Pearson aims for Hull clearout
High earner Jimmy Bullard's transfer to be investigated by Pearson
Tuesday, 03, Nov 2009 03:07
By Michael Younger.
Returning Hull City chairman Adam Pearson looks set to conduct a major cull in the new year to ease the struggling Premier League club's financial problems.
During his first spell at the Humberside outfit, Pearson oversaw Hull's rise from near bankruptcy to the Championship in six successful years.
He did so with an annual wage bill of only £3.5 million, but he has vowed to get the club back on track and is confident of solving the problems he has inherited, which includes a reported wage bill of £40m.
Pearson has said: "We need to get back in shape to make sure the long-term future of the club is secure. It's nothing that's not retrievable but we need to reduce the size of the playing squad, which in the Premier League is the key point.
"We're certainly not in a situation where we need to sell players we want to keep. We just want to make sure that the club is being run efficiently and prudently.
"The position of the club is manageable going forward but, if it had been left much longer, there was a danger of it becoming more serious. At this stage of the season, it's achievable that we can turn this around."
The highest earners at Hull are reported to be Jimmy Bullard, Geovanni, Daniel Cousin and George Boateng - and Pearson admitted that certain players may have to be sold.
Pearson has launched an internal investigation into every transfer the club have completed during the past two years, amid reports that £5.5m has been spent on agents' fees - £500,000 in the purchase of Bullard from Fulham alone.