The Mail Bag

Why we shouldn't sell Lescott

Comments (8)

It really gets my goat up when I hear the media and most other football pundits harp on about player power. They are all saying if a player wants to leave, his club has no option but to sell him, regardless of any contract that exists between the player and the club.

We see it happen all the time. We experienced it with Wayne Rooney and more recently with Andy Johnson. Now we have Joleon Lescott demanding a transfer. But are the players right to demand a transfer, regardless of the circumstances, when quite often they have a contract that states they have no legal power to quit at all? Also are the players acting professionally when they throw their toys out of the pram, and act like a 5-year-old being deprived of sweets when they don't get their own way?

Players are not hard done by! They are payed massive, massive wages, earning more money in a week than most of us would see in a year. They get other perks from the club, like obsenely expensive cars, huge houses, free medical treatment, free kit & clothes and I heard that Wayne Rooney even got Everton to buy a house for his mum.

For all the money that a club pays a player, what should they expect in return? IMO I would expect a player to honour the terms and conditions of his contract with the club, like any other professional who signs a contract.

So why should Everton sell Joleon Lescott when he is contracted to play for them for another 4 years? Well the answers to that question is easy. There is no point in keeping a player whose heart is no longer in the job. Also the transfer money would come in very handy. So there are two good reasons to sell him.

But, my argument is that Everton shouldn't sell him. Why? Not selling would set a precedent in football for the future for clubs to follow. It would put a dampener on the apparently unstoppable juggernaut of player power.

It would make future overpaid pre-madonas think twice before they try pushing their weight around and bullying their club into selling them. It would make players more respectful of the contracts they themselves have signed up for. It would shift the balance of power in the game back to the clubs. It would force rich clubs like Manchester City to follow the correct channels when they are interested in signing a player, instead of tapping him up via the media.

So, Moyes for the good of the future game, let Lescott rot in the reserves for year.
Brian Baker, Aldershot     Posted 21/08/2009 at 06:42:05

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Alex Kociuba
1   Posted 21/08/2009 at 16:47:31

Cut. Nose. Spite. Face.
Andrew Humphrey
2   Posted 21/08/2009 at 20:45:59

I think we find outselves in a similar situation to that of Barry and Villa and Liverpool last year. So a precedent has already been set to a certain degree. Although at least in Barry’s case he got on with doing the business on the pitch — but I wonder if Villa would rather have had the £17m rather than the £12m they got a year later...

Having said that, we have been supporting AvdM doing nothing in the reserves for 4 years, so we can probably afford to keep Lescott for the duration of his contract even if he doesn’t play!

Alan Clarke
3   Posted 22/08/2009 at 09:26:26

The fact is, as Moyes has put it, Lescott’s had his head turned. Now how has that happened if City aren’t allowed permission to talk to Lescott untile we accept a bid?

It’s all well and good saying players should honour their contracts but it’s very difficult if another club are offering twice the money.

City are entitled to bid for a player with all their money and Everton are entitled to keep hold of a player who is still under contract. But City’s behaviour has been appalling. Lescott has been tapped up, how else could he have his head turned?

It’s the FA that I blame most for this. They have rules but are far too scared to apply them. Despite Moyes and Everton saying Lescott is not for sale, and rejecting 2 bids from City, Hughes has continued to openly discuss Lescott’s name at press conferences.

City should be reported to the FA and Uefa and Fifa for their behaviour. Unless it’s dealt with City will continue to behave like this owards every other club.
Ciarán McGlone
4   Posted 22/08/2009 at 12:31:00

Not selling Lescott will prevent a precedent being set where rich clubs buy poor clubs' star players, and will also undermine the growth of player power?

Please step into the real world.
Ciarán McGlone
5   Posted 22/08/2009 at 12:34:57

Oh and by the way... does the premise of the article also apply to players we’re trying to sign — as well as players we’re trying to keep?

Because you can’t have it both ways!
Peter Griffin
6   Posted 22/08/2009 at 13:27:44

JL cleared his locker this morning.
Adam Carey
7   Posted 22/08/2009 at 13:38:36

Brian, while I agree with the gist of your post, I don’t think letting Lescott rot in the reserves can really work in this day and age. At present City value him at £20M and we can’t afford to let a player who doesn’t want to play for us anymore just sit and lose value in the stiffs.

I admired David Moyes’s stance in sticking by his principles, but once Joleon asked to leave he should have just allowed the transfer. We are now 1 week away from the close of the transfer window and need players in quickly.

Moyes will come out of this looking good (almost fighting on behalf of the clubs who regularly have players cherry picked after years of development by the uber-rich), and Lescott will be remembered as the player who commited himself to the club only last year before deciding the grass was greener elsewhere.

Brian Baker
8   Posted 22/08/2009 at 23:05:40

Sticking to a principle is fine if you can afford to, but the reality is that Everton probably can’t.

If Citeh had negotiated directly with Moyes from the outset, Lescott probably would be a City player by now.

I really hope we don’t sell Lescott till January at least, just to prove a point.

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