This is classic "I know something you don't" stuff, so apologies for that, but apparently it's best not to take it all at face value with Pearson... With him being under 24 and contracted last season, Stamford would've been/are entitled to compensation. Make of that what you will.
Just to back this up - take a look at the first two posts on the Stamford forum here:
http://stamfordafc.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=2266
