Parry against foreign quotas - Telegraph

Sunday Telegraph, 12 Sept 2004
Parry against foreign quotas
By Andrew Warshaw and Ian Lamont

Liverpool's chief executive Rick Parry has spoken out against UEFA's plans
to limit the numbers of foreign players used by top-division teams
throughout Europe.

UEFA want to drastically change the structure of club squads by the end of
next season, imposing quotas for home-grown players and limiting squad
sizes to 25 but, at a meeting in Nyon on Friday, Parry said: "We are all
investing a fortune in young players so statements saying there is a lack
of investment in youth development just don't stack up," he said.

Parry added that UEFA's assertion that the restrictions would stop a
cluster of teams hoarding all the best talent and create a more level
playing field was nonsense. "The danger is that this would actually lower
standards," he said. "You can't fetter a coach in this way. The more you
impose artificial restrictions, the more you are making life more difficult."

Fans of AFC Wimbledon will today attempt to assert their right to the
history of Wimbledon by reliving their greatest footballing memory - the
surprise 1988 FA Cup Final victory over Liverpool.

The event is being staged as a fundraiser to help AFC Wimbledon pay the
mortgage on their Kingsmeadow ground, the venue for today's game, along
with aiding Liverpool's Hillsborough fund. The match will feature about
half the original cast from both sides.

Although MK Dons hold the replica 1988 FA Cup, match organiser Niall Couper
said: "For Wimbledon fans, the game is a chance to reclaim our history.
After the pain of May 2002 - when the FA gave permission for Wimbledon to
move to Milton Keynes - they more than deserve it."

John Scales, who played for Wimbledon for seven years before moving to
Anfield, said: "We'll be celebrating what was a massive part of not just
Wimbledon's history but football."