Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1085429
31 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 24 FEBRUARY 2019 SPORTS FOOTBALL FORMULA 1 MANCHESTER City made a banned payment of £200,000 to Jadon Sancho's agent when the England winger was 14 years old, according to Der Spiegel. The German magazine claims City made the payment to Emeka Obasi when they signed Sancho, now at Borussia Dort- mund, from Watford in March 2015. Football Association rules say young players cannot be repre- sented by an agent until the year they turn 16. "The attempt to damage our reputation is organised and clear," City said. "We will not be providing any comment on out-of-context materials purported to have been hacked or stolen from City Football Group and Manches- ter City personnel and associ- ated people." London-born Sancho, 18, joined City as a 14-year-old, when the Premier League champions paid £66,000 in compensation to Watford. Rules also state clubs are not permitted to offer financial in- ducements to a player under 16. Der Spiegel - which has pub- lished a series of revelations in recent months, including alle- gations City deceived Uefa over financial fair play (FFP) rules - claims the club wrote a letter to Sancho's father which outlined how much they were willing to pay the player once he turned professional. The magazine also says a City lawyer was "alarmed" the letter could be deemed as a financial offer and therefore breaking the rules about offering induce- ments. Der Spiegel alleges City paid £200,000 to Obasi as part of a scouting contract to find players in central and South America. It claims the payment was in fact in relation to Sancho's transfer from Watford. Sancho never made a first- team appearance for City before moving to German giants Dort- mund for £8m in August 2017. He has been one of the star players for the Bundesliga lead- ers this season, with the club describing him as "one of the most exciting players in Eu- rope" when they announced he had signed a new long-term contract in October. In April 2017, Liverpool were fined £100,000 by the Premier League and handed a two-year ban on signing academy play- ers from other clubs for offering inducements to a 12-year-old academy player at Stoke City. Man City 'made banned £200,000 Jadon Sancho agent payment' London-born Sancho, 18, joined City as a 14-year-old THREE McLaren personnel had to be treated at the medical centre at Spain's Circuit de Catalunya after a fire in the team's garage. McLaren said the team members were "re- leased shortly after" being admitted follow- ing what was said to be "a small fire" that was "quickly extinguished". The car was stripped down and checked for damage, and none was found. The fire is not expected to affect McLaren's involvement in next week's final pre-season test at the track. McLaren and other teams were taking part in a private filming day at the circuit north of Barcelona. The first pre-season test finished on Thurs- day, and the final one starts on 26 February. McLaren: Three staff members treated after garage fire in Barcelona McLaren's Lando Norris in pre-season testing in Barcelona