On The Inside

Argy-bargy at Chelsea

Chelsea are basing their controversial legal claim against sacked striker Adrian Mutu on a precedent set in a case involving Argentina's World Cup star Ariel Ortega.
Ortega, whose case was not drugs related, was sacked by Turkish club Fenerbahce in March 2003 for failing to return after an international friendly against Holland in Amsterdam a month earlier.
He then tried to sign for Argentine side Newell's Old Boys, but was prevented from doing so after Fenerbahce launched a legal claim against him seeking compensation for the £4million transfer fee they paid River Plate to sign him after the 2002 World Cup in Japan and South Korea.
At a June 2003 hearing of the dispute resolution chamber of FIFA, the world governing body, Ortega was ordered to pay Fenerbahce £6m and was banned for six months for breach of contract.
Having sacked Mutu, who was banned for seven months by the Football Association for taking cocaine last week, Chelsea instructed Jonathan Taylor of Hammonds to pursue the damages case against the player.
They claim he owes them a percentage of the £15.8m the club paid Parma when he signed last August.

Olympic ambush move

Ministers are planning a new Olympic bill if London wins the race to host the 2012 Olympics next year. The Government has already introduced one special piece of legislation, the Olympic Lottery bill, which is set for Royal Assent in the next few weeks.
Once passed, a series of new games and draws will be set up to help fund the staging of the Olympics. But now the Government is planning a second bill to protect the Olympic rings and other official logos from ambush marketing. The International Olympic Committee's rules state that all host cities must have in place extensive statutory protection for Olympic symbols to guard against their use by companies who haven't paid for the right to be official partners.

Why FA cleared Becks

The Football Association's decision to let David Beckham off scot-free despite his admission that he deliberately set out to foul Ben Thatcher in the World Cup qualifier against Wales last month, was announced, amazingly, as being due to "insufficient evidence".
But, according to one FA source, the England captain was cleared after the FA's compliance unit realised they did not have jurisdiction to punish him.
As a World Cup fixture, the match at Old Trafford came under the auspices of FIFA, the world governing body, and officials at the FA were worried Beckham would launch a potentially damaging legal challenge against any misconduct charge.

No rush at Soho Square

The independent review into the way the FA are run, meanwhile, will not be complete before the end of the season, according to one insider at Soho Square.
Despite an increasingly bitter struggle between the Premier League and amateur-game factions on the board, directors are said to be unanimous in agreement that a strong chief executive should be appointed before the end of November and well before the review is complete.
Ipswich chairman David Sheepshanks, National Game chairman Roger Burden and FA chair Geoff Thompson make up a panel sifting through possible candidates to chair the independent review. But former BBC director general Greg Dyke is not on the list, despite rumours that he was set for the post.

Wenger's window pain

Managers often moan they don't enjoy the same earning power as their players, but now Arsene Wenger would like to see them extended the same protection in the marketplace, too.
The Arsenal manager would like the transfer window concept extended to coaches as well as players. He said: "I'm disturbed by the number of managers who lose their jobs despite putting their heart and soul into the game.
"I would ask those in authority to show a little more patience. Maybe there should be a transfer window for coaches, not just for players."

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