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Malky Mackay and agent Phil Smith have settled their differences after the pair became embroiled in a text message controversy that cost Mackay the Crystal Palace job.
As part of a £750,000 investigation launched by Cardiff City owner Vincent Tan, a series of racist, sexist and homophobic messages between Mackay and head of recruitment Iain Moody were found dating back to their time together at the Welsh club.
Both were sacked prior to the discovery amid claims of excessive spending in the transfer market. When the allegations were made public, Moody resigned from his position as sporting director at Palace, who also decided against appointing Mackay as manager in the wake of the revelations.
Smith was allegedly the subject of one exchange which included the sentence: “Go on, fat Phil. Nothing like a Jew that sees money slipping through his fingers”.
It is understood that Smith and Mackay have only met each other a handful of times - suggesting Moody is more likely to have sent the disparaging text about Smith - and are now keen to forge a stronger working relationship in future.
They both attended last night’s Capital One Cup match between Arsenal and Southampton and Smith told Standard Sport: “What’s done is done. Everybody wants to move on now. I can’t say I agree with what was said but agents deal at the sharp end of football and often things are said in the moment and especially when taken out of context they can look bad. Malky and I don’t know each other that well but I look forward to working with him in the future.”
