YAYA AGENT: NOT HEARD FROM PREM
THE former agent of Yaya Toure has NOT been contacted by the independent commission investigating the Premier League’s 115 charges against Manchester City.
One of the most serious allegations levelled against the reigning champions is that they failed to provide full details of payments made to players between 2010 and 2016.
And German publication Der Spiegel claims to have a paper trail that proves how City’s owners directly financed image rights payments totalling £7.4million to Toure during his time at the Etihad.
Such financial obligations should have been met by City, not Sheikh Mansour’s Abu Dhabi United Group.
It is understood that Der Spiegel’s allegations of impropriety at the club – based on millions of illegally-accessed documents provided by Portuguese computer hacker Rui Pinto – are central to the Premier League’s contention that City failed to meet their profit and sustainability rules (PSR) over a nineyear period.
But Dimitri Seluk, the outspoken agent who guided Toure on his journey to become one of world’s most famous players, has revealed that he has not yet been asked to provide evidence about the matter.
Seluk (right) said: “I haven’t been contacted by the Premier League or anyone else dealing with these issues about Manchester City.
“Can I remember every single detail? Not 100 percent because we are talking about negotiations that took place almost 15 years ago, not in the last three months.
“But I know what has been said about Yaya’s contract with City – and what I can tell you is that absolutely everything was done very cleanly, very honestly and with full transparency. Nothing was done under the table.
“If they want to speak to me, then they must contact my lawyer. But there is nothing to find because nothing is there.” Seluk brokered Toure’s £24m move to City from Barcelona in 2010 as well as several contracts for the Ivorian.
Pressure is growing for the Premier League’s case against City to be judged by the commission after a decision to dock Everton 10 points over PSR. It has been mooted that the Blues could be relegated if found guilty.
But the scale of the charges levelled against last season’s Treble winners in February – and the club’s stance that they are innocent – means the legal process is likely to drag on for years.
City also say they have “a comprehensive body of irrefutable evidence” on the 115 charges and “look forward to this being put to rest once and for all”.