aren't good enough reasons for wanting to leave a club. Now Sheep chairman
Peter Ridsdale claims Rio was just cover for their troubled central defender
Jonathon Woodgate.
'HE WAS JUST COVER'. HONEST!
aren't good enough reasons for wanting to leave a club. Now Sheep chairman
Peter Ridsdale claims Rio was just cover for their troubled central defender
Jonathon Woodgate.
From an interview in The Mirror
"When I first received an approach for Rio from the Manchester United
chairman, Peter Kenyon," Ridsdale said, "our resolve was not to sell him.
"All the speculation started after that but I can assure you that speculation
was not prompted by Leeds United.
"I saw Rio when he came back from the World Cup. It was on the Monday
before he went off on holiday and he told me he wanted to leave the club.
"When he got back from the holiday, he then put in a written transfer request
saying not just that he wanted to leave Leeds United but that he specifically
wanted to join Manchester United.
"But when the offer went up to £30m, an offer which I don't believe will be
repeated in the foreseeable future in the British transfer market, I think as a
public company it would have been very questionable for us to turn that offer
down.
So you must of really believed Bowyer and Woodgate then.
"There is an argument for saying we have got a certain amount of strength in
the central defensive area anyway.
"We only actually bought Rio in the first place because Jonathan Woodgate's
position was uncertain due to his involvement in what turned out to be two
trials.
position was uncertain due to his involvement in what turned out to be two
trials.
"You could argue what we have done is cover for Woodgate for 18 months in
case he was not around.
case he was not around.
"Now we have got him back and we have made a healthy profit on a player
we only bought as cover in the first place.
we only bought as cover in the first place.