Dundee United’s chairman says a decision to order his club to pay Rangers £170,000 for midfielder Charlie Telfer is a warning to parents of young players.
The final compensation figure, including VAT, is £204,000 and was decided by an SPFL tribunal at Hampden.
United, who were represented at the national stadium by chairman Stephen Thompson and their legal team, have already paid £60,000 plus VAT for Telfer and had raised their offer to £100,000.
In a hard-hitting statement after the SFA’s decision, Thompson said parents of all young Scottish players should “choose their clubs very, very carefully”.
United say Telfer’s decision to move was influenced by the fact that he had made only one substitute appearance for Rangers in a competitive match; lasting only 20 minutes in League One when victory was already assured.
They say the “guidance and development received” at Tannadice means Telfer has now broken through into the first team and was awarded the SPFL Young Player of the Month in a more senior league.
Thompson added: “This judgment in our opinion will have a serious impact on the freedom of movement of some young players through no fault of their own.
“Today’s decision protects clubs even in the event that those clubs are responsible for players’ careers being stifled at a critical stage in their development.
“It will restrict the opportunities for some of our most promising young players to gain regular first-team football and act as a deterrent to any Scottish football club which wishes to take such players on.
“Today’s decision is completely at odds with the stated aims of our football authorities in respect of encouraging our most promising young players to play first-team football at the highest level.
“It highlights the need for parents and young players to choose their clubs very, very carefully.
“Today’s judgment now sets a dangerous precedent that means some of our most promising young players will be deprived of the opportunity to secure a contract at a club where they have been offered a genuine firs- team opportunity and to improve their earnings purely because the compensation has been set at a ridiculously prohibitive level.
“The sum awarded to Rangers is almost seven times the amount offered to the player under the terms of his new contract with the Glasgow club.”
For more on this story, see Wednesday’s Courier.