“It’s wrong” – Charlton boss Lee Bowyer reacts to story claiming he is available for £750k

Lee Bowyer has been left unhappy at a national newspaper claiming yesterday that Charlton Athletic had set a compensation figure of £750,000 for his services.

The Addicks manager signed a new long-term contract in January but has been linked with his former club Birmingham City. The two sides play each other on Wednesday night.

Bowyer had already told our paper at the end of last week that his sole focus was on keeping Charlton in the Championship.

“We’ve got three games to go and people are talking about me leaving,” said Bowyer. “I’ve been linked to Birmingham because I’ve played there. Of course I’m going to be linked there.

“But for things like that to be coming out [a compensation figure], that’s wrong.

“Maybe because we are playing Birmingham it is people trying to disrupt our camp. Birmingham are only three points above us. If we’d won at the weekend then we’d have been above them.

“Are people trying to disrupt the camp? There is no reason to do that. I just hope this is not coming out from our camp.

“For someone to have said this is the compensation…why is anyone even getting involved in the conversation, that’s if we are. I don’t know if there is any truth. It could just be people trying to rock the boat.

“There is no reason for us as a club to be getting caught up in anything that might be happening later on. There’s no reason.

“It seems it is just people trying to disrupt things. I’ve been linked there for weeks now and then all of a sudden this comes out.

“There is probably no truth to it. I hope it isn’t anyone from our club saying that.”

PICTURE BY KEITH GILLARD