Pompey delay wages again

[Mark (Blue Army)]

Portsmouth expect to pay their players' December salaries on January 5 after a delay in clearing their wages.

The club had hoped the outstanding player salaries would be processed on Thursday, but the monies will now be cleared after the Bank Holiday.

A statement from Portsmouth read: "Portsmouth Football Club expect to pay their first-team squad's December salaries on Tuesday, January 5.

"The club has been speaking to the Professional Footballers' Association and the players have been informed.

"The club has been assured of receipt of funds by Tuesday and the owner and board have been working hard on resolving the short-term delay."

Other members of non-playing staff at Portsmouth have been told they will also not be paid on time, and are expected to be paid on Monday.

A club spokesman told the Portsmouth News: "The problem was due to a file not being loaded properly at the bank. It wasn't processed properly.

"The club apologise and if there are any knock-on effects financially for employees the club will reimburse them."

This is the second time this season Portsmouth have been unable to pay players' wages on time.

The south-coast club head into 2010 at the bottom of the Premier League, following the 4-1 home defeat by Arsenal on Wednesday night, and beset by financial worries.

Earlier on Wednesday, Pompey had issued a statement to deny the club had been formally served with a winding-up petition by Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs in relation to disputed VAT, PAYE and National Insurance contributions of a reported £3.5million.

A High Court date has been set for early next year, but Portsmouth - who continue to operate under a transfer embargo imposed by the Premier League over unpaid transfer debts - are expecting to have the matter resolved before then and the threat of possible administration lifted.

The Fratton Park faithful are becoming increasingly frustrated at the dire financial plight of their club.

However, chief executive Peter Storrie used Wednesday night's programme notes to try to allay fears Pompey were set for imminent liquidation.

"Off the field, the financial issues of the club have been prominent in the media once again," he said.

"While we would prefer to keep this in-house and deal with the situation, third parties are ensuring that certain issues are played out in public.

"The majority of the reports are ill-informed, but such is the confidential nature of finance that we are not at liberty to put the record straight all of the time."

Storrie continued: "It has been a very difficult year, but one thing you must believe is that Ali Al Faraj and his associates are doing their very best to refinance the club so we can once again operate the business as we all want to.

"At Ali's request I have also been in discussions regarding further investment with various parties, and these are ongoing.

"The priority, of course, is to get the transfer ban lifted - especially with four of our players away at the African Nations Cup.

"The current squad have already shown they have what it takes to compete with any side in this league, and if we can add even more quality, we will have every chance of surviving."

Aruna Dindane is one of the four Pompey players at the African Nations Cup. The Ivory Coast striker signed on loan from Lens during the summer, with a view to a permanent move.

However, the French club could look to take the player back should a fee be unable to be paid.

Lens president Gervais Martel told L'Equipe: "I don't want to speak about details in that case but it is very clear - if they don't pay, I want to get my player back."

from skysports.com

Bye bye Pompey :)

[craigmcfc]

They're as deep in shit as ruralblue is

[Mark (Blue Army)]

They're as deep in shit as ruralblue is

At least ruralblue can sort his problem out unlike Portsmouth.

[BlueMoonAwoken]

jesus these players might go hungry !!!

[Bianchi on Ice]

The least twitchy can do is offer a decent fee for James. After all, its his spending that started all this, he knew the way it was going. I'll donate a tenner to shut that fucking bell-ringer up.

[paulmclaren]

jesus these players might go hungry !!!

Exactly.
They should be shot after that performance against arsenal never mind being paid.
The bad bit of all this is the guy who works in there shops.
Who is on 200 quid a week.
Fuck the players.
They are now set up for life after one poxy season in the prem.
If anything after that Arsenal game they should pay all the clubs bills.
Assholes.
I really do hate most footballers.
Greedy gets the lot of them.

[Vhero]

ah well wouldn't be the end of the world eh?? Those supporters are gonna want a new team though so I reckon we are gonna get a bunch of wagon jumpers if they do sink.

[bluej]

And they've missed another deadline...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/footbal ... 444524.stm

[The Man In Blue]

jesus they are screwed.

could have been us brothers, it really could. remember when frank had to borrow some dosh off wardle to pay wages?

[Mr Miyagi]

I won't be shedding a tear..... horrible city with horrible fans... sorry but never had a good visit to Portsmouth...

[gillie]

If they do go to the wall whats the situation re: points for all the prem teams who wont have played them twice.

[Kiss_The_Goat]

How the hell has this been allowed to happen? What a total mess. How can a club be bought out twice in half a season, by two separate owners neither willing to put any money into the club and watch it go bankrupt. Can anyone enlighten me on what on earth is going on at Portsmouth?

[bluej]

If they do go to the wall whats the situation re: points for all the prem teams who wont have played them twice.

I think if they go bust then all points earned against them are taken away.

[The Man In Blue]

If they do go to the wall whats the situation re: points for all the prem teams who wont have played them twice.

I think if they go bust then all points earned against them are taken away.

there's no precedent in premier league history so i reckon we shall have to wait and see.

not that i want this to happen - there's only one club in England i would wish bankruptcy on and it ain't pompey.

[mr_nool]

I think they're royally fucked. They will have to do a real fire house sale this transfer window to have any chance of surviving this season financially.

I also think the players will have to wait a bit longer on their wages, since the Premier League has frozen the £ 7 million TV money Pompey were about to receieve until they've paid the clubs they own money for previous transfers.

[Fish111]

I don't know what all the fuss is about. They have always been a tin-pot club punching way above their weight. Why the Premier League is considering bailing them out is beyond me. They're not the first club to go into administration and they won't be the last. They may be the first Prem club to go bust but give it 4 months and that won't be an issue will it.
Fuck-em, Luton, Halifax, Chester, Bournemouth and many others have had to take administration on the chin, drop down the leagues and start all over again so why should Portsmouth be any different?
If their fans are as loyal and great as the press make out they will bounce back soon enough because the fans will still flock to watch them surely? I personally doubt it.

[bluej]

I've heard a rumour that the portsmouth fans are going to all print off a giant question mark each and hold it up around the ground for their next home game. Quality idea.

[Vhero]

Ah well it was nice to know em lol NOT it does mean if they go bust there gonna be a lot of glory hunters born from the ashes and I have a feeling we gonna get a few new members..

[Fish111]

I've heard a rumour that the portsmouth fans are going to all print off a giant question mark each and hold it up around the ground for their next home game. Quality idea.

I must admit i do like the nickname they've given their owner: Ali Al Mirage. Very droll. They are the real fans of the invisible man!!

[walmai]

How the hell has this been allowed to happen? What a total mess. How can a club be bought out twice in half a season, by two separate owners neither willing to put any money into the club and watch it go bankrupt. Can anyone enlighten me on what on earth is going on at Portsmouth?

The key, apparently, is the spokesman and member of the boardroom, Mark Jacobs. He's a property developer and so are both Al Faraj and the Israeli bods brought in by them since that daft Sulaiman (sp) bought up and sold out in a New York minute. The talk now is that - although if a football club remains on the site, the surrounding land cannot be put to other use, that convenant won't apply if the football club relocates or... goes out of business.

Al Faraj has not bought PFC out of a love for the game; he's not even been to the ground since he bought out the first Arab to take charge.

Its going to end messily. Whether the fella with the bell and his 20 or so thousand mates will soon have a team to cheer on remains a moot point. However, everyone's now pointing fingers at each other whilst the debt mountain grows by the day.

Bit of a shame, but moreso a very obvious sign of the times. If I were a PFC player, I'd sling in a transfer request