UPDATED ' Cardiff City Now to be investigated with Big Sam '

' UPDATED ' 28/09/16

Cardiff City could be the subject of an FA probe following further revelations from the newspaper investigation that led to Sam Allardyce losing the England job.

It has been alleged that Bluebirds officials failed to report evidence of unexplained payments regarding the three-month loan signing of Ravel Morrison in September 2014 from West Ham, managed at the time by Allardyce.






Exclusive: Cardiff held inquiry into deal with Sam Allardyce’s West Ham

Daily Telegraph.

Investigations team

27 SEPTEMBER 2016

Cardiff City football club launched an investigation into a player transfer after auditors discovered evidence of unexplained payments, The Daily Telegraph has learnt.


The FA is now likely to open a separate investigation into Cardiff’s failure to report it.

A loan deal involving Cardiff and West Ham United, who were managed by Sam Allardyce at the time, was examined after questions were raised over fees relating to the deal.

An agent is understood to have told the club that a payment had been agreed with Allardyce over the loan of Ravel Morrison, who moved to the Welsh club from West Ham in 2014.

How The Telegraph investigation led to Sam Allardyce's downfallPlay! 01:32
The agent involved is understood to be Pino Pagliara, who is banned from conducting transfers and often uses an intermediary to conduct his transfer business. The allegations prompted Cardiff to launch an investigation.

The club, however, failed to put the allegation to Allardyce. Neither the police nor the FA was notified. Cardiff City have confirmed the investigation. Their earlier failure to report it to the FA was an apparent breach of FA rules.

A spokesman for the club said: “Mr Pagliara was not paid by the club. We investigated the matter thoroughly.”


Ravel Morrison, left, in his West Ham playing days when Sam Allardyce, centre, was manager. The two were allegedly involved in a row over agents
The FA is now likely to open a separate investigation into Cardiff’s failure to report and Allardyce will inevitably find himself part of yet another investigation by the sport’s ruling body. The allegations were put to Allardyce and the FA on Monday but so far both have yet to respond.

Morrison was previously involved in an alleged row with Allardyce over agents, after the former West Ham manager reportedly put pressure on him to sign up with Mark Curtis, who is Allardyce’s own representative.

When the player refused to do so, he was dropped from the team, according to insiders. Cardiff City appear to have infringed the FA regulations by failing to report that it was dealing with an allegation.


The rules of the FA state that clubs “shall immediately report to the Association any incident, facts or matters which may constitute misconduct”. Multiple sources have told the Telegraph that the intermediary involved in the loan deal for Morrison was Mr Pagliara, an unlicensed agent who was banned from football for five years in 2005 for match-fixing.

A source with knowledge of Cardiff City’s investigation told this newspaper that a club official was tasked with investigating the deal for Morrison after questions were raised about the financial arrangements for the transfer.

Following a conversation between the official and Mr Pagliara, Cardiff City’s board was informed about the claim relating to Allardyce.

A more thorough internal inquiry was ordered, with an external company brought in to investigate. A source told the Telegraph that the external investigators could not find any evidence of the payment being made to Allardyce, or of any payment being made directly to Mr Pagliara, and the club wound up the inquiry.


A spokesman for Cardiff City said: “Mr Pagliara was not paid by the club. We investigated the matter thoroughly.” Allardyce has previously denied ever taking bribes for player transfers. He has so far failed to respond to questions from The Daily Telegraph.

Mr Pagliara said last night: “I never paid any payment to Sam Allardyce.” He also denied that he had told Cardiff City he had paid Allardyce. Morrison’s relationship with West Ham was already strained by the time he was loaned to Cardiff.

In 2013 it was alleged that the former Manchester United youth player, who had signed for West Ham the previous year, had fallen out with Allardyce after being put under pressure to drop his agent and instead sign as a client of Mr Curtis.

Sam Allardyce caught on camera advising how to get around FA rulesPlay! 03:42
It is understood that Morrison had asked for a pay rise towards the end of 2013, and was asked to attend a meeting with Allardyce and Mr Curtis at which he was told that he would be given an enhanced new contract if he signed with Mr Curtis.

When Morrison refused, he was dropped from the team and later loaned out to QPR. Both Mr Curtis and Allardyce denied putting pressure on Morrison when allegations first surfaced in 2013. Mr Curtis described the claims as “nonsense” and Allardyce said at the time: “There’s no truth in the fact that I have sat with Ravel Morrison and tried to press him into signing anything with any agent, never mind mine.” Morrison, 23, who now plays for the Italian club Lazio, was unavailable for comment.

Seems we did a pretty thorough investigation. Be a bloody joke if we get done for a technicality, given the amount of bullshit the FA have ignored within their own organisation recently.

This is going to be very interesting if the names of (8) other managers comes out!
Gonna get really messy and could be criminal offences. We chuckled at Sep Blatter etc - but the corruption greed and arrogance in UK football is almost as bad.

You've got to admit if its true its gross hypocrisy on our part if nothing else. We'd just spent a million ( apparently ) trying to find financial impropriety by Mackay and end up reporting him for the racist texts. In the meantime we keep schtum about this.

You've got to admit if its true its gross hypocrisy on our part if nothing else. We'd just spent a million ( apparently ) trying to find financial impropriety by Mackay and end up reporting him for the racist texts. In the meantime we keep schtum about this.

Going to be interesting

You've got to admit if its true its gross hypocrisy on our part if nothing else. We'd just spent a million ( apparently ) trying to find financial impropriety by Mackay and end up reporting him for the racist texts. In the meantime we keep schtum about this.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/09 ... -clai/amp/

well the FA allowed West Ham to stay in the Premier League with third party owned Tevez goals at Sheffield Utd's expence... so mixed messages, pot kettle... Sam doesn't appear to have done anything abnormal, even the 400k equates to less than two months England salary... and how many would disagree with what he said... not me... I'd like to see the Daily Telegraph investigated... As for City going after West Ham... What's the point, how is that going to help us score...

You've got to admit if its true its gross hypocrisy on our part if nothing else. We'd just spent a million ( apparently ) trying to find financial impropriety by Mackay and end up reporting him for the racist texts. In the meantime we keep schtum about this.

I know, unbelievable.

' UPDATED ' 28/09/16


Cardiff City could be the subject of an FA probe following further revelations from the newspaper investigation that led to Sam Allardyce losing the England job.

It has been alleged that Bluebirds officials failed to report evidence of unexplained payments regarding the three-month loan signing of Ravel Morrison in September 2014 from West Ham, managed at the time by Allardyce.

' UPDATED ' 28/09/16


Cardiff City could be the subject of an FA probe following further revelations from the newspaper investigation that led to Sam Allardyce losing the England job.

It has been alleged that Bluebirds officials failed to report evidence of unexplained payments regarding the three-month loan signing of Ravel Morrison in September 2014 from West Ham, managed at the time by Allardyce.

forget investigating that, they need to investigate where our club has gone!

Does not look good.

Unaccounted payments takes it to a criminal level.

Sam and his dealings will be central to the inevitable FA inquiry hope he keeps his mouth shit.

I am hoping that this all comes out and if proven, then these people need to be dealt with and take their punishment, and if it involves City then so be it.

Modern football is screwed on so many levels. It makes me kind of glad I walked away when the rebrand happened

Does not look good.

Unaccounted payments takes it to a criminal level.

Sam and his dealings will be central to the inevitable FA inquiry hope he keeps his mouth shit.

Does not look good.

Unaccounted payments takes it to a criminal level.

Sam and his dealings will be central to the inevitable FA inquiry hope he keeps his mouth shit.

Unaccountable payment we should of had our money back how shit he was

Lets not pretend Malky didn't take bungs when he was here, first off with the Cornelius deal.

Lets not pretend Malky didn't take bungs when he was here, first off with the Cornelius deal.

milky and moody were up to there necks init and still people defend them

Lets not pretend Malky didn't take bungs when he was here, first off with the Cornelius deal.

milky and moody were up to there necks init and still people defend them

It weren't just the texts Wez, they was taking backhanders and there was no doubt that.