Portsmouth players may go without pay
Baku, December 16 (AZERTAC). Portsmouth players could face an unhappy new year after one of the administrators looking after the club`s parent company admitted that there is no guarantee that their wages will be paid next month. Portsmouth`s fate is again in the balance after the arrest of Vladimir Antonov, the owner, who faces an extradition hearing on Friday in central London.
Regarding the players` salaries Andrew Andronikou, who is the joint administrator of Convers Sports Initiatives (CSI), the company which owns Portsmouth, and who handled the club`s administration last year, said: "There is no problem currently - the players will be paid this month but beyond that into January and the new year, who knows? This is a very uncertain economic environment at the moment."
From November 2009 until February 2010, when the club were owned by first Sulaimain al-Fahim and then Ali al-Faraj, Portsmouth`s players were not paid on the correct due date, and the Professional Footballers` Association is again monitoring the situation.
Gordon Taylor, the PFA`s chief executive, said: "We are aware of the financial problems of the club and the consequent problems we`ve had with players there with monies being paid. They`ve already been through it once, so I`m hoping that`s not repeated. It`s just at the moment us keeping a watching brief - it`s no good saying it is a good situation."
Andronikou is insistent that whether or not Antonov is extradited, there will be no material affect on Portsmouth and he stated that there has already been far more interest in buying the club than when he handled the £120m administration last year.
Portsmouth, though, who are being run by David Lampitt, the chief executive, and CSI`s administrators will wish to steer clear of the scandal enveloping Antonov, as the Lithuanian prosecutor-general is likely to seek to freeze and pursue his assets.
In mid-November the prosecutor-general announced it was investigating "alleged violations", including money-laundering, at the country`s Snoras bank. On 23 November it issued a European arrest warrant against Antonov and Raimondas Baranauskas, who are, respectively, the major shareholder and the Snoras chairman, saying the two "have been recognized as suspects with regard to misappropriation of property on a large scale and forgery of documents".
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