Manchester City have repeated their claim that there is an “organised and clear” attempt to damage the club’s reputation in response to further allegations by German magazine Der Spiegel.
As part of the Football Leaks series, Der Spiegel allege that City paid £200,000 to Jadon Sancho’s agent, Emeka Obasi, in relation to the deal that took the teenager to the club from Watford in 2015.
The payment was described as a scouting contract for Obasi’s agency to help City search for players in Central and South America but, according to Der Spiegel, an internal email sent by a club employee said the agreement was actually “in relation to Jadon and his agent Emeka”.
Under Premier League rules, clubs are not permitted to offer financial inducements to a player under 16 or any person connected with that player.
In response, City on Friday night issued the same statement they sent out after Der Spiegel alleged the club had deceived UEFA over financial fair play rules.
The statement read: “We will not be providing any comment on out-of-context materials purported to have been hacked or stolen from City Football Group and Manchester City personnel and associated people. The attempt to damage the club’s reputation is organised and clear.”
Sancho, now 18, left City in 2017 for Borussia Dortmund and has shone in the Bundesliga as well as making his senior debut for England.
