Aberdeen win the race to sign Windass

GUY HODGSON

Fresh from becoming the first British team to qualify for Europe next season, Aberdeen, last weekend's Scottish Coca-Cola Cup winners, nipped in ahead of Everton and Norwich City yesterday to sign Hull City's striker, Dean Windass, for pounds 700,000. A previous cross- border raid by the Dons took the Oldham midfielder Paul Bernard to Pittodrie for pounds 1m.

Windass, 26, has scored eight goals this season for Hull, the Second Division's bottom team, but the club's financial problems, which have threatened their existence, forced them to sell.

Non-League North Ferriby United are also richer for the deal. Windass joined Hull from the Northern Counties East Premier Division side with a sell-on clause of 10 per cent.

Wolves, who are looking for a replacement for Graham Taylor, yesterday said they had been refused permission to speak to Leicester's Mark McGhee. Tom Finn, the Wolves secretary, said: "Mr Jonathan Hayward, our chairman, reported to me last night that he had just spoken to Mr [Martin] George, the Leicester chairman, to request permission to speak to Mark McGhee and had been refused."

The takeover of Sheffield United is not cut and dried after all. A club statement said that negotiations between the potential buyers, Mike McDonald and Martyn Burke, and the controlling share holder, Reg Brealey, had stalled.

Colin Cooper, the Nottingham Forest defender, escaped with a censure and a warning about his future conduct from the Football Association for a rude gesture at The Dell on the opening day of the season.

Bolton's hopes of signing Newcastle's Scott Sellars for pounds 800,000 in time for today's Premiership match with Nottingham Forest have been dashed. They have yet to settle personal terms.

n Manchester United yesterday blocked a move demanding price cuts next season by telling shareholders at their AGM that there would be a review of the club's admission costs in the spring.