Goalkeepers and contracts. Two words that are guaranteed to alarm Bolton fans, especially if agent Peter Harrison is involved. However, the Sky Sports story claiming that Ali Al Habsi could leave the club in the summer is wide of the mark.
On January 30th 2008, the Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled in favour of Scottish international Andy Webster, the first player to attempt to buy out his contract under article 17 of Fifa`s transfer regulations. The decision means that in effect, no player can be held to his contract for more than three years. Harrison isn`t slow to take advantage.
‘The new Fifa rule is in place and Ali is one of those players who will be able to take up that option if he believes that is the right thing to do,’ he told Sky Sports.
What Harrison conveniently forgets to mention, is that Al Habsi signed a three and a half year deal in January 2006, and won`t be able to buy out the remaining six months of his contract until January 2009. Al Habsi hasn`t complained, despite being given few chances and has performed well at both first team and reserve level. In short, his conduct has been exemplary. If only the same could be said about football agents and the media.
Share this article
Related Articles
