Right on Sheffield!

Congrats to Sheffield United for turning down the chance to sign Charlie Mulgrew on the basis that he is asking for too much money. Whether it was him or his agent is immaterial, the days of players putting football clubs on the brink of financial oblivion are over. It's time for clubs to put their finances back in the black and for players to wise up.
For years, the power has lain with players and agents, with the pressure on clubs to fling inappropriate piles of cash at them for the right to put them on the filed of play for one or two seasons before they were off to tout themselves to another, possibly richer, more likely dafter football club. What many, if not most, of these players gave in return was often precious little. They thought that they were the greatest thing and didn't have to do much more than train and run about a bit on a Saturday. In many cases, there was little sign of caring about their team or their club and precious little return for salaries that would finance cabinet ministers. Now they are starting to find out that their jobs are at risk.
In the face of rising costs and diminishing incomes, clubs all over the UK are cutting back their playing staff and holding off signing players till wage demands get more sensible. Wage levels in the English Premiership(!) remain lunatic but even there there are clubs that are in a cold sweat over their debt levels.
Hopefully we will now see a trend that will bring players back close to the communities they are supposed to play for instead of in their remote glitzy/tacky ivory tower lifestyles. If they start to show clubs loyalty and play like they mean it, then crowds will come back and football will once more be the people's game.
As for Mister Mulgrew, we'd have liked to remember him fondly after his time at Pittodrie, but his behaviour on leaving has hardly been endearing. May he vanish into obscurity with his occasionally cultured left foot and his feeble defending.