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Sunday April 9, 2006

Cole's agent charged over tapping up saga

LONDON: Ashley Cole's agent has been charged with breaching Football Association and FIFA rules over the Arsenal player's illicit talks on a possible move to Premiership rivals Chelsea.

The agent, Jonathan Barnett, was effectively charged with organising the January 2005 meeting at a London hotel at which Chelsea were deemed to have made an illegal approach to England left-back Cole, who has already been fined £75,000 for attending.

Under FA Premier League rules, Chelsea should have made a formal request to Arsenal for permission to speak to Cole, which would inevitably have been denied.

Earlier this year Cole failed in a bid to have the rules governing approaches to players overturned by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS), which rejected his claim that they amounted to restraint of trade.

Chelsea and their manager Jose Mourinho did not contest fines totalling £500,000 for their part in the affair.

Barnett has until April 20th to respond to charges which could, in theory, lead to him losing his agent's license. – AFP

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