Two of Birmingham City's Championship rivals have landed themselves in hot water with the EFL this summer
Hull City's chairman Acun Ilicali
EFL plea... Hull City chairman Acun Ilicali
Hull City chairman Acun Ilicali says he is confident their appeal over a three-window transfer embargo will be successful.
Birmingham City’s Championship rivals have been sanctioned by the EFL over a late transfer payment made to Aston Villa for the loan of Louie Barry last season. Any hope the Tigers had of re-signing Barry on a permanent basis have all but evaporated as a result.
The EFL have stopped Hull from signing players for money in the next three transfer windows, meaning they can only acquire players on free transfers or loans that don’t require a fee.
Sheffield Wednesday are working under a similar embargo after the EFL sanctioned them for failing to pay their staff.
However, Turkish businessman Ilicali has now called on the EFL to reverse Hull’s embargo.
In an open letter to Hull fans, Ilicali commented: “It is clear there has been a lot of misinformation circulating in the last few days, so I wanted to clarify a few matters.
"There are zero issues between us and Aston Villa, in relation to both Louie Barry and Jaden Philogene arrangements, and we are very confident in our appeal case.
"The Fin Burns situation is actually quite simple. We intended to use proceeds of a player sale to settle this fee and as soon as the EFL told us this wasn’t possible - due to reasons not related to us, we made a direct payment immediately to end the matter.
"With regards to payments to suppliers, unfortunately, the club experienced a cash flow issue when it didn’t receive a £1.5m payment for a player which was intended to clear invoices from suppliers. I will cover this shortfall until we receive the funds we are owed and our team are in communication with all suppliers to rectify any outstanding issues as soon as possible.
“When I spoke with our fans last week, I told them the club is losing money and I am supporting when required. The club will always have my full backing whenever it needs it.
“I want to reassure our fans that we have zero conflict with any clubs. Perhaps there were some finance administrative errors but I am sure the EFL will be understanding to our appeal and we are confident in our case.
“People are entitled to their opinions and to write a different story, that is life, but I will always be behind our club. Our squad has £100m potential, we have a very good coach, the best fans and if we are united together we can achieve our dreams.”