Someone's talking bollocks!

FOOTBALL agent Barry Silkman has filed a writ against Newcastle United over the alleged non-payment of fees involved in Clarence Acuna's transfer from Universidad de Chile and also claimed that the player will have to pay his former agent Ronen Katzav the equivalent of four years' wages due to the unsual contract the Chilean signed with him. Like many South American transfers, the deal involving Acuna was very complicated, Katzav claimed he was the player's agent but there was also talk that he was only the player's official Fifa representative in England.

As a result of the transfer, Silkman believes that for the foreseeable future a large percentage of the player's pay packet will go towards paying the agent.

Silkman explained how the transfer came about. He said: "Ronen Katzav sent me a video over of two matches which Acuna was playing in, he looked a very good player and he was representing the player and the club in Chile.

"Katzav was Acuna's agent throughout the world and he has a signed contract with him. Infact he's suing Acuna for a lot of money.

"I've seen the contract between them and I would say Acuna will be paying football for four years to pay Katzav.

"I don't think he's (Acuna) got a leg to stand on, the whole thing was done in Israel, it all comes under Israeli law and I've seen it and I would say Acuna will play football for the next four years for no money."

Newcastle started dealing directly with Acuna and his club Universidad de Chile over the £1 million transfer, and this angered both Katsav and Silkman who claim they were responsible for bringing the player over to England.

Silkman said: "There is only one side of the story, the facts.

"The facts are that Newcastle asked me to find players for them, one of them was Cordone, another one was a player called Baier who came over on trial and they wanted him but because they hadn't sold Solano they couldn't buy him.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Answers

No wonder Bobby Robson and Shepherd hate agents so much. Why do players get these guys to represent them. They would earn more by dumping these leaches and dealing with the clubs themselves.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Pimps.....that's all they are.....no talent leeches....there's shitloads of them in my industry as well.....

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Scum of the earth, on a level with tabloid journalists or even lower

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Lower....MUCH lower.....At least journalists can write....even if it is trash.....all these tossers do is charge a fortune for passing on information about someone else's talents.....

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

It is for the likes of FIFA and UEFA to get tough with these scumbags. I won't hold my breath waiting. I expect a number of FIFA/UEFA officials profit handsomely themselves from all this nonsense.

We have lost our game and I don't think we can ever get it back.

Money doesn't talk it swears (Bob Dylan)

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Most players are a bit thick and have no real idea of their earning power or any negotiation skills. It therefore makes sense for them to employ someone to get them the best deal and to sort out their finances. Trouble is that the sums are so large that it attracts the crooks and con merchants and frightens off the more worthy. This is to the detriment of the game, the clubs and the players. Ideally there should be a stringent licensing system, but this would probably be unenforcable internationally. Players need good trustworthy advice when they are starting out which should come from their union.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Put a cap on the percentage an agent can reap from a transfer. Obvioulsy this will lead to them trying to get the most money for a player but that's part and parcel of the game anyway.

If transfer fees are abolished it will surely change a few things anyway and players will be better off employing solicitors.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

The analogy to solicitors is already there DeB. I remember having a discussion with the father of my lad's mate. He's a local solicitor who specialises in defence work (no, not MoD). I asked him how he could morally defend someone who had obviously committed a crime (often murder). Very often, he said, the defendant was not particularly intelligent and generally put off and confused by tye court proceedings. He justified his role as simply trying to represent that person and to argue their case. If only I could believe him!

Actually, in many cases, this is no doubt the case. Equally, there are some good agents around. However, such cases (either in law, sport or showbiz) it is only the bad cases which get noticed. I dare say Alan Shearer also has an agent. But I also suspect s/he is less involved in the shady side of things.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Money doesn't talk it swears (Alan Hull - Lindisfarne, Fog on the Tyne album) can't think of the song but

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Can't remember Bob Dylan using this line Jonno? Do you remember the the song?

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Sounds very Dylanesque but I can only remember the Lindisfarne one.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

It's All Right Ma (I'm only bleeding) is the Dylan song quoted. A masterpiece BTW like so much he did in his early career.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Right on baby!

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

Freddy Shepherd said last week that he really admired Aaron Hughes as he was the only play ever to say thank you to him for giving him a contract.

The club could make a stand and say , you will get paid a percentage of your current valuation. Therefore if you do well your value goes up and so does your wages. This would do away will the need for agents.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

From my Auntie's site:

Football agents could be prevented from touting players under contract if proposals being worked on by the Football Association and Premier League come into force.

Under the new system money from all transfers would also be cleared through the FA in a bid to keep tabs on who exactly receives the cash.

Arsenal and FA vice-chairman David Dein said: "It will be a legally-binding document, as agents get commission every time a player moves.

"My concept is that the transfer only proceeds when the FA and Premier League are satisfied.

"The English FA is looking very carefully at how to discipline agents.

"There has to be a system where all monies from transfers are routed through the national associations.

Anelka saga

"The association has to be satisfied with the role of the agent. Who is being paid? Are any other parties being paid by the agent?

"We hope within the next few months to produce a document which will be a prototype for the rest of Europe."

Arsenal currently operate a similar system, brought into place after Nicolas Anelka moved from Arsenal 18 months ago.

The French player's brothers had approached several clubs offering his services.

The Gunners were eventually forced to sell him to Real Madrid for £23m after Anelka said he would not play for the club again.

Unedifying

Dein said: "At Arsenal we produce a paper which every agent has to sign where it binds him that he cannot take the player anywhere else or offer them around without our permission.

"Believe it or not I make the agent swear on the holy bible.

"Agents play a very, very active role today and a couple of years ago there was an episode with Anelka which was very unpleasant for its underlying motives."

Dein believes the new rules could be in place for the start of next season and that they will be even more important when the changes to the transfer system are agreed.

"Whatever happens, players will move more than they can do now and we need to protect the integrity of the industry," he said.

Corruption

Leading agent Jon Holmes, whose company SFX has David Beckham and Michael Owen on its books, believes that using the FA as a clearing house would cut corruption.

He said: "The centre of corruption within the game seems to have centred around the transfer system.

"If you could get more regulation it would be a central part of chasing corruption out of the game.

"Using FAs, Fifa or Uefa as clearing houses seems an eminently sensible suggestion.

"I am also in favour of toughening up on agent legislation. The only qualification for being an agent seems to be whether you have enough money for a guarantee."

Well, now the FA are proposing to get involved, it will all be sorted, nee probs. I expect George Graham to move to the FA as soon as he leaves WHL.

-- Anonymous, January 30, 2001

SFX = the big bad sports agency in Jerry Maguirre (sp?).

Read Decembers FourFourTwo for article about sports agents.

I know in the NBA that some players are just hiring lawyers to negotiate their contract details once the club/s have sorted out their part of the bargain.

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2001

The Lindisfarne song (City Song?) goes:

City light's don't shine they glare....
and the music doesn't speak, it swears..
and in your streets the ghosts have forgotten why they're there

I think.

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2001

http://www.tabspider.com/l/lindisfarne/city_song.txt
Correct Geordie - words on the link above.

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2001

light's ??? ferchrissakes Geordie sort yersel oot man.... bliddy apostrophes all ower the shop :-((

-- Anonymous, January 31, 2001