A promise made by Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha to Harry Maguire before the Leicester City owner died in a helicopter crash could ensure the defender finally gets the go-ahead to join Manchester United.
The two clubs are haggling over a price for the England man but Sports Agenda understands that following the World Cup, Maguire and Vichai shook hands over an agreement for the player to be allowed to leave this summer if one of the big clubs should come in for him at an acceptable fee.
While obviously a sensitive situation, it may come into play should things continue to stall.
In contrast, Marko Arnautovic’s brazen attempt to leave West Ham led to his agent offering the striker to Atletico Madrid.
The Austria international enraged the Hammers with his behaviour before he was sold to Shanghai SIPG in the Chinese Super League and the club were dismayed to get only £23m for him. He had a £45m release clause in the contract he signed in January, but it expired on June 15.
Arnautovic, however, appeared to have grander designs as his brother Danijel, who manages his affairs, contacted Atletico’s sporting director Andrea Berta after the 29-year-old had handed in a transfer request and said he would be leaving.
There was, however, a problem with this grand plan. Atletico, who signed Portuguese star Joao Felix to go alongside Diego Costa, Thomas Lemar and Alvaro Morata, swiftly informed Danijel their attack was full.
There were stunned expressions among FA insiders recently when England striker Toni Duggan posted a questionable video to 367,000 followers on her Instagram account. The clip shows the 27-year-old, who is searching for a new club after leaving Barcelona, receiving a lap dance from a chap of shorter-than-average height at the outlandish Mr Miyagi’s restaurant in Dubai while she was on holiday. While all seems in good humour, perplexed FA officials have pondered what the reaction would have been had a player from the men’s team posted a similar clip. --
Daily Mail