is 'tapping up' wrong?

[stez]

if i was fined everytime i went looking for another job i'd be well and truely skint now...........doh!

i personally can't see anything wrong with assessing your options while negotiating for a new contrct with your current employer

[Knightonian]

I agree.

[toonboy]

It's different in football there are ways of conducting things. If a club wants a player they have to go through his current club and so does the player if he is interested in a different team.

Nothing wrong with wanting to better yourself or your current situation but in football you can't hold secret meetings like that.

[TrickyTrev]

The rules are wrong, players should be able to negotiate with whoever they want. What is the point in having rules which are impossible to implement and enforce?

[Guest]

Agree that it's the rules that are wrong.

Toonboy - If you were looking for a new job, would you tell your current employers?

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways. They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

[toonboy]

Agree that it's the rules that are wrong.

Toonboy - If you were looking for a new job, would you tell your current employers?

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways.  They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

118456[/snapback]

I think it should be the same as any other job. Like I say if you think you can find yourself a better job you should be entitled to do it, but it's different in football. In the real world it would be fine but with the way football is you can't do it currently.

[Guest]

Agree that it's the rules that are wrong.

Toonboy - If you were looking for a new job, would you tell your current employers?

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways.  They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

118456[/snapback]

I think it should be the same as any other job. Like I say if you think you can find yourself a better job you should be entitled to do it, but it's different in football. In the real world it would be fine but with the way football is you can't do it currently.

118501[/snapback]

I think 'football' is breaking the law, and if the appeals go to court then changes will need to be made. This could be another 'Bosman' at this rate!

[breadandcheese]

Yes those poor footballers should be protected by those untouchable, unaccountable, morons in Europe and all their different employment laws and regulations.

Ashley Cole should be able to hand in his notice and serve out his month before playing for Chelsea next season. Better yet, he should wait to see which team tops the league before doing it midway through the season.

Ashley Cole's behaviour shows little regard for football and the people associated with the sport. Granted he wants a pay rise, but there are appropriate means to achieve this. No one forced him to sign a long 5 year contract at Arsenal limiting him to his £27,000 per week. He could have signed a two or three year deal, freeing him up for his Bosman move or a new enlarged pay deal. He didn't.

Instead, he chose to be deceitful and break premier league rules. Many footballers do this but he got caught. He should accept the consequences. He is not the victim in this despite his protestations.

[Leicesterboi]

I feel so sorry for him.. i mean only £27,000 a week? Ofcourse he needs to find a new club if that is all he is on!

Its stupid he has a contract he must honour it. Arsenal have made him the player he is so he should be more grateful.

[Matt]

I feel so sorry for him.. i mean only £27,000 a week? Ofcourse he needs to find a new club if that is all he is on!

Its stupid he has a contract he must honour it. Arsenal have made him the player he is so he should be more grateful.

118649[/snapback]

I do agree with what people have said nothing wrong with assessing your options, but if the rules were changed players could be at one club one week another the next, another the week after that, e.t.c...

But what really makes me laugh and at the same time pisses me off is when I read in the paper Ashley Cole saying "I am going to fight for Footballers to free them from slavery"

There are people being paid a couple of pence to stich the footballs he plays with and them he says hes the slave when hes getting paid thousands per week. Depending what hes on per week (saying he's on £27k a week - as Leicesterboi said - although i'm sure you could double that and you'd be closer to the real figure) it would take me 3/4 years to earn that, and i'm sure it would take ALOT of other people years as well! Then of course i'm not a slave, the poor person a couple of pence stiching footballs isn't the slave oh no...its poor old Ashley Cole's the slave ain't he?

[Fez of Mahrez]

It's all relative. £27,000 a week might be an astronomical sum to you but to Ashley Cole, he is walking into training with England alongside Rio Ferdinand and Sol Campbell who I believe are both earning around £90,000 a week. Imagine going to work with someone who, I think it's fair to argue, is on generally the same level as you and you're earning, say, £13,500 a year and they're on £45,000. That's just my thoughts on the money side of it.

I think when it comes to football, there is another set of "rules" that is more important than anything the FA can set up with regard to players' behaviour while under contract. Ashley Cole had a fantastic relationship with Arsenal's supporters up until this saga. In the sense that he is someone that has come up through the ranks at the club, forced his way into a first team dominated by foreigners and ended up being arguably the best in his position in the world let alone England, there is no comparison we can make with a Leicester player, especially when you consider the amounts of money involved and the fact that Arsenal are just about as big a club that you can play for anyway. But imagine how you would feel if one of our players went and talked to Forest while he was under contract with us. The whole thing stinks and there's no place for it in football. A lot of people make the connection with a "real job" and the conditions that exist but there are few concessions that professional footballers have to make and this is one of them in my opinion. You sign a contract with your club and it should be your intention to honour that contract to the best of your ability in all reasonable circumstances.

[stez]

I feel so sorry for him.. i mean only £27,000 a week? Ofcourse he needs to find a new club if that is all he is on!

Its stupid he has a contract he must honour it. Arsenal have made him the player he is so he should be more grateful.

118649[/snapback]

as i understand it, arsenal decided to offer him a new contract while he had 2 years left on his present contract, so he was surely doing the sensible thing in seeing what he was worth on the open market.

footballers are on a lot, but if i was in that position i would like to see what i was worth before signing what might be a relatively low, but slightly improved contract with arsenal.

[Deathside]

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways.  They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

118456[/snapback]

And us mere mortals should be entitled to the same earning rights as footballers?

[TrickyTrev]

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways.  They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

118456[/snapback]

And us mere mortals should be entitled to the same earning rights as footballers?

119143[/snapback]

You probably are. If you are at the very top of your profession you'll be hiedously rich whilst the vast majority, working in the same industry, fight it out just to make a living.

I don't agree with the arguement footballers should have the sameemployment rights however. What next? 6 weeks notice if they just want to up sticks and leave, annual leave if they fancy skipping the odd match or two?

[Guest]

I think it's fair to say most fans want to see footballers living in the real world, but it works both ways.  They should be entitled to the same employment rights as us mere mortals.

118456[/snapback]

And us mere mortals should be entitled to the same earning rights as footballers?

119143[/snapback]

You probably are. If you are at the very top of your profession you'll be hiedously rich whilst the vast majority, working in the same industry, fight it out just to make a living.

I don't agree with the arguement footballers should have the sameemployment rights however. What next? 6 weeks notice if they just want to up sticks and leave, annual leave if they fancy skipping the odd match or two?

119202[/snapback]

Why not? I know I'd want it if I was in their position.

Who are we to get on our soap boxes, questioning the morals of footballers? They're doing nothing different to the rest of us, just because they're paid extortionate wages shouldn't exempt them.

If anything, this should be used as a way of negotiating a wage cap in football; have your employment rights, but you'll only be allowed a maximum salary which doesn't look quite as obscene as it does now.

[TrickyTrev]

Right so Man Utd pay £30 million quid for Wayne Rooney he gets a little homesick and after serving his porbatory period he can just hand in his notice and walk away?

Rightly or wrongly footballers are commodoties to acertain extent so it is impssible to say they should have 'normal' working rights.

PS I am not questioning the moral integrity of footballers, I personally think they get labelled wrongly because they are an easy target.

[Guest]

Right so Man Utd pay £30 million quid for Wayne Rooney he gets a little homesick and after serving his porbatory period he can just hand in his notice and walk away?

Rightly or wrongly footballers are commodoties to acertain extent so it is impssible to say they should have 'normal' working rights.

PS I am not questioning the moral integrity of footballers, I personally think they get labelled wrongly because they are an easy target.

119664[/snapback]

That kind of thing has happened in the past, where a player fails to settle following a transfer; when most of us change jobs, it's usually a few miles down the road, not to the other end of the country, or even a new country.

The other thing is the whole sacking issue; if Leicester City could (or couldn't, or could again, oh sorry, they can't now....) sack Dennis Wise, then there must be a way for players to terminate their contracts, in the same way us mere mortals have to serve a notice period. If the player cancelled his contract, and forfeited the monies outstanding on it, then perhaps this would be more acceptable? Perhaps if clubs were compensated if a player leaves during his contracted period, instead of calling it a transfer fee, and most importantly, players did not receive signing on fees, we might see more loyalty in the game.

I just put myself in their shoes, and as much as I hate to admit it, I would want all the trappings, but all the rights I could get.

[Shum]

Bolton fuming over Jaidi request

Bolton have rejected a transfer request from Radhi Jaidi and will report his representative to the Premier League for allegedly touting him to clubs.

Gartside told the club website: "This is a serious breach of league rules - I will report it to the Premier League.

"In light of recent issues in the game, we have to stamp down on this type of activity and eradicate it."

The 29-year-old Tunisian international defender lost his place last season and is 12 months into a two-year contract.

Gartside added: "It is an absolute nonsense that you sign something for three years and then do not honour it."

[Guest]

Bolton fuming over Jaidi request

Bolton have rejected a transfer request from Radhi Jaidi and will report his representative to the Premier League for allegedly touting him to clubs.

Gartside told the club website: "This is a serious breach of league rules - I will report it to the Premier League.

"In light of recent issues in the game, we have to stamp down on this type of activity and eradicate it."

The 29-year-old Tunisian international defender lost his place last season and is 12 months into a two-year contract.

Gartside added: "It is an absolute nonsense that you sign something for three years and then do not honour it."

119936[/snapback]

Whether he honours it or not, do you really want a player at your club who doesn't avtually want to play for you?