Portsmouth fans call on players to save club

Tal Ben Haim, Luke Varney and Dave Kitson

Fans are calling for the eight senior players left on Portsmouth’s books to save the club from liquidation.

The supporters group SOS Pompey presented a written plea to the players at Fratton Park on Monday, asking them to compromise on their salaries in the hope that the money saved can aid the stricken League One club, whose administrator Trevor Birch admitted are “two or three weeks away from closure” at the weekend.

Last month, the Portpin group headed by former Pompey owner Balram Chainrai agreed to a takeover of the club, but only on the condition that the wage bill was reduced through players leaving or coming to compromises.

One of the eight players left, Tal Ben Haim, is entering the final year of a four-year contract said to be worth £36,000 a week.

The former Bolton, Chelsea and Manchester City defender joined Pompey when they were a Premier League club in 2009. At the weekend, Birch told The Independent that the Israeli “represented everything that has gone wrong” at Portsmouth. When the fans presented their plea to the players at Fratton Park on Monday, Ben Haim is said to have refused to acknowledge them.

“Some players were excellent and stopped to listen to what we said, others as expected weren't interested and drove straight on,” SOS spokesman Bob Beech told the BBC.

“At the end of the day, they have contracts and they expect those contracts to be paid and that is not an unreasonable stance for them to take.

“But the well is dry and if they stay and keep their demands going then there will be no club and they will end up with nothing.

“The players could still be part of history and save this club.”

As well as Ben Haim, the other seven senior players currently on Pompey’s books are Greg Halford, Erik Huseklepp, Dave Kitson, Liam Lawrence, David Norris, Luke Varney and Kanu.

Mark Jones – follow me on twitter

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