Organisation: The Football Association

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Analysis and commentary by Echo Research.

Luton Football Club boss Mike Newell dropped a bombshell at the launch of Coca-Cola's 'Win a Player 2' competition. Newell claimed that 'bungs' were rife and that he himself had been offered cash to sell his best players.
Newell angered a group of high-powered agents. The newly formed Football Agents Association told Newell he needed hard evidence for his accusations leading to the headline "Put up or shut up, agents tell Newell"(Daily Mail 12/1).
Several top managers and senior members of the football fraternity came out in support of the under-fire manager, but said he would find his claims hard to prove; a fact that Newell himself admitted saying he had no written proof, "It's in my head so I don't know if its going to be any use at all".
Coverage was mainly confined to the sports pages but it was said that to get to the bottom of this and make it front page news it really needed a high-powered manager to stand up and be counted.
Newell's admission may mean that finally something is done about the shady side of football. According to a 'ministerial source', "We will not allow this to be brushed under the carpet"(Daily Mirror 14/1).
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