Dublin chased

Dion Dublin is on a collision course with his Coventry City paymasters after they refused to allow his impending departure from Highfield Road to become a cut-price fait accompli.

Although Coventry agreed to sell Dublin to Blackburn Rovers on Tuesday after the Lancashire club submitted a written bid of £6.75 million, the plot thickened considerably yesterday when both Newcastle United and Aston Villa expressed interest in signing the highly versatile striker.

The problem is that while Dublin does have a clause in his contract which gives him a right to negotiate with any potential buyer who lodges a bid of £5 million, Coventry are now believed to be insisting that any other interested clubs match Blackburn's offer in full before they are allowed to meet the player - although Newcastle at least seem unwilling to do so.

Newcastle's tactic is apparently to offer the minimum figure of £5 million and then beat their rivals in terms of the player's wages and bonuses.

This tactic may yet succeed. With Dublin said to be asking for a basic wage of £30,000 a week, Roy Hodgson yesterday reaffirmed his intention not to break Blackburn's wage structure for any new signings.