Wanderers heading for contract showdown if FIFA transfer window plans go ahead

As football gets ready to adapt to challenges presented by the coronavirus crisis, Wanderers will be watching with interest at potential changes to the transfer system.

A report from The Athletic yesterday claimed FIFA are about to extend the 2019/20 campaign indefinitely, which will enable each country’s football authority to determine when their respective competitions will finish.

As part of their plan it is expected the dates of the summer transfer window will also be changed to allow clubs to agree short-term contracts with players whose deals are set to expire on June 30.

Wanderers have 15 professional players who fall into that category and a handful of scholars – including Ronan Darcy – who have also been in the first team picture.

The determination of both the Premier League and EFL to complete the current campaign will potentially leave clubs like Wanderers in a precarious financial position.

With relegation almost certain, a large turnover of players was expected this summer as Bolton cut cloth accordingly for League Two. That process was simplified with the large percentage of players who fell out of contract. But should the campaign be extended into the summer, as now looks likely, the club could find negotiating short-term agreements more complicated when they are unable or unwilling to put longer deals on the table.

Under current rules, players falling out of contract have also been able to discuss terms with other clubs since January.

The matter becomes even more tangled when you consider manager Keith Hill and his assistant David Flitcroft are only contracted up to this summer, their own futures having been a matter of much speculation in the weeks leading up to the hiatus.

Wanderers were in the midst of re-shaping their academy, which will now be downgraded to Category Three, and also have a new recruitment structure headed up by Tobias Phoenix.

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karlypants wrote:The matter becomes even more tangled when you consider manager Keith Hill and his assistant David Flitcroft are only contracted up to this summer, their own futures having been a matter of much speculation in the weeks leading up to the hiatus.

Wonder when Iles was told about that?

I'm guessing that's been fed to him recently and it's easing us in to him leaving the club when all the virus stuff is sorted with.

Irrespective of what league we find ourselves in next season, it will be very much a version of this one in terms of recruiting a whole new squad from scratch whilst operating under year two of the embargo - and now without the academy squad to fill in the gaps when required.

Hill did ok to be fair to him to begin with but the wheels came off big time from the January window onwards.

Hard to know what happened that brought about the 'not on the same page' tantrum he had but it was at the time Kenyon's involvement was made known (by Nixon, Iles seemed to be clueless of the fact) but he was clearly all at sea after that and his press conference were an utter joke - and if he spoke like that in real life to the players - should be shown the door ASAP as far as I'm concerned as the end of the season was just a complete and utter mess.

Maybe with the financial impact of the virus on the club possibly Kenyon and Tobias Phoenix, etc, will be let go instead in which case maybe Hill could manage like he did in the first part of the season as he clearly did bring in some decent players for us but tbh I think his public image of himself is too much for people to stomach and that there's plenty others who could do a job for us to, and that the writing is on the wall the man who knows his onions.