Portsmouth FC, the club which had to delay paying its players wages recently due to a cashflow crisis, have been dealt another blow by the Premier League, who have decided to redistribute £7m in television rights money to clubs owed by Portsmouth rather than to the club itself.
The decision, which is allowed under Premier League rules, means that Chelsea, Tottenham Hotspur and Watford – all of whom are owed money by the Hampshire side – will receive the payment between them instead of the money going direct to Portsmouth, who’s players received wages for December on Monday of this week.
The issue of players wage payments has caused a slight delay in the continuation of their current loan of Jamie O’Hara, the Spurs left-back, whose loan extension to the season’s end has yet to be signed off by the Premier League. A spokesman for the Premier League stated simply that “The clubs may have agreed a deal in principle but it is up to the Premier League board to decide whether there can be a continuation.”
While Portsmouth have not entered administration – which would be catastrophic for the club’s Premier League survival chances – it is clear that there is plenty of work for Pompey off the pitch as well as on: they are currently bottom of the Barclays Premier League, despite showing some reasonable form in patches this season.
