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PL shareholders conference today will look at options of wage deferrals with or without PFA support & the question is: how bad is it for PL clubs? How long can clubs survive league suspension? https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2020/04/02/pfa-snubs-government-plea-elite-players-make-wage-sacrifice/
There are different views on this & Gordon Taylor/PFA position last night was robust: businesses should pay staff. Direct question asked of wealthy owners. But wealthy owners will always plead pressure on resources elsewhere
Clubs of all sizes adamant they should be able to furlough staff & that government hasn’t discouraged them from using CJRS. They say it is a resource for all businesses to emerge from lockdown healthier than they might otherwise have done
In the EFL it’s a totally different story. Clubs are on the brink. Many wondering if they can cover April payroll which for some is next week and gives them just days to survive. They can’t wait for agreement with the PFA. They are talking to players now about deferrals & cuts
Leeds United players now understood to be on £6k max per week. Birmingham City have 50% deferrals in wages. But players & agents wondering why they should bear brunt of clubs’ decision - in Championship especially - to live beyond their means
There were some hints from Taylor in his statement that he will compromise. He even used the word ‘flexible’. But it was clear that he sees no prospect of cuts, just deferrals. For the EFL, however, there is simply not the time for another week of PFA talks
The PL will also discuss whether they need the PFA in this. Ideally they would rather negotiate with one entity but if they can’t they will go direct to players & agents. The question is: when? The need of some appears to be greater now than others, who can hold out longer
The PL have to complete this season but they also have to get next seasons started, ideally on schedule on Aug 8. To not do so would invite massive penalties in their broadcast contracts
What is remarkable is the way Gordon Taylor has been thrust back into the thick of the action just months from his supposed ‘retirement’. An old warhorse centre-half sent on for injury-time to help protect a lead. He could not care less what anyone thinks of him. That’s his style
It reminds me of the 2001 proposed strike action by PL players over the PFA’s share of TV revenue. Taylor went head to head with Richard Scudamore & showed he could stop games being played. He got his money. The PL never risked taking him on after that
Taylor’s reign at the PFA & the move against him last year by the former chair is a long, often depressing story & this latest by @JWTelegraph is instructive https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2020/04/01/pfa-found-part-funding-organisation-has-paid-160000-gordon-taylors/amp/
There’s much more of it too by @JWTelegraph https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2020/01/15/gordon-taylor-risks-axe-pfa-charity-role-concerns-2m-salary/
Either way, almost two decades on from his last major stand against the football authorities, Taylor is once again a thorn in their side. That said, much of what the PFA stood for in their statement last night made sense. Once again neither side seems to trust the other
There is anger/confusion among players over clubs trying to bounce them into wage deferrals/cuts in last 24 hours before payday. Not a good look, especially given EFL partner is MIND, mental health charity
Which is why Taylor/PFA want to see finances of clubs pleading poverty. On the other side they say that there may be nothing left to argue over if clubs go down. In these negotiations, we may not even be at half-time yet https://www.telegraph.co.uk/football/2020/04/02/pfa-snubs-government-plea-elite-players-make-wage-sacrifice/
