BBC News: Paul Caddis: Swindon defender frustrated by unresolved future

[Simon Pieman]

If Birmingham can't afford the fee then they can't afford his wages.

[Paolo69]

If Birmingham can't afford the fee then they can't afford his wages.

I'm sure both Birmingham and Blackpool could afford his wages if they really wanted to. They obviously don't think he's worth it though.

[Peter Venkman]

I'm sure both Birmingham and Blackpool could afford his wages if they really wanted to. They obviously don't think he's worth it though.

Blackpool yes, but Birmingham are in bad times financially and have to cut wages drastically.

[Paolo69]

Blackpool yes, but Birmingham are in bad times financially and have to cut wages drastically.

Suspect you may be right Pete. They'll be a lot better off once Zigic's massive contract comes to an end this summer though.

[Peter Venkman]

Suspect you may be right Pete. They'll be a lot better off once Zigic's massive contract comes to an end this summer though.

According to their forum he is the main problem with their wage structure currently as he is on £45k+ per week, thats why they got rid of King this week as his wages were massive also (rumoured to be £25-30k).

[Paolo69]

According to their forum he is the main problem with their wage structure currently as he is on £45k+ per week, thats why they got rid of King this week as his wages were massive also.

Yeah, that's ridiculous money. They're suffering in a similar way to us in that the contract was signed under the previous owner. The King one is strange in that apparently it was mutual so Birmingham must have had to give him a pretty decent pay off (not that he was on anything like the sort of money Zigic is on).

[Peter Venkman]

http://espnfc.com/news/story/_/id/1485884/birmingham-pay-zigic-L4-million-next-year?cc=5739

Cash-strapped Birmingham City, who are having to sell their prized assets, will be forced to pay striker Nikola Zigic almost £4 million next year, a source has told ESPN.

Zigic, 32, has a back-loaded contract with the Championship club that contains an automatic pay rise every season. The source said his wages would go up to £75,000 a week for the final year of his deal.

Birmingham have accepted that they cannot sell Zigic, a £6 million signing from Valencia in 2010, because no one else would be willing to pay his salary. The Serbia international has always insisted he is happy to stay in the Midlands.

But the 2011 League Cup winners, who were relegated from the Premier League that season, have been forced to let some of their key players go for less than the amount remaining on Zigic's contract in order to raise funds.

Defender Curtis Davies was sold to Hull for £2.25 million this week, and Blues have accepted offers of £3 million for England Under-21 winger Nathan Redmond - once tipped to be a £10 million player - from both Swansea and Norwich.

England goalkeeper Jack Butland was sold to Stoke in January for £3.3 million and then loaned back to Birmingham for the remainder of last season.

Birmingham, whose owner Carson Yeung is on trial in Hong Kong on charges of money-laundering, do not have a transfer budget to bring in replacements.

Zigic scored in the 2011 League Cup final win over Arsenal, but has contributed a total of just 29 goals in 113 games.

Birmingham had hoped to sell him to Villarreal in January, and in February manager Lee Clark criticised him publicly for producing "possibly the worst training session in terms of a professional footballer I have ever come across".

Darren Ambrose, Marlon King, Peter Lovenkrands & Hayden Mullins all rumoured to be on £25k+ per week.

I think we know exactly the position they are in, every team need to trim wages at the moment it seems, some with more urgency than others.

[pauld]

According to their forum he is the main problem with their wage structure currently as he is on £45k+ per week,

Suspect the main problem with their wage structure is that what was affordable before isn't now, as the owner's up on fraud charges and had all his assets frozen (not helped by his representative at Birmingham, Peter Pannu, paying himself £1m+ p.a. basic plus all manner of bonuses on top of that). Zigic's contract clearly isn't affordable any more but their problems go a lot deeper than that, classic "Look over there" scapegoating by Pannu and cronies.

[Peter Venkman]

They are very much in deep shit financially at the moment it has to be said. A lot of their problems seem to have stem from flirting with the Premier League a couple of seasons ago, trying to keep up with the Joneses on player wages.

[jayohaitchenn]

I find it really, really difficult to feel sorry for them.

[ChalkyWhiteIsGod]

I find it really, really difficult to feel sorry for them.

This, although it's the fans which always suffer. But as a club, they've brought it on themselves

[Exiled Bob]

Which is probaby what they thought about us.

[leefer]

Should be playing now....if he refuses then sack him for breach of contract.

Simple......player on that kind of money not playing for the club is shocking.

[pauld]

Should be playing now....if he refuses then sack him for breach of contract.

Simple......player on that kind of money not playing for the club is shocking.

I may have missed this but I don't think he's refused to play has he? Thought he'd refused a move, but that not playing him was the club's choice (i.e. no squad number etc) because they want to move him on?

[RobertT]

There was a suggestion he had refused to play and the article also has that suggestion about the play off games at the end of last season.