Monaco loaned Radamel Falcao to ManU in '14.GETTY IMAGES
The latest Football Leaks revealed ManU agreed to play a "ghost match" against Monaco to give the Ligue 1 club a bonus for the loan signing of striker Radamel Falcao, according to Martyn Ziegler of the LONDON TIMES. ManU wanted to make €4M of the €10M loan fee for the Colombian "conditional on the club finishing in the top four" in the '14-15 season and qualifying for the Champions League, but French league rules "prohibit such performance bonuses." To get around those rules, ManU signed two contracts with Monaco on the same day, September 1, 2014, according to French investigative website Mediapart. The first contract was for a €6M loan fee for Falcao, and a second contract required ManU to pay €4.5M "to play a friendly match against Monaco" in July '15 if the Manchester club finished in the top four of the Premier League that season. ManU did not respond when asked for comment, while Monaco said that its contracts "all comply with the applicable law" (LONDON TIMES, 11/19). In London, James Ducker reported the contract is also reputed to have stated that €4M of the match fee "would be paid even if the friendly did not take place," provided ManU finished in the top four. ManU reportedly "ended up cancelling the friendly" on May 27, 2015, in an official letter sent by then-club Secretary John Alexander because the club was touring the U.S. that summer and Manager Louis van Gaal "did not want any more friendly games after the tour." According to the leaks, Monaco then submitted ManU a bill for €4M and requested it be paid before June 30, 2015 (TELEGRAPH, 11/19).
