£10m For Howard!

Barnsley owner Patrick Cryne has claimed that Reds skipper Brian Howard is one of the best players outside the Premier League and is worth £10m!!

Howard, who has finished as The Reds top scorer for the past two seasons, had a memorable campaign in 2007-2008, including highlights such as finishing as the joint top scoring midfielder in the Championship and hitting a last minute winner at Anfield to knock Liverpool out of the FA Cup.

The 25 year old's contract runs out next summer and there have been rumors that the club could sell if a suitable offer came in with the likes of Everton, Wigan and Middlesbrough believed to monitoring his progress.

Cryne though says he will not go cheaply.

He told the Star:

"Brian Howard must be one of the best players in the Championship. You don't realise how good he is until you take the things he's done and put them on a disk and pull them together.

"People talk about Sheffield United's Michael Tonge being a £3 million or £4m player. What's Brian Howard worth? By comparison, he would be worth £10m."

"I think there is a tendency to look at Barnsley and say we can't have anything good because that's not where you go for good players.

"Brian Howard has been a truly outstanding player in the Championship for the last couple of years."

Cryne also revealed he is confident Howard will stay... and not just until next summer.


"I think Brian likes being here," "He's a big fish in a small pool. He's not clamoring to leave, we're not getting his agent's clamor. We know that he's proud about being captain of Barnsley."

Brian Howard: Will not be sold cheaply