The Daily Bale, Sigurdsson & a transfer system change

And what is the daily Gareth Bale story, well it's a daft one. The papers desperate to keep a saga going, with Real Madrid having no cash, have suggested Man United are in the race. They have never been in the race, they ran a mile when they were quoted £75 million and he is at least £25 million more than that now.

Levy would not want to sell to a rival so he certainly wouldn't reduce the price. The stories don't mention figures they would bid which have previously been suggested at £60 million except to say it is believed Levy wants £110 million. A bit of a difference there then. I simply can't see Man U paying £100 million for a player. can you?

The stories suggest they would offer Javier Hernandez as part of the deal but having bought Soldado Spurs would surely want a forward more in the Adebayor mold.

Players need to start learning when they are under contract they are under contract and should get on with it unless the club wish to sell them. All players who want to leave should have to hand in transfer requests and not try to force moves instead so the club have to negotiate a golden handshake or pay the remaining wages in their contracts.

Imagine three years left on a contract for a player on £10 million a year and that is £30 million the club has to fork out or negotiate a golden handshake. If a transfer request is handed in then it's a sale against the clubs wishes so they don't have to pay the remaining wages in the contract. Players rarely hand in transfer requests for that very reason, they, or at least their agents, want it every way.

I appreciate that agents negotiate both sides, they talk to clubs and negotiate potential transfers while simultaneously negotiating better contracts for their player with the club he is currently with. Having to put in a transfer request before being allowed to talk to another club would give some power back to clubs and make contracts worth something rather than the player holding all the power as they do now. If a player can just up and leave forcing a move at any time during his contract whilst still getting the full benefits of it, then the contract from the clubs point of view is pointless, all it does is ensure a transfer fee.

How can a business, for that is what clubs are, plan a strategy without knowing what resources it will have at it's disposal? It wouldn't happen in the business world and a football team is no different. You can plan a style, a system and buy players to fit a system, but if a player ups and goes just like that then you have to find a replacement who is available or change the system. If nobody is available of sufficient quality you are a weaker side through no fault of your own.

If a club sign a player and realise they have made a mistake, as we have in Adebayor, then fair enough, the club want to sell against the players will in theory so you pay up the agreed contract or negotiate a golden handshake.

A temporary way out is a loan move. Take the situation of Gylfi Sigurdsson, talented but it hasn't worked thus far at Spurs, We are playing him out of position, generally wide, the only reason that I can see is if we were planning a 4-3-3 and wanted someone cutting in to have shots. With Chadli now to do that he has been given a central chance. He has to either take it or you start to wonder how he'll get game time.

Gylfi earlier this summer requested a loan move which is a world away from trying to force a transfer. The loan system is a whole new subject, should you be allowed to loan a player to the league you are playing in for instance, would that stop the rich clubs buying all the kids and loaning them out to see which ones make it?

With the Gylfi situation, at least all parties were able to sit down and discuss the way forward without the wages noose looming it's ugly head.

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