Kenyon Wants Proper Enforcement of Player Contracts

By: Daryl | July 28th, 2008

Interesting comments from Chelsea chief exec Peter Kenyon today while on the club’s Asian tour. He basically wants some sort of enforcement of player’s contracts, so they can’t just decide they want out and agitate for a transfer while under contract:

“The contract stability issue is really important for football at every level,” Kenyon told reporters.

“No one is forced into a contract… we`re expected to (honour contracts) and our players should be too. Football has got to look at this seriously.

“You need to be able to think this is not just my team for this season, but these guys are here two or three years.

“If fans thought next year there would be a new squad of 23 players, the game would also lose something.”

That might seem a bit rich coming from Peter Kenyon, who - fairly or unfairly - has come to pretty much personify the evil businessman side of modern football. But the man has a point.

Players sign contracts for massive massive money. And no one puts a gun to their head and makes them sign (that we know of, anyway). And that piece of paper should mean that player is committed to that club until 1) the contract runs out or 2) the club agree a transfer fee with another club.

That’s the theory anyway. Reality is usually a bit different.

Cristiano Ronaldo is a great example. He recently signed a long term, big money deal at Manchester United, only to spend the summer squirming around for a move to Real Madrid, despite Man Utd’s insistence that they don’t want to sell.

So what can be done?

Maybe an end to the transfer market and an embrace of American style free agency? It would prevent players moving before their contracts were up, though the downside would be an economic disaster for smaller clubs who survive by selling players.

Maybe FIFA take serious action against clubs who tap up players under contract. Recent complaints from Man Utd about Real Madrid and from Spurs about Liverpool & (ironically) Man Utd have so far yielded nothing. Maybe if there was some serious punishment for tempting unavailable players (eg points deduction) then clubs would be a little more wary and players would be a little less tempted.

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Category: World Football

Tags: Chelsea, Contracts, Cristiano Ronaldo, FIFA, Peter Kenyon, World Football

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• Matt |  July 28th, 2008 at 11:24 am

  
  
  

  American-stlye free agency depends on some system of revenue sharing more thorough than those in place throughout European football leagues. At the very least, there is in place a committment to competitive balance or parity that allows smaller market clubs the resources to snare some free agents, although maybe not the highest price ones. And salary caps, hard or soft, enforce some market sensibility. Right now, I think an abrupt end to transfers would be a disaster. Maybe mandating a minimum release clause with some real bite to it could stem the tide.

  Posted from United States

  

• john |  July 28th, 2008 at 11:37 am

  
  
  

  I know that you like picking on Madrid, Daryl (http://www.theoffside.com/world-football/real-madrid-are-taking-our-children.html), and I also know that it’s a new football blogging rule that Cristiano Ronaldo must be mentioned at least once in every post - but wouldn’t Chelsea’s hunt for Robinho have been a more appropriate reference here? The fact that days after Kenyon made the comment, Chelsea are fanning a cool 30 million pounds in Robinho’s direction, a week after said winger signed a five year contract with Madrid? I think that qualifies as pretty laughable hypocrisy, don’t you?

  And by the way, Inter ended up stealing the child.

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• Daryl |  July 28th, 2008 at 11:52 am

  
  
  

  John,

  The reason the Ronaldo saga is more appropriate is that it’s easily the most well known current example. Also, Robinho was perfectly happy until the whole Ronaldo thing unsettled him at Real, so it’s not really the same.

  The big difference is that Robinho’s situation has changed, while Ronaldo has just had his head turned by what he sees as a bigger and better offer.

  Also, the link to the Philippe Coutinho story John referenced about Inter signing a Brazilian teenager is here.

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• john |  July 28th, 2008 at 12:15 pm

  
  
  

  Yeah, but… Peter Kenyon is Chelsea. And he says that players should be held to their contracts. And Chelsea are currently trying to publicly lure a contracted player. So…

  Just being saucy though. Good post.

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• Daryl |  July 28th, 2008 at 12:37 pm

  
  
  

  Yeah, that’s true, there is a certain level of hypocrisy there. But I’d say most big clubs have been guilty of (and the victim of) that at some point, so there are no angels really.

  Posted from United States

  

• Chubby |  July 29th, 2008 at 8:09 am

  
  
  

  While this whole situation is stinks, Kenyon forgot to mention smaller clubs that DO like to sell players under contracts, or even bigger clubs, that try and get rid of players for a big chunk of money instead of letting them go for free.
  Of course they allow those players to “speak” with other teams, but rules were made to avoid them, aren’t they Peter?

  Posted from United States

  

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