Manchester United have banned Alex Ferguson's son Jason from acting for them, but their attempts to distance themselves from allegations of nepotism were undermined last night by the disclosure that he represents 13 of his father's squad.
United have informed Elite Sports that it can no longer represent them, after an in-house investigation of transfers in response to pressure from the club's largest shareholders, John Magnier and JP McManus.
Magnier and McManus will prepare an official reaction once they have waded through the findings, but there were indications last night that they were bemused to learn that Elite represents so many United players.
Ferguson has in the past had to counter accusations that he bullied younger players to sign up for his son's agency. Of the 13 contracted, 10 are youth-team members and three - Darren Fletcher, Quinton Fortune and the goalkeeper Roy Carroll - are in the first-team squad.
There was also further evidence about the fortunes Jason Ferguson has earned, with the disclosure that Elite has been paid £237,000 (€355,000) for helping with contract negotiations. United say they will now impose "tighter rules" on appointing agents and "stricter limits" on paying them.
The report is not the whitewash that was widely expected. United's plc chairman, Roy Gardner, issued the findings to the London Stock Exchange yesterday with the acknowledgment that "there are things we could do better to protect the reputation of the club".
Sources at United denied that the review's findings were released yesterday to spike the guns of a BBC3 documentary, Fergie and Son, to be screened tomorrow evening and repeated on BBC1 this Friday. But the programme's reporter Alex Millar was sceptical: "It's an interesting coincidence that on the day we released our finding to the media, United released their report."
United's most revealing admission was that "the board recognises the concerns over the connections between Elite and Sir Alex Ferguson. In future Manchester United will not employ Elite to act for the club".
The four-month inquiry was instigated by United's finance director, Nick Humby, during Magnier's legal dispute with Ferguson over the racehorse Rock Of Gibraltar. Magnier and McManus, whose company Cubic Expression owns 28.89 per cent of the club, had questioned issues of corporate governance at Old Trafford.
Humby has subsequently investigated 21 transfers from the past three years, worth £158 million (€236.5m). Of those, 17 involved agents, to whom a total of £13.43 million (€20m) was paid. United appear to have recognised that it reflects badly on the club that, for example, the agent Mike Morris banked £750,000 (€1.1m) for helping to set up Jaap Stam's move to Lazio.
Likewise, £700,000 (€1m) of the £2.3 million (€3.45m) they paid to sign Tim Howard last summer went to a Swiss agent, Gaetano Marotta, even though the player had his own people. No reason is offered, though United do admit that "the agent's fee was large, as a percentage of the overall deal".
Marotta's involvement had been contentious because of allegations that he paid £139,000 (€208,000) to Morris, who works so closely with Elite that he has been described as Jason Ferguson's unofficial business partner. Morris was interviewed and the board "received assurances he is not involved in either the management or ownership of Elite".
The club's statement said Marotta's payment had been "shared with other parties" but with nobody "employed or connected with the club".
United admit breaking regulations only over a letter sent to Atletico Paranaense stating that Ian Hetherington was authorised to speak for them in relation to the transfer of Kleberson. Hetherington was not FIFA-licensed at the time and United have sent a letter of explanation to the FA, which is not expected to act.
Meanwhile, Alan Smith's impending £7 million move to Manchester United has been described as an act of betrayal by bitter Leeds supporters.
Smith's controversial transfer will be confirmed to the Stock Exchange today with Danny Pugh heading to Elland Road as a makeweight in the deal.
In the wake of Leeds's relegation from the Premiership, many fans appreciated Smith's sentiments when he said he needed to move for the sake of his career.
Indeed Smith was feted following the final whistle of the club's last home match of the season earlier this month, a 3-3 draw against Charlton during which the 23-year-old scored from the penalty spot.
Few fans then believed home-town hero Smith, seemingly a life-long Leeds supporter, would end up joining Leeds's bitter rivals at Old Trafford.
Simon Jose, of the Leeds United Independent Fans' Association, said: "It's a stab in the back for all Leeds fans.
"There's simply no compassion or empathy with the fans any more. There are very few who seem to have any respect for the club or the badge," he added.
"You cannot say you're a Leeds fan and then go to Manchester United. No Leeds fan would be seen dead in a Man U shirt, so Smith cannot be a Leeds fan.
"He will now go down on a long list of people who have betrayed Leeds United, and as for him saying he would one day come back, there's no way that will ever happen."
Guardian Service
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