Contracts: end in sight?
Brian Shackley offers a note about transfer speculation and funding for new playerss 

11 January 2004

Given the fact that we must sell before we can buy as the wage bill is the biggest drain on resources for any club.  Coupled with the idea that, no-one wants to buy them (except for Jamie, Tomasz & Wayne of course).  The issue is all connected with reducing the wage bill before being able to spend it again on 'decent' players. I have examined the status of the contracts and it's interesting to note the following contract expiration dates:

• Alan Stubbs June-04
• David Unsworth June-04
• Niclas Alexandersson June-04
• Francis Jeffers June-04
• Steve Simonsen June-04
• Scott Gemmill June-04
• Peter Clarke June-04
• Leon Osman June-04
• Sean O'Hanlon June-04
• Paul Gerrard June-04
• Michael Symes June-04
• Steven Schumacher June-04
   
• Steve Watson June-05
• Alessandro Pistone June-05
• David Weir June-05
• Tomasz Radzinski June-05
• Kevin Campbell June-05
• Duncan Ferguson June-05
• Kevin Kilbane June-05
• Thomas Gravesen June-05
• Alex Nyarko June-05
• Patrizzio Pascucci June-05
• James Mcfadden June-05
• Nigel Martyn June-05
• Nick Chadwick June-05
• Iain Turner June-05
• Gary Naysmith June-05
   
• Lie Tie June-06
• Wayne Rooney June-06
• Tobias Linderoth June-06
• Lee Carsley June-06
   
• Richard Wright June-07
• Joseph Yobo June-07
• Tony Hibbert June-07

Some points to bear in mind:-

1. Moysey has been in the job 22 months - with predominantly Walter Smith's players.
2. 12 contracts are up this summer.  That's one third of the whole squad.
3. 15 are up next summer and as we all know agents start negotiations at least a year ahead of this - or the players move on!

Conclusion: In the next 18 months or less (much less time than Moysey's been here) more than three quarters of the squad will be either signed-up or replaced.  The Everton job should now be viewed as one with great potential to buy, develop and create a squad of the manager's choosing.  Also, it is pleasing to see how well he's doing with someone else's squad — imagine what can be achieved with his own!

Finally, of the 27 whose contracts are up in the next 18 months, I would only keep 13. Think about it yourselves and decide who'd you keep and who you wouldn't.

Brian Shackley

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