IPSWICH Town chief executive Derek Bowden has revealed that the Blues still owe money to Thomas Gaardsoe's previous club.Town should have paid Danish club AaB Aalborg a payment due from when the central defender made his 40th Town appearance during last season.

By Dave Allard

IPSWICH Town chief executive Derek Bowden has revealed that the Blues still owe money to Thomas Gaardsoe's previous club.

Town should have paid Danish club AaB Aalborg a payment due from when the central defender made his 40th Town appearance during last season.

When Gaardsoe, who moved to West Brom last week in a £500,000 deal, signed at Portman Road in August, 2001 for £1.1m the Blues agreed to pay the Danish side £100,000 when he made his 20th and 40th appearances.

However, when the Dane reached the 40 mark in the away game at Crystal Palace on March 11, the Blues were deep in the middle of a major financial crisis with the administrators taking charge of the club books.

Bowden has now admitted the fee was not paid and that the issue is whether the Danish side count as a football creditor: "Gaardsoe's 40th appearance came during the administration process so there is an issue as to whether AaB Aalborg are a football creditor or an unsecured creditor.

"The contract was signed pre-administration, but the event – the 40th appearance – came during the administration and is therefore a debt of the administration and is unsecured," he said.

The issue is being discussed between the two clubs, the FAs and FIFA.

"If the ruling is that we have to pay 100 per cent then we'll pay 100pc. If the ruling is that they are an unsecured creditor then we'll pay the 5pc."

There is a full interview with Derek Bowden in the latest issue of TWTD, available at Portman Road prior to the games with Reading and Kidderminster.