FA confirms its Inquiry into the Portsmouth Transfer of Jermain Defoe.
The Football Association has officially announced that they have reopened their investigation
into claims that Jermain Defoe’s January 2008 transfer from Tottenham Hotspur to Portsmouth entailed the involvement of an unregistered agent.
On Tuesday, it was reported that Mitchell Thomas, a former player for
West Ham United and Tottenham, was in communication with all three of Defoe, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy, and former Pompey manager Harry Redknapp.
Although the striker’s move to Fratton Park was reportedly made
possible in large part by Thomas, the 59-year-old was at the time listed on an FA list of unregistered agents.
Regulations from 2008 – which are still enforced today – state that the use of unlicensed agents
in transfer dealings could lead to severe consequences, such as transfer bans, points deductions and – in the most serious of cases – relegation.
That year, Luton Town were docked 10 points in League Two over gross misconduct relating to agent
payments, but the FA took no action against any of the parties involved in the Defoe deal.
However, following the fresh revelations unearthed by the time the governing has stated that they are
looking into the case once again amid the threat of punishments on Tottenham.
A statement released to the publication by the FA said:
“We are looking at the case, and as part of that we will be reviewing the arbitration panel award.”
Defoe’s switch to Portsmouth 15 years ago was reportedly the subject of an arbitration hearing, where a trio of Queen’s Counsel barristers
(QCs) concluded that Thomas was indeed a “central figure” in talks.
Three members of the QC panel reportedly included Cheri Booth, the wife of former British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who presented the panel’s conclusions to the FA in January 2010.
Records of Thomas’ phone conversations with Levy, Defoe, and Redknapp are rumored to have been included in the ruling.
The former Tottenham striker was also forced to compensate former agent Sky Andrew, who had previously sued him for breach of contract.
Furthermore, it has been alleged that Tottenham chairman Levy violated FA regulations by employing licensed agent Stuart Peters without a representation agreement.
Defoe’s £7.5m switch from Tottenham to Portsmouth in 2008 reportedly saw £1.5m shelled out on agent fees – £1m of which went to
Peters – and the club would not comment when asked for proof of the representation contract.
Although the FA did not immediately discipline any of the parties to the transaction, the governing
body may now wish to speak with any former employees who were aware of the initial circumstances.
The Premier League’s Profit and Sustainability regulations were broken by Everton, which resulted in
a 10-point deduction—the harshest penalty in the history of the competition—and the news of Tottenham’s suspected violation follows.
Spurs are now in fourth place in the standings with 26 points from 12 games this season, two points behind leaders Manchester City and one behind Arsenal and Liverpool.
Read related contents on sportupdates.co.uk
Leave a Reply