History has it that Johnson refused to sanction the signing of Norwegian defender Claus Eftevaag — ostensibly a makeweight in a larger deal to acquire his striking compatriot Tore Andre Flo — after Flo himself turned down the move at the last minute. His ultimatum to Royle had the obvious consequence of the manager's resignation.
Peter Johnson's view of this crucial episode was that, as the season continued, it was clear that Joe was getting panicky. While Joe had managed the club, Johnson had never questioned any of his signings but, just before the March 1997 transfer deadline, Joe informed Johnson that he wanted to sign Tore Andre Flo. In order to do so, he had to sign Claus Eftevaag who was somewhat older and would cost £2M. Crucially, this all involved the Norwegian Agent that led to George Graham's demise at Arsenal...
Flo was playing for Norway at the Confederation Cup in Dubai and there would have been a real rush to get him signed before the deadline (for £4M). Eftevaag failed a medical, but Joe still wanted to sign him as he really wanted Flo. So, faced with the guaranteed signing of a potentially unfit player and the non-guarantee of signing Flo, Johnson refused Joe for the first time.
Royle was shocked, walked out and came back 30 minutes later to resign. Johnson didn't want him to resign but admitted that if he had persuaded him to stay, the club would have been relegated..
www.toffeeweb.com
