Players and clubs need to get real - Douglas

In a frank interview with today's Advertiser, Douglas stresses the need for clubs to stand firm against agents demands for players wages and manage their expenditure more sensibly.

He explains: "A large number of clubs are not operating on a proper business footing and are relying on benefactors who are no longer in a position to help as they have done in the past. And, barring one or two exceptions, all clubs are paying wages on twice the number of people they have coming through the gates.

"We are soon going to be saying to players 'you are going to be paid by how many people are prepared to watch, sponsorship and advertise with your club'."

Douglas continues: "League Two has a sixty per cent of turnover salary caps, there is no salary cap in the Premiership, Championship or League One. Lord Mawhinney is trying to get all the Chairman to agree to a salary cap that would be a set amount, not a percentage, with a different figure applying to each division.

'All in all the Football League are trying to bring common sense into it but it`s not easy to change established attitudes. But, if the reality is that five or ten clubs could go in the next twelve months then clearly, something has to be done."