Hearts face January transfer window cull as cash crisis looms

Dec 5 2008 By Gary Ralston

HEARTS are facing a drastic cull of high earners as they bid to keep the club in business.

The Jambos are frantically trying to address serious cash flow concerns.

And they have failed to offer guarantees that player salaries will be paid again today. Up to half-a-dozen of their highest earners, believed to include the likes of Bruno Aguiar, Christos Karipidis and Ruben Palazeulos, have still to get last week's wages.

The Tynecastle club are now desperate to ship them out the door in January and save on their salaries.

The players held a meeting with the club's director of football, Anatoliy Korobochka, last Friday and agreed to defer payment of their wages until the cash flow situation at Tynecastle improves.

Problems are mounting at a club whose wage bill in the last financial year was £12.49million against turnover of only £10.3m.

Hearts refuse to comment on their latest financial worries but sources claim the club will now look to cash in on their most saleable assets in the January transfer window.

That could see players such as Christophe Berra, Laryea Kingston and Andrew Driver moved on, along with the high earners whose salaries are threatening to bring the club to its knees as the credit crunch bites.

Insiders are at pains to suggest there will be no firesale and Csaba Laszlo is keen to maintain a balance that keeps his side competitive and challenging for a place in Europe but that could prove easier said than done.

Sources confess the club are paying the price in a tough financial climate for their high salary levels and immediate action must be taken to bring the wage bill to a manageable level.

It's understood Hearts are "hopeful" wages will be paid today but they refuse to commit further.

The club hope to make an announcement on the state of their finances before Laszlo's regular pre-match press conference at lunchtime today.

Parent company Ubig recently boasted assets of 850 million euros but Vladimir Romanov, like many in the game, has not been immune to the worldwide economic downturn.

Alarm bells have been ringing since Record Sport revealed last Saturday morning salaries were not paid as promised before the game against Rangers.

Hearts announced wages were finally paid on Monday but no reference to the high earners agreeing to have their salaries deferred was made at that stage.

Four win bonuses are now due after the team's recent good run and have also been deferred until next month.

Record Sport also revealed the club plan to pay out when they bank another installment from Scotland keeper Craig Gordon's £9m move to Sunderland.

Romanov has proved an astute dealer in the transfer market, commanding top prices for stars such as Gordon, Rudi Skacel, Roman Bendar and Paul Hartley.

He will have to be at his best again next month as Hearts fans face one of the most challenging periods in their history.

The club's cash flow position is so bad Arbroath are considering freezing future gate receipts at Tynecastle to force the club to pay the £14,000 still outstanding as part of the Andy Webster transfer deal to Wigan.

Former Hearts chairman George Foulkes responded with dismay to latest developments.

Foulkes brought Romanov to the club but resigned just over three years ago in protest against decisions made by him.

He said: "Those of us who are supporters are very anxious to do nothing to destabilise the club in any way.

"We've just had our best run on the field since George Burley left with five victories in a row.

"That is why all of us are looking at these reports with dismay."

Taken from the Daily Record