Cardiff boss hints at Ledley exit

04 May 2009 16:50
Ledley only has a year remaining on his current contract and he has not shown any willingness to open negotiations over a new deal with the South Wales outfit. The midfielder was waiting to see what division Cardiff were in before committing himself and he now looks likely to seek an exit this summer after the Bluebirds missed out on a place in the Championship play-offs on Sunday. Ledley has previously revealed his desire to play in the Premier League and there will once again be plenty of top-flight interest in the 22-year-old this summer. Stoke boss Tony Pulis remains a long-term admirer, while Wigan, West Ham and newly-promoted Wolves have all been credited with an interest as well. City boss Jones flatly refused Stoke's offer for Ledley in the summer as the club did not need the money, but he now accepts he may need to cash in. "We have not even sat down with Ledley and talked about his contract yet," said Jones in the South Wales Echo. "But the days when we had to sell players to survive have gone. That situation has been corrected over the last 18 months. "We will only sell players if it's right for the football club. We may have to sell to take the club forward to the next stage, perhaps sell one to bring in two or three. "There may be decisions made which will not sit well with everybody, but that's the situation we are in. That's the facts of football and we have to make sure we are stronger for this experience." Jones says he simply could not accept Stoke's bid earlier in the season, but is wary about seeing Ledley leave Cardiff for nothing in 12 months' time. He added: "When the money came in for Joe last time, it came in an hour before the transfer deadline. "It was too late for us to find somebody else, so it wasn't the right time to sell him. "They thought they could pinch Joe, but the club were in a strong position and we didn't have to sell him. "Now the decision might be taken if a player has one year left on their contract and the money is right then the decision might be taken out of our hands. "You can't let players run down their contracts and go for free when their contract expires because that is bad business."

Source: Team_Talk