Goalkeeper Luke Steele has appealed to Albion and Barnsley to spare him FA Cup heartbreak by striking a quick deal over his future.
Steele is set to miss the ‘biggest day of his career’ when Barnsley take on Cardiff in the Wembley semi-final on April 6 unless the Tykes can agree a deal to extend his loan from the Baggies.
Talks between the clubs broke down at the weekend but both Steele and Barnsley boss Simon Davey have denied the dispute is over wages.
“Unless both clubs can reach an agreement I’m going to be watching Barnsley’s semi-final day out at Wembley on TV,” said Steele.
“It should have been a really simple deal to carry on my loan until the end of the season.
“But the deal is getting complicated and I am running the risk of missing out on the biggest day of my professional career.
“This is nothing to do with my wage demands. They’re not an issue in this.
“I’m just praying that those involved in sorting out the finances of the deal can reach agreement soon.
“These last few days have been very difficult. Having beaten Liverpool and Chelsea, to miss out now doesn’t bear thinking about.”
Albion have offered Steele on loan for the rest of the season ahead of a free transfer to Oakwell in the summer.
And the Baggies have insisted the dispute is over Barnsley’s reluctance to pay a larger percentage of Steele’s wages for the remainder of the season.
Chairman Jeremy Peace said: “We’re saying we’d like him to go there on a permanent basis.
“Barnsley would like to take him on loan for the rest of the season and I think that’s where the difference is.
“We’ve let him go there on loan at a subsidised rate.
“We’ve put our hands in our pockets and helped Luke in his first four weeks there.
But Davey said: “There’s no problem with his wages, we want to take him on loan.
“He wants to stay, he’s done very well since he’s been with us.
“He’s played in the fifth round and quarter -final of the FA Cup. He wants to play in the semi-final and wants to play in the final.
“The ball is out of our court. We want to take the player until the end of the season.”
33 Comments
Cant see the problem if its not wages!!!!
Albion said he can go if barnsley pay his wages
Why don’t they come out and say exactly what the issue is, maybe then it can be resolveed for the lad
It’s quite obvious what’s going on. They only want him on loan and don’t want to buy him, because they know what we all know - (remember Leicester away and Charlton at home!)
Leicester, he was clearly fouled and ok it was a soft goal against Charlton.
But, Dean Kiely has hardly covered himself in glory this season. Makes the odd good save but in general his goalkeeping has been very poor.
However, he is one of those players that Mowbray seems reluctant to drop for whatever reason.
so they will pay his wages…..and basically they can now have him for free……
can anyone else see a problem cuz i cant! it makes no sense
we want rid (i dont know why) and they want him……….
From what I’ve read elsewhere, it seems that Luke is barking up the wrong tree. He should be directing his pleas to Barnsley who are reluctant to pay a loan fee (common practice these days) to keep him until the end of the season. They are pleading poverty despite making over a million from their FA cup run that Steele has played a major part in. We are not a charity and the answer to Barnsley is clear. Put up or shut up.
sums up you lot…………..you cant even GIVE your players away lol
I say sign the young lad, hes a great Keeper, hes got us to the Semi Final and he should be allowed to lay………..I think both clubs should get their act together and stop putting him through all this agony……….
My earlier comment should have said play!
Sorry - Season Ticket Holder at Barnsley
baggie_kez
It seems to make sense to me. Barnsley already have a first choice keeper and he will be fit to play from the start of next season. WBA want Barnsley to sign Steele on loan and then sign him permanently at the end of the season (albeit on a free transfer).
Now, why would Barnsley want to sign another keeper on £8k a week permanently?
I am led to believe that the problem is Barnsley want to loan him until the end of the season on the same deal they have at the minute where as Albion paying 7k of his 8k a week wages with a view to a permanant deal at the end of the season.
according to the sun today,hes on 8 grand a wik at albion but barnsley will only offer 4 grand a wik,if he cant manage on that i got no sympathy for him,money or wembley his choice boing boing going to wembley without him
7 you did a good job of getting rid of expensive players on free
frankowski comes to mind
If Barnsley rate him so much then cough up, also why are we helping Hull with there promotion push
they are only 3 points behind us, and they have our longest serving player as a key player in there
defence, get clem back, in our other promotion campaigns he was instrumental i now he has had recent
injury problems but because now he has played a few games and is fitter get him back, specially with
barnett getting injured sat, boing boing!
why have we turned into a charity? if hull go up over us there will be some questions asked, we need clem imagine that experience in the run in we need it!
julie i love you,boing boing
16. Terry, Julie said ‘play’ not ‘lay’. Get your pants back on. I feel for Barnsley supporters on this one. We offer them a goalie and pay most of his wages. The goalie succeeds and Barnsley hit the jackpot. Then they start playing Strip Poker with JP about cash and loan deals. You’ve all seen JP in action when he ups the ante. Barnsley are being stupid and greedy, (sorry Julie), but this kid is your mascot as well as your goalie. SCREAM LOUDLY ON YOUR CLUB WEBSITE MESSAGE BOARD!
16 TWB.
Go for it, it may have been a Freudian slip.
18,bully,whats one of them mate,boing boing
19 TWB.
I know you’re not as thick as you pretend and I’m not ending up on a hook. PS did you know you spell Mobborry Mowbray lol.
Terry meets Julie - wembley station - they are in paradise….
20,yes i did know mate,it just gets the dingles going,boing boing
julie julie julie do ya love me,julie julie julie do you care, boing boing
21 Happy.
Brilliant. Class song as well.
22 Have you got the art of fly fishing by T.W. Baggie. Keep reeling em in Terry.
TRB - I like to get the Kinks out every so often.
25 happy, are you a dedicated follower of fashion boing boing
julie, you really got me, boing boing
Happy_baggie said: Mar 19th, 2008 at 2:59 pm TRB - I like to get the Kinks out every so often.
As Steptoe would have said, “Yer dirty little bleeder”. I’ve just spent a happy-baggy two hours listening to La Boheme by Puccini. Whatever turns you on I suspect.
Hey Real Bully, Happy is trying to beat you with the musical references. Happy, I am pleased to see you post. If it was anyone else I would think you were hiding from the new look Wolves as we close in on you but I know you better than that. I thought that the worst you could do was to fall into the playoffs but you now need a couple of wins soon to make sure that even that happens. How do you read things now?
29,malvern, ya havin a laff aint ya,close in on us,you got to close in on hull,plymouth,palace fust boing boing doing the double the MOWBURY WAY
Malvern, Happy, TWB, Cyril and any other music/football lovers.
Just lately I’ve been worrying all day and all of the night because I’m tired of waiing in this league and if we go up everyones gonna be happy (not Baggie of course) so til the end of the day when wonderboy Ish scores the goal that will start days of celebration as long as plastic man Bothroyd or apeman Kyle don’t ruin things we’ll end up on a promotion supersonic rocketship and you’re all invited to come dancing at the Hawthorns.
I’ve got a lot of time on my hands today, perhaps I ought to get a hobby.
lets just hope its a sunny afternoon,i can invite lola and when we win we can party all day and all of the night,boing boing going to wembley the kinks way
29,malv, we, tired of waiting for you, boing boing