Featured image credit: The Telegraph
The Telegraph are breaking huge news tonight regarding a deal England manager Sam Allardyce negotiated which involved him advising 'businessmen' how to "get around" FA rules on player transfers.
Allardyce has been recorded on camera negotiating a £400,000 deal during a trip to Singapore and Hong Kong. However, the businessmen were not businessmen at all, but rather undercover reporters who have now released the footage of the former Sunderland and West Ham boss advising the reporters on how to circumvent rules which prohibit third parties 'owning' players.
The undercover reporters had been conducting an investigation for 10 months that has also discovered widespread evidence of bribery and corruption in British football.
The Telegraph also reports some rather shocking information about comments Allardyce made about his predecessor in the England job, Roy Hodgson;
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During Allardyce's meetings with the reporters he also:
- Criticised his predecessor Roy Hodgson, dubbing him "Woy" and saying that he "hasn't got the personality" for public speaking;
- Said England's players were underperforming because they had a "psychological barrier" and "can't cope";
- Suggested that players who were not being played for their club should not be picked for England;
- Described the FA decision to redevelop Wembley as "stupid".
The implications of this shocking footage could spell disaster for Allardyce, who is only one game into his spell as England manager, earning £3m a year. The Telegraph also reports that "A £400,000 agreement with a football agency firm is a potential conflict of interest for an international football manager as it raises the possibility that he is 'employed' by a company whose footballer clients could benefit from preferential treatment."
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The investigation by the newspaper is expected to reveal much more widespread corruption in the English game in the coming days.
(H/T The Telegraph)