Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan has warned manager Malky Mackay that "not a single penny" will be made available for transfers in January.
Mackay was quoted as saying that he planned to bring in three new faces during the transfer window in an attempt to avoid relegation, comments that left Tan "extremely upset", according to a club statement.
Chief executive Simon Lim went on to say in the statement that the club had overspent in the summer, resulting in the sacking of head of recruitment Iain Moody in October.
"Tan Sri Vincent Tan was extremely upset to read quotes from the manager concerning the possibility of new recruits, before he had been informed whether funds would be made available. He believes that doing so unfairly raises supporter expectations, placing unnecessary pressure on the club," read the statement.
"His view is that due to the funds already committed, including the originally-authorised summer transfer budget of £35m that rose to £50m in total, including add-ons, the manager has been fully supported. The overspending of £15m has upset Tan Sri greatly, resulting in the removal on Iain Moody as head of recruitment. As such, he has stated that not a single penny will be made available in January.
"Having been the highest spending promoted club and the seventh highest spender in the Premier League last summer, the owner believes that the Manager has been given the best possible chance of retaining our Premier League status."
Cardiff currently sit 15th in the Premier League table, four points clear of the bottom three.
Barney Corkhill
