By Richard Lee - 26/07/2008

Honouring Contracts

It's the time of year when the movement of players between clubs is rife and the thought occurred to me that it is quite rare nowerdays for a player to leave on good terms. In fact, those who do leave on good terms do so usually for only a handful of reasons.

If Cristiano Ronaldo is to leave Manchester United the chances are, despite his incredible form last season, he'll be disliked by a large section of the United faithful. A major reason being that he hasn't 'honoured his contract' and also the fact that he is such a valuable player that the fans will be worried at the thought of a team without him involved.

So how about an example of someone who has honoured their contract; one that springs to mind is Jordan Stewart at Watford. A great lad around the place and gave his all when he played, he signed a three-year deal initially but decided to move on once his contract was complete but is he a popular figure for doing so?

So how do you leave a club and be appreciated when you return to face that club in years to come? Well one way would be that the club you were playing for had no option but to sell you due to financial reasons, therefore this wasn't the player's decision but the club's. The player obvioulsy didn't want to leave but had to for the good of the club.

Another example would be that a player has fallen out of favour or form and, despite some good work for the club earlier in his career, he is now surplus to requirements and it is therefore understood by the fans that this player has to move clubs in order to find first team football. So when he returns he is respected for what he gave to the club and his situation is better understood.

One of the greatest examples of leaving a club as a legend would be to retire at the top - Alan Shearer or Eric Cantona for instance. Some believe that Eric Cantona retired too early, maybe he did but would he still have received the same adulation from the United faithful had he played three more seasons, drifted into the reserves then signed for a lower-league club to finish his career? My guess is not as much as he's admired now.

Alan Shearer's a Newcastle fan and turned down countless moves elsewhere all for the love of his hometown club, a sure way of installing yourself as one of the all-time greats and being a local hero for many many years to come.

I don't believe by purely honouring your contract you'll necesarily be liked when you leave, even if you are one of the team's better players. It is only really understood by fans when you are forced out or are not in the starting 11. The chances are that if you are a top player then you will have been offered a contract and there's the question as to why you didn't sign that contract? And the other belief that you are indebted to the club for one reason or another.

So as the tranfer merry-go-round is in full flight and long contracts are handed out left right and centre, it can make you question how much value they really have, especially as if a player publicly states that he wants to leave then the club are left in a situation. Do they either force him to stay which could result in having a disruptive memeber of the squad or do they adhere to his wishes and let the bidding war commence?

I think in this situation it is widely agreed that the power is in the player's court. If a player is adamant that he wants to leave then the club would be spiteing themselves to force him to stay, especially if that player is of the mindset that he will do anything to get out of a contract.

There is also the other situation whereby a player signs for a club but is soon out of the club's plans and they want him off the wage bill. In this case there isn't much that can be done other than try to sell the player for a small fee or even for free - but in many cases this isn't an option therefore the only way of getting shot of the player is to make them an offer to cancel their contract. This seems to be happening more and more and can be costly for those clubs that have little money to play with and this is also another sure-fire way to be a disliked figure amongst fans. But is this the players fault?

My belief is football can be quite fickle. If a player is playing well then everyone loves him, that is until he decides he wants to move else where then he is a figure of hatred. On the other hand if this player stays and his form dips then the fans are the first to demand that he be removed from the team and shipped on. The ironic thing is that eventually he may return to play against that team and receive a rousing reception!

I believe that the whole contract situation has changed massively over the years and is continuing to change. In American sports there are no transfer fees, a player signs a contract, he completes that contract then he signs a new contract often with a different organisation.

I believe football is moving in this direction. I believe squads will shrink and transfer fees will become more a rarity in the English League. Those who can afford to pay tranfer fees and offer long, lucrative contracts will be those that are sitting in the top 10 of the Premier League table and those who can't will be waiting on contracts to end and bidding against each other for the best players who are out of contract but in their wage budget.

But hey, that's just my belief.