The Irons are this morning reported as leaving themselves open to’ conflict of interests’ charges after a sports management agency became a secondary shirt sponsor of their Women’s Super League team.
Unique Sports Management are listed as having four members of Manuel Pellegrini’s first-team squad as clients – Antonio, Cresswell, Obiang and Fredericks and the Mail reports that according to information published by the FA last year, were involved in five transactions with the club between February 1, 2017, and January 31, 2018.
Cheik Kouyate is also on the firm’s books and was of course involved in a move to Palace from the Irons during the summer.
The Mail claims ‘the partnership with the women’s team has raised fears among agents of other players at the club over what they consider to be the growing influence of USM boss Will Salthouse.’
And the report adds that two agents admitted to Sportsmail that the deal makes them nervous.
One is reported as saying – in claiming a conflict of interest: ‘It just feels a bit too cosy.’
ClaretandHugh says: It’s a storm in a teacup of course but one that the Hammers might have done well to avoid. It’s a given that the media at large see the Irons as easy pickings for a snipe or ten and this seems to be the case here. It aims criticism at the club from unnamed agent sources whose only interest seems to be that one of their own may be getting a bit stronger than they might appreciate. On the other hand it is easy to see why they might get the hump given the amount of business USM do with the Hammers who could in all probability have found another outfit ready to stick in a few bob to the womens’ team which is becoming quite a decent outfit. We report it because it’s Hammers related it and we see no wrongdoing here – seems more a marriage of convenience.
Not the first time a conflict of interests has been attached to this agency. Obviously we all know will Salthouses links to David Sullivan plus also Steve parish at Crystal Palace. Thus the agency has a lot of West Ham and Crystal Palace players on its books. I seem to remember there was an accusation of conflict of interests aimed at the son of Neil warnock, James warnock who was working for unique sports management as an agent at the same time his dad was the manager of Crystal Palace a few years back.