When you open the Portuguese newspapers in the morning, there are three kind of stories you will find for sure: articles overhyping local starlets, players being linked to the Premier League and club officials accusing each other.
The third option has the most interesting read today, and it comes from Correio da Manhã, with a special interest for Newcastle United.
By now, many football fans know Bruno de Carvalho. The Sporting president is famous for saying whatever he wants to, and that’s a reason why he’s made many enemies since being elected at the club.
Now there’s a legal action going on in Portugal, launched by a former Sporting director, saying Bruno de Carvalho would be receiving a percentage of certain transfers paid by Sporting.
The main case would be of Junya Tanaka, who was reportedly offered to Sporting for €500k, but the club paid €750k, with part of this money going to Carvalho and his partners through a company in Cape Verde.
Carvalho is also accused of making trips with his daughter, his ex-wife and his current wife all with Sporting’s money. In an inauguration in Costa Rica, for example, the event took place on only one day, but the couple stayed for a week.
Anyway, what does it have to do with Newcastle United? Well, it seems the Magpies could have ended involved in this alleged dirty business this summer, but ended up pulling out.
Correio da Manhã reports that the transfer of Ruben Semedo to Newcastle United was also mentioned in the file, as it would have been made by one of the companies facing accusations.
The defender was supposed to make the transfer for €14m, which was widely reported by the time. But for some reason, the deal was called off and he moved to Villarreal for the exact same amount, leaving Rafael Benitez empty handed.
Now were Newcastle United aware of the potential controversy and chose not to be involved in this, or is it just a coincidence? With the process going on in Portugal, maybe the club will have to explain it too.
