Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil and Dr Erkut Sogut’s other clients have all been told NOT to accept a wage cut from their clubs, whilst offering an alternative solution.
A deferral of wages is what the German lawyer suggests should be put in place, especially given that the league and clubs are still hopeful that the league and other competitions are still to be completed, which would see clubs keep their prospective revenues.
There is much attention on footballers and their wages, especially after Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock mentioned this in his daily Coronavirus update this week.
Sogut is furious with the stance taken by the government who are said to be deflecting from their own failings, and urged his players to consider other alternatives than what is offered.
He said: ‘I wouldn’t recommend agreeing a cut today because I don’t know tomorrow if the league will be played, if clubs will get TV sponsorship money.
‘What the exact financial impact is on the clubs, we can see three to six months later – but we can’t see it today.
‘Deferral is an option but not to agree a cut today when the clubs may still make the same profit as last year.
‘When politicians tell players to do their part, it’s a distraction because they can’t even protect NHS staff.
‘It’s easy to target these ‘greedy’ Premier League players – but so many players do so much for charity.’
Ozil’s agent then moves on to claim that a lot of clubs are exaggerating the situation: ‘Premier League clubs are not in the very bad position they are showing themselves in. Most are profitable, a lot have cash reserves.
‘Clubs are in trouble because they mismanage their finances.
‘However, some owners do not care if they lose £50million or £200m. It’s all about prestige. They just want to win a trophy.
‘The club for them is a gaming centre, like playing on a PlayStation. They want to win, it doesn’t matter how.’
Should the agent’s option be put on the table considering the competitions could well still be completed? Should the politicians put their money where their mouths are before talking about footballers?
Patrick
