There’s no evidence that either Gomes or Gbamin reported back for training duty. Indeed, Alan Myers says he doesn’t believe they did. Now I realize they are about as welcome as a syphilitic serial killer at a hippy free-love convention but they are earning a combined salary of close to £200,000 per week.
We hear that Lille can’t afford Gomes’s wages in the same way the Dog and Duck pub might be interested in hosting Tommy Steele but not when Steele is asking for the same wage that Bruce Springsteen gets for selling out Wembley. So realistically, which club that is poor enough (in footballing terms) to want Gomes is rich enough to pay his outlandish wages? None.
Likewise, Gbamin apparently has his heart set on joining a good Bundesliga club even though the only interest he has garnered in recent years was from second-rate Turkish teams and sanctioned clubs in Russia. Point being, any hope of allowing them a few days off to find a new club is a forlorn hope as we’ve been actively encouraging them both to find new clubs for years.
Therefore, shouldn’t they at least work for their money? At least train at Finch Farm and get fit on the off-chance some wealthy lunatic decides to toss them a bone? And I am not saying we have to force them on Dyche. We have a threadbare Under-21 team…
Take away their lockers and send them to train with Leighton and Co. Find some chores for them to do in the laundry room or the kitchen. But just having them breeze around Europe on a king’s ransom living out a fantasy that they’re going to find new and well-paying jobs is just ludicrous.