Harry Kewell has every right to demand whatever money he likes from the club he plays for.

He has every right to ask Football Federation Australia to pay him a decent amount for the marketing boost he would give the A-League.

But he has no right whatsoever to ask the nine clubs who he's not representing to pay him a portion of their gate receipts for matches he plays against them.

That, in effect, is what Kewell's manager Bernie Mandic has proposed to the FFA - an issue which has caused a standoff which threatens the 32-year-old's long-discussed return to Australia.

Mandic says Kewell now won't play in the A-League unless he gets 30 per cent of gate receipts he is deemed to have added for away matches.

Basically, an appearance fee for gracing the turf of clubs he is playing against.

How would the other nine clubs feel about paying Kewell's wages when he is not even part of their team?

And how on earth does one do the sums in all this?

Less at 18,000-capacity Hindmarsh Stadium. More at 52,000-seat Suncorp Stadium. Does Harry then pick and choose his away games on which he'd get more coin for?

Yes, Kewell would be a great addition to the A-League. It would put plenty of new eyeballs on the competition as his public profile and reach is well beyond that of any other Socceroo.

But with two clubs agreeing to his demands for a complex revenue-sharing arrangement and a top-up from the FFA on the table, surely that is a big enough fistful of dollars for Mandic and Kewell.

They now need to take the FFA cash and choose an A-League club without any more delay or public posturing, or just go somewhere else.

Judging from the public backlash to the latest demands, more people are believing it may be a good thing if Kewell does the latter.

And for Kewell, who has been a far greater contributor to Australian soccer than many would have you believe, that would be a sad way to be remembered in his home country.
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