Dunno if this was put up.....
BBC SPORT | Football | Premier League | Alan Hansen's column
Page last updated at 11:43 GMT, Monday, 17 August 2009 12:43 UK
E-mail this to a friend
Printable version
Alan Hansen's column
By Alan Hansen
BBC Sport football expert
Unhappy Lescott was in the team that lost 6-1 to Arsenal on Saturday
The biggest thing about the Joleon Lescott situation is that the player himself has decided that he does not want to be at Goodison Park - and in this day and age when that happens it is better to let the player leave.
Manchester City clearly want to sign Lescott and although I admire the stance of Everton boss David Moyes, who has said that the defender is under contract and will not be leaving, I think he should take the money.
This sort of drawn-out transfer saga unsettles everyone at a club and it is no coincidence that Everton lost their opening game of the Premier League season 6-1 at home by Arsenal.
Lescott did not want to play, his team-mates probably knew that and there was a lack of communication and cohesion.
I am not saying for a single minute that the uncertainty over Lescott was the sole cause for Everton's defeat but it was definitely a factor.
Had Arsenal won 2-1 or 3-1 it would still have been very bad - but then you take into account the 6-1 scoreline and Everton's performance and I would have thought that it would hasten Lescott's departure.
The Lescott situation is at an impasse and there is no easy way out
The reality is that the balance has changed in football. If you go back 20-25 years contracts were in favour of the clubs but now the power rests with the players.
And if a big club with lots of money wants to sign someone at a club with less wealth and is offering to double that player's wages - as has been widely reported - then it is inevitable that he will move.
You could ask why Lescott is unhappy at Everton. The club finished fifth in the Premier League last season and reached the FA Cup final.
But I think that 99.9% of the population would want to move if it meant doubling their salary and I am not going to criticise Lescott for wanting to do that.
The defender is 27 and if he signed a four-year contract at City he would be set for life. That is very, very difficult to turn down and people have got to understand that is the reality of modern-day football.
Moyes is very unhappy with Man City's pursuit of Lescott
Moyes obviously holds Lescott in high regard and may think that he does not have the time to replace him.
The transfer window closes on 1 September and traditionally the best players who might have been available have already been bought by this stage of the summer.
Moyes would have to find somebody who is not only of the required quality but who would fit into Everton backline. Central defence is about partnerships - and selling Lescott to bring in a replacement after the season has started is not ideal.
At the moment the situation is at an impasse - with Moyes wanting Lescott to stay and City boss Mark Hughes keen to buy him.
There is not going to be an easy way out of this and there has been something of a war of words between the two managers - but I think that eventually Lescott will move.
And the longer the situation goes on before it happens, the worse it will become.