Taken from todays Mirror

---------------------------------------------------------------------- FOOTBALL: SOLANO'S NEW PASSPORT SHAME Three named in immigration probe

NOLBERTO SOLANO will throw Newcastle United's pre-season preparations into chaos when he becomes the first Premiership player to be charged in the forged passports scandal.

The pounds 10million winger, along with Arsenal's Lithuanian striker Tomas Danilevicius and one other player, will be identified when the findings of a six-month investigation by the Immigration Services will be made public before the start of the Premiership season on August 18.

Peru captain Solano arrived in England with a Greek passport and the inquiry has been looking into allegations that false documents were used to obtain the accreditation.

Detectives have been working on the passports case ever since Mirror Sport highlighted the growing concerns over the passports of some foreign stars. Solano appears to be the biggest name on the list of findings and the FA must now decide what punishment to impose on the players.

Their clubs are expected to escape charges because they were unaware that the passports were not genuine.

Danilevicius, currently on loan at Belgium club FC Beveren, also had a Greek passport, allegedly obtained with false documents. Originally Arsenal were told that the first inquiries showed that Danilevicius's Greek papers were in order, but subsequent checking showed that to be another cover-up.

The scandal means English football will be gripped with a similar series of disciplinary hearings that have taken place in France, Italy, and Spain. ----------------------------------------------------------------------

Well if he gets found guilty Recoba from Inter Milan got a 1 yr ban. So would this mean a change in transfer policy for our "one last player" this summer? Or would robson finally give Gavilan a chance!

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Answers

If you read the article, it doesn't actually say very much at all. It says solano will be named but doesn't say what for.

Good old tabloid press, publishing this load of cr@p on the eve of an important game. Just when we were starting to feel a bit positive..........

Until I see a statement of some kind by the FA I won't believe anything. The Mirror has been blathering on about this for months.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Solano did not need a European passport as he had the necessary international appearances to get a work permit.

He may well later have tried to prove his granny slept with Dabizas' grandad but that was irrelevant at the time of his arrival.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

I'm afraid the BBC is carrying the same story. It says "Peru captain Solano arrived in England on a Greek passport, and the investigation has been examining claims that some players are using false documents to obtain accreditation.

The clubs involved are not expected to face charges because it is accepted there was no wrong-doing on their part".

If proven, I'm afraid these charges could be serious.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Recoba from Inter Milan got a 1 yr ban

Banned by who? The Italian FA?

Isn't this a legal matter and nothing to do with the FA's concerned? So if a player commits a fraud to get a passport surely he has to pay the price by whatever the due process of Law is. Fines, prison, deportation etc.

My view on this is that it is time to declare Geordieland as a separate nation state. Nobby is a Geordie and has no need of a passport (except possibly for our away matches if our reciprocal arrangements with England have broken down.) :-)

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Why did he need to take this route surely his international captaincy entitled him to work around the globe.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

if he choise to rely on his internatinal appearances and /or captaincy when he arrived and the immigration service accepted that then that would be tickety boo I guess..... but he didnt it looks like he chose to rely on a forged greek passport to claim european citizenship.... if this is the case then like any other citizen he should be deported....

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

you work for the mirror Roly poly? get your facts straight....he DID apply on his international appearances when he first came over, the greek passport came after that.....

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Snide Sports:

SOLANO CLAIMS HE'S DONE NOTHING WRONG

Solano: entered with a Greek passport Newcastle midfielder Nolberto Solano has pleaded his innocence amid claims that he could be charged in connection with a passport scandal within days. The 26-year-old Peruvian international arrived at Newcastle Airport on Monday morning ready to fly out to France with his team-mates for Tuesday night's Intertoto Cup final clash with Troyes to be greeted by newspaper headlines suggesting that he will be the first player in England to be hit after a long- ranging investigation. But the South American, who joined United from Boca Juniors for £2.5million in the summer of 1998, claimed to know nothing about it and insisted that he had done nothing wrong. "I know nothing about it," he said. "As far as I'm concerned, everything is in order." Newcastle refused to comment on the subject as Bobby Robson and his players prepared to board their flight, but the 68-year-old manager was furious that the matter had raised its head yet again. Solano has been one of the men at the centre of speculation that the Immigration Services would act along with Arsenal's Lithuanian striker Tomas Danilevicius, who was also named in this morning's report. Solano arrived in the country as Kenny Dalglish's final signing after being granted an EC work permit, qualifying comfortably by way of his regular appearances for the Peruvian national side. The permit was not renewed after he was issued with a Greek passport which he claimed through his grandmother. Now United, who have insisted all along that they have done nothing wrong, will launch an urgent investigation into the claims, which could hardly have resurfaced at a more inopportune moment. The Tynesiders go into Tuesday's game brimming with confidence after recording four successive victories to book their showdown with Troyes and leave themselves 180 minutes from UEFA Cup qualification.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Thank you Judge Jeffries for your sympathetic approach to sentencing - guilty until proven innocent eh? ;-{)

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

From Football 365

SOLANO BAFFLED AT PASSPORT SCANDAL Newcastle Winger Says He Knows Nothing Of New Claims NEWCASTLE midfielder Nolberto Solano today pleaded his innocence amid claims that he could be charged in connection with a passport scandal within days. The 26-year-old Peruvian international arrived at Newcastle Airport this morning ready to jet out to France with his team-mates for tomorrow night's Intertoto Cup final clash with Troyes to be greeted by newspaper headlines suggesting that he will be the first player in England to be hit after a long-ranging investigation. But the South American, who joined United from Boca Juniors for £2.5m in the summer of 1998, claimed to know nothing about it and insisted that he had done nothing wrong. ''I know nothing about it,'' he said. ''As far as I'm concerned, everything is in order.'' Newcastle were not commenting on the matter as Bobby Robson and his players prepared to board their flight, but the 68-year-old manager was furious that the matter had raised its head yet again. Solano has been one of the men at the centre of speculation that the Immigration Services would act for several months now, along with Arsenal's Lithuanian striker Tomas Danilevicius, who was also named in this morning's report. Solano arrived in the country as Kenny Dalglish's final signing after being granted an EC work permit, qualifying comfortably by way of his regular appearances for the Peruvian national side. The permit was not renewed after he was issued with a Greek passport which he claimed through his grandmother. Now United, who have insisted all along that they have done nothing wrong, will launch an urgent investigation into the claims, which could hardly have resurfaced at a more inopportune moment. The Tynesiders go into tomorrow night's game brimming with confidence after recording four successive victories to book their showdown with Troyes and leave themselves 180 minutes from UEFA Cup qualification.

Looks to me as if he's got nothing to worry about, if it isn't a valid passport then his international appearances will get him a work permit. I hate the tabloids, apparently he was presented with the headline before he boarded the plane to France. Don't know what his state of mind will be for the game, but as usual the English press do their best to stop English teams progressing in Europe. If these allegations turn out to be False I think Solano should look into legal procedures!!! AM

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

errrrrr you seem to assume that just because he has the appearances he should be automotically let in.... well it doent actually work like that.... there is an approval process one of the aspects is that he is a "specialist" in his field and the measure of that is the international appearances.... there are many other measures he could qualify with..... rather than believe your own clubs flawed propoganda (time and time again eh suckers!!!) maybe you should check the facts.... the process and procedure is in the public domain....

it appears that mister aolano did seek to gain an advantage by having a forged passport.... a passport which he is not entitled to.... whilst i am sure that this turn of events (facts) causes you much pain.... the as a citizen of the UK i would like the government to apply standard laws, custom, practice, rules and regulations in context to this particular turn of events.... and that is

send the black and white get back....

has it failed your attention that he has a forged passport!!!!

bizarre loon jordy behaviour again....

the arrogance is amazing....

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Roly, it's the vitriol of you people that amazes me. Arrogance? How many on here are saying we'll win everything in sight? How many think we'll win anything?

Lighten up, Keegan is gone, you're in the Premier, higher than us!, hasn't the pain gone yet? :-)

You call us suckers, you call Nobby a B&W git - what's your problem? All I'm concerned about on here is supporting my own team. You've not been insulted here - why do you feel this deep need to give it out? I tell you if (say) Arca were in the same position as Nobby, I wouldn't care about the issue over much and certainly wouldn't be clamouring to send him whence he came.

I propose a peace initiative to drive the vitriolic morons out of the game. Join with me - I detect plenty of intelligence there underneath the inexplicable resentment. A 5-a-side might be a good start. An organised piss up prior to a derby would be another good idea. Get the papers to picture it. Wouldn't that be preferable to the vitriol?

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

jjeeezzzuuuzzz Jonno

I expected a nibble or two but bloody hell me landing net isnt big enough for that response... just a second whilst I rig up an onion bag to make sure that i cleanly land you on the riverbank...

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

I'll say it again for the slow people in the class, Solano applied for his EU work permit on his international appearances and qualified comfortably, he didn't re-apply for a renewal because of this passport (that could be dodgy).....he'd still have qualified for his renewal comfortably (although he might have trouble now cos he didn't play much last year!)....

It's yet to be proven that the passport if dodgy and even if it were then any advantage he gained from having it is doubtful...

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Exactly Gav!! I'm not worried about the passport being false etc. I'm worried that this has come out on the eve of a football match that could set the precedence for the rest of the season!! Hopefully Nobby will go out and have a blinder then come back and prove his passport is valid. Am

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Gav, stop trying to get the facts into this, don't you understand that opposing fans and press alike would much rather have a good made- up story than have to worry about the irrelevancy of facts.

I've heard from a good source that Milton Nunez is one of the next to beinvestigated following Sunderland putting invalid previous clubs information on his application form.

Now I've made that up but it sounds plausible, time for another Mirror exclusive ?

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

go for it MacB....

hes out of the country and no longer with us..... errrrrr unlike Solano....

errrr thats it...

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

I am certain that Nonny arrived here, was told he had Greek ancestry and got the passport while he was here on a work permit. He is Peru's main international so I can't see that there'd be a work permit problem...The Greek passport's an entirely different question.

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Is Nonny another player we've signed then? god I just can't keep up these days ;)))

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

LOL. Actually, the thing about it being a passport that he has obtained since coming here is that someone will no doubt suggest some impropriety on the part of NUFC...

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Nonny is a South American top player. Has played in top clubs in Argentina, Brazil etc. He says so anyway, must be true then!

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001

Shall we all sing 'Hey Nonny Nonny'?

-- Anonymous, August 06, 2001