Toffees handed Garbutt fee

08 September 2009 10:23
Everton have been ordered to pay Leeds United an initial fee of £600,000 for talented youngster Luke Garbutt which could rise as high as £1.5million. Everton are believed to have initially offered £200,000 for the former Leeds academy product, a sum described by chairman Ken Bates as "paltry" after Garbutt turned down an Elland Road scholarship to move to Merseyside this summer. Both clubs agreed that a figure would be set by a tribunal of the Professional Football Negotiating and Consultative Committee (PFCC), which is made up of representatives from the Football League, Premier League, PFA and Football Association. The hearing, which took place at the Premier League's offices in London on Monday, declared that Everton should pay an initial £600,000, which could rise by an additional £750,000 depending on appearances. There will be a further additional payment of £200,000 if the player makes a senior international appearance, while Leeds would also receive 20 per cent of any profit should Garbutt be sold on. One for the future Everton's academy manager Ray Hall has defended the massive outlay on the teenager, stating the Harrogate-born defender is a player for the club's future. "This is very much a transfer for the future for Everton. It's not an uncommon move to make - many Premier League clubs invest in young talent with a view to nurturing and developing them. "We are all delighted to have Luke at the club. He is an excellent prospect and he will be allowed to mature and learn his trade with our Academy staff and players. "I know the manager (David Moyes) will be keeping an eye on his progress, as he does with all our boys, and if he looks ready to make the next step up then he may get his chance." A statement from the PFCC explained: "In setting this compensation fee, the PFCC took into account the costs of training and development, the player's age and playing record. "Also the length of time he was registered with his former club, the terms offered by both clubs, the status of the two clubs, previous committee decisions and the interest shown by other clubs in acquiring the registration of the player." System reviewLeeds chief executive Shaun Harvey has called on the game's authorities to "mount a combined review of the registration system". Harvey does not believe the compensation packages are a big enough preventative to stop clubs poaching youngsters and feels points deductions could be the way forward. "The compensation package payable is significant, but not high enough to prevent future clubs from making a signing in similar circumstances," he told Leeds' official website. "If we had have had an option we would have chosen to keep the player. We feel we were deprived of the opportunity to develop the player to his full potential." Harvey added: "We now appeal to the football authorities to mount a combined review of the registration system in place domestically to provide further financial assurances for clubs who lose players to predator clubs. "Compensation awards, we feel, are no longer a sufficient deterrent and perhaps now is the time to start considering points deductions. "We need to arrive at a system whereby in any transfer there is a willing buyer, willing seller and willing player. Until we reach that position there will always be a dissatisfied party."

Source: SKY_Sports