Like Liverpool, English Premier League club Manchester City has found it’s hard to get rid of unwanted players because nobody is willing to pay their inflated wages. And because of the 25-man roster rule that states eight players need to be homegrown, things are even tighter. It actually looks good on the teams and the players as their greed has seen their careers come to a standstill in some situations. Paying millions of pounds for players to sit on the bench is ridiculous and it’s what many of them deserve.

City manager Roberto Mancini wants to spend even more money during the January transfer window, but unless the roster can be cleared and some of the deadwood moved there’s not really any point in buying more players. This means that a rumoured move to buy striker Edin Dzeko from German club Wolfsburg for about 40 million euros may have to be put on hold.

It’s a ridiculous move anyway as City already have half a dozen world-class strikers who sit on the bench or don’t even dress for games as it is. They’re trying to rectify this though, by selling off about seven unwanted players to make room for new signings. It’s believed City are trying to sell off some big name players such as strikers Emmanuel Adebayor, Jo, and Roque Santa Cruz, winger Shaun Wright-Phillips, goaltender Shay Given, and defenders Joleon Lescott and Wayne Bridge. In addition, Given, Wright-Phillips, Lescott, and Bridge are all considered to be homegrown players.

But while these players are all considered to be some of the best in the Premier League and most of them are also internationals they just waste away each week as they can’t get a game. Each one of them would probably be a starter on about three quarters of the league’s teams. So in reality, the fans are actually getting cheated by having league stars sitting on the wayside while lesser-skilled players take to the field. The problem has been created by the players’ wage demands and the clubs’ willingness to pay them.

City wants to unload their extra players and isn’t interested in loaning them out while paying a portion of their wages. It’s a mess they’ve gotten themselves into as none of the other teams want to pay the high wages. In the past, City agreed to help pay the salaries of Craig Bellamy and Robinho when they were both shipped out, but aren’t willing to do so anymore. But if they really want to buy new players they’re going to have to reconsider this stance. This is what happens to teams that have more money than sense.