SWANSEA CITY have failed in their bid to bring in former Wales skipper Barry Home in time for tomorrow's Third Division clash against Colchester at Vetch Field (3).
Birmingham City accepted manager Jan Molby's offer for Horne, but Swansea refused to meet the midfielder's "outrageous personal terms."
"The fee was not a problem," confirmed Molby. "We had agreed that with Birmingham. But the player's personal terms were outrageous - a six figure sum. Although Barry is 35, I still feel he could play at Football League level for another another five years."
Molby was clearly stunned by Horne's demands, especially as the PFA's new chairman is currently stuck in Birmingham's reserve side.
"He's setting a fine example to his members, isn't he?" argued Molby.
The Swansea manager admitted he also made a bid for Gillingham striker Leo Fortune-West, but was rocked back on his heels again when he was quoted a £250,000 fee.
"I hope the fans can see what we are up against. It's not for want of trying. And Leo isn't even in the first team at Gillingham," he added.
It means Molby names his entire squad for tomorrow's encounter with a Colchester side who have just missed out on promotion for the last two seasons.
"It's going to be a tough game. They are probably on a par with Scunthorpe," said Molby, whose side still boasts a 100 per cent record at home this season.
"We've got to be patient. Because of our poor away form we'll probably have to wait for something to spark us off, as Dave O'Gorman's goal did against Torquay. But if nothing comes then we've got to make sure we defend well at the other end. We can't afford to give anything away."
Molby's main selection quandary is whether to recall goalkeeper Roger Freestone and Jonathan Coates after they were dropped at Macclesfield last Saturday.
Swansea City manager Jan Molby has gone back to Everton in a bid to extend John Hills's loan deal for a second month. Hills is due to play his last game against Colchester at Vetch Field on Saturday and Molby is keen to keep the teenager in his squad .
"I have spoken to Everton about keeping John another month," confirmed Molby. "They are discussing it at management level and all I can do now is wait for them to come back to me."
Molby, who is due to see a specialist on his injured foot later today, is still pursuing a number of new signings. "Some are old targets, others are new," said the Swansea manager. "There seems to be money available, but some clubs are asking ridiculous fees. Saying that, the players we are going for are quality players - first division quality and not third division."
Molby also confirmed that Kristian O'Leary was the player Barry wanted to take on a player plus cash deal for defender Gary Lloyd.
"I don't think we are in a position to let anyone go at the moment. Unless Barry come down in their valuation of the Llanelli-based Lloyd the deal is unlikely to go through."
SWANSEA CITY manager Jan Molby is coming under pressure from the club's new owners to pull his playing boots on again.
Molby has yet to play this season, expressing the view that he has enough youngsters in his squad to keep him out of the midfield boilerhouse.
But after four straight league defeats away from home this season, Swansea's new board of directors want Molby to use his experience and expertise to full effect on the pitch instead of in the dug-out.
The board has decided they would like to see Jan playing again," said Silver Shield director and Swansea vice-chairman Neil McClure.
"There is no better player in this division than Jan, and he could still probably command a regular place in the midfield of most Premiership sides. We've got to learn the lessons from the away defeats. We are convinced Jan can control and close games down when needs must. We've got a top quality player on our staff, and now is the time we need his help on the pitch."
With midfielder Kwame Ampadu set to sit out a three game suspension after Saturday's game with Colchester at Vetch Field, Molby may feel the time is right for his overdue return.
Injury could prove the obstacle though. The Swansea manager went into hospital at he end of last week for X-rays on a foot injury sustained in training.
"There doesn't seem to be anything broken," confirmed Molby, who also stated in an Evening Post interview last week that he intends to play in more games than he misses this season.
"I'll just have to wait and see how quickly the foot recovers. I trained a bit yesterday and I should be ready to return to full training. In an ideal world the board would like me to play in every game. In an ideal world so would I. But I don't think it's right the board should put pressure on anyone to play. I'll decide when the time is right."
Jan Molby admitted today that last night's FAW Invitation Cup victory at Barry Town was "probably just what we needed."
A 3-2 win over a League of Wales side may not be some critics idea of a memorable victory, but coming on the back of four straight away defeats it's clear to see why Molby was taking great heart from the result.
"It was ever so important to come away with a win," explained Molby. "In an ideal world it wasn't exactly a good time to play Barry 48-hours after we suffered our second away defeat in the space of seven days. The boys have done a lot of miles on the road and had two bad experiences. But as it turned out I think it was probably just what we needed."
Although Molby was disappointed with the way his side defended again, he was quick to point out that the victory was more comfortable than the scoreline suggested, with John Hills having an outstanding game down the left-hand side of midfield.
The Swansea manager was also impressed with the performance of Barry defender Gary Lloyd - a current Vetch Field target.
"He used the ball well," said Molby. "I am still talking to Barry manager Gary Barnett about him, but they are coming from a different angle now."
Although Molby declined to state the new Barry angle, it's understood the League of Wales champions are looking for some sort of player-plus-cash swap deal. Kristian O'Leary is the Swansea player rumoured to be involved.
MANAGER Jan Molby sent a renewed plea to Swansea City's new owners today after his side were still coming to terms with their fourth consecutive away defeat of the season.
Swansea's 3-0 defeat at Macclesfield, which was compounded by the dismissal of vice-captain Kwame Ampadu, stretched their losing sequence away from the Vetch to seven games.
It prompted Molby, who described the performance as "pathetic" and the "worst of the season" to make a public plea to his new employers to allow him to bring in some new faces immediately.
"I'd like to bring in people, but all we are doing at the moment is talking about it," said Molby. "Nothing is being done." - a claim refuted by Silver Shield director and Swans vice-chairman Neil McClure. Molby added: "I'm not going to waste my time talking about possible transfer deals anymore. All I'm waiting for is some kind of sign from the people in charge that I can do something. We haven't got enough character, enough steel, enough people in our team to stop us getting beat away from home."
Despite the arrival of left-back Paul Agnew from West Brom on a month's non-contract deal, and the impending arrival of another left-back Gary Lloyd from Barry, Molby feels he desperately needs to strengthen his squad in other key areas with bigger name signings.
While he clearly feels frustrated at the possible lack of support from his new board, McClure denies that the manager is being stopped from bringing players in.
"Money is not the restraining issue," said McClure, who watched the latest defeat at Macclesfield. "There are no limits, but we don't have to buy million pound players to make a difference. There's no point in spending lots of money and finding the player doesn't like it here. We've got to be careful who we hire. He's got to fit, because we don't want another Linton Brown on our hands. We are not in a situation where we've got to panic buy because we've lost four away games. It's not about buying people to prevent losing the next away game, it's about buying people for the long-term benefit of this club."
While Molby will argue that as the manager he should be the judge of that, McClure added: "Yes, the manager should be allowed to manage, but it's the board of directors who set the framework for him to do that. I know the fans want to see success this season, next season and the seasons after that, but we've only been in charge for four weeks and we've always said it's a marathon not a sprint. Jan is not being stopped from bringing players in."
Whether Molby, McClure and chairman Steve Hamer can agree on what constitutes a good buy remains to be seen.
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