Dundee United last night branded a commission fee figure included in a joint statement issued by two fans’ groups as “entirely fictitious.”
In a devastating destruction of a key element of the claims put forward by ArabTRUST and the Federation of Dundee United Supporters’ Clubs on Wednesday night, a Tannadice spokesperson said the £500,000 sum was “based on inaccurate assumptions.”
The trust and federation raised a number of concerns over how the Tangerines were being run.
In the statement, there was mention made of half-a-million pounds paid to unnamed third parties in commission for the transfers of Ryan Gauld, Scott Robertson, Gary Mackay-Steven and Stuart Armstrong.
It read: “Firstly, we were shocked to find out that a huge amount of ‘commission’ has been paid to unnamed parties from the sale of four players Gauld, Robertson, Armstrong and Mackay-Steven.
“We believe this figure to be in excess of £500k. This does not include payments to players, agents or other clubs. When all of these various payments are totalled, over 25% of the £6.3m in fees received has not been kept in the club.”
However, last night a United spokesperson blew the figure out of the water and also criticised the supporters’ groups for breaching confidentiality by writing publicly about matters that the club understood would be held in confidence.
“The figures that have been quoted are entirely fictitious and seem to be based on some inaccurate assumptions,” said the spokesperson.
“At no time was that figure provided by Dundee United so it was surprising to see it appear in the public domain.
“It is common place for a percentage of any transfer fee to have deductions applied.
“This is entirely normal in football since there are financial obligations attached to every transfer.
“I would stress that we value our relationship with our fans and have reluctantly been forced to respond because of the clear inaccuracies included in the statement.”
Associated costs relating to the four deals include payments to the SFA and Queen’s Park in Robertson’s case, as well fees to agents and players.
Earlier in the day, United had replied to the statement by highlighting the club’s most recent achievements.
The answer to those criticisms of chairman Stephen Thompson and his board came in the form of a club statement that stressed United would be sticking to their “professional and comprehensive strategy.”
It read: “The board of Dundee United has noted the statement issued by two Dundee United supporters’ organisations.
“All supporters can be assured that the board will continue to implement its professional and comprehensive strategy for the football club.
“This strategy and the related actions of the chairman and board of directors have delivered progress both on and off field.
“On field the club has reached back-to-back domestic cup finals for the first time in 29 years, qualified for European competition in three of the last four years, finished in the Premiership top six (formerly SPL) in every one of the last seven years and won the Scottish Cup in 2010.
“The current management team and players are also sitting fourth in the Premiership this season with sights firmly set on securing a European qualification place.
“Off field the board has reduced overall debt, including Thompson family loans, from £5.2 million in February 2014 to £2.6 million while successfully extricating the club from all bank debt.
“The club debt is projected to be reduced to £1.4 million by the end of this year.
“And, in a period where Scottish football clubs have faced some of the most challenging economic times in history, the club continues to pursue its strategic objectives and invests in facilities for the future.
“Supporters can rest assured that the board is comprised of individuals that are, without exception, Dundee United supporters.
“They bring with them a wealth of experience in business.
“At all times, the board acts to promote the success of Dundee United and will continue to do so.”