The scathing inside track on Sunderland-linked Marcus Maddison's dramatic transfer window

Peterborough United chairman Darragh MacAnthony has slammed Sunderland-linked attacker Marcus Maddison - having revealed the scathing inside track on his January move.
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The forward, who is a boyhood fan of the Black Cats, clinched a loan move to Hull City late in the window after seeing moves to Charlton Athletic and Birmingham City collapse.

And in an explosive interview on his YouTube channel, MacAnthony had laid bare the truth behind Maddison’s January exit and made a number of strong accusations against the 26-year-old - including that he wanted to be paid to leave the ABAX Stadium and that London traffic saw him conflicted over a move to Charlton.

Here’s how the move transpired:

Sunderland-linked forward Marcus MaddisonSunderland-linked forward Marcus Maddison
Sunderland-linked forward Marcus Maddison

THE EARLY STAGES

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A move for Maddison seemed inevitable in January, especially given his reluctance to sign a new deal.

“Marcus had told us in the summer he wasn’t interested in even looking at a new contract with us,” said MacAnthony.

“He wanted to play in the Championship so last month we tried to make that happen for him as it looked like it was time for him to move on.

“Marcus won a player-of-the-month prize for League One, but he wasn’t the same player from November onwards.

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“I don’t know whether or not he’d started thinking about next summer and he didn’t want to get injured, but we didn’t want players who didn’t fancy playing at Rotherham as they’re a bit physical.”

INITIAL INTEREST

Bids were slow in arriving, especially given Maddison’s well-documented £2.5million release clause, but Charlton were the first club to test Posh’s resolve.

MacAnthony was happy with the offer they submitted - but Maddison took some convincing to listen to Lee Bowyer’s sales pitch.

And in the end, the deal stalled - which MacAnthony puts down to Maddison’s unrealistic demands.

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“Charlton were the first club in for him and we did a great deal with them,” said the Peterborough owner.

“They would give us £1.5 million up front with another £500k in the summer and then another £500k if they won promotion.

“It seemed like a great deal for Marcus as they needed someone to provide service for their strikers.

“But initially Marcus didn’t even want to talk to them. Geography was a big thing for him and he didn’t want to move to London. He didn’t like the London traffic for a start.

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“I couldn’t believe what I was hearing so I rang him up. I spent two hours on the phone persuading him to at least talk to Charlton and eventually a delegation from the club visited him at his house and spent an evening with him.

“Marcus came to the club the next day and seemed excited about the move. They were close to the salary figure he wanted and if they could reach it he would go.”

“But it never happened. Talks dragged on. His two agents went abroad for a while.

“Charlton wanted to renegotiate our deal so they could offer Marcus more, but I wasn’t having that and then Birmingham came in.”

MORE CHAMPIONSHIP INTEREST STALLS

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Talks then switched to a move to St Andrew’s, despite Peterborough being presented with a lower financial proposition.

Again, though, Maddison wasn’t able to agree personal terms.

“Now Marcus had mentioned Birmingham before as a club he would go to,” said MacAnthony.

“They offered a bit less than Charlton. It was £1 million up front and then £500k in add ons and we accepted it.

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“But again talks became bogged down and Birmingham eventually lost interest which I fully understand.

“It was then that Marcus suggested he would run his contract down and join a bigger club. I told him we’d contacted several clubs and they weren’t interested in him.”

McCANN REUNION

One interested club, however, was Hull City - managed by former Posh boss Grant McCann.

Again, Maddison seemed reluctant but eventually headed to Humberside after some cajoling from the Peterborough owner. He has since made his debut for the Tigers, coming off the bench in their heavy defeat to Brentford.

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There was a late hurdle to navigate, however, when the forward asked for money to leave the club, according to the club’s chairman.

“Grant McCann then came on and initially Marcus wasn’t interested in going there either,” revealed MacAnthony.

“I asked him what he’d rather do, sit on his backside for six months or go and play in the Championship and show what he can do?

“Hull had offered a six-figure loan fee and another six-figure fee in the summer if he signs permanently and thankfully Marcus went up there.

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“I’m just glad the saga is over. I was getting fed up of being seen as a one-man team. The atmosphere around the camp is now excellent and I won’t talk about Marcus again. Good luck to him and Hull City, but I couldn’t care less anymore.”

“My head was like a volcano when I heard he wanted paying to leave,” he continued.

“I am a temperamental person and after all I’d done for him that really annoyed me.

“Marcus can be high maintenance and I then became determined we got some money for him.

“He wasn’t going to be allowed to leave for nothing as he had suggested he would as he thought he would then get the contract he wanted.”