Givet in illegal agent bung probe

The front page of the Sun is dominated today by a story concerning Gael Givet's transfer to Rovers from Marseille.

FA chiefs were last night probing a £50,000 'bung' as an unlicensed middle man called Phil Black played a part in the transfer and received illegal secret payments for his role in the deal.

Givet told the News of the World - 'It felt wrong. I was very uncomfortable.'

The defender joined the Premier League side from Marseille in a £3.5million deal in 2009 after a successful loan spell prior to that.

He told the paper that Black, who is primarily known for his fashion stores and being a tailor, was very insistent in his move from France to Ewood Park and even acted as a chauffeur for the defender.

But Givet (who is described in the Sun as an 'ace') then admitted his shock at the request for payment for Black's part of the deal and eventually made the £50,000 payment in 3 slices including part cash.

FA Chiefs have stepped in and are examining the Sun's evidence including tapes and statements as they hope to investigate any wrong doings.

Givet told the Sun - 'Phil Black was the first person to contact me, texting and asking if I was interested in joining Blackburn. And he was at Liverpool airport to meet me and my agent Frederic Dobarje when we came to agree the deal.

'But that was the first time I'd met him and all he did was drive us to the ground. He never, ever came into the club or any meetings with us. I just thought he was working for Blackburn. But after I'd signed he started demanding money, saying he was due a slice of the agent's fee agreed by Blackburn with my agent.'

'Black kept on asking me for money. He kept saying he should have been paid and had received nothing. He told me he needed money because he couldn't pay his mortgage, he needed money to keep the bank off his back. 'It felt bizarre, it felt wrong and I was very uncomfortable about it, but he was very persistent. He said he'd repay me when Frederic gave him his cut of the agent's fee. I was in a strange country, I didn't know if this was usual - I didn't know who to turn to. Afterwards I felt such a fool.'

Black confirmed his role in the transfer when approached by The Sun when acting as an agent for the Rovers left back/centre back and even insisted he was due a payment for his work.

Black said of the cash sum in the same paper - 'From what he's getting - 65 grand a week - I don't think £5,000 is a big present, do you?' It is understood he later gave back £15,000. But Givet has called in lawyers and is demanding the rest back too.

Black even denied acting as an illegal agent in the deal and that he broke no FA rules.

He continued - 'It's not been a case of that. I just did it as a favour. I have been involved in football all my life - I have just helped people out.'

Football rules strictly prohibit any third party being paid for a transfer unless a licensed agent.

A spokesman for the FA said - 'We will be looking into the material and the issues that may be raised by the content provided by The Sun.'

Dodgy dealings look to be a foot here and on the whole it will again come as a blow to see someone at the club in such a negative light.

But at least the club look to be blameless, let's hope this doesn't disrupt preparations for Sunday.

This and the Kean news coming within 2 hours of each will hardly go down as a stellar evening for Blackburn Rovers.

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