Seeking outside assistance

West Ham, Manchester United and Kia Joorabchian are all lined up on one side against the Premier League over the attempted transfer of Carlos Tévez to Old Trafford. The Premiership are contending that West Ham must not only negotiate the transfer, but also keep most or all of the money from it, because the club canceled its contract with Joorabchian. This Guardian story explains that West Ham claimed to have torn up their entire agreement with Joorabchian. All along, I thought, wrongly perhaps, that West Ham only claimed to be unilaterally ending the right of Joorabchian to force a transfer of Tévez or, in other words, they were saying that they would breach that provision in the contract with Joorabchian should he try to wield control over the player. The club always claimed to hold the registration on Tévez, but not until now have they claimed to "own" him, or at least not that I have seen.

The Guardian reports that the Court of Arbitration for Sport will adjudicate the matter. The Times reports that the Football Association will arbitrate the transfer. The Independent reports that West Ham, Manchester United and Joorabchian have asked the FA to step in, with threats to involve FIFA if the matter isn't resolved. The Premier League, the Times said, is now considered to be partial in the matter, because it is seen as taking its hardline position over the transfer to strengthen its legal position vis-a-vis Sheffield United. The Guardian and the Times both contend that West Ham would be happy to see the transfer pushed through even without much, if any, payment to Upton Park just to have the matter over and done with.

Perhaps the influence of the arbitration court or one of the football governing bodies will help this transfer go through. It's consistent with my understanding of what happened here. Just because the Premiership forced West Ham to breach or tear up their contract with Joorabchian doesn't end his rights. West Ham have to be able to settle with him. Maybe bringing in another party will help that happen.

Also over and done with: The transfer of striker Craig Bellamy from Liverpool. Bellamy, who will turn 28 soon, says he hopes to stabilize his career at West Ham and appreciates the chance to be "a senior player" at a club with ambitions for Europe.