It was thought that Tim Howard couldn't play against United as he was still on loan from them and, though we had agreed a deal to sign him permanently, we couldn't do this until the transfer window re-opened in June.
But it appears that this was not the case.
The rules are that if you have a player on loan and wish to sign him, you can agree a fee with his current club and sign him at any point during that loan spell, reagrdless of whether or not the transfer window is open.
But, in signing Howard, United insisted that we would only be able to make his move permanent if we agreed to a clause that would keep him from playing against them in the match on April 28th if, and only if, United were still in the chase for the title.
It all sounds a bit ropey to me!
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