Carbone departure may save Bradford

Benito Carbone is set to secure his release from Bradford City today, saving the jobs of 19 other players in the process.

The Professional Footballers' Association has arranged and helped finance a deal which should see the Italian striker return home and sign for Como. Bradford are also expected to be given the go-ahead to continue by a meeting of their creditors today.

Bradford's administrators said on Tuesday they remained hopeful that the stricken club's creditors would accept their offer. Now the Bantams could avoid going bust in the wake of today's crisis meeting.

The First Division club, whose senior players pulled out of Tuesday's friendly at Hull City because of a pay dispute brought about by the crisis, meet the creditors knowing that, if they reject the creditors' voluntary agreement, the club will close.

However, the club are confident that they will come through the meeting, with the PFA-brokered deal with Carbone playing a major part in securing their survival.

Bradford are still in administration but the fact that Carbone will from tomorrow be off the wage bill will enable them to offer contracts to 19 players who would otherwise have been released.