Wantaway Blues forward Charlie Curnow is now “desperate” to get out of Carlton.
That’s according to The Agenda Setters’ Caroline Wilson, who says the two-time Coleman medallist is even willing to take a pay cut from the lucrative contract he has to remain at Carlton, of which there are four years remaining.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Charlie Curnow ‘desperate’ to get out of Carlton.
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“It’s my understanding that Charlie Curnow is, I would go as far as to say, desperate to get out of the Carlton Football Club,” Wilson said on Monday night.
The 28-year-old met with Sydney coach Dean Cox in recent days before heading overseas, as reported by 7NEWS Melbourne’s Mitch Cleary on Monday night, and has keen suitors in Geelong and Gold Coast.
“Sydney is keen to lure the dual Coleman medalist, Cox taking the chance to sit down face-to-face while he was in Melbourne for the All-Australian awards before Curnow departed for the holidays in the US,” Cleary said.
“It’s understood Curnow’s Carlton frustrations include the handling of his body after four surgeries inside 12 months, but he has four years left on his Carlton deal.”
Speaking to SEN on Monday morning, Blues coach Michael Voss said Curnow told the club he was “open” to a trade rather than demanding one, but was emphatic that the star forward would not be going anywhere.
“He’ll be at Carlton in 2026 and we feel like he’s an incredibly important person to us. And so he’ll figure for us moving forward and hopefully he’s playing out the rest of his career here,” Voss said.
Asked if the club would even entertain hearing offers for Curnow, Voss said one word: “no”.
Wilson isn’t buying it though.
“I don’t think that’s quite right. I understand why Michael said it,” she said.
“I think when he described Charlie as being ‘open’ to a trade, I think it was put to Michael Voss and his team in that meeting that he would prefer a trade — he wasn’t ‘open’ to a trade.
“My understanding is that Charlie Curnow and Michael Voss’s relationship is not great.
“I know Michael Voss has been very defensive publicly about Charlie Curnow, but I don’t think the exit interview last year, the end of last season, went particularly well.
“I think Coleman Medals might have been mentioned in a negative way. And I think comments were made within the club to Curnow after that disappointing finals loss to Brisbane the previous year.”
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Kane Cornes interjected: “Sorry, it was an accusation that he was playing for Coleman medals?”
“No, no,” Wilson clarified, “I don’t know what exactly was said.
“But I think there was... Look, I think Michael Voss is a coach who coaches not exactly the way he played, but he was probably one of the greatest players ever to play. And he maybe thrived on tough love. I don’t think Charlie Curnow does.
“I think Charlie Curnow has just had enough of the Carlton Football Club. I think he wants to get out of the football bubble.
“It’s wrong to say he’s fallen out with the club. He just does not get on with the coach. He doesn’t want to play for Michael Voss anymore and he will play for less money to do so. It’s fascinating that it’s come to this.”
It comes just weeks after Curnow declared, seemingly beyond doubt, that he wouldn’t be going anywhere.
“Especially after he was so emphatic; he came out proactively about six or eight weeks ago and said, ‘I’ll be at the Carlton Football Club next year, end of story’,” Nick Riewoldt added.
“So, it’s clearly changed in the last couple of months again — or did he just say that at the time to get everyone off his back?”
Charlie Curnow has met with Sydney coach Dean Cox to explore a potential move away from Carlton, with the dual Coleman Medallist frustrated by the club's handling of his body after four surgeries in 12 months. Despite Curnow having four years remaini
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