Zigic deal a refreshing change; Other transfer news

Zigic: Long

Birmingham City secured the services of gigantic Serbia striker Nikola Zigic yesterday in one of the most economical transfers in recent Premier League history. City’s accountant may object to the assertion (the £6m fee spent on a 29-year-old with a modest goalscoring record looks somewhat extravagant) but the transfer itself was concluded with so little fuss that you could have been forgiven for not even noticing it was taking place. A mere 24 hours elapsed between the rumours first surfacing and the photo of the player clutching the shirt in his giant hands, a refreshing change indeed in the times of Lescottgate, and the mother of all tedious transfer sagas, Cristiano Ronaldo’s two-year transfer to Real Madrid.

There are two possible explanations Zigic’s short hop from gossip columns to four-year contract. Firstly, that Birmingham contacted Valencia on Tuesday, both clubs behaved like grown-ups, agreed a fee with little or no bickering, and the player accepted the first generous contract offer from the club without kicking up a fuss. This, as we are talking about football clubs and a professional footballer, seems unlikely. The second explanation is that the deal was concluded in a normal time-frame, but those behind the deal didn’t breathe a word to the media, who got wind of it just before it was concluded. This must be extremely refreshing for Birmingham fans, who after years of perennial public whoring from former owners Davids Gold and Sullivan (hereafter known as the singular beast Gollivan, as is the fashion), can now look forward to the club operating in a discreet and even dignified manner.

Meanwhile, Blues fans can afford a laugh at Gollivan’s new club West Ham, who have

Gollivan: Wanker

been having their laundry dried in public since he arrived. Publicity sustains Gollivan; without the nourishment column inches bring him, he will weaken until he eventually disintegrates and floats into the ether, ignored. That is why, since day one, he has criticised the players, sacked the manager and his staff, and made wild claims about making Upton Park a retirement home for the likes of Ruud Van Nistelrooy and Thierry Henry.

Birmingham’s neat deal for Zigic should be applauded, even though the man who

looks like a long Josh Hartnett may ultimately find the going tough in the fast-paced Premier League. The death of the public transfer saga would be welcomed by most football fans – we don’t have long attention spans, and the summer is a frustrating time. Far from Sky Sports News’s 24-hour hype machine satisfying some sort of primal lust for transfer gossip, it just drives most of us insane with boredom – or worse, to tennis.

Don’t expect Zigic’s transfer to be replicated by many other Premier League clubs – the buyer publicising interest is often good for business. The eventual transfer fee can be driven down if a player is unsettled and moved to publicly express a desire to leave, or worse still for the seller – hand in a transfer request. The dark arts of transfer manoeuvring  are already on display this summer, with FC Barcelona’s nefarious pursuit of Cesc Fabregas ensuring months of tedious media-chess to look forward to.

Steven Reid joins WBA

Elsewhere, newcomers West Bromwich Albion have moved to offer a career lifeline to former Blackburn Rovers permacrock Steven Reid with a two-year deal. The Republic of Ireland international has spent nearly four years fighting his fitness problems, but helped Albion to promotion while on loan at the tail end of last season. The utility player won’t be the signing to keep West Brom up, but is experienced enough to prove a good signing when fit.

And finally, 33-year-old Mexican striker Guillermo Franco has left West Ham after the East Londoners opted not to extend his contract. Franco, who is in Mexico’s squad for this summer’s World Cup, scored five goals after signing for the Hammers last September, but apparently did not do enough to earn another year at Upton Park. The sturdy forward was probably one of Gianfranco Zola’s better pieces of business for West Ham – a cheap, low-risk signing who did a job when called upon, which is more than you can say for Benni McCarthy or Mido. It remains to be seen whether the Hammers will retain Ilan, the Brazilian striker who is also out of contract, but Gollivan will have to free up some wages for Van Nistelrooy, Henry or Fernando Torres, or whoever it is they’re planning on not signing next.