Wanderers condemned for player isolation

Western Sydney Wanderers have been accused of breaching workplace regulations for isolating unwanted players and pressuring them to sign contract terminations preventing the club from paying out their deals.

Four players - Kwabena Appiah, Vitor Saba, Daniel Mullen and Seyi Adeleke - spent about a month training away from the rest of the squad and were excluded from other activities after being told they would not play first team football this season.

The isolations all occurred during the January transfer window when the quartet were also encouraged to sign termination papers that would prevent the Wanderers from paying out their contracts and be excluded from the salary cap, according to a report by Fairfax Media.

The players sought assistance from the Professional Footballers Association, which condemned the practice as a breach of the Collective Bargaining Agreement players and clubs are bound to, as well as breaching workplace regulations.

"The PFA informed the Western Sydney Wanderers that the practice of forcing players to train alone, or treating them in a manner designed to encourage players to sign 'mutual' terminations is a clear breach of the A-League Collective Bargaining Agreement, standard player contract and Australian employment law and instructed the club to remedy the situation immediately," PFA chief executive Adam Vivian told Fairfax Media.

It is understood Appiah, Saba, Mullen and Adeleke would complete warm-ups with the squad before training in isolation with an assistant coach where they would undergo light drills that had no relevance to tactics or match preparation.

It was suggested the players were never given an explanation from coaching staff as to why they were banned from training other than that they were not wanted by the club.

Appiah was released from the club last month and has been training with Newcastle Jets, Mullen signed with the Jets while Saba move to Italian club Crotone during the transfer window.

Only Adeleke remains at the club with the Nigerian defender invited back to full training last week following pressure from the PFA.

The incident, which occurred during the Wanderers 13-match winless streak, reportedly riled the rest of the team and the players union remains highly critical.

"This is a tactic that is derived from some of the world's most troublesome leagues and there is no place for this is in the A-League and the PFA will continue to monitor the situation at the Wanderers and at other A-League clubs," Mr Vivian said.

"This type of treatment can have a profound impact on a player's employment prospects and their physical and emotional wellbeing."