MOT View: Leeds star shows how wide of the mark Alex Neil was after ‘no-brainer’ decision
Leeds United have, somehow, been criticised for deferring player wages so that they can protect the earnings of the club’s non-playing staff.
Earlier this month, an unnamed senior figure at a Championship club told the Sun that “clubs should be in for a transfer embargo” if they have deferred player wages as it gives them an unfair advantage in the transfer market once things get back underway.
Preston manager Alex Neil then supported the call for sanctions to be placed on teams like Leeds, who were one of the first in the country to agree a temporary pay cut and wage deferrals with their squad.
Speaking to LancsLive, Neil said: “I don’t think that clubs who have run their finances in an organised and good manner should then be hampered and hamstrung when other teams are maybe slashing wages and then the window opens and we get out-bid for a player that they have brought with money that they have deferred from another player.
“That cannot be fair. So it will be really interesting to see how that comes out in the wash.”
Neil’s comments were widely criticised by Leeds fans and rightly so because he clearly missed the whole point of what wage deferrals mean.
Leeds will still have to pay what they owe to the squad members that have lost earnings during this period and that will hand them no advantage whatsoever in the transfer market.
Plus, Stuart Dallas’ latest comments prove just how important it was for Leeds players to defer their wages in a bid to help those who also work for the club that might struggle during these unprecedented times.
“I have relationships with people within the club, as do other players, and possibly this situation could have led to them losing their job. You don’t want to see that,” Dallas said, as quoted by the Belfast Telegraph.
“They have families and have to keep a roof over their heads and if helping them means taking wage deferrals, I was happy to do it.
“We are in a privileged position as players with the money we earn but money means nothing if the health and safety and welfare of people isn’t in place.
“For us, it was the right thing to do. It was a no-brainer.
“It keeps people in a job and the club in a good position and, when all this is over in years to come, we can look back and tell our kids and grandkids what was going on and how important it was to try and do the right thing.”
We hope that Neil has read Dallas’ interview, as well as anyone else who thinks that Leeds should be punished for deferring players’ wages.
It is not something that Andrea Radrizzani has thought up to hand his club an advantage when it comes to signing players in the next transfer window, it is something that Leeds United did to protect those who could struggle financially at the moment.
Dallas’ comment about telling his future grandkids about what he and his team-mates did is enough to show how proud he and his team-mates are for taking this step and how grateful those are who have benefited.
In other Leeds United news, Phil Hay has detailed the ‘elephant in the room’ in regards to Ben White’s future.