Peterborough United manager is fed up with the circus act surrounding Marcus Maddison and will no longer select him

Ferguson today (January 16) described the fuss and attention surrounding Maddison as a ‘circus act’ and he no longer wants to be a part of it. Charlton and an unnamed Championship club have had bids accepted for a player with 62 goals in 249 Posh appearances.

Instead Ferguson will concentrate on re-igniting the Posh push for promotion from League One. Posh signed Sammie Szmodics on loan from Bristol City earlier today and he can play in the position occuped by Maddison for most of this season.

“Marcus is no longer part of my plans,” Ferguson stated. “I want closure from the circus act surrounding him. I want to stop talking about Marcus.

“I have to manage 20-odd players and my focus will always be on the needs of the team rather than one individual. I think everyone, the fans included, believes it’s time Marcus moved on.

“The chairman offered him an excellent contract last summer which he turned down because he wanted Championship football which is fine. I get that.

“And the chairman has now found two Championship clubs willing to take him on and he now can’t agree personal terms. The deals are also good for the club as Marcus only has six months on his contract left.

“It’s Marcus’s right not to move, but whether he goes or not he’s not part of my plans any more. I’m not convinced Marcus will move in January, but the club will definitely move on without him.

“I had to make this decision. I need everyone pointing in the same direction. I have a squad I really like now and signing Sammie has certainly given us a better chance of getting back up the table. I would have made the same decision about Marcus if Sammie hadn’t signed.

“It’s nothing personal as I’ve always got on well with Marcus, but I want to get back to winning games of football. That’s my sole focus now.”

Over half of voters in a poll run by the Peterborough Telegraph this week suggested it was time for Maddison to leave Posh.