Premiership Clubs Raided as Corruption Allegations Refuse To Go Away

Today's news has been led by the Police raids on 3 different football clubs as part of an investigation into corruption. The raids were carried out at Newcastle, Portsmouth and Glasgow Rangers this morning and were not related to the Lord Stevens enquiry. There's not much more that I can say about this, corruption in Football is something that is seen around the world but it should be stamped out wherever possible. These clubs may have just been associated with corrupt individuals rather then being institutionally corrupt, so it's best to wait for the Police report before we rush to any conclusions. I do think that saying it's not related to the Stevens report is an attempt to show that the Police were ahead of the game before any other inquiry, but in reality it does seem likely that Stevens report had some influence on the police investigation. Now we just have to wait for any Police findings before we cast any judgements, but I do hope that if any Club or individual is found corrupt, they are made an example of rather then what happened in Italy, where the big clubs got away with it.

A friend of mine made a good comment about the Italian club situation, saying that the big clubs bring in a lot of money and pedigree to the domestic league, and the Champions League, making it very hard for the authorities to really punish them. It's a good point, but sometimes the authorities have to make a decision that may not be in the interests of the League, but in the interests to the general image of football itself. It's a hard decision to make but if any corruption is found, it has to be punished properly, for the sake of the game.

Right, bit of a rant there, but moving on, Sunderland have signed Kieran Richardson from Man Utd for about 5.5 million pounds. Can't say I really approved of this decision, apart from that one season at West Brom, he's looked pretty average with Man Utd, but it is hard to shine when you're in and out of a team, and not getting a good run of games. Roy Keane has trained with him and seen him a lot more then I have so I hope that he's made a good decision. His signing of Chopra was also an interesting one, another player who never really shone in his time at Newcastle, but again, he did look good for Cardiff last season, and he may be a decent signing if he's allowed a good run of games. My worry would be that both players might take a while to find form, and one they do start playing well, it will be too late for Sunderland.

The Tevez transfer continues to frustrate Man Utd, but I think it's frustrated the whole of the country by now. Soon contracts will have to be signed in blood, then no-one would have any trouble sorting out transfers. Man Utd also look like they're losing Heinze, which is not a bad loss. He's looked a shadow of the player he was before his injury, so it might be best for both parties if he left. Utd have Evra and could use a reserve player for cover, and Heinze could set about getting first team football and recovering his form. Newcastle and Liverpool are possible destinations, though Utd are not keen on him heading to rivals Liverpool.

Not much else going down, but I thought I'd leave you with a little comment on one player linked with Arsenal in the papers today, Rodrigo Palacio. It's definitely only a rumour but he is someone everyone should start remembering because he looks like he's going to be a fantastic player. He's played at Boca Juniors for the past few seasons and, unlike a lot of South American footballers, has actually stayed in Argentina into his early twenties, allowing him to mature as a player. He's now 25 years old and it would be the perfect time for him to move. He's deceptively strong, he's quick and a good finisher, and I think that he would suit Premiership football. He'll definitely be a great asset for any club that comes in for him...you heard it here first!

And with that pearl of wisdom, I shall take my leave.