to the Premier League but those gambles are now adding heavy ballast to a slowly sinking ship.
While David Wheater, Neil Danns and Liam Feeney can be cut adrift in the summer when their contracts expire, the likes of Jay Spearing, Mark Davies, Darren Pratley, Dean Moxey, Ben Amos, Liam Trotter and Dorian Dervite all carry with them contracts that appear unsustainable in League One.
And though the right noises were made in the last few days that big earners could be moved on, the club finds itself in a familiar position this morning as their last opportunity to lighten the load before the summer passes by.
For all the talk of shock exits, Stephen Dobbie ended up being the most sought-after Wanderers player of the lot, with League One clubs Millwall and Port Vale both vying at one point to sign him on a short-term loan.
The Scot is out of contract in the summer and has started just two games for the Whites all season. But he joined last summer on a free transfer as one of the lower earners in the first-team squad and has proved a useful asset on occasion from the bench.
Another striker who had some interest was Tom Eaves, now back fit again after several months of injury torment.
The former Oldham Athletic man was attracting interest from League Two Stevenage but a move did not materialise in the end.
Source
