Willie McKay

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Willie McKay is a Scottish football agent, based in Monaco , known for representing a number of high-profile footballers, particularly in the Premier League and Ligue 1 . His clients have included James McFadden , Joey Barton , Henri Camara , Scott McDonald , Charles N'Zogbia , and Pascal Chimbonda . He was also the agent of Scott Brown and his twin sons Jack and Paul McKay , while his elder son Mark McKay is also a registered agent. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

McKay was among several agents investigated during the Quest inquiry into football transfers but was ultimately cleared of wrongdoing. He was later awarded libel damages over related media claims. In 2011–12, he was involved in a controversial recruitment strategy at Doncaster Rovers , and in 2019, he and his son were linked to the events surrounding the tragic death of Emiliano Sala during his transfer from FC Nantes to Cardiff City .

Investigation by Quest

McKay was one of the agents investigated by the Quest team, led by Lord Stevens, which looked into allegations of "bungs" and fraud in transfers. The Daily Express claimed in December 2006 that the £8.5 million transfer of Jean-Alain Boumsong from Rangers F.C. to Newcastle United was one of the deals being examined by Quest. However Quest said of Graeme Souness, who was manager of Newcastle at the time of the Boumsong transfer, "We wish to make it clear that inconsistencies did not exist within the evidence given by Graeme Souness to Quest concerning his role in transfers covered by the Inquiry during his time as manager of Newcastle United FC and neither the Premier League nor do Quest have any concerns in this regard". [4] In the final report of the Stevens inquiry he was criticised for his failure to co-operate with the inquiry. However, Quest later issued the following statement: "Further to the key findings from the final Quest report published on 15 June 2007 by the Premier League, Quest would like to emphasise that, in that report, it was clear that no evidence of irregular payments was found in the transfers in the inquiry period which involved the agent Willie McKay. Quest would also like to thank Mr McKay for his cooperation with the inquiry". [5] On 1 February 2008 McKay won substantial libel damages against the Daily Express over false claims about his transfer dealings. [6]

November 2007 arrests

On 28 November 2007, it was reported by BBC News that McKay – together with Portsmouth manager Harry Redknapp and Managing Director Peter Storrie, former Portsmouth and then acting Leicester chairman Milan Mandaric, and former Portsmouth footballer Amdy Faye, on loan at Rangers – had been arrested by City of London Police in relation to the ongoing inquiries into allegations of corruption in football. [7] [8] McKay was among several individuals questioned during a City of London Police investigation into alleged football corruption. He was never charged, and police bail was dropped after two years.

Doncaster Rovers experiment

In Doncaster Rovers' 2011–12 season they struggled for form, failing to win any of their first seven matches. Then manager, Sean O'Driscoll, was sacked, with Dean Saunders being brought in to replace him. [9]

With the help of McKay, Doncaster Rovers brought in several "big–name" players in on loans and short-term contracts to try and rescue the club's Championship status, [10] including El Hadji Diouf, Pascal Chimbonda, Herita Ilunga, Carl Ikeme, Frédéric Piquionne, and Habib Beye. [11] Other players linked with the club included Robert Pires and the ex-Real Madrid midfielder Mahamadou Diarra. In the end, Doncaster were relegated to League One with three games still to play after a highly controversial match against Portsmouth. [12] The club's relegation led to criticism from some supporters regarding McKay's recruitment strategy, though other factors were also cited as contributing to the team's performance. At the end of the 2011–12 season, chairman John Ryan deemed the McKay "experiment" over as it "didn't work" and "wouldn't work in the third tier" anyway. [10]

Emiliano Sala

Willie McKay and his son were involved in the events surrounding the transfer and death of Emiliano Sala. [13]

References

  1. ↑ "Scotland midfielder Brown set for Celtic". 16 May 2007.
  2. ↑ Taylor, Daniel (17 February 2019). "Everything's a little too cosy in football's game of family fortunes | Daniel Taylor". The Guardian.
  3. ↑ "Willie McKay is not an agent, so why was he working on Emiliano Sala deal?". The Guardian. 22 February 2019. Retrieved 25 February 2019.
  4. ↑ "Edinburgh Evening News". Edinburghnews.scotsman.com. 26 November 2009. Archived from the original on 31 October 2007. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  5. ↑ Scott, Matt (8 November 2007). "Quest finds no irregular payments in McKay deals | News | Guardian Unlimited Football". London: Football.guardian.co.uk. Retrieved 13 January 2010.
  6. ↑ Willie McKay awarded substantial damages | Football – Times Online [ dead link ]
  7. ↑ Redknapp held in football inquiry BBC News – 28 November 2007
  8. ↑ Redknapp arrested in corruption investigation Guardian Unlimited – 28 November 2007
  9. ↑ "Dean Saunders replaces Sean O'Driscoll at Doncaster". BBC. 23 September 2011. Retrieved 23 September 2011.
  10. 1 2 "Willie McKay experiment is over – Doncaster's John Ryan". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  11. ↑ "Agent Willie McKay's plan to keep Doncaster in the Championship". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  12. ↑ "Doncaster 3–4 Portsmouth". BBC Sport. Retrieved 19 January 2013.
  13. ↑ Ronay, Barney (11 May 2019). "Emiliano Sala: season's saddest saga shines light on game's dark places | Barney Ronay". The Guardian. ISSN   0261-3077 . Retrieved 1 July 2019.
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