Bung inquiry extended
02 Oct 2006 - 16:31:14
Lord Stevens has been given another two months to complete his inquiry into football corruption so that he can investigate 39 transfers involving eight clubs.
The former commissioner of the Metropolitan Police has already examined 362 transfers which took place between 1 January 2004 and 31 January 2006 but wants more time to take a longer look at some of those transfers.
"I've briefed all of the chairmen and chief executives of Premier League clubs and this interim report remains a work in progress," said Lord Stevens.
"Quest, under my leadership, has managed to examine 362 transfers and reduced that down from that to 39.
"They are within the English game and require further investigation before I'm prepared to sign them off. These involve eight league teams.
"The work conducted led me to make a number of observations regarding administration and monitoring of the transfer market. These were made to the chairman and chief executive of the Premier League.
"Once the inquiry is complete we will report these as recommendations for consideration by the league. I would like to express gratitude to the clubs and regulatory bodies and others involved in the game for their unanimous support."
The Premier League's chief executive Richard Scudamore said: "This is something Premier League clubs wanted to do, and has been done with full support of the clubs who wanted a thorough, professional and credible process to deal effectively with any irregular transfer payments.
"We have as a group unanimously agreed to extend the period of inquiry by two months in order to investigate transfers that are in need of further investigation."
