Destination unknown:
Blackburn's owners could spark a bidding war for Phil
Jones
Manchester United’s
multi-million pound signing of teenage defender Phil Jones from
Blackburn Rovers lies in tatters.
Blackburn’s Indian owners have
reacted furiously to what they perceive as United’s attempt to
railroad them into selling the 19-year-old and have told United:
‘We will not be bullied’.
And in a stunning 11th-hour
development on Saturday, the Mail
on Sunday can reveal that Liverpool have told Blackburn they
will pay £22million for Jones, a move that will ruin Sir Alex
Ferguson’s holiday mood as he takes a break in the south of
France.
Arsenal have also belatedly
submitted a bid that tops United’s £16.5m offer, and with Chelsea
showing serious interest in the player, too, an auction appears to
be unfolding. It will come as a bitter blow to Ferguson if he
misses out on Jones, and it will sting all the harder if the player
ends up at United’s fierce rivals at Anfield.
Rovers’ owners have been
angered by United’s attitude and at a meeting on Saturday in Pune,
India, which was attended by manager Steve Kean — straight off a
plane to Mumbai — they resolved to prevent the deal going
through.
United have offered to make
Jones the highest-paid teenager in the history of English football
with a startling £80,000-a-week contract, but Blackburn are even
prepared to top that.
Rovers chairwoman Anuradha
Desai made it clear to Kean and fellow executives, who made up a
‘war council’ in India, that they must try to persuade the defender
to stay. The prospect of being a future club captain is also being
dangled before Jones.
Standing firm: Blackburn chiefs Balaji Rao (left)
and Venkatesh Rao have told United they will not be bullied into
selling Phil Jones
Money is said to be
‘not an issue’ for Desai’s family, who are billionaires through
their Venky’s poultry conglomerate.
They want to keep their best
players, especially homegrown talents such as Jones.
But if they fail to persuade
him, they will do all they can to elicit the best price from one of
Liverpool, Arsenal, Chelsea, United or Tottenham, telling Jones:
‘If you go, you go where we get the best money.’
A source close to Rovers
said. ‘United can’t do what they want in this case. Jones is a
Blackburn player and while there is a clause that could mean he
leaves, it’s far from the straightforward issue everyone assumes it
to be.’
Jones signed a United shirt
for fans while training with England’s Under-21s in Denmark on
Friday and, along with his representatives and United, had thought
the transfer was a formality.
The player wants to join
United but it is not known whether he has even been informed yet
that Liverpool have made a bigger offer.
Major headache: Sir Alex Ferguson could have his
holiday ruined by recent developments
Whisked away: Jones completed a medical with
Manchester United on Wednesday
A major headache for
United is in the interpretation of the release clause in Jones’s
contract. They triggered it with their £16.5m offer and were
allowed to talk to the player as a result.
But Rovers have taken legal
advice and insist the clause does not force them to sell to the
first club to meet the figure.
The biggest loser in all this
could be England Under- 21 boss Stuart Pearce.
He would not name his team on
Saturday night for the opening game against Spain as the
possibility of the transfer deal distracting the versatile defender
grew.
