Barnsley have said that they had no option but to let star striker Ricardo Vaz Te leave in the January transfer window.
Ricardo Vaz Te left the club in favour of West Ham United after being enticed with the opportunity to play in the Premier league once again next season – West Ham United are one of the promotion chasing teams this season. They are currently at the top of the table, and thus will have the opportunity to play in the Premier league automatically next season.
Ricardo Vaz Te is perhaps best known for his time at Bolton Wanderers when he played under current West Ham United manager Sam Allardyce.
The Portuguese player has moved to West Ham United on an undisclosed fee, but it is thought to be quite a lot of money. As a result, Barnsley have expressed delight to the fact that they could now spend that money on strengthening the team in the summer.
Barnsley also have revealed that they made every possible effort to try to keep Vaz Te, but ultimately couldn’t stop him from moving to Upton Park. This even included a much improved contract offer on the table.
“We had no option in the end but to sell. Ricardo expressed a desire to leave once he knew West Ham were interested. Although we made him a substantial offer to stay, he wanted to play for a club that he is betting will be playing Premiership football next season,” Barnsley general manager Don Rowing said after the announcement of Ricardo Vaz Te’s departure from Barnsley.
The club are currently in the 15th position in the table and have a relatively low chance of playing in the Premier league next season.
Vaz Te has been tipped to make it into Portugal’s squad for the betfair Euro 2012 Championships, so it certainly won’t be the last we hear about him. Good luck Ricardo, but I wish you were staying! 🙁