Rowing: Sometimes we have to sell

Reds' director Don Rowing says the club is sometimes left with no option but to sell its best players.

Leading scorer Ricardo Vaz Te, whose contract was set to expire at the end of the season, left the club this week, joining West Ham for a substantial six-figure sum with further add-ons.

Rowing says the club had little option when it came to losing the Portuguese forward, who was snapped up on a free transfer at the beginning of the season.

Rowing told the Chronicle that Vaz Te  – who made 14 starts and scored 12 goals for the Reds – snubbed Barnsley’s contract offer and selling him was the only option.

He said: “We had made an offer to Ricardo through his advisor which included far better wages than he was already on, but Ricardo and his advisor made it clear that he wanted to move to West Ham. He said that he wouldn’t be signing at the end of the season so we had no alternative.

“If we had refused West Ham permission to talk to him then we’d have had an unhappy player in our squad so we’re pleased with the substantial fee we received for him. I’d like to see more loyalty but it’s money that talks and there’s always some clubs that are prepared to give more than others.

“It’s sad really but that’s where football has gone and we have to compete with that."

The club also missed out on signing Danny Drinkwater earlier in the transfer window, as the midfield loanee joined big-spending Leicester City. Playmaker Jacob Butterfield would have probably left the club in January too, but an injury against Leeds ruled him out for the season.Rowing said clubs like Barnsley’s size have to realise they cannot compete with bigger Championship outfits in the transfer market.

“Clubs of our size with our support base sometimes have to sell their best players. Teams will cherry-pick from smaller clubs and it happens up and down the country.“Barnsley Football Club is managed properly and is self-sustainable. We work within the turnover we generate.

“To me that equals success and the fact that we are in the Championship is a bonus, but our main aim is for the continuation of football in Barnsley to exist at the highest possible level. That is our ambition and will always be – we must keep the club in business.

“The ambitions of the club are driven by the ambitions of its supporters. We have lost about 1,500 fans for home games but I believe they will come back. Derby get 25,000 fans, which is why they can spend the money they do. The more fans we get down to Oakwell, the more money we can give to the manager.”